Derek Hayward, a professional photographer, took lots of pictures of the recent 2011 Manchester Salvation Army Toy Run of which this is an example.  You can view on his website by clicking here.

You can also purchase higher resolution images from Derek by contacting him using the phone number at the bottom of the page of photos.

The turnout is reported to have been down a bit on last year but there were plenty of GoldWings, the weather was good and a great time was had by all.

Well done Jim and Tracy Cretney, the Organisers, and of course the Caterers of the Salvation Army for the excellent bacon butties.

No doubt there will be another Toy Run next year and I’ll publish information about it on this Blog.

If anyone wishes to contact Jim or Tracy please use the Contact Page on this Blog and I’ll pass the message on.

Click on the image for an enlarged view

The annual Salvation Army Toy Run through Manchester is a popular event which attracts support from lots of  bikers and it will be happening again this year on Saturday November 19th.

The starting point is once again the car park of the Showcase Cinema on Hyde Road Manchester, assembling by 11 am and departing at 11.25 promptly for the Trafford Centre, where as continues………

Click on the image for an enlargement

Rememberance Sunday is held in UK on the Sunday closest to November 11th each year, the day on which the first World War ended in 1918.  All over the Country and indeed all over the Commonwealth, people will be either gathering, at chirches or at war memorials, to pay their respects to those who gave their lives for our freedom.  At 11 am a two minute silence will be observed by a big chunk of the population, even if it’s in their own home rather than at a public gathering.

The Riders Branch of the Royal British Legion has grown rapidly since its formation in 2004 and currently has over 5,000 members.  The Branch have raised a great deal of money for the Poppy Fund, the Legion’s way of supporting serving and ex-servicemen and women who are in need.  Over £70,000 has already been raised during the current (2011/12) fundraising year.

You don’t have to be ex-Service yourself to join the Legion Riders and they have a network of local groups, so there will be one somewhere near you.  The primary purpose of the Branch is to raise money for the Poppy Fund but they do have fun as bikers while they’re doing it.  You can find out more by visiting the very informative RBLRB Website.

Lots of RBLR Members, or Legion Riders, as they are also known, will be involved in Remembrance Sunday activities and in Southsea, Hampshire, the Branch is organising a special remeberance event to which all bikers, including scooter and moped riders, are welcome.

For more details of the gathering at the Southsea War Memorial  click on the image of their poster, which illustrates this announcement.

Click on the image for an enlarged view

The Royal British Legion Riders Branch are organising an A666 Ride again this year starting from the Petre Arms at Langho and ending at Manchester Cathedral (where there will be organised bike parking) where a special (short) service will be conducted by a genuine bishop.

Arrive by 9am, depart 9.45am.

Nice Badge

Following the Service there will be a move towards the Boothtown Royal British Legion Branch for what’s described as an “all night party” beginning at 6pm.

All riders are welcome and you will be invited (possibly expected) to donate £5 to the Poppy Appeal in return for which you will be given a “666″ Badge.

I did this Ride last year and it’s good spectator value, even though the A666 gets a bit urban and boring as you get close to Manchester.  I particularly enjoyed watching ex-military bikers trying to turn the years back by standing up straight and holding their stomachs in as they stood or strutted around.

A worthy cause, good riding experience trying to ride among a vast array of different sorts of two wheeled vehicles and some good biker company – and you get to park in Central Manchester free and have a stroll around even if you don’t fancy the Service or the “All Night Party” afterwards.

Contact for futher information is Jimmy Torrance:

0161 434 5620 or 07946 700702

A worthy successor to the Blackpool Light Parade

The Lllandudno Light Parade, which takes place next Saturday, October 1st, is shaping up to be a worthy successor to the famous Blackpool event with a welcoming approach to all Wingers.  There is already a long list of sponsors, including two main traders in GoldWing accessories, Appleyards and Knutsford Motorcycles, both of whom are expected to attend.

The Event Hotel, the Evans Hotel has been fully booked for some time but there are plenty of other hotels in Llandudno where you can stay, from budget to luxury.  There is also a camping site if you’d prefer to camp – tent, camper or caravan, all are welcome.  You will be equally welcome to come to LLandudno just for the day.

The Organisers have made it clear that this is a GoldWing occassion for all Wingers, regardless of club affiliation, so everyone will be welcome.

There will be a static display on Llandudno’s excellent wide Promenade during the afternoon followed, as darkness falls, by the Parade through the Town and then another static display during which the Best Lit Bikes will be judged.  There’s a guided ride out on Sunday to a biker cafe in a scenic place too, starting early enough to let you get home but late enough to enjoy a bit of a lie in as well.

The weather forecast is looking very good and the sociability forecast is excellent – if you’re fed up of club politics and would like to get back to enjoying your Wing in the company of other Wingers, this is the place to be to round off the 2011 Season.  You’ll certainly be safe from club politics here!

Full details are available on the Llandudno GoldWing Light Parade website.

We’ve had some poor riding weather in the North West recently so tomorrow offers a chance to get out again.

Together with a few other Wingers from GoldWings North West I’ll be going on a charity ride out from Heysham near Morcambe to Lower Bentham via Kirkby Lonsdale and Hawes, a totoal of about 70 miles.  We’ll meet at a school in Heysham departing at 11am, then call at the Bull Beck Lay By near Caton at about 11.25am, then Devils bridge at Kirkby Lonsdale at 11.45 until 12 noon for a quick brew, then  via Sedburgh and Kirkby Steven to Hawes for lunch then to the Punch Bowl at Lower Betham.

You can rendezvous with us at Forton Services Northbound at 0945, Trumacar Primary School, Combermere Rd, Higher Heysham, Morecambe, LA3 2ST, leaving at 11am,  Bull Beck Lay By just after at Caton leaving at 11.25,  Devil’s bridge Kirkby Lonsdale leaving at 12 noon.

All bikers welcome so it doesn’t have to be a GoldWing.

Donations of £5 per bike are invited and the money will go to MedEquip4Kids who raise money to help fund invaluable medical equipment and facilities for children’s wards, neo-natal units and community health care teams across the North of England.

Crossing the Line

Another day another long ride, this time by no means the longest in distance, but by far the hardest ride because it involved climbing the Alps.

Leaving Geneva was complicated because the car had been too tall to go into the Hotel Car Park.  Fortunately Ben & Doug wanted to use it to try to find a cycle shop so they took the problem of parking it off my hands.  They couldn’t find a cycle shop by driving round and the story was that they found themselves touring the red light district instead, entirely by accident of course.  Likewise I suppose visiting a gay bar was an accident too, although as a fit-looking and sun-tanned couple of chaps they would presumably have blended in fairly well.

Eventually they cadged a parking disk from a friendly policeman (perhaps he thought they were a nice continues………

Ben's new blue tyres

A shorter distance today but the Team faced its first big climb – over the Jura Mountains and then downhill into Switzerland.  No rain today, which was welcome; the preparations for departure were made in warm sunshine.

These followed the familiar pattern except that Ben had got up early to fit his new blue tyres. Pearsey also fitted the matching rear tyre he’s been angling for and even Doug seemed to have fallen for the need to be trendy ion the wheel department.

And speaking of trendy, Tom must have quietly decided that his new girlie shades were a bit to girlie and he bought himself another pair of really cool white framed racing shades.  And he gave his bike a thorough cleaning before today’s ride too.   The Reflon pair which I chose for him have been relegated to the car and Tom announced that he would make a present of them to his girl friend Natalie.  The bad news, if you’re reading this Natalie, is that not only is Tom planning to give you a second hand, not-trendy-enough-for-Tom pairs of shades as a present – I was kidding about the free powder puff too.

Spirits were high as they set off, although privately they must have wondered how they would cope with the climb which faced them – a mere rehearsal of the climb they face on the last day but it is nevertheless to over 1100 meters, so higher than Britain’s biggest mountain, Ben Nevis. continues………

A dry(ish) start and warm so no waterproofs

As I woke up in our Hotel in Gray the Town was living well up to its name and there was no break in the sky at all – it was raining heavily outside.  This was most unwelcome because rain apparently makes for difficult riding conditions – the big races are apparently called off if it rains heavily – so it was very much with fingers crossed as well as creaking joints that I got myself up and going.  I’m not doing any riding but I was stiff and uncomfortable this morning so my in-built weathervane was telling me to expect wet weather too.

The Hotel breakfast turned out to be a very simple affair consisting of a piece of baguette and a croissant with a hot drink of your choice.  This was plenty for me and seemingly also for the substantial number of working men who had shared the Hotel with us that night – but nowhere near enough for our calorie-burning athletes.

Fortunately my  food stocks from the previous day’s lunch which we didn’t eat were to hand so I could supply the Team with cheese, meat and of course bananas.  They did not go hungry.

The rain went light and intermittent while we were preparing for departure which helped a lot because at this Hotel the car was parked in the open and inevitably piles of bags, bottles of water, energy drink powders and other requisites are spread about and had the rain not rele3ted during this phase we would continues………

Suggestions please - what's Doug saying to Pearsey?

Pleasant sunshine and being able to park the car in the Hotel’s private courtyard made the preparations and departure fairly straightforward and I kept out of the way for a change, so I could finish off yesterday’s report and post it on the Blog.  For once I had slept until after 6am – and so therefore had Ben so I was behind the game.  There was another small difficulty checking out of the Hotel after the Team left but nothing too serious, so I was on my way fairly quickly too.

The Team were in good heart, boosted I suppose by yesterday’s fast and not too punishing ride over a similar distance.  there was talk of more hills today, but they were distinctly upbeat.

Our unsmiling host who had been dubbed Laughing Harry, not entirely fairly because I did see him smile in a sickly sort of way, was mean with his ice.  He was not mean in other respects (the breakfast  was very good) so I suppose he was either ill equipped to make ice or incredibly mean with it.  All he was prepared to let me have for our cool box was a dozen or so ice cubes.  I have yet to find anywhere in France a source of bagged ice.  The supermarkets simply don’t stock it.  If anyone out there has any suggestion they would be well received.

But I was at least able to stock up with baguettes before leaving the Town – and some pastries as a continues………