Distinguish Gentleman's Ride; 2026
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Where's Allen?
Earlier in the year I was on Facebook when I saw a posting from Allen Millyard saying he would be entering the 2026 Bournemouth and Poole Distinguished Gentleman's Ride. I follow Allen's YouTube videos and have a lot of respect for the man so I thought why not enter and get to meet one of my heroes? Getting to meet Allen while raising a bit of money for men's mental health and prostate cancer was too good an opportunity to miss.
The 2026 Bournemouth and Poole DGR took place on May 17 with around 1099 motorbikes starting from Poole Quay at 10:00 on a sunny Sunday morning. Apparently now that the Bournemouth airshow is deceased it's the biggest event of the year for the area. I was riding a Honda NT1100A which didn't really fit with the DGR theme which is more about classic and modern takes on classic motorbikes. Anyway, there were motorbikes of all marques and models present. Quite a sight. I did make some effort to go with the DGR theme by slipping my old tweed jacket over my summer riding gear. I looked all around for him at the start but, no Allen?
The route first took us through Poole Park and followed by a loop around Sandbanks past the ferry. Then it was through Canford Cliffs, past Branksome Chine Beach and through Westbourne and Bournemouth until we came to the BIC and rode from there along the promenade to park up by Bournemouth Pier. Still no sign of Allen? Around midday, we left the pier and rode through Boscombe and Southbourne to park up on Christchurch Highstreet. Again, Allen was still AWOL? By this time there was a lot more traffic about and the going was very slow on the Bournemouth to Christchurch leg. The NT1100 was blowing hot air on my legs as the fan kept kicking in. I'm glad I didn't take my Blackbird as I originally intended. It really would have suffered. After Christchurch Highstreet it was a nice blast down the Christchurch bypass on the way to New Milton and Sammy Miller's Motorcycle Museum. There was lots going on there and entry was half price for people on the DGR. I asked a DGR marshal if he had seen him and looked all around the museum grounds for him but, you guessed it, still no Allen?
The DGR had been well publicised and there was a good crowd to cheer us on along the route which was very nice. The little kids were well up for it. You had to be careful not to rear end the rider in front of you as you waved back to people. I really enjoyed it. The weather also had the good grace to hold out until the ride finished but I did get wet on the ride home. I managed to raise a tidy sum for the DGR thanks to the generosity of the people who sponsored me. Much appreciated. Worldwide, 1070 Distinguished Gentleman's Rides were held on the 17th May in 109 countries with a total of 121,959 riders participating. As of the 20th May these rides have raised a total of £5,370,269 for men's health. Of this, 67 rides were held in England with 12,979 participating riders raising £1,097,169. Scotland held 6 rides with 730 riders raising £91,689, Wales held 6 rides with 615 riders raising £40,739 and Northen Ireland held 1 ride with 231 riders raising £3,063. So, for the UK as a whole that's a grand total of £1,232,660 raised by 14,555 riders in 80 rides. Not bad! Around a quarter of the worldwide money raised. After New York the Bournemouth and Poole DGR is the biggest ride in the world with 1099 rides raising £109K. A big shout out for the guys who organised the Bournemouth and Poole DGR, the volunteers who did such a good job marshalling it, Sammy Miller's Motorcycle Museum and finally for Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole for putting up with us clogging up their streets and venues.
So, where was Allen? When I got home, I got onto his Facebook account to see if he had posted anything about why he was missing. Turns out the poor bloke was rear ended while out on his Pan European and is on Doctor's orders to rest up having suffered injuries to his arm and leg. Get well soon Allen and hope to see you at the next DGR.