National Rally; July 2000
Overcooked Clutch
A few that have done the National Rally have said never again but Trevor & I decided we would give it another go, and this time go for the Platinum award, which involved some initial tests before the rally started. We also managed to persuade Hugh Williams & Dave Sandford into entering but unfortunately John Torring had to withdraw due to work commitments.
For those who do not know what is involved, the rally starts at 14:00 on Saturday and finishes at 10:00 on Sunday. Yes, that means on Saturday night you don't sleep. The instructions include a network of check points with connecting distances. The idea is to visit the maximum number of check points making the connecting distances add up to exactly 540 miles. There are also lettered controls that have to be visited within the first 235 miles as they close at 22:00 and you have to take an hours break before travelling more than 200 miles.
Three weeks before the rally Trevor's BMW decided it was not going to be kept up all night and the gearbox went, so it was a quick decision to go on the Honda and order a tank bag and a fly screen for the long journey. The instructions arrived just over a week before the rally and the maps were laid out over several evenings before an agreed route was sorted. We printed out each leg and three nights before the rally realised the first check point did not open until 22:00.
It was back to the drawing board and plan a new start point. It's great what computers can do for you. Trev & I had to start somewhere near Leicester as we had the tests at a MIRA centre at Hinckley.
Seven o'clock Saturday morning we set off from Corfe Mullen in pouring down rain for Hinckley, and arrived a little damp at around 10 'ish. The tests involved travelling around a test track at an allocated average speed and through a speed camera at 30 something. The straight was most enjoyable at 120mph. Another was the 1 in 4 hill start, and my Yamaha did not want to know. The clutch played up and would not disengage which resulted in me being pushed backwards down the steep incline as I couldn't go backwards or forwards. This was not the start to the rally I wanted and I had visions of saying goodbye to Trev. A little adjustment and everything seemed OK, but the hill start I wisely abandoned, as we had another 600 miles before our finish point. We completed the tests and took some lunch before the gruelling journey through the afternoon and on through the night.
We arrived at our start point, a lay-by just south of Kegworth. Trev decided to lubricate the chain. A BMW & Honda Pan rider watched in amazement as if a deodorant was being sprayed onto the rear of a Honda because it had some personal hygiene problem.
Two o'clock and the journey began to Leicester, and eventually out to Grantham & Cranwell, up to Ollerton, Chesterfield and over to my home country the Peak District where it was bound to greet us with rain. It was then over the Cat & Fiddle (well nearly over) on to Congleton and out towards Chester. We were only managing to keep 1/2 hour ahead of our estimated times and when we arrived for our 1 hours rest we had lost it because we couldn't find the check in. Trev decided to ask someone for directions. "Itsss dhaaarnn there byye therr roundaabouut, turn righttt" he replied with a strong smell of afternoon beer. "That roundabout is traffic lights" replied Trev, "Oh yeaah" says the drunk.
If we had carried straight on our check point was just 100yds down the road, as it was we travelled another 2 miles searching. We arrived at a little Café by the side of a canal and ordered Meat & Potato Pie, Chips & peas, as bikers do. Well refreshed it was time for the Honda deodorant to come out again and it was done very discretely so as not to attract too much attention.
It was now 9 o'clock and time to set off for the journey overnight. On to the Potteries and then up to Ashbourne, Rugely, skirt Birmingham and down to Meriden. It was now just past midnight and the heavens opened. After a good soaking we arrived at Meriden and then travelled up the Motorway to Wolverhampton and then on to Sutton Maddock services for our next 1 hour break. What good planning a services for our 1 hour break, nice cup of coffee and maybe a breakfast at 3 in the morning. No chance it was closed and all that existed was a caravan for the check in. An hours break and it was then out to Ironbridge and on to Church Stretton where the fog came down and deer were at the side of the road. I was very tired after this leg, 25 miles in thick fog on a B road with no cats eyes and barely a white line. We travelled on towards Ludlow and over Clee Hill with beautiful views of the valley filled with early morning mist.
Nothing impresses Trev at this time of the morning though. "Did you see the deer"?, "What dear (sorry I mean deer), I didn't see the sheep until you started slowing down" (there were only 150 of them). It was now 5 o'clock and for once the sun was shining. Only 5 more check-ins before that cooked breakfast. We arrived at the Heritage Motor Centre at Warwick at 9 o'clock to find Dave & Hugh had already finished their bacon & eggs etc. We picked up our wonderful trophies which Dave was well impressed with, and queued for breakfast only to find a guy with a Platinum trophy had completed the journey on a Honda C90.
We spent the night in the Cotswolds, had a great curry Sunday evening with a few sherbets and planned next years rally. Trev & I were left stranded 3 miles from our guest house, as we could not get a taxi and finished up being taken home by the Indian waiter. The next day Hugh led the ride home, down to Marlborough for tea & stickies and then home through some good B roads. Will we do it again next year?
Well we are still smiling.
Alan Brown