22 Somersham Wheelie Fun Day
STOMCC goes Somersham Wheelie Fun Day ‘22
What a blast! … and we didn’t even take full advantage of all that was offered, because your social secretary didn’t really think it through. So, this is advertised as a Saturday family fun-fair on the village green, where they invite classic cars and bikes, bike clubs and all sorts wheel related, like the Copdock team, to show off their assets. There is music, stalls, BBQ, bar and much more, as it ought to be. We were invited before, pre-pandemic, and because it’s between Ipswich and Needham Market it was an easy ‘Yes’. We went in the morning, by 10AM we had our gazebo up and just enjoyed the day. When I received the invite now, it was an easy ‘Yes!’ again. I remembered that it was fun and easy to accommodate, and they offered camping for the night before. The Vice and myself enjoy a bit of that, so it was a done deal! Later on, Sue and Mark decided for camping, too, and my lovely dad, who is visiting me in a blooming big camper van, was invited along as well.
Goodness me, those organisers are easy going and light handed. Whatever I asked, the answer was: “Yup, no problem, the more the merrier, 7m camper? No problem, all good”. So, we arrived Friday 5-ish, parked dad up under the trees, grouped our tents and the gazebo around it, lined up the bikes and Andy’s beloved Tabitha, the side car outfit, and made our way to the pub where Mark already had booked us a table. The Duke of Marlboro is a lovely community pub at less than 10 minutes walking distance. The food turned out to be absolutely delicious and guess what? They do a breakfast on the Saturday’s from 9AM. That turned out to be lovely, too; so, enquiries regarding a Saturday breakfast run have already been undertaken!
After some more of our own beers and ciders under the gazebo, we went to bed relaxed and happy. Coming back from breakfast the next morning, the calm green had turned into a vibrant and colourful fair ground, and Steve, Dough, and Colin had arrived while the Copdock guys were just about to set up opposite. Julian, although on Copdock duty, parked his brand-new Tiger with us, making it a very impressive line-up that attracted a lot of attention during the day. Stephen popped in for a little while, and as promised by the organisers, coming and going was not a problem, and very safe.
Music playing from a lorry trailer, smells of BBQ, cakes and coffee wafting, we enjoyed the sunshine and did what we do best: Eating cakes and networking. Keep your eyes peeled for more info about the ‘Suffolk Advanced Motorcyclists’. Your social secretary is invited to give a presentation about the club, the branch and what we do, to their members, and I fully intend to have them return the favour telling us a bit more about how to organise runs safely. After all, they are the guys who do all the marshalling for the Copdock fun runs besides others. Well, and then it was time to pack up, and that is when yours truly hadn’t really cottoned on about the opportunities: It said on the flyer that the event ends at 10PM!!! We numpties could have stayed over another night and had a proper rally. Unfortunately, we all had other commitments on the Sunday and couldn’t stay ad-hock. So, we had a word with Andy, the organiser: We are booked for next year! Same camping spot, as many tents as we want, for one or two nights, no fees, just purchase of a lot of raffle tickets and a lot of beers. Yay! I think we made friends there, we talked to people from the village and they love it there because it’s all about community: Community Pub, Community Shop, Community Fair, and they adopted us as part of it. So, thanks again to all of you who came and made this happen. It’s wonderful to not just have our lovely branch community back, but to feel grounded in the area we live in.