Been there, blah blah, blah,...Part Zwei

In the last exciting installment, I told of trips off to Bicester, Newbury, Daventry, and the chippy. In this edition we're off to Solihull, the home of the National Motorcycle Museum or to make it easier on arthritic fingers, the NMM.

Upon leaving home for Brum, due care and attention was required for a couple of reasons, the main one being that it was foggy as all get out, as well as not being familiar with the route though I did  have a good idea where I was going.

Anyway, back to the plot (if there ever was one), once on the M40 heading North it was fairly foggy....that is until I crossed the county line into Warwickshire from Oxfordshire and then the fog lifted and then it was plain sailing.

After a short bit, it was time to take to the M42 which goes to Solihull. Then it was a case of waiting for the exit to come into view, which it did. After getting off the motorway, a trip around the roundabout was made and of course muggins took the WRONG exit which he discovered as he went onto a slip road while seeing the sign to the NMM at the NEXT exit.

So after doubling back and taking the RIGHT exit at the roundabout, I pulls into the parking lot roughly 45 minutes after leaving the hoose. And about 15 minutes after that Kawa pulls in and parks up near my ride.

After exchanging pleasantries, we enter the NMM and start to have a poke around before paying our admission into the exhibit halls. A point of information for future reference, they knock off a bit if you are a member of the VCMCC, which were both are, so that makes it even better.

We both took pictures of some of the finest examples of British craftsmanship that were produced during the last century, all the while having a natter aboot stuff.

To start off I got piccies of the ones I really wanted such as the Triumph/BSA DOHC 350s, Triumph 1000 Quadrent, The Texas Cigar Triumph streamline operated by Johnny Allen as well as a X75 Hurricane that IMO was the finest looking machine ever put out by a motorcycle company, ever.

There were also some examples of some that were prototypes of some machines that should've been put into production such as a Norton 900cc Trisolastic which was a Norton with a Triumph/BSA triple basically as as a BSA 750 Gold Star II triple and a BSA B50 in an isolastic frame.

After a bit it was time to have a bite of food so we got ticket thingies that got us back into the exhibit halls an went upstairs to the eating area. After some bacon and sausage butties and tea, back we went for some more looking and drooling  (on my part anyway).

All of these could've extended the life of the British motorcycle companies for a few more years while newer, fresher designs and concepts were thought of, assembles, tested and put into production. But it was not to be as we all know.

I took several piccies of the racing triples piloted by my hero's of the day, Ray Pickrell, John Cooper, Percy Tait and Gene Romero. Also several of the John Player Nortons raced by Peter Williams, Mick Grant and Dave Croxford. And not to forget one that was a legend in it's own time, "Slippery Sam".

In the next posting after I get the pics all sized smaller for easier uploading will be all these mentioned as well as the "Copper Knob", "Flying Banana", "Hog Slayer", and a few others.

After spending a couple of hours, Kawa and myself both had to leave. But prior to that I had to make a stop in he gift shop on premises to pick up a few trinkets such as a book on BSA Unit Singles and a few postcards. Then it was back on to the motorways for the two of us to our respective destinations; back to Banbury and Kings Sutton for me and Stafford and Squires Cafe for Kawa.

The rest of the trip home was spent relaxing, driving about and seeing old friends here and there. Did pick up a few necessities such as a Campbell Cooper waxed cotton jacket similar to a Belstaff/Barbour from F2 Motorcycles in Middleton Cheney, a call to the VCMCC got an order placed for a book on the TT as well as a mug for supping tea from, a tube of Solvol, Chocolate Digestives, shortbread, Mars bars, teabags and for some of the women at work some huge bars of Cadburys Dairy Milk and Roasted Nut. All of which I managed to pack into the already cramped bags I had.

I now it's been 30 years since I left and two years since I had last been back, but things had changed quite a bit. Towns and villages themselves are still as they were for the most part, the roadways have expanded due to the volume of traffic which seems to have exploded and the same with consumer prices.

A good example was the price of fuel; I rented a small Ford Fiesta car and had to completely fill it up once. Fuel was GBP1.16 a liter/roughly $2 a quart or about $8 a US gallon and as I put in 34 liters, it came out to about $70 for 13 gallons. And people here in the US complain about paying $2.50 a gallon. An order for cod and chips from the chippy was nearly GBP7.00, that's nearly $12 or so.

I think the next trip will be just for a week and that'll be for a Haggis Run along with a tour of the Highlands and Inverary.

The next posting will have a few pictures once I can get them re-sized for easier uploading. Until then....keep on keeping on.