Win! Tickets to the Bristol Classic Bike Show

The 29th Bristol Classic Motor Cycle Show takes place on Saturday and Sunday 14th and 15th of February 2009. Can you think of a better way to spend Valentine’s Day than wandering around an array of awesome old bikes, explaining to your Better Half exactly why the 90 Plus (built locally, you know) is so fascinating? Well, yes, you probably can – but at least with our corking competition you stand a chance of getting in for free…

Those jolly people at ClassicBikeShows have kindly donated half a dozen tickets, valid on either day, so a small squadron of RC Club members will be able to join us at the Show for free, gratis, zip, zero, nothing and indeed without paying a penny. Tickets normally cost £9 on the gate so if you’re one of the lucky winners then you’ll be able to stand the RC Crew a nice cuppa coffee (white no sugar, thanks) when you stumble upon our stall in the main hall. We’re normally at the foot of the stairs, strategically close to the downstairs café and within easy coffee-carrying distance of the balcony restaurant. Keep your eyes peeled for RC banners and our famous stripy tablecloth (now in its fifth fabulous year and possibly the UK’s most widely-travelled tablecloth).

The Shepton Mallet showground provides an excellent venue for half a dozen halls packed with classic bike clubs, private concours entries, trade stalls and autojumble, plus this year’s special guest, Phil Read. With over 120 podium finishes under his belt, and a racing career spanning a remarkable 15 years, Read is regarded as one of the living greats of the motorcycling world. He won his first world championship in 1964 in the 250 class, then continued to bring home world titles and became the first man to win world championships in the 125cc, 250cc and 500cc classes. Riding with two of the premier racing teams, Yamaha and MV Agusta, Read was involved in some of the most fast and furious races of the era, riding against other legends like Barry Sheene, Giacomo Agostini, and Mike Hailwood.

Over 18,000 people are expected to attend this year’s event, staying warm and dry indoors despite the worst of the February weather. You can expect to see a good display of bikes from the local Douglas Club while the Malmesbury mob always put on a good show; ditto the Bristol branch of the Norton Owners’ Club. The majority of active traders attend this show, so if you need spare parts from the likes of Surrey Cycles, Skye Classics, Sean Hawker, Malcolm Leech or John Budgen then you should contact them beforehand, pick up your parts on the day and save the postage. We’ll also be keeping our eyes peeled for C-C’s Ultrasonic Carburettor Cleaning, Lacey Engineering, Lewis Leathers, and Electrex World Limited, just to name a few.

So if you’d like to come along to the 2009 Bristol Show FOR FREE, all you have to do is answer this question, which was craftily conceived to test your classic motorcycling credentials…

Q: Phil Read’s nickname is: