Our first Sunday ride of the year wasn’t until 19 January because of really bad weather in the first two Sundays of the year. On 19 January it was at least dry, but at 2 degrees above freezing, hardly ideal biking weather. Nevertheless, five hardy members braved the cold for a ride out to the Court Hill Centre and had hot drinks and food when we got there. It felt good to be out on bikes again.
Here are some photos of the ride.
The 2025 Branch Annual General Meeting (AGM) will be held on:
Thursday 13 February 2025 at 8.30pm
It will be held at the BCSA as part of our weekly club night. The AGM will start at 8.30pm. All Branch members are welcome to come to the meeting where we review the last year, present the accounts, elect a new committee and discuss plans for the coming year. Branch members can vote, ask questions of the current committee, put forward propositions and join in the discussion. This is an opportunity for all Branch members to have a say in the plans for the Branch during the next year.
People standing for the committee must be full members of the Branch and must be nominated by two other full members at any of the Thursday club nights leading up to the AGM on the nomination sheet that is on the notice board by the bar.
Come along and have your say in how the club is run. Consider how you may be able to participate more in club activities. Do you think you might like to be a committee member?
See the following links for more information.
Richard Wheadon, the TOMCC’s Machine Registrar and a recognised expert on establishing the authenticity and date of old Triumph Motorcycles will be giving a presentation about his work to the TOMCC Berkshire Branch and invited guests on Thursday 30 January 2025, starting at 8pm at the BCSA.
Richard runs the Triumph Motorcycle Dating Service for the TOMCC. If the DVLA does not have records for an old Triumph motorcycle, they will issue an age related registration plate for it if the owner has a certificate from the TOMCC. This means that Richard has dealt with hundreds of application for these certificates over the years and has spotted many examples of “fakes”; bikes that purport to be a model or year that makes them more valuable than they really are. This is a subject which will anyone with an interest in classic motorcycles will find fascinating.
We had a good turn-out for our January evening Bring & Buy sale. There was lots of stuff on sale: motorcycle parts, tools, books and clothing and more than 50 people came along, even though it is was a cold winters evening. There was hot food and drinks as always, an opportunity to chat to other members and the added fun of browsing through the goods on offer and grabbing a bargain.
Here are some photos of the event.
Our last ride of the year was on a cold Sunday morning between Christmas and New Year. Only four hardy Branch members set off for a ride to Bucklebury Farm Cafe. After a cold ride on damp roads, they then got to sit in the cafe in the warm and enjoy a breakfast together. Here are a couple of photos. Well done guys!!
Happy New Year to all our members. We had around 100 activities together last year. Have a look at our Review of 2024 to look back on some of what we got up to during the year. We are planning more fun for next year. Have a look at our Events page to see those that are already confirmed for early 2025 including a Thursday night Bring and Buy Sale and a talk on racing machines. There’s a lot more being planned and we will add them to the events page as they get confirmed. Remember, we continue going on rides throughout the winter and meeting socially every Thursday night. When the weather warms up we expect to have our Lunchtime Bike Meet, our Old Motorcycle Gathering and visit other local shows with the Branch stand and lots of other events like we did this year. Keep on rolling.
We wish all our members a Merry Christmas. There will be no Club night on Boxing Day so our next Club Night will be on 2 January 2025. Our last Club of the year was a real cracker with more than 60 members enjoying an evening of seasonal food and fun together.
There are more pictures of our Christmas Club Night here. We had a great year with lots of activities together and out on our Triumphs. See here for a look back at 2024.
See you next year.
Keep on rolling!
It was a bit chilly and breezy, but don’t let it be said that would put the us off going out on a Sunday ride ending with a coffee and bacon roll at Popham Airfield Cafe.
Below is the report published in the January 2025 issue of Nacelle, which covered Branch activities in November 2024
The first evening event of the off-season took place in November at the BCSA with Bob’s annual quiz. With about 40 participants the quiz was hotly contested, however, the winning team of only 3, Bod, King Graham and Chairman Nick, took top honours.
Now I don’t know who shouted “Fix”, just because the team contained two committee members. I can assure all that Bob would not have any truck with shenanigans such as bribery (I’ve tried in the past!).
I’m sure a very enjoyable evening was had by all attendees. If you missed it, don’t worry as there will be further events over the winter months.
The next event will be the Table-top Bring & Buy sale at the BCSA on 16th January. Our branch AGM will take place in February followed by a presentation on “The development of Ducati Racing Machines” by John Bottomley on 6th March. Finally, it is hoped that Richard Wheadon, Club Machine Registrar will put on a presentation on “Fakes”. A fascinating and interesting topic, especially if you’re thinking about purchasing a Meriden classic; a date has yet to be set, but let’s hope Richard manages to fit it in.
Even though the weather has taken a turn for the worst, Sunday ride-outs still persist and some mid-week ones too (for those not affected by that filthy four-letter word, work). This being for members who just can’t get enough of riding their Triumphs, well what else are they for, really…?
Bibendum
The last club night of the year had a Christmas theme, with a festive buffet, Christmas music and a raffle. Over 60 members and partners took part. It was a fun evening and great way to end the year. Here are some photos of the event.
