Announcements, news items, Nacelle reports, articles
We will have our Branch stand at the Swallowfield Show on Sunday 27 and Monday 28 August 2023 with a display of Triumph bikes. So if you are going to the show, come along to our stand and say hello. We will be in the “Classic Car” area.
If you are a Branch member want to display your bike on our stand, remember you need to inform us before hand, so please get in touch.
Click here to see photos from last years Swallowfield show.
We are having a Lunchtime Bike Meet on Sunday 17 September April from 11am to 4pm. It’s a great opportunity to meet other riders, see their bikes and have lunch and a drink . All motorcycle and riders are welcome.
We will be holding a collection for Thames Valley Air Ambulance.
A wide range of food and drink will on sale at the bar.
See here for details of the venue.
See here for photos from the lunchtime bike meet in September last year.
Below is the report published in the August 2023 issue of Nacelle, which covered Branch activities in June 2023
We’ll go motorbike riding in the sun and the wind and the rain. But we prefer the sun, and we had a lot of that in June. Our annual show for old bikes, The Old Motorcycle Gathering was fabulous. Lots of people got their old bikes out of their sheds, pulled their old blue jeans on and rode them to our show. What a cracking collection of bikes!!! The Best in Show winner was a 500cc special built for the British Trophy team in the 1970 International Six Days Trial (ISDT). It used an Eric Cheney frame with a modified Triumph engine. This machine won a silver medal in the1970 ISDT and a gold in the 1971 ISDT. Other show winners were a Triumph Trophy 650, a Triumph Trophy 250 and a Kawasaki KH500. Congratulations to all the winners!!
Our branch stand was out at Dr B’s, a local bike show in aid of Dr Barnado’s, the children’s charity. Our Thursday club nights have become a little like mini bike shows, with lots of bikes in the car park, people sitting outside chatting and some new faces coming along.
We had three new members on our first ride of the month to TJ’s Café near Swindon. We also had a ride to Popham Airfield and ride to the Honey Street Mill Café this month.
Coming up in August, we’ll be going to the British Superbikes at Thruxton on 13th and Swallowfield Show on the 28th.
Keep on rolling!
Ton-Up Ted
We often have to overtake cars when out on rides and its one of the most challenging and risky maneuvers that we do. Safe overtaking is an important part of advanced motorcycle training. This video explains the right way to overtake with a number of examples.
We’ll be having a BBQ on Thursday 13 July 2023 starting at 7.30 pm for Branch members and their guests instead of our usual weekly club night. It will be held outside at the BCSA where we normally meet. There will be small charge of £2 per head per serving. Drinks will be served and paid for at the bar as usual.
Click here for more photos from last years barbecue.
Below is the report published in the July 2023 issue of Nacelle, which covered Branch activities in May 2023
It’s a long way to reach Killarney, to be sure!! But the lads from the Branch were riding there all the way from Berkshire, and it were grand. They were riding the Wild Atlantic Way each day, while drinking Guinness and listening to fiddly diddly music each night!! Grand craic!!! They got to be kissing the Blarney stone, so they did. One eejit even tried Irish dancing!! Nine days and nearly 1500 miles of riding they were doing. It were grand weather too with hardly any rain. What a fantastic week!!! T’anks to yer man, Collin, for organising it.
Back in Berkshire there were two grand Sunday rides. One to Popham Airfield and one to T’ruxton. The last one had 17 bikes, which all kept together and no-one got lost. A few Branch members went on the Distinguished Gentleman’s Ride.
The Berkshire lads took the Branch stand to a launch day at Bulldog Triumph, the local dealer. It was a warm day, with an amazing barbeque and music. Lots of customer’s came to view the new bikes for sale and got to be learning about the TOMCC at the same time. There was a lot of interest in the club from customers and yer man from Bulldog was happy too.
The lads will be having the annual Branch barbecue on 13 July at their regular T’ursday club night so to be sure to be coming along!! It’ll be grand, so it will!!
Enjoy the craic!!
Flat-Out Finnegan (Ton-Up Ted is away)
Below is the report published in the June 2023 issue of Nacelle, which covered Branch activities in April 2023
It goes to show you never can tell! Heavy rain was forecast for our first lunchtime bike meet this year, but in the end, it stayed dry and we had a reasonable turn-out of people who ignored the weather forecasts and came anyhow. Bulldog Triumph, our local Triumph dealer, attended with some shiny new bikes to show off, we had new caterers serving up great food and everybody had a good time.
We joined hundreds of other bikers for the annual Berkshire Egg Run, meeting up west of Reading to ride a circuitous rural route to Abbey Rugby Club to drop off chocolate Easter eggs, which were then distributed to children in care. After the run, some Berks members rode on to the H Café in Berinsfield for lunch.
Our Branch stand was out supporting MAG’s show on Easter Sunday. The following Sunday, three Branch members went up to Wolverhampton to attend the National AGM, while other Branch members rode out to a very crowded Iron Bull Roadhouse. Despite the variable weather, we also enjoyed ride-outs to Honey Street Mill and the Milburys pub at Beauworth.
The Old Motorcycle Gathering is our show for Historic bikes (pre-1983) and will be held on Saturday 17 June. If you have an old bike, bring it along and you might win a prize!! If you don’t have one, please still come and look at the bikes on show. There is no better way to spend a Saturday afternoon.
Keep on rolling!
Ton-Up Ted
The Old Motorcycle Gathering, our show for old bikes, will be held this year on Saturday 17 June 2023 at the Burghfield Community Sports Association (BCSA), James Lane, Burghfield, RG30 3RS. This is near junction 11 of the M4 and is where we hold our Thursday club nights. Click here to see the venue on a map
This show is for all bikes classed as “Historic” vehicles by the DVLA, which currently means bikes manufactured before 1983. The show is open to all marques, but bikes must be ridden to the show. Prizes will be awarded for Best Foreign, Best British and Best Triumph as well as Best in Show.
There is no entry charge.
If you don’t have an old motorcycle, you can still come along on a modern bike. Just leave it in the car park while you look at the old bikes on the lawn.
We will be holding a collection for the National Association for Bikers with a Disability (NABD).
A wide range of food and drink will be on sale at the bar.
Click here to see pictures from a previous Old Motorcycle Gathering or read this article from Nacelle Magazine about our show.
Below is the report published in the May 2023 issue of Nacelle, which covered Branch activities in March 2023
C’mon everybody and let’s get together tonight!!! And we did!!! We had a record turn-out of well over 50 people to our Thursday Branch night to hear TOMCC Patron Norman Hyde talk about “Triumph and Me”. It was a fascinating presentation, with lots of photographs and anecdotes and ended with Norman playing an impressive sound recording of his Word Record Breaking run.
Earlier in the month, Steve Yarwood, our Vice Chairman, entertained us all with an account of his intercontinental trip through 15 countries to Turkey and back on his Triumph Rocket 3.
With some rare fine weather, our first ride in March was to the Menza Café at Henley Rugby Club for lunch. The following Sunday a small group braved near freezing conditions for a short ride-out to the Court Hill Centre near Wantage, where we warmed up in the café. A week later we rode out to the H-Café at Berinsfield for tea and bacon butties followed by some shopping at the motorcycle accessories shop next door.
Our final ride was to the Boscombe Down Aviation Collection near Salisbury. We enjoyed looking at all the jets and other amazing exhibits there. A flat bike tyre didn’t spoil the day and was easily rectified by Steve who had a pump with him.
We’re looking forward to the weather warming up with more rides and outdoor activities. We’ll be holding our Old Motorcycle Gathering on Saturday 17 June 2023. Check out our website for details.
Keep on rolling!
Ton-Up Ted
Norman Hyde presenting at Berkshire TOMCC
If you missed Norman Hyde’s presentation or just want to see it again, here are some photos of the event together with videos of the presentation in full.
Norman Hyde, a legend in the world of Triumph Motorcycles, gave a presentation to the TOMCC Berkshire Branch in March 2023. More than fifty members turned out to hear him. He split his talk into two section, with a short interval where a buffet was served and people got drinks from the bar He ended his presentation playing a sound recording of his World Record Breaking run. At the end of his presentation he answered questions from the audience and then autographed copies of pictures of his record breaking run. Everyone enjoyed the evening.
Here are some photos of the event.
You can watch the first part by clicking on the link below.
You can watch the second part by clicking on the link below.
I hope you enjoyed watching this memorable evening.
