2003 Scandanavian Circle - The Nimbus Den

After a slow start to the day Ian eventually managed to get himself motivated and we were able to get to the railway station and purchased 24 hour tickets. The tickets were for a full 24 hours from when bought so that if one was obtained at 10 o’clock on Monday it would be valid until 10 o’clock on Tuesday, unlike at home where a day ticket is only valid until midnight!

Our first stop was to Nordhaven, which is just to the north of Copenhagen, as this was one of the reasons for coming here. Back in 1997 when we were in Andalsnes, Norway we sighted our first Nimbus and fell in love with them. In Nordhaven there is a wonderful little company, JC Nimbus, that deal in all things Nimbus related. Guzzisue had been in contact with the shop and had obtained directions on how to get there, so when we arrived we were made more than welcome. Ian was in his element and our visit lasted about an hour as we were shown round the workshops and restoration projects in hand. T shirts were bought and Ian was also given a key fob that he still treasures today.

Here is another link to a Nimbus site that you may find of interest.

To finish this post here are a few photos of Ian on one of these great little machines. All he has to do now is win the lottery!

It is a very rare occasion to see a Nimbus for sale as they often stay with the same owner for many years. To borrow a phrase, a Nimbus is not just for Christmas! What do you think about these motorcycles?

2003 Scandanavian Circle - Heading East

We awoke at 08:30 and went to the restaurant for a very good buffet style breakfast after which we met up with Mark again. An Australian that had shared Mark’s cabin with him came and joined us. They were both complaining about another in their cabin who insisted on having the light on all night! At least I only have Ian and Guzzisue’s snoring to put up with.

The ferry docked in Esbjerg at midday and we passed through passport control without a problem and headed east on the E20. Once again we had temperatures above normal for Scandanavia, causing us to stop for petrol and water twice before reaching our destination.

At one of the stops we met up with a group of Honda CX 500 owners returning home on their bikes having been to a rally.

We crossed the Storebælt Bridge on our way over to Hundige Camping, where we had booked a camping hut for a few nights.

Denmark consists of the Jutland peninsula and more than 400 islands of which the largest are Zealand and Funen. Copenhagen, Denmark's capital, is located on Zealand.

Among the many ferry routes which have linked the Danish islands for centuries, by far the most important has been the route across the Great Belt between Funen and Zealand. Over the years, however, storms and hard winters have frequently disrupted ferry services across the Great Belt.

On June 10, 1987 the Danish Parliament approved the construction of a fixed link across the Great Belt. Following 12 years of intensive construction work, H.M. Queen Margrethe II of Denmark inaugurated on June 14, 1998 what had then become the largest engineering project in the history of Denmark, The Great Belt Fixed Link.

The Link comprises the East Bridge, a 6,790 m long suspension bridge between Zealand and the small island of Sprogø, a 6,611 m long combined rail and road bridge between Sprogø and Funen and an 8,000 m long immersed rail tunnel between Zealand and Sprogø.

The campsite had given us excellent directions on how to get there and the hut was just as impressive. The beds were comfortable and there was a fully equipped kitchen, minus sink, but the wash area was just across the way. As it was Sunday all the local shops were closed so we dined on a pizza from a nearby takeaway before Ian decided to crash out for the next 12 hours.

2003 Scandanavian Circle - Away We Go

We left home in good time to take a leisurly trip across country to get to Harwich passing through several small villages with timber framed houses, some of them still having village greens and water pumps.

Arriving at Harwich shortly after 2 o’clock we sought shelter from the sun at a local supermarket and sat around munching sandwiches and chatting to passers by.

We still got to the port too soon as we had to queue for 90 minutes for the gates to open, however the ferry company had a man come round selling ice cream from an ice box on wheels.

Eventually the gates opened and we queued again having obtained our boarding cards so we passed the time talking to a couple with two children from Suttgart who had come across to England for a few days during their holiday. They told us that they were very surprised how friendly the English were.

As time passed we were joined by several more bikes including 3 BSA’s that were heading towards Sweden for a rally there, some sports bikes and a very badly packed Suzuki that was ridden by a lady going to Norway to do some flying as she is a qualified pilot.

The ship itself was more of a cargo vessel with a bar on one level and a dining area on another. We were greeted on board by a children’s entertainer, but more of him later, as we found our cabin.

As the evening progressed a small group of travellers assembled in the bar, ourselves, Mark, an engine designer for Lotus, a German girl returning home and another motorcyclist with a Swedish phrasebook that he was trying to use when it was his round of drinks. We were later joined by a Danish airman who got so confused by our group that he asked Guzzisue if she had enjoyed her holiday in England.

Throughout the evening we had to keep swapping between the two decks as the entertainer kept on appearing. Ian did overhear someone say “Not him again” as we boarded the ferry. We tried to endure him for a while but failed. It almost seemed that he was afraid of the kids he was meant to be entertaining.

A large sandwich and several beers ensured we had a good nights sleep when we eventually retired to our cabin in the early hours.

2003 Scandanavian Circle - I Have A Cunning Plan

For us there was quite a lot of planning for this years holiday. It had been decided that we would return to Scandanavia, but to which part? Recently the Øresund bridge had opened joining Denmark and Sweden together by road and rail. This became a must do for us. The first plan was to go by ferry to Bergen , ride across Norway to Sweden, across the Øresund bridge to Denmark and return home by riding through the Low Countries and Germany before getting the ferry at Calais. Due to ferry timetables this didn’t happen, so to Plan B. Ferry from Harwich to Esbjerg, ride to Copenhagen, across the bridge, ride through Sweden to Norway and catch the ferry home from Bergen, or back over the bridge and retrace our route home. We try not to retrace steps on holiday, so. onto Plan C. Ferry to Esbjerg, camp near Copenhagen for a few days, over the bridge travel through Sweden and onto Norway where we can catch a ferry back to Denmark and Esbjerg to get the return ferry home. Yes we have a rough plan at the third attempt so the ferry from Harwich to Esbjerg was booked for a Sunday sailing. We later received conformation that this sailing would now be on the Saturday, even better!

George Formby, No Limit, The Race.

george formby / tt raceses

George Formby at his best! This film has it all, a young unknown rider with a substandard motor bike journeys to the Isle of Man, gets ducked in the Irish Sea, loses his wallet and befriends the lovely Florence Desmond. Together they share many experiences culminating in the dramatic race itself, by this time George is mounted on a Rainbow motor-cycle. George of course triumphs in the end, not only winning the race but also winning an agency from Rainbow, and winning the heart of Florence Desmond as well.
Probably the most popular of all the films - it must certainly be in anybody's top three. This was the first film George made after his move into the 'big time' with Associated Talking Pictures. The film is still shown in the Isle of Man during the T.T. race week and always pulls a good audience when shown at the Society conventions. - Who could ask for more? Peter Pollard

East Coast Challenge & Round Britain Rally

Yesterday I went out with Ian to do the landmarks around the Eastern part of England, concentrating on Norfolk, which had 3LMs to find and Suffolk, where there was another 2.

While travelling between the two counties we also did the East Coast Challenge in which we had to travel to 5 named towns,these are Sheringham, Stalham, Southwold, Stowmarket and Swaffham. These could be visited in any order but you have to return to your starting town in more than 7 hours but less than 24. Proof that these places have been visited is required so we got till receipts for our start and finish and took photos of the bike by signs stating where we were.

In total we had to visit 10 different places and one twice. This made for a long but enjoyable day out as Guzzisue wanted the boys out of her way!

We departed at 08:30am and arrived home at 09:15pm having covered 441 miles on a 25 year old motorcycle with nearly 90,000 miles on the clock!

I cannot give details about the RBR until after the event has closed for this year. When that happens I will post some of the better photographs.

Dirt Bike Hill Climb

Here's an Extreme Hill Climb I found on You Tube. Don't think any of the Red Marley motorcycles could make it up!

"The hill climb is a 3 day event. They have 2 hills, one is the Trophy hill for the lower class bikes and for amateur riders, then they have the Championship hill. This is where the pros come and tear it up that shoot at the top of the hill is called "The Wall". Guys like Jeremy McGrath have been out here to climb this hill. And yes there is a huge payout to the pros. The guys who have made it this far without breaking any bones or being eliminated compete in the shootout. The pay out is $40,000."

The quote is from Racer5256