So, we had some more friends from Germany and Switzerland come to visit. Blacky, Flo, Carsten and Thomas who we'd met at a rally in Krumbach last year, were coming over for a tour of Englandshire and we planned to pay back the hospitality they showed us there 'in spades' :) .
We'd originally organised to take them to a rally near Edinburgh but as they wanted to head south, another plan was hastily formed. They were met from the ferry in North Shields by a bunch of the us and taken via Newcastle Quayside, along the Military Road to Hexham for a coffee and culture stop. From there it was a day spent hooning around the north pennines and Weardale, with the obligatory stop at Hartside Cafe for some scran, before heading to Tan Hill for a "Quiet Drink", yeah right. What a hoot we had. With a steady influx of bodies from the Shags and Sparticus Rally Club amongst other friends appearing throughout the evening, the mood was set for madness and we drank ourselves silly with no thought for what was going on outside. i.e. folks' tents being ripped from the ground by the Grade A hooley that was blowing and being dispersed around the locality at speed. Several folk had to kip in the barn overnight and put up with Big G's snore fest, bless!
Saturday the Sparty lot had negotiated the use of a venue near Scarborough to accomodate a geet big party for us all, so there was a mass ride out from Tan Hill, via Vince and Lou's big new house in Catterick over to Whitby for fish and chips before heading down the coast to Scarborough for ice creams on the sea front then onto the party. And what a party it was. With bikes, meat, beer, rock and roll and cracking company, how could it not be?
Anyhoo, it was bloody great to see the lads again and I know they enjoyed themeselves as much as us, so until next time Auf Wheidersein (Pet)!
