You started it… PHOTOS
At Harwich we met with the rest of the ii travelling team, well Taxi anyway. We also met Neville who hadn’t planned to be part of the tour but became a more than capable ii-er. Biggest surprise was the lack of scoots on the ferry, well not in vans anyway….The buffet on the ferry was fine, no doubt helped down by a glass of beer or two, needless to say Dad did us proud on the food stakes, so well that the twins popped their heads out for more.
On landing the next morning, we waited, and waited, and waited for the only one of our party who’d been before to take the lead, but our waiting was in vain – Simmo’s excuse being that last time he came he got off the ferry a different way – presumably off the back and into the North Sea then!! So after a detour of the Hook and Den Haag – lost, us?? surely not – we got back on the main road and set off for the rally. All was going well, we visited some lovely petrol stations, and then hit a traffic jam. Now the usual thing to do is for the scoots to ride through the jam and let the van catch us up later, which would’ve been fine had the van not disappeared on an Eileen short cut whilst we were waiting in the services. Anyway a couple of calls confirmed that they were lost – Dad being delighted that he had a navigator to blame and that we couldn’t say that he’d seen a taxi and decided to follow it.
The plan was to carry on to Lochem, meet the van and then get to the rally – all pretty straightforward you’d think apart from the two ‘s’ factors: firstly Simmo (who by now thought he was coming in from the same way he came in from last time) and decided to hijack the main scooter party and take them on a shortcut, whilst Taxi and I followed the instructions and unaccountably arrived at the rally a good 15 mins before the rest; and secondly shhh – the noise of the van brakes when they stop working. A call from dad confirmed that they were in Lochem, so as I’d managed to get us there obviously I needed to go and get the van, and mend the brakes. Fair enough really as there were only three drivers in the party, so it makes perfect sense to send the VAT man.
Good thing about going to get the van was that I missed the sharp shower that fell on the site. With the van and tents returned we set up camp near Earl’s tribe and settled down to chill and sample the local beer, complete with a wasp chaser. One wasp was particularly unlucky as it managed to be where Simmo wanted to stand, so it ended up giving him a sting – luckily it was ok. The evening comprised more beer, a beer shower for me from Dutch, and a lot of abusing of Kenny. We also gave out Simmo’s special stickers which were much appreciated by the Germans for some reason – can only be that they know him.
Saturday was bright and sunny, Dad reluctantly agreed to come for brekkie with us so they hurled another cow on the grill. Fed and watered we wandered back to the tents and took the van to Borculo to be tourists. Alas we were little more than bar tourists, with Dad getting a special Dutch welcome from the barmaid with the quarter cut pants – not that we noticed them. It was here that Eileen developed her taste for using the beer head scooper as a slapping device.
The next bar was equally hospitable, allowing us to take over the jukie and sing an array of pitch-perfect tunes to the astonishment of the innocent by-standers. Suitably lubricated, we returned to the site to power nap and prepare for the evening – some of us more successfully than others. The do was jam-packed, leaving little opportunity for the ii girls to go handbag dancing, which was probably a blessing in disguise. Loggie decided to ‘go off on one’ berating all and sundry before falling over and passing out, and Simmo ‘slipped in the shower’…
Sunday morning was pack up and go to Arnhem, via another detour – lost, us?? surely not – to arrive just as the rain started. Thommo found a hotel as the consensus was that camping was best avoided, even if it did mean Nacker’s lip coming out at the thought! The evening consisted of food and sleep for some, food and beer and sleep for others, and food and beer for the rest. Monday was up for continental brekkie and get ready to leave.
Another detour leaving Arnhem – lost, us?? surely not – and then a ride to the ferry. A few dodgy incidents with the traffic, but all survived ok, reaching the ferry just in time to get the van on as Dad had booked himself on the earlier crossing – the one that landed later?? No truth in the rumour that the booking was down to the fact that they got two free meals!
Landing at Harwich was good, waiting for the van less so, but we set off for home at around 9 o’clock. The journey back was going ok until Loggie decided that blasting up the A12 and A14 would be the best way – in theory it would’ve been had the petrol stations been open – but as Obviously had packed a couple of cans of petrol we would be ok wouldn’t we? Landing home at half 1 was a good feeling.
In summary a top, top weekend, 650+ miles covered everyone made it what it was so no individual thanks, hopefully we all enjoyed it, and will be going back again, apologies if I’ve missed any of the people who we abused or any of the incidents out, there were just too many!!
Of course next time we’ll know the way so won’t get
lost, but there again…..
And for the guys in the vans
We’ll come in low out of the rising sun,
And about a mile out, we’ll take our scoots out the van…