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Hopefully by the time you are reading this issue of Open House the illusive British summer will have finally arrived.
Not that the damp miserable start to the season has slowed the NABD down at all. From the moment I finished the last issue of Open House in April I don’t think we have had a moments rest. But I’m pleased to say it is ‘mostly’ good stuff.....
You’ve Been Nabbed 12A:
Every event is something of a gamble, but moving to a new site always adds a new degree of uncertainty to the equation. Although it had become obvious that York Dragway wasn’t really working as a venue for the event, there was no guarantee that the new site would prove to be more popular. Consequently it was with much trepidation that approached the weekend.
As it turned out we really needn’t have worried. The new site was extremely popular with all who came and we have had nothing but good comments on the event as a whole. I think it safe to say the NABD national rally has re-established itself as one of the best rallies in Britain. (See pages 14 - 18 for full report).
BMF Show - NABD no show?
Although we were all booked in to take the NABD to the BMF show the week after You’ve Been Nabbed 12A the stall never actually got there. The day before Rose Fitton (Events Co-ordinator) was due to take the stall to the show she was involved in a nasty RTA when the van she was driving was in a collision with another van. Although Rose was not badly hurt she was left pretty bruised and understandably very shaken. Unfortunately we could not find another driver available at such short notice so we had to miss the event. We apologise to the BMF and those people who went looking for the NABD stall at the event. But this is one of the drawbacks to only having a relatively small number of active volunteers.
Welsh National Motorcycle Show:
Once again Bob Sutton (South Wales Rep) put a team together to take the NABD stall to Builth Wells. With the help of Hank from Trike Design in Cardiff he also mustered a good display of adapted machines which enhanced the stall tremendously. (See page 22 for the full report).
Isle of Man TT 2004:
Thankfully Rose had made a good recovery in time for the TT and was able to join Juley Simmonds (Secretary) and Al Lorimer to complete the stall team on the island. It was quite an odd TT this year, with 3 major events clashing on mad Sunday.
The Mad Sunday Straight-liner Sprint at Ramsey has been the traditional event over the past five years, but this year Honda Day at Peel and the David Jeffries memorial run were also on mad Sunday. Normally we would have taken a stall to Honda day but as we have always had a great reception at the sprints (and enjoyed the support of the sprint organiser Howard Cartledge) we had to give Honda Day a miss.
The main event or us has always been the Ramsey Sprint on the Tuesday and this year was no exception. The relatively nice weather and a good array of display machines brought along by members ensured that the NABD stall was very busy all day. A small fund-raiser at the Solby Glen ensured that was the final touch to ensure that the NABD once again had a very successful time at the TT.
Andy Dargavel (Daggers):
Although I wasn’t on the NABD stall team at the TT, I was on the Island doing some marshalling on the Sprints. It was while I was there that I got the terrible news of the death of Andy Dargavel, better known to most as Daggers.
Daggers had been a dedicated supporter of the NABD since the very beginning and had held a post on the national committee in the mid 90’s. The death of a friend is always a hard thing to make sense of but when, as in this case, that friend has taken his own life it becomes even harder to comprehend. We all have personal demons to deal with but who knows what battles were going on in Daggers mind to make him take such desperate action? He leaves behind a wife and young son, and a lot of grieving friends who wish they had been given the opportunity to help him through those dreadful dark hours.
Fortunately I was able to get on an earlier sailing back from the island to attend his funeral and it was good to see the large numbers of people who had turned out to pay their final respects to a very fine man. (See ‘In Memoriam’ page 12).
Farmyard Party:
In addition to the NABD stall being at the Yorkshire MAG Farmyard Party this year I was once again asked to bring an NABD comedy show to the event. In addition to this I was asked to book the entertainment for the BSH marquee and compere the show. This gave me the chance to showcase some of the very excellent bands we had at You’ve Been Nabbed 12A and to generally reinforce the message that the NABD not only does some very important work, but we also put on some very impressive gigs. The stall was very busy all weekend in the care of Rose Fitton, Shirley Hauxwell, and Alan Varrechia, and judging by the crowds of people queuing to get in I think it fair to say that the BSH/NABD marquee was the most popular aspect of the whole event. Also due to the efforts of super DJ Russ Page and myself the NABD was plugged at every opportunity.
NABD AGM 2004:
I am the first to admit that an annual general meeting of any group is not exactly an attractive prospect for a day out. So it came as no surprise that less than 50 members turned up to take part. Never the less these things have to be done, and we did have some very important issues to resolve. I won’t go into any great detail here as it would take up too much space but those of you who would like copies of the minutes of the meeting and the respective reports which were presented can get copies from the office by sending an A4 self addressed envelope and four loose first class stamps (to cover printing and postage costs). I would like to thank The Time Lords MCC and in particular Beemer for hosting the AGM and looking after our comfort.
Clive (Scruff) Kidby:
Over recent months we have been contacted by several members and supporters who had concerns about the actions of Clive (Scruff) Kidby (Somerset Rep). When complaints of this nature are received it is the duty of the trustees of the NABD to investigate to see if there is any truth to the allegations. Partly due to facts which became apparent during this investigation and partly due to the seeming unwillingness of Scruff to offer any explanation the trustees had no alternative but to suspend him from the position of Somerset Rep and take the matter to the AGM.
At the AGM there was a unanimous vote in favour of revoking the NABD membership of Clive Kidby immediately. In the 13 years history of the NABD this is only the 4th time that a membership has been revoked by an AGM. It is not an action that is taken lightly and we sincerely hope it will be a long time before such action has to be taken again.
As of Saturday June 26th 2004 Clive (Scruff) Kidby is no longer a member of the NABD and has no legitimate right to represent the NABD in any way.
Project Pyramid:
A much more positive thing to come out of the AGM was the decision to proceed with a major new project within the NABD. I’m not giving any details in this issue as I still have a lot of groundwork to sort out, but I thought I’d just wet your appetites a bit. This new project will give all NABD members and affiliates a chance to become a part of British history (yes I know we already are as a group, but I’m talking about us as individuals). It should also prove to be a huge fundraising project and a great publicity grabber. Details will be given in the next issue of Open House when we launch Project Pyramid. Watch this space.....
Phil (Crinkly) Standring:
Yet more bad news I’m afraid. I have just received a phone call from Jan Hurley (NABD treasurer 1997 - 2000) informing me of the death of Phil Standring (known to many as Crinkly Phil).
Phil died at 3.00 am on Thursday July 1st 2004 following an operation to repair a broken hip. He had been suffering from cancer for the past few years and it would seem his system just couldn’t take any more strain. Phil had been an NABD Rep in North Wales and had also held a national committee post in 1998-99. He was one of them real characters that you only seem to find amongst bikers (and that make being a biker so much fun).
I suppose it is in the nature of this association that we do experience the death of members perhaps more regularly than other groups, but that doesn’t make it any easier. Particularly when it is somebody who put the welfare of the NABD before that of themselves. Our hearts go out to Phil’s son Pedro and the family and friends he leaves behind.
I’m determined to finish this article on a high note before any more bad news arrives so I’ll make this the last bit.
Diamond folk:
Despite the recent sad losses from our ranks we still have an excellent ‘hard core’ of fine people who are willing to have their lives thrown into disarray by dedicating their efforts to NABD. It is always a great pleasure to welcome new faces to that core group of foolishly brave people. Recently we have welcomed several new Rep’s, Bob Lippet (Somerset), Stuart Douglas (South Shropshire), Roy Harley (Central & Southern Scotland, a much welcome return), and Gaz McCabe (Greater Manchester, recently retired from the club/rep liaison post. See page 12). We also have a new face on the national committee, Gary Seddon has taken on the post of Rep’s Liaison.
All are very welcome and I’m sure they will each do their part in the continuing success of the NABD.
Right that’s my lot, I’m off to start packing cause I’m going on the BSH two week Faro run on Saturday. Ahhh Sunshine, Sangria, St Miguel, Sagres, pints of Pina Colada, and some blue stuff with limes in it that makes you fall over......heaven.
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