With our eye on a bright future for motorcycle touring 🏍️ holidays, we're getting excited about restarting our worldwide tours next year 😀. We hope you'll join us for the ride of a lifetime, making lasting friendships and unforgettable experiences. 

Our guided tours are already filling fast with customers who missed out in 2020 and 2021, so don't delay and book soon. And if you're ready to plan your long-awaited self-guided tour or rental only, availability is limited for the same reason. Just email or call me.

Full details on our Orange & Black website.

The British Motor Museum is to host the Electric Vehicles Festival on Saturday 7 August. The Show, which began in 2019, will give visitors the opportunity to see hundreds of electric vehicles on display. All Fully Pure Electrics (BEV) are welcome to join the show for a celebration and display their vehicles including Electric Cars, E-Commercials, E-Bikes, E-Buses and E-Coaches.

Key exhibits will include a Harley Davidson Live Wire Electric MotorCycle and a Citroen AMI which is only making its second UK public appearance. The Ardingly Ifield Solar Challenge Team will be at the Festival as part of their tour from John 'o' Groats to Brighton along with the Cambridge University Solar Challenge Team.  MG Motors UK will be showcasing their facelift MG5 and MG-ZS EV that made its second UK appearance at the Festival in 2019. There will also be an electric boat ‘Silent Adventure’, and Tommy Tesla.  Eco-Classics, an electric vehicle conversion company, will be bringing along something new and Streetbikes will be showcasing their Zero Electric Motorcycles. Finally #EV Twizy Park will be making a comeback celebrating the Renault Twizy!

For the first time the Festival will incorporate a mini arena with presentations provided by Octopus Electric Vehicles throughout the day.  The festival is also the perfect place for those thinking about going electric. There will be an array of different makes and models on display as well as the opportunity to talk to the owners and find out what convinced them to take the plunge and go electric.

Jeff Coope, Managing Director at the British Motor Museum said, “The future of Electric Vehicles (EV) and events such as this is very important to the Museum and the evolution of EV technology is an important story for us to tell. We have already invested in 10 electric charging points for visitors and event organisers to use, with the infrastructure to support more. This has attracted public events such as the EV festival but also corporate EV events and product launches for many of the large motoring manufacturers. This is only the start of our EV journey”.

Exploring the future of the car is particularly important to the Museum. In 2019/2020 the Museum hosted a topical and thought provoking exhibition entitled “The Car. The Future. Me” which sparked much debate amongst its visitors.

Show tickets cost £14.50 per adult, £9 per child, £12.50 per concession and £40 for a family. All tickets for the show must be pre-booked. For more information, please visit the website www.britishmotormuseum.co.uk  or call 01926 641188. For more information about the Electric Vehicles Festival please visit https://www.electricvehiclesfestival.com/

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The British Motor Museum is inviting visitors to look back to the vehicles that roamed the roads of yesteryear when it hosts the ‘Classic and Vintage Commercial Show’ on 14 & 15 August. The show offers visitors a rare opportunity to reminisce about days gone by and relive the vintage era of over 450 pre-2001 commercial vehicles including trucks, vans and pick-ups.

The ‘Classic and Vintage Commercial Show’ is one of the largest shows of its kind in Europe and features a display of vehicles from vans such as Ford Transits, Morris Minors and J Types, to lighter lorries from Austin, Bedford, Dodge and Ford Thames, through to heavier lorries such as AECs, Atkinsons, ERFs, Fodens and Leylands. The popular Show is now in its 14^th year; however, the Museum has been hosting a Classic Commercial Show at Gaydon for the last 20 years.

Throughout the weekend there will be a large commercial vehicle related autojumble selling vehicle spares, photos, brochures, models, and other items. Inside there will be two large Indoor Model Shows, organised by Ashley Coghill and the National Association of Road Transport Modellers. Over 160 tables will showcase kit and scratch-built models of commercial vehicles and landscapes.

Tom Caren, Show Manager at the British Motor Museum stated “Whether you’re a fan of commercial vehicles, interested in vintage history or simply want to see the commercial vehicles that were on the roads in your youth, then this show is for you. We are expecting around 450 vehicles from familiar marques to rare finds. The autojumble is also the perfect place to pick up a bargain or find that vital spare part”.

Kelsey Media will be supporting the show and celebrating its 20 year joint venture of bringing commercial vehicles to the Museum. They will be selling several of their publications including Classic & Vintage Commercials, Classic Van and Pick Up, Heritage Commercials and Vintage Roadscene, along with a special supplement celebrating 20 years of commercial vehicles at Gaydon.

Those wanting to take part in the show can enter their truck for FREE which includes entry for the driver and one passenger. Camping is also available for those that want to make a weekend of it. Saturday show tickets cost £14.50 per adult, £9 per child, £12.50 per concession and £40 for a family. Sunday is the busiest day of the show and one of the 5 Special Show Days. Tickets cost £18 per adult, £10 per child, £16 per concession and £46 for a family.

For more information about the Classic and Vintage Commercial Show and the Museum please visit the website www.britishmotormuseum.co.uk  or call 01926 641188.

As the world begins to open up once again in time for the summer months, Footman James have now released details of their first Coffee & Chrome meet for their clients and classic enthusiasts in 2021.

Held at the Prescott Hill Climb in Cheltenham, on Sunday 22nd August from 9am – 12pm, the first meet-will see a maximum of 500 vehicles of all shapes and sizes congregate together for the first time at a Coffee & Chrome event since the pandemic started. Attendees will receive a voucher for a free bacon butty* (Gluten free, vegetarian and vegan options available) and there will be multiple coffee stands for other refreshments or snacks. *Limited to two per vehicle.

Charlotte Moseley, Head of Marketing at Footman James commented, “We are very excited to finally be able to reunite with our clients and bring the classic community together at a Coffee & Chrome once again. We know how much they are loved by those who have attended previously, and we’ve received many enquiries around when the next one might be. We are very happy to finally be able to announce it. Plus, there may be some more Coffee & Chrome meets in the pipeline before the end of the year, watch this space!”

David Bond, Managing Director at FJ commented, “Coffee & Chrome has become an integral event in the calendar for us, we love being at the centre of the community and being able to chat with enthusiasts about their pride and joys, face to face. The event always has such a good feel to it and something that has been sorely missed, so we’re very excited to see it’s return.”

Prescott Speed Hill Climb is one of the UK's most prestigious motor racing venues. Set in 69 acres of glorious Cotswold countryside, the estate not only provides a beautiful setting for a range of classic car and bike weekends, but also hosts major motor racing championships. Plus, the Bugatti Trust Museum will be open for Coffee & Chrome attendees to enjoy.

Coffee & Chrome is open to anyone who has a passion for classics, not just Footman James clients. Spaces will go fast and are first come first serve, so if you would like to attend, please fill out the form on their website at: https://www.footmanjames.co.uk/coffee-and-chrome-august-2021

Everything we mentioned so far would be nothing without the help of our partners, which are an integrant part of the Gresini Family. The commercial department is a key pillar of Gresini Racing and has been managed for the last two decades by Carlo Merlini, the commercial and marketing director of Gresini Racing.

This is a crucial moment in the development of this side of the project: many #GresiniFamily existing sponsors have already decided to join this new effort in the premier class and also new sponsor are coming onboard, given the strong attraction by the incomparable stage of MotoGP.

How does the MotoGP project come to light from the commercial side of things?
Putting together a budget for a project normally requires a lot of dedication and great work method. In our case, there have been some factors that have surely taken the work complexity on a different level – first and foremost the huge loss we had to face last February: this is an incommensurable void which will never be filled. Aside from this emotional aspect, complexity was also generated by the level of budget that we need build when it comes to a MotoGP project and by the fact that, after seven years of joint venture with Aprilia, we found ourselves back to square one with regards to budget building.

The network of relationship we have in place with our existing and prospect sponsors was extremely useful and allowed us to develop discussions far earlier than usual and eventually to get to the point of signing a contract with Ducati with an already well-shaped budget.
The business model of an “independent team” requires a very careful risk management and I must say that this has been one of the biggest learning of the over 20 years of work alongside Fausto.

New and ‘old’ allies
This new Gresini MotoGP project was a precious opportunity to offer our partners in the lower categories a chance to follow us in this new journey, to develop the sponsorship in the premier class with all the perks it has, starting from the TV audience numbers and media attention it gets. We have already announced that established partners such as Federal Oil, Astra Otoparts, YouAll e Kapriol will be onboard. But obviously, a new chapter is also a chance for new partners to enter the #GresiniFamily, and I would like to mention that Flex-Box was among the first ones to embrace the Ducati Gresini MotoGP project, and did so in the key role of title sponsor.

Indonesia still has a key role…
Our deep, decade-long roots in Indonesia are well known. This is a bond that comes from the fact that Indonesia is a key country for the MotoGP universe, as the series has over there the biggest following in the whole world. For us, Indonesia has become our main foreign market, in which we have developed very important partnerships. The opportunity to jump onboard the Gresini’s MotoGP platform was taken first and foremost by Federal Oil, as the Gresini Moto2 title sponsor decided to move its commitment to MotoGP by becoming to my knowledge the first-ever Indonesian sponsor in the premier class! And then also an historical partner such as Astra Otoparts has joined the challenge and others will follow.

#CiaoFausto❤️