Cassington Bike Night is Back!

Ace Ride-Out to Cassington
 
Date: Monday 25th June
Depart Cafe: 6pm
Route: A406 West to A40 West to Cassington
 
Cassington Bike Night returns with a ride-out from the cafe departing at 6pm on Monday 25th June to the West Oxfordshire village where thousands of motorcycle riding enthusiasts are expected.
 
This annual event includes showcasing of different models and classics spanning a century and has been a fixture for the village of Cassington and members of the British Motorcycle Riders Club (Oxford) for more than 25 years. 
 
Following the disappointment of cancellation last year, the Parents and Teachers Association of St Peter's School set the wheels in motion and have got Cassington Bike Night back, and record numbers are expected!
 
Ace Cafe London will have a stand/display as well as a "Rockers Restaurant" facility offering refreshments and a BBQ, with Ace prizes, awards and goodies for best bikes and raffle.

www.cassingtonbikenight.org

After a week of cold and wet weather, the 2012 North West 200 races took place in bright and sunny conditions today as Honda TT Legends’ John McGuinness claimed two podium finishes in the Superbike class and took his tally of wins to six. Team-mate and NW200 newcomer Simon Andrews impressed with a confident debut on the 8.9 mile Triangle circuit to secure two top ten places. 
 
The first Superbike race of the day saw McGuinness get off to a great start ahead of pole sitter Alastair Seeley. By the end of lap one Seeley had regained a slight advantage, but under increased pressure from a determined McGuinness, he made a mistake that cost him several places. With a clear road ahead and a comfortable lead, McGuinness put in a flawless performance to hold the top spot for the remainder of the six-lap race claiming his sixth North West 200 win. 
 
Team-mate Simon Andrews started his first ever NW200 race from 19th on the grid, placing him on the front row of the second wave of riders. A confident performance saw him finish ninth and as the highest-placed newcomer in the race. 

The second Superbike battle was the sixth and final race of the day for John McGuinness, who also took part in the Supersport and Superstock classes with Padgetts Honda. He had another strong start and held on to second place until lap four when he was overtaken by Michael Rutter. McGuinness eventually crossed the line in third to secure his second Superbike podium. 
 
Meanwhile, Andrews put up an incredible fight from the second wave of riders to finish just one place behind his team-mate on the timesheet in a well-deserved fourth position – an impressive end to his debut at the North West 200. The next stop for the Honda TT Legends team will be its namesake event – the Isle of Man TT – which kicks off in just eight days time. 
 
John McGuinness - I was fairly confident we could go well in the races today after qualifying on the front row. I went in with a good attitude, just wanting to get stuck in and go as hard as I could to keep Alastair under pressure. In race one that happened and he made a mistake and in race two I was with him all the time but I couldn’t quite get there. Rutter got passed me too, but to be honest you’ve got two guys there doing BSB week in, week out so I’m happy to be on the podium. A win and a third is great for the team. We’re here in the iconic Honda colours and the bike has not let us down so I’m well happy with that.
 
Simon Andrews - I’m really happy after that. The team have done a top job with the bike set-up and it was just a dream to ride from the word go. I felt comfortable, it was easy to ride, I could push for the whole race – it was just a pleasure. I’m just really pleased that we have achieved so much and this is exactly where we wanted to be after the North West going in to the TT.

Firstly, we've arranged for a Big Screen to be at the Show. This means footy fans can watch Chelsea’s game live on Saturday evening AND it will show the Moto GP practice sessions and the race live on Sunday. Remember, to have access to the evening entertainment or the sports screening you will need a Weekend ticket.

Secondly, the BMF have offered a further incentive to BMF Members - you will now be given a £2 discount off the ‘On Gate’ ticket prices – this will include camping and day tickets. You MUST produce your membership card to get the discount - so pop it in your wallet now! Affiliated club members also entitled to this discount (with membership card).

Rain, rain, go away...!

We are keeping a watch on the weather and forecasts indicate that there will be an improvement and even the chance of sunshine again – so the show most definitely will be ON!

We have put a number of measures in place to dry the ground as much as possible and minimise the disruption should the heavens open (this is the UK summer after all!) and there are a lot of people working in the background to ensure everyone has a great time. In addition, campers who decide the weather isn’t up to a weekend in a tent will be able to buy a camper van ticket on the gate on arrival, so you can leave that decision until the last minute and check how the sky looks on the day…

And finally...

You can meet one of the BSB riders from Team Savage Squirrel we have visiting the the show, together with a few other biking characters such as globe-trotting round the world record breaker Nick Saunders.

Tell us what you think of the show! – In the FREE show programme you’ll find a short questionnaire, simply fill it in, hand it in and you could win £75 voucher to spend at Mick Byrne.

Show us what you think of the show! – Upload your video to You Tube  and you could win the use of Ducati Monster 1100 for a weekend. Thanks to the lovely people at Sycamore Ducati for putting up this prize. Terms & conditions apply.

Remember, if you want to take a bike out on a demo ride you will need both parts of your licence, so put the paper part in your packing pile now (good bit of illiteration there me thinks!).

You’re out for a ride on the bike on country roads and your worst nightmare as you round a bend, muck is spread across the road.   Surviving the lack of grip, handle bars going from lock to lock, sideways and thisways, backend stepping out in an all mighty slide, hopefully you ride on and you report the muck on the road.   However was anything ever done about it, was the muck cleaned up, were those responsible ever face anything for trailing muck all over the road?  

Well the BBC in Northern Ireland are reporting that a farmer has been fined for allowing muck from his fields to be dragged onto roads in the Portrush area.  

The BBC report says that this is one of the first cases of its kind to come before the courts.   Fining the farmer £500, District Judge Richard Wilson said the roads were in a dangerous position and had been left like that for some time while the defendant was reluctant to do anything about it.  

Although the farmers lawyer said the defendant had tried to clean up the road using a slurry tanker filled with water but this attempt was unsuccessful.

Original Source:

Unless you are living in a dark cave in Northern Ireland, you should be aware that this week is the Race Week Festival for the Relentless International North West 200 road races.
 
Race Week Festival started on Saturday 12th May and sees a whole raft of events and entertainment continue with BikeSafe assessments, charity fundraising events including the NW200 Giant Ride Out – and there is even some Road Racing going on.
 
The official charity partner adopted for the 2012 Relentless International North West 200 is the children’s charity, Action Medical Research.
 
NW200 Technical Director Mervyn Whyte said, “Following a strong application and interview process we’re delighted to bring on board Action Medical Research as our official 2012 charity partner. Similar to the NW200, the charity has been operating for a long time and has supported incredible medical breakthroughs which have made a huge difference to the lives of sick and disabled children. Many of our NW200 competitors have also supported Action Medical Research through the local committee Sporting Partners in Action and we felt the partnership was an important one particularly as in 2012 as the charity celebrates its 60th anniversary.”
 
The NW200 Giant Ride Out sets on Friday 18th May at 2:00pm from the Stena Belfast-Cairnryan, terminal Belfast.
 
Riders will journey with Jeremy McWilliams and Josh Brookes from the Belfast-Cairnryan Stena Line terminal to The Paddock following the M2 and A26.
 
Supported by BikeSafe NI, motorcyclists will travel in cavalcade to the regrouping point at Tannaghmore Filling Station, Antrim.
 
Here participants can refuel, have a break and chat with Jeremy and Josh. Roundabouts will be held along the route by Bike Safe NI police marshals to aid the flow of the cavalcade.
 
The entry fee is £5. 

www.action.org.uk/north_west_200
 
Relentless International North West 200 Race Week takes place from 12 – 19 May – Race Day Saturday 19 May.
 
Visit www.northwest200.org for up to date Race Week information.