ENTHUSIASTS came out in droves to the Bath and West Showground over the weekend to enjoy a superb celebration of motorcycling, and it was the regional clubs that really shone in Somerset.

Some fantastic displays and exhibitions marked the 34th Carole Nash Bristol Classic MotorCycle Show, and none were more impressive than the winner of the Best Club Stand prize – the Bristol section of the Norton Owners Club.

Inspired by their own first ever meeting back in 1963, club members built a 60s style shop window that showcased their stunning selection of machines in all their glory. 

Event manager Nick Mowbray said: “Despite some horrendous conditions in the southwest of England, the crowds arrived in their thousands for the show and it was truly fantastic to see. They were certainly treated to an excellent two days, with everyone commenting on how much of an effort clubs, traders and individuals had gone to in order to make this a show to remember. The Norton Owners Club members certainly earned their award for a particularly creative effort, but all of those who had displays deserve credit and we can’t wait to see what everyone comes up with next year.”

Another inventive exhibition included a stand laid out like a stables, with motorcycles taking the place of horses in stalls. Bob Presley, designer of the winning stand, was rightly proud of his club’s hard work and was also quick to praise the competition: “We’re incredibly excited to have picked up the trophy for Best Club Stand, and it was certainly worth all of the hard work. Looking around the show it’s clear that the standard is as high as ever, and we will have to get our thinking caps on to come up with something even better next year.”

Elsewhere, it was a successful weekend for Gaby Hunt, who won the Best In Show prize for his 1929 Sans Soupape Emmags 50. The rare machine was built in Paris, has a Swiss-built MAG engine and has a frame of unusual pressed-steel construction. 

James Robinson, editor of The Classic MotorCycle magazine, talked about the winner and praised the high standard of display machines at the event: “There are some lovely machines, many of which are freshly restored. The Best In Show winner truly is a showstopper which, unbelievably, Gaby only finished on the Friday before the event.”

Some of the other notable award winners were a 1928 AJS K8 (Best Vintage), a 1953 Ariel KHA (Best Post-War), a 1958 Ducati 175 Sport (Best Continental) and a 1936 Calthorpe Ivory Major (Best Private Entry).

With two successful classic events already run, the Classic Bike Shows 2014 season is well and truly under way, and attention next turns to The 34th Carole Nash International Classic MotorCycle Show at Staffordshire County Showground in April.

Freebies and Goodies up for grabs!

Friday 14th February, Valentine's in your diaries, it's the opening day of the London, Excel, MCN Bike Show and it's Bike Night Valentine's Special at the Ace!

This year's Valentine's night at the Ace not only includes with the cafe's very special, and pre-booked only, "Lover's Menu" available from 6.30pm, but also a free "cuppa" tea to accompany the "Tea GB" stickers being given away on the night, courtesy www.bikemagazine.co.uk whilst stocks last!

Spend £5 or more over the counter from 6.30pm to receive a raffle ticket. Draw to be held at 10pm.

www.ace-cafe-london.com

The latest Department for Transport road casualty statistics released today show a welcome decrease in the overall number of deaths and serious injuries in the year ending September 2013

However, despite the decrease, the IAM are concerned that two-wheeled road users are still a growing risk and must be given even greater priority for investment and education.

•For reported road accidents in the year ending September 2013:1,730 people were killed, a 2 per cent drop from 1,761 in the year ending September 2012. The number of killed or seriously injured casualties fell to 23,380, a 6 per cent decrease compared with the previous year.
•For the year ending September 2013, there were 184,010 reported road casualties of all severities, 7 per cent fewer than the 197,700 for the year ending September 2012.
•In the year ending September 2013 there were 1,730 reported road fatalities, a 2 per cent drop from 1,761 in the year ending September 2012. The number of killed or seriously injured (KSI) casualties fell by 6 per cent, to 23,380, and the total number of casualties fell by 7 per cent to 184,010. In comparison, motor vehicle traffic rose by 1.1 per cent over the same period.
•A total of 8,490 car user KSI casualties occurred in the year ending September 2013, a fall of 6 per cent from the previous 12-month period.
•KSI casualties for the vulnerable road user groups – pedestrians, pedal cyclists and motorcyclists – showed overall decreases of 10, 2 and 6 per cent respectively.

IAM director of policy and research Neil Greig said: “It is reassuring to see an overall drop in the number of road casualties. But the fact remains that nearly a quarter of road deaths are a result for criminal driving acts such as dangerous driving, drink driving, careless driving and aggravated theft. Targeted action by the police to drive down the numbers of these criminal driving acts could potentially have huge societal benefits.”

www.iam.org.uk

Rico Penzkofer's Penz13.com team has confirmed that Simon Andrews will ride for the German outfit at the 2014 Isle of Man TT Races fuelled by Monster Energy.

Andrews will ride a BMW HP4 S1000RR prepared by the Penz13.com BMW Racing Team, supported by the BMW HP Race Support team, at the Isle of Man TT as well as the North West 200 and Macau Grand Prix.

He also has the potential to represent the Penz13.com Franks Autowelt Racing Team in the FIM World Endurance Superstock Cup races. Andrews will be the reserve rider at the Bol d’Or and the legendary Le Mans 24 hours with the opportunity to be selected for the team during qualifying.

Andrews' TT record has included four top fifteen finishes including 11th place in last year's RL360 Superstock Race. He made his TT debut in 2011, taking 11th in both the Superstock and Senior Races, also finishing as the fastest newcomer with a lap of 125.134, the third fastest newcomer in the all-time list. He has a fastest lap to date of 126.001mph around the TT Mountain Course. He also finished third in the 2012 Macau Grand Prix.

The 29 year old from Evesham is now recovering from his injuries sustained in last year's accident while competing in the World Endurance at Le Mans and is expected to have his first test on the bike later this month.

Commenting on the move, Simon Andrews said: "I’m pleased to sign with Penz13.com BMW Racing Team for the Road Racings in 2014. I’ve raced against Rico and know his bikes are well built. I’ve had some success with BMW already when I started on the roads earlier in my career. With the help and support of BMW I believe the team will give me a good competitive bike. I'm looking forward to meeting all the team and really seeing what we can do together."

Rico Penzkofer, Penz13.com Team Principal commented: "We've been in negotiations with Simon for a while and he was scheduled to ride for us in last year’s Macau Grand Prix before his accident at Le Mans last year so I'm really pleased that we've now signed him."

He continued: "The Isle of Man or Macau has been my greatest passion, my life, if you like. Over recent years we've built a special wealth of experience as a team and focused on the TT - not least because I raced the TT myself. I now want to use this experience and get closer to the sharp end. Steve Mercer delivered our team’s best TT result last year with an 8th spot. I am happy that we've signed Simon and that he has faith in our team as he's a really talented road racer."

SYLVAIN GUINTOLI IS BACK IN THE SADDLE AFTER THE LONG RECOVERY FROM THE INJURY TO HIS RIGHT SHOULDER WHILE IN THE MEANTIME MARCO MELANDRI HAS COME INTO HIS OWN WITH HIS RSV4.

Jerez, 6 February 2014 – The weather certainly did not help the Aprilia Racing Superbike Team during the preseason tests. As happened at Portimao, once again at Jerez the damp track affected progress on making some final tweaks before leaving for Phillip Island. Only on the second day were the riders able to take a few laps on a track that was dry, although still not perfect in terms of grip.

In any case, the most important feedback wasn't expected to come from lap times. In fact, all eyes were on Sylvain Guintoli, back in the saddle after a long recovery from a double surgery on his right shoulder which was injured in mid 2013. The French rider hadn't ridden since the final race last season, right here at Jerez.

First impressions were encouraging. After a cautious start to re-familiarise himself with the bike and hone his reflexes, Sylvain came back to the pit with a smile on his face: the shoulder reacted well. It still needs some toning but all the groundwork is there to begin the season in the best possible conditions. Toward the end of the second day Sylvain fell victim to a low speed crash, but without any physical consequences. Guintoli put in 68 laps, the best of which in 1’42.605.

Sylvain Guintoli: “It's great to be back after such a long winter! Yesterday I rediscovered the RSV4 in the wet, whereas today it was nice to get out and take some laps in the dry. I found a good feeling straight away. It's a bit like riding a bike: it's hard to forget how. I'm quite pleased even if my shoulder is very tired now. I even crashed on my right side, so I suppose this can be considered a complete test! Let's keep our fingers crossed but there shouldn't be any big problems. Now I need to go back home and get ready for Phillip Island. I am very relieved now because before coming here I was very concerned. Actually, after almost four months without a bike I wasn't even sure I'd be able to ride, but now I know I'm ready for Australia.”

On the other side of the garage Marco Melandri has by now finished his “apprenticeship”. By now feeling confident with the RSV4, he did not have an opportunity to push to the limit but both Marco and his team took best advantage of these two days of testing anyway. The rider from Ravenna also fell victim to a crash on the damp track in the fastest turn of the twisting Spanish circuit. He took a bad spill at 200 kph, fortunately without serious physical consequences but which kept him from going on with the tests. Melandri took 44 laps in all with a best time of 1’42.308.

Marco Melandri: “We had two difficult days here again. The weather didn't help. Yesterday we tried a few things with the electronics in the wet and things were going well. Then I made a stupid mistake and crashed. Today we were able to lap on a dry track although there were still a lot of wet spots and it was quite windy. I think we're on the right path. Now all we can do is wait for Phillip Island and hope that we have two sunny days for the tests so we can fine tune the settings for the first race. I'm very confident and satisfied. We have definitely reached a good level.”

The next appearance is set for Phillip Island where the first round of the 2014 World Superbike Championship will be held. Riders and teams will be busy with the usual tests on the Monday and Tuesday prior to the race weekend.