While you lot were sunning yourselves amongst the rust at Stafford, I was on a camping weekend with the MT350/MT500 Riders Club. The camp was at a very salubrious (joke!) Haberdashers Arms about 20 miles west of Stafford. My MT350 is fitted with sturdy panniers and hefty rear rack so is ideal for camping. I mapped out a gentle bimble through some lovely little villages but I was getting a bit worried when the roads were getting narrower with grass and gravel in the middle! This place is literally in the middle of nowhere. Anyway I did find it and made my way across the field to a likely looking spot.
This club do things differently. A very professional twin axle trailer was being unloaded and an excellent mini marquee was erected with minimum fuss. A huge fully equipped camp kitchen was installed, then a massive amounts of food and beer was put in the corner on side tables. Tea and coffee was available continuously via a burco boiler with huge gas bottle. An excellent curry was served up that night with a super Swiss roll made by one of the members. Full English breakfast the next morning.
There was a choice of runs etc Green laning led by a local TRF (Trail Riders Federation) was strictly limited to 10. Some went to the Stafford show. Some decided to do a mini RTTW (Ride to the Wall). This is their name for a ride to the National Arboretum Memorial as it has a huge circular wall with the names of the fallen in all conflicts since the end of World War 2. Every year thousands of bikers do the RTTW on a specific day to pay their respects.
I was keen to go here again (we went from the Jampot rally at Church Gresly a few years ago). Ex chairman Brian Edensore had told me about some gates he had made here. Brian was a gunner in the Royal Artillery and as he was a blacksmith, he was asked to make some gates for their garden of remembrance. It didn’t take long to find Brian’s excellent Gates, and I took a few pictures and went through them for a quiet sit in this tranquil spot.
That night we had another great meal followed by…..beer! Much frivolity and mick-taking followed. Next morning another full English and a trundle home. A good weekend for £35 all in!
Dave A.