Ducati Sporting Club UK - Big thanks to ...

Ali, Chris, Dickie, Claire, Jon, Lizzie, Eric, Ant and Mark and all the DD racers and DSC/DuN members without whom I would have had a very unhappy weekend, not to mention being stuck in Wolverhampton waiting for the RAC to recover my bike.

First thought when I fell in the quiet, traffic free cul de sac close to my Aunt’s house on a flying visit on the way up to Oulton Park ‘I’m going to miss the racing’. 2nd thought ‘my foot’s broken’. 3rd thought – I can’t believe I’ve dropped the Duchess again. It turns out that the shock absorber had dislocated itself from the bike (more technical explanation may follow if Eric or Ant care to explain) so I was lucky I got spat off there and not on the 110 mile motorway journey I had just completed.

Nothing broken, as it turned, just a nasty 2” split in the skin and a lot of swelling and bruising. (Chris, I heard your comments about my nasty gash – those garage walls are only breeze block, you know!). My resolve never to ride in anything other than top quality boots has been vindicated. I think the foot peg might well have embedded in my foot if I didn’t spend so much on good kit. So after a trip to Wolverhampton General, a phone call to Ali who, whilst en route to Oulton, co-ordinated the rescue effort, a bite to eat and a bottle of bucks fizz with Auntie B, some very nice boys, Dickie and Chris, collected me from my Aunt’s house and delivered me to Lily and JPM’s before going on to their B & B.

Thanks to Claire and Jon for the bed for the night, the beer and the tea and sympathy (well, Claire was sympathetic, at least). And the banana for breakfast, which a northern bloke took a photo of when it revisited at about midday. Lizzie and I were watching the racing at Cascades, (thanks for acting as chauffeur all day Lizzie). This bloke who I’ve seen before at track days, was sitting in the next van watching me throw up and asking how good a night I’d had. Lizzie explained it was the painkillers making me sick. He later showed me a picture of a crow eating what I’d brought up. He claimed that was northern humour. I didn’t really see the funny side. Thanks to Lizzie for her right sandal too. I will post it back to you but at the moment it’s the only thing I can get onto my foot so it may be a while.

Great day’s racing. Congratulation to Eric for a 1st and 2nd place trophy – no need to explain how that happened. Suffice to say, he and Skids both had a great time and he gets his first silverware.

I'm posting some pictures in the 'My Photos' section

Thanks again to Eric, Antonye and Mark for picking the Duchess up from my Aunt’s and for their impeccable behaviour in the company of an ex-headmistress – that’s apart from Ant ‘watering’ her garden. When left to his own devices in the back of Eric’s van, apart from his disco dancing making the whole van rock, his sense of decorum deserted him to such an extent that he relieved himself (I think I’m just talking bladder here) into one of Eric’s petrol cans then tipped the contents onto a sapling in my Aunt’s garden. Luckily, she didn’t delve too deeply into Eric’s comment about the secret ingredient in Ant’s petrol that gives him that little extra speed.