MancRiders Cafe Racer Challenge 2015

MancRiders Cafe Racer Challenge 2015

In aid of

Redwood Secondary Schools - Red Aid 

“You are kidding me! What on earth are you doing Raymondo?”

It was 0330 hours on a Sunday morning and there I was getting out of bed and into my gear, yet again. After all the promises I’d made to myself not to do this ever again. I just cannot help myself. It’s an addiction. I just have to ride my bike.

Within 30 minutes I was riding down the pitch-black road. The temperature was 1 degree Celsius and unsurprisingly I was grinning like a 'Cheshire Cat' in my open face helmet. Well, it’s a GoldWing, why on earth would I need a full-face lid anymore?

“Look out London here I come’ was bouncing around inside my head.

Raymondo hits 'The Smoke'

Ace Cafe - London

What is it about a ‘Challenge Ride’ that just drives me to distraction?

I'd promised myself last year that this year would be different. This year I would not just get on my bike and hit every location in just a few well-planned rides. Last years Challenge was to visit 40 Speedway Tracks throughout the UK. Now to most riders that challenge should have invoked the dream of a beautiful steady couple of weeks riding, mooching from location to location taking in the sights and sounds of the Speedway World.

You're kidding right? Not me, nooooo! My brain simply doesn’t function that way. Within 3 hours of receiving last years Challenge email from Bez I had the whole 40 track visits planned down to the last petrol stop in three, yes three days! As it happened I relented and took 5 days after receiving some stern advice from Jeannie!

Still I was happy when I completed the first MancRiders charity ride the MancRiders Speedway Challenge Ride 2014 for Haemophilia Society! I managed to visit all 40 Speedway tracks in just 5 days riding a total of 2417 on a Honda CBR1000RR Fireblade.

Here’s the MancRiders getting stuck into this year Café Racer Challenge Ride and to say the weather has not been kind to us an understatement!

Here's Bez enduring some very cold weather and a foot of snow visiting 

The Cat & Fiddle - Derbyshire

A couple of weeks later & its

Glorious Sunshine

                                                                                                Here's Ella one of only two Lady Riders taking part

So at the start of 2014 my problem was  I'd completed the years challenge by April 21^st so what the hell was I going to do for the rest of the year?

More importantly, what could I do to stop myself from doing the same again next year?

The answer was simple was easy. Write this years Challenge Ride myself and so the work began on the MancRiders Café Racer Challenge Ride 2015. Now I won't bore you with the endless hours of research, planning, plotting locations, finding suitable photos and snippets of information for the Challenge Ride Book.

     The Salt Box Cafe - Foston is proving very popular 

          This is Glen Enjoying a great visit 

With Bez 

& Lefty

What I will share with you is the fact I loved every second of putting the whole project together. 4 months of work culminating in a nice simple challenge that I know will keep the participants 100% committed from February to November.

The challenge this year is to visit

30 Café’s throughout the UK – 2 points on motorbike or 1 any other way

10 Biker meeting locations - 5 points on a motorbike or 2 any other way

5 Biker Pub’s - 2 points on motorbike or 1 any other way

5 Special One Day Events – 10 points by any mode of transport

Also to add a little more spice to the proceedings there are an extra 5 points available for collecting some memorabilia. This can be anything from a t-shirt, sticker, mug, postcard and if the location has nothing other than an addressed receipt then that will have to suffice.

The memorabilia must be kept secret until the MancRiders Annual Ride to Eat in January 2016 where all the totals will be totted up to give us a clear winner for which certificates will be awarded.

Furthest North goes to Lefty 

Buccleuch Arms - Moffat

Furthest South goes to Andy

Land's End

Participants will be awarded specific certificates according to how many locations they visit in the following order:-

All 50 Locations – Platinum

40+ Locations – Gold

30+ Locations – Silver

20+ Locations – Bronze

To take part riders make a £15 donation 100% of which will go to our chosen charity. This year I'm delighted to say the beneficiary of all our hard miles is Red-Aid the charity arm of Redwood Secondary School. Please take a look at their fantastic website and you will understand why we have chosen such a deserving charity. Plus we like to support local charities.

Top Pillion Team Award goes to Oggy & Sam

Ponderosa - Llangollen

Best Cafe Racer at a Cafe goes to Lee

Seaways Cafe - Fridaythorpe

As you can see there are a fair few folk having a great time riding visiting some of the best biker friendly Pubs, Cafes and Biker Meeting locations around the United Kingdom. What is also really nice to know is we have been able to recruit a few new members to the MancRiders happy family. This is one of my personal favourite photos of the challenge so far. 

Melanie with her mates from the DDRG 

'Dawn till Dusk Rideout Group'

The word is now out and even the local press have been on the phone looking to do a spread about our exploits so watch out for a few words appearing in the Rochdale Observer and possibly the Manchester Evening News this Saturday.

With only 18 of the 50 locations in the bag I still have a fair few miles to travel and a load of merchandise to collect but the best thing about it is. I'm riding my Wing.

Currently Top of the Leaderboard with most traveled

Guess Who?

"Ride well & stay safe my friends. It's a jungle out there"