Steve arrived late Saturday afternoon to help out with the food. Brian had sorted out the gazebo and everything that goes with the setup including tables and chairs. He then went off to pick up the van and on his return we loaded up the van except for the food for obvious reasons.
Come Sunday morning all the food was loaded promptly at 5:00am and by 5:40am we set off for Brighton. The weather was dry although it was trying very hard to rain but at least it was not cold. The journey down was brilliant and we even caught a glimpse of the sunrise before it disappeared quickly behind the clouds.
We arrived in Brighton around 7:00am and the sky was clouded over. Also the winds had picked up which was making our job very difficult to erect the gazebo. We started to think that this was not a good start to the day. The pitch this year was better than last year and with that the gazebo was soon up. George was first to arrive and he helped us with the setting up.
The winds were subsiding and we could even see patches of blue skies. While the kettle was boiling and the chairs and tables were being put out I started unpacking all the food stuff and placing it all on the tables ready for our members. That done we sat down watching first set of bikers arriving around 10:30am. The whole place started getting busier and louder before long. There were less trade stalls then last year but the live band and crowds of people made it exciting.
Geof and Dee had stayed in Brighton the previous night and it was her first time to Brighton. As usual we had a good turn out from Busy Bee members and that’s why we make an extra effort to welcome them and offer food and drinks after their long ride. Unfortunately Vinnie couldn’t make it this year due to family wedding and he was only missed because there were no hot fried samosa’s on the menu. To compensate I made a large lemon drizzle cake and bread pudding which seemed to go down well with everyone.
The weather improved as the day went on and the rain kept away for the rest of the day. Lots of members thanked us for the hospitality and welcome they received at the stand. Soon it was time to pack up and head home. But first we always visit this café on the sea front for our meal before setting for home. We normally leaving Brighton at around 7:00pm so to miss the traffic. Drive back home was one of best for years as there was no traffic and got in at around 8:30pm. What a fantastic day out.
Pat
Brian collected the van on Saturday afternoon so we could load up the night before.
Gerry and Bob had come over from Wales for the weekend so we had plenty of help with loading the van. Judy had been staying the weekend before so she could come to our reunion as well as Brighton Burn-up so it lovely to have help with all the food. Steve arrived very early Sunday morning. We set off in the van with Judy, Gerry and Rob following us behind on their bikes. We had a very smooth ride down and arrived about 7:30am only to find we had not been allocated our usual place there was not enough room for the gazebo, van and the bikes. After a bit of a wobbly and one hour later we were allocated a bit more space after one of the stand had not turned up. So all was well in the end.
This year with Gerry and Rob we had a lot more help with getting the gazebo up and setting out the tables and chairs. It was not long before the food was set out and the kettle boiled as we waited for the members to arrive.
Vinnie arrived with San and Johnny and out came the frying pan. Vinnie started to fry the samosas which he had brought himself. With a little wait all the members started tucking into freshly cooked samosas. They proved to very popular. By lunch more members and friends started to drop in. Laurie, Ian, Gordon, Berry, Max, Dave, Roger, Sue and many others. Steve was kept busy boiling water for teas and coffees. The whole place was buzzing like a bee hive as many bikes roared past our stand.
As it was fast approaching 5pm we stared to pack-up everything into the van before heading towards a local café for dinner. After well-earned dinner we set off back home and arrived quite late. A wonderful day to meet up with so many of our members and just taking in this great atmosphere of the day.
A very tiring and enjoyable day and all well worth it.
Pat
