Prize Draw (Nearly there folks)

I would like to thank my mate Bozzy for putting me in touch with his pal Barry at Marchean Press Ltd who have kindly sponsored us with our prize draw tickets. We still have some hoops to jump through in realation to the gaming and lotteries act so its all above board i.e. registering the draw with the local authority, but hopefully it will all be squared up for Saturday 9th of May so we can sell some at the bikesafe launch at the Motor Heritage Centre at Gaydon. I will update this link with the prizes over the next few days. www.marchean.co.uk

Football, who me?

Now Bob and Football I hear you say, never not in my lifetime in the words of Peter Kay. This was Ade Knights idea! "Nuneaton Police V's Operations Task Force, we'll have a charity football match", I can't kick a football, its like giving a monkey a paint brush and asking it to paint a portrait of the Queen!

But I'll give it a go, as long as it goes in one of the two net things at each end of the court, thats it, couldn't be easier, could it?

Fortunately I am getting a lot of help from Andy Marchi and Marky Rowlatt who know every thing about football(cheers guys)

Myself and Rather's are a little short of kit so we will play in our Off road boots, shin pads and mud trousers! (maybe)

We are hoping that we get a good turnout, the bar at Ambleside will be open before during and after the match, so the players can keep hydrated, or should that be the supporters? Will see if we can raffle a signed football or something and maybe role a quid at a bottle of Whisky to raise some funds. Rather's is organising a charity sheild that can be re used for events over the next few years and hopefully some medals for the players(and a stretcher for me!)

Hopefully see you there for a social evening and a bit of light hearted fun, remember its only a game.................

Bob.

Molly and Magners

Hoora,

Rathers has managed to put something on the net, as you can see below he went to great extremes to realise his dream of becoming a web writer.

Hi guy's!
It's me - Rathers - Bob, you did say it was about time I put something on the web! Well here it is! My medically unknown condition of DES (Distance Estimation Syndrome) has kicked in - I drove from North Warwickshire to Lochinver (3 inches North and 5 inches to the left of Inverness - Pending the scale of your map!) in order to do it at Ed and Marianne's! The sun is setting over the Summer Isles, the smell of good honest home cooked food is coming from their kitchen and there's a box of cooled Magners with my name on in the back of Molly (The camper) - So I'm off!! xx"

Ed Weerts and Marianne Benjamin run a lovely little B&B in Loch Inver, they will be going to SA on 16th of October for Enduroafrica, Looks like Rathers hi jacked Marianne's computer, either that or there is something Rathers isn't telling me.........(You signed off as Marianne)

www.the-rose-bb.com

Above picture is Marianne and Eds place in Lochinver, Great rates, have a look at their website.

Race Night

Please try to come, there will be plenty of room, good beer, nice setting and free entry.

Bob&Neil

The apprentice

Well I gave a powerpoint presentation to a very interesting company today, Geothermal International in Coventry. This company are certainly doing their bit to save the planet by drilling into the ground and pumping water down and back up, putting it through a heat exchanger which in turn heats your water/central heating to 60C. Green energy and at a fraction of the cost of using gas or electric!
Present was the MD Mr Brian Davidson who was introduced to me by a neighbour Pete Johnston, Hazel Davidson(Finance director) two representitives from the Yorkshire Bank (Andrew and Andrew) and a Young chap by the name of Alan Wells.
Alan started off by giving his presentation on his projected 18 month cycling trip to the southern tip of Africa with his friend Ian Mowbray-Williams, they have a great website http://www.eyeonafrica.co.uk/documents/home.html for which i will create a link to later.
Alan started to expand on his trip and I started to shrink, Thats a lot of peddling I thought and we are doing about 1/12 on motorbikes, when I get tired and weary on our trip I will think about Alan and tell myself to stop whinging, I have it easy by comparison.
The meeting itself was in the board room, I know how those poor soles on the Apprentice feel, having said that Brian is a smashing chap and didn't give me a hard time like Mr Sugar would have done, in fact when I thought I had done, Brian helped my expand a bit more by asking the right questions, Thanks Brian.
Alan then gave us a quick resume on another event that G Int are going to sponsor, Mark Wood from Snowball expeditions is going to walk to the North and South Poles, never been done back to back before. For those who watch Top Gear, Mark is the guy with the huskies who raced Clarkson in a 4X4 http://www.snowballexpeditions.com/
I hope I did OK, the guys from the bank were taking notes and seemed positive, now its wait and see.
Last night I spent quite a while messing with the laptop, draughting out the tickets for the prize draw which is now with the printers, updating our mission statement with our blog site and knocking up a poster for the race night which we hope will be well attended.
Charity football match will possibly be on Monday 4th May at Ambleside, I'll keep yu posted on that one.

The busking bag piper is at it again

Well fair play to Rathers, off on his jollies again to the Highlands with his pipes. Just received this picture on my mobile. He and Majella are parked at Tarbet on the banks of Loch Lomond, he has our 6' x 5' PVC banner hooked on the side of his camper van and he is busking!
Majella called me to say that a bus load of Germans had just arrived on site and were throwing money into the bucket.
Keep it up Big Boy ;-)
Thanks also to Duncan(Insp) and Val Harrison who have made a payment via Paypal.

Meeting with the Bank Manager

Had a call today from one of our sponsors, Geothermal International. The MD Brain Davidson would like one of us to attend his office on Weds 22nd April to meet with another chap they are sponsoring(To ride a pedal cycle down to the Cape, it's going to take him about 12 months)
I am then to give a presentation to a representitive from the Yorkshire Bank(Good old Power Point)
Rathers is in Scotland next week so I will go and do my best to impress(I'll get you back mate, you are going to have to take the lead on the next radio interview, oh yes you are)
We now have a good selection of top prizes for the draw/auction so must get the tickets printed up soon, my mate John Bosworth tells me he will sort that for me(Chairman of Ambleside Sports Club, which is where we will be holding our quiz night and race nights)
Did the ride out with two of our motorcycle instructors today on the new XT660R's, got soaked through to my pants and socks, but good fun and practice, the XT rides well I am glad to say and should be an excellent tool for us.
A big thanks to one of my team, Graeme Hurry who was the first to make a donation via paypal, I have decided that as paypal take a small fee that I will make that back up from my own pocket so don't let that put you off folks.
L8R
Bob.