Monsoons, biblical rain and plagues of locusts were forecast for the Friday of Southport and at 5am it sounded like the world was ending. As luck would have it, by the time our club met up and were on the road at 10 things had brightened up a bit though.

Ok, the wind was enough to blow you sideways across the Cat & Fiddle pass but we skirted around the worst of the rain and after a ladie’s and gentleman’s pub lunch we arrived in Southport with no dramas to report. Very unusual for us, especially as my newly rebuilt and usually troublesome PX ‘The Black Bastard’* had made its maiden voyage with a new engine without any issues.

*for the benefit of any easily offended readers, I also have a Purple Bastard and occasionally a Green Bastard.

As things turned out, Southport 2019 was quite a significant event, it was the last National Rally for almost two years. The longest enforced break any of us have had in our lifetimes.

The 2021 event was run in a different format though. The previous venue was closed for ‘refurbishments’ which actually translated to being knocked down and rebuilt – so that was off the cards for a few years. Instead, we were treated to the Victorian splendour (it was splendid in Victorian times at least) of the Prince of Wales Hotel. It’s a big hotel with a good central location and two lovely ball rooms for dancing and merriment. It also had one over worked lady behind the bar and around 1200 thirsty scooterists feeling like they’d had their throats cut. New venues tend not to listen when organisers tell them we like a drink. I’m sure they’ll be better prepared next year if we’re back there again. 

Having not seen lots of people for the best part of two years it was great to catch up with folks again on Friday night. The good thing about our lifestyle is that it doesn’t matter when you last saw somebody, absolutely nothing has changed and you’re still going to have the piss ripped out of you as soon as you walk in a pub. It’s a banter filled world we live in.

Leaving the pubs later than planned I wobbled up to the do with Matt (we actually walked right past it and almost ended up in Liverpool). We arrived just late enough for the band to have finished their set and the queues at the bars to have gone down to acceptable levels. Even so, it was a great venue and the perfect way to end a great first night.

Have a flick through Iggy’s Rallery below
Saturday was to also run to a different format. The LCGB were running the custom show inside the newly-opened indoor market, a lovely place with various restaurants set around a welcoming bar. It wasn’t large enough for the trade show though so the dealers were set up inside the Prince of Wales. At just £2 to get in both places it was daft not to have a look around.

Despite the weather and relatively short time for the rally to be organised (it was a bit hit and miss as to whether it would happen due to Covid and venue issues) the show was well supported and there were some tasty scooters to admire. I particularly liked the Quattrini-powered Vespa 152 L2 and the flip-up Lammy Series one with Yamaha Banshee 421 motor. Then there was the unrestored, as it came, British registered TV200. The owner must be rubbing his hands together after the recent news that a similar condition (ridiculously priced) £23,000 TV sold at auction.

BSRA Meeting

After a walk around the show it was time for me to take a couple of hours out and get to the BSRA meeting being held in yet another hotel.

If you’re unaware, this meeting (called ‘The Number Ones Meeting’ back in the day) is where organisers of National Rallies and the organisers of other large events like Mersea Island/VCB/LCGB/EMSA and other interested scooterists (like the Prodigy lads, Greater Manchester Scooter Collective and The Salford Knights) sit around a table and discuss the following year’s events. Obviously the dates have to be worked out before the meeting where possible as some venues need to be booked way in advance. Others, like Cleethorpes for instance were only decided three days before the meeting and Woolacombe only got the green light on the Thursday night. You can read a bit more about the 2022 rallies here.

Back into town and Saturday afternoon’s session was well underway with a pub crawl around some of the less obvious drinking establishments of Southport. Busy bars filled with scooterists doing what they do best, drinking, laughing and making mischief. Older but no wiser and still just as daft as they’ve ever been. Growing up isn’t really an option if you’re happy to ride unsuitable machines to far away places.
Basketcase were the entertainment for the night up at the Prince of Wales, as you’d expect they performed to an appreciative crowd in full Halloween attire and kept the dancefloor bouncing (so I’m told). I was holed up in a dodgy bar with the usual suspects until a little later. The soul room upstairs was busy as well so musical choice could be had if you didn’t want to see a band, or listen to the sounds of the main room DJs afterwards.

Saturday was a lovely end to a great weekend, restoring my faith in a return to normality and it helped to put ‘the lockdown years’ behind me.

Normality was truly the order of the day in the post-do fast food shop where tempers are flared more than a 70s skinhead’s trousers and “Must be very angry and have no customer relations” is in the desired skills set for any job advertisements. Our pizza was worth running the gauntlet though.

An extra hour in bed thanks to the clocks going back meant we not only got a lie in on Sunday but we missed the torrential rain again and enjoyed a lovely ride home on wet roads but with sunshine thrown in for good measure.

The weekend left me feeling satisfied and excited for a brand-new start in 2022. Well done to VFM, the LCGB, BSRA and all the scooterists who work hard to bring us our much needed weekends away.

Words: Iggy
Photos: Shaun and Iggy

We send our best wishes to Mick Seery who crashed on diesel on the way into town, get well soon mate.

Have a flick through Shaun’s Southport Rallery below…
Custom show results
Best Of Show – Breaking Rocks In The Hot Sun
Spectators Choice – Midnight Oil
Best Ridden Scooter – GT200
Best Lambretta Pre 1959/Series1/2 – TV1175 Series 2 431YUN
Best Lambretta Series 3/SX Range- Lotus Cortina
Best Lambretta GP Range – Agony to Ecstasy
Best Lambretta – TV175 Series 2 431YUN
Best Vespa – Witches Brew
Best Street racer Lotus Cortina
Best Chopper/Cutdown Pretty Green
Best Lambretta/Vespa Small Frame – Model D 451XVM
Best Vespa Pre P Range/T5 – Witches Brew
Best Vespa P Range/T5 Onwards – Revoult
Ridden Classes

Best Ridden Lambretta – Series 1 826XVK
Best Ridden Vespa – Apocolyptic Prelude
Best Ridden street racer – Torque of the Town MXG182L
Best Ridden Chopper/Cutdown – Top Banana Repeeled PLH366W
Best Ridden Lambretta Pre 1959/Series1 / 2 LDA 624UYU
Best Lambretta Series 3/SX Range – Calamity Jane
Best Ridden Lambretta GP Range – GP150 UBD848G
Best Ridden Lambretta/Vespa Small Frame – LDA 624UYU

Best Ridden Vespa Pre P Range/T5 – Vespa 152L2 AAO356A
Best Ridden Vespa P Range/T5 Onwards – Soultime

General Classes

Best Mural – Midnight Oil
Best Unrestored Scooter – GT200 FGC89C
Best Non Vespa/Lambretta – Naked Again YAM421
Best Indian Lambretta – Midnight Oil
Best Spanish Lambretta – Lotus Cortina

1st Time Entrant – Agony To Ecstasy

Best Vinyl/Graphics – Plod JHU 231N