Oddballs 2022 – in aid of teenage cancer trust | rallery

One non-mainstream scooter event that has been steadily growing and carving out a bit of a reputation for itself is Oddballs. It’s the vision of Vince Wooloff and is built on a 4-day festival-like vibe with plenty of live music and charity at its heart. The event and various fundraising efforts that run alongside it have been raising cash for Teenage Cancer Trust for the last six years and after this year’s bumper event those coffers will be swelled considerably. Here’s ‘Catwoman’s’ review of the weekend, with photos by Booga…

With the scooters loaded up Thursday mid-afternoon we left Buckingham around 3.30 pm, not the longest of rides for Mark and Levi Reeves and I, but it was a scenic one. With me on my Dragster 125 mark on The Torch (which needs no introduction) and Levi on his Gilera runner 125 on all the country back roads through to Abingdon. Total of around 35 minutes of riding in the glorious sunshine and enjoying every minute of it.

We soon set up camp, including the tent fairy lights that always guide me home on the wobbly walk back to the tent at stupid o’clock. And started early with the pints of snakebite and black (if the 80s had a flavour!). After a few hours of catching up with old friends and quite a few more snakebite and blacks later we headed to the silent disco whereas I personally think it’s way more fun to turn your earphones off and listen to everyone murdering the songs… We danced until the early hours and wobbled back to our tents and fell asleep to the glorious sounds of the countryside – man farts and burping!

Friday started a tad delicate for me, no hot water in the showers soon sorted that though. The afternoon saw me shaking a bucket with Sarah making folk part with their hard-earned cash for raffle tickets, in fact we sold all four books in record time. I think it went £1 a strip, £2 we won’t strip and £10 for us to f*off. Vodballs started our evening’s entertainment, as every year our big group of friends and club mates from Aylesbury SC and the Destitutes make a flavoured vodka to bring to the table and we all do a shot of each others and put them in order of how grim they are, my least faves this year was stuffing, and chorizo and garlic. Eww.

After 12 bottles of vodka between us we got our best disco outfits on and watched Revival ABBA and the studio 54 set in the clubhouse, what a fantastic night. My feet still hurt.

Yes another delicate start to the day Saturday but wanted a look around the parts fair which was pretty decent I might add (and custom show), the mistress was my fave.

Custom show results

Tik tester memorial: Mick Wattam
Ron Morgan memorial: Ricky Lake
Duncan Evans memorial: Mark Rogers
Harry Dunn memorial: Mark Dorrow
Club display: UK Lambretta choppers
Mod: Raymond Dredge
Engineering: Tony Day
Paint: Bex Galbraith
Pre ’75 Vespa: Damon Vaughan
Small frame: Alison Louise Richards
Best unrestored Vespa: Damon Vaughan
WTF scooter: Ricky Lake
Best Vespa: Alison Louise Richards
Plating engraving: Mark Dorrow
Chopper: Kon Woodfield
Street racer: Martin Teaneck
Auto/other: Neil Cooper
Oddity: Sean Helen Robinson
Cutdown: Richard Pettyfer
Best in show: James Hayward
Street racer: Martin Reaney

Time for the dress-up, I managed to pour myself into my outfit… a latex Catwoman all in one and 6-inch heels during a heatwave was not the greatest idea I’ve ever had but muva didn’t raise no quitter. Besides, there was no plan B so I went with it. I did win the best-dressed prize so it was worth the sweat. Literally. I also could have won a northern soul competition just walking across the pitch in my heels tbh.

It was great seeing all the crazy outfits on Saturday daytime, some proper quality laughs had with all and great pics taken. Sadly I can’t tell you the custom show results as I saw something shiny and buggered off… Lazy afternoon watching the games and lots more pints, just the smell from the fish challenge in the afternoon brought all the memories flooding back from when I did it a few years back. Brave souls that took part this year is all I say.

After loads more laughter and even more snakebites and archers shots wtf!?!? so many infact I decided it was now time I owned a grass skirt for King Kurt later that night. And what a night it was, they were amazing even with smeg sat down due to injury i could not fault them.Complete mayhem bananas n beachballs a go

I stacked it over quite a few tent pegs that night on the wobbly walk back. Woke up Sunday and my first thoughts were ‘I must have had a stroke in my sleep’ as I couldn’t feel my left foot. It turns out my grass skirt had wrapped around my foot in my sleeping bag and cut my circulation off…

To vince and the Oddballs team
It’s been emotional.

Words: Clair cooper
Photos: Booga