Kelso is a smashing wee place with a showground offering fantastic facilities for holding a scooter rally. Superb camping areas, toilets, shower blocks and the main hall with its kitchen and full length bar cover all the necessaries. Over the last few years this rally has grown and got itself a pretty good reputation in the scooter world. Well this year ‘Kelso 007’ was deservedly recognised with ‘National Rally’ status and didn’t disappoint. There was a mixed batch of leaving times arranged with small groups setting off throughout Friday and Saturday morning for the journey down. I went down with Jeannie after work on the Friday and had a really good run. This was the first time the new scoot was tested in the dry and it was awesome. Passed Jimbo in the back-up van on the A697 at ‘just slightly over the speed limit’ and was out of sight within half a minute! Quality.  Jimbo had set off on Cath’s T5 but had screeched to a halt on the by-pass with suspected piston seizure for the first casualty of the day. The joys eh! Just after arriving I shot off again to pick up a carry-oot from the offy. Left Vicky Wines with 24 tins and arrived back with 22 full and 2 empty! The lamikaze had burst them open with all t’shakin! The campsite was filling up nicely when I got back, with the cars and vans once again forced to stay segregated from the camping areas. Always cheap entertainment watching folks lugging their bedding, tents, heaters, stools, BBQ’s and kitchen sinks across the site!!! Couldn’t stop for long though, had a stewarding shift to see to, so as soon as the tent was up it was off to work. Jeannie and me picked up our fetching yellow bibs from Maddy and took up our places in the main hall. Quiet start…..9 people in the hall and 6 of us were stewarding! Anyway, still managed to sup a few pints and watch Jeannie ordering a bloke about who was twice her height then chucking out the kids for playing football!  After a bit the place started to fill up and the sounds kicked in proper with the band, ‘The Amphetameanies’ getting the dance floor going. The evening was spent havin a blether with various folks – Dom, Reddy and Taff from Pogue Mahone, Wee Bob from Dalgety Bay, Paul from Paisley and spent some time watching Elvis chew off his own face! What a guy. All this built up a wee thirst again so was mightily pissed off when I found out that once again, (3rd year in a row?) the bar ran out of draught. Surely they would learn by now? I asked to speak to the Manager and told the bloke it wasn’t good enough – there would be even more crowd in tomorrow and if it happened again then I would make sure a different vendor was brought in next year. Check me oot!!! Power to the people eh! The bar shut at 1.00 anyway, which again is something I would like to see extended next year. We’ll see.

 Saturday morning I awoke to the sound of Jimbo rattlin on n on n on n on…….jeez, he’d been up all night and therefore by default so had those around him! Got ourselves in gear and we headed off to the (hot) showers, not the cold ones Kyle went to! We then flung both our scoots in the custom show (if nothing else at least they would stay dry!), picked up our new club clothing and headed off to town with Kitch and Anne. A very nice bar-lunch then a mini-pub crawl topped the afternoon then back to the site to find out that Kitch, Anne and Sumo all got best tattoo trophies but the Pars got beat in the cup-final and the our scoots picked up nowt in the custom show……arse! Ah weel, whit kin yae dae eh? I’ll tell ye – drink! So drink we did. The whole club was pretty much all in or around the blues party tent and we did our bit to make sure the bar in the do would not run out tonight by buying bigger carry-oots! Was a great laugh and good company with the folk from Sumo’s work although don’t get them chatting about the job….unless you want to know the finer points about fluid loss and stuffing bodies! Lovely.  The day just disappeared and after taking on wee Abbey at football (and losing), and then talking to Goldie about the merits of the MP3 three-wheeler he’d ridden up, we stumbled down to the do to find we’d almost missed the Complete Stone Roses again. Just caught the last two songs that were really good including an extended - extended version of ‘Resurrection’. If this version was lammy forks they’da been 8ft long! They made way for Tony on the decks again and we had a good bounce about to the wreckin’ tunes. Pete made the insane decision of wreckin’ with Anne and spent the next ten minutes getting knocked on his arse and picked back up again numerous times. I know you’ll deny it mate but I’ve got the pics! The raffle was drawn and the restored Vespa Super went to someone from East Lothian I believe…last seen with a cheesy the width of his coupon! The rest of the night passed without incident unless you count folk falling down drunk as ‘incidents’!  Was a crackin night and apologies because this write-up doesn’t do any justice at all. If you were there you’ll know how good it was, if not then you missed yourself. After queuing for nearly an hour for the burger van it was disappointing to drop the thing on the mud but by the look of it that could have been a blessing! I also found myself having a slight disagreement with a bloke in the queue from Engerland who reckoned he did more rally miles than us (last year). If he did then hats off…..but I reckon I did about 4000 plus. Not only did he say he’d done more – but reckoned 21,500 rally miles!!!! Aye right! That’s about 415 miles EVERY week for the whole 52 weeks of the year. Shut it Pinocchio

 Sunday a.m. was a bit painful and I struggled to drag myself down to the hall to join the ridiculously large queue for breakfast. (Top-tip – 2 hatches so how’s about 2 queues next year, one for brekkie, one for tea/coffee?) Never mind, 2 coffees later and then started to pack-up for the journey home. Pity the weather couldn’t have held off for another day but it’s a Scottish Rally so it was bound to happen. The rain was bouncing off the ground! Some of the club were staying to the Monday but work beckoned so we reluctantly set-off in the rain, me without any lights due to a battery problem as well. Half way home and Kyle became the second scooter casualty with a flooded airbox on his dragster. I can honestly say that this years Kelso was, in my opinion, the best yet. There were around 2000 there and absolutely no bother at all. The only negative points being one smashed table and some arsehole going at it with a marker pen in the shower block. That aside, this is a great rally. No queue at the bars all weekend (they got that bit absolutely right!), Clean showers, clean toilets (even still on the Sunday morn!), excellent camping and great company. All we need next year is more drink, more folk, some sunshine would be nice and the organisers to fight for an exclusive weekend. Why do we have to share with Skeggy? It’s the only major Scottish run on the calendar and far superior. The amount of people who made the effort from South of the Border would testify to that I’m sure. Well done.   Now back in the house and typing this up, I’ve heard Isabel had a nasty accident on her journey back. I hope she recovers soon and sure I speak for the whole club in passing on our best wishes. Get well soon hen!

 Dunf

Stats – Kelso 25th – 28th April 2007.   Qualifying miles - 100

 Club scoots attending:

 Paul                             Vespa                          PX166

Pete                             Gilera                           Runner 180

Callum                         LML                             PX125

Tam                             Lambretta                    GP150

Telf                              Vespa                          Sportique210

Anne                            Vespa                          Rally 210

Davie                           Italjet                            Dragster180

{Jimbo                         {Vespa                         {T5125

{                                   {Italjet                           {Dragster180

Kenny                          Gilera                           Runner180

Mark                            Vespa                          PX166

Dude                           Italjet                            Dragster125

Lynn                            Gilera                           Runner125

Sumo/Daisy                Lambretta                    GP-TS1

Davie Russell              Lambretta                    GP-TS1

Elvis                            Vespa                          T5125

Isabel                           Vespa                          GT200

Norman                       Vespa                          GT200

Squire                          Vespa                          T5125

Ward                           Vespa                          PX180

Willie                           Vespa                          PX200

Paul                             Vespa                          PX166

Jeannie                        Vespa                          T5172

Dunf                            Lambretta                    YZ250

 

 

Non-members / Prospects

Spider                          Vespa                          Sportique

Graham H                   Vespa                          PX180

Graham M                   Vespa                          PX125

Kyle                             Italjet                            Dragster70

Terry                            Vespa                          T5125

 

  Click here for photos

 
 

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