Once again we joined the RBLR's Warwickshire's "Chapter" to roar-off from The Long Itch Diner pit stop to the finish line at Galanos House, just outside Southam in Warwickshire. It was early afternoon on Sunday the 16th of December 2018 and the weather was kinder this year, it stayed dry and we saw the sun for a bit earlier-on. The event was well attended and we were welcomed with hot drinks and freshly made mince pies. As last year, the images below tell the story better than I...

This year our Alan rode his much younger Ariel, a 500cc "Fieldmaster" twin that's just past pension age. Even so, it was THE classic bike amongst the many young pretenders lined-up above. Alan and his machine can be seen in the top two images, on the right - the red one. We've reserved space below for a few more shots, none of which really do it justice. AND, just to add to the nostalgia, it produces that throaty bark you might remember from way back when, pity this page doesn't have audio.

There were bags of presents for the residents, sorted and stashed by the Riders. There was also a cheque from the proceeds of the Riders selling patches to the public at various events, all enthusiastically received by Galanos House staff. We took the tour of the premises and I for one, who have friends in homes, can say GH is actually somewhere one might look forward to going. We took the time to chat with the people there, and Alan sought out Bill, a one-time Ariel employee. We are pleased to report everyone we met seemed happy and contented, they even commented that the food was excellent, and plentiful!

Galanos House was tastefully decorated for the festive season and, as you may have noticed from the background of the last pic of Alan's Ariel, is undergoing some expansion at the moment. They are adding facilities that will allow the local community to visit and stay for a day if they desire, and there's to be a café. Galanos House is also adding to its care facilities to bring their accommodation up to more than one hundred rooms. Even the house cat was impressed, although it remained inscrutable. 

As a retired biker, your scribe couldn't leave-out some snaps of the ultra-modern machines in evidence on the day. So feast your eyes on the 2,294cc transverse triple engined "Triumph Rocket III" Roadster, and the Honda VTX-1800 big-V Cruiser below...