 SWARM 2001: A HORNET ODYSSEY.It was the biggest Swarm yet. 1 wicked weekend 65 Hornets 28 Hangovers 8 ride-outs 1 sooperb procession ride  And we'll be doing it all again next year! Friday the 31st August, Saturday 1st and Sunday 2nd September 2001 will be remembered by many. If only for the sheer amount of alcohol consumed. The England's Rose pub and biker cafe in Postcombe, on the A40 on the way to Oxford was the perfect location for some Hornet tom-foolery. Here's some of the highlights - in a nutshell... Friday see's the arrival of myself and Sir James with some helpers to set up for the next day. 2000 Hornet Champion Dennis Hobbs and his Dad John Arrive and the tent pitching stops. Instead, the beer flows... and doesn't stop for quite some time. Saturday greets us with a bang and with hangovers pushed aside we down a hearty biker breakfast and begin to set up for the day's events. 65 Hornets show up and myself, Sir James and Keefer split the rideouts between us throughout the day. The strain on the local petrol station begins to show but the Hornets hoon on... The raffle sees some quality prizes handed out - 100 worth of tuning at Lloyd Coopers in Watford, a 50 cash prize, a 25 cash prize, 3 Nest T-shirts and a disk lock and Hornet air freshener donated by Sue and Dick Tym.  At the end of the day comes the procession - probably THE best moment in Hornet ride outs I've ever experienced... 44 Hornets set off on a nice steay ride through Henley on Thames, out and back through again on the way back. Right in the centre of town we all get caught up at the High Street traffic lights. 44 Hornets, most with Race exhausts begin to rev their nuts off as we wait for the lights to change! The noise is incredible, the fumes and heat haze unbelievable. Meanwhile at the back, Sir James is seeing it all unfold before him - the best view on the street! People come out of shops, chefs emerge from restaurants, shoppers turn and gaze, their jaws touching the pavement. The lights change and we roar off, leaving 20 years worth of pollution to find a few walls to cling to. SORTED! On returning we change into our dinner suits for some more ale and a BBQ. The bonfire gets lit and the Fazer effigy gets burnt (all in the name of fun, ladies!).  The evenng is long and drunken and to top it all of with a nice fat cherry - we beat the Germans 5-1 in the world cup qualifier! Eng-ger-land!! 4 o'clock in the morning and the bike alarms are mysteriously bleating...! The next day, Postcombe wakes to the aftermath... Ooooh, hangovers-a-plenty. Fortunately it's peeing it down - so we can all use the excuse that it's too wet to go out! Lucky for us it dries out and we sling in a couple of ride outs closely followed by the head shave for charity. In the end, Fatman revealed himself as Dave Bowyer and had his bonce shaved to the bone, closely followed by El Gordo and Fug. Everyone dug deep and an excellent grand total of 80 was raised and split between two charities: HEADWAY XXX The people representing the charities were overwhelmed. Top Stuff. Click the links below to see the receipts and messages of appreciation. MERSEY REGION EPILEPSY ASSOCIATION LETTER MERSEY REGION EPILEPSY ASSOCIATION RECEIPT HEADWAY LETTER Finally we down the tents and wobble off into the distance for home. All in all a superb weekend! Same again times ten next year then! The Photo Galleries.CLICK HERE TO SEE DUNC'S (THE OFFICIAL NEST PHOTOGRAPHER) GALLERY. CLICK HERE TO SEE JOHN SCOLLAN'S GALLERY. CLICK HERE TO SEE SUE TYM'S GALLERY. Download the Swarm 2001 Movie!CLICK HERE TO GO TO THE SWARM MOVIE DOWNLOAD PAGE...  Click the poster above to see the original Swarm ad page. |
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