It’s all over

WADDA and Rabbi have returned to Australia after a 14 day junket , and I’d just like to thank all the wonderful people whose paths we crossed on our pursuit for speed. To Sportsnet tours your staff on the ground in the Isle Of Man were unbelievable and  the behind the scenes activities were just endless. As I’ve just crossed another item off my bucket list and it’s now time to work on a plan to take my wife to one of her dream destinations (maybe Canada) . That’s it for now........ WADDA

Ops sorry I forget

Sorry about the late arrival of yesterday’s blog but I just forgot to post it. So sitting here at Manchester Airport awaiting our return flight back home I discover my error and now I’ve fixed it I hope....... WADDA

The road trip is over

Our overnight stay in Stoke on Trent was a pretty low key affair with a couple of ciders under my belt a feed of North Sea cod we hit the sack. Darkness arrives around 10.30pm but we are buggered so sleep comes easy, our plans for tomorrow don’t exist yet. With google maps and a folding map we lay the ground work for our arrival back in Manchester, we see places on the map such as Buxton , Matlock and others in the county of Derbyshire,Thinking that these tiny spots on the map would be small farming villages couldn’t be more further from the truth. These very old towns in the heart of Derbyshire would rival anything that I’ve seen in the Cotswolds ,in Matlock we find a nice little cake shop which looks interesting. After sampling some of the things they had on offer we move closer to Manchester Airport, our departure point back to Australia tomorrow. We arrive at the Avis car rental place and with our car returned in one piece they inform me that my holding deposit would be returned in full, they also informs us that had we done another 64 miles we would have gone from the top of Scotland to the bottom of England.

Bridge in Buxton

Nearly ready for home

With our trip nearly over and we have one more day left before we head back to Australia after spending 2 fabulous weeks in the UK. So today we leave Wales and head to Coventry to visit the Motor Museum, what a stunning array of transportation vehicles were on display. We wandered around here for a couple of hours before heading to the National Motorcycle Museum where more than 800 bikes were on show, they had every sort of bike imaginable and this was definitely a must see. While we career around the English countryside trying to avoid the toll roads we just happen to lob in a place called Stoke on Trent ,found the local pub and checked in for the night . The bloke who hasn’t shaved since we arrived has crashed on the bed while WADDA continues to do admin duties. It’s 5 pm and I’m hungry again (and thirsty) so I’m about to check out what’s on the menu for tonight’s meal a roast would be nice . Sorry but the roast sold out early so I settle for the North Sea cod and mushy peas ,nothing left to do but have early night so see ya later......... WADDA

A day in the countryside

Up early for a day of road tripping but first I must take care of the master navigator called TOM TOM ,whose performance has been below par. This morning he was pronounced dead in Newport (Wales) by a TOM TOM expert so I dug deep into my long pockets a purchased a new model. Rabbi needs a bit of a culture indulgence so we head to Bath down south. The traffic is horrendous so we circle this tourist infested town before saying enough is enough. Burton on the water is next on this cultural cruise and again people everywhere, and we hang in and eventually get to see this lovely little place in the Cotswolds. Our thirst for culture is not finished yet it’s off to a place named Stow on the Wold to visit the oldest inn in England which opened in 947 AD , and when you visit a place like this you should do it justice and go in and have a drink.  We head back to our hotel for a early night as tomorrow we are heading to Coventry ,we all know all good things must end and our time is coming. So I’ll be back tomorrow with a wash up of this fabulous journey with me mate Rabbi tomorrow........ WADDA

Just another morning tea stop 

LLANDOVERY TO TENBY TO CARDIFF ....MAYBE

Prior to leaving the lovely village of Llandovery we head to the local hash house for the big Welsh breakfast, the experience was absolutely worth every pound we paid this very likeable character. WADDA and RABBI were part of the shopkeeper humour and we traded friendly banter for around 30 minutes as for the 3 other locals it was game on . This was the most entertaining breakfast I’ve ever experienced , we leave Llandovery with our bellies full and our foggy brains also clear. Our trip today will take in Tenby....Swansea ending in Cardiff and as usual it’s pissing rain but our spirits are high. Our arrival into Tenby we were greeted by empty streets and more rain ,can’t do much about the weather so we hit the streets only to discover this beautiful seaside village is virtually deserted. We pull the pin and head to Swansea , more drama TOM TOM has failed to fire for this next leg. While RABBI fiddles WADDA lurches towards the motorway with sounds coming from the passenger seat TOM TOM crackles back to life. Just outside Cardiff it dies for last time by now the rain and road spray is horrendous. Some time later I ask Rabbi are we nearly into Cardiff he has no idea,WADDA swings up a slip ramp and drives straight in the front gate of the Hilton hotel this must be Cardiff. Inquiring at the front desk I’m informed I’m at Newport I quickly book a room for 2 nights no more motorway driving now till Sunday when we head to Coventry I hope. Our evening meal is interrupted by heavy rain lighting and thunder , this is no time to be out so we call a early night in bed by 8 pm . As the day was terrible the photo album is empty so see ya.......... WADDA

Betsy-y- Coed To Llandovery

We are here in northern Wales at a place l cannot say or pronounce but it’s beautiful, our visit to the slate caves was nothing short of sensational. And from the lofty heights of some 1000  feet above the mine to the low country to Some 500 feet below ground level this was unreal. To feel sorry for a slate miner is a understatement  ,shame on the fat cats of the 1840s . This shameful treatment of people leaves a shitty taste in your mouth , now that’s enough said on the history of the Welsh slate miners is forever etched permanently in my brain , and with Waddas lust to learn he decides to let Rabbi drive .Tom Tom the navigational device that WADDA owns has decided to take the day off so WADDA invests in a Welsh map. This means of navigating is not much better and pretty soon where heading east instead west, with my tracking skills I remedy the problem and the car is now heading into the setting sun.  We finds a tavern in LLANDOVERY and decide to checkout the accommodation ,it’s basic but comfortable so we decide to meet the locals, whom a lovely lot as we laughed well into the night. Our next stop is Cardiff ..........WADDA

The village below the slate mine 

Yesterday’s news

Our last breakfast on the IOM also meant that this was the last time I’d cross paths we some of the great people with whom I met . Just let me the say the pleasure has been all mine , to Leon I truly enjoyed your company and we will make sure we stay in touch.  And to Bret your company was of the highest value , now it your turn Mick as Rabbi would say to you pointing two fingers at your head  you know what I mean . What a man to have in my corner as the horses charge towards the car. So goodbye to the IOM hello Liverpool and with the ferry being 45 minutes late and the rain flogging down WADDA hails a cab from Liverpool to Manchester for our overnight stay.We collect our hire car and head to northern Wales stopping off at Conwy to check out the local castle and some cake shops, all past the test. We move on into Snowdonia to a place called BETWS-Y-COED wow how good is this place until WADDA discovers his iPad is missing so a quick turn around hoping to find it . Surprise surprise it was handed in by some old folks, I offered 20 quid to them to have a drink on WADDA but they graciously declined (thank god ) I’m not the bank of Australia. Returning to the town with the funny little name we find a great little pub and check in for the night , let me just say so far Northern Wales is just beautiful, there local cider is beautiful this whole area is beautiful . Now tomorrow we are heading to the slate caves now this is promised to be good.........WADDA

My lowly custard 

IOM to Manchester

Waddas worn out  so no blog today....... WADDA

Our day at the Creg

With all the bag weather behind us Monday dawns as cracking looking day ,no rain no sea mist and no wind. Our vantage point today will be at the famous CREG NY BAA hotel situated some 3 miles outside of Douglas, this all inclusive day will be our last day with our snout in the trough. Thanks to Sportsnet Holidays for the job they’ve done making alterations to our schedule , times have been difficult due to the shitty weather. The big breakfasts are going just fine but alas that all ends tomorrow as we head back to England for another week traveling through Wales . The bus arrives to transports us to the famous pub high above Douglas ,up in the high country the wind is brisk and it’s very very cool . The race has begun sum 30 miles away but by the time the bikes start to arrive here there in full race mode they are approaching from Kate’s cottage at about 180 mph coming down to about 50 mph to take the corner, scary shit. While WADDA wanders through this historic pub he spots a cider tap and the cider is named Kneeslider cider and he just can’t resist the temptation to sample some of this local product . The first of the senior events has ended in tragedy with one rider killed , the racing resumes with a touch of sadness and that’s TT racing. Lunch is being served so the stampede begins WADDAS movements are exact and precise as he moves through the tables of food talking only small healthy portions of this monster spread, when the day is done we head to Douglas to watch the last super trip race . The race begins and the big bangers are clocking 200 mph in no time through this very picturesque part of the IOM, after the second lap rain begins to fall up in the mountains the race is then postponed . Arriving back at the pub I cross paths with the storytellers from Melbourne my jaw just dropped ,I thought oh no . Brett the friendly one said hi WADDA then Mr evil eye gave me a short grunt so thought I’d post his photo so if you know his name let WADDA know. Just gotta retire early as we are heading to UK TOMORROW SO GOODBYE...... WADDA

Cabin Fever

WADDA is now into his 4th day of no action and the weather has turned against everybody and everything, it’s truly shit. Waves are expected to swamp the promenade later today and my cabin fever levels are now on red alert, Rabbi is flat out doing nothing and the size of our room seems to be shrinking. This $$$$$$$$ a day holiday is drifting towards disaster, while the story tellers from Melbourne are up to their old tricks trying to lure WADDA into their late night booze filled evenings. As the carer of the wounded Rabbi I will not fall under their evil spell ,outside the warmth of our hotel the wind is howling and seas are crashing against the sea wall as word comes through that racing will start at 3 pm. Thank god we are about to get some action ,the air is cool but the atmosphere is electric as the sidecars begin the first lap of this 37 mile mountain course, these machines can do a lap in about 19 minutes hitting speeds of 160 mph.  Then the  big guns come out to play and holy shit these boys are flying at around 280 kms per hour going past our vantage point. Practice winds up so we head home very happy and decide upon a early night in preparation for a big day of racing tomorrow. The Melbourne storytellers are on the prowl as WADDA sneaks of to be with my wounded mate Rabbi, it’s still light over here at10.30pm so sleep is difficult. With a big improvement in the weather I managed to take some happy snaps.......WADDA

Some old joint in Douglas 

The promenade in Douglas 

The holy grail of motorcycle racing

This is my 3 rd day on the IOM  which turning out  just like the other 2 , yes the weather is just short of shit . After a big day yesterday in VIP tent WADDA is not quite as agile as he should be so I’m sitting in the Noble stand just past the finish line feeling not quite 100%.  It’s quite foggy with misty rain but thousands of fans continue to flock through the gate ,racing has been abandoned till 4pm . We head home and await further updates, I’ve crashed on the bed for a couple of hours. Tonight we are going to another dinner with some of the TT riders, so I need a bit of rest. The blokes we have became friends with are just great ,cabin fever could become a problem if this dirty weather continues .after some quite time with the Melbourne storytellers we head out to our next free for all at the Villa Marina. With the food and drinks flowing we really start to enjoy the evening but unfortunately some of the young blokes won’t be attending because they run to hard to early. So it’s lights out for them ,just home from the TT dinner what a great night out some high profile riders attended and the meal was beautiful. I walk home with the Melbourne story tellers with some very interesting conversations taking place .WADDA listens to the story regarding the horses trampling there car near Mansfield and it sounded like horse s- -t to me. As WADDA wasn’t there he will just leave it at that, Rabbi is a no show so I best track him down. This is the first photo I’ve taken due to the inclement weather. This is WADDA with all his mates sitting in the noble grandstand on the main straight ,hopeful the racing starts tomorrow........... WADDA

P

Let the racing begin

Our evening stroll along the promenade resulted in WADDA trying a local dish of the Manx people and to my surprise I loved it. This startling sensation consisted of chips  grated cheese and curry slurry and to those who know me it runs in line with my all time favourite of lambs fry and bacon. We shall now begin with today’s blog. Rabbi began resting on his bed around 10 pm and at 5am he was still resting fully clothed and not one drop of alcohol had been consumed (must be jet lag) The big breakfast strikes again and boy I sure loaded up because if the rain manages to go to another location we expect to have about 8 hrs of TT racing today. The day begins shrouded in mist and light rain as we line up for our trip around this 37 mile road racing course. So far SPORTSNET  has has been brilliant in the organising all of the stuff they promised ,hope they can maintain this level of professionalism. Just completed the bus journey around this very demanding 37mile road racing course. The sheer bravery of these blokes is verging on insanity, there must be something missing from their DNA . We are off to the VIP tent trackside for a evening dinner and watch a practice session of the superbikes , no shit more inclement weather on the mountain so practice has been cancelled. For my 1000 dollar a day I’ve not heard a super bike start up in anger yet this is unbelievable . The VIP tent was a winner the food and guest speakers were sensational as the bus to take us back to the 3 star palace arrives the rain begins to fall thank god for Sportsnet for having these arrangements in place to bus me home   On arrival WADDA thinks he may have another early night but the storytellers from Melbourne have a different  story to tell, as I struggled to remove myself from there company WADDA feels the odds are against him so he has one last drink . Tomorrow’s day of racing is still is still all go, time has flown so it’s bed time and WADDA .