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

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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 .