Wednesday 21 November 2012

Boffin Dodgers Motorcycle Club




I've nicked this post wholesale from my brother's blog at Greasy Kulture as it made me laugh to read it again, and see the photo again, and certainly not much has changed since - still dodging boffins, stil got the same bike. I used to work at Victory Motorcycles in Camden Town, and on one trip on my Guz to buy Triumph spares from Ted at MCS, got wiped out, knocked unconscious and ended up on a trolley in Whipps Cross Hospital, London E11

"In the early nineties, a group of us used to ride around together and meet up for events like the Pioneer Run. The group was loosely centred on Victory Motorcycles (which was located in one of the arches in The Stables market in Camden Town back then) and Raoul, the Kiwi mechanic there.

We were a motley bunch, riding everything from souped-up MZs to Triumphs, Guzzis to BSAs. (I was definitely the odd one out on a Shovel.) But everywhere we stopped, we'd be plagued by rivet counters –"Oh yes, I had one of these, but not with the later aluminium spigot, which I think you'll find is incorrect..." – who would descend upon us like Harpies. After a while, we started creating avoidance tactics, like suddenly and quickly all walking off simultaneously in different directions without a word the moment a Frank Thomas-booted boffin approached one of our bikes.

The Boffin Dodgers were born.

My brother Adam created this montage after the Pioneer Run in '94."

Good memories.

5 comments:

MOTONERO said...

Blimey Adam, I remember nosing around at Victory m/c's looking at a rough Guzzi or two parked up outside on a Sunday when Madelyn and I use to visit Camden market every few months.
John
ps Another memory is of two blokes turning up Wehramact style (original or copies ??)BMW's and parking in a side street across the road outside the pub

adam said...

I loved that day, remember going around the outside of Guy on his Shovel, prooving that it was indeed Hardly Rideable, on one of my favourite bends near Brighton.
Role on next years Pioneer Run!
The s3 in the picture hasnt changed that much, unlike its owner. I do hope we wont become Boffins..........

ITALIAN MOTOR magazine said...

We've already become boffins because we're older and sadder.

Pioneer Run on singles next year??

adam said...

I am sorely tempted, i assume mine is still in the garage , would it take more than a week to get there-it is 100 miles you know. God i love our rides to Brighton, its the start of the biking year. Even the weather looks better in that picture. I wonder if Carol would lend me some of her hair......tee hee

ITALIAN MOTOR magazine said...

We could van 'em down and park round the corner, and pretend we'd ridden all the way there..