Camber Sands, July 2nd - 4th 2004
We arrived at the site nice and early and thankfully the queue in reception was short. The accomodation seems to get skankier every year and even though we were in the posher chalets they were still smelly and grubby. Once Jo, Duaine and their kids arrived we headed over to the pub for a quick drink, which was already busy with thirsty scooterists. I headed back to cook our tea (yes, I'm very sad, I go to a scooter rally with half of Tesco's in carrier bags ready to be converted into a gourmet meal at the drop of a hat!) before I got too carried away with the cider. After food and a quick shower we headed out for the evening as the children were desperate to get into the arcade to start collecting tickets, which when converted at the end of the weekend, would earn them a cheap toy for their efforts.
Friday's bands weren't anything to write home about. I think there are too many bands on these rallies - I'd rather have the disco plus a decent headline band - at least the dj's could then play a good mixture of tunes so that the people that don't like the ska/mod bands can hear a selection of music. Anyway, tonight's main act were The Selecter and they played a good set, but by the time they finished (nearly 12.30) it was time to go to bed (for the children) so I didn't have much chance to dance to Emma Cox's tunes (she looked fab in a 20's flapper outfit!), which was a shame. We did have time, however, for a quick photo with Pauline Black as she was hanging around beside the stage. I grabbed Gary for a shot and then had one with her myself - perfect for Jo's 'Hall Of Fame' page on www.alcoholic-rats.com.
Saturday dawned and we headed for the custom show, which also didn't inspire me. There weren't many new custom scoots and it just seemed to be packed with restorations, which are OK but not particularly exciting to look at. After more fun in the arcade and a quick game of table tennis and draughts we headed for the swimming pool. Sam and Kieran spent most of the time on the slide, which despite its simplicity was enough to keep them entertained for a while. Later on we went to the restaurant for tea (we'd cancelled the BBQ we'd planned due to the high winds!) and met up with Steve, Barry and Lofty who'd spent all afternoon in the pub, along with new club members Darren and Jackie. Darren popped into the Northern room where they were handing out the custom show trophies, and he returned with the first Midhurst Detours trophy of the season - for Best Auto! The trophy was very small, but quite sweet, but he also had a prize contained in a box. I was very curious, but not enough to delay my pudding, so whilst I dashed off to get my strawberry gateau he opened the box. When I got back the prize was revealed as.... Some lubricant!!! Barry was very excited by this, but I was disappointed, hoping for something rather more interesting. Maybe it's a boy thing..... On the way back to the chalet I popped in for a chat with rally-virgins Sarah and Col, who were having a pleasant early evening drink around the table. I sent Sam off to get me a Strongbow from my fridge (bless him!) and whilst the children played football (with Finlay supplying a jumper for the goalpost - or rather a school sweatshirt!) we had a nice chinwag. But not for long, as it was time to get ready for the evening ahead.
We ventured out and the children headed for the arcade while me and Jo popped into the pub to see the others. We got there for the end of the karaoke competition. They were giving out the prizes and gave the Best Young Performer to a seven-year-old called Jessica who proceeded to give an encore performance of her chosen song, Band Of Gold. There was not a dry eye in the house - lucky for me I had waterproof mascara on - because she was brilliant! She didn't need to read the words, clearly her parents had brought her up listening to decent music, and belted it out to a rapturous audience and received a standing ovation at the end! I'm already trying to persuade Sam to learn This Old Heart Of Mine ready for next year......
We then headed for the main room where the first band were called Cool Jerks. They did a good set of covers, as did the second band, Ready Steady Go. The dancefloor was busy throughout, and then got busier when Emma Cox played some tunes before the main act came on. I wasn't sure what to expect from The Undertones, as Feargal Sharkey's distinctive vocals defined their sound. I wasn't disappointed though, as their new singer sounded just like Feargal and threw himself into the performance that their songs deserved. They were fantastic. I squeezed to the front for Wednesday Week as it's one of my favourites, and took a few photos, before retreating to a safe distance for the rest, including two encores. A helpful bouncer 'acquired' a setlist for me to add to my collection. Their performances of Teenage Kicks (they did it twice!) prompted me to try to persuade Lofty to resurrect local Bognor 80's band X-Axis - as they always used to dedicate Teenage Kicks to me, as it's one of my favourite ever songs. After their second encore Tony Class took to the decks and played some storming records, finally giving me the chance for a decent boogie.
I don't know what time we went to bed but it only seemed like minutes later that Linda was knocking on the door to say that they were heading off. It was actually 9 o'clock, and spitting with rain - not ideal weather conditions for a ride home. Steve was having more clutch problems but it was soon sorted and they were off. We were heading to the arcade to swap our 621 tickets for various car-boot-reject toys, when we bumped into The Undertones, loading their van! We congratulated them on their performance and I whipped out my camera, not wanting to miss another photo opportunity! Their manager was really helpful and offered to take the picture himself, allowing Lee, Sam and I to pose with the band - another photo for Jo's site!
All in all it was a great weekend for the kids, and we adults had fun too. Roll on Exmouth......