Review Rally

Summer Doss 31st May 1985 - Rally Review Magazine

Romping in the Ruins? (Actually, not quite - the 'Romps' were the Spring & Autumn bashes). But we were, once again, camping in the grounds of Tutbury Castle. The term 'Doss' reflects the fact that this weekend was a quieter affair than the 'Romps' as there was no marquee so the pubs in town would be the main source of refreshment.

When is a badge not a badge? When it is a homemade, (from bolts and other oddments), Knight in armour! They are all unique, as they were hand-painted by Lez Lumps' family and local friends. We were told the paint was still drying on many of them on the Friday morning.

The evening was spent in the aforementioned hostelries and there may have been a bit of a bonfire back at the site to sit around for a while thereafter, memory is a bit hazy over some details.

On the Saturday, we were promised a hog roast. Cooked on site in the remains of one of the castle towers. We had to construct the frame that was going to be used and build the fire and suchlike, but the custodian was going to take care of the rest. 'The rest' took the best part of the day, so we busied ourselves going down to the pubs and coming back up to play the traditional silly games with a slight medieval tinge to them and a bit of sun-bathing, of which I have been asked not to publish the photos.

Later on the food was sort-of cooked, as is usually the case with hog-roasts, and we assembled in the courtyard to consume it accompanied by some minstrels. Thereafter, verily, we did repair to the hostelries thereabouts and made merry once more.

Yet another sunny Sunday was spent riding home, broken only to take a photo of an interesting place name, that had a sign bigger than the village itself, (or so it seemed). It did not mean much to me at the time as I still had my BMW; the Norton rotary I was eventually to get had not even been thought of yet, let alone designed.

- Phil (the Spill) Drackley