Jawa/CZ rally and classic cross Borculo.
The Jawa/CZ meeting from may 30-june 2 was the next event I wanted to attend. The first part of the trip was the same as the may 9 trip, but after that I took small roads to my destinatation Borculo, navigating on the sun. Many Jawa and CZ riders were already gathered on the football field on which we could make camp. I picked a spot near two MX machines, which were owned by Kenny, an English gentleman, and ridden by him and his friend Alan. We had a chat and shared some wine.
The next day a tour was organized to and through Germany. I joined in and had a wonderful 190km ride with the smoking Jawa gang. The tourleader took us over very small roads with (in many cases) gravel alongside it. Fun to ride that instead of the turmac!
Back at Borculo I did some shopping (wine, bread and sausages) and joined many chats with Jawa and CZ enthusiasts. That night we kept warm by sitting near the campfire and drinking wine. Alan and Kenny invited me for breakfast at the MX track the next day and offered me a track walk to give me some pointers on how to ride it.
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Of course I accepted this offer so saturday morning found us at the track early. Alan prepared me a nice bacon sandwich, and then we walked the track. I was impressed, or rather overwhelmed a bit. Steep climbs, steep descends, lots of bumps... too much for a 52 year old rookie and his 22HP bike! Kenny gave some good advice and seemed to like the track. Look at his relaxed position on the left. And this was AFTER the walk... |
I was a bit tense I have to admit, so I tried to take interest in other things, like the Jawa's that arrived by the hundreds.
Many bikes were quite old, and almost each of them was in perfect condition. Also arriving were the competitors
of the classic motocross. Bikes like I remember seeing when visiting MX-es with my dad in the 50ies and 60ies.
That night, after a very good Chinese meal, a party was given to conclude the event.
Many were not very sober in the end, but fun we had! Especially the band (a 'dweilorkest')
livened up the party. Sunday arrived way too soon. We said our goodbyes and headed home.
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Then the moment of truth arrived: the rally going crowd was given the opportuniy to ride the motocross track
with their street bikes. Much to my surprise I was the only one thinking trying this was a good idea.
For three laps I was out on my own, but thanks to the advice given, I managed to climb the hills and
conquer the sand and the bumps without falling of. Admittedly, it was a bit scary at first and the speed was ummm... low.
After a couple of laps I grew more confident. This was good, as a couple of other riders had entered
the track now and I could overtake them! I felt a real pro, even though I knew it was childstuff all
the way.
The sand surface was pretty flat at first. This changed as the first match was taking place: these
bikes, although old, have REAL power and tear up the track. Alan and Kenny were competing in different classes but
at the same time. Both were not used to sandy tracks, but had good starts. Unfortunately Kenny
suffered some problems both in the first and the second heat, so he had two DNF's behind his
name. Much to his surprise Alan had the better results this day. On the right Alan
really revving it up...
