Edinburgh & District MAG’s 14^th Ag Ol Anns an Achaidh Rally

I guess we must be doing something right, because despite weather, which would not have been out of place in a biblical epic and would have had Noah reaching for his waterproofs, attendance was up on last year by about 20%. Pretty soon it was obvious that getting into and out of the field was going to prove challenging as the mud started to get churned up and the baize of the farmyard was turned into an impromptu bike park.

Any lingering doubts that this was going to be a wet rally were dashed when a two hour deluge early Friday evening, had us frantically rigging a tarpaulin above the main stage to stem leaks in the main barn. While we like to encourage the bands to give lively performances, we draw the line at actually electrocuting them. Despite the inevitable delay this caused, ‘Demon’s Eye’ got the party off in fine style and set the standard for the bands to come with a fine set of well crafted rock covers.

Extra stalls this year provided a wider variety of items for people to look at and ensured that the traders village attracted plenty of custom (being undercover also helped), while increased numbers of tables and chairs allowed people to relax in the shelter of the barns in comfort. Are we getting soft? Perhaps, but then none of us are getting any younger and part of the fun of smaller rallies is being able to have a natter with old and new friends.

Further showers failed to dampen the spirits as ‘Flat Oot’ picked up the tempo for the second half of the evening and got the crowd going again, before the disco mellowed out the evening and let people wander back to their tents in the small hours.

Saturday dawned fair but threatened more rain and it was a relief to get to the start of the demo run without being soaked. Needless to say this didn’t last and a cloudburst two minutes before the off created a fair size river at the side of the road. A shorter and simpler run this year should have ensured a police escort along Princes St., but an oversight from the council and late notification of traffic division within the police transpired to reduce the effectiveness of the demo. To say that it was a disappointment, having received permission from the Council for the run in early May indicating police assistance would be provided, is a considerable understatement. Next year will be different.

Back on site people were continuing to turn up in numbers despite further rain and we had to be creative to shoehorn bikes into spaces around the farmyard. We got away with it, but only just! Still it did make judging the bikes in the bike show a bit easier. Once again Andy Bennett did us proud with the best bike and best engineering trophies. Little works of art in themselves, they found deserving homes with a fairly new retro Triumph picking up best bike and Black Pearl taking best engineering.

As ‘Chill’ and ‘Full Metal Racket’ got Saturday’s entertainment under way in the main barn, ‘Rosie Blue’ warmed up the blues barn, until it was time to present the trophies/awards and draw the raffle. A cracking selection of raffle prizes from the local dealers and all the traders on site meant we had an embarrassing selection of prizes to give out. (See Edinburgh MAG website for details and a couple still awaiting good homes) A very big thank you to those who contributed to the raffles success. I think I can safely say that there were some very happy people out there.

A wonderfully inflammable mixture of petrol, diesel and who knows what else coaxed the bonfire into life and started to melt off the mist that had descended, while ‘Ayr’z Rock’ and the ‘Blue Hyenas’ rounded off the bands in the main and blues barns in fine style. Allowing people to wander down to the bonfire to warm up and dry off or just chill out to the DJ’s as the night drifted into dawn.

Sunday promised a wet ride home for many. With people keen to get home and freshen up the site cleared quickly. Only a few abandoned tents gave testimony to what had proved to be our wettest rally to date, but despite this everyone I spoke to had enjoyed themselves immensely. As for the marshals and people who helped out, it would not have happened without your hard work, so a very big thank you for helping make the rally such a success. MAG has a policy of putting on good value events for bikers, we think the Edinburgh Rally lives up to that ideal and look forward to seeing you all the 1^st weekend in June next year.

Steve Wykes, Regional Rep MAG Scotland