Showbikes At The BMF
Added on Wednesday, May 28th, 2008 by Carole Nash Editor
Display at the BMF
It was two wheeled heaven on Sunday 18th May, as a massive crowd made their way to the East of England Showground for the BMF Show 2009.
Some 73,000 bike fans visited the event over two days, with moped racing, a Flying Gunners display, new 2008 motorcycles, the Carole Nash Best In Show Custom Bike Competition and countless biking bargains on offer, all helping to draw the crowds.
The Carole Nash Insurance sponsored ‘Best In Show’ attracted arguably the most impressive, and diverse, turnout of machines seen over the last three years, with a Subaru Impreza engined trike from Poland, a neon-lit nitrous-oxide Suzuki Steetfighter and several V-Twin powered chops and lowriders catching the eye of both judges and public.
V-twin chop builder ‘Sandy’ the owner/builder of a low slung, Swedish style, rigid rear end chopper took the £600 top prize, plus a year’s free insurance, courtesy of Carole Nash. The bike also featured a beefed up primary drive, clutch and gearbox, hidden handlebar controls, oil in the frame and super fat rear wheel/tyre.
Best trike was won by Karol Szmyt’s ‘Alien’ inspired special, featuring a Subaru Impreza 2.2 litre, flat-four engine at the back, humungous 300 section tyres/wheels, slash-cut exhausts and running LPG fuel, for that all important commuter type economy. Best Streetfighter was Nick Alcock’s blue and chrome GSXR750, running a nitrous oxide kit, Yoshimura exhaust and ‘a few naughty bits’ inside the engine, plus neon lighting for that essential night-time cruising look.
Meanwhile Richard Doidge decided he would go all out for performance by adding a Supercharger to his Triumph Rocket III. The 2.3 litre Triumph triple is already regarded as one of the most powerful engines in biking, but with the blower fitted it pumps out an astonishing 268bhp. Rich also spent many hours making his own exhaust system for the bike, plus adding custom paintwork to almost every part of the machine.
There were plenty of classic bikes entered in the Best In Show category, including the legendary RD350LC Yamaha, and an excellent turnout from the UK Suzuki Owners, with iconic two strokes from the 60’s and 70’s at the forefront of their display.
From Mopeds To Megabikes
The BMF Show is known for its moped endurance race and this year saw a healthy number of teams enter all sorts of weird and wonderful machines, from Honda C50 Cubs to purple Piaggio Typhoons, with many riders getting into the ‘Wacky Racers’ spirit of the event by donning fancy dress over their leathers.
The main arena also saw action from the Flying Gunners bike display team, with wheelies, ramp jumps over four cars, parked end-to-end, plus tricks like riding backwards all delighting the crowd. The British Short Track racing club put on some excellent flat-track action, with their four stroke 450cc bikes - featuring no front brakes - going sideways around the shale arena track at 60mph.
Across the showground bikers were busy searching out riding kit bargains, elusive spare parts, or checking out the latest bikes from Honda, Triumph, Suzuki, Royal Enfield, Moto Guzzi, Ducati, Kawasaki and many more brands.
Clubs from across the UK gathered to show off members restored bikes, customised models, or learn more about getting involved with charity events, ride-outs, BBQ’s and various meetings.
The BMF Show is perhaps the only place in Britain where you can see the latest Superbikes, arrange a demo ride on a 50cc scooter, book a holiday in New Zealand and win a cuddly toy from a ‘hook-a-duck’ stand, all in the space of an hour! It really is the world of biking, parked up for the weekend, inside one large field in Cambridgeshire.
