The Rally, held over 4 days (18 - 21 July) was the last event of its type that would be held at Baskerville Hall in Clyro, Wales - a site that has become known traditionally as being the "home of the Kettle Club" due to the fact that back in the early days of the club's formation, Baskerville was the site chosen to host the club's Annual Rally and AGM. Such has been the club's growth over the years however; we have simply outgrown virtually all of the site's that we have used ever since for this event, with the exception of one - the Fire Service College, Moreton-in-Marsh, Gloucestershire, which will become the new venue from next year forward.
The weather (for the most part) behaved itself, which is always a good thing for a 2-wheeled event and certainly one in which the attendance was split between those accommodated within the Hall itself and those choosing to camp. Thursday was the main arrivals day and everything was in place to ensure that the settling in process went as smoothly as possible and as always as people started to arrive from far and wide, it was great as always to greet faces old and new.
Friday saw the first of the ride-outs and with the sun shining, there's few places better to be than in the countryside of Herefordshire and its surrounding areas. The run was approximately of 100 miles and hugely enjoyable, featuring near to 50 Kettles. Everyone returned safely and sufficiently early for the early evening AGM, which was concluded in the space of 24 minutes!
Although the climatic conditions threatened to be less than ideal on the Saturday, the 2nd Ride-out of longer duration also went without a hitch. That evening, the members were entertained by the club's adopted band 'Blind Eye' who delivered 3 fantastic sets of 'old school' rock and their rendition of "Smoke on the Water" brought the house down!
With the sun shining brightly once more on the Sunday morning, the bedraggled survivors of the previous evening's festivities, gathered in the forecourt of Baskerville for the final time to witness the traditional awards ceremony. Then sadly as the saying goes "All good things must come to an end", we bid each other farewell and went our various ways.
Next year marks the 30th anniversary of the Club and as can be expected, we intend to celebrate that fact throughout the season. The Blue Haze will be a very special event indeed and the FSC will certainly be the place to hold it. Get the dates into your diaries now - 17-20 July 2025.