The Royal Enfield Owners Club
Newsletter number 15
September 2024

This Electronic Newsletter is only intended to give members information that is time sensitive and has missed the main Gun magazine deadline.

This is a trial to see how it will fit in between Gun production. So, as the next Gun is not due out until the first week of October, in this modern age of technology, it makes sense to keep up to speed and produce an electronic Newsletter for the first week in September with material of that Month only.

The next Electronic Newsletter will be for November.

The Gun dates are October then December. That takes us to the end of 2024 and we can assess how the system is working.

All articles, letters, statements etc. submitted should end with your name, membership number and email address.

N.B. As with any future Electronic Newsletters or Gun magazines, membership numbers will no longer be published but instead you will find (MNS) under your contribution. Please continue to include your membership number when writing.

This publication is the official newsletter of The Royal Enfield Owners Club, published bi-monthly and placed on the Club website for members. It must not be reproduced in any way without the consent of the Editors. Views herein are not necessarily those of the Editors or of the Committee. The Club makes no representation as to the content, the accuracy or viability of advertisements nor the commercial articles, nor for the offerings of third parties.

Electronic Newsletter Editors :- Doug and Paula Young,

email:- Theguneditor@royalenfield.org.uk

The next Electronic Newsletter will be published November 2024

The South Midlands Branch has been offered a stand at the NEC Classic Car and
Bike Show in November.

You will see there is a discount code on the leaflet (CCBNOV109) that if a ticket is
purchased it gives a person a £4.00 discount off the ticket price over the three days.

Peter Hardwick Tel:- 07889877311
Email:- peterhardwick10@tinyworld.co.uk

Himalayan impression

Hi Doug, l rode the Himalayan in the rain to

Sammys. Not being used to having modes on bikes, forgot it had them and unknowingly at the time, rode in what l believe was performance mode with the abs turned off. The first junction l came too, managed to stall it as it needed to be revved to around 3000 for the power to come in strong. Remember l had just got off my Hunter which pulls from nothing. It was sure footed and the ride passed without any further incidents.

I was impressed with its turn of speed, especially acceleration, but it then dawned on me that my Hunter was leading the group of riders l was with. l am not a fan of mono shock bikes as the back end being high makes them a pain to get on when wearing waterproof trousers, yes l ride in all weathers. The riding position wasn\’t as comfortable for me as the Hunter on which l have covered high mileages without any discomfort. Overall the Himalayan is a great bike, but not for me. I will not be offended if you don\’t include this in the Gun, it\’s really more about my ineptitude, than the bikes failings.
Doug Hopkins (MNS)

Hi Doug and Paula. Many thanks to Bob D for his article in Gun 302 on spark plugs for the little 2 strokes. I run a 1961 Prince and a 1955 Ensign ( down grading from my 1938 500cc Bullet) and I was using the NGK6HS plug in both. I ordered 4xNGK BP4HS plugs from my local motor factors and fitted them to both bikes, one in the head and a spare in the tool box. Much easier starting and smoother running plus a nice clean plug. I have done several hundred miles so far and the plug is still clean so l have not needed the spare. Once we get to winter I will decarbonise the head and check the piston but both bikes are much more reliable. I might try this plug in the Bullet as it is never an easy starter.
Chris Brady (MNS)

 

Do you want to share information, seek technical advice or make contact with
other Club members? Royal Enfield Owners Club Est. 1977 is our own growing and
successful “closed” Facebook group for Club members only, policed by Club
Committee Members. We look forward to hearing from you!

 

Club Calendar 2024 Official Club Rallies September Only

R E Breakfast ride in at The Dolphin, Gillingham, Dorset Saturday the 7th September from
09.00, Hot food served from from 10.00
Club Contact Robin Gillingham 01963 251406

 

Wobbly’s Red Rose Rally Thurs 5th to Sun 8th Sep
Orcaber Camping and Caravanning Site.
Orcaber Lane, Austwick, Settle LA2 8AE
Motorhomes, Campervans, Tent Pitches all £10 per day, plus £5
Electric hook up, £5 per adult, per day, plus £1 dog per day. Entrance to camping field on
left, see REOC banner.
Contact John Hamer 07933321135 or hamer89@btinternet.com

 

The Worcestershire Rally and AGM September 20/21/22
The Drum and Monkey, Newbridge Green, Upton upon Severn, Worcestershire WR8 0QP.
Your AGM is on Saturday 21st at 11:00 prompt, followed by buffet-lunch and rideout.
Camping for Tents, Camper Vans and Hook-ups. Direct bookings 01684 592758
Rally Organiser Bob Murdoch reoc.archive34@gmail.com

 

All Event Organisers please note
Dates and details of all club events must be authorised by Neil Davis, our
new Social Secretary or they will not be published in The Gun, Electronic
Newsletter or on our website. Contact Neil by email
socialsecretary@royalenfield.org.uk
or send him a message via \”Contact Us\” on the website

 

Branch Scribes please remember to inform the Branch J. Barnard if you change your Branch meeting venue.
Send your new information to
Email :- branchcoordinator@royalenfield.org.uk

 

AGENDA FOR THE 46th AGM
THE ROYAL ENFIELD OWNERS CLUB
Saturday 21st September 2024
The Drum & Monkey, Newbridge Green, Upton on Severn WR8 0QP
11:00 hrs PROMPT (See Club Calendar above).

1. 1. Apologies.
   2. Minutes of the previous AGM held on Saturday 16th September 2023 and
   acceptance of the MOM.
   3. Matters Arising
   4. Chairman’s Address
   5. Treasurer’s Report
   6. Adoption of Accounts
   7. REOC Club Officer Reports
   8. Proposals from the Membership/ Club Insurance..
   9. Any other business (no motions accepted on the day)
   10. Election of Officers and Committee Members
   11. Election of Treasurer – Gary McClure
   12. Election of General Secretary (currently vacant, any volunteers?)
   13. Committee Member – Jak Lemon.
   14. Committee Member – Sean Keogh
   15. Presentation of Trophies.
   16. Close of meeting.
3. Tea/coffee and a midday buffet lunch provided free to those attending

Long-standing MAG member, volunteer for the Cassington Bike Night, and local Councillor, John Broad contacted Oxfordshire County Council requesting road repairs in advance of the annual event which attracts upward of 7,000 bikes. The large \’trench\’ in the Yarnton to Cassington road posed a significant risk to the thousands of bikers that would be attending the event. John said: \”l attended the Cassington Bike Night planning event the week before the event and, luckily, I drove there in my car as I noted a massive trench in the road that
required dealing with before the thousands of bikers arrived. I mentioned this to the team, and they attempted to get it repaired using \’FixMyStreet\’. Because it worried me so much, I pulled my \’councillor hat\’ and contacted the OCC officer directly.

Not only did they pull out the stops to get the hole repaired but they filled in most of the holes all the way from Yarnton Village as well.\” John went out of his way to get the repair dealt with and, importantly, to thank the Council after it completed the work. As the reply to John showed, councils rarely receive such thanks. The OCC department
engagement officer wrote: \”l have passed on your appreciation to our contractor; both the works manager and site gang who carried out the repairs. That\’s great news they did such an excellent job and it\’s a real morale boost to get such positive feedback.\” MAG\’s Director of Campaigns & Political Engagement, Colin Brown, has written to the leader of Oxfordshire County Council and the Environment & Place (Operations) department to add MAG\’s thanks for this excellent example of best practice. Councillor Liz Leffman, Leader of Oxfordshire County Council, replied saying: \”OCC filled in over 30,000 potholes last year, but the work of our Highways teams often goes unrecognised, so it was great to receive a message from MAG thanking me for our quick response. I am delighted that we have been able to help to make the Bike Night a safe and successful event\” Colin Brown, MAG Director of Campaigns and Political Engagement said: \”In March we launched the Great MAG Road Maintenance Treasure Hunt with a view to uncovering examples of best practice.

Motorcyclists face significant risk of death and serious injury because of poorly maintained road surfaces. Seeing a Council react to concerns raised from motorcyclists in this way is the kind of thing we set out to encourage. Over 7,000 bikers attended the Cassington Bike Night, and all were safer as a result of John Broad\’s efforts to ask tor
repairs, and the council\’s speedy and responsible actions.\” The next Cassington Bike Night will take place on 30th June 2025.
John Budgen (MNS) MAG Rep

 

Branch Report—Lincolnshire
Meets twice a month on alternate Tuesdays during winter months at PJ’s Café, Hubberts
Bridge, near Boston Email:- swglincs@hotmail.com

2/7/24 usual meeting PJs. 14 members, 9 bikes 1 BMW 2 Triumph 1 Moto Guzzi. Later that week was the Boston Bike night on Thursday so quite a few members attending the Yellow Belly rally got there early to include this very busy annual event.

5-7/7/24 Yellow Belly rally. Sadly I couldn\’t attend at the last minute but I\’m sure others will provide feedback; certainly the weather was not the best though those interested in the European Championship got to see an England victory to
brighten their day!

On 16/7/24 the club met up at Cherry Holt Cafe near Bourne, but again due to domestic issues I had to miss this one too. Finally, I should have mentioned last time that club member Kevin had been knocked off his nearly new Super Meteor 650 in Boston in a hit and run incident. Thankfully, he was not seriously injured and the main damage to the bike was largely cosmetic including a couple of dents in the tank which he managed to rectify. That doesn\’t ameliorate the upset such cowardly actions cause though.

Steve Gibson (MNS) Lincolnshire Branch report July and August.

 

Recently moved house? Left a forwarding address?
OR Is the Gun still being delivered to your old address?
Or perhaps to Mum’s house?
Have you informed the relevant person?
For any “change of address” / Gun distribution queries
Please contact:- magazinedistribution@royalenfield.org.uk

 

Ireland annual camp
The Royal Enfielder\’s Ireland lakeside, Mountshannon, Co. Clare annual camp was again a successful weekend, with a mixture of weather but mostly dry apart from the morning of our ride-out. The 2017 Bullet was my choice of steed for this event accompanied by her twin Mike Griffins Bullet. Others were on Meteor 350 and classic earlier Bullets, one a Red 2003 500 recently bought by William Price. He is new to the group but the bike has a lot of personal history for me as I have known every previous owner. I’ve also put a thousand miles on her myself.

The woodland lakes side camp didn\’t disappoint. A small number camped and others were in Chalets (Sheds). It was a short ride into the village for drink and food to bring back for the evening get together. Music was provided by Gerry from the Jawa Band. Saturdays ride out was clockwise around Lough Derg including Co Clare, Co Galway and Co Tipperary, calling into Paddy\’s of Terryglass Co Galway for lunch. From there it was onwards to Domineer a beautiful lakeside village, then on to Killaloe and call into check out a campsite at The Pipers Inn for a possible future venue. It was back to Scariff for an off licence and ice cream stop before returning to the Lakeside camping park. The evening and night was truly enjoyed by all with good humour and good friends sharing beautiful memories with stories that became tall as the evening turned into night.

Sunday saw people riding home and looking forward to the next meet up.
John B Nicholls (MNS)

 

 

 

 

The next REOC International Rally will take place over three days, August 15th/16th/17th 2025, based at Baskerville Hall, near to Hay- on- Wye, Wales.

Baskerville Hall is a stately home converted to a hotel with private rooms, dormitories, a restaurant, a pool and an extensive camping area, surrounded by over 100 acres of forests and fields, and has a lot to offer. Set in the Brecon Beacons National Park, it’s a great location for some of the best riding roads in the UK. More details will be available as we get activities organised, but please see your website for brochure pages, and photographs taken during a recent visit, or go to the Baskerville Hall website. Single, twin and shared rooms are not reserved for REOC, so book early! When booking accommodation or camping, please mention the REOC event.

 

All Event Organisers please note
Dates and details of all club events must be authorised by Neil Davis, our
new Social Secretary or they will not be published in The Gun or on our
website. Contact Neil by email:- socialsecretary@royalenfield.org.uk
or send him a message via \”Contact Us\” on the website

Let’s talk about insurance…
September sees the launch of a new and exciting insurance proposition for club members. The club have teamed up with Peter James Insurance to design and launch a brand-new insurance offering packed with lots of great benefits that we think club members will enjoy. ‘Royal Enfield Owners Club Insurance’ is only available to club members, and we hope that you’ll give it a try when your own policy is due.

The Royal Enfield marque presents a rather marque-specific challenge to many insurers given that the vehicles require all the protection and added benefits of classic bike insurance, even though many bikes are new. Peter James Insurance has worked closely with both the members and the volunteers at the Royal Enfield Owners Club to design a bespoke insurance package that truly reflects the needs of Royal Enfield enthusiasts, whatever their vehicle age.

The team at Peter James Insurance live and breathe the historic vehicle world, just like you do. That’s important, because when you call looking for insurance cover to protect your cherished classics, they really do understand how much it means to you and the huge amount of time, money, and effort you may have invested in it. Moreover, they also understand that your bike is likely to be a well-loved extra member of the family!

The new ‘Royal Enfield Owners Club Insurance’ product has been designed by enthusiasts for enthusiasts and gives you, as a member, access to a range of benefits that you are likely to be unable to find elsewhere. This hopefully offers even more reasons to renew your club membership each year. These can include:

Exclusive rates for Royal Enfield Owners Club members.
Spare Parts Cover – Up to £3,000 cover for spare parts and tools.
UK and European Breakdown Cover included.
Legal Expenses cover included.
Helmet and Leathers cover included.

Multi-bike policies can bring classics and moderns together under one policy. We understand that many of you will have more than one motorcycle so a multi-bike policy can offer the convenience of single renewal date.

Why not give the scheme a try when your insurance is next due. Peter James Insurance doesn’t operate a call-centre, they have a small and friendly team who are ready to speak to you. When your policy is due for renewal why not give the dedicated Royal Enfield Owners Club team a call on 0121 506 6023.