A couple of days ago my neighbour asked if I could run him down to Scarborough from Sunderland to look at a car, on private sale, for his son. "OK", I said, but it turned out that we had to set out at 6am this morning (Sunday). Something to do with the vendor of the car needing to get to play football.
My alarm went at 5.30 am, just in time to prevent me from entering a Bruce Forsyth game show wearing only my pyjamas (in my dream, I must add).
So, we set off in darkness at 6am, surprising how many other cars were on the road at that time on a Sunday morning. However, we had a lovely run, chugging along at well below the speed limits and seeing so much of the Yorkshire Moors and the lovely town of Whitby in the emerging daylight. Sometimes it was a bit misty but generally bright weather. We drove through real "Heartbeat" country and I almost wished we'd been in my neighbour's Morris Minor rather than my Panda.
Got to the house of the car vendor almost dead on 8am. Nice bloke, made me a coffee, though in a "Grumpy from the 7 Dwarves" mug, must have detected my mood. The car on sale was a BMW 3 series hatchback in really nice condition for its age, 1980 I think, and miles, 130,000, again I think. But then it only cost £450 and drove faultlessly back to Sunderland.
We stopped for a huge breakfast at the Flask Cafe on the moors and "admired" a LHD Smart and a BMW C1 city scooter parked up there.
I think we only saw the sea a couple of times but the beautiful villages we drove through and the moorland scenery more than made up for that omission.
The downside to this tale, poor young Steve, who is to drive the BMW, when he gets his licence, will have to pay £3000 insurance, on a £450 car. Good job he's honest or there would be another uninsured driver on the roads.
Makes it good to be alive, doesn't it?
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Question:
How did you insure the car to get it back to Mackamland at 8am on a Sunday morning?
Glad you liked God's Country - did you have your passport stamped at the border?
dvd
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Never mind all the car stuff - there's definitely mileage in the game show idea. Dancing in the Dark?
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If you've seen me dancing, or in my pyjamas, Dancing in the Dark would be the only safe option for prime time TV.
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Insurance was not my problem, I drove my Panda home and my neighbour drove the BMW. I suspect he used the "drive any car" bit of his insurance, but that was his problem, not mine.
The border guards in Middlesbrough were all asleep or still hungover from a good night out, allowed us to sneak into Yorkshire undetected.
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Funny coincidence - last weekend, went up from Beverley to Whitby via Scarborough on the bikes for a mate to look at a Pug in Whitby. Lovely trip out and back over the moors past Fylingdales and Pickering. He went back on the Tuesday to pick it up - suspiciously cheap, but HPI and a crawl round it didn't pick anything up - maybe Whitby is just a bit out of the way?.
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That climb back up from Whitby towards York didn't half clear the throat of my old Mondeo diesel the other week. Looked like there had been a missile attack in my rearview mirror with the amount of smoke it produced. Been clear as a bell ever since. Do cars get phlegm ?
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The 1.3 Multijet diesel engine in my Panda Cross literally sang with joy at the workout that it received on the ascents and descents over those Yorkshire Moors. I swear that it now sounds like a Ferrari, rather than the Austin FX3 London cab (see "Carry on Cabbie") that it had started to impersonate.
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Sounds like a fantastic day out, although you were arriving in Scarborough about 3 hours before I even woke up, I must say I would have to be feeling particularly benevolent to wish to get up at 5:30am on a Sunday!!
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I'm an early waker and Brucie was getting on my nerves!
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...Heartbeat country....
I visited Goathland, a few miles off the main drag to Whitby, to have a look at Bernie's garage.
It was a few years ago and still a working garage, I had quite a long chat with Bob, the proprietor.
He was rebuilding a vintage motorbike, in between speaking to customers who seemed to call in as much for a chat as anything else.
Proper country garage, if not a very busy one.
Took some people there last year and the place is now just a tacky souvenir shop - very disappointing.
Note to DVD: The slang term for people from Wearside is generally accepted to be Mackem, with an 'e'.
Edited by ifithelps on 11/10/2009 at 17:54
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I referred here to a trip to Whitby in June by Honda VFR - nice place, nice roads, nice Policemen ! (no speed cams)
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One of our "runs" on the bikes is to Whitby across the North Yorkshire moors. We always park up by the pier and get superb fish & chips from the Quarterdeck. Sitting by the bandstand consuming the fish & chips (with curry sauce) is agreat pleasure not to be missed.
Back home via Helmsley and Thirsk and Leeds.
You southern townies don't know what your missing.
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Wouldn't risk fish, chips and curry sauce while wearing leathers m'self......Otherwise, sounds a nice run.
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We were going to do the Pickering - Whitby steam train today, but our daughter shared her nursery cold around the house so none of us were up for it. The North Yorks Moors has some of the best and quietest roads in the Country, epsecially around the Esk Valley.
Good to read you stopped at Flask - as a youngster I spent many weekends and school holidays there in my grandparent's caravan - my grandfather helped the owner when teh site was developed during the 50s and 60s.
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Will you lot pack it in! Should have taken the Sprint for a fine autumn blast - Malton, Pickering, Whitby, Scarborough and home but was too busy. Now I am depressed :-(
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