Not long after the Ténéré Travel Trophy (more about it soon in another Blog), the trailer was behind our car with two motorcycles. The DRZ and T7 were allowed to participate this time. Together with my husband we left for Hoek van Holland on Wednesday morning for the crossing to Harwich in England.
The reason? Adventure Bike Rider Festival at Ragley Hall. In other words: ABR Festival.
For almost a year, the weekend tickets, including VIP and trail tickets, were burning in the drawer. A year of impatient anticipation for our first participation in the largest motorcycle event in the United Kingdom.
But before my husband and I could arrive on British soil, we first had to endure the eight-hour ferry. After boarding we managed to get a nice spot by the window in the restaurant. The advantage of this was that we had access to a number of sockets at this location so that the laptop could be turned on.
We arrived in Harwich around 7:00 PM. This is where the first transition began. The last time I rode/drove in England was over 16 years ago. It took me a while to switch to driving in the left lane. Luckily my husband was my extra set of eyes and navigated towards our first overnight stop in Great Bardfield. A very nice room at Great Lodge on the estate which originally had the name Great Park. Its history can be traced back to the 14th century. In any case, a place that both my husband and I can recommend to everyone. Neatly taken care off, good communication and lots of information about the estate and the surrounding area. Unfortunately we did not have time to explore the estate.
In the UK in summer it is one hour earlier than in the Netherlands. Our biological clock decided not to conform to this, with the result that we were wide awake next to the bed around 5:00 on Thursday morning. Since we still had a few hours ahead of us with the car and trailer, we decided to tidy everything up, leave the room clean and tidy and drive on to Ragley Hall.
We arrived at Ragley Hall just after 9:00. Before 11:00 we were fully set up at the VIP campsite and quietly said hello to the exhibitors where we also met several acquaintances. Always nice to catch up.
We ended up hanging out at TwinPegs for a while. I came into contact with it through Thomas Hansen (TShansen), but both my husband and I are a bit old-fashioned and would like to physically view products. With regard to TwinPegs, we now had that option. Its creator was also present and together with his colleagues they explained it well, we could feel it on their own motorcycles and they managed to convince us. In de end he installed the TwinPegs on our Ténéré himself.
We were therefore able to intensively test the TwinPegs on the Bridgestone and TRF trails. We had a lot of fun with the DRZ and Ténéré, especially on the Bridgestone trail. Despite the amount of dust. My husband decided he wanted to ride the DRZ most. I could then have fun on the Ténéré.
On Thursday we didn't really realize how big the festival is. This did change on Friday and Saturday. When the campsites were completely packed and the 1,000 test motorcycles of all brands present were put to work continuously. The event is huge and you would see all kinds of motorcycles. From 2-stroke motorcycles, enduro motorcycles, larger adventure motorcycles to racers and tour motorcycles. It was a very bonded group and clearly showed that the motorcycle community in the UK is very vibrant.
While walking around we also met various YouTubers/influencers. MotoEuro (who is absolutely not a fan of camping 😉), Guy Markham who makes super fun short videos on Instagram, the young couple Lavi & Ollie who are the youngest duo to have traveled around the world, but also one who I see as a great inspiration: Adam Riemann of Motology films. We had the chance to talk to him while he was changing the tires on the Husky 901 he had been provided with. A hardworking adventurer with a heart of gold!
The Festival offered something for everyone. Motorcycles, food, drinks, many exhibitors with different materials, clothing, gadgets, stories and travel. We weren’t bored even once during the entire weekend. Ragley Hall itself could also be visited inside and outside. In the afternoon and evening, various artists played on the various stages and tents. The infamous teapot had its own type of atmosphere. It felt like a very nice, cozy pub with various instruments and singing in which everyone participated.
The organization had done their utmost to ensure that the sanitary facilities at the campsites were in good order. There were many units with toilets and showers, but there was also a tap with drinking water available. Something that was not an unnecessary luxury with the heat during the day. To what extent my husband was happy with the shower after I apparently used the last of the hot water, that is another question. In any case, I had tears of laughter rolling over my cheeks.
It was a very nice weekend! For us it almost felt too short. Before we knew it, the weekend was over and we had already taken everything down and packed up, on the road to our overnight stay at a Cottage in Tendring. On Monday morning we had to report to the ferry in Harwich again for the crossing back to the Netherlands.
We do not know to what extent we will buy tickets for the ABR Festival a second time at short notice. This has nothing to do with the Festival, but more with the fact that we like to visit/do something new every year. Nevertheless, we hope to be able to visit it again in the future and both my husband and I can recommend the ABR Festival to everyone. Despite driving on the left!
EN 
NL