British Vespa Days 2016 | RALLERY

The Vespa Club of Britain and their Bristol branch, COG 18, held British Vespa Days 2016 last weekend to celebrate 70 years of Vespa. 

When I heard Bristol would host the British Vespa Days I instantly thought what a great choice; club members could enjoy this historic city with its own culture and quirky nightlife. On the downside for the same reasons it is virtually impossible to hire an appropriate site near the town centre, so COG 18, the Bristol Vespa club, opted for the Avonmouth rugby club.

The admission price of £20 for the weekend (£10 for day passes) included a goody bag containing nice freebies like a banner, a patch, a plaque and the local lifeblood, a bottle of ciderrr. The atmosphere was good and typically matched the nature of a club event; very friendly with almost a ‘family gathering’ feel. This also worked in favour of the organisers who could only get a bar license until 11 p.m. thanks to preventive intervention by some neighbours. The noise coming from that campsite right next to the M5 must be incredible…

On Saturday midday-ish a large crowd left for a ride out to the beautiful Avon gorge with many things to see along the way, including the Bristol Harbour Festival it meant they only returned in the late afternoon. Those who stayed on site had a chance to chat to the dealers, look at the custom show, check out Norrie Kerr’s display of renowned racing Vespas, or to participate in the fun & games, like the tyre throwing competition.

The second night saw the bar hours stretched to midnight with good parties on both floors. This also worked well for people with a longer journey home as the glorious sunshine on Sunday invited them to explore the A-roads of the pictuersque South West.

Words and photos: Marcus