Whilst 300 Brits were busy sunning themselves in Lanzarote with VFM, around 1500 scooterists were freezing their bits off riding to, or walking around Burton.
It was baltic on Saturday morning, with freezing fog making it feel even colder for much of the trip. Thankfully my early morning ride was only an hour long and I was soon thawing out inside the venue to take a few pre-show photos.
Learning curve
This was the second time the annual custom show and parts fair was to be held at Paget High School after the previous venue closed. In 2023 the Brewers were finding their feet with the new place and it’s fair to say the layout wasn’t as good as it could have been, which made it hard to see the scooters or move around the school. The hard-working team had rejigged things for this year though, the scooters had moved into the much lighter and brighter sports hall (previously used for stalls). It meant they could get more scooters in, they were well-spaced and everybody could get to see them.
Traders
Almost all of the traders, jumble stalls and dealers were outside this time and there were plenty of them. After the early morning fog had lifted, we were treated to bright sunshine so the courtyard area in the middle of the stalls was kept busy all day with people eating, drinking and chatting. This meant it was never overly packed inside.
Speedy entry
Last year’s scooter hall wasn’t really bright enough, or roomy enough to show scooters off properly so the Brewers recommissioned it as the entrance hall. The whole of one side of the room was manned (and womaned) by loads of staff to make sure people could get into the show quickly and they really did do a great job. The new entrance meant punters could browse the few stalls in that room and gradually filter down the corridor into the sports hall to see the scooters. The Burton lot have been running events for decades and their planning was perfect this year.
Scooter only parking
Aside from Scooterist Meltdown, the Burton Brewers show is usually the first big event of the year and despite being held at a dodgy time of year they are generally lucky with the weather. This year was no exception and by the 11 am opening time, it was great riding weather, albeit still a bit cold.
The organisers did a great job of shifting all the trade vans away from the building before the scooters started to arrive. By lunchtime, the parking area was chocka block with scooters of all types. It’s always nicer to see a scooter-only parking lot at an event. Meanwhile, the cars and vans were parked all over the place outside the school grounds which no doubt caused a bit of grief for local residents.
Show time
I’m sure lots of owners and a few shops were busy getting scooters finished in time for Burton. I know my local Lambretta specialist, Rob at Simply Retro was busy right up until the last minute building two scooters for the show. His hard work paid off though, Classic Progression was runner up for Best Lambretta and Daryl Bragger’s ‘Jim Clark’ won Best of Show.
Jim Clark
This scooter was displayed in its own little Goodwood-esque grassy enclosure with white picket fencing surrounding it. Daryl’s tribute to the Scottish, two-time Formula One champion looked pretty tasty and very fitting for the period when Jim won his championships. I’m sure you’ll be able to read a full feature in the next issue of ScooterNova. We’ve put a few photos in a gallery above for you though.
Custom Vespa gallery
Burton always has a varied selection of Vespas, usually including a lineup of classic DTC machines. The trend had changed this year though and full custom PXs and T5s were in abundance. We’ve put most of them in a gallery above for you. This section was heavy on Driver screens (including some SLUK Drivers, which is always good for us to see), which of course adds some extra canvas for the airbrush artists to work their magic.
Kingsworld took Best Vespa, with Van Helsing runner-up and Michael Caine won Best Display. Some stunners missed out on a trophy though.
Best Club Display
Ilkeston Britannia put on a great display of custom, restored and street racer Lambrettas – almost all were ridden to the event. Centre of their display was Ray Pritchett’s Abarth GP. Ray sadly died at the end of last year and the display was in memory of him. You can see the Brit line-up in the gallery above.
Frosty start
We must mention a new Britannia member, the aptly named Frosty. Frosty crashed his AF GP on ice on the way to the show. He got off with bruised ribs and a few aches and pains but got the scooter straight to Simply Retro to be fixed, then rode it to Burton and put it in the show later in the day. Well done!
Classics
Of course, not everybody likes to see full custom or race-style scooters. Burton also had everything from unrestored police spec TV200s to Janine Collins’s lovely Vespa Primavera (runner-up Best Vespa), Andy Butler’s pristine Vespa 50 pedal model and Rob Miller’s divine (and very rare) Ducati Cruiser (featured in the latest issue of Scooternova Magazine). Have a look through the gallery above for more standard-ish scooters.
Engineering
Scootering has always been a diverse pastime and well-engineered hybrid scooters, cutdowns and choppers are a big part of the scene. Rob Johnson’s Liquid Lambretta chopper epitomises the spirit of creativity, he quite rightly got Best Engineering for that one. Whilst Lee Richards’ World Freak Show Vespa chopper got the runner up prize.
You can see these and a few other machines that fit into this genre in the gallery above.
Best Auto
Looking around the scooter parking area outside, the sheer amount of Vespa GTS, Royal Alloy, Scomadi and even the odd new Italjet Dragster shows that things have moved on for many riders. Age is a factor, as is the ease of use and less reliance on wings and a prayer to get you there.
Here’s a selection of autos in the show, including (Best Auto) the excellent custom Lambretta auto – 24-Hour Party People owned by Kevin Franks. There was also Terri Would’s stunning pair of original Italjet Dragsters – it’s always good to see these modern classics. We even had an Iron Maiden-themed Scomadi on display and a custom RA TG. You can see the autos in the gallery above.
Winners and losers
Of course, not everybody can win Best in Show and the aforementioned, brand new custom-built Jim Clark took that honour.
Show results
It left plenty of other worthy potential winners to leave empty-handed or to take home the specially commissioned beer pump-style trophies that were awarded for class wins and runner-up prizes. People like Jason Stephenson. His Dream Stealer got a trophy for Best Bright Work. Others like John Arksey’s stunning Vespa, The Parades Gone By missed out on a trophy despite some stunning engraving and bright work. Judging a custom show is a thankless task and with so many class scooters in one room, not everybody could take home another dust magnet.
The event was very well organised, scooter parking was perfect and the show and dealers area gave people enough to see and do. Of course, there was also a do on Saturday night after the show, which meant everybody could stay over to have a drink and a boogie if they wanted to make a weekend of it.
Well done to the Burton Brewers and everybody who turned up to show off their machines.
Words and photos: Iggy
