Our earlier suggestions that the sun brings out scooter and motorbiking fans was supported by yesterday's damp and dismal weather. Four times I progressed along Bridge Street and Barnard Avenue - at different times - and there was not a Velocette or a Lambretta in sight...or earshot.
Topping up the tank with petrol at the garage in Bridge Street reminded me of the days when you called at W A Sass (Monument Works), on Wrawby Road/Bigby Street, and a helpful attendant would come out and fill your Mini's tank for you. Those were the days.
How many garages/petrol stations across the UK still offer this service?
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Velocettes, even in my halycon days, Nige, were a bit of a rarity. Despite foreign sounding name, Velocettes were produced in Birmingham. They were not massed produced and were essentially individual built by a small motorcycling firm, which, I think, was called Veloce Motorcycles Ltd.
Some had the unusual feature of being water-cooled and in the 60's, I rode a borrowed an Vellocette scooter-bike around Scotland on a touring camping hoilday. It had an amazing device called an electric start!!!
In addition, they tended to be a lot quieter than conventional bikes.
The last time I came across a non-self-service filling station was in about 1995 near Brecon in South Wales.
I was on my way back from the Brecon's weekend Jazz Festival.
The pumps had notices, 'Attendant Service Only' and when the guy has finished, he wiped the windscreen and dusted off the highlights. But that was 15 years ago.
Divereting slightly, go to London and stop at traffic lights and suddenly a mass of folks appear with buckets and sponges intent on cleaning windscreeen.
Unless, you really want a windscreen wash, you have to be quick to wave off the washing posse.
Another ploy is single red-rose sellers at roundabouts at rush hour.
During one heavy period on the North Circular, someone was wondering about selling bottled water.
They don't bother motorcyclists.....as bikers don't usually have much of a windscreen and lack ready access to 50p/£1 coins.
Anyway, they say it takes about 20 years for London life-styles to migrate North...so in about 2013, the sponge brigade should be a regular sight along Barnard Ave.!!!!
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