MX5 - Around Britain

A leisurely start was called for this morning after a hard days driving yesterday...and it didn't help with Gary, Mark and Chris drinking whisky until 4.30 am!!

The lowest point of the day came within 15 minutes of departing, when an obnoxious bloke in a dodgy motor towing a dodgy boat decided to cut Kathy up on a roundabout. Not content with driving like a ******, a plastic box which he had let roll around loose in the boat tipped over the top and smashed into the front of Kathy's car. The convoy soon rallied round when he showed no signs of stopping, and boxed him in in a pincer type manoeuvre reminiscent of The Sweeney! He was soon answering the questions of one of the local constabulary, before all was resolved, and we were on our way....Who says there's no benefit to watching Police, Camera, Action!!

What is amazing is that serious damage to Kathy's car was prevented by the simple addition of a grille...had it not been for the grill then the piece of plastic that ended up embedded in the grill would instead have been embedded in the radiator - ouch!! Very expensive! So, Mark and Chris can't wait for their Donutz grill to be supplied!!

We then picked up David in the yellow roadster, and his son Andy in a Mariner Blue Mk1. Lancaster passed in a blur, as did Carnforth, and before we knew it we were well and truly in Cumbria. We stopped at Roe Island, a pretty peninsula, for photos and food, but the licensee of the local inn decided that we weren't good enough for his grotty car park, and impolitely asked us to leave, which we were glad to oblige with.

The roads in Cumbria were twisty and complicated, but great fun to drive, and the miles absolutely flew past. Unfortunately, one of the local wildlife didn't....a swan must have heard we were en route, and it decided to choose its killer before Bart had arrived...only a few white feathers remain to prove its passing!

We had lunch at a pub in Cumbria called the High Cross Inn near to Broughton, where once more the licensees seemed to be mighty put out by having to reap the massive amounts of revenue from the people on the drive, but the food was just what was required, and we were soon on our way, fed and watered again.

The most memorable stop of the tour was at the car park in St Bees. We pulled into the car park for a run-of-the-mill toilet stop, to be confronted by a 4x4 Police landrover with two uniformed police officers inside. Within minutes Eileen was talking to them, and they even bought a raffle ticket each!! Eileen is such a good saleswoman that she only left them with 50p each for their dinner! And they were such good sports that they even agreed to have their photos taken with the convoy, blue lights flashing and with them stood either side of the police car!! Excellent! Many thanks to those two fine members of the Cumbria Constabulary, who were even subjected to Kathy cuddling them for another photo! She can never resist a man in uniform! Or even men without the uniform!

Kathy left us at this point to travel back home, with a tear in one eye, and a glint in the other from her encounters with the men in blue, and we continued onwards over the border, and through Gretna Green. We all managed to get through without anyone getting hitched, and then the Scottish roads beckoned....and it would have been rude to refuse!

We arrived just in time to dump our bags and run to the local hotel opposite the B&B for the start of the England v Germany football match! We would have been an hour earlier but when we got to Dumfries we found that someone had shut the town for a local parade! Tea was courtesy of Safeways cafe, but they had obviously never heard of quality of food, or of presentation style. But once the town was open again, we raced to the B&B, and from there to the hotel for the match. A great time was had by all, both watching the match and then in compiling this report...perhaps it was the company, perhaps it was the alcohol! It's nice to know that nothing changes!!

Day 8 - Saturday 17th June

Blackpool to Dumfries

218 Miles - Actual 220 miles!

Special Notes

The Route

Daily Log