An evening with Barbara Horley, National Speedway Referee

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Over Community Centre | Monday 8th April | 7:30-9:30pm
Please use this link if you plan to attend

Members, Associates & their guests are warmly invited to Over Community Centre on Monday 8th April, where Barbara Horley will make a presentation to CAM on her experience as a National Speedway Referee. An accomplished speaker, Barbara’s presentation is sure to be lively & entertaining. The evening will conclude with a Q&A session
Barbara describes how it all began…

My interest in speedway started when I was very young, accompanying my father & uncle to the track. Having attended Speedway School nearly twenty years ago, I decided to become part of the sport: riding wasn’t for me and so I trained to become a referee. In this role I have to travel all over the country, from Glasgow to Plymouth, taking charge of meetings in all three tiers of racing

I have one other link to speedway: six years ago I began studying for a PhD and am about to submit my thesis on Speedway Racing in England from 1928 to 1965. I have also presented a number of papers on speedway at academic conferences. I can honestly say that speedway has been an important part of my life for a very long time!”

Full details in the Events Calendar

Sunday ride to Shuttleworth, 17th March

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Ian Dunckley & Keith Curtis lead & tail respectively on this ride, which both starts and ends at Caxton Gibbet, into Bedfordshire and the Shuttleworth Runway Café at Old Warden Aerodrome. Ian outlines the route:

Departing promptly at 9:30am from Caxton Gibbett, we head through Eltisley, Abbotsley, Everton, Tempsford, Blunham & Cople before arriving at The Runway Café (see menu here). Total distance covered on the outward leg is approximately 30 miles.
Our return journey takes us through Old Warden, Cardington, Great Barford, Ravensden, Great Staughton, St Neots & Toseland before finishing back at Caxton Gibbet on the service road a few hundred metres from where we set off. At around 47 miles this is the longer leg of our ride

Photo by James Lewis on Unsplash

Departs:       McDonalds Caxton Gibbet     what3words
Ends:             Caxton Services                        what3words
Briefing  9:20am        Ride departs 9:30am        12 participants maximum

Departs Caxton Gibbet, Sunday 17th December @ 9:30am
Use this link to request a place. Ride limited to 12 participants

Sunday ride to Little Braxted (departs BP Whittlesford)

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Our next Group-organised ride, on Sunday 3rd March, will be led by Phil Duffy & tail-ended by Steve Rowdon. Setting out from a novel departure point, Phil will also be trying a new breakfast destination at The Braxted Bakery. The bakery is in a tiny Essex village which not many will be familiar with; Little Braxted boasted just 170 residents in the 2011 census.

Phil describes the outing: We will set out from BP Whittlesford, heading south to Saffron Walden and then south-east following mostly minor roads towards Braintree. Having skirted the town we will head south again, passing near Witham and to our breakfast stop at the Braxted Bakery (which serves breakfasts as well as cakes!). Our return route passes through Kelvedon, Halsted and Finchingfield – along some interesting Essex roads. We bypass Linton and finally head back to BP Whittlesford

Start/End: BP Whittlesford, A505/A1301 roundabout, CB22 3HD    what3words
Breakfast: The Braxted Bakery, Little Braxted, CM8 3ET                 what3words

Limited to 12 riders bikes   |   Use this link to request a place
Briefing 9:20am    |   Ride departs 9:30am    |    Events Calendar for full details

Taster Ride initiative

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Don’t wait for our Taster Ride Day in June if you want to know more about Advanced Riding: Cambridge Advanced Motorcyclists are taking part in IAM RoadSmart’s Taster Ride initiative

If you have a full motorcycle licence & would like a free 30-minute ride with one of our Observers (followed by a debrief on your riding) then head here & fill in the form to request an obligation-free Taster Ride. We’ll be in touch if we’re your nearest local Group – but this initiative is nationwide

Take your first steps towards Advanced Riding – request a Taster Ride today!

Sunday Ride routes restored to website

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Sunday Ride routes are back! Urgent action had to be taken last summer when the website ran into its storage limit: numerous .gpx routes were culled – a temporary fix to the immediate problem which put these popular resources (over 2000 downloads so far) out of reach

Following a thorough spring clean 40+ routes have been restored, with a backlog of our more recent rides in the pipeline and coming soon. Visit our revamped Sunday Rides SatNav Routes page for inspiration on your next leisure outing

Motorcycle Maintenance Q&A with Paul Nobbs

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Paul Nobbs Motorcycles of Sutton (near Ely) are once again hosting a free Q&A session uniquely for CAM Members & Associates on Saturday 24 February from 1pm to 3pm, with Paul on hand to answer any & all of your questions regarding bike maintenance

Paul established his business in 2002, has 30 years’ experience servicing motorcycles and is known for his expertise and honest advice. Previous Q&As with Paul have been greatly appreciated by attendees, so whatever your current level of mechanical know-how, why not sign up and gain insights from a professional?

As the workshop has limited space, attendance is limited to 10 participants. If you would like to bone up on motorcycle maintenance, learn how to ready your bike after te winter lay-up or simply tension your chain correctly then please use this link to request a place. Paul is not charging us for this session, but there will be a collection tin in aid of EAAA

Paul enjoys a challenge, so come armed with questions!

Places available on this Friday’s ride

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With frost forming yesterday evening Paul Norman reluctantly took the decision to postpone his winter ride scheduled to depart this morning. With temperatures looking promising throughout Thursday evening & night, Paul has rescheduled to this Friday (12 January). Some of those who had planned to take part are not able to make the new date, and therefore there are now places available on this ride

Except for the new date, the details of  Paul’s outing are unchanged:

This rideout starts at 9.30 am from the Shell Services at Fourwentways. The route takes us into Suffolk with a short coffee stop in Needham Market, after which we head across to Wickham Market, Aldeburgh and lunch at The Kitchen@Thorpeness 
Our return ride heads through Diss, then back down to Bury St.Edmunds to finish in Newmarket at around 3.30pm

Total distance ~135 miles  |  Ride limited to 6 bikes + ride leader
Booking now open: email Paul directly to request a place

The first Group-organised ride of 2024

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Book now to join Patrick Ryan & Alan Triggs on 2024’s first Group-organised ride – an outing to Pearces Farm Shop & Cafe on Sunday 7th January

Heading off from one BP petrol station on the east of Cambridge we follow a circular route, ending a few miles west of Cambridge at a second BP at Childerley Gate. We’ll mostly keep to B-roads as we wind through pretty North Essex villages, getting as far east as Radwinter on our way to the breakfast stop just north of Puckeridge. The breakfast menu caters to all tastes, and includes granola with blueberries, yoghourt & honey for those starting the New Year with healthy resolutions

Photo by Brooke Lark on Unsplash

After breakfast we have a second short spell on the A10 back to Buntingford before following smaller roads into Herts & Beds. We get as far west as Potton before heading eastwards once more on our way to Childerley Gate. The journey is 82 miles in total.

Departs BP Newmarket Road, Cambridge at 9:30am
Limited to 12 participants: use this link to request a place

Book now! Sunday ride to Shuttleworth

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Book your place now! Rescheduled because of ice a week ago, Keith Curtis’ rideout to Shuttleworth is clear for takeoff on Sunday 17th December. The departure point & the route Keith will be using are unchanged…

Heading out from Caxton Gibbet we make our way through Yelling, Graveley and the Offords to cross the A1 at Buckden.  Following a series of B roads we skirt the edge of Bedford before crossing the A421 and pass through Great Barford before turning off and making our way along some minor roads to our breakfast stop at The Shuttleworth Runway Café (menu). The outward journey is ~41 miles

After breakfast we have a shorter ride back to Caxton Gibbet. Skirting Shefford and passing through Henlow Camp, we will bypass Potton and take the back road out of Gamlingay. Heading through Longstowe we pick up the A1198 to our finishing point in a layby a stone’s throw from where we began. Cognisant of the potential for inclement weather and lower temperatures at this time of year, this is a shorter ride, with the return leg ~32 miles

Departs Caxton Gibbet, Sunday 17th December @ 9:30am
Use this link to request a place. Ride limited to 12 participants

Christmas dinner 2023

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The festive season isn’t upon us just yet, but it is approaching and our Events Coordinators Nigel & Catherine have been busy organising Christmas dinner for Members, Associates & partners. The venue this year is The Old Crown in Girton, which they have booked for the evening of Thursday 7th December. Our festive dinners have been popular, successful events in previous years and we look forward to seeing many of you & your partners there
You can view The Old Crown’s Christmas menu here. The cost per person is £42.90 for a 3-course meal (this includes a service charge, but excludes drinks). If you would like to attend please download the booking form. With your choices made, email your form to events@cambsiam.org.uk
Don’t forget to follow the simple payment instructions to complete your booking!

Be sure to arrive before 7:30pm to enjoy your complimentary glass of Prosecco (or alcohol-free alternative) before taking your seat for dinner!

Full details in the Events Calendar