Saturday October 14th, 2023

As I have previously remarked, I am not, by nature, a particularly competitive person – at least against other people. I am a little bit inclined though, to compete against myself.

In 2021, I entered the “Sportster Challenge” a semi-endurance event organised and run by the Harley-Davidson dealership in Plzeň. Despite its name, ANY motorcycle can come and play so, I entered. Thanks (I feel) to some seriously cold, but luckily dry, weather, I was, rather unexpectedly, the first past the post ! Oh dear, I “technically” won !

I also entered in 2022 and, following the freezing fog on the motorway the first time, I stayed in a nice little brewery in the town of Dobřany. This gave me a nice night’s sleep beforehand (not to mention a couple of VERY nice beers), a much later getting up time and a ride to the event of less than thirteen kilometres. Despite those preparations, it was a slightly warmer day and, with my relaxed riding style, I finished a bit further down the field – in I believe 4th place.

For 2023, I again entered and, having enjoyed the more relaxed start of the previous year, I attempted to get a room in the same brewery, but it was totally full. I put the ever-wonderful Lucie to work and she soon found an alternative, the Pension Český Dvůr (Masarykovo náměstí 74, Starý Plzenec). This was not as swanky as the brewery, but it was very comfortable, very welcoming and quite amazingly cheap.

I also had safe, off road, parking for the Harley.

I had a really well prepared and very tasty piece of pork as my evening meal and a couple of Gambrinus beers at what appeared to be 2019 prices !

The breakfast in the morning was also varied and well prepared. I love my chocolate cereal and fried eggs ! I was also particularly pleased to see “English Breakfast” tea on offer – almost everywhere I ever travel seems to think that English people only ever drink the oily concoction so beloved of Earl Grey !

With only about sixteen kilometres to ride, I took a short stroll around the town before setting off.

Starý Plzenec is the production centre for “Bohemia Sekt”. This is the Czech Republic’s sparkling wine which we are not, of course, allowed to call Champagne. Suffice it to say that, despite being a fraction of the price of its equivalent from northern France, you have to be something of a connoisseur of wine to tell the difference. I once took thirty-six bottles to a wedding in the UK, all which vanished before anyone could say “is this Veuve Cliquot” ?

The town has actually got a statue of a Sekt cork which is very realistic. It IS stone, but it really looks like cork.

I took the short ride to Plzeň 3 in brightening sunshine and, by the time I got there, there was already quite a crowd.

The registration was quite easy – just a simple form and the ever helpful shop manager, Monika Váchová, had, as requested, saved me my “lucky number”, 55, under which to compete.

Eventually, as departure time approached, the Event Organiser, Jiří Kolář from H-D Plzeň, gave us a welcoming speech and outlined what we had to do. Well I presume he did because, as usual, I could not distinguish a single word that I knew in the staccato Czech in which it was delivered.

Luckily, there was a small piece of literature given to all of us and, although I cannot really read Czech either, it was apparent that, as usual, we would be making one parade lap in column formation, to show us all the route – and then we were on our own. For some reason, my SatNav had decided to malfunction, but there was a map attached to the door of the dealership which indicated that the route would be the same as in previous years so, luckily, that did not matter.

There were seventy-seven entrants, including one from Hungary and some even had passengers, so it was a very long column indeed that set off out of Plzeň. We rode down Route 27 towards Přestice, which was considerably less rural than in previous years as the 27 is being “improved”. That is, of course if you consider turning a pleasant, tree-fringed, little road into a four-lane motorway that now reaches almost into the town itself, an improvement.

We entered Přestice, which boasts an impressive church, the Kostel Nanebevzetí Panny Marie (Church of the Assumption) that is visible from miles away.

Leaving the town, we continued down the “original” Route 27 as far as Borovy – where the route takes a right, over the railway line and into the countryside proper. Climbing out of Roupov, we came to what I consider to be the worst corner on the whole route. It is a not overly sharp left-hander, but the camber is a bit odd and the approach makes it hard to see the road. In my previous TWELVE attempts (from the last two challenges), I had yet to traverse it entirely to my satisfaction. I was following, at luckily a safe distance, a group of three Challenge “newbies” and they all got it quite horribly wrong. Of course, watching their mistakes made it easy for me to (finally) get it just right and thus be in the perfect position for a sharp and blind descent that immediately follows it …….

Despite warnings of dire weather, it had actually turned into a lovely day. The leaves were just turning and all shades from green, through red to Autumn Gold were visible and the fields had that hazy late Summer look that precedes Winter bleakness. I hardly cared that the riders in front of me had, by then, held the rest of us up to the point where the front of the column had disappeared entirely. I, at least, knew where I was going.

We came to Merklín, which is still, I believe, one of my top ten town names on the planet and, as always, I chuckled when I saw the town sign.

Then it was on to Stod (also, to me, a “funny name” contender) and through more rolling countryside to Ostrov u Stříbra.

The countryside on that stretch was very open and the wind had risen considerably. There is one long sweeping corner where, even on a Harley, I can usually feel my boot touch the ground. However,in the gale from the left that morning, a far more circumspect approach was called for to avoid the delights of riding a heavy bike across a recently ploughed field.

In Ostrov u Stříbra, the route joins the D5 (E55) motorway at junction 107 for an eighteen kilometre blast back towards Plzeň. Then it was off of the motorway at junction 89 and up the broad route 26 and into the city,.

Then it was a quick amble through the confusing maze of an industrial estate which lays just behind the Harley dealership – and it was time to present my number to the ladies doing the recording. One circuit down and five to go.

Most of the people that I had been chugging along behind pulled into the yard of the dealership. That is not my style though, so I immediately set off on my second circuit, something the rather sparsely populated yard indicated most of the others had also done already.

I was now entirely on my own and thus far more easily able to enjoy the scenery. I am always amazed by how different everything looks when I am riding on my own. I am by no means a speedy rider, I go to enjoy myself as much as possible, but without the impediment of being part of a column, I certainly made better time. Occasionally, another motorcycle would blast past me but, by and large, I rode the remaining circuits without hardly seeing other bikers at all. It is amazing how spread out we all quickly became. Without my plucky photographer on the pillion seat, it was not possible to take many photos, but this should give you a rough idea.

The weather became increasingly threatening as the day progressed and, midway around my fifth circuit, ironically just after filled up my tank in, where else, Merklín, the heavens opened. This made it slightly more trying, but I have good clothing and boots so it hardly mattered.

Despite the rain, a group of four riders had raced past me and vanished into the distance as I approached Stod. When I got to Ostrov u Stříbra, I caught them up. This was not due to some unexpected burst of speed on my part, but more because on what is a tricky uphill roundabout there, one had got it all wrong and slid off of the road, causing two off the others to do the same. Mercifully, nobody appeared to be injured – but Harley chrome does not come cheap. The group were not amongst those who finished ……..

As ever, my objective was to complete all six circuits, a distance of approximately five hundred kilometres. Doing all six was not obligatory, but I had not come there to go home without doing that. Despite the rain, I finished the fifth circuit and set off on the sixth, knowing that every yard I rode was one I would not have to do again. I am also pleased to record that, even on a wet road, I managed to hit my “bogey” corner exactly right. Almost in exactly the same place I had first encountered rain, it suddenly stopped and I rode the last half of the final circuit in watery sunshine. At least the wind had dropped.

The ladies who were recording everyone’s progress looked, oddly, damper than I was, but it was with some relief I pulled into the yard and finally stopped. Sitting under the shelter in the yard, I helped the inevitable shudders to dissipate with a couple of cups of hot fruit tea. There was a comparatively small group of finishers in view of how many had started and we numbered just twenty-one when the scorers called it a day.

This was the cue for Jiří and Monika to appear with a collection of certificates and a few little trophies. I was nowhere near the front on this occasion, I was called twelfth, but I got another certificate and another little cup.

That makes three. Lucie says I will soon need a trophy cabinet !

Of course, it began to pour with rain again while the trophies were being distributed, so there was no group photo as everybody wanted to beat a hasty retreat. I did pose for this one, with two of my HOG Prague who had also competed, but then I hit the road myself.

The motorway, which is undergoing the kind of reconstruction that can cause a thirty kilometre tailback, even on a rainy Saturday evening, was a complete nightmare. In the end I abandoned it totally for road 605. This was also fearfully busy (everyone has the same clever technology, these days !) but at least it was moving. The rain had stopped before I got to Prague and I was pretty glad to get off of the Harley when I finally got home.

As I always say, “Another job jobbed !”