Round Britain Rally starts again.....

The Round Britain Rally (RBR) is an organised touring and photographic event for motorcyclists and drivers of sidecar outfits. It was originally started by the Norton Owners Club but died off in the late  '70s. However, it was resurrected again by a guy called Dave Hancock in 1993, and he's run it ever since.

The event encourages participants to explore back roads and lanes throughout Great Britain and visit places of interest.(landmarks) There are one or more such landmarks in every county throughout England ,Scotland and Wales. As proof that entrants have visited a specific landmark, each site visited has to be photographed with a pre-registered vehicle in the photograph as evidence of completion. Past landmarks have included castles, lighthouses, windmills, ancient monuments, follies and some remote pubs .Some are off the beaten track, some require the odd stretch of gentle green lane, and some a short walk. Every  landmark is allotted points which you earn towards the award you have decided to try and achieve. The amount of points received per landmark is sometimes dependent on it's location and difficulty, so a landmark in the Highlands of Scotland for example will attract more points to one in the Midlands.

The list of Landmarks is usually posted out to entrants 1 or 2 weeks prior to the start of the rally which is generally Easter (Good Friday) each year. This list just contains the county, a brief description for each landmark and a general location, so a bit of research required for the 90 or so landmarks.

Photographs and claim forms must be returned to the organiser for marking by the last day of October . Success is rewarded with the presentation of quite a substantial plaque for you to keep.

To gain an award you need the following points: -

100% All-rounder................... Maximum points gained (all landmarks no errors)

All-Rounder.......................... All landmarks visited (all landmarks but some errors and points >1700)

 

Platinum ..........................…….. 1700 and over

Gold.......................................... 1200 to 1699

Silver ........................................ 800 to 1199

Bronze...................................... 400 to 799

Standard................................... 200 to 399

Finishers Certificate …………… 0 to 199
 

Entrants can start at any landmark and do as many or as few as they wish, and anyone fancying a go can also register and start at any time between April and October.

 

However, If i'm writing up some rides in the blog, I'll have to be a bit vague about what the landmarks are and where they are as it could spoil the event for other competitors, plus the fact that its also against the RBR rules and I'll get booted out!!

 

This is the sixth time i've done this event and normally go for a Gold, but only manage da bronze in 2012 - a good excuse as any for rides out taking you to places you wouldn't normally think of going to. I normally get two long weekends in Scotland and one in Wales out of it as well as a good few days out.