Ninety per cent of the show is undercover and protected from the elements and plans are in place to park all vehicles on hard standing and open up additional gates, so there will be no muddy car park moments and minimal queuing.
Worst affected routes are between Taunton and Shepton Mallet, so we recommend if approaching from Taunton and further west, taking the M5 to Junction 23 and then take the A39 and A361 through Street and Glastonbury to Shepton Mallet. Travel link and latest road news here: www.bbc.co.uk/travelnews/somerset
Routes from the east are unaffected.
Though there are, so it seems, shows earlier and earlier every year, to many ‘Bristol’ is and always will be the season’s traditional opener. It’s where many of the motorcycles which have had hours of love, passion and perspiration lavished on them over the winter months break cover, and where scores of classic motorcycle enthusiasts emerge from their winter hibernation for that matter, too.
For plenty of us, the winter months are a time of daydreaming, of restoration, of frustration and of planning. Countless club nights, hours in the shed, many phone calls, swapped emails and plotting, planning, all starts to come together, as we make it to Bristol, where it suddenly, miraculously, seems the days are getting longer, the temperature is growing milder and the riding season is coming. Of course, it might not be quite the case – but it feels like it, and that’s, in many ways, more important.
The atmosphere at ‘Bristol’ is always different to the other shows, which is surely in (large) part to its positioning in the calendar. It offers the first opportunity to see many friends and fellow enthusiasts for the first time of the year, to talk face to face, and suddenly it all seems more real and much nearer. We’ll all be out riding soon.
And what possibilities many of the lovely machines packing these show halls offer. From the motorcycles used by Pioneers in the days before the start of the First World War (and that’s a full century ago this year), through the great days of the British industry ranging from the 1920s to the 1960s, to the emergence (and takeover) of the Japanese constructors, there’s always something in these halls to represent each period. And more than likely, there’s a club stand for them here, too, manned by knowledgeable enthusiasts of whatever that particular make or model is, be it an association of 1920s New Imperial, a fellowship for postwar shaft-drive Sunbeam enthusiasts or an historic 1970s Hondas collective, they’ll be there, looking forward to the year ahead, but revelling in this weekend, this opportunity to get together, too. Enjoy the show.
James Robinson, Editor, The Classic MotorCycle
Don’t forget to get on over to the Mortons stand (number 34) and Mortons Archive stand (45) in Main Hall, where there will be some exclusive show-only deals!
View video taster!
Timetable
SATURDAY
10.00 show opens
11.00 Tech talk with OBM and CDB editor Tim Britton on stage, Main Hall
11.30 Firing up the Norton Domiracer 500cc outside Solo Motorcycle Products, outside
12.00 Club talks on stage, Main Hall
14.30 Firing up the Norton Domiracer 500cc outside Solo Motorcycle Products, outside
15.00 Tech talk with Tim Britton on stage, Main Hall
17.00 Close
SUNDAY
10.00 Show opens
11.00 Tech talk with Tim Britton on stage, Main Hall
11.30 Firing up the Norton Domiracer 500cc outside Solo Motorcycle Products, outside
12.00 Club talks on stage, Main Hall
14.30 Firing up the Norton Domiracer 500cc outside Solo Motorcycle Products, outside
15.00 Tech talk with Tim Britton on stage, Main Hall
17.00 Close
