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SkyeFall Run 2014 - 30th & 31st August - Updated 29/07/14
- Thread starter Bing
- Start date
Yep! Wouldn't want to steal your thunder Ian, I was at the payment counter when you came in and tried it with the cashier :lol:sk93 said:that's mine..paulgs1000 said:
Although one of the most vivid memories isn't of the sights, it's of sitting in that mini traffic jam and hearing Barbie Girl blasting out of your car - it's given me an earworm that I'm still struggling to shake off two days later :headbang:
it could have been a lot, lot worse...
I kid you not when I say I'm addicted to this song:
[youtube]zvq9r6R6QAY[/youtube]
I even know all the dance moves - but we'll just forget about that for now
but dont even try and deny it was the perfect bit of entertainment at the time 8)
I kid you not when I say I'm addicted to this song:
[youtube]zvq9r6R6QAY[/youtube]
I even know all the dance moves - but we'll just forget about that for now
but dont even try and deny it was the perfect bit of entertainment at the time 8)
Swiftly said:Rory said:I spotted you all :lol:
I was out in the zed for a drive with my brother, heading north from Callander towards Crianlarich when we were surprised to see a whole convoy of Z4s pass the other way!
Was a great day for a drive, I had a great time and looks like you all did too
I waved at a silver grey zed as we drove past, was that you Rory?
That would probably be me yeah, mines sterling grey
Rory said:Swiftly said:Rory said:I spotted you all :lol:
I was out in the zed for a drive with my brother, heading north from Callander towards Crianlarich when we were surprised to see a whole convoy of Z4s pass the other way!
Was a great day for a drive, I had a great time and looks like you all did too
I waved at a silver grey zed as we drove past, was that you Rory?
That would probably be me yeah, mines sterling grey
We waved too!
:driving:
Just added all mine up and got...Bing said:Paul and Swiflty got closest, bracketing it exactly - £357
I can't bear to do any more maths, but I reckon total cost of the trip was somewhere north of £500. And not a penny of it wasn't well spent
Fuel: £305 - receipts say £330 but nearly 1/2 tank left, and was nearly empty before filling up the night before leaving home
Oil: £20 - for a litre of Castrol Edge 0w30 (so don't buy at a petrol station), but needed it as all that high-rev hooning does use a bit :roll:
Accommodation (4 nights): £255 - although the Sunday night was a bit extravagant
Food/Drink etc. (for two people): £270 - mostly on Vodka for Cindy :lol:
Grand total of £850 for our 5 day outing - what a bargain
Apologies it’s taken so long to get these up – after our return on Monday Wee Bing went back to school the next day, I went back to work properly for the first time in about a month, and out of nowhere Mrs B resigned from her job… You could say it has been an eventful week
So, to the run. A week ago today the car was packed and fuelled and by this time we were at Watford Gap. WB was very excited despite being half asleep ; I have to confess I was really, really nervous. As has been noted, previous Skye runs have been widely lauded on the forum, a lot to live up to – loads of people travelling a long way for this, amongst them some whom I consider to be ‘proper’ lifers lol. A few people had expressed doubts as to whether we could fit it all in – approximately 250 miles each day is a lot after all. And I’ve only ever led one run before, which I planned and recce’d first, and that only involved 5 cars and 130 miles or so in a morning. Arriving at Stirling Services just before 0730 on Saturday to an almost empty car park and no Zs at all caused a moment of irrational panic… Oh, and Perry – the plan always said leave at 0800oke:
Really shouldn’t have worried – everyone turned up, of course ; the plan was simple and (reasonably) clearly explained, with just a tweak at the start of the route to avoid us getting lost ; there was plenty of slack in the timings ; the weather was Scottish not completely shite ; the banter was relentless. We didn’t lose anyone, nobody binned their car, everyone claimed to be happy with the pace and my ‘style’ of leading, and we got to the end of each day on time, if not a little early. Most importantly, we carved up a few of the best driving roads in the country with childlike delight, whilst still managing to slow down often enough to take in the properly awesome scenery.
I led all but two stretches, and it was an interesting experience. The pressure to not disappoint is huge – keep everyone together, stay safe, but create opportunities for making progress and pushing the cars, don’t rush the stops, have more than one or two but not too many, but make sure we don’t fall behind and miss the ferry or get to the campsite in the dark, and make sure everyone knows what’s going on and where before we move on. I’d like to thank you all for your support, for not dicking about, and for being tolerant of the relaxed organisation (i.e. none…) around non-driving activities such as eating. As I said earlier in the thread, it really was my pleasure, and you all contributed to my being able to relax and enjoy the trip as much as you did. Certainly an experience neither of us will ever forget – nice one
Being at the front means that we had a slightly different perspective on things. We have all the usual pictures of parked cars, but most of our photos are scenery – in fact the only cars in the moving shots are those of JaxZ4 and sk93, and my bonnet. And non-Zs, but we’re not posting any of them. WB took 95% of our photos, so I insisted he chose the best to stick up below with only a few picked by me. Hopefully we have chosen well – enjoy !
JaxZ4 – Guest Lead :
Through Glencoe on Saturday :
View from the ferry on the way to Skye :
After many miles of going slow in rush hour on the island, finally our patience is rewarded :
Two of my favourite pictures, epitomising exactly the weather and roads any petrol-head dreams of waking up to… A 25min journey packed into 15 with breakfast at the end of it :
A panoramic shot of the bay at Portree :
And then the roads we’d travelled up on and the countryside we’d hardly been able to see the evening before when it was raining and the traffic sucked – now empty and bathed in sunshine :
A wee break from leading, courtesy of sk”mental”93 – it was great to be following someone else for a bit, especially someone who knew the roads… Quite possibly some of the most fun I had all weekend :
Finally, after lunch at the Clachaig Inn, it was time for the last push to Stirling. Up Glencoe, over the top and across Rannoch Moor, followed by a transition back to ordinary roads at ordinary speeds down past Crianlarich, Killin (which we didn’t visit, but nearly did just for one last blast) and Callendar before the motorway and the end where we started. Glencoe and Rannoch Moor can provide enough endorphins to get you most of the way home on a buzz - through the close rocky confines of the glen, then at the crest being able to see the road snaking away all the way across the moors, flat and open with loooooong straights and sweeping bends. But it can be busy, and if you get stuck in traffic it’s endless. So as we drove down this road from the Inn I was praying for light traffic, looking right up to the main road…
The driving gods smiled, and we lucked out – clear to the right with no traffic so that everyone got out together, and this view to the front :
Followed by these views from the crest, across the moors, and finally as we passed back into busy, slower roads :
Breath-taking. Unforgettable. Perfect. All of it.
So, to the run. A week ago today the car was packed and fuelled and by this time we were at Watford Gap. WB was very excited despite being half asleep ; I have to confess I was really, really nervous. As has been noted, previous Skye runs have been widely lauded on the forum, a lot to live up to – loads of people travelling a long way for this, amongst them some whom I consider to be ‘proper’ lifers lol. A few people had expressed doubts as to whether we could fit it all in – approximately 250 miles each day is a lot after all. And I’ve only ever led one run before, which I planned and recce’d first, and that only involved 5 cars and 130 miles or so in a morning. Arriving at Stirling Services just before 0730 on Saturday to an almost empty car park and no Zs at all caused a moment of irrational panic… Oh, and Perry – the plan always said leave at 0800
oke: Really shouldn’t have worried – everyone turned up, of course ; the plan was simple and (reasonably) clearly explained, with just a tweak at the start of the route to avoid us getting lost ; there was plenty of slack in the timings ; the weather was Scottish not completely shite ; the banter was relentless. We didn’t lose anyone, nobody binned their car, everyone claimed to be happy with the pace and my ‘style’ of leading, and we got to the end of each day on time, if not a little early. Most importantly, we carved up a few of the best driving roads in the country with childlike delight, whilst still managing to slow down often enough to take in the properly awesome scenery.
I led all but two stretches, and it was an interesting experience. The pressure to not disappoint is huge – keep everyone together, stay safe, but create opportunities for making progress and pushing the cars, don’t rush the stops, have more than one or two but not too many, but make sure we don’t fall behind and miss the ferry or get to the campsite in the dark, and make sure everyone knows what’s going on and where before we move on. I’d like to thank you all for your support, for not dicking about, and for being tolerant of the relaxed organisation (i.e. none…) around non-driving activities such as eating. As I said earlier in the thread, it really was my pleasure, and you all contributed to my being able to relax and enjoy the trip as much as you did. Certainly an experience neither of us will ever forget – nice one
Being at the front means that we had a slightly different perspective on things. We have all the usual pictures of parked cars, but most of our photos are scenery – in fact the only cars in the moving shots are those of JaxZ4 and sk93, and my bonnet. And non-Zs, but we’re not posting any of them. WB took 95% of our photos, so I insisted he chose the best to stick up below with only a few picked by me. Hopefully we have chosen well – enjoy !
JaxZ4 – Guest Lead :
Through Glencoe on Saturday :
View from the ferry on the way to Skye :
After many miles of going slow in rush hour on the island, finally our patience is rewarded :
Two of my favourite pictures, epitomising exactly the weather and roads any petrol-head dreams of waking up to… A 25min journey packed into 15 with breakfast at the end of it :
A panoramic shot of the bay at Portree :
And then the roads we’d travelled up on and the countryside we’d hardly been able to see the evening before when it was raining and the traffic sucked – now empty and bathed in sunshine :
A wee break from leading, courtesy of sk”mental”93 – it was great to be following someone else for a bit, especially someone who knew the roads… Quite possibly some of the most fun I had all weekend :
Finally, after lunch at the Clachaig Inn, it was time for the last push to Stirling. Up Glencoe, over the top and across Rannoch Moor, followed by a transition back to ordinary roads at ordinary speeds down past Crianlarich, Killin (which we didn’t visit, but nearly did just for one last blast) and Callendar before the motorway and the end where we started. Glencoe and Rannoch Moor can provide enough endorphins to get you most of the way home on a buzz - through the close rocky confines of the glen, then at the crest being able to see the road snaking away all the way across the moors, flat and open with loooooong straights and sweeping bends. But it can be busy, and if you get stuck in traffic it’s endless. So as we drove down this road from the Inn I was praying for light traffic, looking right up to the main road…
The driving gods smiled, and we lucked out – clear to the right with no traffic so that everyone got out together, and this view to the front :
Followed by these views from the crest, across the moors, and finally as we passed back into busy, slower roads :
Breath-taking. Unforgettable. Perfect. All of it.
Bing said:Thanks
Consider it being considered... Hopefully a few more Scots will turn up and we can take longer to venture farther north. B&Bs are a requirement though, I'm done with camping - I refuse to miss another early morning blast :lol:
How's about I just bring bacon, buns, a stove and a big pan?
