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BMW Club Europa meeting
Vosges 2006
44th BMW Club Europa meeting - Vosges 2006: Saulxures-sur-Moselotte
France: 8th to 11th June 2006 - IN-CAR Video’s from BMW Parade
Peter still behind us, and I pull in behind him. Time to have a look under the bonnet. Peter soon spots that one of the distributor cap clips is off; on closer inspection both clips are off the cap. So that’s how they get the flames on the GTR. After checking the rotor arm and inside the cap for any damage, I replace the clips but they don’t seem secure, so I join two plastic ties together and wrap them around the cap and into the clips. Due to the car idling in the parade the engine is hot and will not start. So after a quick drive up the side road to make sure there is enough road to tow start the car. I attach my towing hook and within fifty yards the 02 engine comes to life. We travel back to the BCE site. We missed the rest of the parade where it passed through the village. It was reported that after picking up Marie-Therese Berranger, Mayoress of Saulxures, they passed by crowds being made of not only the village inhabitants but also the retirement homes brought out the elderly to watch the parade go by.
A marshal holds up travelling through the other part of Saulxures village. While waiting we see the police motorbikes and the other motorbikes and cars come from a different direction. Then their comes the Fawlty Towers moment, as Selwyn is out of the 02, bonnet is raised, bonnet down, he looks inside car, bonnet open and a wave of arms, all he needed was a branch of tree to finish off the Basil episode. The BMW 502 in front of Selwyn, lurching backwards nearly runs into him as the driver selects reverse rather than first when he starts his engine goes to move off. Selwyn now back in the 02 goes to start the car and no go and bonnet up! At this point the tape in the in-car video runs out. So we don’t get to see the children and marshals pushing the 02 into a side road.
Back down the on ramp and we join the main road, this time the 02 starts to play up. It first of all backfires and we have a BMW M3 V8 GTR type flame coming from the exhaust. Selwyn does not ease the gas and the pop and banging are clearly picked up on the in-car video microphone. We arrive at a roundabout and are directed by a steward, as Selwyn applies the loud pedal on the exit, the marshal jumps and the flame nearly sets his trousers alight.
This time as we come to turn left on to the dual carriageway there is no steward and so the BMW parade is broken up. Off at the ramp again (no steward) and we suddenly have BMWs coming towards us. It seems we should all have carried on at the by-pass, so we are being turned round at the T-junction. At least we get filmed doing a U-turn, and the in car video has great footage of BMW cars coming towards us.
As we exit the park road to turn left onto the dual carriageway, the parade stewards wave us though, and we are off. Blue smoke from the 02 as Selwyn plants the throttle pedal. Off at the first exit and follow the parade into town, passing a excellent condition Blue 2002 Touring parked by the side, which we had not seen in the park. At the T junction, again a steward directs us to the left and waving a the television camera, we head back to the park, This is so all the motorbikes and BMW Automobiles can be filmed as they pass the BCE meeting site.
At 5pm all those drivers and riders who which to take part in the BMW Parade around Saulxures-sur-Moselotte started to gather at their cars and bikes. I set up my in car video camera, and arrange with Selwyn that I will follow him so I can video the 02 in the parade. The video is on as we wait and watch the lead Motorbikes, who are the French Paris police on their motorbikes pass in front of us. Two BCE members stand in front of the car, a long blast on the horn and pointing to the video camera they move out the way. One incident caught on video is the poor chap who drops his motorbike right in front of my car! After what seems likes hundreds of motorbikes the cars start to pass in front, we wait until the end and pull out and allow Selwyn to pull out in front of me. In front of Selwyn are, Kathleen and Ron in their E46 and behind us is Peter in his 5 series touring.
IN-CAR VIDEO OF BACKFIRING SELWYN’S 1972 BMW 2002TII TOURING
IN-CAR VIDEO OF FIRST LAP OF BMW PARADE
IN-CAR VIDEO OF WRONG WAY ! ON BMW PARADE