The Yamaha weekend started on the wet Friday night with most people setting up their displays and stands.  They were on the site of paddock three.  Graham Head had contacted various members to display their machines provided by Yamaha.  Pete Spicer had arranged for the VYOC banner which Richard had posted to me to be displayed above the machines along with the floor sign boards that Graham Tew had left out in Nottingham and which I collected. 
Among the twenty six machines were notably Graham Head's newly made four cylinder 250 in TD3 style racing trim which when fired up and running was so loud no-one could hear anything else but sounded good.  Graham's family also bought three other modern machines along with his restored YD2 250, YD3 250 and the green AS3 125, the red and white AS3, the beautiful AS2 125 in orange and white and his tidy YDS7. 
There was also Pete Spicer's AS1 which he rode around the track on Saturday and had a few scary moments on the bends with the gravel.  Richard Tracey was also there with his very rare 250 Ascot (also very loud).  But preferable to hearing a Ludy from Holland singing in the rain on Sunday.  Richard also brought his green YDS2 the subject of a recent magazine write up.  He also brought his sad looking YD3.  In my opinion one of Yamaha's best looking machines was displayed by Dave Jupp, a red YDS6 along with his equally good looking CS3 in turquoise.  He also brought a blue YL1.  Julian Douglas showed three machines including a green high piped CS3C which is a very desirable machine, also a YCS1C 180cc in red with silver headlamp and shrouds with a fish eye tank. 
There were the men in black, I mean machines in black, Julian's YDS5 and says Phil Mitchell, an original as found YR1 350cc and a restored 125cc Santa Barbara YA6, the only known machine outside of the USA which I have now acquired (see front cover of this Newsletter).  Martin Kemp displayed a YR5 350, yes, and it has matching engine and frame numbers and is in gleaming condition.  Also displayed was a white RD400 with seat tail end.  A gold TX750 in original condition form the USA, owned by the owner of the Virago owners cub was on display and was manufactured in 1972. 
The event on Saturday took place in gorgeous sunshine.  One rider who has owned his YAS1 from new rode his machine to the show and became a member on the spot.  In the evening there was a BBQ and a live rock band at the on-site pub.  Yamaha laid all of this on with free everything (excluding food and drink), bike rides on enduros with separate machines for adults and children of which my son George and Phil Mitchell's son, Dean, were very keen on riding. 
The tragic news of Sunday morning matched the weather and very few people turned up as a result.  As the event was already committed and happening it was decided to continue so as not to disappoint those who were already there.  Our thanks go to Yamaha UK and in particular their organiser, Jeff Turner and staff who I thanked on the Clubs behalf personally. It is certainly not an event to be missed should it happen in 1998.