California Club Meet Devon Coast Club Meet - 15-17 June

[SimonB]

I arrived late afternoon to get things set up. We all have allocated pitches, so please call in at reception to get your camping pass and pitch number. The sun is just starting to set and it is quite beautiful here.
The food menu looks good for those who don't want to cook. Andy has said he is doing a Thai curry tomorrow.
Sorry you can't be with us Wim.
See you all here tomorrow.

 

[Loz]

Thai Curry it is then

 

[Martin]

Only half full..

 

[Speleo62]

On our way. Probably all stuck in the traffic on the A303 like us!

 

[Grr]

First sleep with the new zone sleep replacement mattress, wow what a difference. Wife didn’t moan in the morning, Result..

 

[Hotel California]

Spotted @Jabberwocky , Rik&Terri in the second pic ....
Seems the weather is ok , you'l have a great meet !

 

[Jabberwocky]

To all the good peeps at the Devon meet........

Very light winds tonight but not quite the same in the morning according to the BBC. Gusts of upto 20mph. Keep those awnings safe!!
I'll be winding mine in before some shuteye tonight!

 

[motacyclist]

Hope your weather is better than ours at Appletreewick!

 

[SimonB]

Oh dear. We did have some rain this morning and the wind has got up a bit, but in the last hour the sun has come out again.
With the traffic problems yesterday we had 4 who didn't make it last night and they have turned up today. We now have 28 here.
A lady on the other half of the site who happened to be in a California came up to have a look around. She was surprised to see so many of us.
Hope the weather improves for you all soon.

 

[reserves]

It was dry when we popped by, sorry couldn’t stay around too long but we had our toddler in the van.

Was great to see so many Calis!

 

[Martin]

Total count for this weekend is 29 vans..

 

[Martin]

Thanks to everyone who attended this weekend, it was always a risk holding a meet at a location like this due to it being quite difficult to get to for most, however we achieved 29 vans in total. Thanks also to @SimonB for helping organise the meet and @Speleo62 for bringing along the Coleman shelters again which were great for bringing everyone together on Saturday night.

Next meet Highlands End in Dorset

 

[Guy/Louise]

Thanks to everyone who attended this weekend, it was always a risk holding a meet at a location like this however we achieved 29 vans in total. Thanks also to @SimonB for helping organise the meet and @Speleo62 for bringing along the Coleman shelters again which were great for bringing everyone together on Saturday night.

Next meet Highlands End in Dorset

Thankyou to everyone we met and chatted to, it was a real joy, our first meet... Thankyou Martin and Simon.

 

[Jabberwocky]

Great weekend! Thanks for your company, chats, banter and all the new tips and tricks we lean't over the weekend about our beloved Cali - invaluable.
Special thanks to Simon and Martin for organising and to Rosie for the loan of the Coleman shelters . Always good to have a social meeting point as well as catching up with old friends (not an ageist comment!) and to meet and make new ones! Oh, and I nearly forgot, putting names and faces to your Avatar Names
We will be going to the next meet in Tenby the weekend after next. If you are going? See you then. If not, maybe Dorset in September or Derbyshire (Bolsover) to coincide with the club open day in November........

 

[SimonB]

Lovely to meet you all, lots of new people and quite a few I've met at previous events. Great to hear the stories about your Calis. Some quite extraordinary tales!
Thanks to Rosie & Mick for bringing the Coleman shelters for us and also for showing me their Sheltapod. I've just ordered one.
The view from the back of our Cali.

29 Calis in all plus a lady who was with the surfing competition who was on the field below us. She couldn't believe how many vans like hers there were here. She joined the Forum whilst she was there.

I hope we will meet many of you at the Dorset Meet in September.
Simon

 

[Speleo62]

Great weekend yet again with the club. Lovely to meet everyone. Thanks for help with the shelters, thank heavens for the girl guides( owners of said shelters). Hope those that ate the cake I baked in the quest oven on site enjoyed it. See you at Bolsover we hope. Looks like our next purchase may be ebikes along with Loz, thanks to womble’s Mum for letting us have a test ride on theirs.

 

[Wobble’s Mum]

Was great to meet everyone! What a fab first meet for us.
@Speleo62 let me know what bikes you go for... you too @Loz ! While you’re off shopping for bikes, we want a Quest oven...
Oh and the little shelf that @Jabberwocky had, and carpets, and little roll up LEDs, and Ikea Skubb boxes and chopping boards that fit the sink...hmmm, the new shopping list is rather long and exciting. There we were, thinking we’d bought everything for the van.

 

[Loz]

Was great to meet everyone! What a fab first meet for us.
@Speleo62 let me know what bikes you go for... you too @Loz ! While you’re off shopping for bikes, we want a

@Speleo62 @Wobble’s Mum
I blame Dawn!

 

[Wobble’s Mum]

@Speleo62 @Wobble’s Mum
I blame Dawn!
View attachment 34718
View attachment 34719

Moi?

Seriously, nice bike. I really hope you enjoy it

 

[SimonB]

Looks very nice Helen, look forward to seeing it soon. Do you have a bike rack for it yet?

 

[Loz]

Looks very nice Helen, look forward to seeing it soon. Do you have a bike rack for it yet?

no, but we have no towbar so not so sure about getting 2 of these up on the normal bike rack..

 

[SimonB]

no, but we have no towbar so not so sure about getting 2 of these up on the normal bike rack..

Not sure the normal back door bike rack with take the weight of 2 electric bikes unless you take the batteries, etc off first. I had to get a 3 bike tow hitch mounted rack to take the weight of my electric bike and Helen's pedal bike. It'll be heavy to lift it that high too.

 

[Jabberwocky]

Not sure the normal back door bike rack with take the weight of 2 electric bikes unless you take the batteries, etc off first. I had to get a 3 bike tow hitch mounted rack to take the weight of my electric bike and Helen's pedal bike. It'll be heavy to lift it that high too.

Weight limit of rear door bike rack is 60kg's (T5 design). Will need two folks with reasonable upper body strength to put bike's getting towards 30kg's on rack. Terri & I know from experience. I can just about load a 25kg bike on my own but just be careful with your back if you attempt this.

 

[Wobble’s Mum]

I wouldn't recommend trying to get those up on a bike rack. I struggle with them on the tow bar one!

Rosie @Speleo62 has a good one, the Strada something or other, (she can probably tell you) that folds back away from the tailgate and will take the weight as it's built for three bikes. We have the Thule Velospace XT as it takes the weight of e-bikes. I wouldn't be inclined to remove batteries etc whilst travelling along as the road dust and dirt could get into the contact points for the battery, especially if it's raining. Unless you have a good cover of course, in which case, it might be ok?