News / Blog - Events News

Well the question was 'How long can it take one photographer to complete one edit?'

The answer, when talking about this particular photog, is months.... and months!

Indeed, I was at real risk that the next annual shoot of one of my favorite events would come around again before I'd completed the 2015 edit. Shameful eh!

But in my defense I'll say that all those months that have passed have been full and busy. I'm certainly working more hours than I ever did when I had a 'proper job'. There was a lot happening in the middle of last year and I simply couldn't keep up.

So I'm relieved (even a bit proud, ha, ha) that.... drum roll please.... The 2015 Vale Earth Fair Picture Galleries are complete, Hurrah!

The Vale Earth Fair is the Channel Islands longest running, most friendly and laid back Music Festival.

Many things play a part in making the atmosphere so chilled... a list would include: The historic setting inside and around Vale Castle, the relaxed manner the organizers 'organize', the family friendly crowd... oh, and the fantastic line-up of bands!

Here's another hint why I love VEF CLICK HERE ;-)

These galleries should give you a feel for the vibe you get at Vale Earth Fairs. I highly recommend you add this Festival to your bucket list of things to do :-)

BTW I reckon that the 'Stage Against the Machine' was particularly good in 2015. Let me know what you thought of VEF 2015. See you in 2016.
CLICK HERE TO VIEW THE COMPLETED VALE EARTH FAIR 2015 GALLERIES

Last Friday evening saw my weekend start with a close encounter with Dinner Boxing action.

And a close encounter is what it was... even a 24mm wide angle lens couldn't fit it all in.

Now I have NO ambition to climb into any Boxing ring... no matter how much you want to pay me :-) The occasions that I have photographed Dinner Boxing and Cage Fighting have always left me with great respect for the fighters who are brave enough to climb into the unknown.

It takes a certain type of person who will put themselves into the position of facing an unknown opponent in the ring. There is nowhere to run. the combatants have to have faith in their training, stamina, strength and willpower.

The evening had been organized by the Guernsey Dinner Boxing Club at St Pierre Park Hotel as part of their 2015/2016 season.

The nine Bouts were well matched and without exception every single fighter - winners and losers - made a good showing.

But back to my original point. I was at ring-side poking my lenses under the bottom rope, feeling the canvas shudder as each punch landed and happy to be on the outside looking in!

Pictures of all nine Bouts have now been added to my Galleries:
CLICK HERE TO VIEW PICS OF THE GUERNSEY DINNER BOXING CLUB'S EVENING

The last 24 hours has seen this web-site record over 32,000 views.

May I thank you for the interest in my work.

Whilst this isn't a record number it actually illustrates the interest in the events that I have been photographing... not really my pics.

This small island, as I've said so many times before, offers countless different activities, gigs and motorsport meetings to visit that no-one has any excuse to be bored. Heaven help you if you moan about there being nothing to do near to me!!

I only manage to photograph a few of these events (you will notice a personal bias) but it seems to be clear that I'm not alone in having these passions.... they are Motorsport and Music gigs,,, if you haven't worked that out for yourself!!

Happy days :-)

Some of my weekends work can be viewed here:
VIEW PICS OF ALFIE BARTON'S BALLROOM EXPERIENCE 25th ANNIVERSARY GIG
VIEW PICS OF THE GK&MC MOTOCROSS MEETING
VIEW PICS OF THE AUTOCROSS CLUB BANGER RACING

This Anniversary gig was headlined as a 'Special'.

It certainly never needed any hype as another Fermain Tavern sell-out was guaranteed. The Alfie Barton Ballroom Experience gigs started 25 years ago (actually we think it was 27 years but who's arguing).

The idea was to get musician friends together, invite music lovers in to enjoy the vibe, then jam and improvise... just for the love of the music. The added bonus was that Alfie would invite a few of his famous friends to come along to enjoy the party.

Legendary is probably an overused word but none of the old crowd who frequented the 'Ballroom gigs' would let you call it anything less!

So inevitably all those who managed to get a ticket before the quick sell-out were buzzing with anticipation when Alfie took to the stage to announce that we were in for a busy night of entertainment.

Legendary and Special is exactly what it was.

The line-up included 'The Reverend' Ian Kewley, Denny Newman, Stewart Ivins, Nick Windsor, Colin Hewlett, Jim Delbridge, Alan Palzeaird, Chris Dean, Screamin' Jez Carvery and new boys on the block Kylypso amongst many others.

A fantastic start to 2016... same again next month anyone?

If you were at the gig I hope you think my pics capture some of the highlights.... If you weren't, silly you!!
CLICK TO VIEW PICS OF ALFIE BARTON'S BALLROOM EXPERIENCE 25 YEARS ANNIVERSARY GIG

With the Vale Earth Fair Collective's 2016 fundraising events about to start I thought I should make an effort to catch up with my 2015 Vale Earth Fair galleries!!

In the next few weeks the VEF Collective will be organizing more of their popular fundraising 'Unplugged' gigs where we can experience some of our favorite bands stripped down (thankfully just in a musical form!)

I really love how a familiar song is re-imagined. I also fancy the creativity and discipline required of the bands when re-interpreting their work can energize and refresh the group.

Keep a eye on Facebook for the dates of VEF Unplugged.

So what about those Gallery updates?

Well they include Ukuladeez, Schema, Lord Vapour, Kilig and Fernweh, Robert J Hunter, Honest Crooks, Bonsai Pirates and Gay Army!

Phew, and there are still quite a lot to go! Follow this link to view the latest pics:
CLICK TO VIEW THE LATEST VEF 2015 BAND PICTURES

It's a few years since I've found my way down to the Bridge to watch live music.

I used to be quite a regular at the E&G but this habit waned when the gigs became irregular and then stopped all together. They are back now though.

But this weekend I was tempted to see how the St Sampsons scene is doing in 2016 by a different venue. I reckoned I knew what to expect as from what I could remember the Northerners always knew how to party. I should know, I'm one of them ;-)

Saturday's visit was to the Mariners Inn.

Now I'm far from a regular here but I pop in a few times a year for a quick pint when I'm in the area. However I'd never really explored all its nooks and crannies. It was one of these spaces that had been cleared to see if it worked as a setting for gigs. Out with the Pool tables, in with the drum kit!

It turned out to be quite successful as the 'cosy' area made you feel part of the gig. There's also a raised area at the back for more folk to view the bands. Even the lighting was good for me :-)

The great shame was that many of the punters didn't make an effort to walk the few feet away from the bar to support the bands... what's new, eh!

I still think that the Mariners holds promise as a worthwhile new live venue.

This gig was for charity, the Friends of Anthony Thomas - 'FoAT'. This is a very deserved cause and rumor has it that a couple more gigs might be planned. Try and support them as Mark Guillou and the bands do the whole thing for free!

I photographed a couple of the bands... Zimmer and Underdog. The pics can be viewed here:
CLICK HERE TO VIEW PICS OF UNDERDOG
CLICK HERE TO VIEW PICS OF ZIMMER

Technology..... It's a Love/Hate thing for me.....

I'm about to use the word 'fail' again in a 2016 Blog and it's only the 2nd of January! Read on to have a chuckle at my expense :-)

I think I come out of the 'boys like toys' mould and have been spending on technology since I first collected pocket money. Back in those days Lego was cutting edge!

However as the years have passed I've trained myself to consider purchases more maturely.

But every few years the itch starts again and the Internet draws me to something special.

A few months ago I decided that I deserved a new cutting edge computer. Weeks were spent researching and the day came to press the 'Buy button' for a system that is now the envy of NASA. I think there might be a Blog to come later on the specs!

The thing is, past experience has shown me that computer upgrades never go quite as smoothly as you hope. These days software registrations, passwords and many other things try and trip you up at every turn.

This is why I planned on making the move over to the new speed machine a slow and measured affair. Even then there have been several hiccups and late nights. I think there's another Blog there too!

Now let me tell you this little story.... It actually relates to yesterday's Cross Country Blog.

As you may have read, I'd been asked to photograph the run for the Guernsey Press. Part of the brief was making it VERY CLEAR that there was an EARLY print deadline. I also knew that the back page layout had already been planned and my shot had to be an upright. A blank hole awaited. No problem I thought.

I spent an enjoyable hour or so taking the pics down at Mont Cuet tip whilst chatting with the Guernsey Press Sport's Editor... he really is passionate about sport and journalism in general.

When we parted my last word to Rob Batiste was that I was going straight back to the office and the pics would follow ASAP.

Forty-three minutes after my last photograph (aided my blisteringly fast Super Computer) I had selected, edited and tagged my pics ready for e-mailing.

I was enjoying the warm feeling of being on top of a job.... Little did I know!

I probably qualify as a 'belts and braces' guy. This outlook means that I always submit my work to two different client e-mail addresses. I also BCC copy them into another one of my own accounts. This is checked to ensure the e-mail has 'left the building'.

It was only when I received a remarkably calm phone call from Rob that I realized something had gone wrong... he asked 'When can I expect to get the pics Andrew'?

Oh, heck. The print deadline loomed!

I told Rob the e-mails were sent nearly three hours ago to his xxxxx@guernsey-press.com e-mail address. 'But that one hasn't been active for years' he said 'there's no hyphen in there now'!

Due to my belts and braces mentality I had saved a copy of all the pics on to a USB stick (just in case of problems) and I offered to pop down to Rob's office immediately but he suggested that I simply 'try the correct e-mail' and of course this worked first time!

But what had gone wrong? I had to try and find where this ancient e-mail had appeared from.

Well, what I have found out only re-enforces my Love/Hate of technology.

I think that the move to a new computer and the installation of new e-mail systems were the problem. It seems that the 'helpful' software takes a look at your old 'Sent' folders and lifts all the e-mail addresses out into a new Contact list.

Now I'm sure you are like me, few of us remember actual phone numbers or e-mails any more as the phone/computer does that stuff for us now.

So when I started to enter the Guernsey Press e-mail addresses the 'helpful' computer finished them for me... I didn't realise that the 'old' e-mail address had been filled in - I just pressed send!

When I double-checked that the e-mailed pics had arrived back into my own backup e-mail, I enjoyed the warm feeling of success thinking that the job was done.

FAIL!

A word I hope won't feature in another Blog this year :-)

BTW, a blank back page was averted and my reputation has survived - but only just!

3am EDIT: I've just watched the Jules Holland Hootenanny and realized how many of the artists on the show I've been lucky to photograph.... then I got hooked by the BBC coverage of Glastonbury 2015..... MASSIVE & MAGNIFICENT... and I want to photograph it :-0

So to the Blog>.................

I warn you, this is going to ramble.

It's New Years eve and inevitably, like so many of my previous Blogs, it'll be late by the time I manage to upload this update. Also, as is often the case, I've partaken in a couple of pints of Real Ale and a few glasses of red wine. (3am EDIT.... add a couple of Whisky's to that list too). What could possibly go wrong!

I'm sitting here at years end (I guess like many others) thinking both about the year that is about to become history together with the future... 2016, here we come.

These moments of contemplation will always be individual and personal. But allow me to share my own thoughts.

Inevitably my mind goes back through the previous busy year of photography. Once again I have enjoyed almost every moment of my 2015 photographic year.

But things could always have been done differently... and certainly there is always room to improve and change. So that begs the question 'What could I have done differently and where did I go wrong?'

So I will allow myself to expose (nice little photographic reference there!) some of my photographic failings to you, just as long as you promise not to tell anyone else!

So where did I fail?

Well, just yesterday, I was updating a picture gallery for one of my favorite local bands... Thee Jenerators. THIS IS A LINK TO THE GALLERY

The latest gig I photographed them at was a photographers nightmare. When you combine a band that will not stand still for a moment together with light levels akin to candlelight it will always be a challenge.

I'm pleased to say that I ended up with quite a few keepers (33 out of the 49 pics taken), but could I have done better?

My personal 'style' of photography encompasses taking as few pics as I possibly can (born lazy, eh). I try and limit the shutter presses to the peak moments of action. My belief is that you give yourself a massive editing workload by being 'trigger happy'.

This was highlighted for me during 2015 when I shot an indoor sporting event alongside an ambitious young local 'photog'. He was using his camera in machine gun mode and must have gone home with 1000+ pics. I took 251 and had 170 keepers after the cull.

I have also had this experience whilst working off-island alongside top pro motorsport and festival 'togs. Some, but by no means all, fire off endless pics - seemingly with the idea that 'One of 'em has to be a keeper'! So maybe it's me who is completely wrong on this but one thing I'm sure about is that my editing time is a lot shorter than theirs!

But back to my point. I still think that restraint is a good thing. I believe that I should consider the timing and composition of each image before I press the shutter release button.

Even after taking this stance the final part of the photographic process is still to come... the edit. This is the time extra discipline and ruthlessness is needed and I think I'm failing in this area and could complete most assignments to a better standard by taking a less 'precious' view of my pics during the edit.

Although I attempt to restrain myself at the capture stage I then go on to 'fail' when it comes to the edit. I think I'm not ruthless enough when deleting the rubbish.

So let me take one step back, I mentioned that I've just updated the Thee Jenerators Gallery. This led me to be distracted by looking through some of the old pics in the Thee Jenerators gallery. Some going back five years. This was quite enlightening.

Remember that I said that Thee Jenerators were one of my favorite bands. This is because they take 'performance' beyond simply standing behind a microphone.

This then is where my lessons started and my current 'mantra' of trying to be vicious with my picture editing revels itself as still needing a bit (OK a lot) of work!

There are quite a few pics in the gallery which, I think, capture the full character and performance of this energetic band... but too many pics have crept in that are nothing more than average... or worse. These should never have seen the light of day... or the Internet! Thankfully most of them are from several years ago, including the 5 year old example below. Maybe this proves that I am getting a bit better at what I'm doing ;-)

It's clear that I still have loads to learn but take this New Years tip from me and short-cut your own scholarship. You can borrow my own New Years resolution that 'In 2016 I will try and make my picture edits more ruthless'. The delete button on the keyboard is there for a good reason..... to help us improve the quality of our work.

I'm resisting the urge to delete my 'fails' from the Thee Jenerators gallery to give you the chance to see what I am talking about here. I'd love to know which pics you think are the 'fails'. Please let me know what you think and we can compare notes.... This is my e-mail CLICK HERE TO E-MAIL ME.

You can be as ruthless with me as I like... I need the help ;-)

Oh, and one final tip from me (for FREE).... and it's one that I use myself sometimes.

I still have some old 1GB cards that only hold 36 pictures. It really focuses your mind when you shoot with one of those - just like it did when I started taking pics on real film and it cost money with every click!!

3.15am EDIT: Time for bed I think ;-)

Variety is the spice of photography... just as it is in life itself.

I am able to mix many genres of image taking into most of my working weeks and this keeps me interested and motivated... although maybe I should find a better way to describe what I do as the term 'working' doesn't really portray how I feel about my avocation.

My Blog often states how much I enjoy what I do and after more than a decade of life spent exclusively looking through a lens my luck, good fortune and opportunity to pursue photography full-time still feels as special as the first step I took on this amazing journey.

It is also rather special that so many people have joined me along the way by occasionally popping along to this web-site to see the latest updates.

Today I'm amazed to see that the total views on this web-site have reach another Milestone with ELEVEN MILLION VIEWS being logged!

May I say a BIG THANK YOU to you all.

As it has become traditional to mark these Milestones you might like to view a few previous Blogs:
CLICK TO VIEW A FEW PREVIOUS MILLION MILESTONE BLOGS

It was a case of deja vu when I walked into St Pierre Park Hotel on Saturday.

I was there to present a slide-show of my pics featuring the racing of the Guernsey Motor Cycle & Car Club together with a display to support the Trophy winners as they came forward to collect their silverware at the Annual Dinner Dance.

The feeling of having been there before came from the fact that a week previous I'd been in the same room... that time I was taking pics of the Guernsey Dinner Boxing Club's night of eleven Bouts.

I've now completed the Gallery updates of the bouts I was able to capture.

The pics are now online here:
VIEW PICS OF THE DINNER BOXING AT ST PIERRE PARK HOTEL

Some things are universal. You don't need to understand their language to appreciate what excites another person.

Body language, mood, a smile and vibe offer all you need to understand where another person 'is at'.

Music is a great example of communication that we all understand without needing to actually talk the lingo of others.

Friday night at the Fermain Tavern the whole room was understanding the dialect being spoken by the visiting band... The Uptown Monotones.

This Austrian experimental/fusion band that formed in Graz in 1993 could have connected with their audience by their fun and enthusiasm alone. The three guys actually spoke english well enough to have a laugh with us but one guesses that they could have managed on personality alone... oh, and their own lively brand of Acoustic, Rock, Reggae, Jazz fusion and Experimental Beat-Box completed the performance.

Need I say more? They went down a storm!
CLICK TO VIEW THE UPTOWN MONOTONES COMMUNICATING WITH THE FERMAIN TAVERN

Just a quick update to give you links to the finished Alderney '3-Event' Motorsport Galleries.

I reckon that everyone's 'Alderney Flu' has passed (at least until next year) so maybe you will be ready to take a look at your racing from the three days.

My final updates are for the 'headline' event which is the Hillclimb at Fort Tourgis. This is the days racing that makes the effort and expense worth while in most racers minds.

It's also a great event to photograph!

I love Alderney and enjoy it as much as the visiting racers, however (as you all know) it is a very expensive few days and your support by buying a couple of pics will ensure that I return to the northern isle to capture the action next year!

Go on, you know you want to :-)

These are the links to the three days Galleries:
VIEW PICS OF THE NEW ALDERNEY SPRINT
VIEW PICS OF THE ALDERNEY AIRPORT SPEED EVENT
VIEW PICS OF THE ALDERNEY HILLCLIMB

Maybe it's because I put an imaginary electronic pin into the digital pile?

Or perhaps I wasn't over the 'Alderney Jet Lag' yet?

Whatever the reason, I seem to have started the editing of three days worth of Alderney Motorsport photography in the middle!

It may be that I quite like a couple of the photographic 'viewpoints' that are offered to me on the Alderney Airport Speed Events track.

Unlike most of the motorsport events I photograph, there is an opportunity to add something extra to the pics captured in Alderney. What I mean by that is that I'm able to 'describe' where the racing takes place by carefully positioning the background scene to ensure that everyone knows precisely where the action took place. For example I love the view that places the Airport Control Tower as a backdrop.

Another viewpoint offers an unusual angle, where, (in complete contradiction) the background shows nothing more than sky! That angle is really tidy without distractions.

But, hopefully, I didn't get too distracted by the backgrounds and didn't forget to capture some action too!

You will be able to make up your own mind as the Galleries fill up with the three days pics.

So far you can view the Guernsey Kart & Motor Club's (Airport) Speed Event at Le Grande Val, Alderney. Day 1 and 3 will follow:
VIEW SCENIC PICS OF THE ALDERNEY AIRPORT SPEED EVENT

Nothing is more satisfying than spreading it about a bit.

So that is what I've been up to today. Don't tell the missus ;-)

I'm spoilt for choice at the moment when it comes to Festival and Band pics to edit. I have so many!

This is why I decided to spread my time between preparing a few new Galleries from Jersey Live 2015 and also Vale Earth Fair 2015.

Both these Festivals have their own individual character and personality but both share one very important similarity... GREAT LIVE MUSIC.

Today I've enjoyed spending a little time browsing through my pics from each Festival and you can now view the new Galleries by clicking the links.

There are still loads more to come. Keep a check on this Blog for new links:
VIEW PICS OF VALE EARTH FAIR 2015
VIEW PICS OF JERSEY LIVE 2015

It shouldn't be a surprise to me but every year the workload at this time seems to creep up on me from a hidden place!

My Commercial clients suddenly remember that the Autumn is just around the corner with its changeable weather and falling leaves.

So the Elevated photo assignments start to log-jam. And then it is also a busy season for my other work. There are Hillclimbs, the Vale Earth Fair, Jersey Live together with Petit Bot Hillclimb and three more Motorsport events in Alderney just around the corner!

I've just returned from Jersey Live 2015. This was my eighth year of being invited over to photograph the friendly Festival. It's been great catching up with so many now familiar faces.

This year hit another high which, frankly, I hadn't expected. But more on that later as I update my Galleries.

For now I have just added my Press edit of pics... at least it gives a taste of what Jersey Live 2015 offered. Next year I recommend you make the effort to get along :-)
VIEW THE JERSEY LIVE 2015 GALLERIES AS THEY GO LIVE

I really shouldn't moan about it but WOW, things are busy at the moment!

Some of this is of my own making. Maybe I should discipline myself when the work starts to stack up by not taking on the photo-shoots that I do mostly for fun and my own portfolio.

But hey, I really enjoy the Gig and Motorsport photography... I can't just be doing the Commercial work... where's the fun in that?

So once again I have loaded myself with edits that need my time and to add to that I'm off to Jersey Live 2015 to capture all that action too!

I've started editing last weekends work with priority given to the Press and Magazine submissions however a small Gallery featuring the Vale Earth Fair 2015 Press edit is now on-line.

If you're patient I will (eventually) add full coverage of the 2015 Vale Earth Fair, the Motocross 2-Day Event and the Bank Holiday Hillclimb.

You have all that to look forward to!

Patience is a virtue :-)
VIEW THE FIRST PICS OF THE 2015 VALE EARTH FAIR

TEN MILLION has a nice ring to it doesn't it?

How nice it would be to have that many Pounds in the Bank.... even Dollars would be OK for me!

However the chances of a professional photographer ever making that sort of money are pretty unlikely :-(

So when TEN MILLION features anywhere in my working life it will always feel a bit special... and that number has just shown up.

I've been running this web-site since 24th October 2010. It replaced what is now my very dated original web-site (still on-line for nostalgia only).

This means that it's still a couple of months short of five years since www.guernseymotorsport.com went live.

I'm incredibly proud to say that (since the start) this web-site has been viewed an amazing TEN MILLION times!!

The first MILLION views took one year - almost to the day. This current year will see over THREE MILLION views and I am thinking that this is probably where the level will settle... but who knows?

My decision to work full-time as a photographer came about ten years ago when I was 50 years old after I sold a business.

I tried retirement but that was horrible! It might sound like a good idea but I'm someone who has to be creative and challenged. So I turned a hobby into a job... and it has certainly been challenging!

However I have loved nearly every single hour of it... and there are many more hours put into photography than I ever gave to my old 'proper job'. How did that happen?

It must also be said that in the decade that I have relied on photography for my income the whole industry has been shaken up and changed beyond recognition. It now seems that everyone who has a DSLR and a Facebook page is a 'Photographer'.

But I've never regretted the decision to give it a try and I've now established a loyal following and a good sized base of regular Commercial customers for TALLPICTURES.com.

My thirty-five years spent as a retailer have stood me in good stead to respond to competition and (after a short period when I questioned the future viability) I now realise that it isn't what other people are doing, it is about what you do for yourself that either 'makes or breaks' a business.

There's also lots of room in the marketplace for every-one.

I'm now privileged to make an income out of my passion and I genuinely thank all the visitors to this web-site and the many customers who buy pictures.

So that now brings me to the future.

Well I have a couple of very exciting new developments on the way. More about those later :-)

This time it was the spectators and boxers who made use of the Bels football pitch....

D&C White Collar Warrior, Belgrave Wanderers FC & Power Constructions presented 15 Bouts of Open Air Boxing at The Track last Saturday.

For the second time I was invited down to The Track to capture some of the action and atmosphere.

This year the Boxing ring was set up closer to the stand which gave an option of buying a 'cheap seat' in the stands but the majority of spectators chose the comfy seats... together with a table for the mandatory beers!

Over a thousand people made the early evening stroll down Victoria Avenue whilst enjoying the mild August evening. The gates opened sharp at 5pm so there was a full evening to look forward to.

Their relaxed mood was soon turned around when the fast-paced action started in the ring. By the end of the night the punters had been entertained to 15 bouts of White Collar Boxing!

The evening had been organised in support of Charity with the Bels FC also earning a few bob towards the re-building of their stand.

So every-one was a winner... the Charities, the Bels, the bout winners and the punters enjoyed a night out with a difference.

I think we can look forward to more of the same another year.

I've added a few pics of each bout to my galleries:
VIEW PICS OF THE OPEN AIR BOXING

That's it. Sorted.

The 2015 Greenman Chaos Festival is already just a memory. We now have to wait until 2016 for the fun to continue.

But we do have the pictures to jog our memories and I've just completed the galleries for 2015 with the last of the Band pics.

Final updates are for Near Bliss, the ever popular The Recks and Sunday's headliners FlashMob.

So until we meet again in a field up at Pleinmont next year... keep it loud, keep live and keep it green, man :-)
VIEW THE FINAL GREENMAN CHAOS 2015 GALLERIES

Sunday afternoon at Chaos is the traditional time for fun and games... biker style!

Everyone is chilled and tired after two days of partying so there is no rush... just time to chill and have a bit of fun.

The trike is sure to make an appearance with its weird steering. Never an easy ride when your sober... add a few beers and its great entertainment :-)

The Tug of War proves that adults and kids are not so different after all :-)

Then the industrial grade Chilli eating contest separates the men from the boys...

Whilst the Greenman Chaos Festival 'headlines' that it is all about the bikes and the bands I think it is all about the general vibe and inclusive atmosphere. I haven't been on a motorbike since my teens (if I did get back in the saddle I think I would quickly become a statistic!) however the Greenman is always welcoming.

Next year you must pay it a visit...

My latest updates to the Chaos galleries are here:
TRIKES - CHILLI & TUG OF WAR... BIKER STYLE