A HISTORY of horsepower came to life in Stamfordham at the weekend when the annual Tyne Valley Classic Motorcycle club show roared into the village.

Vintage names like Velocette, Norton, BSA and Triumph adorned the much-loved motorbikes parked up on the village green for all to admire.

Around 800 owners and visitors attended Sunday’s event according to Robin Watson, one of the founders of the 27-year-old club.

“You can sum up the attraction of these bikes in one word and that’s nostalgia,” he said.

“They’re not like modern motorcycles, these things live and breathe and talk to you.”

Robin and his wife, Sue were showing off their BSAs – Robin’s a 1953 AS7 Plunger and Sue’s a 1961 A7 with RAF trim.

But the star of the show belonged to Eric Ree from Ryton, whose own BSA A7 stole the heart of judge Brian ‘Pops’ Hind, a TT marshal who had come over from Cumbria to do the honours.

“The bikes ranged from 1938 right up to the modern classics and there were some very valuable machines there – for example a Silk owned by my friend of which only about 40 were made,” said Robin.

“The day went fantastically, apart from the gale force winds that claimed our second gazebo.

“We’ve been at Stamfordham for the past five or six years now and this is probably our best-attended event in all that time.

“You meet friends you haven’t seen for ages – it’s like an annual reunion of like-minded people.”

Friends of Stamfordham Play Park, who are fund-raising for equipment, also benefited from the day by providing refreshments for visitors.

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