Pressure of work meant I couldn't get to this years Northern Exposure until the middle of Saturday afternoon but even though I only caught the second half of the weekend it was well worth it. The NCC are no strangers to organising a good party and with the usual beer tent, bands and trade stalls surrounding the superb custom show success was guaranteed. Incredibly even the sun shone as high summer hit North Yorkshire with a skin scorching vengence.

I arrived just as my mate Stu Evans was putting the finishing touches to his TV show "Bike Shows UK", covering the weekend for Granada's Men & Motors channel. My attempts to persuade producer Danutia to let me make a guest appearance fell on deaf ears, but it didn't stop Stu stopping for a beer or two after the rest of the TV crew had departed. As night fell and the evening dissolved into the usual blur I found myself boogying away to an excellent punk band whose name I didn't get. Sorry guys.

I rounded off the evening drinking at the bar with a crowd of new friends including a charming bloke who kept lining up shots of Jack Daniels and some of Chopper Club Belgie who had made the crossing specially for the weekend. What a hospitable bunch the NCC are, with club members and guests from all over Europe circulating around, making new friends and renewing old ones. Northern Exposure may not be as big as some of the major weekend shows, but it's certainly one of the most friendly. If you haven't yet been, make sure it's on your calendar for next year.

Sunday morning dawned hot, with that scorching summer heat that drives you out of your sweltering tent rather before you're prepared to face the world. A full breakfast roll and a couple of large teas had me up and running again, packing down the tent under endless blue skies before heading off to the nearby coast to round off the weekend with an ice cream on the beach. Superb weekend, see you there next year.

Dr.Rod.