OK, here we go
Went out on Sunday to look at one venue & came back with
TWO
The first choice for us would be the nearest to us (obviously) and would be
The Lenchford Inn at Shrawley, which is about 8 miles from us & a very nice place next to the river Severn...
They have a "paddock right next to the pub which is beautifully mowed & kept grass for camping, and B&B availalbe for those who want it (Jan & I will be using that...:-
There is a large function room upstairs which we can use FOC as we are having entertainment, also a bar upstairs as well, so we dont need to fall downstairs to get a drink...LOL
The downside is that we will have to use "portable" facilities for campers ie; A shower unit with 4 individual showers, and a toilet unit with seperate ladies & gents facilities...These will of course be included with the price...
Entertainment will be a disco on Friday night with a choice of corry or chilli & rice/nan/ etc Saturday would be a covers band with a buffet in the function room. Sunday, I think will be as usual, the charity auction & pop quiz with possibly a disco or just some piped music (we will have to see...)
A full day ride-out will be on Saturday, with ped/minimoto racing on Sunday morning, followed by a short ride-out on Sunday afternoon (bad heads permitting-shhhhhh !)
So..........If thats not enough for ya... Then our second option would be
The Marlbank Inn at Welland, just off the Malvern hills
This pub has a nice camping/caravan site with a gravel carpark for those who feel the need to camp on the carpark...LOL They have toilets & showers ready & waiting for you campers, and 4 B&B rooms for us wimps.
The ittinery would be roughly the same as for the Lenchford, BUT... The Marlbank doesnt have a function room (incase of inclement weathersh1tehppns) But they can hire a very large marquee for the occasion (expensive though brok3)
Both venues have excellent food & drinks (prices & quality), and the staff are friendly & helpful.
In my opinion, The Lenchford would be the preferable one, as it can accomodate & feed more folks than the Marlbank. But as the attendance has been so down for the last few years (although higher quality), the choice is there...
Plase let me know your feelings ASAP, as we need to get this thing in motion if it is to happen at all...
Best wishes,
Rolfy & Jan
:beer:
ps... Jaws, We are willing to take this on... It must be said that it all depends on the numbers taking this up as to if it happens at all. We need to get some sort of positive commitment to attend, as booking venue/band/disco must be done ASAP... If enough interest is shown (maybe even from the "elusive" Midland Massiff, as its in their own back yard h1d1ng2) we can start a booking/ideas thread of its own.
pps...Working out costings at the moment, so I will let you all know when I finally have it all sorted... On nights now untill Frday morning, so bear with me pls