Imagine getting a twisted crank today – no taking that into a corner shop for a quick fix.  Not many riders today would entrust their expensive steeds to the tender charms of the local blacksmith !

And what an interesting reference to taking tea at a café at Ringway – now the site of the UK’s second largest airport, and so important that the name Ringway is now history, in favour of just Manchester.  Charlie never envisaged two runways, each two miles long in his day.