The Café Racer Festival 2019 Experience

We have just returned from the Harley Days in Morzine, and we are offering you an article on the Cafe Racer Festival ! Yes, it's been a while and even if we often say that women can do several things at the same time, it's a bit complicated to write an article in Bobby or on our stand!

Arrival at the Festival

So here we are, on June 21st, after a 5-hour drive to get to the Linas-Montlhéry circuit, we (Camille, Caroline and Marie) finally arrive on site! It doesn't take us long to find our sign which is in a corner, right next to the KISS'N'VROOM ; the leaders of the 'village women' who also appeared on Télématin 😉!

On site we enter the Monthléry circuit and it is quite impressive this big concrete wave which is nothing other than a huge banked bend! Legendary! We already find familiar faces that we meet again at different events, then others that we meet and that we often have trouble leaving.

But hey, no time to ask too many questions, as usual, we have to set up the stand. The motto: speed and efficiency. We are trained and now know more or less where each object goes, it is rather easy to organize everything, even if it remains quite tiring!

Once the stand is set up, we head to the bar to have our first beer of the stay, and first game of pinball at the same time! 😉 After a few chats, we try out the first food trucks present and we are not disappointed!

We decide to stay quiet that night and go back to our hotel, it's actually pretty cool, on the edge of a lake not far away... Camille always finds us great lodgings! Let's go for a good night's rest to be in good shape the next day at the stand (and at the Sultans' party of course!).

First day of festivities

From Saturday morning, we feel the sun lighting up our stand, this blue sky is nice, but it heats up very quickly. We have the pleasure of meeting or meeting customers. It is always a pleasure at a festival to chat with all these motorcycle enthusiasts! The day is punctuated by track riding sessions by the girls from Kiss'n Vroom, they have created a women's category to learn about the circuit without too much pressure! And judging by the girls' smiles throughout the afternoon, it seems to be working! We are lucky enough to attend a short course on trajectories and positions to adopt on the track, given by Nathalie Betelli who coaches the drivers of the day! We listen, you never know 😉

It is when the Sultans "wake up" around 5 p.m. that the day takes on a different turn! Sultans of Sprint What is it? Haha! If you don't know it, it's worth a visit! These are exceptional riders and bikes, crazy looks and performances! A real show not to be missed! They head in front of the stands for their standing start race at the wheel of racing cars, each more original than the last, all the riders are dressed up and ready to fight 😉!

Between music, roaring engines, exhaust pipes and microphones turned up to the max, they set the mood from one end of the festival to the other! So much so that all the visitors (or almost) of the show were gathered around this race!

The race was as crazy as the drivers 😉 and it was a really friendly show that everyone was able to experience in their own way. Personally, it was a first and I can tell you that I was really immersed in the atmosphere. Little time separates the starting burn and crossing the finish line. However, it is a real sensation that occurs during each race; everyone feels the adrenaline rising when the checkered flag lets the dragsters roar! The crowd is crazy!

It was at the end of the afternoon, continuing on this momentum, when the visitors were starting to fade away, that we organized an aperitif in our space dedicated to women! The atmosphere was great and we were able to chat and meet the girls who rode all day! That's also what we like about events, the proximity with the other exhibitors with whom we share our experiences, with the visitors and also here with the drivers!

Our aperitif was just the warm-up since we then join the party organized by the Sultans of Sprint, which promises to be as badass as their reputation suggests! It didn't fail, barely arrived and already a game to get us in the mood, a kind of motorcycle limbo! Wild dancing ensues until a small power cut surprises us... But it's only a matter of minutes before the problem is solved and the party starts again ;). It was on fire on the dancefloor!

The difficult next day..

After this night which was ultimately not very restful, we have to continue and get up early to be operational on the stand, a delicate mission for Marie who decides to rest in the stock :'), and yes, it's not easy to take on!

The day is also rather calm, until we are offered to drive for a standing start race! It is Goldy who sticks to it, on the BSA of Zoe David of theChatokhine workshop, it was her old racing bike. Zoé will be on the new version of her racing car! Very proud to be able to put into practice her starting techniques that she had tested during the Speed Challenge a few weeks before, Goldy takes a little tour of the festival to practice the reverse controls of the 70s bike.

Indeed, the brake and gear pedals are reversed! Easy to say but not at all natural in action! All the participants head towards the track. The stands are full..! Two short training runs (where Goldy fines two seasoned drivers), she is all fired up! 1st qualifying run, she finds herself facing Zoé David! The pressure rises a notch! In position, facing the flag, one last look at the crowd, she concentrates, the flag rises, unstoppable technique of the standing start, gooo! She accelerates and feels the BSA react at the quarter turn! She takes a great start! Zoé is right behind! The run is super short 80m..! All hopes are allowed! But the champion quickly regains the upper hand and Goldy (under pressure) tries to pass 2nd with her left foot! Haha! Don't be disappointed it was a great defeat! The public was delighted with this suspense and Caroline was delighted with this race and the atmosphere!

After all this adrenaline, it's time to pack up the stand, say goodbye to everyone reluctantly and head back home with a 5-hour drive in Bobby and a traditional stop at the Buffalo Grill! No choice, a super important meeting awaits us on Monday morning! We'll tell you more very soon!

PS: Thanks to Cafe Racer Magazine for featuring us on 5 full pages in their “GARAGE” edition this summer, that’s so badass!!