LOOMIES FOR LEATHERS

Funny how things work out. We had a message through Twitter from the manager of a new motorcycle clothing and accessories shop called Loomies, situated right behind Loomies Moto Café. It’s a popular spot for motorcyclists to hang out, swap bike stories and grab a bite to eat. It’s located in a place called West Meon in Hampshire. It’s right near a really good motocross track where Ritchie used race his Honda CR250R during his early racing years.

Well, this message was a total surprise, as it turned out the manager, Chris Cowan, had shared the garage with us at Donington Park – that fateful day Ritchie fell at Craner Curves on his ZX7-R. Chris said that he remembered it was not only the bike that was looking battered, but Ritchie’s leathers looked a bit sorry for themselves too. Anyway, he said that he would like to sponsor Ritchie with a new set of Held leathers and possibly some gloves too, for 2021. Wow!

So, we went to see him and have a chat. As we approached the Moto Café and the shop, we could see the motocross track up the hill behind; it brought back a lot of memories.

Chris is a great guy who knows his stuff. He told us how he’d created the shop from two large shipping containers, he’s made a good job of it too. Well insulated with air con and a heating system; everything is well laid out and nicely presented.

We got the full tour…all good stuff.

We were made very welcome by him and his friend, who owns the Moto Café, he’s a biker too. After exchanging a few racing stories, he showed us around the shop and took us through the process of designing a set of custom leathers made by Held for next year. Ritchie was thrilled to bits.

New design for 2021, Team71 colours with sponsors should go nicely with both bikes…

We had a play around with the Held Configurator and experimented with colours and found a design that will look good with the ZX10-R and the ZX7-R next year.

We can’t thank Chris enough for his generous offer to sponsor Ritchie, and I reckon we can do a lot more together once the season starts.

So, if you find yourself on the A32 in Hampshire, pop in, say hello, and maybe grab a coffee in the Café. In the meantime, our engine build continues on the ZX10-R and should be finished ready to run in just after Christmas. Then, hopefully we’ll be able to turn our attention to the much-loved ZX7-R.

Watch out for more news soon.

While your waiting why not take a look around Loomies:

https://www.loomiescafe.co.uk/shop

Bernie

TEAM 71