Meet our new Chairman and the story of a hugger
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By Maria Brierley, CVAM Group Secretary
 

On Monday 10th November 2008 Phil Dainty was elected as the new CVAM chairman.

Phil had offered to fit a new hugger to my Bandit that I had bought off him and we arranged to meet on the Saturday after the AGM. Apart from getting a new hugger fitted, I recognised this was a great opportunity to get better acquainted with our new chair and find out how he was going to approach his new role.

When I arrive, we reverse my bike into his garage before heading to the kitchen as he's invited me in for a cuppa. Good, I think, we get to chat a bit. Phil was straight into talking CVAM business, asking me questions, clarifying his understanding and airing some of his ideas. We talk more, grow a few ideas, it's going well. I thought I had a few nuggets of ideas recently but Phil's miles ahead and readily works new stuff in. Of course actions can speak louder than words and he doesn't disappoint. This week he tells me he's already booked some club night talks, he's had discussions with a number of people (Somerset Road Safety, MAG, Morses), has placed an advert regarding the club in the local newspaper and looked into booking tickets and coaches to the NEC 2009 show. We also discuss the CVAM committee and how he would like to reduce their workload and support what they do.

Deb appears, Phil's wife (rider of a Honda CBF600SA), we are discussing merchandise with the CVAM logo and how they approached it in the Suzuki club. Deb retrieves a stylish ladies 'fruits of the loom' t-shirt. Phil explains the popularity of 'beanies' to cover "helmet hair" and how we could make a small but useful contribution to the club funds without making it a nightmare to oversee for Tim our Treasurer. Crikey, our Chair is off to a flying start and after only a week in the post! Who knows what he can achieve after 6 months or a year.

We move to the garage, Phil dons a sweat shirt with an Army Training Centre, Winchester logo and I change my biking boots for a handily placed pair of old brown trainers - probably put there just for that reason. While he's removing the hugger from a taped up cardboard box, I'm surveying the tidy, uncluttered garage. In fact, the floor space is completely clear and the eye is drawn to a double set of rather plush looking garage shelves. (Note to self: I wonder where he bought them and wish I had a garage to similarly store all my outdoor pursuits clobber.) I mentally take a photograph of these shelves, placing Phil in his special sweatshirt in front. On the top row are neat pairs of boots, probably clean else the dirt would drop onto the helmets lined up on the grilled shelves below. Then there were 2 forward facing clothes rails described by Phil as containing "three sets of fabrics and three sets of leathers."

Notice the effectiveness of the reflective stripes on Phil's HiVis jacket!

 If that isn't amazing for a man (I jest guys!), then there's another set of shelves on the side wall. These display shampoos, tubs of lotions, WD 40 all in sets of 3. Is he going too far now?! Luckily the answer lies in the fact that Adam, his son (who rides a Suzuki GSF650SA Bandit) worked for Halfords for a while and Phil took advantage of his staff 15% discount together with 3 for 2 offers. As Phil works on my bike, I see mini socket sets and Allen key trees. I am particularly impressed with the latter as I only have 2-3 Allen keys and they tend to get lost in my toolbox.

While I marvel out loud at Phil's organisation, he explains that Deb looks after the household and he looks after all the bikes and car. And he doesn't do this half-heartedly either, he describes his approach to cleaning the bikes following a big ride out. Bikes are degunked followed by shampoo.....and a set and blow dry LOL. He passes on lots of top tips to me, how to clean my chain with WD40, how to clean behind the down pipes with a small long-handled brush bought from Wilkinsons after using 'Muck Off'. He divulges another way to start my Bandit when it's reluctant and recommended I left my bike cover with fleecy side panels off until the bike had cooled down to reduce condensation. We intersperse our bike chat with that of our sons and our work.

		The shiny black hugger looks great over my rear wheel and Phil checks I know my tyre pressure details before bagging the old chain guard up and offering to bring it along to the next committee meeting for me. He then fits a very shiny new metal grill to the front of my bike, it's an oil cooled bike, did I know that?! He uses discarded NHS sticky-back foam for extra dampening. That came from a bag of these foam bits stored away on the window sill next to his tool box. Everything has a place. We then visit his special bike garage where 3 cosy bikes are parked one behind the other, all with a quilted cover. They are clean, covered, chained and secure. We remove the seat on his Yamaha Fazer 1000 and look at the battery attachments he has for the mobile, SATNAV and battery charger, all neatly packed away in a bag. There's a box with a portable lock in it and a bag of mini bike manuals.
		If I ask about anything, Phil gives a full and comprehensive answer. So I ask about the top box mountings, we discuss his chain - so clean! and I feel the thickness of the coveralls. Next up, another cup of tea - I'm quite exhausted. Phil passes a coffee out to Deb who's raking up the leaves in the garden. It's time to help Phil out with some email issues in his study. Just like the garage, the study has great shelving, good use of box files and the floor space is mostly clear except for the sewing machine and quilting. Debs enjoys patchwork quilting and Phil proudly shows me some of her finished quilts. Phil tells me he's ordered a new printer as the scanner is broken and these days you can only get printer/scanner combo's. He's bought a new zipped case to keep his CVAM papers and notes in and apparently tidied up some paperwork he's been piling up on the defunct scanner.

On a bottom shelf and behind glass doors, I spy a collection of various riding and driving books and the Highway Code. Mental snapshot number 2. I then notice the photos of soldiers and tanks on the walls above the desk and finally I see some framed IAM certificates. I am thinking, he's proud of his accomplishments and proud to be a member of our club and now he's our chairman. My final mental snapshot is wide-angled taking in the new leather case, the tidy box files, a bronze motorbike statue given to Phil by Debs and the photos and certificates on the wall.

We finish with the PC and it's time to go. It's roughly 3 hours later and I can conclude, from what I have heard and what I have seen including my mental snapshots, that Phil is going to give 110% to his new role as Chair and that I need to pull my socks up. Each new Chairman will give a new and probably different steer to the Club. Our departing chairman Eddy did an excellent job over the previous 2 years and showed his commitment and belief in road safety and advanced motorcycling by writing his Little Green Book. All committee members have to stand down after 3 years, thems the rules. Although Phil has asked me to look into these further. (Post-script: The rules suggest the Chair stands down after three years and has at least a one year gap. There is no rule for other committee members, apart from going through re-election.)

I am quite overwhelmed when I leave and decide to take the long way home and test out my new "street cred." As I ride home, using 99.9% of my concentration obviously, I reflect on the jobs I have come away with, feel inspired to write this article on my visit and wonder who will fill the vacant posts of vice-chair and social secretary?

Come and join the great team at CVAM - new members are always made very welcome!
 

Footnote from Phil

Thank you very much Maria, I do so like the tongue in cheek approach to humour (and the cheque is in the post )!!!

I must set a few things straight though. Firstly, it doesn't take me three hours to fit a hugger and oil cooler cover usually. However, the only other choices were.....help Deb with the garden......do some concreting at the side of the house......re-grout the shower and fit new screen.........paint the exterior woodwork.......can you see where I'm going with this one?

Yes I can be a little anal when it comes to organisation but with a drive and garage like mine, everything needs to be out of the way so I can park the car and THREE bikes, therefore organisation is a must!

THE STUDY......spare bedroom, doubling up as computer room and Deb's sowing machine room. Funny enough, since becoming Chairman, I spend a lot of time in this room and it's not at the sowing machine!

Finally, is it just me and Adam that display our IAM and Observer certificates on the wall?

Now have I shattered any ones mental photograph?

Ride safe!
Phil

 

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