Having enjoyed the company of "No Howard" for a week in Australia driving along The Great Ocean Road at the start of the year I heard Wicked were branching out to the UK.

Me and my hard rockin' amigo Dr Watson had planned a hat-trick of festivals in August culminating in watching Pearl Jam on the Sunday of Reading festival. Just Amazing! After 3 long weekends in a row I was starting to feel the effects of festival fatigue so it was time for a bit of rest and relaxation so me and my girlfriend Karen got in touch with Wicked UK and rented "The Beatles" for a week, with the plan of going down to Cornwall to catch some waves (me) and some sun (Karen).

I have to admit that as much as I enjoyed driving and living in No Howard (a rather old Ford), The Beatles (a nice automatic Toyota) was much easier especially on the twisty roads of Devon and Cornwall.

Apart from surfing, walking, eating fish 'n' chips and generally relaxing the highlight for me was going to see the 4th World Belly Boarding Championships in Chapel Porth. When we arrived it wasn't looking good, the lifeguards weren't keen on letting the competitors get in the water as there was some big waves coming in and when we saw the competition we realised why the lifeguards were being cautious. The average age of the participants must have been over 55, but equipped with a plank of wood, a swimming costume and a swimming hat they ran into the water like teenagers to catch some surf. They had 10 minutes to ride as many waves as they could but we had no idea how they were judged. The sight of 10 pensioners running into the cold, rough Atlantic Ocean in just their Speedos was hilarious and so very British. I imagine the café did a roaring trade on tea to warm the brave belly boarders up. Congratulations to all the competitors and see you next year!

Also, we managed to catch up with an old school friend and his partner who are expecting their first baby soon. Good luck and see you at Christmas!

Forget the BnBs and youth hostels, get yourself a Wicked Camper and explore the beauty spots of the UK, like The Highlands of Scotland, North Wales, The Lake District, The Peak District......the list goes on.

Cheers
Dr Rob and Karen