BMW riding funnyman on the way to BikeFest
The Wild Atlantic Way rewards another rider
English comedian, John Bishop is to ride in to BikeFest next week to marshal the grand parade on Sunday morning.
Bishop, somewhat younger than Billy Connolly and nearly as funny, has recently passed his bike test. He has celebrated his new found freedom by getting himself a BMW R1300GS. Now our Bord Failte people having created the Wild Atlantic Way have given him the perfect place to up his skills and run in his new Beemer.
He's currently doing an Irish tour and using the bike along the west coast. Being from Liverpool he’s easy to understand and very, very funny. His ‘Back At It Tour’ is his first outing in a number of years. A classic mid life crisis, he’s finding out what he’s been missing for most of his life.
A great set
“I just thought ‘That looks like the proper way of doing it’,” he said, talking about motorcycling. “So I then took my test, which is something I’ve always wanted to do and I thought ‘Well, I can make it part of my tour’, so I can travel on the motorbike and do gigs along the way. So that’s where it came from.” He elaborated, “I first thought of taking my test when I turned 50 because I had this idea of riding across America, but I never got round to it, and then obviously with Covid and everything it got put on the back burner. Growing up, my dad said ‘No, you can’t ride a motorbike, you can learn how to drive a car because you can’t fall off a car’. Wait until his dad sees what he’s done.
The happiest place
Meanwhile back in 2006, BikeFest first rolled into Killarney. Since then the Gleneagle Hotel, have hosted the town’s own annual ‘biker’ festival over the June bank holiday weekend. The whole thing is open for free thanks to the hotel, Bord Fáilte and the very nice people at Harley-Davidson. While it was initially a Harley Owners Club (HOG) event it’s now a well established event opened to all and every brand of motorcycle.
One of the most beautiful places in the world
A whole lot on offer at the event, a fairground atmosphere, live music, demo rides and some of the best roads in Europe for those of use who like to ride out on our bikes. The whole thing rounds out with a parade through the town. This year the grand marshal is none other than the very same John Bishop.