BEEMERS BOOZE AND BURN-OUTS...BMW MOTORRAD DAYS 2023

Back in July, some 37,000 people flocked to BMW's Motorrad Days, held for the second time in the German capital, Berlin. I was one of them...

- BRUCE

Up until 2021, BMW’s premier motorcycling event – that’s now in its 21st year–had been held in fields in the Alps, on the outskirts of the picture-postcard town of Garmisch-Partenkirchen. The beer was flowing, the bands were playing, and every so often you’d hear a bike on a limiter, moments away from detonating. It was the consummate motorcycling party, with the cultural twist of sauerkraut and lederhosen thrown in for good measure. For me, and the tens of thousands who made the pilgrimage each year, it was arguably the best piss-up outside of Oktoberfest, made all the sweeter by an abundance of great roads to ride and picturesque places to pass the time while your hangover was at its worst.

It was a very homely place that welcomed BMW owners from all over the world for the best part of two decades, but it had also had its time, so the decision was taken for the event to move to Berlin, where a new chapter could be forged on the streets of the nation’s capital. Well, when I say on the streets, I mean at the Messe, which is probably best described as a towering events hall, smack in the heart of Berlin, surrounded by woods and fields, in contradiction to what you’d expect. It is about as far removed from an Alpine scene as is imaginable, yet that’s not to say it’s not exceptional in its own right. But more on that later, as my story actually begins on the far side of the capital, in an area known as Spandau.