There are, of course, a series of things judges are not popularly supposed to do, ranging from recognising the Beatles to being able to surf the web. Into that category, we might tentatively insert riding a motorbike.
But for the past 40 odd years, Judge Robert Winstanley has been doing exactly that.
Getting started
"I’ve ridden a motorbike since I was 17,” he explains. "Since then I have always had a bike, and used it to get to and from work and to go about things in my life.
"I started when I was at school, because I had a friend who was interested in bikes. He rode one of the wonderful manx racers, the Velocette Venom with its fishtail silencer. My first bike was a BSA Bantam 125 made in 1954, which cost me £10 – which seemed quite expensive in those days.
"I enjoyed it, so I kept going.”
Bikes I have known
Four decades later Judge Winstanley reminisces on some of the bikes he has ridden.
"At university there was the much-loved Norton ES2, affectionately known as the ‘easy 2’. A strong right leg was needed to kick over the engine with its single 500 cc ‘pot’ nestling in its Norton featherbed frame. The Norton once got me from London to the Edinburgh festival and back.”
He remembers an occasion outside a London police station when Jane Peel of Radio 4 put her microphone to the exhaust of his Yamaha FJ 900 in the course of producing a radio report on the work of the Duty Solicitor. Her accompanying words were: "It’s 2.30 in the morning and he’s off to another call.’
Getting from A to B
Judge Winstanley, based at Wood Green Crown Court, is still going strong. "I have always had a bike, even though I haven’t always had a car,” he says.
These days, biking is more practical than a hobby for the judge. "On the first May Bank Holiday last year I needed to get down to Kent for a wedding celebration, so I rode through the country roads of Kent on my bike, spent the night in a hotel and rode back the next day.
"As I was coming back towards London, I saw thousands of bikers going the other way – obviously for some huge rally, possibly somewhere like Hastings.
"I’m not that kind of biker – I enjoy it, I enjoy motorcycling, but for me it’s primarily a practical thing. I don’t go to rallies, and I’m not a member of any owners’ clubs.
"It gets me from A to B, especially in central London – no congestion charge, it’s easy to park, you don’t get stuck in traffic…”
Further afield
Judge Winstanley has, however, made the bike the focus of European trips in the past: "I’m getting a bit ancient for it now – they’re quite hard physically – but I’ve ridden to Paris, Normandy and the Dordogne a few times.”
Mrs Winstanley, who has ridden a motorbike herself, has been – and still is – a willing pillion passenger on local and European trips.
However, there is one little-known aspect of going on holiday where a motorbike can prove absolutely invaluable.
"I’m lucky enough to have a second home in Spain, which I visit quite a lot. Consequently I tend to fly with very little luggage – and I have discovered that you can park a motorbike free of charge at all the London airports.
"You have to ring ahead, to find out what the arrangements are for each particular airport, but on a recent trip to Gatwick, for example, I parked near the south terminal in the short-stay car park and left the bike for four or five days.”
Economy option?
Although that’s not to say that biking is always an economy option: "My experience is that bikes can be very expensive to maintain and insure – even for me, an ancient old judge with a big no-claims record!”
And the judge doesn’t get involved with the maintenance. "I used to when I was young and riding British bikes, but these modern Japanese bikes are far too complex,” he says.
"I presently ride a Yamaha FJR1300 – which is one of the bigger bikes on the market, although it’s not a sports bike. Like a Harley Davidson it’s a touring bike.”
Camaraderie
One prized feature of motorbiking, even if you don’t opt into rallies and owners’ clubs, is the camaraderie.
"When I used to ride British bikes they broke down fairly regularly, and other bikers would always stop to see if they could help,” says Judge Winstanley.
"And if you’re using a ferry or the Channel Tunnel, bikers will always talk to each other. It’s clubbable in that way, too.”
