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The Edwardsville Quarry? The Giant’s Bite or the Gap?- Here’s Full Throttle

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The Edwardsville Quarry? The Giant’s Bite or the Gap?- Here’s Full Throttle Empty The Edwardsville Quarry? The Giant’s Bite or the Gap?- Here’s Full Throttle

Post  Boz1964 Sun Apr 12, 2020 1:13 am

Full Throttle

The crowd of people was silent hardly daring to breathe.

They sat gathered en masse from the safety of the Taff Trail in Quakers Yard looking up at the leather clad figure about the enter the Merthyr Hall of Motorcycle Fame.

The former quarry at Edwardsville, known locally as the „Giants Bite‟ stood silent witness to a Guinness Book of Records attempt by local man Eddie „Kid‟ Marsh.

Of the audience 10% had come to see him make the jump but secretly 90% of Merthyr spectators had come out of ghoulish curiosity to see him fall to his death.

Why else would they be gathered in such a harsh hillside environment on 4th January 2011.

The „Giants Bite‟ had limestone walls some 200 feet high, and had a gap from the North end of the quarry face to the South end of around 100 feet in dimension.

Many famous motorcyclists had tried but failed to carry out the leap of faith.

Today Marsh hoped to be the first to go down in Merthyr Legend by defying gravity.

In a publicity stunt live on „Real Radio‟ Marsh MX wanted to make history and of course promote their business.

****

The affinity between the Marsh‟ family and motorbikes had started many years ago.
When Mr Marsh senior was asked by the Mid-wife in the maternity unit of Merthyr General , what he wanted for Christmas he replied „Quads‟ as motor vehicles were in his blood.

He got his wish but was surprised to see his wife, Rosie had given birth to four boys at the same time.

At least he had male heirs to carry on the motorcycle tradition that he had held since he joined his first Hells Angels Chapter in 1969.

He had first met his first wife in the bikers pub- The Star Inn Talybont- and had won her in an arm wrestling contest.

Her mother, Aggie H‟Arse, who lived on a barge on the Breconshire Canal, was the all- Powys arm wrestling champion and he has won her „hand‟ in marriage by drinking 12 pints of green scrumpy cider during the bout and beating both mother and his girlfriend‟s brother.

He had „pulled‟ her then and there.

Whenever he had a nightmare, it came in the shape of his mother-in-law, haunting his dreams ... he could still see bulky multi-coloured arms with her children „Rosie & Jim‟ tattooed in handwritten blue ink both in the shape of anchors.

If she hadn‟t dropped her pipe- fate might taken a different course.

****

Looking up at his youngest son , Eddie, about to do something he had tried nearly forty years ago he felt a mixture of pride and worry as he looked down from his walking stick with legs full of more plates and pins than Papa Doc Duvalier‟s Haitian kitchen.

He too had tried and failed the „Giants Bite‟

He thought that the quarry had a cold stone heart of its own and was a testament to the blood sweat and tears of the Merthyr people worked to death by the Ironmasters of bye-gone days.

Made of „Dark Satanic Millstone‟ he had once remarked to an American Hotshot rider from his ambulance bed that it was pure evil...Knieval.

He was convinced that the mouth of the quarry had „yawned‟ when he started the jump.

Suddenly, the rest of crowd surrounding him became excited as the „MX Gladiator‟ waved to the crowd below...in a „those that are about to die way salutes‟ someone.

Stepping onto the back of the quad bike, he glanced nervously at the ramp built by his brothers....he sincerely hoped those red bricks holding up the cardboard launch pad would take his weight.

His brothers had assured him, when he drew the short straw, that they would make sure they would give him a good „send off‟.

Designed by the finest brains in the United Kingdom....Magnus Pyke , Richard Hammond & Squinty from Penydarren....his brothers had promised him it had been tested on site by physicist Stephen Hawking ....but still had more than a little trepidation at the prospect.

He knew however that this must be the location of necessity as there were precious few places left for a quiet „jump‟ in the country as it was.

The vehicle- the „Marsh- mobile‟ had been designed by the brothers and they had already applied to Company House to register the first „solar powered quad bike‟.

They sold all manners of machines at their Pontmorlais Buildings to appeal to the younger generation of bikers.

The place had a lot of celebrity clients over the years....Steve McQueen had bought his motorbike from the „Great Escape‟ from the shop, TE Lawrence (of Arabia) had visited the country lanes on his „El Orance‟ 500cc courtesy of the Marsh Dynasty .

It was a risky business selling such vehicles as they were often returned minus their owner a few weeks later.

The boys were frightened to death , when Ozzy Osbourne brought back his quad to the dealership after an accident...they were worried that he was brain damaged by the bike rolling on him- and would sue them for the incident but apparently –the shop video surveillance showed he was like that when he first bought it.

The boys even made up manly names for their bikes...like „Giant‟ (James Dean bought that one).... The Widow Maker (a dyslexic Trickett bought that one) and the shop display model –nicknamed Jordan because everyone had had a ride on that one.

Eddie „Kid‟ Marsh looked down at the „ Hells Angel‟ name printed in beautiful flamed red and yellow writing to make it appear macho to potential customer.

The words „Organ Donor‟ didn‟t inspire him with confidence either.

Still he was clad in leather , motorcycle helmet and had his lucky rabbits foot on him.

The former Speedway star had never lost a race with his charm on board.

As he kick-started the quad bike he felt a surge of power between his legs not experienced since his Honeymoon Night.

As his testosterone level increased he didn‟t want to „chicken‟ out ...not in front of this crowd.

As he increased the revs he headed in a giant arc returning to face the quarry and set his mind from Red to Amber.

The weak mid-day sun began to fade mysteriously as he began his final approach.

No going back now he thought as he pulled hard on the throttle with his right hand.
The crowd as one sucked in a stifled scream, as the biker man hit the ramp just as the lights went out.

The last thing that went through Eddie‟s mind as he took off across the gap was ....the bastard brothers of mine have jammed the throttle on ......just in case he changed his mind last minute.

The sky had turned black, as the sun disappeared behind the sun in a total eclipse.

When the sun reappeared three minutes later the crowd looked frantically at the quarry floor for signs of the brave stuntman.


*****

Looking first to the other-side of the Quarry and then down amongst the burning wrecks of the cars on the quarry floor (not part of the stunt- just insurance jobs over the weekend) the people from Real Radio were speechless awaiting news for their enthralled listeners of the outcome of the stunt.

There was no sign of what had happened ...like a modern day Glenn Miller , Marsh had disappeared into thin air.

The whole of the Valleys world had witnessed the event and the newspapers rights to the story alone were worth a fortune.

Only the Marsh brothers really knew what had happened .

The solar powered bike‟s engine had stopped dead in the pitch blackness of the eclipse threequarter‟s of the way across the gap.

The clue was for all to see.

The quarry face already bore the faces of Bob Wilding , Bryan Walker and Barry Sheen imbedded in the limestone where they had come a cropper.

Eddie „Kid‟ Marsh had been added to the scene.

The quarry was now reminiscent of Mount Rushmore.

The Giant‟s Bite was just another „Eddie-Face‟
Boz1964
Boz1964

Posts : 2398
Join date : 2012-10-08

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