MCE: Damon, for the benefit of anyone who doesn't know about Club MCE, could you explain how it works?
DS: Absolutely. Anybody who takes out a bike policy with MCE Insurance automatically qualifies for membership of Club MCE. Once you've got your policy, you simply register on the Club MCE website and put your name down for whichever of the money-can't-buy MCE British Superbike experiences you like the look of. Then all you have to do is wait, one of the friendly guys from MCE will call to tell you it's your turn. Mine was at Thruxton in April (which wasn't bad considering I only took my policy out in March!).

MCE: Did you have a good day?
DS: I had a fantastic day thanks - in fact, I had TWO fantastic days!

MCE: Really? How did you manage that?
DS: Well, by being cheeky, I think. Nichola from MCE called me before the Thruxton weekend and asked me if I'd like to come along on the Sunday to have a look around the pits and get out on the grid. I only live an hour away from the circuit, so I was well up for it. While she was on the phone I thought to myself: ‘if you don't ask, you don't get', so I asked if there was anything going on the Saturday as well. She said: ‘as it happens, we've got a space going in the safety car laps at 1.30'! So I put my name down for that too!

MCE: Nice work - so you got yourself a double-whammy!
DS: I did. My wife came with me on both days, and Colin and the rest of the MCE guys really couldn't do enough for us. My wife's heavily pregnant, so she wasn't up for the safety car laps, but I was!! It was incredible - something I'll never forget - but it was also great that both of us were able to do the pit walk and grid walk together. I don't think that's always possible, so we felt really lucky.

MCE: So how did it work - did you do some of the experiences on the Saturday and the others on the Sunday?
DS: Exactly. I did the safety car lap on the Saturday and the grid walk and pit walk on the Sunday. But that wasn't all. To top the Saturday off, we got a chance to go up in the George White balloon!!

MCE: Really? THE George White balloon? The giant superbike?
DS: Yep. Going up in a hot air balloon is something I've always wanted to do but I've never managed to get round to it, so when the MCE guys said they could get us in it, we jumped at the chance! The balloon was tethered, which was a good thing, as the wind was blowing towards the MOD site on Salisbury Plain - but it's an amazing balloon, one of the biggest ever made, and the view was phenomenal!!

MCE: Sounds brilliant - I hope you didn't peak too soon?
DS: Not at all! I've been a BSB fan for years, so I was really looking forward to the racing. And you shouldn't underestimate the pit walk and grid walk either. If you're a bike fan and you get a chance to go in the pits, you should definitely do it: you get to see all the teams and riders and, if you're lucky, you can get loads of freebies and autographs.

MCE: What kind of freebies?
DS: All sorts really. The teams and riders have generally got stuff to give away - I got some posters and the guys autographed them for me. They're up on my garage wall!

MCE: Wow. You don't get that treatment in the grandstands! Were you just wandering around alone or were you supervised?
DS: Once you're in it's not as hard to get around as you might think. We were left to our own devices when we were in the pits, but when we did the grid walk MCE's Colin made sure we got around ok. We didn't have any problems but we did need to be aware of the time. I was off taking pictures while my wife kept her eye on the clock. When there were only four minutes to go we had to get out of there. It was long enough though - I got a picture of nearly all the riders - Kiyonari, Tommy Hill, Easton, Rutter, Kagayama - right from the front to the back of the grid.

MCE: Sounds like a top weekend. Would you say you're a happy MCE customer?
DS: Definitely. The whole Club MCE thing is brilliant - it's not what you expect from your insurance company - and I think it's great that you've opened up all of these experiences to your customers. Normally this sort of thing is reserved for the fat cats. I like the member spotlights too - I read about Garry Hurst's day out at Brands Hatch and I'm really chuffed I'm going to be in one myself. That can go up on the garage wall too!

MCE: So it wasn't Club MCE that attracted you to take out a policy?
DS: Not at all - I went with MCE because their policy ticked all the boxes: it included legal expenses, personal accident cover, medical expenses - all the things that I wanted. They were the cheapest quote I found too and really friendly. It might sound too good to be true but I really can't fault the whole thing.

MCE: That's great to hear. The bosses at MCE are working really hard to be the UK's number one bike insurer but they're determined that, just because it's insurance doesn't mean it can't be fun. You only live once, so you may as well enjoy yourself along the way!!
DS: Sounds good to me!!