To War on Two Wheels

A True World War II Story. Very different from most War stories. When Allied forces pushed into Europe, Churchill landed in Normandy and the German Wehrmacht surrendered at Luneberg Heath, one man saw it all.
Ron Pope survived the D-Day landings, being Stuka dive-bombed and was rarely far from the fighting.
However despite being at the side of Britain's military top brass as battles were being lost and won, you will not find mention of Ron in the history books. Ron embarked on telling his remarkable story by publishing his memorable adventures in his book 'To War on Two Wheels'.
A competitive motorcycle racer before World War II,he volunteered for the MT section of 43rd Wessex Division, Corps of Military Police. He became the personal outrider to General Sir Miles Dempsey, Commander of the British 2nd Army, serving with him throughout Sicily, Italy, France, Belgium, Holland and Germany.
In Ron's words 'I was doing a bit of an Evel Kneivel stunt across a Bailey Bridge, showing off, when one of the General's men took me to one side and said I was on the team.'
Ron witnessed the war's fiercest battles and met with some of history's great leaders. His memory of bringing in General Eberhard Kinzel to Montgomery to sign the surrender at Luneberg Heath is one of his greatest.
'After crossing the Elbe, I rode about 25 miles through no-man's-land and saw not a soul until I arrived at the rendezvous point. General Kinzel, accompanied only by his driver, was coming towards me in his little Kubelwagen. They halted the car right by me and he stood up with his hands resting on the top of the windscreen, looking every inch, the Nazi officer. When I saluted he gave the correct German salute. Not the Nazi one. What a weak end it was to this high-ranking German's War, to be escorted in his modest little scout car by a lowly corporal to his enemy's HQ to surrender his army. It was a responsible job, bringing him in, and I thought an officer should have done it. It was probably done to insult him. He stopped on the way and said he wanted to think, but I said I could only give him 10 minutes and took my revolver out.'
Ron also remembers accompanying Churchill to the front line. 'Because he wanted to see the whites of the enemy's eyes.' Corporal Pope took him to a machine gun post which had been passed by the advancing allies. 'It was still occupied by Germans, but their range of fire had been compromised and they couldn't hit him. Churchill was delighted.' 'You've made my day' he said.
The book started out as a story for his children, but as the memories flooded back, he became bitten by the writing bug.
'I just had to write about all the vivid pictures that came to mind. Too strong to be forgotten.'