PW_3_2019

Article

Gimborn: a translating experience Neil Hallam , Editor

My second experience of lecturing at Gimborn was also very much a first for me. I got to experience having my lecture translated into German. T he Biker Gangs and Organised Crime Seminar has been running for a few years now. Each year I saw it on the Gimborn prospectus and thought it sounded interesting, but it was only ever offered as a German language seminar. Then, while at Gimborn for last year’s Crime Writers’ Seminar, Sean Hannigan talked them into offering it in German and English, and also secured me the opening session of the week. My lecture was taken directly from the research for my biker history book. I took the group back to the 1947 “Hollister Incident“, which was adapted into Marlon Brando’s Wild One film. This is where the idea of the 1% biker came from, as the American Motorcycle Association declared that 99% of bikers are law abiding, while the Hollister trouble makers belonged to the 1%. This was adopted as a badge of honour by the criminal biker gangs. My lecture took us through the Hell’s Angels forming in the aftermath of the 1947 incident, then arriving in London, amongst the Mods and Rockers violence. Then, as tensions grew between the Hell’s Angels and their bitter rivals, the Outlaws, both gangs grew and expanded their influence around the world.

Jacqueline is a German speaking Swiss, who was, as expected, fluent in English. I was immensely impressed at the speed in which she repeated my words in German. I had expected having to speak slowly, with lots of pauses. But that was not necessary, as she was keeping up with a normal, conversational pace of speech. In order to give Jacqueline sufficient recovery time, we adopted a pattern of 20 minutes of lecture, followed by 10 minutes of rest. I found myself ready for the rest periods, and I was speaking in my first language. The group was predominantly German, with a couple from Holland and Luxembourg, and one member from New Zealand. All spoke at least a smattering of English, as well as German. I was very impressed by the dedication of New Zealand Officer Campbell Coulton, who booked the seminar when English translation was on offer. When told there would no longer be an interpreter, Campbell decided to come anyway. He had some basic schoolboy German, which he revised with online material. Then, he arrived in Germany two weeks early, to immerse himself in the language. He seemed to be holding his own in the group of German speakers, and made me a little ashamed of my very poor language skills. If you have not yet experienced Gimborn, then you really should give it a try. Although I missed out on a translator, there are a wide range of job and leisure courses on offer, which provide one of the best member benefits we have. The facilities are constantly being upgraded, with a lovely new lecture theatre and a gym / sauna. Each of our worldwide IPA sections have decorated a bedroom. On this trip, I was surrounded by memorabilia from Section Hungary.

I was also able to bring a lot of my own experience of the biker world, as I spent the 80s and early 90s on the periphery of the culture, never quite crossing the line to become an outlaw. Having set the scene, with my lecture on the history of biker culture, the rest of the week’s program was filled with investigators who have first-hand experience of taking on the gangs. Sadly for me, there was insufficient support from English speaking members, and Gimborn had to cancel the German to English translator, which meant I was unable to stay on for the remainder of the seminar. My day of working with the English to German translator was a unique experience for me and provided an insight into just what a difficult job the interpreters have.

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POLICE WORLD Vol 64 No.3, 2019