Sunday, 8 June 2014

Derby Emergency Services Show 2014...

Well, I was planning to take the326 and the petrol carrier to the Derby Show again this June, however, firstly work intervened to ensure that I couldn't get that weekend off! Then, I found out last week that this year's show, which was due to be at a new venue, has been cancelled because apparently the ground is very wet and with more rain forecast, the land owners felt that it was untenable to hold the show. A great shame, but fingers crossed for 2015!

Anyway, here's the video of the road run from last year - you'll see 326 is the third vehicle in the convoy:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QAsnM00Ku5U


Sunday, 1 June 2014

Life is Show Time...

Well, last weekend - the May bank holiday - saw the first (and perhaps only) show outing for 326 this year because of summer travel plans.... Earls Barton near Northampton.

The show is a transport festival but has an attached Fire and Rescue Show with a separate demonstration ring too. Although small, it is one of the first fire and rescue shows on the circuit so attracts a wide crowd of fire appliances, mostly red, for their first shake-down outing.

Run over three days, the Saturday was extremely wet with no vehicle movements on site and few visitors. When I arrived on Sunday, with much road dirt covering the recently cleaned 326, it was brighter. With a main arena spin around, I wandered the site, chatted with people and actually ended up catching the sun!

By 1600, with the crowds thinning out, we gathered a scratch crew to get the two goddesses there into the arena to squirt some water. With 326 set into the dam, we pumped water to the erstwhile PGW 327 which then fed into a hand branch and also a ground monitor.


With the tent pitched, and dinner and few ciders sunk with friends, it wasn't long before bed called although not before some of the others had set fire to a car and then extinguished it in the dark!

Sunday was wet, it had rained since the early hours, so the fire applicances were almost the only vehciles to get in the main arena. Things were brightened up with a friend visiting with his two young boys who seemed to like att the noise and flashing lights, although the 60s bubble cars also proved to be a draw....


As the rain set in, after lunch, exhibitors wandered off home - including to places as diverse as Hampshire and North Wales. Just a shame that that's pretty much it for GG shows this year, although the petrol carrier will be at Lincoln Steam Show in mid-August.