Friday October 10th
David Holton Tom Fisher and I got to Nightowl expecting to wait for the Marquee to arrive, however we were in for a shock as they were waiting for us!!
So while they got to work, we performed a litter pick, something that I do not recommend as a truck stop!
After about 30 minuets Elliot loo hire turned up, and as I showed the driver where we wanted the portable toilets, he pointed out that where we wanted them would be unsafe and made his own suggestion, a very helpful and pleasant man, and I have told Elliot Loo hire how good he was.
More litter was collected, 3 wheelie Bins full by the time we called it a day and went home.
This was just the start of the weekends work for Terry and Albert.
Later on Graham Garlick picked me up and we took the rest of the cones and most of the tombola prizes over to the site.
Saturday October 11th.
Graham Garlick and I went over to the truck stop in the Gem Tool Hire lorry with a mini digger on the back; a mass clear up by Terry and Albert had filled the rest of the bins on the site!
The tables and chairs we had hired were in a terrible state; the tables were still wet with wood stain, which was staining peoples cloths, and the chairs were filthy!
Thank goodness for Graham Tailby of Cwikskip and Graham Garlick! GT said that he would get the chairs clean and GG took them back to
Graham’s line up of Cwikskip lorries looked great in the late afternoon sun.
Photo. J.Bird
One of the first arrivals was Keith Milburn with his DAF unit that was once Barry Sheen’s team transporter.
Photo. B. Daniels
It turned out that Keith, His Wife and daughter would provide Tea for all the On-site guys over night!
As we rested on the now clean chairs it seemed strange to be sitting in bright, warm sunshine so late in the year, as I looked down towards the lorry entrance I spotted a Commer was heading our way.
Photo. J.Bird
October the 12th dawned foggy, as I loaded my 2 barn owls, Barney & Toro into Ivor Bowen’s car I felt that all the hard work put into the show could be wrecked by the weather.
However as we approached the Nightowl truck stop I could see the Sun burning away the fog to reveal a perfect blue sky.
Photo. B. Daniels
I had made the biggest Mistake an organiser ever could, I made the assumption that I could spend the day with my owls and the show would run like clock work…..Wrong!
As the picture below shows, no sooner had I arrived than things needed to be sorted.
Walking away with the falconry gloves still attached to my belt (and having a telling off from Albert "the bear" and for not wearing a high visibility jacket) I had to ask someone to them back up to my daughter Katrina at the Marque, who despite a busy Saturday in
Our First Problem was lack of marshals and people on the entrance to take the pound entry fee, this one problem was over come by asking Jims and Brenda's 2 grand daughters if they would like the job, I have to say they were fantastic and we are indebted to them.
Our next Problem was Buses to and from the car parks but this was soon sorted by Terry, Glen and David.
Vehicles started to arrive thick and fast and marshalling them into place was handled expertly by Glenn McBirnie, Mark Angrave,Graham Garlick and all the other marshals who gave their time so freely.
We deliberately kept the cost of admittance to £1.00 to encourage families to attend, however one person was caught sneaking in through the vehicle Gate (you know who you are!)
However the with the buse sorted, money being taken on the gate and Barry Dodd running the marquee things started to go very very smoothly.
We had a stainless steel goblet engraved to present as a prize to either a vehicle or display. I asked Brenda Marshall if she would be the sole judge, I think she was a little shocked by this responsibility, but she spent the early part of the day walking around the displays of vans lorries buses bikes and cars and even the model displays in the marquee, a task few of us would have liked to undertake.
In the end it boiled down to just one vehicle.
The above photograph shows Brenda Marshall and Mr David Woolliscroft standing by the side of his1936 Commer N1 Lyons Tea Van, the winner of the 2008 Jim Marshall Memorial cup.
David told us that "I have only just finished restoring the van, this is its first show!" all of us were pleased with Brenda's choice.
Brenda's decision was "because I think Jim would have loved this".
What more can you say?
the group would like to thank everybody who took part, or the marshals, all the model exhibitors and everybody who brought vehicles large or small with your help we raised nearly £2000 the Warwickshire and Northamptonshire air ambulance, and I like to think that all who attended and exhibited came away from the show with great memories after a happy and warm day.
Thank you all
The Jim Marshall Memorial transport gathering will return in 2010, the economic downturn forced the group to make the decision not to hold the show in 2009.
If you wish to enter a vehicle in the 2010 show please contact us at our e-mail address.
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