​Two short weeks after the Dorset tour, it was time for more fun and shenanigans. Friday at 1PM found me heading off to the Derbyshire Peaks with a car full of camping equipment and wine for our Group’s visit to the Crich Tramway Museum on the Saturday and a short tour on the Sunday.
 
3.5 hours of solid driving later, I arrived at the campsite. The lack of decompression stops proved to be a bit foolish when traveling so far north as I think I had a case of the bends when I got there, but I battled through and managed to get my tent pitched whilst it was still dry.

​Socially distant greetings were made to my fellow campers before we all headed off to Matlock Bath for our fish and chip supper. Which was delicious. Never had haddock before but when oop norf, do as the norverners do eh?

​I found Matlock to be a beautiful but rather strange little town. It is your quintessentially English seaside town but about as far away from the sea as you can get in the UK. I loved it. Even the forecasted rain held off long enough for us to enjoy our meal on the pavement and complete an evening of fun, frivolity and merriment back at the campsite. Was that a misfire from Poppy on the way back? No. It couldn’t be. Poppy doesn’t do that sort of thing.

​The next morning didn’t so much dawn as arrive on the crest of a wave of biblical rainfall. As forecast. Some of the day trippers had - unsurprisingly - dropped out and I think if others hadn’t already set off, our Fat Controller of events (Gar Cole) would have pulled the plug. He didn’t though and after the hearty full (and I mean FULL) English breakfast provided by Windy Woodward and his son Breezy, It was time to set off for the Crich Tramway Museum. Where, to our surprise, a lot more people had braved the weather to join us than we expected. Including several 1st timers at our live events.
 
So let me introduce everyone. 1st the newbies,
 
Rob Smith and his wife with their gorgeous P5B Saloon. It’s a long time since I’ve seen one of these in the flesh and after becoming used to Phil Allin’s Coupe, I found the different back end rather striking. It was even more like the stately home on wheels with that upright back end reminiscent of “battlements”. A beautiful and refined car just like the owners. Honest…

​Next up is Martin North in the rare 1966 Reliant Scimitar SE4. I’ve never seen one of these in real life before but this one was an excellent example to break my duck on and the 1st Reliant that could possibly tempt me out of Poppy. I loved it.

​Graham Ryder was in his Austin Princess. I have very fond memories of driving around South Wales in my Grandad’s on a family holiday so enjoyed seeing Graham’s fine example immensely.

Ray Prichard and his wife had bought their Pre Millennial Jaguar XJ8 X300 which looked very sophisticated parked up near the bandstand and a lot warmer and dryer inside than Poppy.

​The final newbie on the day was Max Carman in his Pre Millennial BMW. Sorry i didn't get a decent photo of it but you can just make it out in this one.

​Lee Stuart and Kurt Lawrence have been joining us at the events for a while now but without a classic of their own. Fed up with feeling left out, Lee purchased a lovely little MGB GT just so that he could join in fully with our tours and have all the fun of breaking down, but more on that later.

​Anthony and Pat Osborne, whilst not new to our events either, did decide to show off the fact that they have multiple classics by turning up in a really beautiful 1938 Austin Lt12/4 New Ascot called Herbert. Herbert was the feature of Anthony’s rather splendid 2 part blog already carried on this website, so I won’t go into detail other than to say we all rather fell in love with Herbert who is officially, the oldest car to attend one of our real world outdoor events.  (Yes, I know we had the Brooks’ 1938 Austin Big 7 but that was three or four years ago. Therefore, this car was 3 or 4 years older when it joined us on tour.)

Anthony's blogs about refurbishing Herbert can be found here: Part 1 and here: Part 2

​It was great to see the new faces and the cars. Especial on such an incredibly soggy day. I hope you all felt welcome, enjoyed yourselves and will join us again soon. I would like to say that the weather is usually better than this but I would be lying if I did.
 
Now some more familiar cars.

​Gus Brooks, Lincoln Hunt Mr Jones and Paul Cheetham let us all down by turning up in moderns but everyone is still welcome.
 
Humphrey the Humber had thrown a hissy fit the day before Graham Adams and Sue Clamp were driving up for the event, but Phil Allin very generously saved the day by lending them his Jaguar XJS for the weekend. He’s a top chap and it’s for acts like this, that I love this car group so much. 

​The day continued to be rather soggy but much fun and camaraderie were still enjoyed, walking round the village all with the umbrellas we’d purchased in the museum shop because we stupidly didn’t bring our own; tram rides were had and warming coffee was consumed.

​At lunch time, most of us sought the relative shelter of the Bandstand to consume copious amounts of cake and to chat about cars. As this was the very hallowed spot that my humble Lemon Drizzle cake became the “Award Winning Lemon Drizzle Cake”, it would have been rude not to bring a further offering. It was all gone within seconds of opening the tin. Fortunately, I have learned from previous experience and made sure I got my bit first. Many other offerings of cake were made by various members which disappeared just as fast, but now it was time for the slightly more formal events of the day.
 
Gus Brooks is a very active and valued member of this group. (He fixes all the cars that breakdown on tour. Some even say that he IS actually Super Enthusiast Man.) Last year Gus had his 60th Birthday but due to Covid it was only now, much belatedly, that we could celebrate with him. To mark the event we’d clubbed together to get him a special gift. Knowing how close Gus is to his brother Tosh, what else could we get him than a life size cardboard cut-out of said Brooks Brother. I think Gus liked it.

​This was closely followed by his “proper present”. Some time ago, Gus posted a picture of himself sat in Henry, his JC Midge with his Grandson Seth sat in Henry Junior, a pedal car built for Seth by Gus. It was an instant hit with the group and with the funds collected, Gar Cole commissioned an artist to convert this photo into an oil on canvas painting with the Brooklands buildings as a back drop. It looked fantastic. We were all very pleased with Gus’s reaction to the gift until it seemed that he got something in his eye. So on behalf of everybody, thanks for all you do for us, Gus.

​Another hugely valued member of the group is our beloved Fat controller of events Gar Cole. Gar works tirelessly behind the scenes to organise our group’s stands at the formal NEC car shows as well as organising most of our other tours and events. Not only that but Old Mother Cole cooks us smashing and filling campsite meals. So it was felt that he was deserving of a thank you gift which was organised by Sue Clamp who arranged a very fine framed sketch of Errol, Gar’s Triumph 2000.

​So after a great and soggy day, it was time to say goodbye to most of the day trippers and head back to the campsite with a few of the day trippers that decided to join us for Old Mother Cole’s Classic Curry. Was that another misfire? No. It couldn’t be. It must just be the wet weather.
 
After the absolute disaster of a tour in Dorset 2 weeks ago, where nothing broke down and Gus didn’t have anything to fix, Phil and Gar bought him some special electrickery boxes that needed fitting to their respective cars to aid the towing of their caravans whilst Ian broke the electric fan on his Granada just so we could keep Gus entertained whilst the curry cooked.

​With 3 cars fixed in quick order it was time to settle down with our very fine curry and quite a bit of alcohol to enjoy the evening with great company until it was time for the day trippers to head off, leaving just the campers in the shelter. It was at this point, after the last lady had left, that the full consequences of feeding middle aged car enthusiasts curry became apparent.

​Not me of course. I’m a gentleman and refrain from such uncouth behaviour. Let’s just say though, that it was very reminiscent of the campfire scene from the Mel Brooks film, Blazing Saddles. The tone of the evening descended faster than a Derbyshire pit lift at the start of the shift. School boy toilet humour was the order of the evening and it was all very silly and childish …….. and smelly. I haven’t laughed so much since the start of lock down. It was just what the doctor ordered.

​As the rain falling on my tent and the Arctic cold had kept me awake the previous night, I was looking forward to a good night’s sleep, especially as I’d taken the precaution of making sure that my blood wouldn’t freeze solid by taking on plenty of alcohol for its “antifreeze” properties. However, wind was a continuing feature of the night. The meteorological kind this time though. The forecast gales arrived and I had to spend most of the night clutching canvas to ensure my tent didn’t blow away.

​This continued until day light broke to Phil Allin shouting through the tent to ask if I fancied a brew. I politely declined this ridiculously early but kind offer. Well fairly politely. OK, maybe I wasn’t polite at all, but in my defence, I really needed an extra hour snuggled in my sleeping bag.
 
The smell of bacon wafting from Windy Woodwards caravan was far more attractive than the usual emanations that waft from this van and finally drew me out of my slightly ruffled gentlemen’s abode to enjoy another relaxed and very full English breakfast.
 
Now fully dressed and full of breakfast it was time for the part of the weekend I was most looking forward to. Yes the touring. Peak District aficionado Phil Allin had excelled himself yet again with superb route  and day-trippers were joining us at the campsite for the event.
 
Anthony and Pat Osborne re-joined us again, but this time in yet another “new to our events” car - a very good-looking MGB. Lincoln Hunt also re-joined us but this time he’d managed to extract his splendid Mk1 Range Rover from storage. Richie Moore joined us in his Sierra estate, Graham and Sue came back in Phil’s XJS and John Dixon returned in his Austin Cambridge. Dave Aiken also joined us to car-hop for the day. 

Of course us campers were raring to go; not before the star car of the weekend arrived though. Phil Gunn brought his absolutely drop-dead gorgeous 1937 Alvis, which immediately broke Anthony and Pat’s short lived record for the oldest car on tour and also the record for the most enthusiasts gathered to drool.

​So, with everyone present and drool removed from chins it was time to depart the campsite for the day.
 
Poppy took a little extra churning before starting a bit lumpily but soon settled down to her normal smooth purr and we all set off in convoy with our excellently prepared tour route and maps placed , un-read, on our passenger seats. Our 1st stop was at Middleton Top for a great photo opportunity and to look at the engine shed which housed the  stationary team engine used to help pull the trains up Middleton Incline.

​After our stop, we all headed off for Tissington Ford apart from our Essex Boys John Ticehurst and Giles Anderson who headed of f on their long Journey home. They missed out on the lovely drive to Tissington. (That WAS a misfire from Poppy. I’m pretty sure it was. Then again…)
 
The plan was that we would pull into the layby at Tissington Ford to assess the height of the water after yesterday’s biblical rainfall and decide whether we would go through or not. However, when we arrived there were a couple of moderns coming through the other way and there wasn’t room for us all to stop.

​At least, that was Phil’s excuse after surging straight though without a pause. My plan was to wait and see if the MG’s made it through without floating away before I decided to brave it. This was not to be though as I was 2nd in the convoy. So, figuring that Lincoln’s Range Rover could pull me out if there was a problem, I gathered up my courage set the throttle for fast revs, feathered the clutch and followed Big Rov through the ford and up the hill where we waited to see if anyone else made it.

​And they did. Obviously the Range Rover and the Alvis made it through with no problems whatsoever and the rest arrived with varying degrees of fear etched onto their faces. We’d all made it. Well, mostly. For reasons known only to himself, Lee stopped his MGB GT in the middle of the ford, reversed a couple of paces and then continued out of the ford and spluttered up the hill to where we were all parked. It was still running though so we headed off again and thought no more about it.

Wetton Tunnel was next on the itinerary and we were all looking forward to taking this on again. We all powered through like hooligans making as much noise as possible. Well, all except Lee who spluttered coughed and kangerooed through and Gar who forgot about the sharp right hand bend at the end of the tunnel and had to bail out down a conveniently placed grass truck. It was immense fun and we all pulled over to congratulate ourselves and chat to the walkers that were there.

​Finally it was some fairly gentle driving to Caudwell Water Mill for a well-earned late lunch where Phil Allin loves nothing more than spending a Sunday afternoon pretending to be a garden gnome.

After delicious food, and a good natter it was time for us to head off in different directions for wherever we called home. Well almost, but 1st Lincoln had to get Lee’s MG going again which was refusing to start. When it was running, goodbyes were said and us campers headed back to the campsite to pack up. Which is where we discovered that Phil had left the front locker open on his caravan. So naturally, a final piece of mischief was compulsory. We stole the contents and hid it all before he came back.
 
Surprisingly, my 30 year old tent had completely dried out while we were pootling and I soon had it all packed away in Poppy. Final goodbyes were said  and Poppy and I set off on the 3.5 hour drive home.
 
I’d like to say that it was a completely trouble-free drive. I’d like to say that but I can’t. The misfire I’d been ignoring all weekend became steadily worse and worse. Poppy didn’t completely disgrace herself though and we did actually make it all the way home even if the last 2 miles were on 3 cylinders. Which I hear is more than Lee’s MG did.
 
 I’m no fortune teller but I do see that “Ignition fettling” will feature strongly in my very near future.
 
So, thanks to everyone that turned up and made this a thoroughly enjoyable weekend with special thanks to Gar and Phil for herding us cats around for the weekend.
 
Thanks for reading and thanks to everybody I've stolen photos from. Our next event is the Staffordshire Oatcake tour at the end of June. Please join us. You’ll have fun I promise.

​Wow! It’s been a long winter. Nothing to write about since November last year. Sorry, but I’m about to rectify that.
 
With the winter months behind us and Covid restrictions easing, the time was fast approaching that we could leave our bunkers. Our good group had plans of touring and derring-do, so it was time to undertake Poppy’s pre-season check-up. The check-up revealed the need for some new front brake pads. (Hence the title. It wasn’t a spelling error. Clever eh?) As I’ve never had to replace the pads in my 20 years of ownership, I didn’t begrudge spending the required £20 on parts.
 
Anyway, parts were ordered. Parts arrived. Parts were fitted. All without any major bumbling incompetence. Well apart from realising I hadn’t taken any photos for the blog during the process. So I took the wheel back off just to take this photo for you.

​After washing the winter grime off her remarkably red bodywork and adding a bit of wax, Poppy was ready for the season and our 1st group event, the Jurassic Coast Tour of Dorset - which I couldn’t go to as I’d promised Mrs FB that I would be painting the newly-plastered walls and ceilings in our lounge, dining room and kitchen. However, as the route the chaps were taking down on the Friday was taking them to within 20 minutes of my home, I decided to meet up with them at the Kemble Airfield.
 
Whilst I was waiting for them and taking pictures of Poppy, bumbling incompetence struck; I stumbled on the rough verge and fell flat on my face. The young chap sharing the layby and also taking pictures of the scrap aircraft came running over all concerned and started helping me back up again. I know! What a complete B&$^&*d!! You know what this means don’t you? I’m officially “OLD” otherwise he would have just laughed like any red blooded male does when another young chap makes a fool of himself!
 
Anyway, here’s the photo I was taking.

​It was really great to see everyone after so long.

​The Saturday dawned bright and sunny. Mrs FB and daughter number one headed off at 7.30 to save lives by stabbing hundreds of people in the arm and I was left staring at the walls and ceilings I was supposed to paint. It was really sunny though, and all my mates were a mere 80 miles away and about to have fun. I decided that the new plaster wasn’t fully dry enough for painting as it was only a month or so since it had been done. I opened the roof on Poppy and headed down to Dorset.
 
I won’t go into details as the tour has already been covered in Gar Cole’s excellent blog here. Just to say that I had a wonderful time with great friends and remarkably great weather. I even got to drive the Brook’s Stag which was awesome. I do love the sound of that V8. 

​My severely sunburned head was the only instance of bumbling incompetence too. There weren’t even any breakdowns for Super Enthusiast Man to deal with. So thanks everyone for a great day out and I’m only sorry I couldn’t stay for the evening’s drinking.
 
The old adage that “it is often better to seek forgiveness than ask permission” held true and Mrs FB was very forgiving as only a quick visit to A&E was required with no overnight stays. Worth it though. Great day out. Thanks to Gar for organising the trip and Gar’s Brother Neale for the superb dinner that I did stay for.

Thanks as always for taking the time to read this far. I'll be back soon with the Crich blog.