OLDACE

No snow or frost up here, I went birdwatching yesterday. the temperature must have been about 8 or 9c with no wind, I was able to see a Red Necked Grebe and several Slavonian Grebes on the sea, difficult to spot on a normal (windy) day. Today it is raining, but no frost overnight. The winters here are generally warmer than Notts, but it does get a little breezy sometimes.

I think there have been more than one Itchycoo. In the early 50's a relative of mine who was in the Nottingham Police told me that they would occassionly take Itchycoo for a bath, I don't know where or why. He pointed him out to me one day, he was standing across from the Midland Station. He wore a gaberdine mac (so did everyone else then) and had a long grey beard. After that I often saw him around there from the top of my No.12 bus. I never saw him after about 1958/9.

On biking trips North we used to stop at the Londonderry Lodge, on the A1 in N. Yorks. It is a real transport cafe,all day breakfast, overnight rooms and a bar for those staying. It's still there and I can recommend it. It's near Leeming.

I should imagine that any gunsmith in Brum who wanted to, could get the work, the Enfield factory had an early form of mass production so all the parts were interchangable. the Brum Enfields were hand made, so were not so readily repairable. My first BSA was a 1958 Meteor .22 with telescopic sights, my last one was a 1958 A10 Golden Flash. I think BSA are still extant making machine tools, IIRC they used to make the Herberts.

Hi. Beefsteak, regarding firearms, the South mainly used the Lee Enfield rifle. The Enfield factory in London could not keep up with demand, so many small factories in Birmingham were contracted to manufacture copies. These Birmingham Enfields were not well liked as their parts were not interchangeable. The Enfields Minie balls would shatter bone, often requiring amputation. Yet despite the huge battle casualties, far more men died of disease. Regard accuracy, there is the famous true tale of Major General Sedgwick, who, on horseback, upon seeing troops taking cover from Southern snipers said

Hi Midgie, off the top of my head I seem to recall that the 1st Virginia was reccuited from the Richmond Irish,and during the Seven Days Battles they came up against a low number Massachessets Irish Regiment from Boston. You will have heard of soldier of fortune Sir Percy Windham, he fought for the Yankees in the Shennandoah Valley against Mosby of course, but earlier on he crossed swords with the 7th Louisiana, whose Colonel Rob Wheat recruited from the docks of New Orleans, many Irish in that regiment too. BTW Sir Percy and Rob Wheat had been comrades in arms in Garibaldi's Redshirts.

Hi Mudgie, I have been interested in The War for Southern Independence since the 60's. In the days when it was possible, libraries would source books. I had books from Sandhurst, The Imperial War Museum, The British Library etc. I even managed to borrow the uncensored version of J.B.Jones 'A Rebel War Clerk's Diary'. One of the more interesting battles involving what were then British born soldiers was The Battle of Sabine Pass. The 40 odd enlisted men there were Irish dockers from Galveston, as you will know, they repulsed a Yankee invasion force of thousands without a single southern cas

We supplied the South with several commerce raiders. The Alabama was the most famous, it had Confederate officers and English crew, ex Royal Navy recruited in Liverpool, also aboard for a time were two German naval observers, and they reported on Captain Raphael Semmes tactics. These tactics were adopted by the Germans and used in both wars.

Missed them on Sunday. Last night I kept going outside, it was cloudy to the north, final check around midnight. Later they put on a fantastic show, have seen the photographs, brilliant green 'curtains' with orange /red background. Missed it. We will be looking out tonight, but it is cloudy right now with rain (and severe gales) forecast. The forecast is better for Thursday and Friday. There has been another burst of solar activity today, so fingers crossed. Up here they are called 'The Mirrie Dancers' and are quite a sight to see.

Hi Paulus , you say in post 21 that we do not produce natural gas in the UK. At the moment Total are beginning a 2 Billion pound pound investment to bring gas from a new field in the Atlantic. It will come ashore at Sullom Voe here in Shetland, they then do something to it,don't ask me what, and it will be piped to St. Fergus on the Scottish mainland. It surprises me that when a new gas or oil field is discovered in the North Sea or more increasingly now, in the Atlantic, there seems to be a news blackout in the national media. There are regular discoveries in the Atlantic as new technology

I'm pretty sure Padley's is the building to the left of the Wolds. Most, if not all of the cars seen in the centre and bottom right of the photo are where the auction cars were parked.

I remember Padley's Auctions, sometimes they would have motorcycle auctions and we boys from the nearby West Bridgford Grammar School would spend time kick starting the bikes, there would be hundreds of them in the car park, or so it seemed. I think most of them were hire purchase snatchbacks, there were Vincents among the BSA Triumph and Norton twins, as well as a lot of two strokes. Later on some of us bought from the auction.. I remember two ex Nottingham High School bikers who did, Bob Amphlett and Hugh O'Toole. Bob bought a BSA B33 complete with Avon Streamliner Fairing. Hugh bought a

Back in the fifties I was at South County Primary, we had to go out at playtime no matter what the weather. I would imagine it would be the same at most schools in those days. I can remember walking to school in snow deeper than my wellingtons, in pea-souper fogs, and in torrential rain. The idea of school closing because of bad weather was unheard of. I'm starting to sound like the four Yorkshiremen, I'll get my gaberdine mac.

A mirry Xmas fae norrt o'da fairr norrt o'Scortlint.

Cranson and Sue were at the Aces/White Cross reunion at Skeggy in August. He has changed very little since the 60's, Sue had a micro brewery, they've been together almost 40 years and they have three sons. He sold his Vincents for approx £120 each in the 70's.

The White Hart Lenton, November, 1977. Ashley had double booked babysitters, so he brought the spare one to the White Hart. 34 years ago this week, who'd have thought it Ash.

I guess I should have checked the facts before trusting my memory. Sorry for doubting you Ashley and thanks for the info Limey. Know, what was that in line four I saw at the Woodpecker?

I might be wrong Ashley, but I think the Henderson in line four was a Danish marque, I saw one at the 1970 Woodpecker Rally.

I was listening to the police radio late one night when I heard a chase, after a while they mentioned the driver was one Dave Needham, and that caution was required as he was the ex-boxer. they caught him near Mecca Village. He failed the breathalizer and was arrested. Next time I saw Dave he told me two brave cops held his arms while two others took turns punching him in the stomach. He also said they couldn't punch for toffee. For those of you who never saw Dave, he was about 5'9", if that. Because he had been done for drunk driving before, he got time, and this contributed to his decine.

In the late 60's there was a guy who sold LP's from cardboard boxes he put on the pavement by Victoria Baths. He was there on Saturday mornings when Sneinton Market was held.

It's on again at 11.40pm this Saturday the 8th on Freeview Channel 12.

Ashley, I remember a few went to the pill boxes, but some came back because they were too cold. IIRC, most of us left early on Monday, but Sambo and Howard Stuckey stayed and were confronted by a gang of mods, the two Aces got out there bike chains and ran at them, with the usual outcome. Re Val, like everone else I was really sorry to hear of her tragic death, is it four years ago? Lets hope that she is the last of us to go that way.

Ashley, the guy holding his carb on was Ernie. I am sure it was August 1964 that the police came to the campsite, I had taken Val Hopcroft on the pillion that weekend, and I hadn't meet Pat yet, also, in 1965 Ernie had his Goldie and Fitzy his Bonneville. When the police came, Sambo decided he needed to change the big end bearing on his Matchless G9, this he did, and it gave him an excuse to delay his leaving, and annoy the plod.. His big end was knocking when he left Notts, so he had brought his tools and spare bearing, I can't remember whether they were roller or shell. We spent the next

Hi Mick, as I mentioned before, the Sante Fe was a biker hangout in the early 60's. The Meadows Saints were the local bikers.I never knew the Outlaws bar was a biker bar, we always went to the White Hart. I did used to go to the Union Stewards on Gordon Road in the late 60's. A commmon misconception is that we rockers just liked rock and roll. Sure, we liked Buddy Holly, Gene Vincent and Eddie Cochran,but then the Beatles happened. Also in the El Toreador 1962'4, there was no juke box, there just was a Dansette that we used to load with eight 45s. We had discs by Sam Cooke, Ray Charles, Fats

I'm afraid Dawsons closed about 40 years ago. I once heard of a chap who bought an army lorry from Rudd for a song, and found he had also bought it's contents. It was full of tool boxes which were full of brand new tools. BTW does anyone remember Padley's Motor Auctions?