RICHARDS FUNERAL DETAILS

The details of the funeral are as follows -

WEDNESDAY 6 JUNE 2012  AT  2.45 pm

AT

DERBY MARKEATON CREMATORIUM, Markeaton Lane, Off Ashbourne Road, Derby DE22 4NH (see link)

http://www.yell.com/b/Markeaton+Crematorium-Crematoria+and+Cemeteries-Derby-DE224NH-1544655/index.html

The Wake will be at -

THE RED LION PUB IN THE CRICH TRAMWAY VILLAGE, Matlock Road, CRICH DE4 5DP

 This will be a buffet with Tea, Coffee and Orange Juice

There will be two of Richards favourite beers on sale in the pub  (Thornbridge Jaipur 5.9% and Harvest Pale c.4%)

DRESS CODE is Smart Casual (if you have a transport uniform you would like to wear, then feel free)

FAMILY FLOWERS ONLY

DONATIONS IN LIEU OF FLOWERS GRATEFULLY ACCEPTED on the day OR cheques made payable to Kath Lomas c/o 48a Waingroves Road, Ripley, DE5 9TD These will be shared between - Derby Royal Hospital Intensive Care Unit and Pancreatitis Research Fund

Please confirm to RichardandKath@gmail.com if you will be attending the service and/or wake before 4 June if possible to give us an idea of numbers

Best wishes

Kath

RICHARD SAYS GOODBYE

Hello bloggers, I am sorry to tell you that Richard passed away peacefully  this morning (25th May) at 4.20 am in the ICU at Derby Royal,  This past week he had fought a long and difficult battle with septicemia and pneumonia.  After 6 months of his body being caned by the Pancreatitis and its effects, there was no more reserve to fight this one last battle.

Details of the funeral will be posted when the arrangements are made.

Thank you all for giving him the pleasure of running the blog, all your feedback, comments and support over the past few years.

Best wishes to you all
Kath

RICHARD BACK IN HOSPITAL

Hello Bloggers,  Sorry to say Richard was taken back to hospital on Friday 18th May, suffering from severe exhaustion brought on by a problem with his bile drain and an as yet unspecified bug.  He is back in the High Dependency ward at Derby Royal while this is sorted.  I am not sure how long he will be in the hospital  and will try to keep you posted. At the moment he is not up to blogging so there will be a lull in service! Besr wishes to all, Kath

That Picture

 The people in the picture have largely been identified but some were wrongly identified or missed out, I think this is the definitive list.

L to R back row: Mike Davis, Charles Haycock, Bob Hall, Alan Williams, Richard Fairburn, John Baggs, Bob Carter, Tony Bacon, Roger Benton, Ian Stewart, Eric Cooper.
L to R, middle row: Sheila Jones (later Mrs Sheila Crabtree), Christine Haycock, Norma Salt (later Mrs Bob Hall), Mrs Gladys Poplar.
L to R, front row: Faith Bacon, Merlyn Bacon.
I also add a picture of Merlyn and Faith cutting their Silver Wedding cake on the same occasion.
Further comments; I can't remember if Bob and Norma were married by that date so will ask Bob next time I see him, but I think Charles and Christine Haycock had married by that date.
I am pretty sure it is Alan Williams (4th from the left) in the back row, at that time he was a Petty Officer in the Royal Navy and whilst serving in the Far East was able to research the history of Hongkong tramways prior to producing a book that he co wrote with Peter Atkinson. The book was published by the LRTL in 1970 and has since become a standard work on the Hongkong Tramways.
The Hartwells who were mentioned and wrongly identified by others were not present and therefore not on the picture
Finally the unidentified so called teenager on the right of the image you have used, is myself, but by that date I was well passed my teenage years and heading in to my mid twenties!
Enjoy and happy for you to publish.
Best rgds
Mike Crbatree

Blackpool 14 arrives

Tony Stevenson sent me these pictures.

Blackpool 762

 It's big!

Blackpool 730 event

Andrew Waddington made the lollowing comments
I just wanted to comment on how fantastic today's Brush car event was. I had expected a fairly modest event with 630 taking all the glory, but not so! There were several photo opportunities with 630 posed alongside other Blackpool trams including 'Spongebob' 762 and various non-runners appeared on the depot fan. Even better was a surprise appearance out of doors for Douglas 1. I've been visiting Crich every year since 1990 and that was the first time I'd ever seen it outside, so that really did make my day! Add in some great company and I'm pleased to say that this was my best visit to Crich for a long time.

My thanks to every single person who made this day so enjoyable, I'm sure you all know who you are and your efforts really are appreciated! I have already posted a brief report on the event with a couple of photos at http://www.britishtramsonline.co.uk/news/?p=852 - more detailed coverage with a photo gallery will follow.

Dan Heeley added the following details:
As advertised today saw the Launch of Blackpool 630 at the museum. 
Tramcars in service (all Brush built) - Chesterfield 7, Cardiff 131, Leeds 180, Blackpool 630 and LPTB 1622. Additionally Glasgow 22 was out on a UDE. Finally Berlin 223 006-4 was out briefly on test and will be available again from tomorrow.
On the depot fan we arranged various line ups and displayed two of the non-operational Loughborough cars - G&I 14 and DHMD 1 (Falcon works). In addition a little sort out of the main depots was undertaken resulting in quite a few trams appearing out of the depots:

GMJ
DHMD 1
Leeds 2
B&F 2
TW4
G&I 14
Southampton 45
J'burg 60
Sheffield 74
Blackpool 167
Blackpool 298 (well it moved, but didn't come out of the depot!)
Blackpool Loco 717
Blackpool 762
Glasgow 812
Glasgow 1282
Whilst not intended as the main focus of the day hopefully it all provided interest!
Thanks for those that approached us with feedback, and if anyone would like to share any further thoughts, please drop me an email. Particular thanks for those that supported the first trip and I hope the winners enjoyed their drive of the car.

Onto Boat 236 next!

"Here is a message I have received from a group of people at Crich, who are urgently seeking the support of fellow TMS members:"

In every business there is a need to plan for the future. It is usual to devise a 5 or 10 year strategic plan as a rolling programme, updated as necessary according to the way the plan develops and the business progresses in line with market forces.
There is no strategic plan for the Tramway Museum even though the Board has been working on creating one for over ten years. Special Board meetings have been held to address this subject on 25 January 2004; 16 January 2010; 4 February 2010 and 5 February 2011 and a presentation on strategy has been given to the Board by the General Manager of the Ffestiniog Railway. Little or no progress has been made towards setting a strategy and nothing has been communicated to the membership about any progress that might have been made at these meetings.
The role of the Board is to set policy and determine strategy. Over the last 10 years the Board has
demonstrated that it is incapable of acting in this capacity. It has concentrated its efforts on micro-
managing the staff and dealing with the minutiae whilst ignoring the big picture.
Part of the problem may be that some Board members have been in office too long and no longer
present any new initiatives or lack the necessary drive to make dynamic decisions. It is proposed to
table a Special resolution at an Extraordinary General Meeting (EGM) to alter the Articles to ensure that no Board member serves more than three consecutive terms (maximum 9 years) and that the Honorary Secretary and Honorary Treasurer serve no more than six consecutive years each. These amendments to be retrospective. Members are asked to support this proposal by voting in favour of the Special resolution.
The operating results for the year to March 2011 showed that the Museum lost £120,000 and the
prospects for the year to March 2012 are likely to be even worse. It is only bequests and donations
that keep the results in the black. This financial situation cannot be allowed to continue without some
intervention, otherwise the Museum will ultimately be facing bankruptcy. However, without a business plan, the Board is not addressing the problem and is allowing the situation to deteriorate.
The current position is that individual Board members are given responsibility for managing parts of the business with no one person having overall control. Most of these Board members have little external experience of managing the parts of the business that are devolved to them or the staff who report to them and none of the Board members has any experience of managing a commercial business in the tourist industry, such as the Museum. In order to survive it is imperative that the number of paying visitors is increased and the resultant income used to improve and develop the Museum. Year-on-year overheads are rising and revenue is falling. If this trend continues the Museum will be facing insolvency and closure It is clear that the current Board lacks the competency to properly manage the commercial aspects of the business and the present management structure is unworkable. The Board has already agreed that a general manager is needed and assurances were given at the 2011 AGM that a suitable manager would be appointed. As no progress has been made in this regard it is proposed to table two Ordinary resolutions at the EGM requiring the Board to adopt a business strategy and appoint a general manager by 1st April 2013 at the latest. Members are urged to vote in favour of both resolutions. For more information, and a copy of the requisition form, please email crichtramway@gmail.com.

My first tram ride of 2012

First amd last pics from 'Motorman', Second by Kath and third by Hazel Q'

Brush cars

Today Blackpool 630 entered service at Crich. Here President, Chris Thornburn says a few words of welcome.



Chesterfield 7 and Leeds 180 were also built by Brush at their Loughborough factory.



Derby Corporation had some early post war buses with Brush bodies. This one is a Crossley.

LT 1622 is also a Brush car.

Russia 1992 - Kaliningrad (1)

The Diddler

Graham Feakins has sent me this link.

'I am so pleased that you are gaining strength and back in the comfort of your own home, also having a chance to visit Crich.  Not the best weather yet, though!  Nobody would have guessed six months ago that all this misfortune would have befallen you and I imagine that frequent visits to the hospital are still required. 

I have just received this video from ‘the other place’, where many former TMS members found a new welcome in the past (but I personally have not visited for years):

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hNfqXL_0usg&feature=uploademail

It is 50 years ago this month that London’s trolleybuses sadly finished.  Don’ forget that at its peak, there were nearly 2,000 trolleybuses in the London Transport fleet, with some routes running at 2-minute intervals!  At least they were electric, even if they did replace the trams.  The Diddler trolleybus is now 81 years old and looks better than it did when it officially closed the LT trolleybus system in 1962!

You need no reminding that the LT trams finished 60 years ago – 5th July, 1952.  There’s a nice HR/2 in the video, complete with adverts, as expected, in stark contrast to the bare E/1 at Crich.'

Those were the days

Bob Carter gave me this photo when he visited me. We think it was taken in the mid-1960s.
From left: Michael Davies, Charlie Haycock, Bob Hall, ??, Richard Fairburn, John Baggs, ??, Ian Stewart, Eric?, Mike Crabtree.
Marjorie Hartwell, Christine Haycock, Norma Hall, Gladys Poplar.
Seated Faith and Merlyn Bacon.

John Henderson has added some more names:

Back from left to right:

Mike Davis, Charlie Haycock, Bob Hall, Bill Kerr, Dick Fairbairn, John Baggs, Tony Bacon, Roger Benton, Iain Stewart, Dick Hartwell and ???

 

Front row from left to right is correct>> Marjorie Hartwell, Christine Haycock, Norma Hall (nee Salt!) Gladys Poplar

 

Yes sat down are Faith and Merlyn Bacon

 

There is only the teenager on the right I cannot identify but Roger Benton may know who this person is.

Amsterdam

Bob Hall was in Amsterdam last week and visited the museum line.
'An enthusiast's dream home?  The house sits within a reverser,
tramlines on three sides.  Bob.'

A glimpse of Cardiff 131

Cardiff 131 appeared under the bridge but rather come down the line for me to photograph, it turned short.

 

Berlin 3006

Berlin 3006 is having problems with its suspension. The pictures show the motor/axle subassemblies and the second shows the flimsey metal srips that hold the axles together.

Other trams in the workshop were Leeds 345, Glasgow 1068 (Paisley 68), LUT 159 and the Blackplool boat.

Welcome back

 I made a brief visit to Crich this morning. Thank you for the warm welcome that I received.
Trams in service  B&F 2, Leeds 180 & 399. Cardiff 131 and Glasgow 812 were on on specials for retired crew members.

Riga

My brother visited Riga a couple of weeks ago.
There still seem to be lots of trams with trolley poles.

Hospitals

I spent 6 months and 10 days in hospital and and am still dependent on support from the NHS.

First thanks to my wife Kath who visited me every day and played a major role in my recovery. Without her support it would have been too easy to go to sleep and not wake up.
Thanks to all my friends and relations who came to see me on a regular basis - often when I was too weak to say much. Thanks to everyone who sent me their best wishes either by greetings card or email.

So what have I learned from my three visits to intensive care and long slow recovery? Surprising little other than that life is precious and should not be wasted on silly squables with friends.

I hope to visit Crich very soon but a lot of my time is taken up with medical professionals - physiotherapists, dieticicans, diabetic specialists, GP appointments etc. Also I can't drive at present and am reliant on Kath for lifts.

The deadline of 11th May to renew my subs will soon be here so I might have to invest in a stamp and post a cheque to Chris.

I intend to continue this blog and have read the TMS policy on social media - most which is very sensible.

Finally thanks to all blog readers for your support.

Heaton Park on May Day

Poland 1992 - Elblag