WHAT DO YOU THINK OF IT SO FAR?
Malcolm Keeley tempts the traditional response while reviewing the 2001 season…
The season closes each year with regular volunteer participants leaping up and down with joy. The next season's events are agreed in this state of euphoria and it all comes as a shock when the world awakes at Easter and we face the reality of putting on a show. The Museum reverts over the winter to something akin to a scrap yard although returning it to a presentable state has latterly not required the epic performance of earlier years. Buses for service are lined up for inspections, followed by the rectification mysteriously generated even when they stand still. In some cases, a trip to the test station is due. Other exhibits are washed, polished or dusted. Bus services are registered and advertising placed. The shop is discovered under the piles of stock donated over the winter. The cafeteria is cleaned from top to bottom. Easter Sunday approaches and the movements required to pull out appropriate vehicles for display are discussed. Then the day is here and the first visitors arrive, as usual at least an hour before official opening time.
Demand has continued to be sufficiently buoyant to hold the Easter Extravaganza on both Sunday and Monday. As before, bribing visitors with chocolate as they come in does wonders for first impressions! This year we entered more into the theme by hiring a goofy rabbit suit, worn by Pete Murphy on Sunday and myself on Monday. What's up, Doc? Being visually challenged as you peer through a tiny mesh area at the brat harassing you. Great fun, though, calling "How are you, Mr Beer' in Bugs Bunny voice to an astonished old school friend innocently passing by.
A fortnight later saw our first pair of days joining in the Thomas the Tank Engine festivities at the Gloucester Warwickshire Railway, Toddington - the second pair of days being in August. Again great fun and very well organised by Toddington. Different crews each day meant several of our volunteers were involved over the four days but all threw themselves into the event. The children are old enough to know what is going on yet young enough to be convinced that our S16 is Bertie the Bus. Part of the event is Bertie losing a 'race' with Thomas, like in the book. The children aboard scream with excitement, urging Bertie along, while we try not to make losing too obvious. Despite our best/worst efforts, signalling staff kept delaying Thomas, causing us to win and incurring the wrath of the Fat Controller. This is serious stuff; I suspect the hand of Railtrack.
Spring Bank Holiday Monday, 28 May, saw us link again with Aston Manor Transport Museum.
As usual we took responsibility for providing the half-hourly linking bus service. Patronage for the service continues to grow, actually faster than the number of visitors which implies they are taking more rides. This may have something to do with the increasing variety of buses in use which took a dive when we first went to class VI. The middle of the day saw duplication using two drivers on one bus which meant we had a driver available on the spot when Barry had his unfortunate but perfectly timed tumble at Aston Manor. We also were able to use a Greater Manchester three axle mega-decker which certainly provided enough seats! The last edition of Omnibus recorded that the event was the most successful in the Museum's history. Analysis of ticket types purchased on Bank Holidays reveals many visitors purchase admission only tickets. We tend to think an event's success is due to the number of enthusiasts the theme attracts but actually we now attract very many non-enthusiasts on bank holidays. This put the car park under particular pressure but we were expecting them and were able to stow cars all around the site!
We held our second enthusiasts' tour on 17 June following our successful D9 tour to Ludlow and the Malverns in 2000. This time we used the Midland Red S16 on a tour of Warwickshire and Cotswold villages. Again the advertising attracted around thirty passengers who joined at the two pick-up points - the Museum, of course, and Hill Street. We had drawn lessons from the 2000 tour and built breaks at logical times into the itinerary, the passengers finding plenty of lunch opportunities in Stratford upon Avon and enjoying tea in picturesque Broadway. The S16 was piloted by Kevin Hill and Phil Ireland while I ensured the bus found each of the photo stops identified beforehand. The result was a tour of some of the best English countryside, with the S16 recorded many times showing appropriate destinations in agreeable locations.
The line-up of BCT vehicles on Birmingham Transport Day has become a BaMMOT tradition and is graced by several visiting buses, thanks to the kindness of their owners. The event on 24 June this year tried another layout but, sure enough, before the day was out the traditional line-up was recreated in the sun! A couple of visitors from the far east were quite excited when the first two buses, 1107 and 1685, were parked together. Their cameras threatened to catch fire when the third was added so I thought it safer to advise them that all the blue and cream buses were about to be parked together. I think they were impressed and, no doubt, on the far side of the globe our visitors are describing how the mad British spend their Sundays shunting elderly buses! The Birmingham Day was the one disappointing date in this year's calendar with patronage a third down on last year. Whether this was due to many enthusiasts having visited us the month before, enthusiasts becoming jaded with the event anyway, the exceptionally hot weather, Walkathon, or the Bermuda Triangle which sucks away visitors whenever we do anything at the end of June, we do not know but the other exclusively enthusiast event, the Midland Red day in October, may help us form a view.
The bus volunteers could relax a bit on 29 July when the Elmdon Model Engineering Society took central stage for the Family Day although the Scania West Midlands Hall had to be emptied to make way for garden railways. The event was further enlivened by around thirty historic Austin cars whose presence was appreciated by us all. Children were also kept occupied by a bouncy castle and face painting as well as the usual bus and miniature steam train rides.
The amount of preparation required for August Bank Holiday's Rear-Engined Rally was described last year. This year’s event combined it with a Midlands Bus Rally and Running Day, to coincide with a new Ian Allan publication, Midland Red Days. As before, Britannic Assurance plc kindly allowed us use of their car park. Having obtained this large site and arranged shuttle bus services, the Museum needs lots of visitors. Earlier Rear Engined Rallies did not disappoint in this respect but we hoped that widening the event to buses of all shapes and sizes would take advantage of the car park and shuttle bus capacity. Initial indications were not encouraging.
Bus & Coach Preservation magazine had noted poor attendances at several enthusiast events and the disappointing Birmingham Day was still on our minds. At the time of deciding whether to accommodate all the visiting buses in the Museum's grounds, it was not difficult to say yes. This was the signal for a flurry of additional entries and, in the end, it was another example of great imagination to get everybody in, which we succeeded despite unexpected vehicles on the day.
Standing loads on the first shuttle buses from the car park were the first sign that the Museum was in for a most exceptional day. Yours truly acted as a queuebuster selling straightforward admission tickets along the queue to minimise waiting times. Then a phone call came from the City Centre from a visitor concerned that a rather large number of people seemed to be waiting in Hill Street. No problem, surely, as we had dispatched a 72 seater. Nevertheless we looked at the numbers still pouring in by car and, just in case, marshalled a vehicle and crew. The call came that the D9 had failed to clear so the Trent PD2 rushed off to town to collect the remainder. So it continued all day with all departments at full stretch. The bus station we create each year for the August event coped with the eight arrivals and eight departures each hour, made more complicated by the regular changing of participating buses to give variety. Like Birmingham New Street station, the slightest hitch had the potential to block the whole place up. The closest supervision was required and Jarnes Munro deserves full credit for keeping on top of this job.
Liz Potts, as usual, had to gauge the right amount of perishables to keep the cafeteria going all day as well as handle a shortage of her own staff. The unexpected high number of visitors, needless to say, meant the cafeteria was often overwhelmed. Alex went for relief supplies of bread etc which went a long way to solving the problem. Particular thanks to those who worked so very hard in the cafeteria; it is not easy to draft in people unfamiliar with working the counter. Liz needs more help here so, if you're thinking about it, please turn your thoughts into action and let us know you are willing to help! It won't be a hard job if there's enough of us!
The shop also did enormous trade and it became clear that we were having a most exceptional day. In fact 27 August blasted all previous records, easily surpassing the record so recently set on 28 May. Thanks to everybody who worked so hard on the day - a brilliant performance. We're aware we failed in a couple of areas, due to the exceptional demand, and visitors will forgive us once. We know the problems but must ensure they are prevented in future.
Now only the Midland Red Day remains to close the 2001 season. Will it prove the Birmingham Day was a freak or are enthusiast inclined events on their way out? We shall see but can we have something less than a tempest flooding half Britain when we put the vehicles away, please?
Malcolm Keeley
Chapel Lane, Wythall, Worcs B47 6JX
Tel : 01564 826471 e-mail us
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