East Anglian Model Railway Exhibition March 10/11 2018

[sharkman]

I arrived at the overflow car park at 13.30. The was a large queue of very cold and damp people waiting for a small mini-bus to depart. It was clear that I could expect a long wait in the rain before getting a seat on the bus, so I decided to drive around the car park (which is itself a building site) and go home.

Non too impressed, sorry.

We arrived at the overflow car park at about 11.30 and again was none to impressed with the que so decided that we would go home again which was a shame. As we returned i suggested we check the actual entrance again and low and behold we where let in and found a spot not a 100 yards from main door - RESULT.

 

We stayed till about 3 - great show it was worth checking the entrance again.

Edited March 10, 2018 by sharkman

[RichardS]

How far is it from the overspill car-park to the arena? I saw 700 yds mentioned earlier. How accurate is that figure? It doesn't seem that far to walk (I realise some would not be able to manage this distance if they have mobility or other health problems)

[stewartingram]

I arrived at the overflow car park at 13.30. The was a large queue of very cold and damp people waiting for a small mini-bus to depart. It was clear that I could expect a long wait in the rain before getting a seat on the bus, so I decided to drive around the car park (which is itself a building site) and go home.

Non too impressed, sorry.

 

And the Highways Agency banned people from walking out of the car park for H&S reasons, no hi-vis worn! I heard the message over the radio so got back in the car and drove back to the main car park. To top it all, after being waved in by the first steward, the second one said "You can't park here, you have to go to the overflow park".

A few cross words were spoken, as I was leaving to go away instead, I spied a space & parked so got to the show instead - glad I did.

 

Stewart

[John K]

The Exhibition Manager has asked me to post:

Huge apologies to people who had to wait longer than expected in the overflow car park for the shuttle bus transfers. By lunchtime we swapped the 19-seater for a full sized coach and we will have the big coach doing transfers tomorrow to prevent a recurrence of the problem. We are grateful to those who were patient whilst we have had these issues and we welcome the people who will be coming to see us tomorrow.

Edited March 10, 2018 by John K

[mike morley]

I've always been on a Sunday before and I wondered what I was in for, with Mother's Day commitments forcing a Saturday visit this year.  I arrived at lunchtime to find the main car park full but instead of being turned away like last year (when I had to park in the lay-by a quarter of a mile up the road and squelch my way back along the verge) I was directed to what appeared to be the staff car park, where there were plenty of free spaces.  There were even more free spaces available in the supposedly full main car park that I walked past on my way to the entrance.

I'm not going to complain about that - the members of the St Neots club are railway modellers, not car-park attendants - but I do question the right of the Highway Agency to threaten to close the exhibiton (which I understand happened at one point) and ban people from walking along a public highway!

[John K]

I spend my life telling people to come on Sunday.

The real problem was last week’s snow which stopped the spiking of the over flow car park fields on the Wood Green site.

[PhilJ W]

We arrived at 11.30 but could not get into the show until an hour later. This was of course due to having to use the overflow car park. Turning round and going home was not an option as we had spent over two hours getting there and the trip was a 10th birthday treat for the youngest of our group. I couldn't have walked 7 yards let alone 700 anyway. I thought the show was very good with excellent layouts and a good and varied selection of traders.

[Guest Digital]

“The Sidings” all set up and ready to go. Great venue and a good day out for the modeller and family.

John.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Edited March 11, 2018 by Digital

[chrisf]

I attended on Saturday, arriving earlier than planned because I had factored in time for delay from the new A14 roadworks.  I therefore experienced no trouble with car parking and sympathise both with those who did and the organisers.

 

I thought the mix of trade good.  My shopping list was short and, as it transpired, incomplete.  This left plenty of time to view the layouts and meet'n'greet and there were plenty of opportunities for the latter.   Of the layouts, I was drawn to several.  I do not go out of my way to view European or transcontinental outline layouts but Peter and John Smith's Eu caught my eye.  I do not recall having seen a French loco depot before.  The use of 7mm brings out the best in massive French steam power and the gentle curve is such a refreshing change which shows a bit of imagination.  Sticking with 7mm, The Summit, by Yeovil MRG, drew plenty of attention.  Some of the locos were making valiant but not entirely succcessful attempts to ascend the noticeable gradient, which I hope was designed into the layout and not a consequence of the soft floor which lurks beneath the emerald green carpet.  I was taken with the milk train but have to say that my admittedly hazy memory of milk tanks recalls them in crud livery which made it impossible to discern the name of the owner.  The Sidings, a compact loco stabling point in OO shown by RMwebber Nick G, impressed.  Less is often more and such was the case here.  No loco shed, a fence, lighting portraying twilight, buffer stops of a contemporary design and careful attention to small detail all reflected careful planning well executed.  EM was represented by Dave Tailby's Friday Bridge, his minimum space depiction of the Wisbech and Upwell complete with Drewry shunters and their cowcatchers.  Dave is a past master at making the most of a shunting plank scenario and of capturing the atmosphere of where it is supposed to be.  Sidmouth by Richard Harper flew the flag for P4.  I make no secret of my admiration for this layout and took the opportunity to congratulate its builder on winning the Railway Modeller cup.  Spirit of Swindon by Will Heath showed once again the advantage of N gauge in a panoramic situation.  The Mayor liked it!

 

I did not sample the restaurant but the meals on offer appeared to be sensibly priced.  The opportunity to buy tea and coffee from happy humans just outside the hall was a welcome alternative to paying twice the price and having to operate the machine oneself.  This practice has now spread to Wetherspoons so I guess resistance is futile.

 

For those who don't know, the venue is being redeveloped so the show is resting in 2019.  Let us hope that the organisers are able to find a suitable venue for 2020 and beyond.

 

Chris  

[stewartingram]

I attended on Saturday, arriving earlier than planned because I had factored in time for delay from the new A14 roadworks.  I therefore experienced no trouble with car parking and sympathise both with those who did and the organisers.

 

I thought the mix of trade good.  My shopping list was short and, as it transpired, incomplete.  This left plenty of time to view the layouts and meet'n'greet and there were plenty of opportunities for the latter.   Of the layouts, I was drawn to several.  I do not go out of my way to view European or transcontinental outline layouts but Peter and John Smith's Eu caught my eye.  I do not recall having seen a French loco depot before.  The use of 7mm brings out the best in massive French steam power and the gentle curve is such a refreshing change which shows a bit of imagination.  Sticking with 7mm, The Summit, by Yeovil MRG, drew plenty of attention.  Some of the locos were making valiant but not entirely succcessful attempts to ascend the noticeable gradient, which I hope was designed into the layout and not a consequence of the soft floor which lurks beneath the emerald green carpet.  I was taken with the milk train but have to say that my admittedly hazy memory of milk tanks recalls them in crud livery which made it impossible to discern the name of the owner.  The Sidings, a compact loco stabling point in OO shown by RMwebber Nick G, impressed.  Less is often more and such was the case here.  No loco shed, a fence, lighting portraying twilight, buffer stops of a contemporary design and careful attention to small detail all reflected careful planning well executed.  EM was represented by Dave Tailby's Friday Bridge, his minimum space depiction of the Wisbech and Upwell complete with Drewry shunters and their cowcatchers.  Dave is a past master at making the most of a shunting plank scenario and of capturing the atmosphere of where it is supposed to be.  Sidmouth by Richard Harper flew the flag for P4.  I make no secret of my admiration for this layout and took the opportunity to congratulate its builder on winning the Railway Modeller cup.  Spirit of Swindon by Will Heath showed once again the advantage of N gauge in a panoramic situation.  The Mayor liked it!

 

I did not sample the restaurant but the meals on offer appeared to be sensibly priced.  The opportunity to buy tea and coffee from happy humans just outside the hall was a welcome alternative to paying twice the price and having to operate the machine oneself.  This practice has now spread to Wetherspoons so I guess resistance is futile.

 

For those who don't know, the venue is being redeveloped so the show is resting in 2019.  Let us hope that the organisers are able to find a suitable venue for 2020 and beyond.

 

Chris  

 

Not so sure about the resting of the show next year. I'm not able to divulge anything, I'm not a club member, but I did hear from a good friend that "hopefully something is in the pipeline". If what he says is true, then it should be a great venue and larger!. So don't despair too much, hopefully it will happen.

As a first time visitor to the show, I have to say that it is the most enjoyable show I have visited in a long time. Good & large selection of layouts, excellent varied trade support, and a very relaxed exhibition. I shall go again!

 

Stewart 

[Tony Davis]

After reading the comments about the parking situation yesterday and the queues etc I nearly gave up on my plans to attend today, glad I didn't. The traffic on the journey there was a lot lighter than it is when I go to Addenbrookes (which is usually a week-day), so that put me in a good mood for a start, then, although I parked in the "wrong place", it turned out to be in sight of the entrance so well done me for getting it wrong. No queues for tickets and all the layouts and vendors easily accessable. Had a great time there, overcame my usualy reluctance to talk to the exhibitors and was well rewarded. Had a great time talking to Dave Tailby about "Friday Bridge", lovely little layout and the main reason I attended. Got some personal soldering tuition and some ideas on how to build coaches. Managed to spend only £40 and had a pleasant drive home. Had a chat with the chap manning the feedback box, asked him about next year and he said they had been looking for an alternative venue since August last year, with no joy so far. Shame that as I would definitely return next year.

[Geoff Endacott]

I can sympathise with the car parking problems. Trainwest moved from Chippenham after the overflow car park became a housing estate. It then moved from Melksham when the car park became a factory. Now we are in Corsham there are not yet any plans to build on the car park, but with the local authority charging us £400 to use what is essentially a field, they are doing very nicely as it is.

 

Geoff Endacott

Edited March 11, 2018 by Geoff Endacott

[Guest Digital]

Back home in North Wales after an excellent weekend helping operating "The Sidings". Many thanks to all the hard working team at the exhibition who made us very welcome. Thanks to the catering staff as well who provided excellent food through the weekend.

John

[Nick G]

  The Sidings, a compact loco stabling point in OO shown by RMwebber Nick G, impressed.  Less is often more and such was the case here.  No loco shed, a fence, lighting portraying twilight, buffer stops of a contemporary design and careful attention to small detail all reflected careful planning well executed. 

 

 

Thanks for your kind comments Chris.

[Lodekka]

I arrived at the overflow car park at 13.30. The was a large queue of very cold and damp people waiting for a small mini-bus to depart. It was clear that I could expect a long wait in the rain before getting a seat on the bus, so I decided to drive around the car park (which is itself a building site) and go home.

Non too impressed, sorry.

Sir, sorry to hear that you felt the need to go home again immediately after arriving at the venue. As the driver of the preserved bus operating the station shuttle,it seems you perhaps were a little to impatient... maybe you could have waited in your vehicle until the shuttle arrived.

 

Just for clarification of what transpired, and to bolster the event organisers efforts at resolving a situation that developed.

This what happened from my perspective...

 

The bus was providing the rail station connection.

There was a 19 seat minibus laid (no doubt at originally unplanned additional cost to the show organisers) to provide the link to the overflow car parking in the A14 compound because of the waterlogged secondary car park at the main site.

This operated during the morning and indeed struggled to cope with the larger than expected visitors arriving simultaneously.

 

As soon it was realised that the minibus was not coping with the numbers of people , the driver returned to his depot and fetched a large coach to provide greater capacity. Whilst this was taking place, the bus from the rail station took over and cleared the backlog in one journey (incidentally, the crew of which gave up their break period to provide the support until the shuttle coach returned)...

 

This was around the time you suggested, so it looks like you were unfortunate.

 

The larger coach coped well for the rest of the day and on the Sunday, again with a couple of additional trips from our vehicle.

 

Just for the record, we maintained all our advertised service times in addition to this.

 

The St.Neots team should be congratulated in coping with the situation in a responsive manner as it developed.

I`m sure they have learned from this unexpected consequence of being popular and will factor it into any future show planning provision.

 

This was a very good show with some stunning layouts, so sorry that you missed it.

[10sidmouth]

On behalf of the Sidmouth team I would like to thank all the Exhibition organising staff for making us feel so welcome, for assisting us unstintingly with unload and load duties and for being so willing to ensure everything went smoothly for us. We all enjoyed the catering too.  Wonderful weekend, thank you. Richard

[PenrithBeacon]

Sir, sorry to hear that you felt the need to go home again immediately after arriving at the venue. As the driver of the preserved bus operating the station shuttle,it seems you perhaps were a little to impatient... maybe you could have waited in your vehicle until the shuttle arrived.

 

Just for clarification of what transpired, and to bolster the event organisers efforts at resolving a situation that developed.

This what happened from my perspective...

 

The bus was providing the rail station connection.

There was a 19 seat minibus laid (no doubt at originally unplanned additional cost to the show organisers) to provide the link to the overflow car parking in the A14 compound because of the waterlogged secondary car park at the main site.

This operated during the morning and indeed struggled to cope with the larger than expected visitors arriving simultaneously.

 

As soon it was realised that the minibus was not coping with the numbers of people , the driver returned to his depot and fetched a large coach to provide greater capacity. Whilst this was taking place, the bus from the rail station took over and cleared the backlog in one journey (incidentally, the crew of which gave up their break period to provide the support until the shuttle coach returned)...

 

This was around the time you suggested, so it looks like you were unfortunate.

 

The larger coach coped well for the rest of the day and on the Sunday, again with a couple of additional trips from our vehicle.

 

Just for the record, we maintained all our advertised service times in addition to this.

 

The St.Neots team should be congratulated in coping with the situation in a responsive manner as it developed.

I`m sure they have learned from this unexpected consequence of being popular and will factor it into any future show planning provision.

 

This was a very good show with some stunning layouts, so sorry that you missed it.

I wasn’t at the railway station as I made clear in my post.

 

I have no doubt that the show was a good one and I look forward to the next at a new venue.

[PhilJ W]

The driver of the shuttle bus from the car park should also be complimented for his efforts. I found him to be helpful and friendly even under very trying circumstances. A thank you passed on to the coach company would not go amiss.

[Lodekka]

I wasn’t at the railway station as I made clear in my post.

I have no doubt that the show was a good one and I look forward to the next at a new venue.

Sorry, perhaps I was not quite clear either...

 

I was operating the station shuttle, BUT at the time you mentioned, I was assisting in clearing the queue at the A14 overflow car park with our double decker and was simply pointing out that unfortunately you had perhaps just left for home as larger vehicles took over this service and cleared the backlog.

 

Just a shame it happened the way it did, as soon as the event organisers became aware of the problem, there were efforts in place to resolve it.

 

Best regards and we hope to be able to offer you a suitable lift another time...

[George Woodcock]

Hello

 

    Thanks to all at St Neots MRC for putting on an excellent show and looking after us so well. Shame the venue is to close but I'm sure something will turn up. Also thanks to all the people who said nice things about Fenchurch St Peter, we are glad you enjoyed it.

 

                                                                                   Cheers

 

                                                                                        George

[John K]

Good news.

The Wood Green venue is now closed, but the show will go on.

 

We have secured the 22,000sq ft Arena Sports at Kettering and the Show will be moving to the Summer

 

 

The dates for 2019 are June 8/9th

 

John K

Edited September 6, 2018 by John K