Yorkshire Military Vehicle Trust - 2016 'Crank Up'

Here in the UK, the Yorkshire Military Vehicle Trust (MVT) had its annual 'Crank Up' event in the middle of York on Sun 17th April.  Different location this year, down by the river in the Castle Gardens.

The weather gods smiled upon on our gathering and although it was cold, we had sun for much of the day.  My truck developed a miss-fire on the way, but a change of condenser sorted the snag out (thankfully).

Here's a few pictures of the event. Including motorcyles there were 80+ vehicles there. 5 CCKWs made it along.  Standout vehicle for me (apart from the the CCKWs of course) was a Humber 'Pig' with its 4.2 litre Rolls-Royce engine - I'd love to own one.

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Great vehicle this Humber Pig.
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View of the 4.2 litres (petrol) engine.
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Good view of the RPG screens.
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Dodge.
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Replica of a US Fast Attack vehicle.  Looks a lot better than it sounds ! LOL
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Landrover
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Hillman staff car.
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Hillman staff car interior.
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My friend Chris and jeep with my godson Gareth.
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Morris quad tractor.
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Reo, CCKW and Dodge.
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Reo
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Dodge.
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CCKW 353.
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CCKW 353.
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Stalwart.
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CCKW 353.
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Cliffords Tower
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A geese family, there were several around hissing at us if we went too close ! :)
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33 keeps came along.
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Outings In The Truck

These last four weeks have seen quite a bit of activity with the CCKW truck.  The first outing was to attend the Yorkshire Military Vehicle Trust 'Crank-Up' event at Cliffords Tower here in York.  A very respectable turn-out this year of over 60 vehicles made for an impressive display in front of the Museum.

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The next outings have seen the truck help to pay some of its way.  We've been redesigning the front and back gardens and ended up with about 3 ton of top-soil and turf to dispose of.  Rather than hire a skip, I bagged it up and did three trips to the recycling centre.

Wife and child were press-ganged into assisting :)
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The last outing which was yesterday saw us attend the 'Battlegroup North' event at the Yorkshire Air Museum at Elvington.  Approximately 200 vehicles made for a fine display, but the weather was decidedly mixed.  Snapped a coulple of interesting photos which I share here.  First up we have an incredibly tasteful Dodge Command Car. I really really like these.
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My old school friend Chris Jenkins and his two sons Graham and Gareth helped crew a 25pdr field gun that was putting on a fine display (in the rain).
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After the shooting was over the gun owner kindly lent me it for a photo shoot with the truck.  An enjoyable day all in all.
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Yorhshire MVT - 'Crank-up' Event

Went along on Sunday to the first event of the year for the Yorkshire branch of the Military Vehicle Trust (MVT). Held at Cliffords Tower in York, it was a bit of Jeep fest it has to be said, however my CCKW brought a touch of class to the event :) The three M35 Reo (trucks) were a revelation to me in how great the engines sounded, with the Turbos whistling away. Fabulous ! I really want one !
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From Wargaming BLOG Photos

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RAF Glatton Memorial Road Run

As the secretary for my local branch of the Military Vehicle Trust (MVT) one of my duties is to write up a report on the activities of our Huntingdon Area for inclusion in the quarterly club magazine 'Windscreen'.  I thought I would share part of the article here on my Blog which pertains to a recent road run we did :)
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After the enjoyable time had on our May road run our second run of the year scheduled for 16 Sep was much looked forward to.  Fortunately the gods smiled upon our endeavours and extended the good weather experienced in early Sep up to that weekend.  Meeting up again at a start location near Kings Ripton in Cambridgeshire we doubled our previous numbers and gathered together 14 vehicles and 29 people for our trip which we grandly entitled ‘The Glatton Memorial Road Run’.  After a driver briefing given by our event organiser Andy Miller we hit the public roads in convoy at around 13:00.  Setting off was one of the moments in the day that I wish we could have bottled, as the organised chaos that ensured as we pulled out was just brilliant.  Heading initially south west we joined the old A1 near Alconbury where we turn north and after a couple of miles stopped for fuel and air at a convenient petrol station.  Our convoy of 3 Jeeps, an Austin Champ, 2 Land Rovers, a 1942 Harley-Davidson Motorcycle, a Dodge WC52, a monster 12 ton URAL truck and 5 GMC CCKWs (one of which had a M45 Quadmount in the back) made an impressive sight and had other motorists stopping and taking photos and turning round and driving back past for another look.

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Continuing north we stopped at the Memorial to the 457thBombardment Group (H) which commemorates the 86 aircraft and 718 men who were KIA/MIA or POW during operations in 1944/45.  

After paying our respects we laid a card with the following poem written by one of our members Andrew Griffiths.

Job done, all missions flown
Most went home, home sweet home.
Loved ones waited fear in heart
Never again would be apart.

For some the wait was not to cease
It was those who would feel no peace
Where their loved ones once stood, today we stand
Thanking them for our peaceful land.

A debt is owed we cannot repay
But we didn’t forget,
We came today.

May God Bless all those souls that fought for freedom and paid with the ultimate sacrifice.
You are not forgotten.

Your friends from the Huntingdon & District Military Vehicles Trust
16th September 2012.

Remounting we turn east and headed through Conington village and then travelled down a public road that used to be the SW/NE runway of RAF Glatton.  At the end of this we pulled into Peterborough Conington Airport which operates from one the remaining runways, and parked up by prior arrangement by the windsock for a photo call, and a welcome cup of tea for those who wanted one in their café.  

Continuing on, no sooner had we set off than a potential problem with the route became apparent. A tiny bridge with a 5 ton weight limit presented a challenge to our 12 ton Ural, 
but after considering the position we proceeded on the basis that the vehicle was so large and the bridge so small only one axle would be on it at any one time!  The last half of our journey took us through the outskirts of Holme village after which we broke into open fenlands for the run into Ramsey and the WW2 Militia Camp which was our destination.  The custodians kindly opened up their NAAFI facilities for tea and coffee and our happy band finished off the day with a picnic tea. All in all a terrific day with lots going on, and accordingly lots to enjoy. The entertaining route worked well with RAF Glatton providing a great focus for the whole event.
Plans for the future over the winter months include a X-Mas/New Year road run and a late X-Mas / First Area Anniversary meal in early Jan.

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Huntingdon Area MVT - Spring Road Run

Our MVT area group conducted its first road-run on Sunday 20th May. We had initially planned to stage the run on the 28 Apr, but due to bad weather we postponed, hoping for better in May. Well, it was better in as much as it wasn’t freezing cold and hammering it down, but it was heavily overcast, and pretty cold it has to be said.
The initial plans had 11 vehicles in the run, but then 2 dropped out due to conflicting commitments, and on the day another 2 suffered mechanical problems and so were unable to make it to the start location near Kings Ripton. The ‘magnificent seven’ for the run comprised of 2 x Jeeps, 1 x CCKW 353, 1 x CCKW 352, 2 x Landrover FFRs, and last but not least, a rare Dodge WC63. In addition to the 7 drivers, 4 friends and family crewed along with 1 one hound (Albert). Two support vehicles carried another 5 people including the official trip photographer.

Setting off at 13:00 a series of back roads over a course of 10 miles brought the convoy to its first halt at ‘The George’ pub in Spaldwick.
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A 40 minute refreshment break allowed those souls in the more exposed vehicles to regain a semblance of blood supply to their extremities.
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The second and last part of the journey over a further 10 miles involved some challenging narrow and twisty lanes (especially for the larger vehicles) for about 8 miles before we broke out into more open terrain for the final run into RAF Little Staughton, arriving around 15:15. Following an undercover barbecue tea, people headed off home around 16:30.
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A good day overall, and we will be definitely doing another, perhaps in September.
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MVT Area Meeting + Truck Problem

The MVT Area meeting I wrote about on the 12th Jan went ahead, and was quite a success I feel with 26 (including myself) turning up. Ratified a constitution and talked about forthcoming events (shows and the like) along with ideas for a 'Spring Run' out in our vehicles. Talking of which the group owns a real mix, with a varied range of Jeeps, CCKWs, Motorbikes, Landrovers, FV432s, and some ex Warsaw Pact Russian stuff. On a personal note when I last took the truck out it didn't warm up at all, so, suspecting a problem with the Thermostat, I bought a replacement one this last week along with a new top hose.
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Attempting to fit it this weekend, I discovered why the truck has been running cold in this cold weather.... there was no Thermostat fitted !!! :(
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The question gentlemen, is why....? Currently seeking advise from those in the know on the HMV Forum, as the new thermostat doesn't seem to fit very well, and I don't want to bolt the Thermostat Bell Housing down until I've sussed things out.

Inaugural Meeting Of The Huntingdon & District Area of the Military Vehicle Trust (MVT)

Regular follows of my ramblings will know I purchased my WW2 CCKW 352 in the end of July last year. At the time I joined the Military Vehicle Trust (MVT), which is as the name suggests, is a club for military vehicle owners/enthusiasts. The Trust has a network of area groups dotted all over the country, however where I live seems to be somewhat of a black spot without a group within easy travelling distance. Anyway, I've stuck my head up above the parapet and started a local group. Our inaugural meeting is 19:30 tonight at the Montague Club in Huntingdon. I sent out 57 letters to people within a 40 mile radius just before X-Mas, and thus far about 20 have responded to say they will be along tonight. It will be interesting to see how many actually turn up...

Military & Flying Machines Show - 7 Aug 2011

Yesterday I went to the Military & Flying Machines Show near Upminster organised by the Military Vehicle Trust (MVT). With flying displays, 200 military vehicles and 30 plus groups of Re-enactors, plus Militaria stalls, it felt like a scaled down version of the War And Peace Show. Personally that suited me fine, as War And Peace is such a big event, to do it justice you need to be there a couple of days. The Upminster event was large enough to show a bit of everything without wearing you out in the process. I thoroughly enjoyed the day, and will certainly consider going back next year, probably with my GMC 352. Here is a short video I took of the armour in attendance. The video does not do justice to the condition of the M18 Hellcat which was simply stunning.
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Talking of the 352, when it rained here last week the cab roof leaked as did one of the doors. I plan to sort the door out in the short term, but in the interim I bought an old army tent for £15 at the show, and have draped it over the cab.
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