[Gordon Bennett]

Russ, this is how it panned out for myself. The first I knew about the SODEM road run taking place near to Hook Norton this year, was reading a thread in Discussions posted by Colin (Pedlers Mate). Collin asked where was it being held this year and Trystan posted a reply.

I started a new thread asking for times and in my post I said people can PM me if they preferred to do that. I had a couple of messages from people I know in the world of road steam and I felt I had enough info to make it worth going. On the day, when I was in the area, it took a while to find where everyone was. I had a rough idea of the routes and had made notes on an old OS map. I had a bit of luck as well; there was a group of men, all with cameras and where they were located there was enough room for me to safely park my car. This I did and I introduced myself to them... Anyone on here could do all of this up to this point, but the next part is unique to myself.

When I tell people I am Gordon Bennett off T-T, more often than not they say to me "you are the artist". Once a conversation has started and everyone is at ease, then it is easy to ask questions like "where are the engines?" or "what is the plan for today?". Most people are aware of my illness so they know what the score is when they meet me. On Saturday, once I knew where the engines were, it was a case of finding somewhere to photograph them, which I was able to do several times.

I would add that I found the day enjoyable but tiring. I will not repeat the exercise on my own again as it took too long to get back to what is now normal for me. I do get a little frustrated when my illness stops me from working on my artwork - and being tired makes my condition worse.

I agree with Adrian totally - it would be good if members shared any info they had as to where engines will be. In fact, I will start the ball rolling...

On Thursday 29th November there is Warwick Victorian Evening, held in the town center. Among the attractions listed on the website are traction engines, traditional steam-powered carousel and a Victorian Ferris wheel. It also mentions fairground organs but hey, you can't have everything... I know nothing about the event so if anyone plans to travel to see engines, I suggest they find out more for themselves, perhaps contacting the organisers is the best idea.

Michael