On Sunday 25th August I visited the rally at Onslow Park.
I last visited the event a long time ago, it must be between 15 - 20 years. In recent years I have thought it was about time I went again but have been put off by reports of traffic problems in the area. Unfortunately, this was very much the case on Sunday morning. With about 4 miles to go, it was stop - start, with the emphasis on stop. It took well over one hour to cover this distance. I am not sure what caused the disruption but I don't think it was people heading for the rally - for the last half mile or so the traffic was at normal speed and there was not a queue for the car park.
The rally itself was absolutely brilliant, lots of engines, many different types, a fantastic location with some beautiful trees and an overall really good atmosphere. I saw lots of people I know, some I have not seen for quite a few years and it was really good to see them again. No name no pack drill but I would like to thank the people who let me sit down in the shade for a while, it was very much appreciated. And apologies for the sense of humour, especially the bit about unsuitable clothing worn by some women at rallies - eek!!!
I took lots of photographs, although it was not until mid-afternoon that I felt the sun was in the right place. Below are a few from the rally. As usual, they have been cropped to improve composition and they are all deliberately over exposed to show a level of detail in the shadows. This is at the cost of loosing the foreground in the picture - in some cases the grass in front of an engine has almost become white. All of the photos I take at an event of this nature are for possible use in the creation of artwork, so the foreground and background do not matter.
I have an idea for a new pencil drawing which will depict a Fowler road loco on haulage work in WW1. I want to have the engine fairly standard - perhaps a requisitioned example that has been repainted and possibly a larger toolbox added. Among these photos there are two possibilities, the Coulson class B5 and the black road loco called Ajax. This is a class A9 and was built in the early 1920's so technically it is too late to be the correct engine. But, I have some photos of a class A7 road loco which I like very much but they were taken many years ago and the camera was not as good as the one I have now. So, can I ask if there are any knowledgeable Fowler members - how would the A7 and A9 differ - and is the overall size and proportion the same? The first thing I noticed was the length of the smokebox on this engine - it is long compared to the A7. It would be quite easy to change it to the shorter version though. Any input on whether this engine could be easily changed into an A7 will be very much appreciated. My idea is a good one - and I want to crack on with turning it into a drawing.
Michael
