Those of us who stayed the night at this picturesque Derbyshire village were relieved to awake to what promised to be a lovely sunny summer day.
Already on site were Mike Sutcliffes unique collection of early 20th century buses. Eight in number, and ranging from the 1908 X type to the 1924 LB5,
Chocolate Express. As the entrants and visitors began to arrive soon after breakfast, they were treated to the colourful view of the line up of these beautifully
restored old vehicles.
As the morning progressed it became evident that the wide ranging variety of both lorries and buses were going to make this gathering the success that it obviously was,
as well as interesting to the many visitors. As expected, the lorries, 19, were outnumbered by the buses, and the one disappointment of the event was the non-appearance
of the 1968 Gas Turbine Tractor Unit, the Leyland 2S/350R, which was having engine problems. Away from the main event park were some of the other entrants,
a unique group of two Lioness's, Mr. P. Stanier's 1929 LTB1 All-Weather Coach, and Dave Berry's 1931 LTB1 of the Bristol Fire Brigade.
The only other fire engine was Terry Spalding's 1955 Titan PD2/10. Some of the older lorries on show were a 1932 Bull TSQ3 entered by John Kerr,
a 1932 Badger TA4, entered by Paul Adams, and a 1934 Beaver TSC9 entered by Keith Baron. Just by the Society's Stall was the oldest vehicle at the event,
a 1901 Experimental Colonial Steam Wagon. This is the oldest surviving Leyland Lorry and is undergoing restoration by it's owner, Mr. R. Cook of Bridgenorth, Salop.
The decision to hold the Gathering at Crich was an excellent one as it enabled our visitors and everyone else to enjoy the Tramway Village and all the facilities
that were on offer. A ride on a tram, listening to that wonderful low pitched growl, bought back memories of many a journey on Liverpool Trams way back in the
Forties. Adding another touch of realism, was Paul Wottons 1946 Beaver 121B, a loaded brewers dray, parked outside the Tramway Pub, The Red Lion.
John Woodhouse, the Society's Webmaster, bought his camera along and took many excellent photos which can be viewed by clicking here.
We would like to thank all the entrants who bought their vehicles, a lot of whom had to travel a great distance to the Gathering. We would also like to thank
Leyland Trucks Ltd., our Sponsors, The Management and Staff of the Tramway Museum at Crich, and the many others who put in a lot of work before and at
The 2008 Gathering.
Souvenir Programmes of this years Gathering are available at £3 each inc. p&p. These programmes, which are in colour, contain full history and details of all the entrants,
and are well illustrated. Contact David Bishop, cheques payable to The Leyland Society Ltd.
(Click on the small images for a full size view)
A picture of Mike Sutcliffe's 8 vehicles lined up at the Crich Gathering. (Click on it for a bigger view.)
There is a fairly comprehensive listing of the vehicles which were on show, complete with the descriptions listed in the show catalogue: click here
to see the details.
There is also a link to the Crich Tramway Village website here.
