a fairground life (roofing2)

All the lorry roof on the show has been replaced with new 18mm plywood. It should last longer than the previously used "chipboard". The sheets were attached today in a couple of hours. The only hiccup was when I forgot what I was doing, missed my stepping and put a foot and leg through the thin fibreglass sheeting I was covering. I fell through the roof up to my right thigh. No injuries luckily but it did put another 30 mins on the job while I repaired it with fibre glass patches and resin. The rain came shortly afterward and that was the sign to knock off. If it's dry tomorrow I will get it painted ready to re attach the inflatable top.

a fairground life (roofing)

The music event was better than last years episode. No doubt due to the change in layout. All went off without any hitches. We left the ride on site until the next day before we moved to the yard. I did pick up that new footbrake valve and although it was the correct one there had been a mix up with the pricing and it cost a bit more than quoted. A genuine mistake. I have moved the show into Glasgow to do some repair work. The roof is leaking and needs re-covered with ply wood. It was originally done in chipboard which has now turned to mush. It is probably about a weeks work but I'm sure I can spin it out a bit longer. Did do a couple of hours graft today removing most of the chipboard and taking it to the re-cycling depot. Will arrange for materials to be delivered on Monday to carry on with the job.

a fairground life (friday the 13th aaaaaaargh!))

I didn't realise the date until a friend give me a call and reminded me. That was after he passed me on the side of the road while I was sitting in the back of a Police car. Oh I wasn't auditioning for Britain's most wanted or doing anything wrong, it was just time to pay my "Vanity Tax". You know, the fee you pay when you are booked for tweeking you private reg with the strategic placement of the fastening screw head. So there I was being told by the officer how my number plate could not be read by an automated camera because of that rouge screw head. However it did strike me funny that at 90 mph, on a dark road, in rain that same camera could read a similar number plate with correctly positioned screw heads, AMAZING! So £30 quid later my vanity tax is up to date and I'm on my way again. The day got worse from there. The Backflash lights on the miami just tripped off every time I tried to put them on and the strobe light had lost its flicker, frozen on like a solid xeon (pronounced zenon) spotlight. Many hours later and I finally got some backflash illumination working by removing all the fuses and replacing them one by one to track down the culprit channel. This was of course after climbing all around the ride and inspecting all possible connections, plugs, wiring etc etc to no avail. So 5 out of 6 channels will have to do for tomorrow night. As for the strobe, I took it home and thawed it out on the hall radiator. Its working for the moment but time will tell. On a positive note I did get that wiper blade fitted, the hinge repaired and ordered the foot brake valve. I hope its the right one.

a fairground life (start again)

 I went and picked up the miami from the yard this morning and moved it to the music event venue. On arrival at the yard the snow was falling heavier, or at least seemed to be as it was 1/4 of an inch thick already. This was probably due to the ground being frozen from previous days and not receiving the benefit of salt from any gritters. This give me a sense of urgency to get moving and a perception that the conditions were worse than they actually were. The lorry batteries were low even though I had removed a battery terminal three weeks ago. It must have helped though as they only needed the charger on for a few moments before the engine grunted into life.

The icy conditions made my fingers so cold that I drove with my elbows and kept my hands clasped over the wheel. One wiper blade tore a bit as I switched them on. I was nearly half way through my journey before I noticed that the heater fan was switched OFF. Any how on arrival at site the snow had turned to fine rain. I got the ride set on position and started to erect it. A heavy down pour, broken hinge, loose wire and two hours later I was built up. It amazes me every time how you can pack something away perfect but when you bring it back out there is a list of repairs. Tomorrow I will repair the hinge and change the wiper blade. I hope the weather clears for the weekend but I think its gonna get worse. (there's a thing, my spell checker recognises the word "gonna"???? between texting and American Microsoft spell checking the written English language has no chance. No wonder the kids today can't spell. In fact they can't count either. It surprises, NO!, it P's me off every time they hand me a hand full of coins and ask, "mister do I have enough to get on?" and that is from teenagers!) Any way I'm glad to have done a bit of graft today, hopefully I will get a goods night kip from it.