Eskdale Dubfest 4th-6th April 2014

Was ace to see every one had a nice time on a very nice site

beakyboy wrote:

..... need a new awning and probably a windscreen !

Why?

Sorry we had to leave, muddy Alsatian on bed was the last straw !!!!. Great to see everyone,  "gin palace" will resume at next meet. Glad everyone had a good time. The site was superb, the boys from Brazil even better.  Tim & Gaynor x

no worries,hope fletcher didn't get into too much bother ,great to see you both again.Thanks for the gin   hope you had a safe journey back ,you missed all the heavy rain!!!look forward to meeting up shortly.

TimV wrote:

beakyboy wrote:

..... need a new awning and probably a windscreen !

Why?

Hi Tim , the windscreen took a very large stone on the M6 , I'll get it looked at, Daz thinks it maybe just repairable , the drive away awning I brought prior to joining the forum can't cope with heavy rain... It took on so much Saturday night it almost collapsed , poles split and we feared it could have taken the gutter with it as was attached by a pole and clamps to van.. Time for a Kyham or blow up Vango possibly.. Will load a couple of pics a bit later...

Oh dear - unfortunately this does happen all too often because of the rake of the screen and obviously because it's right up front. You may well find the chip can be glued and it will all but disappear. If not you'll need a new heated screen via one of our advertisers. - but only when you get to MOT time so you've got a while!

Increasingly I'm becoming disillusioned with attaching any awning to my camper. I just can't be bothered with the anxiety associated with either wind or rain potentially causing damage to the bodywork. Sure an awning is invaluable for storage and effectively creating a covered room for you to use, but having had use of a Coleman Event Shelter for a couple of years now, that works better for me generally.

Here's a snap of the windscreen and the awning , think we were lucky not to have lost the gutters really!! We had forgotten about the Coleman Event Shelter so will have a look those too.. Am hoping the windscreen can be bonded , hasn't spidered too much!

Those gutters are made of sturdy stuff!

Probably more likely to split the seams attaching the tunnel to the main awning than doing any harm to the gutters. What type of awning is/was it?

We have a large awning (not a Kyham) that has been used in all weathers and performed well although after 3 years it does now have a split pole - gaffer tape to the rescue - that will be replaced when needed.

That said, we didn't use it at all last year - it did go out on hire a couple of times - opting for our sun canopy and windbreak party zone instead.

Not helped when my flag pole fell on beakyboy's awning during the night   

Boy, was it windy on Saturday night...

Martin the flag pole had no bearing on events so please don't think it did,  , the awning wasn't really fit for purpose it was a "I haven't got a clue purchase" and did us for our first two years so didn't owe us anything…

We've got an orange party zone Keith too but thinking I still need that second option really with the great british weather, three options to consider the Kyham , Blow up awning or the Coleman , great that I can get all the advice I need right here...

I slept like a baby Saturday night , didn't hear a thing (and i didn't touch the Whisky!) , Jo woke me at half six saying 'I think you need to go outside, somethings just happened!!!"….

Just had an interesting conversation with a lady at Autoglass (Aviva's partner) telling me I need a new windscreen before they've even looked at it , think she got the hump when I asked to speak to a classic vehicle specialist , am awaiting a call back now……..

beakyboy wrote:

Just had an interesting conversation with a lady at Autoglass (Aviva's partner) telling me I need a new windscreen before they've even looked at it , think she got the hump when I asked to speak to a classic vehicle specialist , am awaiting a call back now……..

If you need a new screen, you'll need a heated one to keep your BraziBay stock. The heated screens are slightly narrower so need to be centred accurately in the rubber. I suggest you contact either Danbury or VW Kampers with regard to fitting a new one as not only do you want it fitted by a company used to doing these screens, they also need to be familiar with the electrical connections. This shouldn't affect your insurance company's remit of paying for the supply/fit of the screen with you covering the excess.

A very early date for your diaries:

Tweet from the Eskdale Site:

Eskdale Dubfest 2014 ‏@ESKDALEDUBFEST 41m

Date has been chosen for our second Eskdale dubfest 2015....... is....17/18 April 2015 you can book from November 2014.

It's a bit difficult to see from your photo, beakyboy, but it looks like the damage is on the passenger side. If it is, this government guideline may be of interest. I think the criteria is if the damage is greater than 10mm in zone A, or 40mm in zone B it can be a MOT failure.

MOT Windscreen Guidelines

A massive thank you Absinthe for finding this for us - a great weekend even if it was a trifle moist!

Liz has pulled her finger out today to get her photos organised, they are here for those who wish to see:  Eskdale Photos

A date for next year already? - can't wait...  

A more pleasant lady phoned back and I informed her that if a new one was required and apparently it will as it's a double hit that I wanted it replaced by Danbury or VWK and she took their details and am awaiting a call back..Will keep you informed guys, just going to look at Liz's photos.

A great (if not soggy!) weekend - really pleased we went.  The site will be ideal for a quick getaway in future as not too far from us, only 3.5 hours     Unfortunately we didn't arrive until dark on Friday evening, past Sellafield as the sun was setting.......at least I think it was the sun, there was a definate glow!

Here's a few of our pics.















Saw this on the way home....not sure what it was, but it made the rain feel warmer  


Good to catch up with folks again, looking forward to the next one!

Roobarb wrote:

Liz has pulled her finger out today to get her photos organised, they are here for those who wish to see:  Eskdale Photos

Lovely set of pics Liz, as ever.   

Great pictures from everyone , def caught the weekend weather, good job it didn't do the normal Lakeland rain!!!  lovely to see every one again,we enjoyed it regardless of the weather.Good to hear all got home ok.see you all soon

The Blog's done - many thanks to everyone who attended at the weekend - despite the weather we had a great time and it was brilliant to catch up with everyone after a winter of hibernation. Roll on the Sleepover.

The Blog's here and a full set of pics (not all my own!) here.

Good times doo not rely on the Sun - FAB words and pics  

Scooby wrote:

Good times doo not rely on the Sun - FAB words and pics  

I agree with Scooby - look like you has a great weekend despite the inclement weather -great pics - great vans

Fame at last:

Camping and Caravanning Club Magazine - June



© The Camping and Caravanning Club

Also centre spread in SAGA magazine

MarcusH wrote:

Also centre spread in SAGA magazine

LOL - I'm their current pin-up!