Sunday was a chilled out day, the sunshine helped dry out all of the camping equipment while some of carried out repairs ready for the journey home.
Yes, Simon TMT with support from son Alex worked hard at getting Roger’s rear difflock disengaged, no easy task.
Simon also helped me clear areas of lovely fresh cowpats when we first arrived, cows this year not sheep had been in the field.
First time Alex (as a driver) proved his Subaru could match a Syncro, albeit maybe not for towing others out.
Gotta say though, well up to collecting loadsa Fish ‘n Chips for everyone
Was nice that some with young children so many years ago, now return as young adults which participate, drive and enjoy the event in different ways.
Jed and Isaac in a 2WD (with good mud tyres mind you) showed what’s possible, as someone said getting out the site gate was one of the biggest challenges being on a steep side slope, so needed roping up later as it became a muddy morass… which brings me to Jason, who was always on hand to help there, having arrived…
..with his lovely family, wife Reicke, Hugo and Phoebe (and a good few spare parts

)
So, afrer due consideration of parameter of driver and vehicle and after reading every report from my spies and after ruling Alex offside for being in a Subaru, despite a gallant effort; Subaru single-cab John, another top contender, didn’t though travel across the globe to get there (albeit did fix a breakdown on the way

); Jed another gallant effort but non-Syncro so wouldn’t know what to do with a VC goblet

; Geoff who really deserved a mention in dispatches for just being Geoff and getting stuck in his fuss-free way and helping at the drop of a hat (unless he was cooking up another tasty looking meal) but without Jane this time

, so failed at the final hurdle

;
Our newest members (yes you’re not joining any other clubs now!) AJ, Tamara and Elijah, ran a close second for the ? Wait for it ? award, having risked driving a van of uncertain provenance, to a meeting of uncertain provenance, certainly of unknown characters, to a place in a strange country far far away, full of sheep, cows and their assorted doings, well you get the idea, a special place in Syncropendence history will be ordained upon them, but not the secret ‘Goblet’ (this time) ;
… of course I’m not going to suggest Michael (and Chris’?) driving was not up to wet SP standard, very good effort with ATs and only got slithered and slathered and suckered onto the subframe and that only inches from a clear crossing of the mud-hole of mire… but a failure is a failure

albeit handing around freshly cooked hot dogs to everyone Saturday night so nearly swayed the decision until…
I was informed of Roger’s gallante efforts, with locked rear locker locked, broken power steering, lots of commitment (keyword for the weekend), having brought lovely Julia still convalescing from her hip hop op and daily reading a novel of mammoth proportions, all the way from Cornish Cornwall, or Devilish Devon, or sitting on the Tamar as their cottage does, probably one foot in each camp, to avoid internecine cross border strife.. now where was I, Ooh yes, Roger was up there at 9/10 until it he was ‘dobbed-in’. Apparently ’Rosie van’, full to overflowing with medicaments and tarpaulins, had been ‘lifted up away from terra firma’ somewhat and had knobbly wobblies of the mud terranean variety fitted - sorry, too much of an advantage, notwithstanding setback three, a gear-lever not of the washy-machine-lucky-dippy varietude, but one of the sticky-nasty won’t budge-an-inch-itude ! Well done Roger for sheer grit (but in the wrong place

);
Yes, my mucky muddy friends, we’re now left with Sharon to dispense with, though the problem is, Sharon’s very indispensable, especially when "pooh" "pooh" "pooh" is pushy comes to shovel and panicky settling oe’r the hills, alive or otherwise. Having proved her mettle (and her metal) before upon noteworthy hill and dale and rock and vertical drop, and as no doubt, supporting partner Gav will attest, a crisis she will rise to, and a solution found… our new friends from London of the southness will attest too, and possibly three, when a stuttering van won’t go straight up a hill, try finding a bit of an alternate route

of course being a co-organiser like Simon of the Fens, one has to slip those two cards back into the pack, and despite my stunningly professional exposition of 16 inch ness, in its tip toed dexterity amongst so many ungainly cross-lateralled fellow four-wheelers, I was told quite rudely that self-presentation was out of the question, not having two pairs of arms, let alone four hands.
So here we are, only by extreme default of course, but by driving from Vikingsland sans incidence, oop to the top of the Welshhill and all the way back down again, towing any and all at the drop of a hat, 4 up, bringing his family and being cheeky and cheery the whole time…
The re-spun, re-balanced, re-coated renewed Goblet of what was Mire, but from the day forth The Goblet of Desire, becomes lodged with Jason and his intrepid Syncronauts…
(please bring it back one day)
S-P-E-E-C-H
And Jenny.pretty well.organised the whole thing in case anyone is in doubt


