THE SCOTTISH VINTAGE BUS MUSEUM - 1999 NOCTURNAL HEART OF THE PENNINES RALLY

Following the repair of the oil leak which prevented us from attending the Trans-Pennine Rally on 1st August 1999, Sunday 31st October 1999 saw a fair load of us heading for halifax for the Nocturnal Heart of the Pennines rally, on the Duple Dominant Leopard RRS 46 R. Strange to say, it luckily started raining as we set off, as our troublesome wiper arm stopped working almost as soon as it was switched on - before we even got to the museum gate - and how we needed it later. Much to the disgust of Eddie Taylor, a sharp drill bit and split pin were required to fix it (temporarily) - 'that looks awful, it will need to be fixed properly when we get back'. (We'll see.)

Above: RRS 46 R pictured at the museum

We arrived at Piece hall between 3 and 4pm, after dumping our bags at the hotel on the way and managed to squeeze into a corner .....

..... which gave us time for a bite to eat and a look round before we reccied the route for the free bus service.

This wee cracker (JFJ 573?) took us up to the top of the hill .....

..... and this big one (JDC 544 L) took us down again - so that was the route sussed. (Apologies for the lack of technical details - I just go for buses I like the look of.)

Now it was our turn. We did several trips, with decent loads, to give all the drivers a shot. (I think that's Jim Methven at the top of the hill.) ...

..... where we met my wee friend again - bound for Exeter after this run, I believe.

On our trip home the following day, we hit a power problem on the very busy M62 in Greater Manchester. We managed to limp to a service area on the M61 - thank goodness we decided on the motorway route - where our fleet engineer diagnosed a fuel problem. We had filled up in halifax the previous night, and were convinced by the look and feel of it that we had been given dodgy fuel. However, with an expert on the job, filter and bowl cleaning and magic hands got us running again within the hour. We had no more problems with either the fuel or the wiper, and arrived home safely. Here's to the 2000 season!