Reporting on a successful plant training weekend on the Wilts & Berks and looking forward to some more training next year...
Training Note the date: 13-14 June the end, over the two days, we had 27 volunteers, which included Ron Kirby and six volunteers from Cotswold Canal Trust, who brought over their mini-excavator. Although we didn’t get an excavator from Rapid Hire as their machines were late returning from hire, in all, we had the choice of three excavators for training, a 4-wheel drive dumper, a 2-wheel drive dumper and two tractors with different mowing attachments. We set a marquee up on my garden lawn, with a Burco running all day for tea or coffee, and Di supplied lunch for those who required it. The weather was on our side, and the 27 volunteers achieved passes in 39 categories. The instructors worked their socks off, and were pretty hoarse by the end of the weekend. Trainees came from as far afield as Northampton and Hereford & Gloucester in addition to the Wilts & Berks and CCT. Rachael Banyard
Training Weekend 2014 I had been thinking of running a training weekend for the Wilts & Berks Canal Trust, and when I mentioned it at our Restoration Committee Meeting, George Eycott (Bungle) asked if I could include an evaluation of two excavators which WRG were thinking of purchasing. These were two Volvo machines, one with the zero tail swing and one with the standard swing. I approached Rapid Hire, who had loaned us free of charge an excavator and dumper last year, to see if they could support us again this year, which they agreed to do subject to machines being available. We agreed on a date of 13th/14th September. Jenny Black arranged for the Volvo machines to arrive, complete with their representative to explain their capabilities to George and myself. The next task was to entice sufficient instructors to come along, namely Hamon Stuart, Martin Thompson, Bob Airey, Dave Wedd, Adrian Sturgess, George, Digger (Adam Morris) and myself. Dave and Adrian stayed at my cottage for the weekend. In
...and 2015...
Martin Ludgate
We have decided that after not running the usual full training weekend in late spring or early summer this year, we are going to run one in 2015. We don’t have details of the site yet, but we do have a date: the weekend of 13-14 June 2015. Note it in your diaries, and look out for more information in future issues of Navvies, including the usual appeal for people to tell us in good time what they want to learn (be it machinery operation, vehicle driving, construction skills such as bricklaying, first aid or whatever) so we have the best chance of being able to plan it. And we would, of course, very much appreciate it if our instructors can keep that date clear.
Leader training
We do hope to run another leader training day in 2015 - probably around May. More Coming back in ’15 - the WRG training weekend information in future issues.
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