I went to Stoke Mandeville today..

**Vanpyre** · 08-08-2008, 06:27 PM

seeu there tomorrow lads!!! what time we startin?

please be nice to a newbie!!!

Northernspark · 08-08-2008, 06:29 PM

Originally Posted by lobberman

If that's the case surely you would shorten it to Stephe

oooh paulie, you shay the nishest fings, I'll save an extra big cuddle for you

Siddley, be there for around 9 mate.

Steve

**PaulH** · 08-08-2008, 06:36 PM

Originally Posted by Northernspark

oooh paulie, you shay the nishest fings, I'll save an extra big cuddle for you

Siddley, be there for around 9 mate.

Steve

I should hope so too you young whippersnapper

**mucky_duck** · 10-08-2008, 02:04 AM

Hi to all down at the weekend,

What can I say, absolute pleasure to meet you all,
Great day, entertaining with plenty of humour, p**s taking, and tastefully diluted with some healthy abuse.

What more could one wish for, and all for free.

Shame I had to shoot off so quickly, sick horse, hence the early hours post, just back from delivering it to the vets premises for surgery , (Ouch, Huge Bill !!

).

Gladly do it again, (not the vet) hopefully next time will get a leave pass from the missus to stay over, scary !

looking forward to reading what I missed out on Sat night

Cheers

Alan

Northernspark · 10-08-2008, 06:44 PM

Just got back after a 3 hour 160 mile drive, I'm ####ed

I am totally and utterly gobsmacked by the amount of work we have got done this weekend, the back wall has been rebuilt, ply lined and facias and soffits fitted ( my new forté

) and it has had 3 coats of paint ( we were going to have the doors blue but some un-named person went haywire with the roller and it's now brown to match the rest of the wall

)

The side wall has been graced with a french drain and the guttering down pipes sorted to prevent the range being turned into a swimming pool.

Also myself and my new Arabian apprentice fitted spurs so that all the water heaters we got and the hand driers we didn't get (

) could work.

Kieth ( Rosie's fella ) was on his hands and knees giving the firing ranges the once over with floor paint and his rather dashing assistant ( sorry I forgot your name ) kept us fed and watered, not forgetting the two cheese cakes my missus made

There was probably other stuff we got done as well but i'm too goosed to remember them at the moment.

The lads ( and lass ) that attended deserve an almighty pat on the back for the work that was done.

At one point saturday when both of the walls were down we thought we had bitten of more than we could chew and never imagined we could get it finished, especially as it rained most of saturday and we all got rather wet and cold, we finished work at 7pm saturday and then enjoyed a chinese and a few well deserved beers.

Thanks again to all those that helped

there's still a huge amount of work to do so it's not too late to get involved, it's well worth it, believe me.

Steve

p.s. Terry I will give you £500 for the memory card from your camera...

**Jackel** · 10-08-2008, 06:50 PM

Originally Posted by Northernspark

p.s. Terry I will give you £500 for the memory card from your camera...

Blackmail??????

Ps roughly how many Fires did Mr D start?

Northernspark · 10-08-2008, 06:55 PM

Originally Posted by Jackel

Blackmail??????

Ps roughly how many Fires did Mr D start?

No fires as such, but we all made a lot of paper smoulder, a lot

Get me one, fast

Steve

**snock** · 10-08-2008, 07:08 PM

And a special thanks to Alan who, having never posted on here before, offered his help and drove all the way from Hampshire for Friday and Saturday. What a stand-up guy you are!!

It all started for me on Friday morning when I arrived on site at about 09:30. Keith, Rosie's husband, was already there as was the team who were removing the asbestos from the dilapidated back walls. They were cracking [literally] on with the removal of what they said was one of the lowest risk types of asbestos, which still requires the procedure of double-bagging and labelling of the material before it can be accepted for disposal. I was expecting the full-on space suit get-up, but paper overalls and face masks were the required kit.

They were about 75% done when Phil, the older guy, smashed through a sheet of asbestos, only to disturb a wasp's nest of gargantuan proportions!!

There were literally hundreds swarming around the three of us. They were trying get at every bare bit of skin they could; it was horrific! We were lucky to get away with so few stings between us! Phil got stung on the neck, ear and hand, and I got stung just below my ankle bone on my left leg [as I was running away!].

Alan 'Mucky Duck' and I drove off to B&Q to get some wasp killer spray and ant powder. Terry told me that the Rentokil lot use ant powder to kill other pests such as wasps, and that this was the gear to use. So we did. And it worked. I sprayed the nest, which was about the size of a large melon, with the wasp's nest destroying foam, which practically dissolved the nest in just a few hours. I recommend anyone who has wasps to use it. It's great stuff!

The building supplies were delivered by a nice guy called John who works for Kings Langley Building Supplies, who went all out to get the supplies just where we needed them to go. A cup of tea and a chat saw him on his way.
The skip lorry driver missed out on the tea as he was running late and we were his last drop before home.

Saturday morning started at around 08:00 with Keith and I getting upto the ranges to open up and get things straight for when the cavalry arrived. This included: Terry D, Paul 'Lobberman' Howell, Graham Guest, Steve 'Fozzy' Forster and son, Steve-O and his lovely wife Julie, Steve Ghilles, Kieran Turner, Richard 'Delta1' Harley, Alan 'Mucky Duck, Simon 'Slicksid1234' and Maggie and Steve Milgate - two of the DTSGB committee members. As you can see there were a good number of us, but we needed every single person if this part of the project were to be a success.

Once we'd split into two teams, we started ripping out all the old stud work which formed the frames for both walls. Most of the wood looked OK, if a little insufficient in size to deal with the loads it was taking, whilst some of it was completely rotten. Simply replacing the rotten wood and leaving the better stuff behind wasn't an option, so it all had to come out and be replaced with new, far more sturdy 4x2. This all then needed to be sheeted and covered with heavy exterior ply and treated with Cuprinol.

Whilst the chippies were doing their thing at the walls, Terry, Julie, Alan, Graham and I ran 4 tons of shingle round to the trench that we'd dug last time in an attempt to stop the water getting into the ranges from one of the side walls. This all needed sheeting out with DPM before the stone could be dumped. Thanks to Graham for sorting this out. It must be said that the weather was truly horrible! We all stopped complaining about the relentless rain when we were all so wet, that we simply weren't getting any wetter.

Work progressed through until about 19:30 when Keith announced that the Chinese grub had arrived and everyone were to go in and wash-up before eating. Young Tom, Fozzy's lad, who has some degree of disability himself never stopped working and helping where he could all day and never complained once, not even when he stood on a nail. He was awarded an RC helicopter by his dad and Terry for his efforts, which was a nice touch.

Work then resumed on the back walls for another few hours until both end walls were completely sheeted out, and the door frames were in place. Alan and I had earlier had to drive to Wickes and B&Q to pick up doors and things, which in itself was a nightmare

, but we got it sorted eventually.

Terry and Paul stayed in the ranges overnight as the buildings weren't yet secure, and everyone else who was staying overnight went to the dorms. Sadly Fozzy, Graham and Alan couldn't stop over as they had other things planned, but these projects have to fit in with all of our plans, and sometimes these things can't be avoided.

Sunday started with a breakfast at 08:00 in the really plush and fully equipped sports stadium; a complete and utterly contrasting building to ours.

We were back at the ranges by 08:30 for the final push to board out the walls and coat them with Cuprinol.

As before, we split into two teams so that both walls could be attacked together. Steve, Simon, Steve G and Paul being especially hard working, each flitting from one team to another to see the more technical jobs completed. Terry, Julie, Kieran, Richard and I were on Cuprinol duty. Armed with brushes and rollers, we got stuck in.

It came to about 16:00 and we had achieved what most of us thought we would never have done - removed, replaced, boarded and protected both end walls for another 60+ years.

There were a few little 'specials' at the end of the day, when Steve G made a small shield to place above the apex on one roof with the initials 'T.D.', which as you can imagine raised a few smiles and plenty of cheers!

We'd packed away by about 16:30, but not before congratulating ourselves on what has to be a milestone in the history of the ranges at Stoke Mandeville, and the overall project.

As for some personal indulgence, I would like to reiterate my personal, heartfelt thanks to each and every person who got involved this weekend. You people are the salt of the earth, and should be rightly proud of what you have achieved for the sport of shooting and its participants; both able bodied and disabled.
You should be proud of yourselves. I'm proud of you.

There's plenty of work yet to be done, so don't feel you can't offer anything to this project because you can!! We still want to see more new faces at the next work party, so don't just sit there, stick your hand in the air!!

You're missing out!

Northernspark · 10-08-2008, 07:20 PM

Excellent post Pete

Thanks for the last pic

you could have put one up of me installing the commemorative plaque

Steve

**PaulH** · 10-08-2008, 07:23 PM

Best bunch of blokes I've ever had the pleasure of supervising,thanks a lot chaps ,must go something in me bloddy eye again

**snock** · 10-08-2008, 07:26 PM

Originally Posted by Northernspark

Excellent post Pete

Thanks for the last pic

you could have put one up of me installing the commemorative plaque

Steve

Sorted!

**Vanpyre** · 10-08-2008, 07:28 PM

i'm just back and b#####ed, time for bath and bed!!! god i'm gettin old!!

**snock** · 10-08-2008, 07:34 PM

Originally Posted by slicksid1234

i'm just back and b#####ed, time for bath and bed!!! god i'm gettin old!!

Me too!

By the way, Simon, I'm about to change your username!!

Pete.

Northernspark · 10-08-2008, 07:40 PM

Originally Posted by lobberman

Best bunch of blokes I've ever had the pleasure of supervising,thanks a lot chaps ,must go something in me bloddy eye again

He means stood about watching

no seriously, without Paul's expertise we would have been on our arse, thanks Paul

A few pics, Julie took them ( My good lady wife attended this weekend and worked tirelessly in the rain without a single complaint, she has been an absolute diamond and you all would be lucky to have a wife half as good as mine, thanks Julie

) she did take a few more but I'm too tired to upload them today

the phantom door painter

The famous plaque in place

Some young Arab getting a well deserved kicking

The Motley Crew ( Apologies to those not in who went home saturday

)

Steve

**Vanpyre** · 10-08-2008, 07:59 PM

oh thank god you put the sign straight mate, cuz i glued and painted the letters on wonky as ####eee

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