Weekend Double header

Sat/Sun 11th &12th May

Three old gringos!

                                         

Words I live by.

  Double header this weekend with a venture to to the Carronade gameshow put on by the Falkirk Wargames club followed by a Sunday trip to East fortune to put on a game as part of the East Fortune Re-enactment day.A pretty busy weekend all told.

A cross between the Doobie Brothers and the Village People I think.

                                                    We first headed out to Falkirk on early Saturday morning fortified with a nice healthy Maccy D's brekkie (Well I did have a bag of fruit).Once again Bill put on his Playmobil Cowboy game which seems to draw even more admirers the more we put it on,in my opinion because it is so basic and retro.The game was set up fairly quickly as we had played this game a few times now and this gave us time to view the other games and peruse our possible purchases(more probable).I was quite happy just to sit about until someone stated "Heh Tim,There's a big pirate display next door!"and I was out my blocks faster than Usain Bolt.This pirate display had me drooling and even more so when I seen it was for sale.My plan was to over my brand new Volkswagen for it but then I realised I would also be minus a wife but I was saved by the fact that somebody had already purchased it.

Pirate heaven.

Yes,Even this is acceptable.

                                                        Kick off time arrived and we looked around for some participants to press gang into indulging in a cowboy game and found we didn't need to force any body as we had a steady stream of participants throughout the day and although most of them were children their fathers tended to be as willing participants as their kids.There were five of us to run the game with a couple of extras in the form of Andrew Easson and Dave Patterson floating about in case they were needed.This gave us time to peruse other games and buy things we didn't really need.

The Winners!

Dinosaurs and Tropical Fish plants abound.

Carnevale -Not as good as Colin's though.

Downtown Stalingrad.

Attack of the red dice!

Martini-Henry!

All Blacks versus the British Lions.

                                                               The day as usual just flew past and before we realised it the final whistle was just around the corner.We had played a few games and they were enjoyed by one and all especially as there were prizes for all participants including the fathers.

Our American rockstar trying to feel at home.

Another pirate game-can't get enough!

Hill 107 would you believe.

Oh 40K-How unusual.

                                 Once again our display was looked on well by the show judges and we ended up with second prize for our efforts which we were rather chuffed with as there were lots of good games on show.Mind you,to be beaten by a game that involved ballons and dinosaurs,I don't know some people apart from us come upwith some silly ideas,but it did look great.

And some more pirate pics!

                                                    I had a final look around the game halls and purchased the last of my non needed toys and after locating our favourite rockstar Mr Ray headed for the sunny climes of home for some vittals and grog before heading out to East Fortune the next day and our participation in the Re-enactment day.

2nd prize!

                                           Sunday arrived in all its sunny glory and we all headed for our "gig" where we were putting on our game courtesy of Dave O'Brien which came in the form of a recreation of part of the Battle of Cambrai in 1917.By the time I had arrived our two early birds Dave and Colin had the game all set up and were commenting on my tardiness(Again!").Dave Patterson had joined us which I thought was unusual but then I found out that he was caravaning in nearby Dunbar and had offered to help.Dave and Colin's wives Liz and Gillian arrived festooned with bacon rolls and coffee for our motely crew and I could see that it was going to be a good day.

A handsome guy in his Hawaiian shirt and two hangers on.

Dave O B's hard work.

Some of Colin's toys.

The German rear.

                                                         Dave had in his possession trench scenery boards which when all laid out gave a very nice look to the table and complemented by scores of infantry and tanks made for an excellent day's play.We just took turns playing giving us alll time to go out and see all the re-enactor's in all their glory.We had the unusual sight of WW2 German paras hob-nobbing with British and American squaddies and plenty of equipment to keep all of us drooling schoolchidren happy.

                                        There were also plenty of vehicles around mainly in the shape of jeeps and trucks complemented by some horses.Later on in the day there was a skirmish between the Americans and German soldiers with as always the Yanks coming out on top.This involved plenty of explosions and gunfire,enough to keep all the young kids crying.

                                                    For the more sedate there was a marquee with period singers and dancers entertaining the less exuberent.This was complemented by a show of "Make do and mend"and a table selling tea and vintage cakes.A comment was made about a banana cake made with parsnips-each to his own.

Snazzy!

Two day trippers.

German name for the Scottish Parliament.

Waiting for their grub.

                                             The weather was fantastic and made for an even better day with the added bonus of being able to see all the vintage aircraft on display in this very fine museum.

Corned beef on the hoof!

Beautiful car with even better ice cream.

Fancy a dance?Dave O'B did.

Going down a bomb!

                                                         We were situated in the Concorde hall right underneath the beast itself flanked by the Falkirk wargames club and their WW1 air game with the South East Scotland club putting on a tank battle game on the other side.We had a great day with our game which produced a slight British victory although as in the real battle the British tanks didn't amount to much.
                                         

"Tanks very much!"

Te green dice causing more hinderance than the barbed wire.

Familiar looking faces.

"Chocks Away!"

Here comes the cavalry"

A great day had by one and all with a thank you to the staff for providing a nice lunch and our own two land girls,Liz and Gillian, for providing us with bacon rolls to start the day with.

Broken Down_What a surprise.

                                        Next week we are heading for downtown Newark(England not the US)and a participation in Partizan where we will be putting on a Franco/Prussian battle that doesn't involve any Prussians.Work that one out.