For the benefit of those who missed last month’s issue, let me introduce myself. I’m Jack, an unreconstructed motorcaravan enthusiast. My partner (Flora) and I have been motorcaravanning longer than we both care to remember! I hope you will enjoy reading my regular monthly columns as much as I like writing them.
TERRIFIC TRAFIC
I’m absolutely astounded that more companies have not converted this super little base vehicle. At present, the only UK converter to see the potential of the Trafic has been Danbury with its stylish Active. Rumour has it that other Blighty-based converters are considering using the Trafic, though nothing else has appeared yet.
I drove the new
Trafic at its launch, and believe me, it’s very impressive and has proved to be very popular on the continent with motorcaravanners. Most are elevating-roof conversions, though there are some high-top and coachbuilt vans. I’m hoping the Trafic will be more popular than the underrated Nissan Primastar. Anyway, well done Danbury, wake up the rest!
MOVE OVER JAMIE
Although I say it myself (shameless self-publicist), I am a ‘dab hand’ in the kitchen. Gloriously disorganised and spectacularly messy I may be, but the results usually win approval. Imagine my delight, then, when a book detailing the favourite recipes from the French ‘Les Castels’ group of campsites arrived. Not only does it feature some of the best regional French dishes you are likely to taste, it is richly illustrated with watercolour paintings of the sites themselves, the ingredients and dishes.
One of our favourite Les Castels sites is Val de Cantobre in the Cevennes, so I had a go at their offering; ‘Feuilleté au Roquefort’ (Roquefort puff pastries). These little delights are easily cooked in your van’s oven and are just mouth-wateringly delicious! The book (entitled Itinéraire Gourmand des Castels) will be available from all Les Castels sites and also
(I guess) from their stand at the NEC
show in February.
The price will be around £10 – fantastic value for money.
FINS AIN'T WOT THEY USED TO BE
Last year while motorcaravanning in the Forest of Dean, we came across a rally of old Vauxhall cars, owned by enthusiasts who all looked and dressed like Eddie Cochrane and Susan Maughan. Entrance to
the event was free, the weather glorious, and the atmosphere was terrific.
It was mostly late ’50s and early ’60s Veloxes and Crestas, though there were some E-type Wyverns joining the Vs and Cs from an earlier era. I learned to drive in an F-series Victor, so it was good to see some of those in the ranks as well.
The ‘saloon bar sages’ of the time said that those cars were all two-tone finish: whatever colour they were supposed to be plus red rust. I couldn’t possibly comment, except to say that as an experiment in accelerated corrosion, those Victors were highly successful.
Lovely to see these beauties preserved though, and how nice
to come across the rally by chance while pootling about in our motorcaravan. It was enough to make me reach for them ole ‘Blue Suede Shoes’. However, as I’m now challenged in the cranium follicle department, I’ve no use for Brylcreem any more…
HAPPY BIRTHDAY CWG
The Caravan Writers’ Guild (CWG) exists to promote all forms of caravanning through the media. Many motorcaravanners (including yours truly) have served on their committee. We are now 21 years old and had a little bash to celebrate. The cake tasted as good as it looks.
'BAGHDAD BOUNCE'
Although in rather dubious taste, this is the name given to the currentl better news regarding stockmarket prices and the increase in manufacturing industry output. Referring to the feeling of relief after the lack of resistance
to the allied invasion of Iraq,
it suggests that people now feel secure enough to invest in a
new motorcaravan.
Inelegant the term may be, but
it reflects the truth; the NCC (National Caravan Council) reported record motorcaravan sales last summer. It has been suggested that last year we may have approached the 7000 mark for new UK registrations. It’s an ill wind…
BRAKING NEWS
Our own VW-based coachbuilt motorcaravan sounds as though it’s going to require its second set of replacement front discs in two years. That may seem excessive, but then, we get about a bit. ‘Fenland Princess’ (our van) is in regular use throughout the year and covers approximately 11,000 miles per annum.
When it comes to maintenance, we use only genuine VW parts and make sure that they are installed by a highly-respected commercial vehicle specialist. This is someone who has looked after the family fleet of vehicles for years.
Once they’ve been removed, the ‘old’ discs are going back to the manufacturers for ‘assessment’.
I’ll keep you posted.
HOW DO YOU RATE?…
…Yes, you! As I write, the news is full of politicians, social commentators, and the chattering classes trying to decide exactly what it means to be British and a good subject. This set my (rather tangential) cognitive processes working on what it might mean
to be a ‘good’ British motorcaravanner. This is where you come in. Try my light-hearted quiz and indulge in a spot of
self-assessment. No cheating, now:
1. Would you describe yourself as:
(a) a member of the human race
(b) a rationally autonomous being (c) a keen motorcaravanner?
2. How much of your income do you spend on your motorcaravan:
(a) 25%
(b) 50%
(c) 100% + a bank loan?
3. Define a Highwayman:
(a) a robber of stagecoaches
(b) a road maintenance agent
(c) a popular, high value-for-money motorcaravan built by Autohomes?
4. When attending a party and asked to bring a bottle, do you arrive with:
(a) vintage claret
(b) supermarket own-brand scotch
(c) Elsan blue?
5. What would you say is your most treasured possession?
(a) the family bible handed down through eight generations
(b) a combined bottle opener
and corkscrew
(c) a pair of yellow plastic
levelling wedges?
6. Your idea of great eating is:
(a) dinner at the Savoy
(b) a traditional British takeaway dish (such as chicken tikka masala) (c) a half-cooked barbecued sausage that smells of fire lighters?
7. Millinery: the height of style for headgear is;
(a) something from Harvey Nicks
(b) something sensible from M&S (c) a bobble hat?
8. Kon-Tiki is:
(a) a raft sailed by Thor Heyerdahl (b) a sort of laminated wall board (c) the most recognisable British-made coachbuilt motorcaravan?
9. Which do you know best:
(a) the Three Tenors’ repertoire
(b) the Pop Idol judges
(c) how to replace the flap seal on a cassette loo holding tank?
10. Your best holiday ever was:
(a) coral diving in the Maldives
(b) partying in Montego Bay
(c) a club rally on a Manchester industrial estate?
11. Which of the following is the most aspirational:
(a) a Kensington mews house
(b) Gucci shoes
(c) a Romahome Duo?
12. You most fantasise about:
(a) an intimate moment with Sophie Ellis-Bextor/Justin Timberlake
(b) bracing walks through a bluebell wood
(c) a Hymer ‘S’-class?
Analysis of responses
Mostly (a): What a well-rounded individual you are. Mostly (b): a couple of glasses of Sid’s curried parsnip wine and you could be persuaded into a secondhand Autostratus. Mostly (c): it’s a real pleasure to meet a fellow anorak!
AND FINALLY…
Several people have asked why
I usually have a silhouette to accompany my byline on van tests, and a photograph in other articles. Surely my cover has been blown? Wrong. I just thought it would make a change from all the usual pictures of road test journalists leering out of cab windows.
A Chinese gentleman trying to earn a living at Xian airport made the silhouette in seconds, using
a small piece of black paper and a pair of nail scissors. I guess I owe him a few Yen in royalties.
Happy motorcaravanning!
Jack Bancroft |
