This Slightly Baffles Me.

There I am, driving along the road, Fleet Street and Shaldon Bridge are a fine examples of the situation. There is an other bus coming towards me, about mid way between us there is a narrow section of road, there isn't an enough room for both of us to pass so me, being the perfect gentleman slows gently to a stop and flashes my headlights to draw the other bus driver's attention to the fact that I have stopped to let him go. The other bus is still moving at this point. So what does the driver do? He stops, flashes his lights to draw my attention to the fact that he too is a perfect gentleman and has stopped to let me go. After a few moments pause to try and work this out I set off. What does the other driver do? He sets off as well. What do we both do? We have a crash in the middle of the road, our language proving that neither of us is a perfect gentleman. Now here's an idea, if I stop, you keep going. If you stop, I'll keep going.

A Minor Problem With the New Ticket Machines

On the old machines there was a V shaped cutter. Pull the ticket and the cutter dug into the paper and tore a neat V shaped tear in the paper detaching your ticket from the rest of the roll. So generations of bus passengers have pulled the ticket as it emerged from the machine.
But the new machines have a labour saving device that Cuts the ticket for you, no need to waste hard won energy, which is so expensive these days. The makers of the machine understood that there would be a transitional problem, passengers would sill expect to have to pull the ticket out of the machine not realising that this was a) unnecessary and b) would jam the machine. So they stuck a neat little notice just below where the ticket emerges in the hope that the existence of this labour saving device would come to the notice of the travelling public. But there is a slight problem, isn't there always?

Now what did that notice say?

So today when someone bought 3 return tickets and pulled them before the cutter had done it job, it's only job, the job it came into existence for, what would a ticket cutter do if it couldn't cut tickets, I'll tell you. It jams the printer. Next lot of tickets didn't print because the cutter had so much paper stuck in it the whole thing gave up. I almost did too. I opened the printer door and unjammed the cutter re set the paper and closed the printer door and pressed a couple of buttons that should have sent a few inches of paper in to the outside world and cut it off. Did it? Starts in n, ends in o, nothing in between. Several attempts and about 2 hours later the controller wanders over and spent just 7.348 seconds fiddling with the damn thing and it works perfectly. By now 27 people had also wandered over and wanted to get on the bus. By now I should have been half a mile down the road. By the time I sold all 27 passengers their tickets (the cutter worked perfectly) I should have been 2 miles down the road. An other reason for being late. Yes I know, they seem to be increasing by the week. Please wait for the cutter to CUT.

New Land Train

A new land train has appeared on the fair byways and highways of Torquay. The old train which was trungling round when I first moved down here 10 years ago has been retired and this gleaming, turbo charged monster is carrying excited passengers and their trip of a lifetime, well holiday anyway, round beautiful Torquay. The proud driver stands by his machine while passengers are boarding here on the Harbour side.
Smart isn't it.

Ambulance Driving in Rush Hour

It must be an ambulance driver's worst nightmare to go out on a call in rush hour. The roads are clogged with traffic here at King's Ash in Paignton as this ambulance speeds on it's way to an emergency. The driver of the car coming up the hill did well to stop in time to leave space for the ambulance to get through but the traffic lights at Tweenaway Cross, probably the busiest junction in the Bay are ahead. A few months ago an ambulance carrying a casualty from a road traffic accident to hospital was involved in a collision at this junction, in the morning rush hour.

Rugby Team Fixtures

As promised here are the fixtures for next Season.

Last season the team were sponsored once more by Stagecoach in Devon , stand at a bus stop and we'll come along, and The Belgrave Hotel , which is situated one of the best sites on Torquay Seafront, and by a new sponsor TaxiFast of Torquay (01803 60 60 60), office just up Torwood Street near the Clock Tower, who I trust you will use on those rare occasions when the bus just will not do.
The Belgrave Hotel is presently undergoing a refit and will soon reopen as Premier Travel Inn, watch out for details here.

TORQUAY RFC U11S FIXTURE’S till the end of the year.
September is Training only, games start in October.
Matches are played on a Sunday morning KO at 10:30
Home games at Torquay Rugby ground by the Grand Hotel
05/10/2008 NEWTON ABBOTT HOME
12/10/2008 TOPSHAM HOME
19/10/2008 IVYBRIDGE HOME
26/10/2008 PAIGNTON AWAY
02/11/2008 BRIXHAM HOME
09/11/2008 KINGSBRIDGE AWAY
16/11/2008 PLMSTOCK AWAY
23/11/2008 TOTNES HOME
30/11/2008 SALCOMBE AWAY
07/12/2008 TEIGNMOUTH HOME
14/12/2008 DEVONPORT AWAY
21/12/2008 To Be Arranged
28/12/2008 To Be Arranged