charity calendar - update

There have been rumours of a "big cat" at the top of Weardale.

it is the distribution to such individual teams that'll be tricky in this case. I have an idea that I may do next year that is purely for the mountain rescue teams.

Regards. Mark.

Scuba Diving dragged me into Land Rover ownership so I have a lot of respect for these guys. They often put to sea when us mere mortals are roping down our roof tiles and wondering where our garden trees will be in the morning.

nigelH

My original home area.

Oh, I'll do it for you if you like :)

I saw a big cat of some kind near york once. scared the shit outa me.

Regards. Mark.

Completely off topic but I thought I would ask the several people here involved.

Would you want green lights (cf doctors) for your vehicle when responding to callouts if the legislation were put in place?

I have asked this on several occasions in various places and had a range of answers, negative and positive, unfortunately I'm not in a position to do anything about it!

Alistair

Not involved directly (though have these thoughts of becoming a retained fireman) but I think it is a bad idea.

a) How many of the great unwashed know what a flashing green light means? b) Even the major services complete with blues and twos are supposed to drive within the law and the drivers under go special training, some more than others. I don't think it is particulary safe or wise to allow a volunteer member of the public use such a warning device. Hum, do the doctors that have them under go any driver training?

A magnetic mirror image "FIREMAN ON CALL" that you could slap on the front of your car(*) would be enough to show people infront why you are driving rather quickly with lights on etc.

(*) Well put on when on a duty period, rather than have to find and put on when the pager goes off. B-)

How many know not to panic when they see blues.

Having had Emergency Response Driver Awareness Training and driven under Blues and Twos conditions, I would only like to see vehicles used for the purposes of fire, police and ambulance incidents. I live 13 miles away from our teams vehicle bases, within 10 mins of our pagers going off a MR Landrover Ambulance is on route, its important, I feel, to get the specialist equipment there quickly before the plebs turn up, without the equipment we can not do the job asked of us. I would love to have Blues on my vehicle to aid me there quicker, than the 30 mins it takes me to get there. But the bottom line is when driven correctly, Blues and Twos, only warn others of the urgency of your journey. Driving within the law on B&T's only takes a few minutes off your journey time.

But a MR Landrover Ambulance or a car with magnetic sign driven badly once ruins all the work you, may, have put in to get those lights or sign.

Drive under normal road conditions, turn up safe and turn up to do the job in hand.

Dave

Or even know what a blue light means. I've witnessed several times a car stopped at traffic lights, with an ambulance or fire engine right behind it with B&T's going, did the car move nope. It sat there until the lights changed... OK techincally the car would have jumped the red light but proceeding with caution and getting out of the way of the ambulance or WHY has, IMHO, a rather higher priority than traffic law.

I suspect that depends rather a lot on the prevailing traffic conditions. I live out in the sticks, it's 20+miles and 40 mins to the nearest large town if I drive flat out, or 45 if I just bowl along the open country roads. I suspect having B&Ts would make much more difference if that was 20+ miles of urban/city traffic.

Very good points.

I think the law such as it is requires the lead vehicle to pull over and come to a stop. Staitionary at traffic lights complies. The emergency vehicles have a let to go wrong way around the lights, unlike this regular motorist.

Interesting you should use that example, I got failed on a driving test for doing just that, in fact only just crossing the line not the junction itself to sit in front of the car alongside. Ambulance behind was making its merry din, if he had turned his siren off I would have waited but since he left it running I pulled forward out of the way and let him jump the junction. Two minutes later I pulled into the test centre and got failed!!

:-)

That is indeed generally the considered opinion, "if you asked me when I'd just been stuck behind a bus for 3 miles I'd say yes, but in the cold light of day I wouldn't want the people on the team who would join to use the light."

Alistair

Much easier said than done at some traffic lights - I'm always really pleased when a reasonably aware motorist moves through a red light to let us carry on to a call-out.

Pretty darn sure I'd pull out of the way if at all possible but such a move is illegal also, I think, for the emergency services, which is why I said 'let'.

Once upon a time i would have made the move, provided it was safe to do so, without a second thought.

However, having witnessed the petty 'nab the motorist' attitude that seems to apply to the police these days it is up to them to get round me, I will not be provoked into giving them any chance to book me!

Absolutely my thoughts too. One false move and Wham ! Nice easy nick. F'eck'em.

Steve

Who mentioned the Police? I only refered to Ambulances and Fire Engines...

Don't worry they'll note your number a get you later, or if you hesitate for 2nS when the lights change, have you for obstruction. B-)