Yorkshire Wartime Experience

A very late report on the very successful Yorkshire Wartime Experience.

I got over to the show ground late Friday afternoon to find theSarge already there. We soon had enough people to get the big tent and the radio tent up. We decided to leave the dining shelter in its bag and take advantage of Paul Browning's hospitality and use his.

Saturday morning arrived with a dry but overcast sky. It didn't look like it would be dry for long. The first task was to get all the kit up to the freshly dug trenches which looked much more the part. The trenches were quickly sorted with the 3" mortar and Pete Cartner's 6 pounder. We then were given permission to brew. So the next hour was spent trying to get enough hot water to dissolve the compo tea ration in. The next few hours were spent sitting in the trenches in the rain. We got a lot of interest and despite the weather had an enjoyable day. Eventually, it was time to do battle. This year we had the pleasure of following two of our big friends out onto the field in the shape the Cromwell Ajax and the Comet Victor. A real treat to be able to work with British Tanks. The battle is the last event so it was a quick clear of kit out of the trenches and back to camp for a hot meal and a beer or two. The Sunday followed the same pattern with the exception of a bit of fun pulling the 6 pounder out of the display so it could be towed around the arena behind a Bren carrier. The set up looked very good. Once that was done we had to get the gun back into the display. Adam Heaton's jeep made short work of the task. The battle in the afternoon was made interesting, as a rogue American tank inserted itself between the Cromwell and Comet and kept moving making it difficult to deploy without getting flattened.

Cpl Lycett 

Photos from the event can be viewed here