Today (17/9/11) we went to the Bedford Steam fair that is held at Shuttleworth, not far from the A1. The Shuttleworth site has an airfield and a large collection of old aircraft. For the price of entry (£10 this year) you get to see the huge steam rally and the aircraft in the museum. The rally consists of not only steam driven items but military vehicles, old tractors, motor bikes, caravans, cars and just about every type of old mechanical device you can think of :-).
This event always attracts numerous Showman's engines, here is one of the best examples..
Another of the delights of the Bedford Rally are the live steam demonstrations. The steam ploughing, with the two traction engines either side of a field pulling the plough to and fro across the fields is always worth a look.
The next three pictures show a road repairing demo. The concrete and brick rubble is crushed into a suitable size by a machine that is powered by a large stationary steam engine. A narrow gauge railway then takes this material to where it's needed and where the trucks are tipped up. Eventually a steam roller will come to compress the hardcore into a road surface.
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| Crushing the hardcore. |
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| The little railway engine used to haul the trucks of hardcore. |
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| The truck is tipped ready for the roller |
Another feature are the huge traction engines with 'cranes' that move trees about ready for the saw benches that turn them into planks and beams.
We had a great day out and came home with a few items from the market area. If we had to choose one Steam Rally to visit in the year I think that the Bedford Steam Rally would get our vote. There must be something to interest everyone at this splendid event.
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