Our return visit to the Doddington Country Show, situated mid-way between March & Chatteris in Cambridgeshire, was a bit of a damp squib on the damp Saturday thanks to the weather, but did light up a little thanks to some sunshine on Sunday. However, with the car-parking being within the centre of the showground, the stationary engine section was cut off from the main part of the show a little and visitors to our section seemed fewer than expected.

With some recent damp weather, the pair of steam engine owners understandably did not want to venture too far from the gateway but this did mean they had to wend their way through public parking to get to and from the ring on Sunday. I feel the show would benefit if its border could be moved further into the field with separate parking and camping areas clearly defined.

The mix of attendees was basically the same as in 2007, with a separate dog agility arena performing most of the day and several clubs and associations having promotional stalls and group displays. The trade stands seemed slightly down on last year but were still a reasonable mix of products and services. For the first time in three consecutive rallies, we came home with no new plants, despite the vendor having a different selection this weekend. Several other wives were seen browsing around the stall whilst their men-folk tapped their feet outside!

Cars and commercials were scattered across the edge of the field nearest the road, and although the large commercials were not quite as diverse this year with nothing not seen before, there were a few smaller trucks including Morris Minor, Marina & Ital pick-ups. No Porsche owners club this year but the Range Rover club proudly flew their flags with a Searle Carawagon conversion the most interesting vehicle. Within the cars, the brightly polished crimson Triumph Roadster with its white-wall tyres stood out for me.

Across the opposite side of the field, the veteran caravans included two very old examples and there was also a good selection of classic motorhomes, including Bedford CA, CF, Commer & Ford Transit base vehicles. Sadly, the tractor section seemed a bit lost over in the back corner with no other visitors whilst I was there to look at the largely 1950s classic diesel power.

As mentioned earlier, the static engines ended up a bit stranded but the section was well supported, particularly by several contingents from North & East Norfolk. My favourite open crank was the original condition Jaeger, which is growing on me more each time I see it, such a contrast to the superbly restored version seen at other rallies in the area in the past. However, my favourite would be the Ruston Hornsby PT carrot-hopper version, despite it being in too light a shade of green for Ruston, as there were only 150 or so made in the early 1930s.

Hopefully, all the various small local rallies we support in June (Woolpit, Doddington, Holbeach & Morton) can organise next year’s dates to avoid any clashes. We’ll bring you news of the dates for 2009 as soon as we hear from the organisers.