good stuff Ben

Don't forget tickets are still available in the club shop. We'll be making our first batch order at the end of June so you've still got time

Gentle reminder, club tickets are available in the shop:

Gold member tickets (contact me for code): http://club323f.com/shop/product/jae-2018-gm-ticket/

Standard tickets: http://club323f.com/shop/product/jae-2017/

We'll be submitting our first batch order for tickets at the end of June so get your tickets purchased soon

Just to keep everyone informed - East of England Showground have decided that due to the heatwave formerly known as "summer", charcoal BBQs and open fires are no longer permitted at JAE this year. Gas powered BBQs are still accepted, however, provided there is a fire extinguisher present.

Were hoping they reverse this decision between now and then, due to the expected rainfall.

JAE have the latest info here: https://jae-show.co.uk/pages/bbq-fire-safety

So: no Thursday arrival, no BBQs (unless you have a boot large enough to accommodate a massive gas BBQ and fuel tanks)

What's wrong with requiring that BBQs must be placed on a suitable board or tray to catch hot embers, rather than banning one of the main social events people go to JAE for? Or is that just too bloody sensible?

The ridiculous thing is, that quite apart from communal BBQs, half the campsite will be using small, open flame personal gas stoves close to the floor in their tent doorways, to cook their breakfast and daytime food, which when tipped over are far more likely to start a fire than a hot piece of charcoal. And I'll bet any money you like that barely any of those people will have thought to bring a fire extinguisher.

Club holiday somewhere else next year? *only half-joking*

S

I was thinking exactly that...maybe German vs Jap becomes our new JAE

I'm not totally against that idea! Hopefully it'll all turn out to be the awesome show we know it to be, but if it doesn't then yeah, perhaps we shall adjust priorities for next year!

At the end of the day, it's not JAE's organisers (Ichiban Events Ltd) fault, it's the Showgrounds fault for being so prohibitively expensive to include the Thursday, and it's their change in rules which have banned BBQs/fires. But, with that said, if it ruins the show then so be it - if the show don't move to a more relaxed venue, then we can move to a more relaxed show

Take it from a country that knows...

1) It's August (No! Truly! ) which means winter in Oz. It's been dry here too- whole of NSW (3.5x the size of UK/GB) drought or drought-affected. Just had our first total fire ban of the season, before the season begins...generally that's in October. Just had two out-of-control bushfires on the coast nearby to Canberra yesterday, luckily only sheds lost. You're at the end of a long, dry summer, you're fuel load's probably at it's best for burning...unless it's rained lots and all gone green again?


No, it's not good enough. Sparks/embers can get carried on the wind and start multiple fires downwind, often behind you. It's called ember attack.


Those are open fire sources. Those people should be fined and/or banned. In Oz even covered BBQs are not allowed to be lit on fire ban days- unless it's totally enclosed in a structure (i.e. it's a stove in the kitchen). A thrown cigarette butt also classifies as an excellent firestarter. Countless fires and many fatalities have started from cigarette butts tossed from cars in Oz.

Even more #1: no-one uses an internal combustion engine in Oz in dry conditions near flammable material without a spark arrestor.

Even more #2: I'd be very careful parking your car if it's dry & there's long grass. Fires start in dry grass from hot exhausts. The autoignition temp of dry grass can be of the order of only 260C (i.e. a very hot oven would be enough). The 'cat' is quite hot enough, diesels with DPFs are lethal. A hot chainsaw (or similar) engine put down on grass is also quite enough. You don't have to be the one that starts the fire, it only has to start upwind or downhill of your vehicle (or you) for you to become a casualty.

Even more #3: Your grass tends to be far thicker than Oz, thereby providing a much higher fuel load. If it's long, tall (>10cm/4in say) and brown and it's a windy dry day (doesn't have to be hot) I'd be scared. We had grass fires in July in Canberra (mid-winter, top temp approx 12.6C that day).

Even more #4: Don't drive your car through thick dry grass. Apart from parking and starting a fire underneath, a badly designed heat shield can actually act to cut, trap,compress and then dry grass/combustibles, building them up right next to the heat source so as to really provide a really good kick-start to the fire (your car!). There's an actual recall out on Ford Ranger/Mazda BT-50 for just this reason in Oz. See this article as an example.

Even more #5: Grass fires can travel very fast, esp. uphill with the wind. You can't outrun them in those conditions. And the radiant heat alone will be quite enough to kill you.

Have I been directly involved in a grass (or any) bushfire? No, thankfully...but I've been quite close on occasion and cut off (isolated) once where we were escorted out in convoy. I have also been camping on occasion with friends where we've said "we're not cooking tonight...too dangerous."

Patrick

Not long home from another enjoyable JAE Managed the trip back up in just over 5hrs
Thanks to all that made it a fun weekend.

Well, what a slightly cramped but fantastic weekend!

As usual, we welcome any/all feedback you might have on the event so we can pass it on to the JAE team themselves, so fire away! Good or bad, we want to hear it!

Lovely to see everyone - especially those we only see at JAE. Good to see you Stu, glad you made it back safely. Howie, ditto!

On to feedback.

GATES
Gate staff disorganised, I heard anecdotally about ticket scanning issues, and long queues. The staff on the gate when I arrived 6pm on Thursday were more interested in chatting with each other than helping me.

If held at Peterborough next year, gate signage arriving/leaving must be better: multiple gates heading onto the local road network in different directions, gates being randomly opened & closed ... I briefly got lost just trying to get OFF the site, as there were no signs whatsoever, and the gate I came in by was shut. Not just me, I saw someone else heading in the wrong direction as well. Take Coome as an example, similar setup with multiple gates but signage excellent.

They also need to give everyone the CORRECT gate postcode (there are at least three for this venue), and PUT IT ON THE TICKET.

TOILETS
Good feedback in that there were obvious efforts to sort the plumbing issues promptly, and the ladies' block next to us was thoroughly cleaned by a worker early on Sunday (not sure if she was there Fri & Sat).

TRADE STANDS
Shite. Whereas the dyno lorry and the regular sticker seller seemed to do well, I felt sorry for the owners of the huge bar that probably did barely any business over the weekend. Dodgems: great idea (Hughie claims credit!) but a shame there weren't more people at the show to enjoy them.

I think the organisers are muddled about what JAE is all about. It's a chillout show, not a display show like Japfest. Unlike Japfest, which is effectively a trade show where everyone's there to look at cars and spend cash, and there are hundreds of public day visitors doing the same, at JAE most people will bring their own beer and spend most of their time on their own camping pitch. It's about being sociable, it's not about spending money. If we have any stands there at all, they should be more food and entertainment-oriented.

That said, a tug-of-war and throwing sponges around - i.e., your "village fete" sort of entertainment - won't cut it with a bunch of diehard petrolheads. Boxcar races, how many people can you get in your car, craziest / most amusing paint job (voted for by other visitors), "disguise your car as something else", etc. etc. Stupid stuff that half-drunk petrolheads will happily do for laughs, and remember for years. THAT will attract people to come to JAE, and keep coming back. Loads of daft stuff went on at Newark, even unofficially, but that whole vibe seems to have vanished at Peterborough.

Of course, it doesn't help that numerous large clubs feel discouraged from turning up, because of issues with Thursday entry and a ban on BBQs. Both these issues seem to have been driven by the showground being expensive and restrictive. Solution? Don't use Peterborough.

ADMIN TENT
Helpful & friendly. Gave me a show sticker for free, as apparently I'd been nice to the lady running it the day before!!

H&S
The BBQ ban was over the top, and pointless anyway as there were no restrictions about personal camping stoves, which have open flames. If the organisers were seriously worried they could have put a "fire point" on each stand, which is essentially a red flag to mark it, a fire extinguisher, and a large bucket of water that can be grabbed if anything catches light. I spent many years as a military reenactor on large campsites, and that system worked perfectly well there.

Alternatively they could have insisted every club have at least one fire extinguisher and sent round their goons to check that; or issued one to each club at the gate (even if that means requiring a returnable deposit to discourage theft).

We've had two flying marquee issues now (Sundance was very narrowly missed by one on the adjacent stand last year). If the venue is going to be H&S obsessive, I'd rather they focussed on inspecting the safety of large marquees and issued strong guidance about the danger of sudden gusts of wind across such a large flat area during set-up and set-down, the danger points when the tents aren't pegged down. At set-up and set-down, unpegged marquees should NOT be left unattended.

CONDOMS
Must be mandatory for all clubs. RX8s in particular should be inspected to ensure they are using adequate protection at all times.

S

Thanks Serena, notes made

Well here goes...

JAE has been going down hill for a few years now, ever since we left wickstead park really but I think this year, the show is probably the smallest and worse it's ever been BUT you guys are immense!!! The club makes JAE fore every year but this year more than ever so thank you all for attending and making the weekend so great.

On a down note, my F broke down on the way home, chewed through the alternator belt on the side of the motorway. Rebecca came to get me and tow the car about half a mile to a where the hard shoulder gets much wider where I could be safer and potentially fix the car. However we had a little accident which ended in both cars being damaged, but everybody is okay (only minor damage to me, torn muscles and ligament damage) so that's all that matters really. The 3 is repairable, body damage and lights can all be replaced pretty easily. The F is damaged also, front bumper, tow hook assembly, air conditioning condenser from what I can see so far. Had to get a replacement as i need a car now so I'll be breaking the red F for parts pretty soon.

Anyway, back to JAE.....what a great weekend with you all!!!!!

Sounds like an awesome weekend had by all. Firstly good to hear that everyone is ok regarding the accident, that's the most important thing. Regarding breaking....drop me a.pm on what you need, I have bits I can donate to the repairs