Post by left side brain on Oct 20, 2005 16:31:24 GMT
Day Sixteen - Sun 16th October - by Oli
Whichever way you look at it (and I was looking at it through very tired eyes indeed), getting woken up by your alarm at 10 to five in the morning is no fun. At all. A quick shower and strong black coffee later and I'm still miserable with tiredness but final packing is done and me and Rich load all the equipment onto the van (I still have no idea what G was doing at this point) and we are on on the road by 5.40am.
Our ferry leaves Larne at 7.30am and we get to the port as planned an hour in advance of this. One brief moment of perking up comes in the form of an LSB sticker spied by G in the window of the security office as we wait for the van to be searched. Mercifully, we are not subjected to the sniffer dogs like we were last time we tried to get home.
I fail to get much sleep during the 2-hour ferry crossing so claim the back of the van for the Scottish leg of the journey and get a bit of sleep as Rich gets us to Gretna in good time. After a not-overly-exciting stop at the services for lunch, G takes over driving and we promptly lose about 20 miles an hour for the next 90 minutes. It turns out not to be G's fault, as the traffic is moving slowly because of two of the biggest trucks you'll ever see on the road - they fill two lanes and have wheels the size of our van, I kid you not - and although they mean we'll be home later than planned they have provided some much-needed boyish excitement for us all.
After a further refreshment break at Keele services, I take over driving duties and once the red bull kicks in I feel well up for the task. (Don't tell anyone but I swear I got our little old van going as fast as 80mph at one point). The traffic remains clear and we are back in Bristol by about 5.30pm, ahead of schedule. The equipment is unloaded at LSB HQ, hands are shaken, congratulations offered and we retire to our respective sofas for the rest of the evening.
A big job well done. Good work indeed.
In-van listening material: Lodestar - Lodestar; Reuben - Very Fast Very Dangerous; A - Teen Dance Ordinance; Velvet Revolver - Contraband; Supergrass - In It For The Money
Whichever way you look at it (and I was looking at it through very tired eyes indeed), getting woken up by your alarm at 10 to five in the morning is no fun. At all. A quick shower and strong black coffee later and I'm still miserable with tiredness but final packing is done and me and Rich load all the equipment onto the van (I still have no idea what G was doing at this point) and we are on on the road by 5.40am.
Our ferry leaves Larne at 7.30am and we get to the port as planned an hour in advance of this. One brief moment of perking up comes in the form of an LSB sticker spied by G in the window of the security office as we wait for the van to be searched. Mercifully, we are not subjected to the sniffer dogs like we were last time we tried to get home.
I fail to get much sleep during the 2-hour ferry crossing so claim the back of the van for the Scottish leg of the journey and get a bit of sleep as Rich gets us to Gretna in good time. After a not-overly-exciting stop at the services for lunch, G takes over driving and we promptly lose about 20 miles an hour for the next 90 minutes. It turns out not to be G's fault, as the traffic is moving slowly because of two of the biggest trucks you'll ever see on the road - they fill two lanes and have wheels the size of our van, I kid you not - and although they mean we'll be home later than planned they have provided some much-needed boyish excitement for us all.
After a further refreshment break at Keele services, I take over driving duties and once the red bull kicks in I feel well up for the task. (Don't tell anyone but I swear I got our little old van going as fast as 80mph at one point). The traffic remains clear and we are back in Bristol by about 5.30pm, ahead of schedule. The equipment is unloaded at LSB HQ, hands are shaken, congratulations offered and we retire to our respective sofas for the rest of the evening.
A big job well done. Good work indeed.
In-van listening material: Lodestar - Lodestar; Reuben - Very Fast Very Dangerous; A - Teen Dance Ordinance; Velvet Revolver - Contraband; Supergrass - In It For The Money
