Yep that was me. Although I had to put another layer on as it was getting chilly that was hi viz yellow long sleeve! But no one said hello to me so kinda still anon. Really enjoyed cycling there and would of probably took the same as metro etc. Mind on way back the bloody head wind!

I'm rather shy and struggle to go over to others. Once I got there I didn't seem to be in much of a talking mood today unfortunately.

Got a bit of a headache now.

Seems to be quite a mixed reaction on the Rally today, Spoke to a few people who said it wasnt worth coming out for due to the small amount Vehicles in attendance and lack of space in what is supposed be to be a Car Park, just looked like a slab of tarmac to me like, would agree with those comments after spending 4 Hours on Buses to go to Whitley Bay and back, this included a 70 Minute trip on the 1 to Gateshead from WB having missed the 308 due to taking a Photo of (H106) was going out on the Shuttle and not seeing the 309 in the distance as I boarded the 1 a few minutes later, didnt see it till I went to sit down as the 1 pulled away.

As I discussed with Aureolin last year on our way back from Seaburn Rally I think something needs to be done with the Rallies to make them more enjoyable, i.e. bringing different Vehicles as we see the same ones every year, although it was nice to see FTN 708W & 33101 at Durham the other week as it was something different to Photograph, I think perhaps merging the Smaller Rallies such as Whitley Bay, Durham & Seaburn together at a Location which is Central to where everyone is travelling from, and is easy to travel to via Public Transport, so then your not doing a Jimmi spending 6 to 7 Hours on Buses to and from the Rally, that is some dedication to the Hobby right there mind, and having the Event at a bigger site such as Herrington Country Park at Penshaw, with the adage of other Vintage Vehicles such as Cars and Trucks etc would make it more interesting, I would also like NEBPT and CDBPG to have an Enthusiast Open Day at there Respective Yards.

So you would have as an Example:

MetroCentre - May 
Tyne Tees Run - June
Shildon - July
New Merged Rally - August

Seems to be quite a mixed reaction on the Rally today, Spoke to a few people who said it wasnt worth coming out for due to the small amount Vehicles in attendance and lack of space in what is supposed be to be a Car Park, just looked like a slab of tarmac to me like, would agree with those comments after spending 4 Hours on Buses to go to Whitley Bay and back, this included a 70 Minute trip on the 1 to Gateshead from WB having missed the 308 due to taking a Photo of (H106) was going out on the Shuttle and not seeing the 309 in the distance as I boarded the 1 a few minutes later, didnt see it till I went to sit down as the 1 pulled away.

As I discussed with Aureolin last year on our way back from Seaburn Rally I think something needs to be done with the Rallies to make them more enjoyable, i.e. bringing different Vehicles as we see the same ones every year, although it was nice to see FTN 708W & 33101 at Durham the other week as it was something different to Photograph, I think perhaps merging the Smaller Rallies such as Whitley Bay, Durham & Seaburn together at a Location which is Central to where everyone is travelling from, and is easy to travel to via Public Transport, so then your not doing a Jimmi spending 6 to 7 Hours on Buses to and from the Rally, that is some dedication to the Hobby right there mind, and having the Event at a bigger site such as Herrington Country Park at Penshaw, with the adage of other Vintage Vehicles such as Cars and Trucks etc would make it more interesting, I would also like NEBPT and CDBPG to have an Enthusiast Open Day at there Respective Yards.

So you would have as an Example:

MetroCentre - May 
Tyne Tees Run - June
Shildon - July
New Merged Rally - August

I somewhat agree, it didn't feel half as good as the MetroCentre rally(which was my first one) as I did see some buses that I never have before and I can imagine that you have probably seen those before. At times I got a tad bored where there was no free bus journeys on and resorted to sitting on a bus waiting for something to happen, whereas at the MetroCentre bus rally there was never a dull moment as there were much more different buses and a more exiting atmosphere with more people too.

I may not attend next year to this rally as it was a bit dull, but I may change my mind when it comes to the time as it was nice weather and was better than sitting in the house.

I somewhat agree, it didn't feel half as good as the MetroCentre rally(which was my first one) as I did see some buses that I never have before and I can imagine that you have probably seen those before. At times I got a tad bored where there was no free bus journeys on and resorted to sitting on a bus waiting for something to happen, whereas at the MetroCentre bus rally there was never a dull moment as there were much more different buses and a more exiting atmosphere with more people too.

I may not attend next year to this rally as it was a bit dull, but I may change my mind when it comes to the time as it was nice weather and was better than sitting in the house.

You have to remember, the Metrocentre Coach Park is a lot bigger than where the Whitley Bay Rally was held. Therefore, not as many vehicles can be there which often sends the rally over a cliff for some people. That's why i don't bother going to the smaller rallies such as the events at Howlands and Whitley Bay.

You have to remember, the Metrocentre Coach Park is a lot bigger than where the Whitley Bay Rally was held. Therefore, not as many vehicles can be there which often sends the rally over a cliff for some people. That's why i don't bother going to the smaller rallies such as the events at Howlands and Whitley Bay.

No reason why they couldn't have held it in the car park opposite though, would have been a lot more space!

I agree, Metrocentre is the best one I've been too. The rest I don't normally bother with, but I only went to Whitley Bay because I live near there.

No reason why they couldn't have held it in the car park opposite though, would have been a lot more space!

I agree, Metrocentre is the best one I've been too. The rest I don't normally bother with, but I only went to Whitley Bay because I live near there.

When i last went, the rally was held in the Car Park (before it had all of that work done to it). No idea as to why they have moved it over the road.

When i last went, the rally was held in the Car Park (before it had all of that work done to it). No idea as to why they have moved it over the road.

Yeah seems stupid that they moved it over the other side.

When i last went, the rally was held in the Car Park (before it had all of that work done to it). No idea as to why they have moved it over the road.

The buses were too cramped in the small space they were in, so you could hardly get good photos.

The buses were too cramped in the small space they were in, so you could hardly get good photos.

Yeah I agree, had to get them all together really, couldn't get many individual photos.

Was it worth travelling all the way from Aycliffe for?

I didn't bother going out in the end. GTA V was more appealing.

Which character is your favourite mines a mix between Michael De Santa and that really angry one Trevor Phillips my favourite supporting character is Wade Herbet his famous quotes are "Can we stop for Ice-cream?" and the best one was "NO!!!! No Baths" on his no baths one he looked like a scruff covered in human waste

anyhow back to subject the rally was a fun day out and shots will be heading everyones way soon

Seems to be quite a mixed reaction on the Rally today, Spoke to a few people who said it wasnt worth coming out for due to the small amount Vehicles in attendance and lack of space in what is supposed be to be a Car Park, just looked like a slab of tarmac to me like, would agree with those comments after spending 4 Hours on Buses to go to Whitley Bay and back, this included a 70 Minute trip on the 1 to Gateshead from WB having missed the 308 due to taking a Photo of (H106) was going out on the Shuttle and not seeing the 309 in the distance as I boarded the 1 a few minutes later, didnt see it till I went to sit down as the 1 pulled away.

As I discussed with Aureolin last year on our way back from Seaburn Rally I think something needs to be done with the Rallies to make them more enjoyable, i.e. bringing different Vehicles as we see the same ones every year, although it was nice to see FTN 708W & 33101 at Durham the other week as it was something different to Photograph, I think perhaps merging the Smaller Rallies such as Whitley Bay, Durham & Seaburn together at a Location which is Central to where everyone is travelling from, and is easy to travel to via Public Transport, so then your not doing a Jimmi spending 6 to 7 Hours on Buses to and from the Rally, that is some dedication to the Hobby right there mind, and having the Event at a bigger site such as Herrington Country Park at Penshaw, with the adage of other Vintage Vehicles such as Cars and Trucks etc would make it more interesting, I would also like NEBPT and CDBPG to have an Enthusiast Open Day at there Respective Yards.

So you would have as an Example:

MetroCentre - May 
Tyne Tees Run - June
Shildon - July
New Merged Rally - August

Finally some praise for the amount of time and effort I dedicate to this hobby, I never normally get anything. It does actually annoy me at times as I get very little praise especially for long outings whilst others get showered for taking photos on their doorstep.

My thoughts on today was so negative as these where the shuttles when I got there:
GNE 6044
GNE 5234
The Eden PPT 446P
The Eden AFB597V

Two of those are service buses which I didn't need to go all the way to Whitley Bay to ride especially as I got the X10 from Newcastle to Peterlee home and I have spent a fair amount of time on the two Eden buses at other rallies this year and did not really want to ride them again especially so soon after Howlands.

One of my other issues was there wasn't much space and the buses ended being parked so close together that I have to put two buses in the same photograph in some cases.

If it's on again next year I'm am unsure if I will attend again but I probably still would as before I got there I was actually enjoying myself but just didn't feel totally myself when I got there and started to feel ill later on and I am still not 100% right now.

Your saying about being easy to be able to get to rallies but Shildon is pretty difficult especially on a Sunday as the only ways to get there is the train which runs about every 2 hours and the Arriva 1B and 5A which both run hourly and if you don't know Shildon it can be tricky to figure out when to get off especially on the 5A made worse by the allocation of EcoCity's on Sundays so you can't use the next stop announcements to figure out when to get off. I can't see me running into many members of NEB if I attend Shildon again this year.

As I discussed with Aureolin last year on our way back from Seaburn Rally I think something needs to be done with the Rallies to make them more enjoyable, i.e. bringing different Vehicles as we see the same ones every year, although it was nice to see FTN 708W & 33101 at Durham the other week as it was something different to Photograph, I think perhaps merging the Smaller Rallies such as Whitley Bay, Durham & Seaburn together at a Location which is Central to where everyone is travelling from, and is easy to travel to via Public Transport, so then your not doing a Jimmi spending 6 to 7 Hours on Buses to and from the Rally, that is some dedication to the Hobby right there mind, and having the Event at a bigger site such as Herrington Country Park at Penshaw, with the adage of other Vintage Vehicles such as Cars and Trucks etc would make it more interesting, I would also like NEBPT and CDBPG to have an Enthusiast Open Day at there Respective Yards.

So you would have as an Example:

MetroCentre - May 
Tyne Tees Run - June
Shildon - July
New Merged Rally - August

There's already a rally that is central to everyone, and easily accessible - the Metrocentre one, and it's by far the biggest one up here.

Having thought about this for some time now, I don't think merging rallies is the answer. The Howlands one this year was a cracking turn out, for what is considered one of the smaller rallies, and Whitley Bay didn't have a bad turnout today, considering the condensed space available. Perhaps the answer is in the suitability of the sites?

Some owners made reference at Howlands to how cramped the buses were together in the car park, and there was concerns that vehicles could be accidentally knocked or bumped because of the limited turning space. You have to bare in mind that 99% of these buses have no form of power steering. If Durham was considered cramped, then the Whitley Bay site would have come as a shock.

Given that the P&R doesn't operate on a Sunday, it would perhaps be better to situate the Durham rally at Sniperley instead. A bigger space, and a horse shoe layout, so it'd actually be better for lining buses up. That way the rally still exists, but it's just moved the same distance in the opposite direction.

Regarding Herrington Country Park. I'm pretty certain that the hefty hire fee still applies, so the chances of NEBPT using that for a rally are massively slim. It'd need a wealth of trade stalls, and a massive buy in from preservationists around the country, to even begin to make it viable. Not to mention they'd have little choice but to charge people an entrance fee, which is something that on the most part they've avoided doing. Instead relying on donations. I wouldn't have an issue paying into a big rally, but I know that it would price a lot of people out of attending.

I somewhat agree, it didn't feel half as good as the MetroCentre rally(which was my first one) as I did see some buses that I never have before and I can imagine that you have probably seen those before. At times I got a tad bored where there was no free bus journeys on and resorted to sitting on a bus waiting for something to happen, whereas at the MetroCentre bus rally there was never a dull moment as there were much more different buses and a more exiting atmosphere with more people too.

I may not attend next year to this rally as it was a bit dull, but I may change my mind when it comes to the time as it was nice weather and was better than sitting in the house.

You'll not find better than the Metrocentre in the North East. It's the biggest up here, and the most likely to see a wider range of vehicles. Not to mention Riverside is round the corner, so GNE always pull the stops out in terms of modern attendance!

It's worth heading over to Seaburn if the weather is nice. The area around the park is good for photos, and you could probably fit a trip into Shields in there too.

Finally some praise for the amount of time and effort I dedicate to this hobby, I never normally get anything. It does actually annoy me at times as I get very little praise especially for long outings whilst others get showered for taking photos on their doorstep.

My thoughts on today was so negative as these where the shuttles when I got there:
GNE 6044
GNE 5234
The Eden PPT 446P
The Eden AFB597V

Two of those are service buses which I didn't need to go all the way to Whitley Bay to ride especially as I got the X10 from Newcastle to Peterlee home and I have spent a fair amount of time on the two Eden buses at other rallies this year and did not really want to ride them again especially so soon after Howlands.

One of my other issues was there wasn't much space and the buses ended being parked so close together that I have to put two buses in the same photograph in some cases.

If it's on again next year I'm am unsure if I will attend again but I probably still would as before I got there I was actually enjoying myself but just didn't feel totally myself when I got there and started to feel ill later on and I am still not 100% right now.

Your saying about being easy to be able to get to rallies but Shildon is pretty difficult especially on a Sunday as the only ways to get there is the train which runs about every 2 hours and the Arriva 1B and 5A which both run hourly and if you don't know Shildon it can be tricky to figure out when to get off especially on the 5A made worse by the allocation of EcoCity's on Sundays so you can't use the next stop announcements to figure out when to get off. I can't see me running into many members of NEB if I attend Shildon again this year.

Jimmi you deserve some praise, travelling all the way from Newton Aycliffe to Whitley Bay, in terms of mileage covered you have done around 77 to 95 Miles, possibly more if you traveled into Darlington first, and on a Sunday too takes some doing mind, I found it a challenge just to get up this morning and motivate myself to do a 4 Hour round trip, eventually I did get to Whitley Bay but yourself, aureolin etc, Enthusiasts I usually talk to had already been and gone.

As for Shildon, I wouldnt even attempt that on a Sunday unless NEBPT were perhaps offering to take people up for a small fee if any fee at all picking up at Heworth or Gateshead, or perhaps even Washington Services, otherwise it would take around 3 Hours to get there, and same to get back depending on times of Buses etc.

As for Shildon, I wouldnt even attempt that on a Sunday unless NEBPT were perhaps offering to take people up for a small fee if any fee at all picking up at Heworth or Gateshead, or perhaps even Washington Services, otherwise it would take around 3 Hours to get there, and same to get back depending on times of Buses etc.

Yep, I'd have to set out at about 07:30am to get there for 10:30am...

I quite like going round the world to get to bus rallies though, as it's just like a normal outing to me. I enjoyed going to the Transporter Bridge rally in 2014 via Peterlee, Darlington and Stockton on Arriva buses.

As with all rallies, though, it'll be a case of how I feel on the day.

Jimmi you deserve some praise, travelling all the way from Newton Aycliffe to Whitley Bay, in terms of mileage covered you have done around 77 to 95 Miles, possibly more if you traveled into Darlington first, and on a Sunday too takes some doing mind, I found it a challenge just to get up this morning and motivate myself to do a 4 Hour round trip, eventually I did get to Whitley Bay but yourself, aureolin etc, Enthusiasts I usually talk to had already been and gone.

As for Shildon, I wouldnt even attempt that on a Sunday unless NEBPT were perhaps offering to take people up for a small fee if any fee at all picking up at Heworth or Gateshead, or perhaps even Washington Services, otherwise it would take around 3 Hours to get there, and same to get back depending on times of Buses etc.

Thanks!

Didn't have to go to Darlington thankfully but was was certainly a lot of milage covered today by myself.

Me and aureolin both left around 1310 and got the 309 to Newcastle which went past the 308 you would have been on.

Despite living so near Shildon is a pain for myself as there is only one 5A an hour and the train only runs every two hours and leaves Shildon at roughly the same time as the 5A.

Next to upload yesterday's photos to Flickr, at least my headache has gone off.

Im sort of shy so didn't say hello even though I seen people of the forum, sorry everyone.

I arrived from Stephenson Museum on Toonlink Omnicity 5238 to find Bazza and few others my age, im guessing they were Davie, Lee and maybe Danpick and some others.
I took some photos of 5238 with them but for some reason didn't talk to them. Sorry for not talking to yous.

The buses at the rally were ok but nearly exactly the same as Howlands a few weeks ago but mamnged to head home with something a little different than I would normally buy............a very old ex stagecoach ticket machine!!

I then escaped to Haymarket and Eldon Square to get some photos which will probably be the first on my flickr which I will probably do tomorrow.

Yep, I'd have to set out at about 07:30am to get there for 10:30am...

I quite like going round the world to get to bus rallies though, as it's just like a normal outing to me. I enjoyed going to the Transporter Bridge rally in 2014 via Peterlee, Darlington and Stockton on Arriva buses.

As with all rallies, though, it'll be a case of how I feel on the day.

I would have to walk to The Galleries, then probably the 4 to Heworth followed by X10 to Peterlee or Middlesbrough then over towards Darlington to get to Shildon if I set out at 07:30am.

Just a thought here on my part, Do you think the Rallies would be better attended if held on a Saturday instead of a Sunday, for example with Shildon & Kirkby Stephen, certainly a much better Bus Service on offer on this day of the week particularly to Darlington, then I wouldnt have to do the above, I could get the 50 to Durham then the 7 to Darlington, then whatever to Shildon from there.

Yep, I'd have to set out at about 07:30am to get there for 10:30am...

I quite like going round the world to get to bus rallies though, as it's just like a normal outing to me. I enjoyed going to the Transporter Bridge rally in 2014 via Peterlee, Darlington and Stockton on Arriva buses.

As with all rallies, though, it'll be a case of how I feel on the day.

I actually enjoyed my trip up to Whitley Bay this morning especially as I got a good range of variety today including a 306 branded StreetLite on the 308 which I have not been on and I haven't done this route either. Unfortunately I took a little bit ill as the day went on so that put a bit of a damper on the day.

The earliest I can get to Shildon on that day is around 0805 on public transport although I could get there whenever I want if I walk there along the new path that follows the railway line between Aycliffe and Shildon Rail Stations but I am too lazy to do that

I would have to walk to The Galleries, then probably the 4 to Heworth followed by X10 to Peterlee or Middlesbrough then over towards Darlington to get to Shildon if I set out at 07:30am.

Just a thought here on my part, Do you think the Rallies would be better attended if held on a Saturday instead of a Sunday, for example with Shildon & Kirkby Stephen, certainly a much better Bus Service on offer on this day of the week particularly to Darlington, then I wouldnt have to do the above, I could get the 50 to Durham then the 7 to Darlington, then whatever to Shildon from there.

Would it be easier to get the 6/X21 from Durham to Bishop Auckland then either the Arriva 1B/5A or the train to Shildon.

It would be easier for transport to rally sites but I imagine the reason they are probably held on Sundays are because less people are probably at work on Sundays than Saturdays. Isn't Kirkby Stephen held on both Saturday and Sunday but it isn't really possible to get there on public transport.

I feel sorry for you being on an Omnicity for that long. They are way too hot.

At least it wasn't 5274

I feel sorry for you being on an Omnicity for that long. They are way too hot.

5266 was nice and cool for the 70 Minutes I endured on it back to Gateshead this afternoon, was no rattling either although there were a few vibrations when idle but other than was a smooth ride, probably the best Omnicity I have been on other than 5260.

At least it wasn't 5274  

What one did you have?

Looks like the full allocation was Coaster Omnicities today.

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5266 was nice and cool for the 70 Minutes I endured on it back to Gateshead this afternoon, was no rattling either although there were a few vibrations when idle but other than was a smooth ride, probably the best Omnicity I have been on other than 5260.

Yeah the Coaster ones are great, the red ones aren't that good though.

What one did you have?

Looks like the full allocation was Coaster Omnicities today.

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Yeah the Coaster ones are great, the red ones aren't that good though.

We had 5268.

We had 5268.

Ah right that one isn't too bad.

[quote='Tom' pid='114755' dateline='1436122969']

What one did you have?

Looks like the full allocation was Coaster Omnicities today.

---

5268, I did see 5249 on, I think Bazza got a photo

Ah right that one isn't too bad.

I only enjoyed because Dan was with me, but then again, me and omnicities don't get on well...

I was at the rally today, if you seen someone with an Arriva Cap and bodywarmer on as well as blue training pants then that was me.

Yes I saw and heard you today noisy one

Yes I saw and heard you today noisy one

I was very erm, exited at some parts of the day today

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I only enjoyed because Dan was with me, but then again, me and omnicities don't get on well...

It's a bus, how can you not get on with it well?

I only enjoyed because Dan was with me, but then again, me and omnicities don't get on well...

They are decent I think, especially the Coaster ones.

They are decent I think, especially the Coaster ones.

I guess it's just me who doesn't like any of them...!