Trinity Bear completes the London Marathon
Ever courageous (remember the
bungee jump!) Trinity Bear
continues his mission to raise funds
for the disabled facilities at Holy
Trinity's Church Rooms by taking
part in this year's London
Marathon.
Riding on Colin Vesty's
back, the determined pair power walked
in the heat amid crowds of participants
to raise the sponsor money that will
bring the church nearer to its target.
The road, said Colin, was packed with
slow runners so it was hard to get a move
on. It took them 4 hours 44 minutes and
11 seconds to complete the mammoth
race, coming in at a respectable 20867th
out of around 36,000.
Unsurprisingly, since he had piggy backed
his way to the finish line,Trinity Bear said
that he would relive the experience
again tomorrow.
Colin, however, said “Never again..”
To find out more about what is
happening at Holy Trinity Church,
please visit the website
www.holytrinitybarrow.org.uk
No news on Willow Way
It has been a story of stop-go-stop-go on the Willow Way development and now it appears to be stop again. After the last edition's
front page headline 'Developers hoping for summer start on Willow Way', action seems to have stalled.
This is a story which we are keeping an eye on and shall report on any developments in the next issue.
Quorn Park celebrates a Centenary
When the Quorn Hunt moved to
their new home at Quorn Park on
Paudy Lane (between Barrow upon
Soar and Seagrave) in 1905, the
total cost of the site was £11,000
and it provided accommodation for
35 horses, 200 hounds and 20 men.
When they moved on to new premises
at Kirby Bellars in 1991, Quorn Park
subsequently became home to
30 families.
Many changes have taken place in the
past few years but the outline shape of
the original buildings remains and, of
course, locals still refer to it as "the
kennels"! The distinctive clock tower
looks a little sorry for itself at the
moment and the management
committee at Quorn Park are currently
looking at ways to raise funds to replace
the clock workings that mysteriously
disappeared and to fund a replacement
weather vane.
Now in 2005, one hundred years after
its completion, the site residents would
like to find out more about its local
history. Do you have any interesting,
personal stories (or photographs) about
the site that you could share with us? If
so, the management committee would
be delighted to hear from you. Please
write to them, or email care of the
Editor, Barrow Voice. All photos will be
handled with care and returned to
owners as soon as possible.Thank you.
Barrow wins website Oscar
Barrow and Fleckney have just became the first ever winners
of the annual Leicestershire Villages website competition
at Beaumanor Hall. In March, the Leicestershire Rural Partnership
held its annual event for Site Editors but this year, for
the first time, prizes were awarded to projects in the community.The
Barrow team won a digital camera for "the greatest impact
on their community" and Fleckney won for the most innovative
project with the digitisation of its historical archives.
The camera has been lent to young Jess Acton, who has been
busy taking photos of Barrow seen from her youthful perspective.
If any other community organisation or individual has a community
project in mind and would like to borrow the camera, contact
Judith Rodgers on 01509 412063 or rodgers_david@hotmail.com
A new feature of the village website, www.barrowuponsoar.org.uk
is "Village Walks" from which you can download the Fossil
Trail and the new Barrow Walks leaflet.
You will also find lots of new material in the Village History
section including fascinating oral records. John Nurse, Site
Editor, would like to add a section on "the war years in Barrow"
and he asks if anyone has any stories, pictures or memories
of the First or Second World War that could be used. If so,
contact him on 01509 414626 or john@nursej.co.uk
LOG ON TODAY TO FIND A MASS OF USEFUL INFORMATION ABOUT THE
VILLAGE. OR CONTACT JUDITH IF YOUR ORGANISATION WOULD LIKE
ITS OWN PAGE
Judith Rodgers John Nurse
Postie feels on top of the world
In a previous issue, I interviewed
Andy May about his planned
sponsored hike up Kilimanjaro and
promised a follow up article.Andy
kept a diary of his experience and
has kindly let me extract parts to
help give a flavour of his
remarkable journey.
It started on Sunday 23rd January with a trip to Heathrow, where Andy met with
the other 51 member of the group - all wearing their boots
to ensure that they didn't get lost in transit.After a delay
and a nine hour flight into Nairobi, the group had a six hour
minibus journey through sunburnt flat grassland and shrubs.
On the journey they watched for zebra, giraffe and other wild
animals and passed through a village of Masai warriors dressed
in their bright red cloaks. Once into Tanzania, excitement
mounted as the group got their first glimpse of Kilimanjaro,
its snow capped top shining in the sun. By this time they
were level with the clouds and higher than Ben Nevis.
The next morning saw the group acclimatising and minimising
altitude sickness with a six hour walk through a tropical
rain forest trail, followed by a climb of Maundi Crater. Once
accomplished the group slept at camp despite thunderous rainstorms,
cold and the sounds of snoring mixed with monkeys screaming.
Day two for the bold group consisted of another eight hours
walking at a steeper gradient through alpine heathland with
giant heathers and gorse bushes, with the promise of Kilimanjaro
ahead as the clouds swirled around them. Once dark, the stars
came out with the Plough appearing upside down, Orion on its
side, the Milky Way in all its splendour and the piece de
resistance - a shooting star.
The pattern of acclimatisation walks and spectacular thunderstorms
followed the next two days, along with a warning that the
air at 4000 metres was too thin for rescue helicopters to
operate, so the only way down was via a one wheeled, two-man
stretcher.The evening of the third day brought another challenge,
as along with wind and sunburn, the intrepid adventurers had
to deal with snow.This made the final midnight push up the
mountain even more hazardous as the snow had melted the frozen
scree.The water in Andy's drink bottle froze during the climb
and after five hours of exhausting zigzagging, the altitude
unfortunately got the better of him (as it had for a large
number of others in the group), and his guide sent him back
down the mountain. Of the fifty-two people in the group, only
fourteen reached Uhuru Peak. In the final 24 hours of the
climb, each person walked for nearly 18 hours, had climbed
the equivalent of Ben Nevis, and descended nearly twice as
much, through temperatures varying from 35 degrees C to minus
15 degrees C.
Once back at the base hotel,Andy enjoyed afresh the delights
of lager, electricity, running hot water and European style
toilets. From there, following a night of rest, the adventure
took one last turn as en route to Nairobi a huge thunderstorm
turned the road into a river. However, the buses managed to
stay on the road and deliver the group safely to the airport.After
a relatively uneventful flight and a joyful reunion with loved
ones,Andy returned to Barrow and has subsequently collected
over £3,000 in donations for Scope.
Laura Hegarty
BUSCA - What we do for you
A NEW IDENTITY...A CHANCE FOR YOU!
Don't worry.The Community Association is still in the same safe hands as always, but it
was decided that the time had come to update the logo so at the same time, we took
the opportunity to give Barrow its full title.
CONNOTATION OF FUN...
The new acronym of BUSCA has the advantage of becoming a word in its own right
with the connotations of fun, entertainment and theatrical performance. Because the
Community Association organises many forms of entertainment in the village, it
seemed fitting.
THE NEXT GENERATION...
The new BUSCA logo will be the identity which will carry the Association to the next
generation of villagers.
We have many thousands of pounds of funds, the organisational team and the contacts
to make your ideas a reality.All you have to do is have a WISH, an IDEA or a
PROJECT... If it's for the benefit of the village or its people, we'll back you with people,
advice, help, contacts, organisation, enthusiasm... and MONEY!
IT'S NOT YOUR VILLAGE...
Anybody who lives or works within the village is automatically a member of BUSCA.
But it's not really YOUR village unless YOU take part in its life.
THE STRANGEST
IDEAS...
There is no idea which we will not
consider (as long as it's legal!). For
example a recent idea proposing
WHEELIE-BIN RACING in the High
Street was met with great enthusiasm!
A VOICE FOR YOUTH...
Youth may be just a state of mind, but
BUSCA is particularly looking for ideas
from the village's younger element -
We want to do what you want us to do
- It's your call!
CHALLENGE BUSCA...
If you've got a wish, an idea or a
project...Talk to us!
Phone Laura Hegarty on
01509 415315.
WHAT DO WE DO?
Villagers are not always sure of what the Association does, so here's a quick run down:
- The Christmas Street
Entertainment (do you remember
the dancing camel?)
- The Village Bike Ride BBQ
- Entertainment at Humphrey
Perkins - dances, Panto Group and
Youth Theatre productions plus
visiting theatre productions
- The Fireworks Proms Concert
- Barrow Voice
- The Roundhouse
- Barrow Fossil Trail & the recent
Village Walks leaflet
- Barrow and Charnwood Crafters
- Village Website
- Support for BOSCAPS
- Funding for signage at the
Millennium Park and so on...
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