THOUGH a very wet Sunday, the Crick Jubilee Boat Show turned out well, with the weather much improved for the remaining days.
Arrangements by the Waterways World team were superbly good. When exhibitors arrived to set up, we were greeted, shown our 'pitch', given a welcome and even tables/chairs in place, writes Evelyn Booth.
Solved the problem
Sunday was wet but my marquee which had got soggy overnight was laid with strewn straw which largely solved the problem and was okay to walk on unless you were daft enough to come in open high heeled sandals! [There was blue sky on Monday morning, as Graham Booth's photograph above shows.]
Stewards even came round early, with brooms long enough to sweep condensation off the tent supports to stop dripping condensation and it worked pretty well. I have never seen anyone do that in my history of 21 years of boat shows!!
Best day
The wet Sunday to which you referred as 'rained off' was in fact, my best day as a trader, and exceeded any show in the last 10 years! The photo sent to you by someone there on a boat probably did show deserted walkways—because the crowd attending was either inside the marquees buying stuff from hard working traders like me, or if it was Jubilee Thames Pageant time, they were watching the television screens, of which two were working, one outdoors and one in the main marquee!
When your posting on your column appeared I saw red because it was possible that anyone reading it might assume that the Crick Boat Show was a washout and not worth coming the next day. Not so!
Think of the traders
Please think of the traders in future, who have been working to get stock ready, travelled from all corners to be there, and make more checks with attendees to get facts. Don't rely on one person on his boat on the towpath, who had probably gone to watch the pageant on his own cosy television screen.