Let me introduce you to “Billy Bedford”, the latest
addition to our family.
Billy is a 30 year old Bedford CF2 Mobile Home, and he’s in
need of some serious TLC!
Well, it seemed like a good idea at the time. Following our fabulous weekend of music
festival frivolities this summer (during which I found liberation and embraced
the idea of camping, and ‘roughing it’ in general). Also, totally
inspired by George Clarke’s “Amazing Spaces”, we perhaps got a little carried
away! We began imagining ourselves
spending next summer motoring around the country (who knows, maybe even Europe),
in an amazing small space of our own, taking in every beer and music festival
we come across along the way.
I have to say, an iconic VW camper van was more what I
had in mind… that is, until I realised we would need a small mortgage to
acquire one. So, we decided to settle
for our own, more affordable, version of a “classic” motor home.
And there he was… jumping out at us from the pages of
Auto Trader.co.uk (actually, it was the ridiculously low price tag that jumped
out more than anything), and off we went to check him out. We were unsure at first, and in fact walked
away from our first viewing of Billy saying “it probably wouldn’t be the
sensible thing to do”. Since when have
we been a “sensible” couple?!
Two days later we found ourselves handing over the cash
and quite literally “chugging” away in our newly acquired vehicle. Neil, my hubby, was bursting with excitement
at the thought of getting stuck in to our new project. I, on the other hand (following behind in my
trusty little Peugeot), felt a little apprehensive (understatement!).
Rightly so, as it turned out. I’d say we got about 500 yards from the garage
before Billy came to a sudden halt! I
waited, thinking he had just stalled, but no, it seemed we’d run out of diesel
(dodgy fuel gauge!). Billy, being so
old, doesn’t have hazards, so we also had an impatient queue of vehicles behind
us, sounding their horns in protest. Things were not going to plan!
We managed to roll Billy back into a side street, and
called the garage, who came to our rescue with a can of diesel, successfully
getting us back on the road… for about a further 500 yards, until, yes you
guessed it, we broke down again… whoah, whoah, whoah!! Back to the garage went Billy. I could go on,
and on, and on, but to cut a long story short… several cans of diesel, two RAC
call-outs, and many an obscenity later, we eventually got our new “investment”
on home territory.
On closer inspection, it seems there’s a problem with the
fuel tank (you don’t say!), and despite the problems so far, my hubby remains
optimistic that this is easily ‘curable’, and is a mere ‘hitch’. Once the fuel tank is cleaned up (or, worst
case scenario, replaced), we’ll realise what an absolute bargain we’ve
acquired, and will be hitting the open road in search of adventure.
Despite his age, Billy’s interior is in pretty good
condition, and I’ll certainly have loads of fun choosing fabrics and ‘accessories’
to personalise the space. Initial thoughts
are around a ‘Cath Kidston’ type theme, but who knows where my imagination (and
Pinterest!) will take me.
You wouldn’t think it, looking at him just now, but I
have a strange feeling we’ll have many a good time in old Billy. Watch this space!
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| Neil and Alfie, getting acquainted with Billy |
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Bit of TLC and this'll be perfect for a brew and a bacon butty in the mornings!
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