Norfolk Motorhome Show 2017

          2017 was the first year that IHOC had organised an “official” Meet at the Norfolk Motorhome Show and this was attended by eight IH vans. We welcomed new members Yvonne and Keith Fowkes from Derbyshire who were attending their very first IHOC Meet. Although a small gathering we were still allocated a pleasant area on the Showground convenient to all the amenities and the trade display area.

     Horace and Margaret Pickering were excellent marshals and although the weather was not wall to wall sunshine with the careful positioning of three windbreaks we were able to enjoy two wine and cheese gatherings to share news of all our latest adventures, demonstrate any purchases made at the show and of course have a look at any modifications or additions anyone had made to their van. (We have to thank John and Ann for their idea for a detachable drying rack using a suction pad.)

     The Norfolk Show is a much smaller event than the Malvern Motorhome Show but there were a reasonable number of trade stalls to tempt us to spend some of our money. IH Motorhomes had a very large trade stand and we understand that they enjoyed good sales and interest from potential purchasers.

     Warners at each show arrange for a bus service to take attendees to the nearest city centre on the Saturday for a return fare of £2pp. We have taken advantage of this service at previous Warner Shows and found the door to door service excellent. At Norwich however gremlins were at work and the bus drivers gave conflicting information about the pickup point resulting in total confusion. As a result there were a lot of frustrated motorhome owners queuing in three different places in Norwich only one of which was being collected from. Eventually an owner in our queue phoned a friend who was on site, who contacted the site office and after many phone calls two hours plus later we arrived back on site. The moral of this tale -  make sure that you have the site phone number on your person when adventuring off site, just in case. Many complaints were made to the site office on our eventual return and some people had their fares refunded, small compensation!

     Several owners had travelled a considerable distance to attend the show at Norwich so as they left the showground on the Monday morning they headed to other areas of Norfolk for few days. We chose a CL at Upton at a boatyard from where we enjoyed a few peaceful days with gentle strolls along the dykes and the river.  Others took advantage of the C&CC holiday sites on the Norfolk coast or nearby CC sites.

     Thank you to Horace and Margaret for marshalling this meet and soon members will have the opportunity to meet again at Malvern, with its popular Cowboys and Indians.