It was a surprise and a pleasure to rediscover
a long lost friend on a recent trip to Croyde Bay
She was later offered back to her
original savior from the scrapman, Steve Cocks, but because her
condition had deteriorated to such an extent, the offer was rejected, and hence
she ended up with David Hoare at Chepstow Classic Buses in May of last
year.
Thankfully, this has actually ended up being
her saving grace, with restoration having taken place to bring her
back up to scratch for her new role as a surfing school in Croyde Bay, painted
in a very attractive light blue advertising livery. The lower saloon appears to
have been converted for storage, whereas the upper saloon has had the original
seat frames re-positioned to face inwards right the way round,
presumably now used as a teaching space.
It is a shame in one sense to know that she
came so near to being loved and cherished by enthusiasts throughout the
South West, with plans to repaint her into the green and cream Western
National/Plymouth Citybus livery of the mid/late 80s;
an accolade relatively few buses could justifiably be
painted into. But on the other hand, she is still one of the lucky ones who
dodged the cutters torch to continue living on in the South West, and is certainly
now being put to good use; although I'd presume it will be quite a while before
she turns a wheel again. Who knows, maybe in 10 years time she could be saved
for preservation once again, and the life she always deserved may still be in
reach. Only time will tell!
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