Challenging Day on the Buses
15/06/2009
THE GREAT NORTH BUS CHALLENGE - Wednesday 6th May
For some of the participants the Great North Bus Challenge was more aptly named than the organisers realised! Many of those who participated commented on how much they had enjoyed the whole experience, of taking part in the challenge given by the Durham-Lesotho LINK of seeing how many of the 20 checkpoints across the diocese they could visit on one day and how many points they could accumulate.
Gillies Restaurant in Washington Galleries, one of the Great North Bus Challenge checkpoints and John Adam and Jim Watts are seen here getting their passports stamped.
The approach to the challenge varied from those who meticulously planned and researched bus routes and timetables to those like Arthur Ridley who admitted, “I had no great plan in mind where I was going, nor had I even looked at a single bus timetable . . . I decided to go up to Stanley and on to Consett as they were my home areas where I had been born and worked, and I had not been up that way for about forty years by bus…this was a very nostalgic journey”.
Some travelled over 120 miles that day ratchetting up as many points, whereas others, like 90 year old Edith Pierce, a long term supporter of the LINK, were content to settle for less. “I gained 57 points and thoroughly enjoyed my time gaining them,” Edith commented.
But there were unexpected challenges. What do you do if there is an hour’s wait between buses at the checkpoint? With five minutes to go and travelling in a town you don’t know, how do you manage to get that last stamp? The checkpoint is all shuttered up two hours before closing – how do you get proof you visited it? The participants were certainly enterprising – answers: you ask the bus driver to wait whilst you just pop into the shop to get your 'passport' stamped; you realise that the checkpoint is a medical centre so you tell the driver you need the medical centre and have an emergency; you simply take a photo of yourself with your passport outside the closed checkpoint.
The organisers of the Durham Lesotho LINK GNBC would like to publicly express their thanks to all the cheerful, co-operative bus drivers, all the willing checkpoint stampers and, of course, all the wonderful GNBC participants who took up the challenge to help raise funds to build an education centre for young people in Lesotho.
The event has raised almost £2000 so far with more sponsorship money expected. The winner of the competition to accumulate the most points in their 'passport' was Alan Parker of Stillington who managed a grand total of 132. Congratulations to Alan. He will be receiving his two return tickets to London from Chester-le-Track which was one of the sponsors of this event.
But the final words belong to the participants: in this case to Elizabeth and Richard Briggs, “We really enjoyed our day on the buses . . . the scenery was spectacular, a lovely time of year. A great adventure! . . . we will certainly do it again next year and get friends to join us.”
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