Formula E …..!! in The odd entries from life …….

I’ve just watched a short video on BBC News on line, ‘Shhh! It’s Formula E!’ To some Mum’s they may think Formula E is the latest thing in baby milk, but there written part of the piece starts ‘Electric 'turbocharged sewing machines' taken for a spin’ Of course it is all about electric racing cars, Formula E starts this September and runs through to June next year, a streets race in London.

I’m not sure of the 'turbocharged sewing machines' description’ as a car eased it’s way from the pits, to me the sound took me back to a Saturday afternoon in the late fifties, then Mum and Dad had a village shop and Post Office, they took over the shop in April 1957, the first year or two of any business is slow so Dad had a milk-round; a job that started at 6 am and was finished by lunch time.

The shop opened at eight and closed at eight, so Dad was by two pm, and one Saturday afternoon Dad needed to go back to the depot, so I had an outing. Like all little boys I wanted to go what Dad did, at some point Dad let me drive the milk float, these were possibly the first electric vehicle on our roads, giving off a sound much like a Formula E racing car, except that when the car reaches its top speed of 140 mph when it sounds like a quiet jet engine passing.

I did get a go at driving the milk float, I was just old enough to reach the power pedal, and I did press it down – all the way! The floats were not fast but they could accelerate, my legs was pulled back very quickly and the float stopped without damage – just!

Yesterday the cars at Silverstone didn’t whisper past, it was the full throated roar of the ‘Formula One’ petrol engines at full throttle, there was a crash on the second lap and the race was stopped for a hour, no one was seriously injured but a few cars needed a full rebuild. Once it restated it soon become a two hoarse race, Lewis Hamilton chasing Nico Rosberg, the restate had left Hamilton way back but he kept putting in fastest laps and closing the gap, on lap 29 Nico Rosberg’s car retired with gear problems. From then only car problems could stop Lewis Hamilton, so we enjoyed a British win.

We almost took Ziggy for a walk on a beach up the coast, we put off our trip a while until the rain had stopped, I say rain but it was very heavy rain and lasted about twenty minuets; then in a light rain we set off. The main road through Perranporth looked a little busy so I took the back way, as we approached the traffic island there was water across the road and round the island, with traffic on all sides I still took the road out of Perranporth; and that road was flooded deeper on the other side.

Our side proceeded mostly on the footpath, the on-coming traffic mostly on our side, I took the road up the hill out of Perranporth, at the top there is a small car park and there I turned back; if we were flooding I felt there would be flooding on the road towards Newquay. My Estate car has a diesel engine, so I was quite happy I could get back through the gathering water; that road near the Co-op is quite low and three road run down there!

So we retuned with Ziggy un-walked, and the rain coming down harder again, I left Daughter and Ziggy to go inside before I set off! Late afternoon now and we have sunshine and a blue sky, at least this mix of weather is better than what we had this morning ………..