Three firework shows in one night

We had a demo night for clients last week. About a million crew turned up to help (slight exaggeration, but still loads) so it was almost like a firers reunion.

Rather than rigging, I was on Meet and Greet duty. It meant that I spent most of the evening in the warm, and that I got to fully watch and enjoy the shows!

The first was a Halloween-theme. It featured some of our other effects including lasers, smoke machine and flame pots:

Picture from the side, the audience were in front of the large building on the left.

The second was a quiet show to the ever popular "Let it go" from Frozen. It was full of single-shots, almost like a choreographed dance:

The last show was a classic, using a mix of firework types and fired to Protectors of the Earth:

Once our guests had left, I did change into my many-layered rigging gear and help with the clear up. They didn't really need me because half the world was there, but I like to get involved.

All photographs are copyrighted and are used with permission.

Fireworks at Kenilworth Castle

As I left the house at stupid-o'clock last week, I made the random decision to tweet my whole day. This is what it's like to work on a firework show - oh, the glamour!

6am Up and out of the house wearing thermals + carrying many layers of clothing. It's going to be a cold, wet day. #fireworks #dayinthelife

7am Meet at the yard, load personal kit onto vans, say hi to firers heading out on different shows #fireworks #dayinthelife

#photo I forgot to include in the last tweet #fireworks #dayinthelife

8am Pause at services for breakfast. Weather starting to turn... #fireworks #dayinthelife

9am 20 mins from site and the heavens have opened. It's going to be a cold, wet rig #fireworks #dayinthelife

10am Unload pyro. 56 boxes! #fireworks #dayinthelife

11:30am Rigging the 5" and 6" shells #fireworks #dayinthelife

1:30pm Wind 1, Gazebo 0 :( #fireworks #dayinthelife

2:30pm Wired in most of the fireworks. Rain seems to have paused #fireworks #dayinthelife

3pm #fireworks #dayinthelife current clothing: full set of thermals, jeans, wproof troos, 2 pairs skiing socks, fleece, hoodie,...

...body warmer, wproof coat, buff, hat, gloves, snow boots. #fireworks #dayinthelife

4:30pm Safety briefing and a million yellow tabards #fireworks #dayinthelife

5:45pm We have pushed three vans back along the muddy track. Now time to suit up (PPE) and wait... #fireworks #dayinthelife

7pm Usher people out of the fall out zone and prepare for fiting. Sustem armed. Crowd count down... #fireworks #dayinthelife

7:15pm Someone (not me) pressed go and the show fired. 7:45pm wait for 15mins cool down and safety check #fireworks #dayinthelife

8:50pm van stuck in mud - 12 crew pushing! #fireworks #dayinthelife

10pm A long derig, including a defender row for one of the vans and lots of pushing. Finally leaving site #fireworks #dayinthelife

10:10pm Spoke too soon. Last van stuck. More pushing and towing required. #boggyfield #fireworks #dayinthelife

10:30 The lovely people @KRTFireworks treat us to pizza and a drink #fireworks #dayinthelife

11:15pm On the road. Just need to drive the van back to the yard, then pick up the car and drive home! #fireworks #dayinthelife

Midnight Very brief stop in motorway services to switch driver (we are a bit tired!) 12:30 Back at yard #fireworks #dayinthelife

1:40am Home at last. Unpack car and stumble bed-wards, via a quick cup of tea. Going to ache tomorrow! #fireworks #dayinthelife

Last tweet before I finally succumb to sleep. @FitbitUK + #fantasticfireworks (@KRTFireworks) = a LOT of exercise...

And to round the post off, here's a great photo of the show taken by Alan Ranger:

Fireworks, royal palace, ballet and brunch

Summer's here! Hurrah! And I've even had the time to make the most of  the weather :)

Last Saturday we rigged a firework show at Hampton Court Palace. We drove through the gardens and set up behind a beautiful fountain, unfortunately ruining many tourists' photos of the gardens. One of the most picturesque locations I've fired.

No pictures of the actual fireworks I'm afraid because I was on fire/crowd watch.

Then on Thursday I was treated to a night at the ballet! English National Ballet at the Royal Albert Hall. I loved every second! We were sat very close to the action (about 5 rows back), and because of the venue (and very large stage) the performance was "in the round" and the cast was huge. Wonderful.

And today has been perfectly lazy - brunch at my favourite cafe with a new friend, a spot of shopping (new earrings! Yay!) and sunshine :)

What's your favourite way of enjoying the nice weather?

Fireworks and rushing around.

So far, fireworks season has gone really well. I had planned to write a proper post about everything I've been up to, but between fireworks and the day job I'm simply too busy right now. Instead, for now I'll have to content myself with a few pictures that I snapped over the weekend...

Three vans loaded up and ready for the drive to Portsmouth.

Rigging the shell tubes on the barges at Gunwharf Quays, Portsmouth.

A snapshot of the show on Friday night (two barges in the middle of the harbour).

A few of the shell racks - my vague attempt to document some of the kit we travel with.

Rigging at Kenilworth Castle.

A slightly blurry side view of the show at Kenilworth Castle.

I wasn't firing on Bonfire Night itself (Tuesday) because I was needed at work, but I'll be back out on Saturday on another fabulous fireworks show.

When did you last see fireworks?

To all firers out there - stay safe this season. 

What I did yesterday

It's Marvellous Festival time again (how do these things come around so quickly?!). So, fireworks in a field...

1) I sported a delightful black tide mark around my hairline after re-applying sun cream with blackened, firework-powder covered fingers. Didn't realise for several hours. Attractive!

2) I forwent my usual baseball cap in favour of my cowboy hat, which did a wonderful job of keeping the sun off my face.

3) We enjoyed slightly cooler weather! After over a week of official heat wave (30degC+ everyday), it cooled slightly to a more comfortable 24degC with a cloudy sky and light breeze. Much better for lifting and lugging.

4) I enjoyed a post-rig and pre-show hog roast (otherwise known as pig-in-a-bun). It was delicious, especially the cracklings and apple sauce.

5) I surrounded myself with wildlife. The deer kept their distance this year - I could see them hiding in the woods, but none ventured over like in previous years. There were a few ticks about but not so many as to cause problems. Topping the chart were the butterflies! There were loads of them. Must be the sudden hot weather.

6) Fireworks were lovely :)

Photos from Sunday - clear sky and temps back up to 28!

Bonfire-y dreams

So I finally started to escape from hibernation's grip, and what did I do?! Work another firework show. I know - it sounds bad, but actually it was a very small show and was very relaxed:
     noon - collect van
     1pm - arrive on site
     2pm - stop for a lunch break (Really?! What's one of those?)
     3.30pm - all fireworks rigged and the system electrically tested. Rest for a while.
     6.15pm - light the bonfire
     7pm - fireworks
     7.15pm - eat a hot dog :)
     7.30pm - clear up
     8.30pm - leave site. I was in bed by 10.30pm!

It was nice to be trundling along rather than racing, but it was a little dull compared to the weekend before.

The best part was the bonfire. It wasn't expected to be - the social group who were organising the event had built the bonfire about a week before and it had rained a lot. We warned the client that it might not burn and it took a lot of cardboard and patience with a gas torch to get it going, but eventually we did...

It doesn't look that big without reference points, but it was at least six foot tall.

Bonfires are so warm and lovely :)

The amusement factor of the evening was the low-lying fog which crept in after dark. It didn't affect the show too much, but the clearing up was interesting. At one point I could barely see my own boots in the light of my headtorch!

However, back to real life now - tonight I'm off to my first ballet class in two weeks...

White van girl and blowing up a castle

Saturday started early. Very early.

My first job of the day was van driving! It wasn't anything huge (my licence doesn't cover anything bigger than a long wheel-based transit), but it was still a little bit daunting. I got right into my stride, although I have to admit to not being your typical white-van-girl: tea in the cup holder and radio 4 playing in the background (I'm so old before my years!).

Our convey arrived in rainy Kenilworth and proceded to the site - around the ancient walls of the castle to the front. This was where my new van-driving skills let me down - it was grassy, muddy and wet :( One of the French crew that were working with us had to take over so that my van made it across the slippery surface safely.

This was a big rig: 12 crew working pretty much flat out. Seven firing positions, plus a mini bonfire-lighting show and lights on the wall of the castle to synchonise with the main show.

Isn't it an amazing setting?

The Round Table folks were very kind - every hour they came round with tea and coffee, and in some cases sandwiches and biscuits!

At 6:30pm, I cued the bonfire show. It was only 12 cues, but it was my first time giving the GOs on the radio. Exciting...

Fireworks on water

Unfortunately, my regular sailing trip clashed with the busiest fireworks weekend of the year so I was unable to meet up with my boating mates (the Pteraductyls). On the bright side, I did end up very close to them and on a boat (well, a barge) in the middle of Portsmouth harbour.

Friday started innocuously enough - I was at the fireworks yard (Rocket Park), ready to start my third day of loading vans, labelling ADR loads (for those vehicles carrying a large amount of explosives), charging radios and other essential prep tasks for the many crews heading out over the weekend.

Then came a change of plan - the team at Portsmouth were down a crew member. Off I trundled with my kit box, PPE (personal protective equipment) and plenty of warm/dry/waterproof layers of clothing.

The rig was very cool - a small show on the pontoon and then two barges full of fireworks. I had to roll up my sleeves and get stuck in, helping to organise the shells - those are the large fireworks that shoot high into the sky and then burst, usually into a sphere of colour. During the rigging, the barges were moored up to the pontoon which made everything much easier. As did the sunny weather!

The cakes (multi-shot fireworks) being laid out, before being secured.

A shot across the barge (including the crane), showing the famous Spinnaker Tower in the background.

These racks of tubes are secured firmly together for the shells, which are placed individually at the bottom of the tubes.

Sleepy firework girl

I am shattered.

First, there was two days of working in the yard. This mostly consisted of lifting and lugging to prepare all of the vans for the busy weekend.

Then, I ended up unexpectedly working the firework show at Gunwharf Quay, Portsmouth. The fireworks were rigged on a pontoon and two barges which were towed into the middle of the harbour by tug boats...

Apologies for a rubbish photo - I only had my phone with me. Trust me - it was fabulous!

And yesterday was a pretty big show at Kenilworth Castle, Warwickshire. It was a pretty intense rig (and we hadn't had much rest time after the previous show), but we got everything done and it was a pretty cool display.

Huge crowd and lots of great fireworks infront of the castle :)

At some point, when I've had more sleep, have washed the black powder and mud out of my clothes and let my tired muscles recover, I'll write a bit more and share some better pictures.

PS - I managed to pack everything I needed for a whole week away, including various different activities! I don't think I've ever before been able to say that I have packed everything I needed :)

Prepping for the "season"

Firework season is upon us! There are a few halloween shows over the next week and then the 5th of November looms large. It is going to be busy!

In preparation, I decided I better sort through my kit box and check that I have everything I need:
    emergency chocolate - check
    rigging gloves (formally sailing gloves) - check
    warm toasty gloves - check
    knife - check
    nips (wire cutters)  - check
    at least two warm hats  - check
    cheap sunglasses - check
    torch - check
    headtorch - erm... better get searching for that... especially as it took three before I found one I liked... finally found!

And I may have treated myself to a trip to Decathlon for some extra warm clothing to help me through the cold (and possibly wet) days ahead. And the best thing was how cheap it all was :)

My haul - a very soft fleecy buff, extra thermal top, fleecy layer and ski socks (long and toasty warm).

Bring on the fireworks :)

Questionnaire-y type post

Whilst I was off on my jaunts (which I will be blogging about over the next few days), two of my blogging friends (Elle at eat run sail and Mrs DiscoBows at Disco & Bows) nominated me for a Liebster Award. It's not my normal type of post, but here goes...

Liebster is a German word that means sweetest, kindest, nicest, dearest, beloved, lovely, kind, pleasant, valued, cute, endearing and welcome.

Rules for receiving this award:
1. Each person must post 11 things about themselves.
2. Then answer the questions the tagger sent for them, plus create 11 questions for the people they’ve tagged to answer.
3. Choose 11 people and link them in your post.
4. Notify the people you have tagged.
5. No tag backs.

Things about me:
1) I love the sea.
2) I love flying.
3) I'm very good at starting projects and not very good at finishing them. Hopefully, as I age I'm starting to buck this trend.
4) Gardening is a particular example of the above - I love gardening and always start with lots of good intentions and end up not giving the plants enough care and attention.
5) I'm much too worried about what other people think of me and I hate thinking that someone might be laughing at me.
6) If I could do everything I want to, I would need to be a superhero! My ideal weekly activities would be: 2-3 ballet lessons, karate lesson, homegroup, swimming, 1-2 runs, Spanish and/or French lessons, meeting with friends and one quiet night in.
7) I roller skated a LOT as a child (think artistic skating, like ice dancing). I was never great at it but got to the point of landing the odd double jump, which is pretty cool. I am, consequently, quite at home on eight wheels.
8) I have big feet (due to being tall). The other day, a shop assistant in a Spanish department store almost laughed when I asked for a shoe in my size (and it wasn't because of my awful Spanish pronunciation!).
9) I do both ends of the spectrum - tomboy-one-of-the-lads rigging (e.g. for fireworks) and lady-what-lunches (dressing up and enjoying dining out).
10) The fact that I've worked on about 30 fireworks shows does not dull my excitement when I see a show. Sometimes I even jump up and down when watching.
11) Pandas :)

An update on ambitions

Almost exactly a month ago, I wrote a summer ambitions list, so I guess it's time to revisit it and see how I'm getting on!

1) To get surfing again - planned (roughly). I know when I'll be in a good surfing location, haven't booked any lessons yet but this one is definitely happening!

2) Do 3 ballet classes in one week - achieved! In fact I did four classes, including two on the same day. I wish I had the time and money to do this all the time - it was so good for me to concetrate on one thing and work my body a bit harder than normal.

3) Spend some quality time working on my Spanish - not really done. I got as far as downloading a couple of free apps onto my phone. Oops...

4) See some live music - partly done. As predicted, I was in the vicinity of live music at Marvellous Festival, but was busy rigging and setting off the fireworks so it doesn't really count. Will need to see if I can fit this in better in the next few weeks...

An entirely unflattering pic of us wiring in the shells at Marvellous

5) Make sushi - not got any further with this one :S but I will!

6) Make more pies - - almost done. Had a (pretty dodgy attempt) at making an apple and pear tart a few weeks ago. Also, I am entertaining next week so will crack out the pie recipe books again :)

New things to add to the list:
7) Get to work crocheting again. I popped out to buy beautiful new wool colours the other day and am ready to get to work!

Relaxed

For the first time in weeks I'm feeling relaxed :) Had a whole evening of just cooking a nice dinner, enjoying a glass of Pinot Grigio, washing up and generally chilling. Lovely.

And here's an amazing photo that A took at the weekend during the Henley Summer Fireworks:

Fireworks, ladders and firemen

As part of the Queen's Jubilee celebrations, St Albans (a town in the South East) was one of over 4000 locations lighting a beacon. We were drafted in for a bit of accompanying firework-y goodness.

The beacon was mounted on the roof of the town hall and our job was to provide a three minute display after the firemen had lit it.

Everything was very straight forward. Apart from the need to climb a ladder to get all of the gear onto the roof. This was quite a chore, especially as I'm not very good at using one hand on a ladder and carrying in the other hand.

Once everything was up, we got rigged and ready:

A hundred posts and counting

In 14 months I've written 100 posts. That's a lot. Or at least it seems a lot to someone who previously hadn't considered writing any type of blog or even a personal diary.

And to celebrate, here are a few of my favourite blog posts:

Erm... marathon talk - my honest (if slightly depressing) account of running the Amsterdam Marathon. One of the first challenges that I have ever set myself and, if nothing else, I proved to myself that I do have some grit and determination.

Big bangs and bright lights - how I got into working on firework displays. A bit of an insight into part of my life.

Fishing in the Atlantic Ocean - an adventure different to anything I've done before. Not the most strenuous activity (barring in mind that I got to sunbathe on the boat), but pretty cool.

Damp feet and ice cream - sailing with great friends. Just lovely.

Got a kit box of my very own - it strikes me as a little silly to have written a whole post about buying a tool box for firework shows. But I have, and I'm rather attached to it (the box and the post!).



For me, a good blog post is one that's honest, light-hearted and includes a couple of photos.

Which post is your favourite? And what do you think makes a good blog post?