Away travel

[BIG RON]

Hi guys and gals
Ive been reading this site for a while now and i know the subject of away travel crops up now and again.As a fairly regular away game goer i was thinking ther are not that many options to get to games ;i.e not many local supporters club coaches.I have travelled for the last ten years on and off on the supporters buses silversnails and while fairly cheap, the last few seasons have become a bit dull and tedious and quite frankly not a pleasing experiance more of a church outing ,sit down and be quiet type thing.There is also the gedling branch with ebby but that says it all really,although i do like there leaving tiimes.The train can be expensive and in a car theres always the driver issue
So do any guys and gals think theres room for a co operative type travel bus that goes to the majority of games but for more relaxed type ,maybe the odd night stop,i realise this may be pie in the sky but i don,t think i could stick another year with the dullheads at silversnails

 

[NFFC Loyal]

I think you make a fair point, Ron.

Official coaches - dull, boring, sober and quiet experiance. Don't bother with them anymore.

Trains - Great for the laugh and beers on the way, but starting to get really expensive and Police swarm them on matchdays which at times can spoil the day.

Car - As you say, driver issues.

What we've started to do over the past few seasons is organise our own Mini-buses, Coaches to away games. They work really well and if you split the cost between you, works out at a cracking price. Plenty of beers on the way down and a cracking laugh, with as many piss/pub stops as you wish. The only problem is getting somebody to actually organise it, which can be a nightmare if people piss you about!

I like the idea of setting up some kind of independant coach to rival the official coaches, where its much more relaxed, can have a few drinks along with a good laugh and sing song on the way, with a pub stop on the outskirts of a city, maybe. Only problem is actually trying to organise this and the numbers who would actually prefer this type of travel rather than an official coach.

I'd even say there's a possibility, that for a game such as Newcastle, you'd maybe get a better deal on air travel rather than trains!

 

[BIG RON]

Thats the idea loyal ,ive posted around a bit and theres been good vibes from a few who go on silversnails maybe an ad in the E/P might spread the newss.A mate of mine is a copper but he is game for a laugh and he would oganise paperwork issues.All i am after is a good day out with a few beers and a laugh...... keep it down at the back.

 

[Redstone]

I think it's potentially a very good idea. I prefer to travel on trains whenever possible but it can't always be done due to price or struggles to get back especially for a midweek match.

I think the angle to attract customers is to play on the independent status. People, including myself, try and avoid the Silverdales mainly because its a basic service to take you to and from the stadium. The supporters buses you mentioned ideally require membership and I know the Gedling bus for one is often full most weeks.

Perhaps a good example model is the Butler Brothers that used to run. I think it packed up a few years back. That, as far as I am aware, was an independent service and was very popular.

 

[winnits]

The Butler Bros coaches were the Pownall branch of the Supporter's Club weren't they?

I'm pretty sure there are restrictions on beer consumption on coaches travelling to football matches - so once you get beyond minibus territory you'd be a target for police as I suspect it is actually against the law (albeit a stupid law).

Organising it would be a fairly thankless task, which is what would put me off, although I can see the appeal.

I tend to travel to away games either by car or on the Silversnails - and both have fairly hefty pitfalls as mentioned above.

 

[Redstone]

Perhaps your right, I may be thinking of another coach. I did have a couple of mates who travelled on it and I don't believe they were members though.

It certainly is a difficult thing to organise. Its a good laugh when its sorted but it would be very time consuming setting it up, especially from scratch. I've sorted out a couple of mini buses for us to Forest trips and they were problematic enough.

That said, I think it could work and there is probably a market for one. Especially for those trickier trips where train and car journeys are a struggle.

 

[nffc59]

Yeah. Dead up for it.
But why not use Silverdale. Although they dont have it anymore. Skills are the new contractors

 

[sedgred]

I think unofficial regular buses are some what frowned upon by the powers that are responsible for ticket sales. There were several self-organised buses which seemed to get the tags ''Battle Buses'' some years ago.

I think it was one away game at QPR ( One night, a Cup game ) where two or three bus loads of Forest fans ended up in the side section to the main group and the mayhem that ensued caused the club to crack down on ticket distribution

 

[Redstone]

Keeping troublemakers off the bus would be the responsibility of the organiser but the problem of ticket sales, if there was one, could be solved by individuals buying their own tickets from the ticket office. If a group want to run a bus then it doesn't have to have anything to do with the club. If it did become a regular occurence then the club would be able to realise that it wasn't a 'battle bus' anyway (unless it was of course)!

The police do often stop buses, especially unofficial ones, but they cannot prevent its journey unless they have a strong reason to suspect its passengers are going to cause trouble.

 

[BIG RON]

Skills thats a blast from the past.are they still going?why the change?
A very valid point sedge but there only frowned upon if you do not liase with the police.You can still be independent and have a few beers though,leeds whites nottinghams branch of leeds fans do this very well and they face more issues than forest fans would
Its good to see some good responses though,i can see it would take a lot of organising but amoung like minded people it would work.Maybe a tricky midweeker to start then a few before christmas and see what happens and see if its viable

 

[Redstone]

I suggest Ipswich because I can't see how i'm gonna get there!

Seriously though, that's probably the best way to do it to gauge numbers.

 

[BIG RON]

I suggest Ipswich because I can't see how i'm gonna get there!

Seriously though, that's probably the best way to do it to gauge numbers.

I was thinking of that myself ,last year was the same.I tend to think that if you're going there a day off work or college is needed so may as well go early doors and make it a full day

 

[nffc59]

3 reasons for the change to skills
1. An altercation with the organiser and a driver mid-way through the season. This caused much bad feeling amoung regular users towards organiser who books the coaches (Forest do not organise it, they just sell the tickets)
2. The organiser was fed up of constantly changing drivers. And the size of the buses. He wanted the larger buses to every game.
3. He had verbally agreed to stay with Silverdale. He shook hands on the deal. When he went to Skills he must have got a better price!!!!!! and signed with them for the coming season.

 

[NFFC Loyal]

Tis great to see some good responses.

A good mate of mine organised an independant coach this year. He did explain that it was very hard work but that was mainly to do with people pulling out at the last minuite and needing to find replacments, but he managed it and it worked very well.

The police we're informed out this coach, and beer was consumed without any hassle. What happened what day was beer was allowed to be taken onto the coach, on the condition from the driver that the bus was kept cleana nd tidy and everyone wasn't travelling to cause trouble, as the driver was concerned about his coach being damaged. As soon as the driver was told everyone one the coach we're just going for a good laugh, few beers and no mess would be created......the driver was more than happy.

Each service station that we pulled in at for a p**s stop, all the empties we're removed keeping the bus tidy. This was the same through the day, and then having one last stop before reaching our destination too get rid of any empties and putting all the spare cans in the hold compartment of the bus. (Our only problem was not taking enough beer as we ran out fairly quickly on the way home ).

We thought it would be a better idea to find a pub juts outside the city itself, as going into a city centre could have caused aggro with police that wasnt needed. So found a nice boozer in a town a couple of juctions before the city itself which worked really well.

All in all, it was a very good day indeed and one which i much prefered to trains etc. If this could be organised i think it would be very popular. Only issue is getting someone to actually try and take it on and advertise the idea to other reds.

Personally, I'd be very interested if somebody fancied giving it a go.

 

[BIG RON]

Great stuff lads
I personally do know somebody who is more than willing to do this as he has a good base to work from and he does know people in authority which will make life easier, i,ll see him in the week for a pint and i will post some ideas .

 

[thehockleyhustler]

Would defo be something I would use too as long as prices compare favourably with the Official coaches

 

[WatnallRed]

Heanor and district branch...
go to most if not all away games...

pick up through ikeston to ripley heanor way...

usually have a pub stop!

 

[Marshall.]

Heanor and district branch...
go to most if not all away games...

pick up through ikeston to ripley heanor way...

usually have a pub stop!

I think I've been on a similar bus to home games.. Does it run through Eastwood and then Kimberley?

 

[WatnallRed]

I think I've been on a similar bus to home games.. Does it run through Eastwood and then Kimberley?

It does.... dosent very often pick up after about ikea though

Why do you live eastwood way?

 

[Marshall.]

It does.... dosent very often pick up after about ikea though

Why do you live eastwood way?

Yeah I live in Newthorpe right next to Eastwood, do you live near Eastwood way too?

What is the average price to the away game on that bus?

 

[WatnallRed]

Yeah I live in Newthorpe right next to Eastwood, do you live near Eastwood way too?

What is the average price to the away game on that bus?

What the hell im newthorpe too.
in between pinfold an newthorpe common on the main road

and it depends....
how far away it is
& how full it is.

For derby was like £3 instead of os £7 i think it was.

sometimes its a few quid at most when iv been on but then again drops me off 200 yards from home instead of traveling to town so cant complain!

 

[Marshall.]

What the hell I'm newthorpe too.
in between pinfold an newthorpe common on the main road

and it depends....
how far away it is
& how full it is.

For derby was like £3 instead of os £7 i think it was.

sometimes its a few quid at most when iv been on but then again drops me off 200 yards from home instead of traveling to town so cant complain!

Oh cool lol

I live on Brunel Avenue near Mill Road

This sounds alot better than the official bus, when I went to Coventry it cost like £12 or something, and I had to get two buses to get back to Newthorpe. I might start using this bus for away matches from now on!

 

[WatnallRed]

Yh its pretty good.... man city was funny, good long pub stop and then everyone singing on 2 coaches we took that day

 

[Marshall.]

Yh its pretty good.... man city was funny, good long pub stop and then everyone singing on 2 coaches we took that day

That sounds great! Sounds miles better than official bus.. Im thinking about going to loads of away games this season like sheff weds in september and derby and lester. I'll add ya on facebook m8

 

[sedgred]

I forgot to add to my earlier post, that as a non drinker, when it suits, I have driven independent minibuses from the Bottesford area, the length and breadth of the country. A fine way to travel and we have enjoyed some fantastic days out ;D