The component manufacturer changed his supplier of a key component, moving it from Ireland to China, guess what! The inserts do not fit the new housings! No-one checked until I started to put things together then the manure hit the whirly thingy! Issue is still not resolved but we managed to get the first order out by using up old stock.
I put my back out working on the computer! I moved on my chair and “ping”. Even after a visit to the physiotherapist, it was still sore and bruised and I have been dragging one leg when walking even a short distance.
However, by Wednesday last, I had been able to deliver a load of completed units and also collect another batch of ftp merchandise. Thursday involved loading the trailer for Holland on the 29th and getting our much belated Christmas shopping underway. Then there was the rush to wrap them and get them all delivered on Friday.
Today we got up early, and, to the accompanist of Johnny Cash, Slim Whitman and John Denver we prepared the meat and vegetables for Christmas Lunch. Now we have finished our meal and it is time to sit back and review the past year.
We had some great times in Holland this year. The Spring visit to Franacker with my brother and sister in law was exceptional and the Kukenhof Gardens really was out of this world. This year we spent time in the orchid house. Henk has said that few Dutch people visit the gardens; I find that strange because it is one of the wonders of the modern world. We have visited them for the past five years and seen a different garden each year, all magnificent. WE shall miss out this year because we will be with Stephen B and Barry M in Australia collecting petrol Dexta numbers!
The Meddo show was again, one of the best we have ever had. I say this every year, maybe its meeting all the people from the site that makes it so special. Dotty was pretty impressed too with her short holiday in Emiel’s shed with his other tractors. Once again, many thanks to Emiel and his father for their hospitality and for allowing Dotty to appear on their stand at the Show. A special thanks to Emiel for introducing us to Dutch tractor roads as we travelled from the farm to Meddo in convoy.
Pascal also made it special by driving the Symphony from Amsterdam to Meddo, no small trip. I did catch him telling someone I had driven Dotty from England! We had some great evenings with Henk, Pascal and the beautiful Eva.
Most of the year it’s been pretty quiet behind the scenes at fordsontractorpages. The site has progressed along quite happily but things started to go slightly wrong in October. Little did we suspect that the problems were going to cause so much trouble for Oscar.
It should be remembered that this site is run in our spare time. Oscar has a pretty responsible job and a family. His job involves a lot of traveling and there is really no way that, after a hard day’s work, he needs to come home to a site in total disarray. This is what happened in November this year but he has managed to save all previous posts and set up a brand new site with very little disruption. I know we all are really grateful.
Whilst talking of Oscar, I should say that, this year, he became the owner of a lovely little Dexta! It was never right that the owner of the best Fordson Tractor Web Site in The World should not also own one of their products.
The later weeks of the old site were filled with “nasties” trying to join the site. We were getting up to 120 a day. It became a bit of a nightmare trying to sort the genuine members from the non-genuine. The new site does reduce the problems but it does not eliminate them. I go down on bended knee and ask, PLEASE, PLEASE, help the site administration team, and yourself, by giving us a clue to your tractor interests.
Joe286@f.mail.co and nothing else in the profile area will get shifted to hold and eventually deleted from the system. Joe286@f.mail.co and “I have an E27N (or other tractor)” will get prompt attention.
The administrators are in different time zones so, in theory, we can get new members on to the site 24/7 but it helps to have that clue. JC, Kev and Mike all have busy lives and may only get a few minutes to check the board so, please new members, help yourselves and us by putting some information in the profile boxes.
Another expansion in site activities has been the introduction of site merchandise. Oscar and the management team all agree that we do not want any form of advertising or pop-ups on the site. Nor do we want to sell information gleaned about tractors. We all believe information should be freely given and exchanged, in a friendly atmosphere.
OK we are going to get heated at times, orange grills on Majors is a case in point, but we all remain friends. Oscar’s original thought was it should be like a Dutch bar where we all sit round with our beer and pipes to talk tractors. Having sat in some of those bars over the past few years, I would say, the site is exactly like that. But, just like a bar, the taxes have to be paid and the decor has to be changed from time to time with the possible addition of new rooms. This all costs money and, at the moment Oscar funds that.
We have discussed between ourselves, how we can fund the site without reverting to pop-ups etc. and Oscar suggested I should look into finding products of high quality that would fit into the general site framework. Some of you will have fordsontractorpages mugs that we tried a few years ago.
I looked at items of clothing such as sweat shirts, polo shirts and T shirts and printing logo’s on them but none really gave the feel of quality that we felt the site should be proud of. Eventually I located a supplier of top quality goods and who can embroider a logo on them.
The Admin team discussed this for some time, with suggestions going back and forth until eventually we all agreed that we should go ahead. The company supplied samples and these went off to all the administration team for their approval.
The first batch was received a few days before we left for Meddo this year and so, the products were on show with myself and others wearing them. They received universal approval and so we now offer them on the site.
Profits generated from sales go to the site and will be used, in future, for improved services and perhaps, to enable the site to have a presence at tractor shows. No member of the administration team or Oscar, or myself gains from sales.
We have the option to increase the range of products available to caps, overalls, mugs and waterproofs but we have just gone for sweat shirts, polo shirts and short sleeved shirts at this moment.
Payment for goods is via PayPal, once the goods are dispatched a PayPal invoice is raised and you will receive, via e-mail, an invoice for your goods. This can be paid by credit card/debit card direct to our account on PayPal with total security. We only send the goods out, we do not get involved in payment, this is all done by PayPal.
I have been wearing my shirts most days since Meddo, as a trial, and they still look good!
Finally, I wish you all a Great New Year and look forward to meeting as many of you as can get to Meddo in 2011. We will of course, be at the Fordson Tractor Club of Australia weekend in May 2011, and at a special couple of days in Robinvale, Victoria, just prior to that.
If you see anyone with his head in the bonnet of a Petrol Dexta over there, it will be me!
Oh, and we will be back in Holland over the New Year at Goes and Franacker delivering an E27N and celebrating our wedding anniversary.
All our best wishes go to you also, for a great 2011. You certainly are a busy man.