thought the TF would be safe on the drive

well its a long story but on monday night my neighbour rang to say his wife had broken down on the fast lane of the m27 with a few hundred others due to blizzard and freezing conditions and it was to let me know that he was walking towards fareham so they could meet and walk home. I was horrified and quickly talked the other half into venturing out in her rover 25 on a rescue mission (well the TF only has 2 seats:dunno:) she submitted into me driving after some arguing but I have more experience than her and hell why should she have all the fun :whistle:

anyway long story short we managed to find them both and bring them home.

when I got home at midnight I found that our rather large ivy had given out under the weight of the snow and peeled off the wall coming to rest on my TF, crap I thought how the hell will I get that out tomorrow, well my neighbour bless him held it up with the aid of the missus as I tried to reverse off the drive.

easier said than done I can tell you but managed in the end after some abuse from another neighbour about the bloody noise at that time of night :whistle:

any way here is a couple of pics,

taken in the dark and not very good I'm afraid;



the ivy next morning;



I spent all day wednesday chopping it down; then getting the car back on the drive.



pile of dead ivy;



perhaps the drive isnt the safest place but to be honest while it was on the road I was terrified some numpty would skid into it, here is a pic of the missus driving towards it to show what I mean.




big hooray for her little 25 it saved the day and got her to work everyday when other cars just couldnt cope. :Gos:

Good job rescuing your neighbours Gos there is not enough community spirit around, have some rep, I hope there is no damage to the TF

Craig

Bacchus;7649 wrote: Good job rescuing your neighbours Gos there is not enough community spirit around, have some rep, I hope there is no damage to the TF

Craig

ah cheers mate, I am quite pleasantly surprised by the community spirit in my area, particularly the 4x4 owners who have rallied around to help those who have needed it, massive respect to them (must remember that statement next time I think about slagging them off )

as for damage I think I have escaped but not too sure cos of persistent snow, it probably came down quite slowly overnight so fingers crossed there wont be any scratches when the big thaw arrives

Well done mate - very British spirit!

plus... Sod the neighbour who complained if they ever get stuck! What a miserable git!

AdamElphick;7652 wrote: Well done mate - very British spirit!

plus... Sod the neighbour who complained if they ever get stuck! What a miserable git!

funnily enough the ones I helped are celebrating her 50th birthday tonight at a local tavern, I will be there as will the guy who had a whinge so it may come to a head after a few brandies :whistle:

But you now have to re-grow the ivy to cover up the blockwork boundary wall..!!

Let it grow, but keep it tight to the wall with hedge trimmers - thats what I have done with ours on the from of the house. I have to get the step ladders out at least 6 times per year to trim it back or else it would cover the entire front elevation..!!

Gos;7656 wrote: funnily enough the ones I helped are celebrating her 50th birthday tonight at a local tavern, I will be there as will the guy who had a whinge so it may come to a head after a few brandies :whistle:

Trust you wont be driving.....?

Polo;7666 wrote: But you now have to re-grow the ivy to cover up the blockwork boundary wall..!!

Let it grow, but keep it tight to the wall with hedge trimmers - thats what I have done with ours on the from of the house. I have to get the step ladders out at least 6 times per year to trim it back or else it would cover the entire front elevation..!!

Good idea - I'd screw some trellis behind it before letting it grow - the 1" * 1" stuff though not the thin stuff!

yeah that wall is pretty ugly but the ivy had been there for many many years, the main trunk was huge.

I am giving some thought as to whether to grow something else there or to paint the wall with a textured masonary paint.

any one got any suggestions for alternative wall coverings organic or otherwise.

might even get a poll out of this if I get enough suggestions

please bear in mind it can be a squeeze past the car so no roses or any other pr1ckly plants :whistle:

edit; swear filter kicked in on the word pr1ckly

Polo;7667 wrote: Trust you wont be driving.....?

no we will be walking, in a fashion, mostly slipping and sliding

AdamElphick;7652 wrote: Well done mate - very British spirit!

plus... Sod the neighbour who complained if they ever get stuck! What a miserable git!

+1 to that hope he gets buried in a snow drift... with someone really annoying

Gos;7672 wrote: yeah that wall is pretty ugly but the ivy had been there for many many years, the main trunk was huge.

I am giving some thought as to whether to grow something else there or to paint the wall with a textured masonary paint.

any one got any suggestions for alternative wall coverings organic or otherwise.

might even get a poll out of this if I get enough suggestions

please bear in mind it can be a squeeze past the car so no roses or any other pr1ckly plants :whistle:

edit; swear filter kicked in on the word pr1ckly

LMAO! Looking at the before & after pics of the ivy I can just imagine you standing there with a cuban cigar sticking out your mouth holding a couple of rifles at the ivy & saying in your best Arnie voice "This time it's personal!" :gunsmilie: