It was with real shock and great sadness that we found out yesterday that Eric Gwilt, the man behind the website Caravanning4u passed away. I had only been talking with him by email the day before he died.

Eric has helped and assisted us hugely and his death is a shock to us all.

May you rest in peace Eric because God knows you have earned that right.

With our love and thoughts to all your family.

Richard

www.caravanning4u.co.uk

We at Cover4Caravans are proud to support the work of The Caravan Storage Site Owners Association (CASSOA) as they offer top quality security for your Caravan and appreciate the investment that you have put in. We at Cover4Caravans offer generous discounts for caravans stored at these sites as proof of our ongoing support.

There is an article relating to this on the CASSOA website. Please click on this link to view it:

http://www.cassoa.co.uk/News_View.aspx?articleid=24

Well it’s another weekend and I will be at the Dagenham game tomorrow against Darlington, and with snow forecasted I don’t think I will be going out on Sunday!

We have noticed an increase in enquiries this past week as the Touring Caravan season approaches. In readiness I will be attending the NEC Touring Caravan show in February to take a look round and get a feel for the market. With all the current doom and gloom I imagine many of you will be purchasing new Touring Caravans for that quick, easy get away from the rat race. February is shaping up to be a busy month as we are meeting with one of our panel of insurers next week for a review to make sure we are all geared up. I personally am really looking forward to the brighter weather, and not in the least due to the fact that I will become a Dad in July/August time. Am I crazy or what!

Don’t forget to order your stickers as they look really good.

As ever you can contact me if you have any queries.

Happy Touring!

Mike (michaels@alanblunden.co.uk)

As we approach another weekend it’s time to wind down and enjoy a relaxing time. I will be without my girlfriend on Saturday as I have permission to watch my beloved Daggers in action against Rochdale tomorrow (my Dad keeps mentioning the Rochdale Ringers, any ideas anyone!) to try and retain our promotion push. After that it’s relaxing Sunday watching Arsenal play in the FA Cup, and that won’t be easy!

With economic issues being the current trend and I read about the potential loss of 400 Thresher stores, I thought I’d highlight a positive and low and behold it’s a Touring Caravan Story.

Bailey of Bristol continue to snub the credit crunch after generating a turnover of £78 million in it’s diamond anniversary year and has increased it’s market share in the Touring Caravan market and have updated their IT terminology to increase sales potential. The company continues to commit to improving it’s quality of product and service. There are of course issues with some companies as mentioned in my last article about the Touring Caravan problems in Yorkshire. Anyway I don’t want to end on a low note and want to wish you all a peaceful weekend.

Happy Touring!

PS If anyone has heard of the Rochdale Ringers please let me know.

Mike (michaels@alanblunden.co.uk)

Good morning I hope you are all well on a foggy but excited Southend. You may be wondering what the excitement is about, well the big game with Chelsea is tonight and the town is buzzing! Wish us luck.

It’s rare to see high profile politicians involved in the Touring Caravan industry but I see the troubles in Yorkshire have prompted some big names to get involved. Alan Johnson MP is leading the fight to save the Atlas Group as he understands the importance of the Touring Caravan industry in terms of the regions economy and the threat of 340 more jobs being lost. He joins fellow city MP’s Diana Johnson and former Deputy Prime Minister John Prescott in arranging discussions with the Touring Caravan manufacturers and with Business Secretary Peter Mandleson to save the industry.

Hopefully these discussions will lead to meaningful developments and hopefully a satisfactory conclusion.

Happy Touring!

Mike