XXX Corps Club Route event 2024, Belgium & The Netherlands

[Hanno Spoelstra]

Heads up for the next edition of the commemoration of Operation Market Garden organised by Liberation Task Force. A.k.a. as "XXX Corps", search this forum for reports on the previous versions.

More details about the upcoming edition here: http://www.ltf-hq.com/News.htm
Express your interest to join here: http://www.ltf-hq.com/Registration-2024.htm

As many MLU Forum members can attest, this is an event not to be missed. It would be great to meet more of you during the next event. There's plenty of time to prepare, so start planning your holiday to Holland in 2024!

[svdwal]

Hi all,

In september 2024 there will be another XXX Corps tour from Belgium to Arnhem (roughly). I will again take part with my Morris Commercial C8 GS.

Are there other members planning to take part?

Looking forward in seeing those columns of vehicles again and enjoy the atmosphere.

Rgds.

Sjoerd

[Tim Bell]

Planning to attend with Sherman VC.

Tim

[Mike Gurr]

43rd Recce Regt LHG will be there again some of whom are also on this forum, as well as my Universal Carrier we will have:

1 x Daimler A/C,
1 x Humber A/C,
2 x Daimler Dingo,
2 x Humber LRC,
1 x Ford F30,
1 x Fordson WOT2,
1 x Bedford QL and
1 x Jeep.

Mike Gurr

[Hanno Spoelstra]

Will be great to see some of the usual suspects again

I'll be there with my Ford F15A + trailer and a crew of four in total.

[Tim Bates]

Will be there with the Albion CX22

[Paul Edwards]

My Morris CDSW light recovery will be in attendance.

Does anyone know anything, information following my registration has been scant?

Cheers,

Paul

[Hanno Spoelstra]

Good to see the usual suspects forming up to move out

Originally Posted by Paul Edwards

Does anyone know anything, information following my registration has been scant?

Attached goes XXX Corps OUTLINE ITINERARY Provisional 2024.pdf which was sent out by LTF when I signed up a long time ago. I reckon you will hear sometime soon at which date you need to show up at the ferry port?

The Dutch participants have set up a separate communication channel as for us mere continentals things are a bit different. I.e., we need to organise our own transport to the FUP at Leopoldsburg.

Please feel free to share any updates any of you receive in this thread.

[Mike Gurr]

LTF have a Facebook page where they tend to post updates first. Nothing been updated there for a while but worth watching.

[Hanno Spoelstra]

For those who "don't do Facebook", here's an update from the LTF website: https://www.ltf-hq.com/News.htm

Breaking news from the Boars mouth ...
Announcement 27/12/2023

Garden 80 -2024.

For those that are participating on the XXX Corps military remembrance commemoration tour of the Netherlands, we have pleasure in revealing the what’s on where. :

• Saturday 7th September: Base camp Leopoldsburg; gathering of management team & MP unit.
• Sunday 8th: Preparations of base camp ready for arrivals. Newcastle & Hull ferries ship out.
• Monday 9th: Arrivals; Newcastle & Hull ferries, registration and allocation of convoy places. Dover>Dunkirk ships out & arrives pm. Registration & allocation of convoy places. Harwich ferry ships out.
• Tuesday 10th: Arrival; Harwich ferry, registration and allocation of convoy places.
• Wednesday 11th: Fueling & preparations. Optional arrival of EEC participants. Briefing. Recon 2 Dingos to Suykerbuyck Café. Wreath laying. (Press opportunity).
• Thursday 12th: Display; public admission, schools, media – PRESS. Final arrivals of EEC participants. 40’s Dance.
• Friday 13th: Preparations; fueling & briefing. Evening ceremony (details to follow).
• Saturday 14th: Operation Garden 80 commences: Occupation of Valkenswaard town centre. Overnight in the streets of Valkenswaard.
• Sunday 15th: Movement via, Leende, Heeze, Geldrop, Mierol, Mierlo Hout, Helmond Son en Breugle. Overnight Son en Breugle. Two wreath laying ceremonies en route. Lunch time stops in several towns (details to follow).
• Monday 16th: Son en Breugle – Camp open to Public, schools and dignitaries. Partial fueling available. PM Two units depart for Sint Odenrode & Eerde Mill (details to follow).
• Tuesday 17th: Movement from Son en Breugle to Grave & Overasselt (details to follow in due course); Overnight in both Grave & Overasselt. Wreath laying at Grave bridge pm and Balgoij (final details to follow).
• Wednesday 18th: Grave & Overasselt to Groesbeek. Partial fueling available. Overnight at Kleine Amerika camp on drop zone area for General Browning’s team.
• Thursday 19th: Groesbeek; camp open all day to public and schools etc.
• Friday 20th: Groesbeek to end camp on Island in the sector of Bemmel. (this is where XXX Corps ended up in 1944 (further details to follow in due course).
• Saturday 21st: End of commemoration – return to docks all ferries overnight with the exception of Dunkirk.

As time goes on the details of camps etc. will be communicated. At this time the details of the program are still being evolved. Whilst we have the route itself and the events on the route we still have to deal with the respective towns and communities to tie in with local happenings and timings for passage etc.

And from their Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/LTFHQ

A joyous New Year to one and all, as we prepare for Normandy and the XXX Corps military commemoration in the Netherlands. In many respects it will be a challenging year and also an emotional one.
2023 has been somewhat frustrating for some of us involved in planning, as things have dragged on! We are full of anticipation for the event itself and there has been this momentary need to start the “engine” and drive up that historical route in memory of those that “journeyed” in 1944. Trudging through excel sheets and checking details can be a tiresome occupation which is only relieved by occasional inspection of some of the photos of the 2019 event. This is sometimes a worthwhile exercise if only to relieve us of the monotony and remind us of the good times ahead. We are very much looking forward to seeing all of our XXX Corps family again in 2024 and of course welcoming our new fellow adventurers. We are privileged to have several persons on the event who will be on a family pilgrimage and we need to be mindful that this will at times be very emotional for them.
It all sounds very nice and exciting, but there are considerable challenges ahead of us; notably the increase of ferry costs and other costs too. Quite how we deal with this at the moment remains a subject that is under discussion at this time. It may be that we will have to impose a surcharge for UK participants, but we will clarify this in due course.
We are being faced with unprecedented costs and added to this there is the new EEC tax this is known as “ETS” (Emission Trading System). 'ETS Surcharge' on all journeys starting from January 2024 (on ferries). This surcharge is passed on to the EU as part of its Emissions Trading System (ETS), designed to combat climate change and effectively reduce greenhouse gas emissions. In this respect, this is not all as there is also a fuel surcharge that can be imposed on all vehicles traveling on the ferries and this may not be calculated until one month before departure date. With regard to one ferry company in particular, their fuel surcharge was £49 per vehicle last month so we do not have any idea of the final costs until the month before departure.
There is also the cost of transport for all of the vehicles from and back to the docks on the continent. One thing that we may have to consider is that all vehicles apart from armoured tracked vehicles will have to drive from the docks to the start point and return to the docks from the end point of the commemoration (this would be a worst-case scenario). We have calculated that we will have sufficient fuel in reserve to cover this.
An additional matter that requires attention; those who have reserved space and paid for only themselves with their vehicle and not having any crew (this applies to UK participants only). This concerns people that have sent in their initial booking with crew mentioned and no news of their crew or any payments have been received to date! For those that have registered and are in arrears with their payments; we would like you to clear this by the end of February please. Otherwise, this will carry on for months and the more delays we have, then the more the final routing plan will be delayed. Once we are dealing with the movement plan details (and additionally the communes), then we will not have time to continue chasing people. “You can lead a horse to water, but you can’t make it drink”. Please bear this in mind. We are of course aware that there may be some that have a temporary cash flow problem, so please keep in touch and let us know so that at least we know that you will be participating. We all have problems from time to time and we are here to help if need be. To all of you that are supporting this substantial event we would like to thank you all. Without your support and encouragement, it would not be possible to contemplate such an undertaking.
It is essential that all UK participants supply us with their passport details as per the original booking in mail. This is required for border force and customs. If you have not sent this, then you will possibly be refused access to the ferry upon your departure. Please act now before we all get caught up in last minute necessaries.
In terms of the program for the commemoration itself, nothing has changed in respect of the localities to be visited and the guideline for the event can be obtained here;

[Hanno Spoelstra]

I have barely recovered from the event - what a fantastic experience it was!

Will post more photos and videos later, but for starters here is one of me and Jim Burrill who travelled all the way from the USA to sleep in a small tent and ride in an 80 year old armoured car for nearly two weeks.

Hats off to you Jim! It was great meeting you and hope to do so again in the future.



PS: the denim tank suit I am wearing is the result of one of Jim's projects some five years ago - see http://www.mapleleafup.net/forums/sh...ad.php?t=28803

[Hanno Spoelstra]

Here’s a flyer with some of the statistics:




And a link to YouTube movie of the column passing through Valkenswaard:
https://youtu.be/LqtMfz_RPt4?si=uNwmPm0lvBdAX_0A

[Ed Storey]

What a fantastic video and some lovely vehicles! I just wish that such technology to capture the event had been available back in 1985 when I was on a similar tour with John Marchant.

[David Dunlop]

Nice to see that particular aerial base on the side of that HUW, Ed!


David

[Mike Kelly]

I spotted a Morris-Commercial PU8 in the parade, in front of a Standard Tilley. Or am I seeing things. Does anybody know who owns the PU8 ?

The tanker outfit suits you Hanno

[Alex van de Wetering]

Originally Posted by Mike Kelly

I spotted a Morris-Commercial PU8 in the parade, in front of a Standard Tilley. Or am I seeing things. Does anybody know who owns the PU8 ?

The tanker outfit suits you Hanno

Mike, there was indeed a very nice Morris PU on board the XXXcorps tour; Sadly I have no idea who owns it! I do seem to remember I have also seen it in Normandy in 2014 or 2019.

Ed, John's HUW is now owned by a Dutch MLU member who has been busy restoring it for the past few years. The HUW made it's first appearance again at this years Race to the Bridge in Arnhem.

[Mike Gurr]

The PU8 was driven by a chap called John Sayer from the UK, he was in my Company on the tour

[Ed Storey]

Nice to see that John's HUW is back on the road.

[Mike Kelly]

Thanks for the replies and the pics. What a nice restoration !

That PU8 has the appearance of being a late production PU8. At some point during production, the windscreen height was increased, this also had the effect of raising the canvas canopy upwards to allow for more head space for the occupants. The other item of note is the smaller Butler style W.D. headlamps, the headlamps fitted for most of the PU8 production run were the larger CAV/Bosch brand lamps.

I spotted a Australian connection there in the pics ! The tyres fitted are the OLYMPIC pattern 900-13 SAND GRIP with the unique tread pattern that OLYMPIC used . While visiting relatives in NSW back in 1981, I attended a large agricultural show, OLYMPIC tyres had a stand at the show , I wandered up to the stand and enquired about 900-13 tyres , the salesperson checked and responded saying yes we still have them available. Long story short, after OLYMPIC tyre production ceased here, the 900-13 moulds were shipped off-shore to S.E. Asia where production continued for a while, I have seen examples of these 900-13 SAND GRIP with 'Made in Thailand' on the sidewall. The OLYMPIC tyre Factory was located out in the Western suburbs of Melbourne, the 900-13 was kept in production right into the 1980s mainly because there were certain brands of small farm implements and hay handling equipment that used 900-13 tyres.

[Hanno Spoelstra]

One night we stayed at the Noordkade at Veghel. This is a redeveloped industrial site with a direct relation to Market Garden.

In 1944 this site was heavily contested. In 2024 it is a place of good food, drinks and pleasure.