Lucy Pitts talks to the people behind the steam, Les and Dee Searle, about their incredible Horsham Traction Company collection.
In a corner of Horsham is an impressive family collection. But it’s not stamps, postcards or even art. It’s much bigger than that. At the heart of the collection are 10 traction engines. I have no idea how you come to acquire 10 traction engines, but the vehicles include a striking Foden 1923 red steam omnibus known as “Puffing Billy”, a 1920 Burrell Showman Road Locomotive called “Princess Marina”, a 1908 Fowler Tractor, a 1919 McLaren Road Locomotive “Boadicea”, a 1901 Fowler Crane Engine from Leith Docks, a 1910 Burrell Gold Tractor and “His Majesty”, a 1920 Hickey Crane Engine. Together they are known as the Horsham Traction Company.
They are owned by Les and Dee Searle of the Les Searle Group – specialist earthmoving contractors.
A lifestyle and a love affair
We are standing in amongst the engines, dwarfed by both their size and their charisma and it quickly becomes apparent, this is not a hobby for the Searles. This is a lifestyle and a love affair. They know and understand these vehicles in the way most of us know our family. They know where they’ve come from, what they’ve been through, how they tick, what they need and what they’re good at.
Each vehicle in the Horsham Traction Company has been lovingly restored and sits polished and proud, ready for its next outing. It’s wonderful to see and utterly bonkers in equal measure.
From New York to San Fransisco
I caught up with Les and Dee shortly after they returned from a 5-week road trip from New York to LA, Pebble Beach and San Francisco in a 1937 Lagonda. In 22 days, they drove just under 6,000 miles with no support crew and very little luggage.
“It was insane” Les explains, who comes across as a man who looks like he very much takes insanity in his stride. “You could go for 50 miles at a time and pass nothing, with no phone signal and often we were driving on dirt tracks and back roads. We planned our route on a day-to-day basis and at one point, we accidently drove onto a military base. This soldier with a machine gun stopped us and asked us where we were going and when we said California, he simply said, ‘Not this way, you’re not.’ We had to turn round and drive 10 miles back.”
But Dee adds, “We did a lot of prep before we went which reflected in the fact we had very few breakdowns. Although we did have a cracked fuel tank which was unlucky and water in the wiring. We had some freaky weather and there is no top on the Lagonda. You’d see these big black clouds in the distance and think, well someone is going to get wet and then just like that, the car is conked out and you’re soaked.”
It’s clear there is some serious adventuring going on in this family, but how on earth did it all begin?
The Searle family were farmers when in 1913 they moved into the 17th century farmhouse in Horsham (which now sits on their edge of their site) and diversified into earthmoving. The family’s traction engines that they used for farming and contracting were either sold off or scrapped. But in 1964, Les’s grandfather decided to buy a traction engine, His Majesty, from J Hickey’s auction and that was the start of the collection. In later years, Les inherited the engine from his father and he explains that after a childhood love of steam had fizzled out, he re-found his interest in his 20s. He met Dee at a steam rally at Knepp “When my dog stole his breakfast” Dee chips in. 10 traction engines, a lot of heavy plant and two children later and the rest is history.
But still, it’s a big difference between one traction engine and 10?
“Over the years, we’ve shown an interest in various engines and vehicles, adding to the collection when the right one for us came available. With the McLaren ‘Boadicea’, the owner had passed away and the family wanted it to go to someone who would continue to love and use it. Martin and Della Fagg who used to look after it for the previous owner, sort of came with the engine and became great friends. They continued to show the engine at rallies and assist with the maintenance.” explains Dee.
“The bus was made by Foden’s and originally worked as a dray in Brighton for Rock Ales. Foden had a works bus that transported their famous works Band as a promotion but unfortunately this vehicle was cut up in later years. In 1952, a museum recognised its importance and rescued the original number plates and name recreating the bus as you see today. So, it’s a replica, but a 1952 replica with original plates and name. Our moto over the years is to only buy things that make you smile and Puffing Bill does.”
But for a family that is already running a large and busy business, it must be so much work?
“Yes, we work on the vehicles most evenings and every weekend. If we’ve got an event or we’re restoring something, then it’s every night. We love a deadline to keeps us motivated! I’ve always got an unachievable list of things that need to be done at the weekend.” says Les. “Sunday mornings, we tend to take one of the vehicles to town for breakfast to kick off the day and then it’s back to work.”
So you do all the repairs?
“Yes, on the engines, we’re not trained engineers, so Leslie [their son] and I have taught ourselves how to do more complicated machining, etc. and we would probably make a trained engineer cry. For example, I’ve recently taught myself how to gear cut. There is a satisfaction in doing things yourself and Leslie’s now making gears. The other day, Thomas [their other son] spent a whole day doing calculations because we didn’t have the different gear ratios to make the teeth size. He got there in the end and the engine now has a great set of new gears.”
Dee adds, “I’m not an engineer either but I’ve picked up quite a lot of knowledge along the way. I do the maths and the logistics. And I’m the mechanic’s assistant.” She adds modestly, “If I’m out on a traction engine there are some things I can fix, but some things I can’t. We all work as a team with both the hobby and the business.”
How often do you take the traction engines out and where can people see them?
“Not as often as people think as work always has to come first, although the boys now take them out quite a bit. It’s nothing for them to take the engines out for lunch and 30 miles later return home. They’ve been to Lechlade for an end of season event two or three times, and they will drive up overnight with ‘Puffing Billy’ the bus, attend the party and road run, then steam it home. They’re going up there again in a couple of weeks with ‘Marina’ (the Burrell Showman Road Locomotive) but they’ll take her on a low loader. The bus can do about 50 miles on a tank of water and travels at about 20 mph, but the other engines only manage about 20 to 24 miles with an average speed of 8 mph which makes a big difference on the journey time with the need to stop every two hours to refill with coal and water.
We enter the Historic Commercial Vehicle Run from London to Brighton every year, local rallies and attend the Horsham fireworks display. The Horsham Traction Company does the Santa Special in Horsham every December with the bus, which is always very popular and raises money for The Rotary’s Christmas appeal. Then there’s our Boxing Day outing which is now one of the biggest free events in Horsham we believe. We started it 30 years ago because we needed to get out of the house after Christmas Day – at that point, we only had one engine and no kids. This has gradually grown over the years to what it is now with others taking part with their vehicles and is one of our favourite events.”
So Dee, you go out as part of an all-female team?
“Yes, Della and I travelled ‘His Majesty’, nicknamed ‘Mum’s engine’ or ‘the girls’ engine’. One of the most memorable trips was driving from Horsham to Malvern Hills in a day, where we attended The Welland Steam Rally and then the following weekend, we steamed up to Manchester to The Astle Steam Rally. From there, we went on to Congleton and left the engines there for a couple of weeks. From there, we eventually travelled to the Great Dorset Steam Fair and then finally back home. A round trip of 560 miles and as you can image there was no competition between the girls team and the boys ….
I’ve got a veteran bike too, which I ride in the London to Brighton Pioneer Run and I’ve ridden in the Pioneer Run in Yorkshire with its challenging hills. The bike is 1913 and needs to be assisted by pedalling on the steep inclines. Les has modified the bike for me by adding a clutch. Before that, when you got to a junction, you had to stop the engine and then you had to pedal to restart it. Now I have the luxury of a clutch.”
Do you have a big back up crew if you’re out and about?
“No, we or the boys normally carry tools, some spares, water and obviously coal. But if there’s a problem, all of us will try to repair the issue to get us home. If the problem is terminal, we work together to sort the best recovery plan.
Some of the best times we’ve had has been going to and coming back from Congleton. Rather than go with a backup van, we train it up with everything we need – electric drills, brake blocks, etc. On the way back, we don’t tend to preview a route, we just look at the map and say, let’s go that way. We very often travel at night to be less of a nuisance to other road users. It’s fun and it’s a challenge, and it’s nice to be a little spontaneous sometimes.”
My next question is simple because although I can understand the adventurous side of it, I’m struggling with the enormity of it. Why?
“Well, the Horsham Traction Company has kept us sane and busy, and it’s also kept the boys out of trouble over the years I’m sure, with their mates all being involved in the engines and maintenance of them. These days, we get as much pleasure out of watching the youngsters as they go off and do spectacular things as we do driving the engines ourselves.
In 2011, we hooked three steam engines together and carried a transformer from London to Brighton, which was 56 miles. It was the first time anything like that had been done in preservation. Two years ago, Leslie and Thomas recreated the same run with their mates. Altogether, the three engines they took plus the trailer with the transformer were 115 foot long and weighed 118 tons. They drove it 56 miles to Brighton and then they drove it home.
When you do something like that, you’ve got to work together as a team. You’ve got to communicate. You’ve got to be safe. There is no room for error. By the time they got to Brighton, oh my god, the change in that group of lads. It was amazing to watch. They left as friends, but they arrived as a team. And they raised £3,500 for charity.
We also work with the National Traction Engine Trust. We host a day for about 20 children to come here. We get the engines out and they learn how to dig the fires out, prep the vehicles for fire, light the fire, oil up, clean. And then by lunchtime, they are driving around the yard on these engines and learning how to do the controls. There are not many places where youngsters can do that and a few of them are now part of our young crew that are fondly known as the ‘creche’.
Then we have our open days and collect money for Horsham First Responders. We normally have a couple of the engines in steam and people can have a ride and get up close to the workings. We sponsor the events, supplying a little bit of food and drinks so any money put in the pot goes to the charity. There is always a good turnout. Plus, it motivates us to keep the yard tidy.”
What next?
“With both the boys now in the company hopefully we can compete in some more classic car rallies both in the UK and abroad and continue to grow the collection with vehicles that make us smile for the whole family to enjoy…remembering always, to only buy things that make you smile!”
You can see the Horsham Traction Company on Boxing Day in Horsham and at the Red Lyon in Slinfold.
