Tanks in Town, Mons (Belgium), August 30th/31st 2008

[kettenkrad]

This years "Tanks in Town" will take place at Mons, Belgium, on Saturday the 30th and Sunday the 31st of August 2008.

The famous ride-out will take place on Sunday the 31st.

The event is highly recommended, if you want to see real tanks driving on their steel tracks trough real towns and villages.

Website of the organizsers: http://www.tanksintown.be (Click on the Union Flag to see more...)

Two Goolge-Earth Placemarks:
Location of the event
Route of the ride out on Sunday (2007)

My Kettenkrad at Tanks in Town 2007 in the mud (Youtube Video):
Kettenkrad at Tanks in Town 2007

Hope to see some of you there. What about you, Hanno?

Best regards from Germany
Andreas

[zemsi]

Hi Andreas

I'll be there with my brother for the first time. Looking really forward to it. I will also visit some museums around Belgium and Holland before we'll arrive on Friday in Mons. Any recommendations?

The convoy will pass through the town, woods and grassland. Is it easy to follow by foot or a better idea to take the car, park it, watch the convoy passing and take the car again?

What about the event in the Bois Brûlée? Is it on Saturday? Are there many people attending? Possible to get a tank ride? I've seen they've got also a Swiss Panzer 68. By the way, have you seen the DVD from philipimage of the 2006 event? Fantastic filming.

Greetings
Chris

[zemsi]

I just found some videos on philipimage:

Here's a short extract of the DVD (wmv, 2,5 MB).

Sherman Tanks in HD quality, 188 MB. You need Vuze for downloading. It's a torrent client.

Off topic: Jeeps in Winter from the same cameraman

You can see the videos in smaller size in flash here.

PS Cher vendeur Bob et restaurateur Keefy. Vous pouvez ici practiser votres Français

[kettenkrad]

Dear Chris,

glad to see you there.

I will also visit some museums around Belgium and Holland before we'll arrive on Friday in Mons. Any recommendations?

I'll arrive on Friday, too. I don't know any interesting locations in Belgium or the Netherlands. May be our Dutch friends can help?

The convoy will pass through the town, woods and grassland. Is it easy to follow by foot or a better idea to take the car, park it, watch the convoy passing and take the car again?

You can't follow the convoy by foot, because they drive too fast and you can't follow by car, because the streets were blocked by police, when the convoy passes and you can't overtake the convoy.

The convoy makes three stops during the ride (Cuesmes, on the field south of Mesvin, north of Hyon) and finally all vehicles meet at the Grand Place of Mons in front of the town hall.

May be there is one vacant seat on my Kettenkrad for the convoy.

What about the event in the Bois Brûlée? Is it on Saturday? Are there many people attending? Possible to get a tank ride? I've seen they've got also a Swiss Panzer 68.

On Saturday all the vehicles are parked in the Bois Brûlée and the tanks are driving arround all the day. You can buy tank rides on several tanks. There is a beer tent and lots of people.
There is also an autojumble for military equipment and spare parts (Most American, no Kettenkrad parts)

Have a look at the website http://www.tanksintown.be and click on "Tank Rides". (On the main page, you have to click on the Union Flag before...)

Best regards
Andreas

[Alex van de Wetering]

I'll arrive on Friday, too. I don't know any interesting locations in Belgium or the Netherlands. May be our Dutch friends can help?

I also hope to be there again this year. Lasy year I visited on saterday in the Bois Brulee. Lot's to see there, both armour as well as soft-skin. In 2006 I was in Mons on the Sunday. My experience was that it was fairly easy to take the car and "meet" the tour at two or three occasions. One was near a railroad crossing and another at a street corner, where the tanks had to drive through a very narrow street, which got the M26 trapped!

Museum-wise, I would recommend "Overloon" (Libertypark.nl) and the Airborne musuem in Oosterbeek in Holland. Maybe also the museum in Best, near Eindhoven. In Belgium there is of course lots to see in the Ardennes region, several interesting monuments and museums. I would recommend the Diekirch museum in Luxembourg.

Alex


Alex

[zemsi]

Hi Alex

Thank you very much for your recommendations. I had a look on the google map and thougt as well that it should be possible to follow the convoy by car if you take a short cut or drive around. Anyway, I'll make a recce tour on Friday and check out the good spots.

There must be one good spot on a bridge where you see this (I also saw it in the above mentioned videos):



cu there
Chris

[carrierbarry]

Interesting Photo.
The Bridge behind is were the first British Battle of WW1 started.
and I belive the site of the Angel of Mons appeared.

[kettenkrad]

Hello together. Here is the actual list of the vehicles, which take part on the event "Tanks in Town" at Mons, Belgium on 29th-31st of August:

9 Sherman
4 Stuart
6 Hellcat
2 Tank destroyer M10
4 Chaffe
1 Sexton
1 Locust
1 Patton M47
1 Citroen Kegresse
12 Halftrack
3 Scout Car
2 M-20
3 M8
3 Weasel
3 Kettenkrad
17 Harley
1 Indian Scout
1 M75
1 PANZER 68
1 Leopard
1 Bergpanzer
1 Diamont Cargo 969
1 Diamont T981
1 White 660

Looks good, doesn't it? And the best thing: All these vehicles are not only on static display, the are driving! 19 miles around Mons!

I am one of the 3 Kettenkrads. We are driving in front and the Allies behind us... ;-)

Best regards from Germany
Andreas

[zemsi]

... gosh, that's fantastic! Looks like there would be more tanks in Mons than the French Army has currently running Looking forward to see the tanks in action.

[kettenkrad]

Have a look at that GOOGLE-Eart placemark for the route of the convoy on Sunday:

http://www.mehlhorn-bs.de/4sale/mons2008.kmz

The tank parade stops at two locations during the ride: The first is at CUESMES.

Second stop:

Deployment tanks in a field in Mesvin:
near the cemetery of the city of Nouvelles (7022)
Mustering from 13:00 hours - Reconstitution between 14:00 h and 14:30

The parade ends at the "Grande Place" of Mons at around 17:30.

Best regards
Andreas