I thought winter was over.

[SamsarandaParticipant @samsaranda]

Nick

I remember when I was stationed at Brize Norton, must have been 1975 and we had snow on 1st of May, didn’t last long but it was certainly cold. Dave W

[Bob Unitt 1Participant @bobunitt1]

Posted by John Northcott on 17/01/2023 19:37:58:

Posted by noel shelley on 17/01/2023 10:24:31:

shed nair a clout till march is out ! Noel.

What IS a clout and are they hard to shed? I've often wondered.

It's an old term for an item of clothing – "don't take anything off till April". When I was an archer we used to do something called a 'clout shoot', where we shot a ballistic trajectory to hit a target flat on the ground 180 yards away. The original target would have been an item of clothing.

[SillyOldDufferModerator @sillyoldduffer]

Posted by Bob Unitt 1 on 18/01/2023 10:20:20:

Posted by John Northcott on 17/01/2023 19:37:58:

Posted by noel shelley on 17/01/2023 10:24:31:

shed nair a clout till march is out ! Noel.

What IS a clout and are they hard to shed? I've often wondered.

It's an old term for an item of clothing – "don't take anything off till April". When I was an archer we used to do something called a 'clout shoot', where we shot a ballistic trajectory to hit a target flat on the ground 180 yards away. The original target would have been an item of clothing.

My big dictionary gives several meanings, all more-or-less related, plus links to 'clod' and 'cleat'.

It can mean any piece of cloth, leather or metal used as a patch, or an archery target. Doesn't say if the target meaning comes from the patch derivation or the hard blow meaning – 'a clout on the head', or if the blow and target meanings are intertwined.

But I think the "don't take anything off till April" advice is a reference to 'a rag put to mean use', or 'swaddling clothes' i.e underwear.

The joke is to spend all winter in the same grubby pants. (Note to Americans: 'pants' are underpants, the item smeared with personal under-stains, not to be confused with the outer garments exposed in polite company. Pants are not trousers! When a Brit suggests an American idea is 'pants', he is being far from complimentary!

Don't know if it's still done, but Royal Navy submariners once sailed in black underpants to avoid wasting water on laundry.

Dave

[Peter G. ShawParticipant @peterg-shaw75338]

Oddly, I don’t really remember the 1982 winter, even though there has been a TV programme recently about it. Unless it was the time I went by train to Stone on a training course and was advised to make the journey in stages by BR staff, ie take that train until it terminates, and then change to another train. That journey, about 100miles, took 8 hours or so.

I do remember the 1962/63 winter. I was a GPO linesman at the time and my patch was just over the hill from Jackson Bridge – aficionados of Last of the Summer Wine will know where I mean. I remember “bending” the van when I lost control on a bend; burying the van bonnet in a new snow drift about ½ hour after the snow plough had been along the road; sliding down a road with right angle bend in it (and no, I wasn’t going too fast as I was in 1^st gear on tickover). Somehow, I regained control; climbing a hill in 2^nd (to avoid having to change down on the slope) and passing a Jaguar at 30 degrees to the road and a single-decker bus slowly making the climb. But the one thing that really struck home was the day I followed a gritter between two villages along a smooth road. A few hours later and travelling back over that same road, I found myself having to dodge holes about 5 or 6 inches deep. Yes, folks, that smooth road was actually 5 to 6 inches of hard packed snow and ice.

Other than that, my parents had some photos of the 1947 winter, something I don’t remember, yet in 1954, as an 11 year old, having to walk to an adjacent village to catch a normal service bus, the “Schools Special” having failed to arrive. Surprisingly, I didn’t get told off when arriving at school over an hour late.

I also remember the 1995 winter. We had just bought a new (to us) house with no insulation. To give some idea as to how cold that winter was, it seems that the hydraulic fluid turned mushy in the lifeboats some 7 miles away and caused tremendous, and expensive, damage when the crew attempted to start the engines.

Yes folks, a lot of people today have no idea about harsh winters!

Cheers,

Peter G. Shaw.

[lee websterParticipant @leewebster72680]

My friend Russ had a saying. "Shed nair a clout, EVER"

Took another photo this morning.

All the snow has gone. It started to rain last night, and it's on and off now. We just had a bit of hail/sleet/rain as I type. Temp is in the mid 40s.

I think I will keep my clout on.

[V8EngParticipant @v8eng]

Perhaps the never cast a clout thing is a bit regional?

I was told that it is never cast a clout until May is out.

My wife also has that understanding of the saying.

We are soft southerners though!

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