Generations of local folk have run their hands down this rope-groove on the Ogley Junction footbridge. Imagine how the horses must have pulled. Oddly to me, that question – was the last to go.

Well, I thought I’d set an absolute stinker this year, I really did. I thought nobody would get at least four of the questions, but I hadn’t reckoned on the sheer research skill and local knowledge of reader Tony Jakeman.

Tony (and his lady wife, apparently) romped away and won the beer, and also a book for finding the benchmark on the side of the Brownhills Activity Centre (formerly the Central Boys’ School).

I’d like to thank everyone who took part, and who were such good sports for having a go, and I’ll certainly run another, maybe at Easter. I may change the format a little, as a few folk were sad they didn’t get chance to answer the questions before they’d gone.

To be fair, I wasn’t expecting the whirlwind that occurred…

We first spotted this plastic bird-scarer owl in the summer, I think. When the wind blows, his head spins, poltergeist style. It actually went missing for a couple of weeks in the summer, then reappeared; it sits on top of the Furniture Store in Brownhills where Provost Chemists used to be.

I’m going to give spot prizes of books to Tony Winn, for setting such an interesting question and uncovering motorsport history in the area I didn’t know existed, and also to Andy Dennis, who fought so hard to answer it.

I’ve also got a local history book for reader Caz and David Evans. Caz, for spotting the mosaic, which I thought was hard, and for David for bamboozling everyone with his boyproofs. Indeed.

The final results were thus:

BrownhillsDavidNotBob – 1 point
Stymaster – 2 points
Clive – 4 points
Caz – 5 points
Andy Dennis – 8
Oakparkrunner – 12
Tony Jakeman – 27 points

Spreadsheet of results and answers can be seen in the frame below, or in a separate browser window here.

I thought most folk would get these gates, too. I’ll return to the subject of this old landfill on Coppice Side, and other historic waste sites locally – later in the year.

As I say, cheers to everyone, and I’ll be in touch with the winners in the week. That was fun!