Alan Gould's literary references to the class of '67

Fellows,

Steve has asked me to describe for this blog a little of how I have used CGS in my fiction over the years. The school comes into two of my published novels, To The Burning City (1991) and The Lakewoman (2009) and an unpublished ‘creative memoir’ called Life Drawing.

David Edmunds and his amazing micro-light adventure

After leaving school I went to university and after graduating spent three desultory years in the public serviced before deciding I wanted to go teaching. I spent my first couple of years teaching in Alice Springs, and then another 28 teaching in Canberra. I sometimes thought about doing something else, but couldn’t find anything that I would have preferred. There was rarely a day when I didn’t enjoy my day at work.

Along the way I gained a wonderful wife and two children, now grown up and out of home.

When Steve Padgham encouraged me to write this post he asked me to tell the following story.

About twelve years ago I decided to build an aeroplane. During the seven years when I was working full time I did a little bit on the plane, but work was very busy, so not much was done. I need to get a run at projects like this and find it difficult to start work at 9.00 at night.

In the first three years after I finished full time work, building the plane was my main occupation.

Eventually I got it finished and took it out to Goulburn airport where I completed the final fitting and engine runups and the like. I got to know a local pilot, an EX-CGS boy as it happens called Dick Nell, and a friend of Grant Nuthalls, who is very experienced and agreed to test fly the aircraft for me. He suggested that I complete the taxi tests, and then do a high-speed run where I just lifted the wheels off the ground, then let it sink back onto the runway.

I started the high-speed run, but when the aircraft lifted it gained height very rapidly and I realised that I would not have enough runway left to land it, so thought, in the short time available, “well fuck it, I might as well fly the thing”

So I flew one circuit around the airport and landed, a bit heavily but OK.

My wife was with me and photographed the event, and here it is.

As we were not expecting to fly, she was not exactly equipped with the appropriate camera, so the video is pretty rough.

Having flown the thing, it seemed a bit precious to now ask my test pilot to check it out, so I thought that I might get him to do one or two of the more complex sequences a bit later and in the mean time I would continue test flying the aircraft.

So I went out to do the second flight with the aim to sort out the landings. Now the very limited book of instructions said to fly the final approach at 50mph and then let the plane float under ground effect and settle on the runway. So I thought that if I flew the final approach at 70, I should have a big margin as this would give me much more lift. This is what I did. As I flew over the fence on approach to the runway I let the speed drift back to about 65 when I was perhaps 30 feet above the ground and the plane fell like a stone, I did not have time to catch it and it pancaked onto the runway, breaking off the nose gear, bending the wings where the main gear attached, breaking the propellor and numerous other fittings, and leaving me completely unscathed. Pity really because otherwise it flew OK.

I had a good look over the ruins and decided that I could build another one in the time it would take to repair this one and just at the moment I was not in the mood, so I sold the wreck to a guy who intends to get it back flying, but hasn’t yet.

I loved the building experience, so that compensates for my very short flying time.

I bought another plane about 18 months ago.

In July I am going to the large aircraft convention at Oshkosh with Rick Frith, and one of my main goals is to check out what I may be able to build. We are then going to hire Harleys and go for a bit of a ride.

Thank-you Peter and Steve for the blog, you have done a great job.

News from Alan Hardcastle

Dear all,

The Blog is a terrific idea. Yes, Steve has done a great job in getting the year of 67 back in touch with each other.

Last January (2009) Ken (and wife Takako) Nichizu held a 60th birthday party at his home at Mount Pleasant (Wollongong) and a number of Old (elderly) Grammarians attended.....

Rob Armstrong writes in, July 09

Rob Armstrong in the surf at Tathra

Sorry this one got missed and just re-found (Steve P).  From Rob Armstrong 1st July 09....

2nd 15 Undefeated in ASC Comp 1967

Captain Theo with his hands on the ball........

Botanic Gardens Faction Meeting

Dave Edmunds, Steve P, Grant N, Ken N

Murder in the Cathedral

More cerebral than the mob below?....

Recognise any of these?

Rob Edgerley writes from Zimbabwe

G'Day All,

I have read with interest all the various emails surrounding the CGS Year
of 67! Steve knows, because he and my sister in Canberra chat from time
to time, that I am currently working in Zimbabwe for BAT.

Name for Blog

Now that I've posted most of the emails from the last year, and various people's updates, could you now put your minds to coming up with a name for this blog.  It's currently "Class of '67", but that was just a quick working title.   
If you can think of a better one, let me know.  Padge suggests “Ego Yah..”, but neither one of us can remember the proper spelling (if we ever knew it) nor what it means or meant....  Let us know what you think: by Comment below 

Be the first to comment, do it right here below >>>

John Hampshire writes to all

Sheila, Laura and John Hampshire, Christmas '09

12th January, from John Hampshire.  

Greetings all:

I have just found a large number of emails in my outbox that were meant to be sent in the pre-Christmas period ... 

Tony Peppercorn: at last!

Dear all, Dave Edmunds has tracked down Tony Peppercorn. Thanks David and welcome Tony to the list.....

John Gray joins the list

3rd Jan (Steve Padge):  Dear all, John Gray has joined the e-mail list via Eric Dowling. Welcome John!

15-16 May for next get-together

23rd September, from Steve P: Dear all, Eric and Kim Dowling have confirmed  that Saturday 15th May 2010 and Sunday 16th May 2010 are the best available  dates for our next get-together....

23rd August, Ian Sare gets in touch

Steve P says: Dear everyone, Ian has been in touch....

Alan Gould launches novel and poetry

23 August 2009

Alan Gould to launch novel and poetry

20th August, Gray touches base..

20^th August (from Steve Padge):

Dear all, one contact leads to another. I should have made clear in the last e-mail that Mark Hodgkin is living in London. Here is Gray's update....

19th August, news from Hodge...

From Steve Padge: G'evening the class of 1967, I have just heard from Mark Hodgkin and I have added him to the list. He's in good form, all things considered, windsurfing, going to opera etc with his wife Madeleine. He has 3 daughters, who must all be in their 20s by now.) I have copied in his e-mail.

30th June, news from John Somerville

G'day Padge,
great to hear from you, I will certainly attend any reunion that can be arranged, it will be great to see everyone again....

29th June, More news from Steve...

Dear All, good to hear from Robert Fisher and it is interesting that Kenichi hopes to catch up.....

28th June: Robert Fisher reports in...

Missive to all from Robert Fisher, now living in Perth....

9th June update

Post get-together at Neringla, Jamie's place at Araluen, Steve P rounds up:

Photos of the Araluen get-together

Rick Frith's lovely atmospheric photo of Jamie's Place, Neringla, Araluen on the weekend of the get-together, 23-24 May.  Some other of Rick's photos are here.  Go down the blog to where Steve kicks it off to get the blow-by-blow lead up to the get-together.

See also Clive Davidson's photos here and John Cursleys here.

Special mention of the Convener, Comrade Padgham..... here with Jo and Therese:

David Pitt to Peter Cornhill et.al. 12 May 09

Peter,

I am pleased to see that the CGS get-togethers are continuing. Give them all my regards....

Update 3 May 09

Padge on 3rd May: 

To Peter Cornhill and John Cursley,28 Apr 09

Padge writes, 28th April 2009 to Peter Cornhill and John Cursley:    

Three months later....

Padge writes on 16th April 09:

Steve kicks it off, 26 Jan 09

Steve Padgham ("Padge") sent out an email on 26th January 2009:

Welcome!

Hi folks, this is Peter Forsythe in Hong Kong.  I've just set up this blog so that we can bring together all the stuff that's been flying round this last year, most  thanks to the interest and hard work of "Padge", aka Steve Padgham.

I've been blogging elsewhere for about six months or so, and find it very easy and convenient.

Here's the thought for the moment: I'm going to make Steve and me kind of "Blog-masters".  You can send stuff to us and we'll post it.  Or you can just email the group, as you've been doing, and we'll then cut and paste it to the blog, so that it's there for all time.... (ha!).

The idea is that this should be kind of private: private to the same extent that you would consider your emails to the group private.  That is, you assume that we may pass on to old grammarians, but that we would not spread it to the wider world.

Any ideas or comments, you can comment here, or send email to me peter-at-forsythe.hk.

(Photo above: me at helm of our yacht Xena, on way to Discovery Bay regatta, 27 June 09.  Any old Grammarians and fellow blog-istas hereby welcome aboard any time in Hong Kong!)