Warbird Flight

Belated birthday presents can be fun, and I finally caught up with one of mine recently - an aerobatic sightseeing flight in a WWII Chinese two-seater fighter trainer. http://www.flyingwarbirds.com.au/index.php

The flights run out of a hangar at a tiny airport at Barwon Heads, near Geelong. Actually getting there proved to be the biggest drama of the day. I allowed two hours to travel by car from Melbourne and was familiar with the old freeway to Geelong, having travelled it many times as a medical student, but it has been complicated by a new ring road, the exit signs for which had no mention of Barwon Heads. Travelling on through Geelong there was still no mention of Barwon Heads, only Ocean Grove and B110, which on my map appeared to be the feeder road. As Barwon Heads is very close to Ocean Grove, I took that exit, which ended up being the long way around, as you then have to cross back over the Barwon River. Apparently there is a signposted exit a couple more km down the road after the Ocean Grove exit! VicRoads has clearly failed on this one, so be warned if you are travelling from Melbourne - be sure to check the detailed directions first! On the way back from Barwon Heads I followed the signs to Melbourne via the M1 (rather than going into Geelong), which ended up being quite a long detour westwards which then connected with the new ring road. I guess you would need to look at a current map to appreciate which is the better option.

The proprietor/pilot was a personable young man. No special gear required, and as it was the first (and only) flight of the day we had to wait in the 'plane outside the hangar for about ten minutes while the engine oil warmed up etc. Needless to say there was a lot of fumes! My microphone was only working intermittently but it was deemed a case of 'see how it goes'. Eventually we taxied off over the grass onto a dirt track down to the runway. While we were waiting we could hear air traffic control chattering about a helicopter heading for the Geelong Hospital, which brought back memories of my days working there in the Emergency Department. After a while we taxied down the far end of the short grass runway, turned around, picked up speed and took off. After a bit of sightseeing up and down the Bellarine Peninsula west of Barwon Heads we tried out a few 'G-force' packing aerobatical manoeuvres including barrel rolls and loops. It was of course fun looking at the world upside down and hanging safely suspended from the four-point seat belt but there was no headrest and my neck was whipped back violently a few times (human neck muscles being insufficient to counter the gravitational forces). The headset also kept falling off my head! The pilot had advised me to clench my stomach muscles when going into a turn to reduce the risk of blacking out. I did this initially but then just concentrated on deep diaphragmatic breathing to control some feelings of nausea. I also instinctively found myself 'spotting the horizon' as a landmark during the turns.

Upon reflection I think the nausea was probably due to a combination of fuel fumes (quite strong at times), unaccustomed unnatural movements, the pressure of the headset around my face, and mild whiplash. At the time I was quite glad when the flight came to an end as I was not feeling that great but pleased there had been no hint of black-out and that I had not thrown up in the aircraft (a 'sick bag' is provided). After arriving back on terra firma and exchanging pleasantries I drove off but stopped for a rest at the first wayside stop as I was feeling quite drowsy and had started to nod off a couple of times whilst driving, which is never to be recommended! I think I actually went to sleep for a while in the back seat of the car and then received a lengthy 'phone call, so it ended up being a very long day by the time I got home.

All in all an interesting experience, but not for the faint-hearted, those with long necks or issues with fumes or travel sickness. I wouldn't mind trying out a jet flight if I ever get to be extremely rich one day but I think I would make sure it has head rests first and maybe consider some anti-nausea precautions!

An edited DVD of the flight and the scenery is available for $135 (takes ~6 weeks for delivery). When I received mine, I was able to see just how violently my head and neck were being thrown back and hyper-extended. No surprise that I became ill afterwards!

Footy at 'the G'

Spring in Melbourne means footy finals (Australian Rules Football) and the best place to experience this is the beloved MCG. The Melbourne Cricket Ground is famous for cricket (including the annual Boxing Day Test Match between Australia and another cricketing nation), football, sporting museums, the 2006 Commonwealth Games and the 1954 Olympics.

This time it was a Friday night clash between Collingwood (first on the ladder and 'minor Premiers') and Geelong (second on the ladder). Both teams have 'won the flag' (Premiership) over the past few years and are keen to do so again this year. Being a huge circular stadium (seating approximately 100,000 people at full capacity) it has a marvellous Colosseum-type atmosphere. As well as the two tribes partaking in the contest, there are also two bigger tribes in the ground - the Australian Football League (AFL) members in the semi-circular Great Southern Stand and the Melbourne Cricket Club (MCC) members in the newer Northern Stand (officially the Ponsford and Olympic Stands). There is an excellent view from all sections of the ground and even when 'up in the Gods' in the top tier you still feel close to the action. Climbing all the stairs is of course beneficial for one's cardiovascular fitness and it is reassuring to know that the MCG has an outstanding record for response time and resuscitation for cardiac arrest.

Many games (such as this one) are played at night and with six massive light towers as well as the stadium lights the ground is very brightly and evenly lit.

The terms 'clash' and 'blockbuster' are frequently bandied about and Melburnians are certainly passionate about their football but with 17 teams around the country there is also a strong national following despite the competition from soccer and rugby.

Many supporters deck themselves out in footy scarves, hats and jumpers and wave team flags so the ground can be a riot of colour, and the roar that goes up when a goal is scored can be deafening!

One of the main attractions is that footy is a fast-moving and skilful game utilising handball, marking (catching the ball, sometimes in a spectacular fashion high in the air) and kicking (often long distances). Players can run up to 10km a game. In essence the aim of the game is pretty simple - to score points by kicking the ball through the big sticks (goal posts) at your team's end of the ground. The team with the most points at the end of the four quarters wins.

For the record, in this game Geelong won by a substantial margin (149 points to 53 points), attendance 85,705.

The finals start in earnest next week. If Collingwood wants to make it to the Grand Final it will have to do a lot better next time!