Manilla & Dalby

Okay, okay… I been slack… again… its been a few weeks since I last updated anything but as usual I been a little busy… well – except for the days when I wasn’t but just couldn’t be bothered coz there was something more interesting like sleep or shopping or the beach…

Anyways, the last couple of weeks have mainly been filled with driving for some pilots at hang gliding comps in Manilla (NSW Feb 23 to March 1) and Dalby (QLD March 8 to March 15).






Manilla was organised by the delightful Miss Monica and, with a great turnout of 60+ pilots, it was a fantastic week. This was the first comp I had attended as a driver and my ever patient team of Conrad, Mick, Glen and Gary helped me in learning some of the more intricate parts of the role such as reading maps, using GPS’s and mastering the art of driving a manual 4wd. What an adventure!! Most nights we got in at a reasonable hour and almost always in time for a great feed at The Royal.

This years karaoke night was another cracker with hits like Am I Ever Gonna See Your Face Again and YMCA being covered. TNT is clearly Pauly Maggot's karaoke favourite and I'm certain it was Reggie and Keiro who dobbed me and Monica in for Waterloo... Bleeding ears aside it was a load of laughs!!!

Back on Mt Borah the waiting game must have tuckered a few of the pilots out. On most days I still hadn't left the hill until 4pm but there was always something up there to keep us amused like the boys and their whips or Carolina teasing the pilots out of their harnesses with sandwiches or beer. Big thanks go to Monica for organising another brilliant and increasingly popular comp and also to the pilots for making the time to get there.

Dalby was another fun comp. Keiro and I drove up on Friday night (7th) arriving about 4am on Saturday morning. After sleeping in the car for a few hours we went in to find some brekky and found some other pilots before setting up my tent and returning to the airstrip for practise day. If I thought the days in Manilla were long, then I was to soon find out the days in Dalby are much, much longer... 'The weather wasnt as great as it could be for a "Big Air" comp and, as Blaino was quick to point out, the week was to become the Dalby Little Air comp as the tasks were often fairly short and the retrieves were often a lot shorter...

I drove for a team aptly called The Mongrels. This is our team pic and consists of Flocky, Keiro, Ebbs, Blaino and me. Mum - if your worried about why I'm wearing a bikini top here, just be thankful I managed to weasel out of the proposed picture involving the strategic placement of a GPS and Vario...

On the last day of comp, Flocky found this georgous puppy at a local pet shop. She's been temporarily named Rusty, pending Sue-Ellens approval... How cute!!!

We got home safely last night after another long day of driving - on my birthday no less - but it was all cool coz Monica had a yummy roast waiting for me when I got home. TA LUV!!!