Burke's Ravings

[Bill Von Sennet]

Welcome home Mate!

Glad you didn't have a major issue with the wheel bearing.

I had a gizmo (forget what it was called) go out on me while driving my sisters car to Columbus OH to retrieve all my "stuff" from my wrecked VW Beetle. (We are talking ancient history)

Anyway, while going through the I-70 tunnel at Wheeling WV I heard a clicking noise. We stopped at a garage in St Clairsville OH and the fellow was able to get the part locally and get us back on the road in a couple of hours.

If the part had given out down the road a ways, we would have spent hours waiting for a tow truck and probably wasted a day or two.

[Ed Burke]

Years ago while flying along in the good ole US of A using an out of date Jeppersen RNC I discovered a VOR/DME with the wrong frequency. I later found that the current chart had it correct but was impressed that a humble simmer could find an error in an official chart.

Well....... it's happened again. Sweet Valley PN12, not too far from your home town Bill, in PA. All the scources of airport info have the longitude in error by a WHOLE TWO DEGREES. They say 078* when it is actually 076*. Of course MSFS got it wrong too and their 078* spot is so hairy that I looked at it in Google Earth; nothing there but hills. Took no time at all to find the actual field. It is a private setup and no doubt the owner is unconcerned about the error as it keeps things nice and quiet.

I have left my wanderings along the Appalachians and headed for the Canadian bash.

Ed

[Allen Peterson]

Ed, I think you said that you had FSGenesis installed. As you know, it has "issues" with FS9 over rivers and highways, and certainly issues with the Columbia around Castlegaar.
Since you are on your way to the Canadian Bash and if you are in the neighborhood you might check out Revelstike (CYRU). I've seen pits and plateaus but this is a new one.
Allen

[Ed Burke]

Unless one is flying an F-14 the climbout from 29 is a mite rugged.

I wonder if the flood insurance is difficult to arrange? CYRV by the way.

I hope there are not too many like that but the general improvement in scenery is great.

Ed

[Ed Burke]

Thanks for the cat offer Tom but I must decline, tempting as all the thought of a cat house might be.

Come Thursday I am once again heading to Kalgoolie. This time solo and via the blacktop. No.2 son, Graeme has been there for nearly three years and has decided he wants to get back to my part of the world. He needs a hand to clean up his rented flat and a suitable vehicle (my Hilux) to take unwanted stuff to the rubbish dump and cart the good stuff east.

I get there around Oct 5, we work for a week. Kathleen, his missus, and Toby, their 1 year old, fly to Brisbane on the 12th to be met at the a/p around 2300hrs by Nicole. Graeme and I start driving home, too easy. Total distance is a tad under 5000 miles.

As Willie would say -- On the road again.

Ed

[Ed Burke]

Here I am reporting from Kalgoorlie where I arrived on Saturday after a smooth trip. The only incident worth a mention was, while travelling towards Broken Hill, I inadvertantly ran over a dead kangaroo , one of the huge number of road kill. The bloated thing went bang covering the underside of the vehicle with its contents. Needless to report, the smell was appalling and there was no relief in sight as the country is extemely dry, under drought in fact.

Then, a miracle. Sleeping that night in Port Augusta while the Hilux did its festering thing, there occurred the best rainfall the area has experienced in years. Come morning there were puddles everywhere. Not far out of town the locals had a free "driver reviver" set up. This is a Aussie feature of school holidays. A spot where the weary driver can pull off the road and have a rest and a refreshing coffee. This 'reviver' was in a very large, unsealed, roadside parking area and "Bushy" assured me that there were no hidden hazards in the two huge expanses of water there. What's more he reckoned he wouldn't mind watching some water sports. So I stirred the H2O with a great deal of vigour and the Hilux came up smelling of roses. Bushy made me a special coffee in appreciation and there were grins all around.

What this space for more explosive news,

Ed

[Tom Goodrick]

Best of luck and clear roads the rest of the way.

[Ed Burke]

Thanks Tom, I'll travel carefully.

In another place, as our pollies are want to say, A.Lowson esq. said,
Ed,How do you manage to NOT miss a ripe Roo in the road?? What your Grandson will make of you bumping off Skippy doesn't bear thinking about either.

Well Allan, the road kill is usually easy to dodge around should you not need the sport, but if you are being monstered by a couple of road trains there is little choice with the road being narrow, so pop goes the weasel, in a manner of speaking.

As for Toby remonstrating with me, he has just turned 13 months old so there a some respite for me before he creates a stink about it !!

When I left you in sunny Glasgow I travelled to Pembroke to ferry across to Ireland. The dockside traffic marshaller got talking to us during a quiet period and asked in his delightful Welsh sing-song, "You are from Australia then?" Nicole and I confessed to that misdemeanor. "Well", he continued, "When you go home I want you to take two things back with you, Skippy and Neighbors".

At this point I should point out to the uninitiated that these are two superannuated Australian TV programs that have had an amazing run in the UK, way beyond the point where any interest was being shown at home. Skippy is all about , you guessed it, a kangaroo.

Well my Skippy was well past being a TV star but his fame spread far and wide on Oct 1 !!

As we drove away towards the ferry with the windows down, we gave a hearty rendition of the Skippy theme song, SKIPPY, SKIPPY,, SKIPPY THE BUSH KANGAROO,, SKIPPY, Skippy etc etc. thereby cementing relations between Wales and Oz forever.

Ed

[Ed Burke]

I'm back home in one piece after a four day trip. The weather was kind to us, a sprinkle of rain to clean things when the screen was getting a bit dusty, and then back to no rain, just the 20 knot tailwind which was constant. As the load was about 6 feet high the tailwind was money in the bank.

Ed

[Ed Burke]

Last Monday afternoon Nicole and I returned home after a drive to Victoria to catch up with old friends in Melbourne. We visited Newcastle NSW on our way south. Very hot travelling as the aircon had ceased to be interested and oat was 100*F. I repaired the system on Tuesday morning !

Had a week on Flinders Island (of GAAR fame) flying from Lilydale YLIL in an ancient, but good, Beech Travel Air. Quite quick too, 160ktas at 7000' . FI is a great place with beautiful coastal scenery and a population of less than 900 whose favourite occupation is partying on. We were brave and soldiered on as befits old pilots.

That is an end to our wanderings for 2009 however next March it is off to Tasmania with the camper . Three weeks on the apple isle and then Melbourne again. Then north to Glen Innis NSW to make our fortunes finding sapphires where a friend has a lease over a mile of stream bed. Laden with precious gems we will stagger home around mid April.

I'm going well but the fleet is getting rather tired. I need a lotto win.

Ed

[Ed Burke]

On Sunday 27th for my Saturday birthday, we partied. It was great with about 20 or so friends and neighbors. Lots of good food and drinks and plenty of stories being bandied around.
Alison is one friend who is fond of doing something a little special and she got up and sang her rendition of The Gambler with two talented guitarists helping her along. It went like this....(and by way of explanation to our diverse cultures, a 'ute is a utilty truck, a pick-up, Flaxton is the home town and 52 our plot while a tinny is an open aluminium dingy, or a can of beer, so it is possible to have a dozen tinnies in the tinny! ).............



The Stumbler (thanks to Don Schiltz and Kenny Rogers)

On a warm summer’s evening, in a ‘ute bound for Flaxton
I met up with a woman; we were both too tired to think
So we took turns at driving and staring out the window
Then we pulled into 52 and she offered me a drink

She said “Mind all the grandkids’ toys and don’t trip over Reddog”
She took a glass from the cupboard and poured me a red wine
As I gazed into her eyes I enquired “Whatcha doing later?”
She said “Pull yourself together Ed, you’ve just turned seven nine!”

She handed me the bottle and I drank down my last swallow
Walked back past the ‘ute and went off to me shed
I could smell dinner cooking, potatoes, lamb with feta
I closed my eyes to drink it in and tripped right over Red

I gotta know where me dog is, know where me grog is
Know when to leave the house and go and mow the yard
I have a glass or two of red stuff, when I am sitting at the table
At my age I deserve it, cos I’ve worked bloody hard!

’Most every bloke knows that the secret to survivin’
Is knowing what to throw away and knowing what to keep
Well I’ve kept my Nicole and I’ve hung on to me pick-up
As it’s giving us adventures and a good dry place to sleep

I’ve toiled all over Oz and I’ve mapped out some strange places
I rode a tinny on the reef and a Cessna in the air
Each year we still go driving for weeks across the desert
But mostly it’s with Bluegrass from the comfort of me chair

You've gotta know where the dog is, know where the grog is
Know when to leave the house and go and mow the yard
Have a glass or two of red stuff, when you're sitting at the table
At our age we deserve it, cos we've worked bloody hard!

You've gotta know where the dog is, know where the grog is
Know when to leave the house and go and mow the yard
Have a glass or two of red stuff, when you're sitting at the table
At our age we deserve it, cos we've worked bloody hard!


Good stuff and they had to do an encore after an hour or two, and by that time it was much louder!


On Thursday morning I get my big present, driving 8 laps of an off road track in a V8 racing buggy and 8 laps in a Subaru WRX rally car, apart from that there is nothing at all happening!!!!!!!!!!!!!

So my 79th went well and one lovely lady promised me something very special for my 80th, I don't know what it will be, but, Eeeeeeehaaaa!


Ed

[Allen Peterson]

Well, congratulations, Ed! You're a little ahead of me so I'll keep an eye on you to see how you fare.
Any way, all the best for many more.
Allen

[Tom Goodrick]

Congrats on such a fine festive occasion marking your birthday. You are setting a fine example for us kids! (I just passed 67 a few weeks ago.)

[louross]

Well by golly, congradulatoons and Happy Birthday! You're a good guy, Ed.
Hopefully the lady will give you a very nice bottle of wine
lr.

[Ed Burke]

Thanks for the BD wishes fellas.

Today I did my off-road driving. One is never in the car alone, the 'instructor' is in the passenger's seat saying things over the intercom which might save his butt. I did 8 laps of a tortuous dirt track in a full-on Subaru WRX rally car and only lost it 3 times. They reckon you are not trying unless you go off backwards! How very different is a four wheel drive's cornering from the norm and when you have been around a while old habits die hard, for sure.

Then it was into the racing buggy and its V8 mill with tons of grunt. More familiar in that we are only powering the rear wheels but it is rear engined and inclined to lighten the front end under power. So it is tricky to power through a corner as there is understeer introduced. All very educational. I don't believe anybody got too frightened. What a blast !!!!!!!!!

Then a 'hot' lap in each car with the instructor driving to show how it can be done.

Go for it if you get the chance, Ed