The Random Rideout Pictures

Well another glorious day, so of the Metheringham Airfield Visitor Centre. https://www.metheringhamairfield.co.uk/
Only £7.15 with donation to get in, had a nice tea cake and a cuppa there too. ( I know how to live life to the max )
Anyway here are a few pictures for you.

 

The above models of the Lancaster Bombers represents all the aircraft that were lost at RAF Metheringham.

 

You can go inside the Dakota, as long as a member of staff is with you.


The cockpit.

 

It certainly wasn't built for comfort, that's for sure.

 

They were cut from a different cloth back then - literally the golden generation. Mr Jackson being a first class example you can but imagine the balls it took to climb out on the wing, let alone fight the fire. I am in awe of him and his kind.

 

And sadly, one hero from that era less today.
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cqx2dl2nxdvo

 

The same silhouettes of the aircrew are at the bomber command centre outside Lincoln….


Very effective to see in real life - pictures don’t do it justice.

I went as part of our Lancaster experience day at East Kirkby with my son last year on the 80th anniversary of D Day.

I’d recommend a visit to both to anyone.

 

Indeed - I think back to when I was a kid (born 1966) and WWII was recent. I kick myself for not paying more attention to what the older generation were talking about at family get togethers after a few drinks. All gone now and their stories with them.

 

Just up the road from me, well an hours ride anyway. https://internationalbcc.co.uk/

 

I can relate to that, my dad was in the Royal Artillery, based at Wick. I didn't pay much attention to what went on, but as you say, now, I bloody wished I did.
One thing he told me, and this story contradicts all the official versions that I've read, it was one morning in Wick, the crew of the gun, or guns were told NOT to engage a Messerschmitt 109, that was coming in. My dad saw Rudolf Hess get out of the fighter, salute somebody ( I forgot who ) got into a car and drove off.
I've always said, why would my dad lie about something like that. He knew what Rudolf Hess looked like too, he was only 21 years old back then.

 

It’s a fantastic visit - highly recommended. There’s a huge wall map of Europe that runs through every bombing raid (of both sides) from hitlers first forays in maybe 37 till May 45 all in 10 minutes. The names laser cut out of steel plates of all allied air losses in the campaign - staggering.

If/when you go take one of the free tours. Our guide was an old Vulcan crew member and had stories of his own that were fascinating along with explaining about the centre, its foundation and individual quirky stories of some of the names exhibited.

 

I took a ride yesterday morning and headed down into the pines. Very nice. Cool in the woods. On the way home I passed what a lot of the locals think is a lake about a mile from my house. It's not a lake. It's a dammed-up impoundment that is actually the head of the Mullica River. The Mullica meanders about forty miles or so down to Great Bay which opens to the Atlantic Ocean. I saw some Division of Fish and Game officers in a state boat tooling around, doing circles on the "lake." They had an apparatus, an array, hanging off the front of the boat. I've seen this equipment before. It's an electric shock device that stuns (not kills) fish so they can be collected and examined. At first, I thought they were there due to a recent fish kill that was caused by runoff from extinguishing a fire at a nearby salvage yard that had leached into the river. I stopped and talked to them. They were hunting snakeheads! For those of you that are not familiar with them, snakeheads are nasty, invasive, Asian fish that have been making their way north for years. They were released either by accident or intentionally in Florida. They are voracious eaters, breed like crazy and displace our native fish. If you catch one, you are REQUIRED to kill it. I had heard that because they are tropical, our cold winters would prevent them from gaining a foothold (fin-hold ?) up here. Nope. The state guys said there were reports from anglers that they were being caught here in New Jersey. They had several on the boat! Another example of man disrupting the natural environment. At least they're edible.

 

More fun facts about the snakehead!

I did some research.

They will eat anything.
They can breathe air.
They can survive several days out of water.
They can walk on land.
They carry diseases our native fish have no defense against.
They can double their population in just over a year.
They were farmed for food in Arkansas until they were banned in 2002.
They were raised as aquarium fish until they were banned.
They have a natural anti-freeze in their veins.
They can grow to be three feet long.

We are fooked.

 

A couple of pics of Calne Bike Meet yesterday

 

Last weeks annual big group trip. Ten bikes this year. The route is on the first picture. Inverness, Thurso and Fort William using Premier Inns then the last night in Melrose staying at Burt’s hotel. Great trip in glorious weather until the last day which was wet coming back to Yorkshire. The tractors were at Thurso going back to Orkney after a show.

 

Sounds a bit like lionfish in the Caribbean--where they're NOT supposed to be, @Fork Lock. But lionfish certainly easier on the eye than are those snakeheads!

 

They sound like something out of a horror movie!!

 

Wombwell gokart track open day, last weekend

 

@Wfc-james:
Cool photos!