riverduk

Hey guys, seems like this has turned into a real bun fight, anyway I'm already planing my next move and all I have to say is thank goodness for the "innovators." See this web site ElectraFlyer.com - Home of the ElectraFlyer - Electric Aircraft Corporation I'm starting to get all my gear together tomorrow, leccy motor, lipo or Li-fe batteries, solar charger & so on, so that when the greens stuff this country and stop my little ringy ding ding 582 from pushing my trike along and blowing oily smoke all over the country side, (I love the smell of 2 stroke in the morning) I'm going electric. But, truth be known, at the end of the day I actually want to do my bit for the environment, I'd be happy to fly electric, I just don't want some big wally in Canberra dictating how my life is going to be run.For me a carrot and stick approach will always work better than just the big stick. For example, I would love to stick a great big array of solar panels on my roof to help with co-generation of power but why bother when: a. I can't afford to spend $40k on the gear to really make it worth while, even after the current government rebates. b. the government will tax me on any revenue I make to pay for their over sized bureaucracies and superannuation. c. The power companies screw me over with ridiculous charges so I can never repay the initial outlay for the equipment. Solar panels on every roof of every house in Australia would have to make a bigger difference to our environment than a carbon tax ever will but it wouldn't matter whether I voted Red, Blue, Green or brindle, no government will ever have the guts to make a real stand on this sort of policy because there is no money in it for them whereas there is no doubt a money making angle for a carbon tax. (oh, hang on there it is: TAX, silly me) Another consideration also, is the off shore interests that dictate our government interests and policies. (Just my thoughts) As I said before, a carrot and stick approach will always work better than just a big stick and at present I have not seen any political party offer me a carrot so I will remain cynical regarding the motive of any political party in Australia and on Saturday will, like all others on this forum, vote according to how I believe is best for me and mine for the future, have a great Saturday and happy voting, cheers Da Duk

" Don't believe everything you are reading here in regards to Green policy." :ah_oh: Winsor you are right, we don't have to believe what is written here, we just have to go to the greens own web site to see what they want, as Turbo pointed out. "I think considering voting for the Family First party is the most alarming thing I have read on here... Great idea... Lets elect the Christian Taliban and see what happens to your rights." Don't be alarmed, just be alert, the world needs more lerts. Seriously though, Family First is not a Christian party as such, they may hold Christian values (which have stood us, for the most part, in good stead as a society) they do have a number of Christians as candidates but if you were to examine their policies closer I think you would find they are more about Families. I don't know about you but I want my children and my 2 grand kids to have a safe place to live, one where the real concept of family is honored and children are not treated like possessions, accessories or mini me's but are given a chance to be kids in a safe place. There are other parties or groups that probably deserve the title "Christian Taliban" more so than FF, ones I as a Christian would be worried about voting for. But hey at the end of the day, isn't it great that we, as a country have the freedom to express our thoughts and feelings on an open forum like this and not have the thought police kicking down our doors and dragging us away. Cheers, Da Duk

You are right Winsor they aren't perfect, no politician is, but "survival of humanity" please! it's not whats at the heart of their policies that's the problem, it's how they intend to implement them and that is what will do the damage. Locking people out of forests or stopping people from fishing and telling us what we can and can't eat is not a democracy, it's a dictatorship and they will not stop until they get their way no mater what others think. Another example from the very top of the greens: Bob Browns push for recognition of same sex marriages, why? because he feels like a second class citizen? why should his preferences or any others be forced on me just because he says they should ? Alright, before anyone starts on the homophobe BS, let me say, I respect their right to make a choice as they see fit, I don't believe it is a healthy choice but I do respect the fact it is their choice to make (having said that, I can't see how male + male = good for survival of humanity) The fact is because BB wants it to be, he will not stop until he gets his way, if only to validate his own situation and so it will be with all the other policies that they want turned into law, a greens balance of power will bring this country to it's knees. cheers, Da Duk

Hey Winsor, what's done is done, can't live in the past, can only look forward. On that point, I hope you don"t enjoy trips to the bush, fishing, hunting, 4 X 4 driving, camping or any other outdoor activities apart from your flying cause a vote for the greens will see your life changed for the worse forever. As for being a stick in the mud, go for it if that's your thing, but just remember, that's an outdoor activity and the greens will probably stop that too! Unfortunately it seem inevitable that they will end up with the balance of power in the senate and when this country is completely stuffed by their policies, we'd love to be able to say we told you so but by then the most modern form of communication will be 2 tins and a piece of string (natural fibre of course) and you will just sit in the cockpit of your flying machine going brrrrrrrrrrrrrrrmmmmmmmm and remembering how good it really was in 2010 BG (b4 :Disappointed:'s) happy voting, cheers,Da Duk

Hey John, thanks for the web site, was leaning towards family first, still am, but gotta laugh, they must really dislike the :Disappointed:'s more than us, they put the Australian sex party b4 the :Disappointed:'s, reckon they are on to something cheers, Da Duk

We can argue til the cows come home about politics, but for this country to be safe, we cannot afford to vote Green in any way shape or form. A good example of letting the greens into power in any way is to look at Tassie, 2 weeks after getting into bed with Labor at the state level they introduced a bill to ban Duck Shooting in that state. You may say so what, I don't shoot, do you think that it is a one off ? no, they have every thing in their sights, locking up great chunks of land as national parks, so no shooting etc. so ferals will survive and kill off native animals, locking up waterways so fishermen & women won't be able to enjoy a feed of fish and at the really radical end of the spectrum give animals the same rights as humans, so any form of meat is off the menu. It's not just about flying, it's about our Australian way of life that they want to destroy. If they don't want to eat meat, their choice, if they want to hug a tree. go for it, personally I find trees keep you warmer when they're burning in our heater. This Saturday vote Libs or Labor or who ever, but read their how to vote cards and if they have put the greens as their no.2 move the greens to last in preferences and move the others up one especially in the Senate, I know it is easier to just put 1 tick above the line BUT this can send your preferences in a direction you don't want them going. PUT THE GREENS LAST! I fear for the future of this great country if the greens get the balance of power, there is no substance in any of their policies, just check out their web site if you think I'm kidding, http://www.greens.org.au/ its all airy fairy stuff, big on talk small on action, unless they get the balance of power, then we are stuffed ! Happy voting on Saturday, cheers Da Duk

Hey Scott, I like the way you think, I will be using your quote, especially about the price tag. Hey Alf, I thought the sulking had paid off last night as the cook threatened to go to the bank today and get however much I needed to go flying, but she was just trickin', oh well back to sulking. As for taking my lovely up for a fly, I think that rates in the hell freezing over category as far as a trike is concerned, I believe that I had half a chance whilst I was learning to fly a Tecnam, but if I remember rightly her words on the way home from Yarrawonga were, "Not no way, Not now, Not ever!" but as I am ever the optimist, at least she didn't say no, I think that leaves a glimmer of hope Any how have a good couple of weeks at work, paper planes over the side might be the go, cheers Rosco

Definition of mixed emotions while I think of it, does anyone know the definition of mixed emotions?? watching your mother in law back your new car over a cliff cheers, ???? No really I love my mother in law................... really

Mother in law or not, I thought this might be the result of low flying in foggy conditions, cheers, the Duk

Hey Alf, lets not get ahead of ourselves just yet, the bird I own, the license is still coming, I had a change in work recently and went from financially rich and time poor to time rich and financially poor, but the good thing is I have a life again, getting stuff done around the house, keeping the cook happy, you know, and living in hope that: plan A: the motorbike sells.... or plan B: the cook gets sick of me whining / sulking and springs for the rest of the lessons and then the bike sells and I can repay the debt. Either way I'm grounded and sulking @ present ha ha! As for Fruit Bat Pilot love it, certainly sounds better than flying a Death Dart as my instructor tells me they are called, yes comforting I know, but he tells me he's a good pilot and he flies them so what can I say. Oh and thanks for rubbing it in regarding the weather, I get up most mornings, have a look outside and start sulking again, every beautiful morning I just think, "yep !" anyhow enough of my woes, it's good to know that there are others out there making the most of it, life's to short to waste, and I know this good thing will come to me who waits cheers and happy flying, Rosco :thumb_up:

I Agree Alf! [quote= yep a bit slower than jabs ect but a hell of a lot of fun. If your into riding motorbikes you will like triking. Yep Alf I hear you, I would have to agree wholeheartedly about the motorbike comment, I vowed and declared I would never go up in one of those things because I reckoned they weren't safe ( Long Story!) even as early as the start of this year, but I had to have one try, what can I say? I went up with Peter at Yarrawonga Flight Training, loved it and made the switch from 3 axis to trikes and am now the proud owner of 'The Black Duk,' yep that's her over to the left, and when everyone (who doesn't understand) asks me WHY? or do I have a death wish? I tell them because it's just like riding my motorbike :bmwrider: but at 1500 ft, it's the best! cheers, Rosco (alias 'The Duk')

Just one of those things ???? If I was spending 80 - 90K or more on a new aircraft, no matter the brand I can assure you if I found poor workmanship or quality control had been applied to it's manufacturing process, it sure as hell would not be "just one of those things" It must be assumed that the owner has on more than one occasion taken friends or family members up for a fly in his new pride & joy in the preceding 100 hours, putting not only himself but others at risk, had the bolts / prop let go. I hope that the first phone call Geoff made was to the factory to let them know that incorrect parts were fitted from new so that they can check out how a situation like this arose. I also hope that the factory has the the courage to check it out and not just sweep it under the carpet, as so many companies seem to do these days. Geoff, I also hope you did ring the factory before you posted this thread as they do deserve a right of reply. Having said all that, congrats on a job excellently done, it just goes to show that you can not buy experience, it must be earned over time, to me it sounds very likely that your 50 years on motorcycles held you in good stead in this situation and because of that the aircraft is a lot safer than it was, cheers, the Duk.

Re 27 Thanks for clearing that one up for me Ozzie, but now I'm really worried, yesterday a work colleague of my wife (forth with known as Ma'am) noted that she must be growing balls because of some comments she has made at work. That's it I'm off to the gym to loose the spare tyre before she slaps me on the butt and calls me fatty! I don't think my ego could handle it, cheers, Rosco

Hey fantastic! just wondering where all that fancy gear is going to fit on my trike, guess I will just have to come to terms with it being an unmanned aircraft that I can watch flying around having fun on it's own. Not that I will ever really need this stuff, my tree avoidance system is simple, fly over them not through them, my aircraft avoidance system a little more complex, I have a really good look, right, center, left, then maneuver, has worked fine so far. Seriously though, anything that makes flying safer for the masses in their big trans continental flights has got to be a good thing really, as long as they don't see it as a way to stop the little guy going for a fly just for the fun of it, because after all, isn't that what it's all about ? Happy flying, safe skies and tail winds, cheers Rosco

Agreed Wigg, appears to be a failure in the system somewhere, it seems strange that the news agencies seem to have our mag in store well before we receive it in the mail, unlike Pacific Flyer that makes a point of having their subscribers receiving it before it hits the newsagents shelves. Any how Thomo good article, well done, as for sponsorship ?? isn't there a section somewhere else on this forum called Aviation Laughter, Cheers Rosco

How great to see the Bluff @ Barwon Heads from the air, spent a heap of holiday time climbing all over it as a kid, my first and only (to this point in time) hang glider flight was over the back beach in the mid 70's. Also had my first light a/c flight from Barwon Heads airfield about the same time, thanks, bought back some good memories, hoping to get down there again one day soon in my own trike once I get through my training, cheers, Ross

My wife can have her own way whenever she wants. I got my Trike! I ain't complaining.

We've all heard about all the different world cups there are today, what with soccer, rugby, you name it, there is a world cup for it, but I bet you didn't know that a few years ago they held a world cup for poetry, yep and it was real simple, you were given one word and in ten seconds you had to use that word in a poem, best poem won, simple. Well after six months of intense competition right around the world, it finally came down to the last two competitors, a Pommy Preacher and an old Drover from Outback Australia, who, no one is quite sure how he got there, but he did. Anyhow a place in the Outback was found where the acoustics were just right for such an event and all was set to go, the Poms were there shouting 'England, England,' as they do and the Aussie's were in the bar, supporting the nation. Being good sports as we Aussies are we let the visitors go first, so the Pommy Preacher gets up to the mike and the judge says to him, "Your word is Timbuktu.' Without any hesitation he starts: I've been a preacher this many a year, I don't smoke cigarettes and I don't drink beer, I can preach to anyone, including you, and I've preached from Old London Town to Timbuktu. Well the Poms go up as one, they reckon they've got it won, chanting, 'England, England.' Well they finally drag the Old Drover out of the bar and he's about 3 parts cut when they put him in front of the mike, the judge says to him, "Your word is Timbuktu.' Well the clock starts ticking down 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, they're just about to ring the bell and award the prize to the Preacher when the Old Drover started: Me an Tim, off we went, found 3 Sheila's, they was in a tent, they was 3 an we was 2, I buk one an Timbuktu!

Mick was sitting in the bar enjoyin' a Guinness when Paddy come runnin' in shoutin' 'Mick, Mick it's ya wee brudda Sean, he's bin in a accident an he's dead!' Mick is immediately grief stricken and say 'no it can't be, not me wee brudda Sean, not me wee brudda, tell me Paddy what happened to him?' Paddy replied, 'it's to gruesome to repeat, don't make me tell ya, please Mick, don't make me tell ya.' Mick begged Paddy, 'please Paddy, it's me wee brudda, ya gotta tell me.' The whole bar goes silent in anticipation and Paddy relents saying 'ok, but ya wont like it......... A train run over his finger.' Bewildered, Mick looks at Paddy and asks 'a train run over his finger ? how can he be dead if a train run over his bloody finger ?' Paddy replies 'it's to gruesome to repeat, please Mick, don't make me tell ya.' Mick once again begs Paddy, 'please Paddy, it's me wee brudda Sean, ya gotta tell me.' Paddy looks at the floor, takes a deep breath and says ' He was pickin' his nose at da time.' Ah to be sure, to be sure, 'tis da luck o' the Irish

Yep, as Homer would say "Woo Hoo!" Good one Chucky only da i Irish, eh?

A man joined an order of monks who took a vow of silence except being allowed to speak 2 words at the end of every 3 years. He completed his first 3 years and went to the head monk and said "bed hard." After his 2nd term of 3 years he want to the head monk again and said "food terrible." He completed his 3rd term of 3 years and again went to the head monk and said "I quit!" The head monk replied, "I'm not surprised, you've done nothing but complain since you got here."

Yeh, good one Chucky

What is the definition of mixed emotions ? Watching your mother in law drive your new car over a cliff.

Gotta get there ???? A really interesting read but I can't help but wonder, why the hell didn't they turn back as soon as they noticed that the clouds were graying and the wind was suddenly blowing @ 20 knots. So what if the weather reports didn't say bad weather, obviously what they were flying in was more real than the weather reports. It was good to see that they all made it back safely, but was it worth the risk ? They really tempted fate by going back into the air a third time knowing conditions were not good over their home field. 1 of the reasons I have chosen to own a trike is portability, surely it would have been safer to: A. leave the trikes at Busselton and fly them home at a later date. B. Organise for the trikes to be trailered home if they really had to be home, after all it is only about 60 ks by road each way. Yep we can all get caught off guard by the weather, that's a given, and we do need to know how to handle all situations we may find ourselves in, but why continue to fly into it in the first instance, why not turn around and fly away from it and head for home sooner rather than later. Then once on the ground in those conditions why take off and put themselves at further risk? Yes it's a good read and yes it had a good outcome and we all admire their effort to get home, but what would we have been saying or reading about them if we had heard that they hadn't made it and all were lost because of their gotta get there attitude. Every time I go into the hanger where my trike lives I am reminded that mistakes and misjudgments can be fatal, the wreckage of a trike lays to one side of the hangar, under covers, in which 2 people lost their lives last year in what was good flying weather. That wreckage reminds me to be alert and aware of what is going on around me at all times in the air, we have a responsibility to those who love us to come home safely every time we fly. Well that's my soapbox, cheers Da Duk i_dunno

I reckon go with what feels comfy, I'm learning to fly in a Tecnam @ present so tricycle is the go for me. But hey Sue I have noted that in your hanger is a Karasport, there is one listed for sale in the current RAA mag and would I love to have a look, sweet looking little machine, my only prob is that it is in WA and I live in Vic, not the ideal weekend drive, but if I were to buy something like that, well the tail dragger endorsement has to be on the list if I'm going to fly it. But really, at the end of the day, who cares where the wheels are or if it has a yoke or joystick, I'm not into flying for the taxiing, takeoffs and landings, I'm in it for the flying firstly, then the freedom it brings and also all the great people I am meeting. Enjoy what you fly and how you fly it, :big_grin: cheers, Ross