The Open Page - Copy 23(Bleriot Weekend)
22 July 2009
Top Picture by Phil Eyden
Sunday Night 26 July:These two AERO pictures finish the weekend picture spread off in fine style. They are both excellent shots and make the page complete...so a big thankyou to the guys here and to all the other guys who sent in pictures and also to those who put pictures up in the Members Club. Some interesting shots in there too....well worth a look and a read. As the weekend was a celebration of flying, its great to have some good shots like these to finish off. Top Shot shows the French display team La Patrouille as they flypast in their Dassault/Dornier Alpha jets. Stunning! The shot on left shows the colourful stunt plane which did an excellent display. The plane I believe is a Boeing Steerman. Many thanks again to Karol and Phil.
As I write it's only an hour and a half since the seafront festivities stopped and 90% of the entire 'village' is already gone and packed away...almost as if it has never been. The usual tumbleweed type silence has returned, save for the sound of the odd seagull screeching out. So it's sad that it's all over, but it was a fascinating weekend. Secretly we are all flyers at heart and we love the achievement of Louis Bleriot, who in pioneer and daredevil mode, flew the channel so long ago in a humble plane made of canvas, plywood, and piano wire.
Fab Fireworks!
Sunday Morning 26 July:Dover seafront thundered to the sound of earsplittingly fantastic fireworks last night. It was thrilling and scintillating and all those things. Thousands lined the seafront and that party atmosphere of high summer filled the air. All day and night the seafront was packed with people, and all of them having a high old time. It was fun filled for the kids too with the bouncy type slides and rides...even the bigger kids could enjoy their burgers and chips and their strawberries and cream, and then rock with the rock bands and so on. There was something for everybody. But back to the fireworks..yes indeed fantastic, and all sizzling to the strains of those great wartime melodies...the dambusters, 633 squadron and the most famous one of all..."Bluebirds over the White Cliffs of Dover" . The firework extraordinaire below left, something Ive never seen done before, replicated the White Cliffs of Dover, as the display spectacularly cascaded seawards from the Prince of Wales pier...and, while the tune itself was playing. Impressive!
The top firework opened proceedings as The Marselleis was played across the airways, the idea was good and made a high impact start, with added terrific 'entente cordiale', as it was very much a French day as well as an English one.
If there were any complaints at all it would be in the spartan aerobatic content. There was very little flying considering the day it was. The huge crowd gathered, as seen in the shot below, and waited for the arrival of a spitfire. The spitfire was cancelled. The crowd, disappointed, started to move away. The commentator promised a flypast at 4.30 but it didnt happen...not so you would notice. Some hours later the Red Arrows and their French equivalent flew by magnificently to an even larger crowd, but it was over in two seconds. Sad for the thousands and thousands of people who came all the way from all areas to be here. Really...there should have been a display..for the people. PB
We will have some aero pictures later.
Saturday Morning 25 July 8.30am:>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>
Took an early gallop around the new structures today. And wow! are they fantastic. These rides are actually much larger than they appear here so will thrill kids everywhere. Kids like nothing more than thundering earthwards at great speed and from a great height, scaring the living daylights out of their parents. The colours everywhere are cheerily fab too. As well as these rides there are ghost trains, and bumper ghost cars which say..."nobody leaves here alive!!" I can well believe it... them ghosts are scary !! In other words it's a paradise for kids...and wait til the music starts! Well done Dover!
This giant climbing spectacular dwarfs Captain Matthew Webb and no mistake. If you ever heard of the mountain moving to Mohammed then this is it. It's the notorious K2 mountain transferred to Dover for easy ascending. I could do that with a rucksack full of bricks on my back..I could...really... cough!
Picture on left above shows a very pleasant 'village' designed for easy dining and relaxing. It's beautifully done. Very clean and attractive. Oh to have something like this in Market Square. It would solve the neglected screen problems in a thrice and bring a touch of continental Europe to a tired central Dover. "Well I say! whats all the fuss!? I did the channel both ways!" Muses a bewildered Charles Rolls in picture on right. PB
The Kids will LOVE Dover seafront this weekend...thanks to Louis Bleriot!
Top Picture by Phil Eyden
Picture left by Karol Steele
Sunday Night 26 July:These two AERO pictures finish the weekend picture spread off in fine style. They are both excellent shots and make the page complete...so a big thankyou to the guys here and to all the other guys who sent in pictures and also to those who put pictures up in the Members Club. Some interesting shots in there too....well worth a look and a read. As the weekend was a celebration of flying, its great to have some good shots like these to finish off. Top Shot shows the French display team La Patrouille as they flypast in their Dassault/Dornier Alpha jets. Stunning! The shot on left shows the colourful stunt plane which did an excellent display. The plane I believe is a Boeing Steerman. Many thanks again to Karol and Phil.
As I write it's only an hour and a half since the seafront festivities stopped and 90% of the entire 'village' is already gone and packed away...almost as if it has never been. The usual tumbleweed type silence has returned, save for the sound of the odd seagull screeching out. So it's sad that it's all over, but it was a fascinating weekend. Secretly we are all flyers at heart and we love the achievement of Louis Bleriot, who in pioneer and daredevil mode, flew the channel so long ago in a humble plane made of canvas, plywood, and piano wire.
Fab Fireworks!
zap! whoosh!
Sunday Morning 26 July:Dover seafront thundered to the sound of earsplittingly fantastic fireworks last night. It was thrilling and scintillating and all those things. Thousands lined the seafront and that party atmosphere of high summer filled the air. All day and night the seafront was packed with people, and all of them having a high old time. It was fun filled for the kids too with the bouncy type slides and rides...even the bigger kids could enjoy their burgers and chips and their strawberries and cream, and then rock with the rock bands and so on. There was something for everybody. But back to the fireworks..yes indeed fantastic, and all sizzling to the strains of those great wartime melodies...the dambusters, 633 squadron and the most famous one of all..."Bluebirds over the White Cliffs of Dover" . The firework extraordinaire below left, something Ive never seen done before, replicated the White Cliffs of Dover, as the display spectacularly cascaded seawards from the Prince of Wales pier...and, while the tune itself was playing. Impressive!
If there were any complaints at all it would be in the spartan aerobatic content. There was very little flying considering the day it was. The huge crowd gathered, as seen in the shot below, and waited for the arrival of a spitfire. The spitfire was cancelled. The crowd, disappointed, started to move away. The commentator promised a flypast at 4.30 but it didnt happen...not so you would notice. Some hours later the Red Arrows and their French equivalent flew by magnificently to an even larger crowd, but it was over in two seconds. Sad for the thousands and thousands of people who came all the way from all areas to be here. Really...there should have been a display..for the people. PB
We will have some aero pictures later.
Saturday Morning 25 July 8.30am:>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>
Took an early gallop around the new structures today. And wow! are they fantastic. These rides are actually much larger than they appear here so will thrill kids everywhere. Kids like nothing more than thundering earthwards at great speed and from a great height, scaring the living daylights out of their parents. The colours everywhere are cheerily fab too. As well as these rides there are ghost trains, and bumper ghost cars which say..."nobody leaves here alive!!" I can well believe it... them ghosts are scary !! In other words it's a paradise for kids...and wait til the music starts! Well done Dover!
This giant climbing spectacular dwarfs Captain Matthew Webb and no mistake. If you ever heard of the mountain moving to Mohammed then this is it. It's the notorious K2 mountain transferred to Dover for easy ascending. I could do that with a rucksack full of bricks on my back..I could...really... cough!
Picture on left above shows a very pleasant 'village' designed for easy dining and relaxing. It's beautifully done. Very clean and attractive. Oh to have something like this in Market Square. It would solve the neglected screen problems in a thrice and bring a touch of continental Europe to a tired central Dover. "Well I say! whats all the fuss!? I did the channel both ways!" Muses a bewildered Charles Rolls in picture on right. PB