Town Talk | Cirrus soars!

Some of Shepp’s young men were restless — there was not enough to do; not enough entertainment; not enough fun.

Someone suggested that their fathers must have created their own fun and perhaps, the sons could do the same.

“We must have a meeting about this.”

The meeting was held at the Victoria Hotel, and it is possible that alcohol was involved in the decision-making.

It’s also possible that as the years go by, some may look back with regret on the choices of their youth.

However, I can detect no signs of regret from my informants.

For them, it was without doubt the right decision at the right time.

I am told it was John Abel’s suggestion.

However, as John is with us no longer, I am unable to verify this — and someone could be passing the buck.

The suggestion, and final decision, was to have a hot air balloon constructed.

And it was to be the largest balloon Australia had ever seen.

Of course, no-one knew how to fly it, but that was no impediment.

They would buy it, and they would learn to fly it.

Eight men contributed a thousand dollars each.

(Actually, it turned out to be “a bit” over a thousand.)

‘Cirrus’

Cirrus, as the balloon became known, was constructed by Cameron Balloons in Bristol, England.

Now today, I can search for Cameron Balloons and discover that it is the world’s largest manufacturer, with a branch in the United States, and that it has constructed 9500 hot air balloons.

I can call or email the business easily. It would not have been as simple 50 years ago, when Cameron’s was a small, relatively new business — and email was yet to exist.

It began manufacturing in 1971.

Cirrus was built, with its colourful pattern (designed locally) and worked very well indeed.

It arrived in 1976.

Shepparton Aerostat Group

The group consisted of, in alphabetical order: John Abel, Jack Halsall, Peter Johnson, Jock Noble, Patrick O’Connell, John Reith, Peter Riordan and Andy Simpson.

It was known as SHAG (I guess you had to be there!).

With assistance from ‘Puff’

The group took the balloon to the Civic Centre, which was large enough for the group members to lay their purchase on a clean surface.

It looked good; the design was as it should be. It was time for fun.

They contacted an aerostat group in Melbourne who flew a balloon called ‘Puff’ and this team volunteered to help them out.

The Melbourne group frequently flew north from the state capital anyway.

So, with quite a bit of help from their friends, the Shepparton group members learnt to fly Cirrus.

They frequently flew from a property at Yabba North, and they were grateful for the goodwill of others, particularly farmers (who could have complained about the large balloon frightening their stock — could have, but did not).

I am told that Jack Halsall and John Abel were the best pilots, taking the matter as seriously as it deserved.

There were no rules here; no guidelines from the government, no licences, no inspectors, and no forms or books to be filled in.

Sir Rupert Hamer was premier and the ‘nanny state’ was yet to come.

However, they knew to check the wind direction and strength; if the wind was in the top of the trees, no flying that day.

They flew in many regattas, and they flew around our region; they flew safely and responsibly, for the fun of it.

Cirrus was three stories high and capable of flying at 10,000 feet. Eventually, Jack and Patrick decided it was time for parachutes and they ‘stepped off’ into the heavens.

I gave Patrick a call to hear his opinion of the parachute jump and if it was different to jumping from a plane.

He said that a plane was noisy and jumping out was almost like being ejected from it.

The balloon was silent and still, and stepping off, incredibly peaceful; the journey to earth was almost a meditative experience.

I should have asked Patrick — “What did you step off? Was it the top of the chest-high safety fence that formed the basket? And did that mean balancing on it, prior to stepping off?” Of course, it did — it was the only way to the heavens.

(The very thought fills me with horror.)

Bye bye, Puff

In 1978, their Melbourne friends, and Puff, met with a severe problem — in the form of a 22,000-volt power line.

Melbourne balloonist David Martinson, with Shepp’s Jack Halsall, had a skydiver, Tony Lawrence, on board.

Fortunately, they had unloaded Tony for his jump well before they noticed the power line just three metres away.

It was too late, and David and Jack remained in the basket, discussing their best chances of avoiding electrocution.

The balloon was tangled in the power line with the basket dangling centimetres from the ground.

It was necessary for the two men to jump out of the basket without touching anything.

And they did just that. The $9000 balloon was destroyed at Pine Lodge.

The headline in The Age is worth a mention. ‘Well, officer, I blame those power lines …’

Bye bye, Cirrus

By 1982, Cirrus had seen a lot of action and needed attention.

The group members had had the fun they were seeking and decided to sell the balloon.

The purchaser was from Western Australia (name forgotten) but apparently, he was a friend of Dick Smith.

SHAG was no more!

I’ve been told, “We all had a great time with Cirrus — worth every cent.”

Confused?

Recently, there has been some talk around town that it was Cirrus that crashed, and this is because the people involved are nearly 50 years older.

Originally, I also heard that version.

I have frequently mentioned the traps of attempting to write about the past, and this story was almost a good example of people remembering things differently.

However, ‘these are the facts, ma’am. Nothing but the facts’ — hopefully.

Yet again

The Roman Empire remained the chief topic this week — and I truly appreciate your comments.

You are more than kind. But, here’s a warning, if you keep this up, I’ll write about something else that is daft!

The amazing rock towers on Sardinia — dating back to 1700 BC — or the likes!

Next Christmas? I joke!

Some reading

I have just finished the third book in Brandon Sanderson’s ‘The Stormlight Archive’ – all 1200 pages of it.

This isn’t history — it is complete fantasy, about a world that never was, and I couldn’t put it down — until the very early hours.

It turns out that my grandson — the supplier of these books — knows me better than I know myself.

Bye for now — have a good week.

And, if you have a smart grandchild, do as you’re told!

May it be easy, my friends.

Marnie

Email: towntalk@sheppnews.com.au

Letter: Town Talk. The News. P.O. Box 204. Shepparton 3631.

Phone: Text or call 0409 317 187