Well I'm still catching up on posting old TSOG related stuff but now I'm time rich as I'm 'a bit unemployed' I'll get up to speed in no time. So you're all probably sick to death of Sixty-One Sixty-Five ACW posts so I'm putting up a report on the Road Trip Al, Dave and I took earlier this year to Little Wars Melbourne 2018....
The TSOG Road Trippers at Nihl RAAF Base Museum, from left to right; Otto Von Neudegg, Captain Darling and Colonel Spodding...
Okay over to Al...
Road Trip Little Wars Melbourne 2018
As dawn’s first light crested the Adelaide Hills, three brave
adventurers set forth on a trek across the wilderness to explore the mystical
land of “Victoria”. With their breath frosting in the early morning air, rugged
up against the chill, SA’s finest loaded their wagon with supplies to sustain
them as they headed eastwards. The rush to get ready was evident from the
splash of blue toothpaste still drying on Dave’s cheek. The question had to be
asked... Was it just toothpaste, or was it actually Avatar sprog? Thus the tone
of the trip was set.
ROAD TRIP!
Melbourne Little Wars 2018 was our destination - those poor bastards had
no idea what was about to hit them (spoiler, we were very well-behaved and only
argued with one local all weekend, and we only called Al “Stu” once).
Al had promised to build a model of a volcano to be used as the
centrepiece of a prehistoric dinosaur race (yes, really). So that was loaded in
the boot carefully and off we went.
The drive itself went pretty quickly - 750km seemed to fly by. We
stopped for lunch at the Ararat Hotel (a wonderful art-deco building known
locally as ‘the Rat’). An excellent counter meal (a schnitty of course) and a
local brew later and we back on the road for the final leg.
We stayed at the Sandbelt Club hotel, which is not too far from LW’s
venue - comfortable enough and cheap. An early morning and long drive took its
toll and we all crashed around 9:30pm.
Another early morning though, and damned cold at that - 3C - and off we
drove to the venue. Alan set up his table while Dave and Pete scoped out the
traders and the Bring & Buy tables. Many hugs (manly ones of course) and
handshakes were had with old friends. Well, Al’s old friends. Pete and Dave
knew nobody there.
The hall was bustling early and around 20-25 games were in full flight
by 10:00am. The traders tables were packed and the Bring & Buy was three
deep with people looking for bargains. Everything was clicking into place for
another excellent event.
Our lads were contributing to the local economy by emptying their
wallets, refilling at a nearby ATM, and then emptying them once more. Dave
managed to fill in some gaps in his 20mm North African WWII collection, Pete
picked an absolute bargain of ACW figures, and Al got himself a new airbrush
and compressor, plus a swag of WWII figures from his friend Boz. The car was
filling rapidly with our haul of loot!
But the games... Al’s dinosaur race game was very popular, being run 5
times during the day. The average age of the players was around 8 however. Dave
and Pete played a Bolt Action game and a lovely looking 54mm DBA game. One
table that caught everyone’s eye was the Wings of Glory multi-player game. The
interlocking, sculpted game mat was beautiful and, amazingly, was added to
during the day - starting off with the fields and villages of France for a WWI
game, later on new sections were added with the coast and English Channel for a
WWII game.
Al's volcano...
The Crowd!
Bolt action North Africa game...
DBA Ancients...Elephants away!
The day finally drew to a close, leaving us worn out and footsore, and
very much appreciating a lovely beer (thanks Nic) at a local art-house brewery.
Sitting with the organisers of the event and joining in the post-mortem
was interesting, and gave us opportunities to add the ‘voice of the customer’
to the conversation. This was the point at which the disagreement occurred, but
thankfully it didn’t escalate.
There was however a sneaky nudge to get us to organise the Adelaide
version of the show. Hmmm.
But all beers must come to an end and we piled back to the Sand Paper
Club to unload our stash and find somewhere to eat. Big Pig - oh yeah! Best ...
ribs ... ever. But we drank them out of stout and another beer I forgot the
name of. So (swaying now) we made it on foot to the hotel, joking along the way
about blue sprog and sand paper (it all made sense at the time). It was time to
survey the haul of cardboard, resin and lead piled up in the room. The many,
many copies of Strategy & Tactics ought to keep Dave and Pete busy for some
time to come.
An amazing day it was. So a huge thank you to the organisers (Dave, Mike
and Nic), all the volunteers who helped run the day, and to the game masters
who brought such energy and enthusiasm to their games.
Sunday.... Still in Melbourne.
We chose to extend our stay in the city since Al had some business to
attend to. Pete and Dave went off to explore the Camberwell Market and visit
the Shrine of Remembrance, while Al took off for a working breakfast with a
client (hungover somewhat).
Not much to say about Sunday really, except that we did find a wargaming
shop open in Ringwood that was just freaking amazing (link). If you’re in
Melbourne and into wargaming, visit the House of War.
Fitting everything into the car along with the volcano was a bit of a
jigsaw puzzle, but it was under control. Heading off home in the Monday morning
peak hour was a little harrowing, but Pete’s expert navigation saw us onto the
Westgate Bridge easily enough. Having SA number plates seems to ensure all the
locals give you a wide berth.
On the way home, we followed a sign saying ‘historic RAAF base’ just
outside of Nhill. Dave, being ex airforce, and Pete being a military buff, were
keen to explore. Al, always the cynic, thought it would be little more than a
sheep paddock and some crumbling concrete slabs.
Wrong! This was absolutely the highlight of the trip. The airfield is
still in use by the Nhill Aeroclub and there are two hangars there. One is a
WWII vintage hangar in excellent condition, and the other is newer but has been
set up as an aviation museum. We got there a little late in the afternoon and
it was closed, but Len, the curator, came out and asked if we wanted a tour.
Damned straight we did! There were three WWII aircraft inside the hangar - an
Avro Anson undergoing restoration, a Wirraway in immaculate condition, and a
Tiger Moth also in great condition as well as some very rare training
simulators from the period - in working condition! Len’s enthusiasm and local
knowledge made the tour all the more personal and enjoyable. Thank you so much.
Historic Nihl RAAF Base...
The Anson...
The Wirraway...
One of the 2 Link trainers...
We spent an hour and a half there and were just blown away at this
hidden gem. We will definitely stop there again on the way through next time.
(Link)
And that was the final noteworthy event on our journey. A fun, safe, and
thoroughly enjoyable trip and one we all want to do again next year.
Thanks Al!!!!!!
