How It Was

		How It Was
		Was she treated like a princess?
		Did the frog turn into a crown prince?
		Did the 18-day blind date turn into a honeymoon?

This web-page has been presented with total honesty, so why shouldn’t we now tell the true story of “How It Was”?

It is quite a remarkable metamorphosis and we are both pinching ourselves in case we are dreaming.
For those who have just started to follow our story (read the other columns first), the background is that we first made contact through RSVP internet dating in September 2006, and emailed continuously for exactly one year prior to meeting personally, September 20th 2007, had never phoned, but exchanged photos and expressed written opinion on every subject except sex, religion and politics.

At no time did we ever express affection with the written word, keeping it a growing friendship with a very stable foundation.

We do truly appreciate your interest in our story, which we find a little difficult to comprehend, for we are just two senior citizens, with adult children, grandchildren, dogs, ex’s, out to explore a fresh, new relationship stepping into romance or a deeper level of good friendship.
Our first thought for a web-page was a fun thing, a shared joke, then we realised it could be helpful to others crossing the Nullarbor, and perhaps be motivating to those 55+, that old-timers can find friendship, adventure and perhaps love, sharing a fun time together.
One of us is ten years older than the other. Guess!
We had an ongoing joke of the frog-prince who was kissed by the princess and he turned into a crown prince. Was this a hint to be kissed?

Read on.

First hearing each others’ voices in a radio interview with Chris Smith on 2GB Sydney, just before meeting for the first time in person was quite an experience.
This was then totally eclipsed by the drama recorded on National TV, Channel 7 Morning Show, when we met in person at Melbourne Airport, with a hug and a kiss. It felt like we had known each other for years. To steal a line from Sleepless in Seattle, “and our hands met and it was like magic”.
TV and radio presenters had us already marrying, and played the musical theme, “Love is in the Air”. We hedged interview questions of mile-high-club, bad breath, body odour, and many more during inquisitions.
The rest of Day One for us was all business with final preparation for our long flight … 21 maps, 7,848 GPS kilometres, 44 flying hours in 7 flying days, 13 fuel stops… packing, emergency rations, preparing the aircraft by removing the rear seat making more room for baggage, water, fuel, tools … then the weight and balance calculations for loading.

Everyone thought we were having romantic, candlelit dinners, when the truth was we grabbed a pizza, a bottle of red, and got busy cutting/packaging 30 pet-food dinners for the freezer, to make it easier for the dog-minders, Kerry and Judith. Annie the Yorkie had been left with a minder in Sydney.
Our phones kept ringing with media attention and long-lost friends who had seen us on TV.
We had five mobile phones covering four networks between us, linked to a ‘phone-box’ configuration in the cockpit as well as the usual radio equipment for communication including 40 Ch UHF.

Our cellular phones proved a disappointment with zero coverage in remote areas from four of them.

We learned a lot from the country folk about their frustration with communication promises.
How they all longed for their good old CDMA network with no fancy network gimics; just the ability to communicate when 'down the paddock'.

The farewell party in Melbourne, at David’s house was full of camaraderie, good wishes and excitement when family, friends and the 3 dogs, Bear, Ruby and Lucky were introduced.
Take-off next day from Essendon was without a hitch, and off went these two “blind-daters” alone at last, into the sunset, full of promise and excitement for such a long, aerial adventure. Actually, the sun did not set until we were safely on the ground at Ceduna.

It was good to leave the ground, after months of careful planning, fuel orders, accommodation bookings and anticipation of this great email friendship developing into something stronger … or whatever. We were totally committed to make this a successful 7-day flight, and a possible 10-14days together.

There was an on-going sense of humour expressed, when one would go out of sight … the other would say, “thought you were catching the bus”. Our conversation never stopped, nor did the subject matter ebb, and we could not get over how much we had in common, from breakfast choices to mouth wash.

The proposed flight plan with 7+ hour flying days was very challenging and highly ambitious for any two pilots to attempt, so it was totally miraculous that we pulled it off without a hitch; no delays to our original plan. Weather proved a real challenge at times, dodging between rain showers that followed a ‘front’ that came through Southern Cross initially with dust storms obliterating the airstrip, as we were about to depart.
Travelling west we had the advantage of time zones giving us longer days, so we shared the flying hours, not with any rhyme or reason, just with a “you take control” when the hundreds of photos had to be taken and the aircraft positioned to get the best shots. Navigation was done the old-fashioned way with charts, and dead reckoning (checking the ground below for reference points) PLUS two GPS’s which had been programmed with over 140 ‘way points’, giving distances flown, time to next check point, fuel flow, fuel remaining at destination, ground speeds, drift from changing wind strength and direction. So much technical data, producing much safety.

First over night stop was at Ceduna, having refuelled at Port Pirie with the new swipe-through credit card, serve yourself system.

East West Motel, with hosts Brian and Maureen was a delight, and their dining room had an excellent chef, Mark, who graciously provided us with cheese/vegemite sandwiches for the next day’s flight. After this great food and a bottle of Wolf Blass red, we retired to one of our bedrooms for a night cap of champagne to congratulate ourselves for making it through the first day’s flight, with no arguments.
Romance was in the air but we had many days to go so feelings were put on hold for ‘later’, for it seemed too early to let this new step in our partnership take a hold. ‘Later’ was mistaken for a put-off, and it appeared difficult to recover that wonderful moment of possibility.

At Southern Cross, our accommodation was at the Palace Hotel, very old-world, good food, romantic dining room but flight planning and weather was upper most on our minds, and the ambience did not overtake our concentration on the success of our flight next day.
Pilot/owner, Dr Olga had introduced us via email to our new-best-friend, fuel-man Phil, who took us back to his home for coffee to wait out the initial section of the boisterous ‘front’ … nothing like local knowledge of weather and dust storm potential … and we then picked our way to Geraldton, where pilot Wendy was surprised any aircraft had made it through.
On we flew to Shark Bay/Denham for three overnights and relaxing ‘play days’, enjoying the company of pilots Anne and Bunny, plus the good company of Jill and Ray. The only other pilot we saw was a young charter pilot, Shawn, who operated out of Shar’Bay in a Cessna 206.

Media publicity from radio and TV appearances started an amazing string of surprising stranger-encounters
“I saw you on TV” said Jason, manager of Oceanside Village, Denham.
If it had been a 'setup' like Just Kidding or Candid Camera, it could not have been more surprising, but no, Jason was serious, delighted and delightful.
What a beautiful place to stay, right on the beach front in this sleepy little town full of wonderful people. The pilgrimage to be at Shark Bay by September 25th for the 20th anniversary of Grant’s disappearance was complete. Emotional yet satisfying, bringing closure to a long, sad period.
Dining at the Old Pearler served by Wayne was another memorable candle-lit dinner, with great squid, snapper, rock lobster and pink champagne.

The romance of Shark Bay and the great feeling of satisfaction from three successful flying days, gave us a relaxed atmosphere where emotions could be further examined, discussed and romantic feelings pursued.
Yes, the date had taken a turn and we found a depth of feeling never expected to happen to us, as mature-aged people.

So off to Monkey Mia we went, next day, on Ron’s mini bus. Hand-in-hand, feeling anonymous, we walked the well-known resort, taking photos with the friendly pelicans, feeding the dolphins, sipping a cold beer then a bottle of champagne, shopping for gifts when ‘sprung’ … “didn’t I see you on TV?” says a tourist Steve, and brings over his pal Ben to be introduced.

We chose not to take the long drive to the Hamelin Pool with its ancient Stromatalites, and headed south down the west Australian coast with its unbelievable scenery, flying over the ocean to embrace the full beauty of the cliffs and the patterned rock face, falling into the sea in great drops.
Shark Bay is an unbelievable vast body of water, with great beauty and has the magnet effect to bring people back to its lifestyle and charm.
Southwards towards Perth, negotiating the light aircraft corridor with its limited parameters, not friendly to the weather that presented itself at that time, but the greatest fun was ahead of us, for we planned to land at the private airstrip of vintage aircraft builders, at Serpentine.
It was like stepping onto the movie set of Those Magnificent Men in Their Flying Machines, except we were landing on the runway when a huge volume of water enveloped our tiny Cessna 172.

We had become used to water on the windscreen after the showers passing Fremantle but this was different
Looking to the side we had to smile at the welcoming group, giving us an Airbus A380 style home coming with their fire-truck’s hose.

Our stay at Serpentine was a highlight with our hosts Rob, Patricia and the friendly club members, who had a lavish spread of food and wine for us, followed by a roast dinner special event party the next night.

So many privately owned hangars, some with top decks for sunset drinks, when other members are known to put on the best aerobatic displays outside the USA. It was a feast of fun and friendship, never to be forgotten.

At Mandurah we stayed at the Atrium Resort, upgrading our accommodation to a top floor suite, befitting our mood.
A delightful place to stay, good food and wine, wonderful views overlooking the inlet and waterways.

Heading out from Serpentine we flew via Lake Grace to the Mundrabilla Roadhouse (population 20) where Bruce had told us to taxi along the dirt road from the airstrip, cross the cattle grid, cross the Eyre Highway and park outside the motel units.
This was no easy task and it pays to veryify your advice is aviation savy before mixing it with the road trains, caravans and sink holes for the cattle grid could not possibly have allowed a low-winged aircraft through, and with the high wing of the Cessna 172 we barely made it, including the tail, through the narrow gap.

Yes, crossed the highway and parked. Next morning was another exercise in ingenuity to get across that cattle grid again, this time from another angle and were fortunate not to lose some paint.

The cliffs and coastline across the Nullarbor are unbelievable in beauty and starkness. So many photos were taken.

The whale population is unbelievable, counting hundreds close into the cliffs.
Listening in on the UHF radio to the road traffic was enlightening, hearing of camera locations, dead camels, and crazy bicycle riders but because of the extended range of the UHF at altitude, it was difficult to know which part of the high way was being discussed.
The road trains are massive and we chattered to relief drivers at Mundrabilla waiting for their next rig to arrive.
The cameras dictate not only the speed of the rigs, but indicate when and if driver’s have taken the required breaks. An interesting part of Australia.

Further on we refuelled at the Nullarbor Roadhouse, and emergency rations were bought out of desperation, but the pies, sausage rolls, lamingtons were inedible. Quality water is an utmost necessity to carry, for the local water at these places has dubious mineral content.
A previous refuelling spot was the Caiguna Roadhouse (population 9), not to be missed on your list of must-see places across the Nullarbor. See the section on refuelling.

Port Pirie was an enjoyable spot to overnight on our last night ‘on the road’, and we met up with fellow pilot, Brian, and enjoyed some cold beer and good food at the TravelWay Motel.
Wonderful helpful people at the airport there, and the swipe-card bowzer is a great way to self-serve your fuel needs.
It is imperative to phone ahead when planning a flight, to ensure fuel is available. Carrying extra to get you out of any predicament is also accepted practice for prudent pilots.

Nothing like the last leg with ‘home base’ in sight. But we digressed a little to see the historic town of Port Fairy and made a landing on the soggy grass strip on the edge of town, between the lagoon and the beautiful beach.
(Sorry about the skid marks on the 06 threshold Mike)
Flying into Melbourne from the outlying coastal areas is a beautiful scenic coastline and magnificent homes, with the CBD and surrounding parks looking majestic.

Unpacking our gear, tying-down the aircraft in the stiff breeze, gave us a great sense of accomplishment, for 44 safe flying hours, a little aircraft that served us valiantly, crossing 7,848 GPS kilometres of beautiful Australia, which mostly resembled well-groomed golf courses, amid the picturesque salt lakes of the outback.

If there is a special flight we would recommend, then it would be a trans Australia flight and experience for your self the magic of General Aviation and the Out Back.

Australia is amazing and can only truly be admired and appreciated when flying at low level in a small plane. We were blessed with our world’s longest blind date and the romance of the flight.

We added another four days to our Date by flying on to Sydney, meeting more family members, another circle of friends, and doing more exciting TV and radio live interviews; including a Woman’s Day magazine interview.

Rosie and David have travelled a long way together in their search for true friendship, and are planning more flights in 2008 after spending Christmas together with their four dogs.

Did the blind date turn into a honeymoon?

The frog did get kissed and found himself to be a crown prince, and with the princess may perhaps live happily ever after.

“And our hands met and it was like magic!”