Date: November 14th 2008

 

Westprint Friday Five November 14, 2008 

Included this week are:

·        Imparja Television

·        Simpson Desert Closure

·        VKS – 737

Next week – Update on Australian Venomous lizards 

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Friday Five 14/11/08.

Unless otherwise noted all special prices listed in the Friday Five are valid for seven days. 

1. The Man Who Died Twice. Peter Thompson & Robert Macklin. The compelling story of ‘Morrison of Peking’, who bestrode continents, helped bring down a dynasty and chronicled his times so brilliantly that he not only wrote history but changed it as well. The powerful and gripping biography of an Australian journalist and adventurer who paused only to tell his stories and plan his next adventure. $42.00 including post.

2. Maralinga. Alan Parkinson. In April 2000 the multi million dollar clean up of the former test site in South Australia was declared safe. But is it? This is the inside story of Australia’s most disastrous nuclear waste clean-up, the legacy of which will affect the Australian population for many years to come. $42.00 including post.

3. Pilgrimage. A Traveller’s Guide to Australia’s Battlefields. Journeying through time and place, author Garrie Hutchinson visits the battlefields where Australians have fought and reveals their past and present. This is an up-to-date travel companion, complete with maps and illustrations. Ideal for armchair travellers and lovers of history. $54.00 including post. One copy only

4. Backyard Insects. Paul Horne & Denis Crawford.  Love them or loathe them, you can’t avoid insects. This has been a very popular book in the past. This fully revised edition of Backyard Insects explores the fascinating secrets and habits of more than one hundred bugs that are common to backyard Australia. $33.00 including post

5. Beaten By A Blow. Dennis McIntosh. New title in stock. Shows us the reality behind the romance of the shearer. Most of all, it tells the story of a boy full of hope crashing headlong into life – into work, into drink, into responsibilities he isn’t ready for, which come closer to breaking his back than shearing ever did. $42.00 including post.

Important - How To Order Notice. To order any of the products listed, please send us an email with your request. If you are the first person to request an item we will contact you with payment options. If you are not successful we will notify you. Orders are taken on a first in, first served basis but we do calculate time differences.

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An important message.

Please note that the opinions and articles included in the Friday Five are not necessarily those of the Westprint crew. Nor do we endorse products (other than our own) listed in contributed articles.

Friday Forum

Jo’s forum comments in green.

 

Comments from the Office 

·        Here in the Wimmera harvest is just starting for those farmers with crops that survived the lack of useful rain. This is probably 2-3 weeks earlier than usual. If you are travelling in the area please be aware of grain trucks and other slow moving farm equipment on roads.

As the weather heats up, outback travel slows (see Simpson Desert information). When the travel slows so does the inflow of trip notes. If you have an article you would be willing to share with the Friday Five crew please send it to us at info@westprint.com.au

 

VKS – 737 

·        The VKS – 737 and HF-Tel Radio Networks have announced two extra channels available for immediate use. These are

·        Channel 6 6796 kHz

·        Channel 7 10180kHz

More details are on our website.

Simpson Desert 

·        The Simpson Desert Regional Reserve and Conservation Park will be closed from December 1 2008 to March 15 2009.

The Simpson Desert Regional Reserve and Conservation Park will be closed from December 1 2008 to March 15 2009. The closure is due to the combination of high summer temperatures, soft sand dunes and low visitation which can lead to visitors being stranded.  This is a high public risk that can be fatal.

Until November 30, be aware the first few sand dunes west of the K1/Rig Road intersection along the Rig Road are difficult to traverse and may cause problems for drivers. Sand dunes are constantly being reshaped by dry conditions and prevailing winds.  The eastern side of sand dunes are becoming quite steep so extra care must be taken when crossing dunes. 

The use of trailers in the Simpson Desert is strongly discouraged.  Serious damage can be caused to vehicles and the environment, and difficulties are likely to result. Visitors are advised to drive in a convoy, carry a HF radio or sat phone and limit the total load of their vehicles. However, do take extra reserves of fuel, food and water. Check local conditions before travelling in the area. Satellite phones are available to hire for Simpson Desert trips from Mt Dare Hotel and the Wirrari Tourism Centre in Birdsville. For more information on the S.A Desert Parks areas click here.

Imparja Television

·        Kate should do what hundreds of others and myself have done.  There is a gold card that bypasses the need to advise officials of where you are. When we first got our sat dish we could watch TV from all ABC and SBS stations in Aussie. We also had Imparja, Win and 7 Central.  Then some idiot who had nothing better to do decided that if you were not in the area of the local TV station then you should not be able to watch it.  When we toured WA a couple of years ago we purchased a gold card ($50.00) and were able to revert to watching and free-to-air TV.  We were able to watch Queensland news as well as local news and bearing in mind the time differences my wife could keep up with her soapies.  It might not be legal but then we were only watching free-to-air TV so what is wrong with that? Ken 

The following information is posted on the Imparja website. 

·        Under the Broadcast Services Act there is no compulsion on Imparja to provide such out of area access to our signal. Increasingly we are finding that applications for direct satellite access are coming from viewers outside our licence area and are placing an un-sustainable commercial and operational burden on us. It is also becoming increasingly obvious that the out of area schemes are being used as a means to circumvent the legal restrictions on our broadcast reception area.
Following an internal review therefore Imparja Television has decided to withdraw from the processes by which viewers whose place of residence is located outside our licence area have been able to  gain access to our broadcast services. This includes travellers and those who do not receive adequate reception from their local TV channels. 

·        Imparja is the commercial TV service for remote Central and Eastern Australia. It is unlawful for us to provide a broadcast service outside our licence area and particularly into any capital city and any part of WA. To this end Imparja seeks precise address information from all applicants for reception of its satellite service, and will only activate smartcards for viewers who are within its licence area. The use of a false address or the subsequent use of a smartcard elsewhere will result in immediate disconnection.
We are also aware of dealers supplying equipment to viewers to enable reception of Imparja’s signals without the need to contact us and be “switched on”. These include so called “gold cards” and “cardless” receivers. Anyone using (or thinking of using) or supplying such equipment needs to be aware that Imparja regularly takes measures to disable such unauthorised reception.
Imparja reserves all its rights in respect of any such actions and will not hesitate to take any steps necessary up to and including seeking injunctions and damages where we are made aware of such unlawful actions. Imparja has, and will continue to adopt technical and legal measures to prevent unauthorised reception of its signal. 

For more information follow this link to the GoSeeAustralia website.

http://www.goseeaustralia.com.au/article/416/Imparja_to_turn_off_freetoair_satellite_TV_for_travellers_in_Australia/ 

Hay River 

·        I recently (August) travelled North to South on the ‘Hay River Track’ with the Toyota Landcruiser Club of Victoria. We had 10 vehicles and no trailers. I found the trip (except of one dune before we arrived at the shot line) no difficulty whatsoever, your maps and the way points provided by Jol Fleming were excellent (I use OziExplorer) and we had no difficulty whatsoever. The troublesome dune was managed by driving at 45 degrees to the dune and slowly making our way to the top otherwise the rest were reasonably easy. The surprise of the trip is the billiard table surface of the road from the end of the shot line to the SA border. Obviously there is some mining or oil exploration going on west of the start (or end) of the shot line and a rig road has been constructed, we were averaging 80-100 k/hour along this road.

The experience at Batton Hill was a mixed one, some of the women in the trip were unimpressed with the facilities at Batton Hill, however, they represented only 10% of the rest who were entirely satisfied. The cost of camping is quite reasonable and Lindsay and his family made us very welcome, we were all very impressed with their friendliness. The Bush Tucker Tour was somewhat of a disappointment, only from the point of view of cost, $85 per head was a little too much in my view, although Lindsay Bookie and his sibling Chris did an excellent job of describing the features along the trip it was a bit expensive for what was finally delivered. The view at Goyders Pillar made up for what may have been missing during the earlier part of the day, the sunset at that place and the historical artefacts on show are excellent, Lindsay and Chris’s commentary on their forbearers life style in this district was very educational. The sunset turned the pillar into something else it was quite a magical experience.

The experience around the fire afterwards was somewhat sobering and I think one has to experience this element to understand what that means. Lindsay Bookie and his family were wonderful and Lindsay and Chris are nature’s true gentlemen. Quite frankly Lindsay is truly a great role model for his people. I bought a Painting there which hangs in a central place in my house, right in my entry foyer, so I am reminded of the trip every time I come home.

In my view the stay at Batton Hill is worthwhile and something one must experience to appreciate fully. Lindsay Bookie is really having a go and that has to be commended, particularly when one experiences what is happening at many of the Aboriginal Communities in Northern Territory.  We finished our tip at the Mungerannie Pub and what a hoot that was!!!

With regard to pulling trailers through the Simpson Desert, in my view it would not be an issue if the vehicle and trailer were both set up for the trip. Unfortunately one sees many remnants of what is not so perfect along the way. My advise would be to leave the trailer somewhere along the trip to be picked up later after crossing the ‘Simmo’, otherwise if one is unsure of the trailers capability leave the trailer at home. Eric  

Condamine Bells 

·        Would any of your readers have any photos of genuine Afghan camel bells also Cobb & Co bells? I am a Condamine bell collector and I have been trying to track down genuine photos of them with no success. Any information would be appreciated also if possible someone could email me with any photos. John 

If you can help please send an email to Westprint and we will put you in touch. 

Friday Funnies

·        Beer contains female hormones. Last month, National University of Sydney scientists released the results of a recent analysis that revealed the presence of female hormones in beer. Men should take a concerned look at their beer consumption.

The theory is that beer contains female hormones (hops contain phytoestrogens) and that by drinking enough beer, men turn into women. To test the theory, 100 men drank 8 pints of beer each within a 1 hour period.

It was then observed that 100% of the test subjects...

           1) Argued over nothing.

           2) Refused to apologize when obviously wrong.

           3) Gained weight.

           4) Talked excessively without making sense.

           5) Became overly emotional.

           6) Couldn't drive.

           7) Failed to think rationally.

No further testing was considered necessary. 

·        I called the local newspaper's classified section to complain about an ad I'd placed. It was obvious the person who took my information had never spent any time on a farm.

"I said 'ewes,'" I argued. "Pardon?" replied the operator.

"Ewes. It makes a difference to some people."

The ad that was placed read: "Sheep for sale - USED."

 

·        Following the problems in the sub-prime lending market in America and the run on HBOS in the UK, uncertainty has now hit Japan.

In the last 7 hours Origami Bank has folded, Sumo Bank has gone belly up and Bonsai Bank announced plans to cut some of its branches.

Yesterday, it was announced that Karaoke Bank is up for sale and will likely go for a song, while today shares in Kamikaze Bank were suspended after they nose-dived.

Samurai Bank is soldiering on following sharp cutbacks, Ninja Bank is reported to have taken a hit, but they remain in the black.

Furthermore, 500 staff at Karate Bank got the chop and analysts report that there is something fishy going on at Sushi Bank where it is feared that staff may get a raw deal.

 

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Cheers for now,

Jo

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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