Just been asked when morning practice (dawn chorus) ended.

2004, Bill.

http://www.gov.im/Tourism/ViewNews.gov?p...nuid=11570

Still miss it, though...

I had to get up at 4AM on Friday to get ready to catch the early morning ferry to Heysham.

I looked out of my bedroom window while I put me pants on and it was just like getting up to go to see EMP.

It was cool outside as I loaded my final cases and one or two birds were talking to each other ("Huntlys going Home. Tweet Tweet") and I eventually left my residence, to drive down to the docks....

As I arrived at Kirk Braddan the smell of wild garlicc was heavy on the air and the widscreen and windows of the car were covered in a fine condensation.

It was a lovely dawn over Onchan and I decided to drive the length of the prom before going to the ferry. There were literally tears in my eyes.......... The only thing missing was a Honda-4 going past !!

It was very much like it was in those days when there was EMP.

I wish that we could have just ONE MORE EMP but I guess it is now impossible.

Was it REALLY 2004 ?? Shame, I say !

There is nothing else to match the memories of marshalling morning practice.
Sneaking out of the house so as not to wake the dog, or the wife.
Spotting a youth making off with milk from the doorstep as I passed the Co-op.
Arriving at the Gorse Lea Shelter on footsteps muffled by a liberal coating of squashed black slugs.
The smell of fresh dung from cattle in the nearby fields.
Being overwhelmed by breakfasting midges.
Being told after an hour of purgatory that the practice was cancelled due to mist on the mountain.

(12-06-2010, 10:46 PM)John Foster Wrote: There is nothing else to match the memories of marshalling morning practice.
Sneaking out of the house so as not to wake the dog, or the wife.
Spotting a youth making off with milk from the doorstep as I passed the Co-op.
Arriving at the Gorse Lea Shelter on footsteps muffled by a liberal coating of squashed black slugs.
The smell of fresh dung from cattle in the nearby fields.
Being overwhelmed by breakfasting midges.
Being told after an hour of purgatory that the practice was cancelled due to mist on the mountain.

Off course we could always have a "re enactment" during the mountain circuit celebrations in 2011, even down to the Cadbury tent etc.

Put up a large-ish old army-style tent -get all of us nostalgia freaks up and out of bed at 4.15AM, dressed in our clothes over our Jimjams, lay on proper tea, thick coffee, tomato and oxtail soups, and Cadburys choc drink, - allow people to smoke the old ciggies, spray the scent of wild garlic in the tent, and then someone play loud recordings of the good old machines such as the Honda -4s, the MVs etc etc screaming past.

Everybody could cough deeply, chat wildly, drip rainwater on the next person to you and put their hands in a fridge nearby then flap them like a group of seals. (What is a "group" of seals called ?) Then go back to bed.................................................and dream about when it was just like that !!!

Cor, we would end up standing in a deep pool of tears.

I like it !!! Let's do it !!!

Oh I LOVED early morning practices!

Funnily enough, we've been debating when they finished in the scrutineering bay this fortnight, so it's great to read the answer.

It seems AGES since we last had an early morning practice now though.