Our 10th year as a Venture Scout Unit started inauspiciously with an outbreak of 'Hondamania' (see VSL's article in Edition 26 of Venture 44) and culiminated in a wilderness trekking expedition in & amongst Iceland's volcanic landscapes.
An outbreak of fibreglass canoe building saw the final touches being made just days prior to four unit members successfully completing the 31-mile Botson Marathon rowing event, trailing in the wake of the school's powerful record breaking rowing club and thereby continuing the annual tradition started by Steve Chalkley back in 1970. Well done to Phil Champion, Dave Brown, Jon May & Pete Green.
The District organised Cotswold Marathon entered its 5th year of running (or walking depending on your point of view!) and the 44th came home again for the 5th year running with a winner's trophy! Congratulations to the winning team of Steve Preston, Dave Brown & Ian Fletcher and Junior Trophy winners Jonny May, Tony Jones & Paul Jennings.
Our close neighbours under the Dutch Barn, the STR Bowls Club sadly lost their wooden pavilion in an arson attack in January - completely burnt to the ground. An after meeting refuge on Friday evenings and venue for many of our social events & challenges, its cosy characterful confines will be sadly missed. Our partnership with the Bowls Club has been an ongoing commitment in our service programme - it was Venture Scouts who initially took the building carefully to pieces at RAF Innsworth and transported it back to Oakleaze. So it was with heavy hearts we assembled on a number of cold weekends to help sift through the rubble and ruin to salvage anything of use or value. Needless to say the forward-thinking Mr Eddie Pritchard
set to in his usual determined manner - a new and greatly improved building rose swiftly phoenix-like from the ashes. We continued over several weeks of cutting and splitting salvaged wooden parts to supply kindling to the elderly in the immediate area.
Venture 44 Edition 28 (published April 1978, Editor: Rob Dalton, Cover graffiti courtesy the Treasurer's mum!) - Editorial & GlosAid, Notes & News (VSL), Impressions of a Punk Rock Concert (Ian Fletcher), Personally Speaking (Julian Williams), Icelandic for Beginners 'Enginn', From All Points
Venture 44 Edition 27 This edition is missing from the archive. Anyone with a copy please contact Phil Brown via the school. Thanks!
Venture 44 Edition 26 (published November 1977, Editor: Rob Dalton) - Editorial, Notes & News (VSL), Bryn Boeth 1977 (Rob Dalton & Chris Dee), Boston Marathon Part 1, Hazards of Canoe Building (Dave Brown), South of Scotland (Paul Jennings), A Poem (Anon)