Moomba Birdman Rally 2007

[Gutter Monkey]

I just got confirmation that I've been accepted as an entrant in the Melbourne Moomba Waterfest 2007 Jetstar Birdman Rally competition! This is probably the event with the longest name that I've ever been involved with! Yay!

It'll be held on midday Sunday 11 March on the Yarra River adjacent to Birrarung Marr. Part of the new rules for Birdman this year is that I've got to raise at least $200 for my nominated charity (I chose the Starlight Foundation) so I'll be holding a charity comedy night sometime nearer to the event. I'll keep you all posted.

I was also an entrant in the Birdman rally in 2004 where I went as Jetfire from the Transformers. I walked up onto the pontoon as a robot, transformed into a jet and jumped into the river! (It sounds cool but in reality it was a bit shit.) For that I won the 'Most Creative' award as well as the inaugral "Abel's Airforce, Old George's Medal" Award for Conspicuous Lunacy. That medal was presented to me by George Abel himself, the original inventor of the Birdman Rally.

Ah, one of my finest moments. I'll keep my plans for this year's design under wraps though.

[hails]

ahahahahahahahahahahaha JETFIRE!!!

run a paypal thingy and flog it through here! i might be inclined to throw you some shrapnel if i don't have to leave my chair to do it

[Steele]

Post some pics of you as Jetfire! He was a fav Autobot of mine.

[katrant]

I think I might have to pop down there and watch you fly!

Hey, I can say that now I'm giving up retail work for teaching, and I actually get weekends to do weekendy stuff again!! I think I'm gonna love my new job

[Mythor]

For those of you who've never heard of the Birdman Rallies (shame on you!) I just posted a video clip from YouTube here so you can get an idea what it's all about.
That's the UK version of it, but I gather they're much the same... Only Australia's is cooler, because it's Australian, of course.

That was the best clip I could find - there weren't many and there were none from Australia... Which I think means someone needs to go there this year with a camera and capture some goofy folk and YouTube them for everyone's amusement.

[Steele]

I didn't even know they still did it so I'm pumped, I loved watching it when I was little, plus now it's like 2 min walk from my house.

I thought it was donzo cause the water was too iffy?

[katrant]

Originally Posted by Mythor

That was the best clip I could find - there weren't many and there were none from Australia... Which I think means someone needs to go there this year with a camera and capture some goofy folk and YouTube them for everyone's amusement.

I'm more than happy to go down there with my video camera and put some on. Years ago when I was a kid they used to be televised but I don't think that's been done since about the late 80s (shame on Channel 7!!) They were hilarious to watch and so uniquely Melbourne, from the time Moomba was bigger.

Steele, I think they stopped doing it for a while. Like the stopped the Moomba Parade for a few years but they've also brought that back. I don't think it's got anything to do with the dodginess of the quality of the water in the Yarra coz that's always been pretty rank. Really I think because the Moomba popularity was waining a fair bit, but it seems to be rejuvenated again in recent years. I am glad they did get rid of the Moomba Monarch though, seeing Molly Meldrum wearing a crown did my head in....

[Gutter Monkey]

Originally Posted by Steele

I didn't even know they still did it so I'm pumped, I loved watching it when I was little, plus now it's like 2 min walk from my house.

I thought it was donzo cause the water was too iffy?

Nah, it was the insurance that did it in.

That's also why the Birdman rally I was in was off a 4m high pontoon and not the bridge, as it used to be.

Dammit, I wanted to jump off the bridge!!!

[Gutter Monkey]

I'll be one of 3 Birdman rally contestants featured in a live cross on 'Mornings with Kerri-Anne' on Channel 9 tomorrow morning, supposedly somewhere between 10 and 10:15. I'll definitely appear on screen but I've been told that they may or may not talk to me. Hmmm. What are the chances that they wouldn't talk to a 1930's aviator with a 8' tall dragon?

[awaywithfairies]

Originally Posted by Gutter Monkey

I'll be one of 3 Birdman rally contestants featured in a live cross on 'Mornings with Kerri-Anne' on Channel 9 tomorrow

Just spotted your micro-interview on Kerri-Anne while flicking TV channels (there's got to be some advantages to working at night!). I have to say that yours was the best outfit by far!

[Gutter Monkey]

Originally Posted by awaywithfairies

Just spotted your micro-interview on Kerri-Anne while flicking TV channels (there's got to be some advantages to working at night!). I have to say that yours was the best outfit by far!

The weird thing is that I won't even be using that outfit in the rally. I'll be jumping into the Yarra in a completely different dragon.

Looooong story ...