Old Sulians' Association

Newsletter Part 2 – May 2009

The Diary for 2009

28th May NHSOB Golf Match at Newport

Mick Moore has once again organised a team (the chosen ones) to travel over The Bridge for this annual fixture. The only change is that it is now against a Newport High Schools Old Boys team as time takes it’s toll. We are defending our title and wish the boys well against the boyos!

19th June Association Golf Day at Bath Golf Club, Sham Castle

A reminder for the Old Sulians’ Golf Day. Normal venue, Bath Golf Club, Sham Castle, Bath

9.30am tee time for morning Medal (for those with the stamina) and Old Tosser’s Tankard (7 holes for those with a little less stamina). Coffee (included) and bacon butties (self pay) available in the Clubhouse from 8.30am.

Lunch served from 1.00pm. Afternoon (2.15pm start) Stableford. Evening Dinner and prizes at 7.30

The price should be the same as last year i.e. £35 all inclusive (how do we do it?) but it will depend on overall numbers.

PLEASE give Mike Wood a clue if you will be there!! And feel free to pass the details on to other Golfing Su’s

Mike is on 01225 335250 or mike@systemagic.co.uk

23rd July Medieval Meander (Walking Treasure Hunt)

Once again Sue Trude, bless her, (that’s not what some say afterwards!!) will help you travel from the Abbey Churchyard, (Start opposite the Pump Room from 6 pm ‘till about 7), to find your way, aimlessly wander or in desperation retreat, to The Bath Cricket Club on North Parade. Teams of maximum size 4, if you compete alone you have no one to argue with or blame! Please let me know how many you are bringing by the 17th as we have to print the clue sheets. 01225 832207 or committee@oldsulians.org.uk

17th October Annual Dinner at Bath Cricket Club, North Parade

Full details in the Autumn. Rest assured the speeches will be short, the company will be delightful and we will probably have beef even though dear old Bryn James is no longer with us.

More News

I was overwhelmed with a response to the detail of the Secretary’s report in the last issue that winged it’s way in from my Flying Instructor Nick ‘Biggles’ Bowers (1966). I reproduce it as follows:

While trawling through the letter rack, I came across a copy of the Old Su’s Newsletter Feb 2009; put there upon arrival, awaiting a suitable opportunity to read the contents – which I have now, rather belatedly done.An item in the Secretary’s Report caught my eye – the bit about Glyn Maddox and the sailing dinghy.  Construction of the beast (or rather beasts, for there were two!) was accomplished by a stalwart band of about eight volunteers who stayed after school for a couple of hours, once a week (Tuesdays if my memory serves me correctly) to learn the intricate art of boat building. The starting point was a set of drawings and a stack of timber components.  I may be doing the gang a disservice, but I do not recall anyone (including Glyn) having any substantial previous experience of building boats but, of course, the standard of woodworking was kept well up to scratch, by Glyn’s inimitable style of encouragement.  At length, the first of two very smart Heron Class dinghies emerged from the workshop and, as reported by the Hon Sec in his report, was taken to Shearwater for its first trial. There was little if any wind that day, so all we were able to accomplish was a couple of interminably long tacks across the lake and the acquisition of proof that the thing would indeed float! As for the eventual fate of those dinghies, I have no information, other than a faint recollection of talk about participating in sailing races on the river at Saltford.  Whether, or not any such excitement was undertaken, I cannot say – I certainly did not have any further contact with the products of our woodworking labours.

Another of our year, Ian Potentier, currently being cajoled into joining up (!) recently confirmed the detail over several jars of an interesting brew at our joint 61st birthday bash in the depths of wild Wiltshire.

Another memoir came from George Glass (1944). The full text can be found on our web-site but for a taster :

My years at school were between 1940 and 1944 from Monkton Combe Preparatory School; not the best of years for the school or pupils – due to the war, Bath blitz, temporary kitchens on the car park in front of the Headmaster’s study, clothes rationing, gas masks, shortages of food and the good things of life. But in spite of it all we survived.

The staff, under the watchful eye of Dr Taylor, kept things going remarkably well. Latin and History were a nightmare under Dancy and James, my only encounters with Matthews were with the ‘dap’. Nevertheless I enjoyed French with Froggy Holden, English with Mr Birt, Art with Mr Whitacker, Science with Mr Hambleton.

In my class was Roger Bannister – a ‘bright lad’ who as a junior won the senior cross-country event, and Raymond Leppard who always played the piano at morning assembly.

You can rather gather I was not an academic at school but a ‘plodder’ and enjoyed rugby and athletics. Nevertheless I obtained 2 School Certificates enabling me to start on my career.

But do not forget the wartime working holidays organised by Mr Hambleton and others, collecting pit-props at Bovey Tracey and harvesting camps in Worcestershire – digging potatoes or if you were lucky, picking fruit, but do watch out for the land girls!

The Headmaster, Dr Taylor, organised on a Saturday night that the 5^th and 6^th forms from CBBS and CBGS should get together to learn decorum and to dance under the teaching of Madame A Carter. Being able to dance to Victor Silvester strict tempo has served me in good stead ever since; having met Diana, D R Wakefield, there we eventually got married in 1950 and have been together ever since. I must mention my older brother J R Glass 1935-41 who was called up during the war, obtained his wings in Rhodesia and was killed in Italy flying spitfires.

Charity Cycle ride.

Old Sulian RFC stalwart Toby Herlinger is cycling from St Austell to Bristol over three days starting on the 19th June.
He is participating on behalf of the South West Children’s Hospice and would appreciate any support Sulians could offer. The cycle ride covers 250miles.
He has set up a Just Giving page listed below.
www.justgiving.com/tobyherlinger Thank you in advance for any contributions.

The Gryphon Year Book

The School is producing a year book to which we have been invited to contribute. The picture of Rich and Terry should appear in radiant black and white with a few words about The Association.
It is also hoped to include details of the School’s status, achievements and staff amongst other things and to publish by the end of term. Full information will be found on the School and the Sulian websites. I will provide full details in the September Newsletter for those that would like to purchase a copy and find out what is going on at the old Alma Mater.