Bron and Peter are in the hot seat today, with Anth off in the wilderness.

Brett is running late for the start of the spearfishing contest down the Bay. While the number of participants is low, the competion is fierce, and follows strict rules. The rules include only one of each species, only edible species are allowed to be taken and no fishing near piers.

The skill in the sport (according to Brett) is the free dive aspect - getting down amongst the right fish, not blowing bubbles and being steady enough to then get your spear shot off.

Watch out for the camoflage wetsuits !!

(a) A WWI memorial
(b) An early example of PPP - a concept to be followed by CityLink and Scorsby freeway
(c) The site of a North Korean incursion to Australia
(d) The hiding place of Convict William Buckley "Wild White Man" who escaped from the Penal colony near Sorrento in 1803
(e) All of the above

(a) WWi Memorial - True

In 1918 the Geelong Mayor and entrepreneur Howard Hitchcock championed the idea that according to the first fund raising prospectus would commemorate the magnificent bravery of Victorian soldiers, and bring joy to tens of thousands of tourists and motorists.

Also the fresh costal air, swimming, fishing shooting and camp life would restore the jangled nerves of the returning soldiers that works on it.

Residents described it like a labour camp !! The most significant work stoppage occurred when the coastal trader, the Casino. An old steamer ran aground in 1924. It had to jettison cargo onto the beach before it could float free. Diggers working on the road were camped nearby and they helped themselves to a large amount of abandoned beer and spirits. A two-week break in work followed.

Mt Defiance Memorial Wall It is fitting memorials have been erected at Mt Defiance. This section of the road proved the most problematical in the construction project and it took a fighting effort to blast out the route from almost perpendicular cliffs. A memorial wall and memorial tablets have been built here. They honour the unstinting work of the Great Ocean Road Trust's founding president, Howard Hitchcock, and his contribution to the success of the project, and the men who served in the Great War. In April 1935, Victoria's Governor, Lord Huntingfield, unveiled the memorials.

Eastern View Memorial Arch There have been four memorial arches over the Great Ocean Road.
1. The original arch was at the site of "The Springs" toll-gate, near Cathedral Rock. It said: "Returned Soldiers and Sailors Memorial Great Ocean Road". But it was demolished when tolls were abandoned in 1936.
2. A new arch was built at Eastern View in 1939. It weighed 50 tonnes and was dedicated by General Harry Chauvel. He unveiled a bronze tablet, on which was inscribed: "To the memory of Major W T B McCormack, M. Inst. C.E., honorary engineer to The Great Ocean Road Trust and Chairman of the Country Roads Board".
3. In 1970, the CRB indicated it wanted to demolish the arch because it was too narrow and a traffic hazard. A public outcry put an end to the plans but a wayward truck did the job anyway.
4. A third, larger arch was built on the same spot soon after. But the devastating Ash Wednesday bushfires of 1983 reduced the wooden structure to charcoal.
5. The CRB decided not to replace the arch but public opinion was too strong and it was rebuilt on the same spot.

In 2001, an interpretation/information board was added at the site of the arch, explaining the story of the road and its highlights.

(b) A PPP - True

The construction of the road was not funded by the Government, but by an independent trust. Initial

People and businesses were canvassed in the early stages of the Great Ocean Road project. In fact thousands of pounds were raised at the meeting that formed the trust. From the initial rush of cash, donations began to dwindle. Some businesses who had promised large sums reneged on their promises. At times, the trust struggled to pay the wages of the Diggers working on the project. Trust president Howard Hitchcock sometimes used his own money to keep work going.

Hitchcock pressured Premier Lawson for some "consideration" for the increase in land values construction of the road would bring. He proposed the government give the trust some blocks of land to sell if it were not prepared to provide financial assistance. A few years later, the Government sold the trust a number of large blocks at a significant discount. The value of that land skyrocketed as the road went though and it was subdivided and sold to pay for the road construction.

This did not fully cover the costs, so the road was a toll road. Eight months after the road's first section was officially opened in March 1922, the trust introduced tolls to meet construction costs. A toll-gate and gate-keeper's cottage were built at Grassy Creek, near Big Hill, and the money began to roll as the road's popularity increased. A varied scale of charges applied, with two shillings and sixpence (25 cents) for cars, two shillings (20 cents) for motorcycles with sidecars, one shilling for motorcycles (10 cents) and one shilling (10 cents) for passengers. In the first four weeks, 2500 people travelled the road netting the trust 250 pounds in tolls ($500). Tolls lasted for the next 14 years, until the trust handed the road to the State Government
With its work complete, the Great Ocean Road Trust moved to hand over the road as a gift to the State Government. At 4.45pm on Friday October 2, 1936, the trust presented the deeds of the road to the Premier, Mr Dunstan, at the toll gate near Cathedral Rock.

CityLink and Scorsby are very similar to this with the initial money being put up by private enterprise, and tolls being used to recover costs. Both also have the roads being handed back to the Government after a significant period. No comment ot the land sales bits !!!

(c)The site of a North Korean incursion to Australia - True
The alleged sophisticated drug-running operation has been described as the largest detected in Victoria and one of the largest in Australia.
The Crown prosecution said the cargo ship Pong Su carried 150 kilograms of heroin to Australia in 2003.
A man died while allegedly trying to bring the load to shore in a rubber dinghy in treacherous weather, off Lorne in Victoria's south-west, on April 16 2003.
The ship was seized off the NSW coast after a dramatic four-day pursuit involving several naval vessels.
The ship's captain Man Sun Song, 65, its "political secretary" Dong Song Choi, 61, first mate Man Jin Ri and chief engineer Ju Chon Ri, both 51, pleaded not guilty to the charge that carries a maximum sentence of life imprisonment.
The accused men's lawyers have said their clients were not aware heroin was on board the ship and the Crown case was built on speculation and a lack of evidence.

The North Korean drug ship, the Pong Su, has been sunk in an Australian Defence Force training exercise

"The vessel's fate has been the subject of discussions between officials of all relevant departments and agencies with preferred option for the vessel to be sunk at sea.

(d) Hiding place of Convict William Buckley - True

Based on their reports, Port Phillip's first settlement, a penal colony, was established in October 1803 near present-day Sorrento. Convict William Buckley escaped soon after. Buckley, branded the "Wild White Man", wandered around Port Phillip Bay and down the south-west coast. His condition was poor when local Aborigines met him at what is now Mt Defiance, on the Great Ocean Road near Lorne. He spent the next 32 years with them, traversing the future sites of Breamlea, Torquay.

" Boney was a warrior"

" Riding out "

" The Albatross"

Jack Shit

Beachniks

Sarah Blasko