Tourism initiative
SOME months ago your paper published an edict from my favourite source of local amusement, Vincent council, stating that any public function supported with funds from ratepayers would have to include a “welcome to country” ceremony or similar acknowledgement of our Aboriginal heritage.
As a 10-year resident of the city I wondered about the relevance of being welcomed to my home, but accept that it is possible that people from outside the district would attend these functions.
If the idea is shifted to those locations where visitors usually arrive in WA, then it has considerable merit.
Every Saturday morning a train-load of passengers arrive at the East Perth rail terminal in Vincent, and then disperse to various tourist destinations across the state.
Surely this would be a most suitable time for a “welcome to country” ceremony.
It would be an opportunity to showcase our aboriginal culture and emphasise WA’s friendly reputation.
As there are 52 train arrivals a year, the regular event could become a “must see” and significant part of a visit to Perth.
Tom Goode
Harold St, Mt Lawley
The forgotten velodrome
WITH regard to the Lake Monger Velodrome, now known as the Litis Stadium in Britannia Reserve, Leederville (“Club Springs $3M offside trap”, Voice, September 1, 2018)
Australia won all the track cycling events at the 1962 British Empire and Commonwealth Games in Perth.
It was the first time in the 32-year history of the games that one country had won all track titles.
Track cycling events were held at the Lake Monger velodrome, built on the shores of Lake Monger, three miles from the centre of Perth.
Built by Perth city council in 1959 at a cost of 110,000 pounds, the velodrome had a concrete-surfaced track which was an exact replica in shape and size of the track used during the 1956 Olympic Games in Melbourne.
Three laps of the track equalled 1000 metres, which is about five laps to the mile.
This was so that it would not be too steep for schoolboys and junior riders to learn to ride the track, but would be steep enough to provide the opportunity of making world times.One of the major factors in this decision was the need to provide facilities for young people.
Width was 24 feet and it was banked to 10 degrees in the straights, rising to 37 degrees in the banks at each end.
The velodrome was available for training day and night.
Co-operation between the committees, managers and officials, together with the sporting spirit shown by competitors, enabled cycling to be conducted successfully.
The jury of appeal was not called upon on any occasion. Supporting events by local cyclists were conducted at every session to provide a continuous program.
Perth had no athletics stadium, no swimming pool and no velodrome of the required standard when the idea of staging the games was first discussed, but this made the project all the more challenging.
The city of Perth needed all these things. Here was an opportunity to build all of them perhaps 25 years earlier than would otherwise be possible; if the project had the backing of the citizens.
In its formal application for the games in June 1958, Perth was able to guarantee that 1,167,000 pounds would be available for the provision of games facilities. Perhaps most important of all was the statement in the formal application that “All athletics, swimming and cycling facilities will remain for the permanent benefit of sporting associations”.
Hope Alexander
West Perth
Egged off
AUSTRALIANS are being warned about an outbreak of Salmonella enteritidis which has led to a recall of eggs.
Symptoms include fever, headache, diarrhoea, abdominal pain, nausea and vomiting, usually about six to 72 hours after the contaminated food is eaten.
There is a simple solution: don’t eat eggs.
Birds exploited for their eggs are crammed together in wire cages without sufficient room even to spread one wing.
Because the hens are packed together so tightly, these normally clean animals are forced to urinate and defecate on one another.
The birds have part of their sensitive beaks cut off so that they won’t peck each other out of the frustration created by this unnatural confinement.
Because the male chicks of these birds are unable to lay eggs and are not bred to produce the excessive flesh demanded by the meat industry, they are gassed to death with carbon dioxide or ground up alive immediately after hatching.
Females follow their mothers into a short, miserable life of confinement.
Desmond Bellamy, PETA
Byron Bay, NSW
Perth Voice Interactive 