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International Bognor Birdman
2 October 2006. Okey-Dokey visits one of Britain's more unusual annual events.
Fearless, crazy, ingenious... These are some of the adjectives you might use to describe the contestants in the International Bognor Birdman, an event held every year in the seaside town of Bognor Regis.
The competition, which began 35 years ago, involves jumping off the town's pier and attempting fly (or fall!) as far as possible. Contestants from all over the world take part - inventors, hang-gliding professionals and people in all kinds of fancy dress (this year a pirate, a parrot and two men dressed as fairies where among the participants). The event has attracted TV crews from the USA, Australia and Japan.
Serious Fun! Whether they are serious flyers or just taking part for fun, all the entrants are there to raise money for charity, to challenge themselves and to entertain a large crowd watching from the beach. As well as the longest flight, prizes are handed out for other achievements such as the funniest moment and the most impressive costume.
"I've joined the loony club!" laughs Steve Elkins, a hang-glider manufacturer, just moments before his first flight.
Steve was inspired by Ron Freeman, the overall winner for five out of the last six years. "He's such an enthusiastic bloke. I'd been listening to him for so many years and I finally thought, 'Right, I've got to do it myself!' "
Steve and Ron are both taking part in the 'Condor' class. These are the serious flyers, aiming for long distances with modified hang-gliders. If anyone can get past 100m, there's a Jackpot Prize of £25,000.
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Take-Off!
There's a clear blue sky above and plenty of wind. All in all, it seems like quite a good day for jumping or flying into the sea. Steve climbs to the top of the pier, takes a run-up and jumps off, diving down at first to gain speed and then gliding for an impressive 15 seconds, reaching 70m. It's the longest flight of the day.
So, what about the Jackpot Prize? Steve tells me afterwards that it's incredibly difficult to achieve 100m as the maximum width allowed for any aircraft is only 30 feet (roughly 9m). The weather, of course, is another important factor. Maybe tomorrow would see greater distances.
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Silly Costumes and Long Flights The next day sees the 'Kingfisher' class begin the entertainment. These are the comic entries. We have a flying car, a flying bar (big crash!), a flying brick and a flying book. The Incredible Hulk makes an appearance, as does Thunderbird 4 and two men dressed as a Mexican farmer and a donkey.
Of course, for all entrants, a rescue team is waiting below to quickly get the flyer and the aircraft out of the water
The 'Leonardo' class is next. This is for the inventors who have created strange aircraft and flying suits.
The show ends with the 'Condor' class, which is eventually won by Ron Freeman and Tony Hughes who both have impressive flights of 84m - the furthest in the competition for many years.
All the winners then collect their trophies. There has been a great spirit of fun, friendship and achievement among all the participants, and I feel great admiration for all these members of the 'loony club.'
Hopefully next year the 100m Jackpot Prize will belong to one of them.
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Many thanks to Steve Elkins; Paul Fessi for his 'Flying Brick' photos taken by Adam White; Andrew Bill for the Thunderbird, Bar and Flying Book photos; and Stephanie Smith and Martlet Homes for the top photo. These images remain the copyright of the photographers.
Watch the Birdman on TV 
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Bognor Birdman Gallery by alexhoenig on Webshots
Some Useful Vocabulary
the jackpot (n.) - the largest prize in a competition
Steve Elkins uses some informal language
1. loony (n.) - this means crazy or foolish and comes from the word lunatic. If you tell someone that your friend is going to jump into the sea dressed as a giant rabbit, they may say, humorously, 'He sounds like a bit of a loony.'
2. bloke (n.) - this is one of the most common words in British slang. It means man. For example, you can say, 'Your brother's a really nice bloke.'
Writers in English try to avoid repeating words. Look at the different ways the competitors are referred to in this article.
Synonyms or near-synonyms are used, such as:
Noun phrases can also be used, of course. We could describe the competitors as:
the people in the competition, or
those who took part in the contest
Look for examples of journalists using simliar techniques to avoid repeition. An article about Tony Blair, for example, may refer to him as Blair, Mr. Blair, the Prime Minister, the PM or the premier.
