Revisiting the pics from '76

I've finally got around to revisiting the cliffs at Hastings where I took a series of VAM pics in 1976. I thought it would be fun to retake the pics on their 40th anniversary.





A small recon team comprising of individuals who'd been on the original '76 mission was assembled and after an equipment check and briefing they departed for the south coast.







The flight down there was uneventful apart from Hank, the lease capable pilot, being caught by a cross wind and getting blown over the town.



Having given up formation flying as a bad job, Hank peeled off on his own to recce the landscape.









Despite there obviously being no GPS information avaliable from 1976 the team had studied some satellite pictures and were rather naively confident they could find the original location.
Big mistake...Huge!!

Forty years of cliff erosion and landslides have made the  area unrecognisable. The original pics had been taken on a lower tier, below the cliff top but above the beach unfortunately this formation has largely collapsed. What remains of the tier is so thickly covered in vegetation it's inaccessible . With the original, planned LZ gone or unusable the team had to find another place to land. They saw a suitable clearing that's probably in the same post code and touched down.






After thinking about running this mission for a few years now it was great to finally get boots on the ground.  Even though I never dreampt the terrain would look dramatically different!  


'Wow! This place has changed!!'





With a usable LZ now secure the team got on with their mission of retaking the old pics.




'Whatever happened to that old bike of your's Hank?' ' I foolishly traded it in for a Turbo-copter!'  








'Wake me up when Mr 'Full of himself' has finnished posing!





Hank sits and contemplates life on the ocean waves. In 1976 he was 4 years into a 'temporary' secondment to the Army from the Royal Navy. 'I might have been a rear admiral by now!' he muses.





40 years on the guys pose on the same spot as the original pics (as near as damn it, based on it's position in relation to the caravan site and a few other landmarks above the cliffs that haven't changed).





After a couple of beach shots..







..it was mission accomplished and the team take off for the flight back to base!



Taking those pictures in that long hot summer of '76 really felt like VAM's swan song to me. As I've said before it was probably the last thing I ever did with them and not long ater that they were redeployed to the loft.

Who could have imagined that 40 years later they'd be back!

Excellent post Steve!, a real walk down memory lane for he boys! ad great to see that they finally got the go ahead for this very special mission . Its a great pity as you say that time has changed the landscape, but it is so good to see the boys out and about. this shot really made me laugh!



Thanks for sharing mate, I really enjoyed it! Top work indeed! That deserves all five Action Man stars!

Fantastic photos Steve
Already a fan of your original 76 pictures you just took it to another level, what a great idea revisiting the same location.
The lads look great posing in in their retro positions, love them

Great stuff SKJ, cracking set of pictures. The location looks brilliant. It's very tricky taking pictures at the coast, if you forget to keep the horizon line in the background straight it ruins the whole picture. You have got it right on every one.

Fantastic shots Steve well set out and great blast from the past

great effort fella... loved all that!

Fantastic pics mate! Can't decide which is my favourite, so many great shots to choose from. You've put a lot of effort into these and they have paid off, the ariel pics are amazing.

Great upload mate, great idea

Definitely a five star photo shoot -- top work!!!

Also have to say your pics from '76 look pretty darn good too!

Brian

What a great day out! Great story, great pics and lots of fun!

BTW who was the puppet master?

BRILLIANT STEVE AND A GREAT STORY BEHIND THE PICTURES (BOTH SETS)

Outstanding outside pictures Somekindajoe .

Great set of pics

Fantastic Steve!

What a great photo shoot! Fantastic pictures!

TheOneManKid wrote:

BTW who was the puppet master?

It's funny you should ask...



I need to say a big thank you to Mrs Somekindajoe. She was special effects operator and stunt coordinator on the mission!

I'd been dropping hints about doing this photo shoot for ages so I was really happy when my wife agreed to come with me but to be fair I don't think she realised what was involved!

The 'walk' to the cliffs was more of a hike!!


(Yes! we had to walk up and down all those steps!)



Against her better judgement she let me persuade her that several of these signs were safe to ignore and walk past.



When we finally got down to the beach we were greeted with the sight of a stark naked old man strolling by, walking his dogs!  That's when we realised what the 'Clothes optional beyond this point' sign we'd walked past earlier meant! Since my last visit 40 years ago the beach has been designated a nudist area!
Talk about put you off your picnic!

Rather than face the miles long walk back over the cliffs we decided to take the much shorter route along the beach back to town. It was then that my wife started to worry the tide was coming in and we'd be trapped against the cliffs. Even my reassurances that, once I'd got Joe and Hank to safety, I'd come back and rescue her didn't alleviate her fears!

..but all's well that ends well. I got my pictures and we finished the day with some much needed refreshments in the pub!

So thank you darling..you're Somekindawife when it comes to VAM!

@ steve! and fair play to mrs somekindajoe, what a gal!

Dude, you so owe her, well done Mrs. Somekindajoe!

...and that is one heck of a back story, hazardous paths, rock slides, incoming tide...Starkers!!! -- amazing! Truth truly is stranger than fiction.

Topmost of top posts, Steve!!!

Brian

Great teamwork there! It takes somekindasomeone to understand you mate

that sounded like an amazing day out

First they conduct a very successful and highly publicised mission, then they win photo of the month, and now they make the cover of AMMO magazine!!



If they were full of themselves before, they'll be impossible to live with now!!

A big thank you to Dal for putting such a great mag cover together.

Did Atomic Man make it back at all???

Somewhere on the beaches at Hastings a child finds a sand encrusted rock, no it isn't a rock, it's some kind of action figure head...

Just remember what Stephen King says, "Sometimes they come back"

No doubt, these guys will be insufferable now.

Excellent AMMO Mag cover, Dal!!!

Your welcome mate!, it was a lot of fun to do! and after such a great adventure, they deserve their time in the spotlight
Really pleased that you liked it

Great tales of daring do, yours and Mrs SKJ's ain't bad either

Very cool , nice to see you having fun with your dudes .