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Tantalizing Takeoffs,
Trains, Trips and Tennis Photos
and words by John Clayton
Part two of a five part series
Since British Airways (BA) and the folks at Visit Britain had invited me on this trip, I wondered how bookings on their new San Diego to London service had been since service began June 1st. Good, very good said the American Airlines ticket clerk, as I checked in. As noted in the first part of this story, I had some concerns about taking off from this airport, as the runway is much shorter when compared to other airports in America. The average length of US runways for international flights is about 13,000 feet long - and most don’t have any obstructions at either end of the runway like San Diego does. Its airport runway is just 9,400 feet long. It’s the busiest single runway airport in the USA, and the 2nd worldwide after Gatwick, London. In fact it’s far too short for a fully loaded 747 to take off. A Thrusting, Thrilling Takeoff! Our BA departure was scheduled for 8.05pm and, right on time, the doors closed on the sleek looking, huge B-777 and we pushed back from the gate and moved to our take off position at the far eastern end of the runway that was, it seemed to me, only a few yards from the nearby Freeway. The two General Electric engines are so big and powerful that their diameter is as wide as the passenger cabin of the Boeing 737. We sat there as the engines silently purred away and I wondered about our take off. At 8.25pm the pitch of the engines became even louder, and I knew they were being revved up to full power.
I sat there as if glued to my seat, totally transfixed, while every fiber in my body felt the enormous mechanical energy inside those two huge engines. Then in a fleeting millisecond, the Captain released the brakes on this giant bird of the skies, pushed the throttles forward to, it seemed to me, their limit, and we punched forward as if shot out of a huge gun. We roared and pounded down the runway at an incredible speed, reaching V1 almost immediately, followed again almost instantly by V2, and fractions of a second later the large B-777 lifted off the concrete and asphalt runway and pointed her nose skywards, and headed for England and Heathrow Airport. This was one of the most thrilling of all the countless take offs that I've enjoyed around the world. (Aviation note: V1 is an aviation term to denote the speed at which an aircraft can safely stop. V2 is the speed at which the plane IS committed to take off, and can do so safely with one engine inoperative) The Heathrow Express – Getting into London When you arrive at Heathrow and need to get to London Central, there are a many options. Car, taxi, bus, Underground Tube, or the Heathrow Express. Any time I go to London I’m appalled at the constant gridlock with road traffic moving – if at-all - in slow motion. A car to or from the airport takes about 80 minutes. Then there’s the London Underground and the Piccadilly Line. Here you can also figure around 80 minutes – but there are frequent stops, and lots of crowds on every train. The fastest way to reach London (I use it every time I go there) is the incomparable Heathrow Express. When you return to Heathrow it leaves (and arrives) at Paddington station at Platform 6 or 7. It was opened on June 23rd 1998 by then Prime Minster Tony Blair, and the operation has a train leaving every 15 minutes in each direction, from 5:10 in the morning to 11:25 at night. Best of all, it’s non stop and speeds you either to or from Heathrow in the stress free time of 15 short minutes! It covers Terminals 1,2 and 3, as well as the new, gigantic British Airways Terminal 5 where just about every arriving and departing BA flights are located.
A OW fare is sixteen (British) pounds fifty pence online; eighteen pounds at ticket offices and machines, or thirty two RT; and twenty three if purchased on board. FC is twenty six pounds or fifty pounds round trip. All trains have free Wi-Fi and video monitors for BBC news; and you can use cell phones (or mobiles as they’re called in the UK) even in tunnels. At the time of writing (late July 2011) the dollar versus the pound was approximately $1.60 to get one British pound. Financial markets change daily, so check online before you go. The service, as noted, is frequent, and with one going to or from Heathrow every 15 minutes, there are 150 trains every day. The Heathrow Express, especially for business people, is a real time saver. They’ve recently introduced another top notch service that we enjoyed when we arrived at Paddington station. That’s the Silver Wing Service that takes passengers to and from Liverpool Street station in a superbly upholstered and totally luxurious Mercedes Benz limousine. A Tennis Tour for Tourists! New Yorkers love it when you spill
your guts out there. Spill your guts Even if you don’t like tennis, most people are so conditioned to retain certain things in life, that as soon as you say “Tennis Championships,” one’s almost automatic response is “Wimbledon.” I love the quote above, not only as it comes from one of the most colorful, brilliant and even outrageous American tennis players, but also because it captures how clean Wimbledon is. As I found out when I went there in July this year.
The Championships ended on Sunday, July 3rd, and our travel media press group was there on Wednesday the 6th. Although I spent the early years of my life in London’s Kensington, I never went to Wimbledon. Not even to the Tube station. So when I saw our trip included Wimbledon, I was mildly interested. When I got there, I was mesmerized by everything. You can enjoy the same tour we did, with an online reservation. Let me suggest you Google it and type in “Taking A Tour of Wimbledon” and you’ll see a large list of tour options. The most fascinating tour was the one given by our guide, Mr. Ashley Jones, the Commercial Manager, who’s been at the Tennis Icon for 14 years and, as we found out in the next hour or two, he has more news, information and facts in his head about tennis, than even the biggest tennis Encyclopedia known to mankind. Whether you like tennis or not, and I’m in that latter category, a tour around this world famous series of buildings and grass tennis courts, is absolutely intriguing. When you watch big time tennis at Wimbledon, do you ever think about – now get this - the grass? I mean come on now, how boring is that!! Yeah, boring! And yet it is a critical part of how balls bounce, where they go and how they are “played” by tennis super stars. There are 19 courts plus 22 for practice (!) since 1991 and, according to Eddie Seward the Head Groundsman, all Wimbledon courts are sown with 100% perennial ryegrass, as it improves durability. The grass has been cut and maintained at a height of 8mm since 1995, and all are rolled, covered and constantly tested for their firmness and yes, would you believe, their speed. I thought it was interesting to learn that if the grass is too damp and soft when play commences, it will cut up, become unstable and cause the ball to bounce irregularly. Two other areas of interest on the tour, are the press room which looks like a scene from some 1940s movie about a large big city newspaper where lots of harried and yes, hurried reporters, dash off to get their stories filed, as the room seemed to have at least 100 special booths for the sports media. The other intriguing place is the room where all the players’ are interviewed by the media. We were told that one star was fined for not agreeing to be interviewed, because it’s written in their contracts that if requested, they MUST do the interview.
Some tennis Trivia. In October 1940 the Nazi Luftwaffe dropped five 500lb bombs on the Center Court – which makes me ask, Come On Now, were they actually aiming for that?! In 2009 a retractable roof (costing 80 million British pounds) was installed on the Center Court so play would always continue in the event that the rains came, and in 2003 the Duke of Kent ordered that the long standing tradition of bowing or curtseying to the Royal Box be abolished because, he said, "It is an anachronism in modern times.” Finally, how about this – up until 2006 women were paid LESS than men who appeared at Wimbledon, but the chairman of the Committee who manages the site, Mr. Timothy Dewe Phillips, CBE, said that was not “right or correct,” and in 2007 men and women earned equal prize money – a decision that overturned an incredible century of inequality. Tennis buffs will love the Tennis Museum that’s filled with tennis memorabilia dating back to 1555 from all over the world – plus a marvelous holographic display with John McEnroe in the Dressing Room, to many world famous trophies, and more tennis trivia, artifacts and “stuff,” than you ever knew existed. An Unusual Fashion Display Talking about tennis – and I think we were – and even though it’s probably still the remnants of my British born humor, I must share a photo with you. When we all traipsed to the Wimbledon Gift Shop I, along with my colleagues, were stunned by a display of those in stores dummy models on which clothes are usually placed. As you see here in THIS photo, that was – for sure – NOT the case, and it generated a lot of smiles from the American media folks. How about you, is there now a smile spreading over your face?
Wimbledon’s Crown Jewel – Center Court It’s said that one always saves the best until last. If that’s true, then the Center Court is nothing less than magnificent. And the best. When we all trooped in there was an eerie stillness and quiet that seemed unreal. It was as if this were a sacrosanct religious site, to be viewed in private by small groups. It affected all of us, as we just sat there in silence while Mr. Ashley Jones told us about it in reverent tones.
When one of our group asked if they could go down and actually touch this piece of what we were now convinced was hallowed ground, Mr. Jones seemed appalled at the idea that someone would even ASK to do that. He then said in a somber voice that in all his years at Wimbledon HE had never been allowed to touch it or walk on it. ”In fact,” he said in a whisper, “it’s in my contract not to walk on it.” As I looked at this small patch of grass, and saw the 3,601 empty seats, I was struck by how it seemed so small from the image one sees on TV, to how gigantic it really is. As big as it is, it all seemed to be so intimate and up close and personal and, as strange as it may sound, when I looked at the small entrance where the top tennis stars actually entered the court, it reminded me of the gladiators coming out into the arena in the days of the old Roman Coliseum. In part 3 see why you should have an Oyster when you travel around London; plus getting around this huge city by fantastically fast Catamarans on, would you believe, the River Thames no less; renting a Blue Bike and seeing London with a unique eye. Read it HERE on Traveling Boy, and be the FIRST TO KNOW Related Articles: |
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excited are you when you go overseas on a trip? Do you tingle with anticipation
at all the nifty things you’ll do? Do you wonder if you'll find
new friends? Even though I’m a travel journalist and have taken
countless trips overseas, I’m as thrilled today as much as I was
when I took my first flight years and years ago. So when I arrived at
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Stay tuned.
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