R.E. FIELD RECORDS, GHQ FAYID
"FAYID OLYMPICS"
As Remembered By Dave Hickman
One very, very hot summer afternoon, sometime
during ’54, I was laid in my pit as usual, when a corporal (I knew he
was a corporal because he was carrying a clip board – they all did!)
came in and said “We are organising a Fayid Olympics (well a sports
afternoon) in the Stadium in GHQ Fayid”.
He then asked me “What events I would enter?”
Getting tired of all this chat, I said “Put me down for everything” and forgot all about it until the programme was printed a month later and a copy arrived on my desk in GHQ. To my surprise my name was against every event!
Come the day of the 'Olympics', and competitor Sapper Dave turned up in his red tee shirt and shorts to find that the GHQ stadium (a sandy area in the centre of GHQ which had a small amount of concrete seating at one side) had been transformed. Typical army, someone had painted white lines everywhere. There were lines running round the arena, with odd lines and boxes and weird shapes in the centre of the sand. They had erected flag poles, with flags of all regiments flying.
My problems started while I was running 25 times around the stadium for the mile race. The tannoy crackled out “Sapper Hickman report for the high jump”. While competing in the 500 yds it was “Will Sapper Hickman report for the hop step & jump”. This continued over and over, throughout the day.
Over the years I have lost that programme with my name against each event, I wondered if any Zoner still has a copy or can remember this event?
By the way, I did not win any event, but as they say, it’s the taking part that counts.
IT’S A KNOCKOUT
10 RAILWAY SQDN, FANARA
10 Railway Sqdn RE Boxing Team Sept ’53
While at 10 Railway Sqdn RE Fanara I was bored, there was nothing to do. So when I was asked to join the boxing team, “What’s in it for me” I asked. “Well, you get time off for training” I was told by the PT Cpl. All well and good but running around the parade ground in the heat of the afternoon was not my idea of fun. That is mainly what the training consisted of.
After a couple of weeks training, I was told it was my big chance. There was a boxing match to be held at Fayid on Wednesday night. I was to represent 10 Railway. Off we went in the back of one of those army trucks called the Canal Zone Bus Service. I remember it had a steel staircase attached to the tail board to get in and we sat on wooden forms in the back of the truck. Due to the exhaust fumes coming through the gaps in the floorboards, by the time we reached Fayid I felt a bit queasy. But straight into the arena and get into boxing kit. As it was my first fight, our PT Cpl was my second. I was matched with a very large Geordie Guardsman. He was heavier, certainly taller and had a longer reach then me. Well that and the journey was my excuse as I was Ko’d in the first round.
After another weeks training, I repeated the process this time down to Suez where I was up against a well tattooed RAF Welshman about my own size and weight. No excuse this time, but still well beaten.
After more running around the parade ground, I was boxing on home ground at the Jerrycan Factory Fanara. No travelling via Canal Bus this time. When I saw the opposition, I thought they must be kidding. This time it was a little ginger haired Scotsman who had travelled all the way from Port Said. The Cpl said it would be easy this time, as he like me, was a southpaw. I can say that I had weight, height and reach on my side. He was very thin, only about 4’6” tall. I thought I would beat him easily. After the preliminaries, the bell went for the first round, he came at me like a windmill. I really do not remember anything until waking up in my pit the next morning. I then changed sports and joined the swimming team.
During recent years
at RE reunions I have since met one or two members of the 10 Railway Boxing
team, but none remembered my efforts for glory in BOXING.