18 NAVY NEWS, DECEMBER 2010 Be ye men of Talent
MEN of Talent celebrated their boat’s 20th anniversary in the presence of a special guest. The submarine’s sponsor, Princess Anne, joined the deeps and their families in Devonport as the second youngest T-boat marked the milestone.
The Princess Royal was present at the submarine’s launch in Barrow on an April day in 1988, again in Devonport when the boat was commissioned into the Fleet in May 1990 – and has returned on numerous subsequent occasions, but not since 2006 when the boat was rededicated following an overhaul. The latest visit saw Princess Anne carry out a formal inspection on the parade ground at HMS Drake as the ship’s company formed up for ceremonial divisions, watched by friends and family, with the Band of HM Royal Marines providing suitable musical accompaniment.
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Steve Johncock of FRPU West); Talent only returned from a seven-month deployment east of Suez in the late summer. Celebrations over, Talent is now undergoing a 15-month maintenance and refi t period which will see her re-enter active service with the latest technological upgrades. Talent is not the only warship to be graced by the Princess Royal’s presence. Five days earlier, she could be found on the newest addition to the Fleet, HMS Diamond. The royal was guest of honour
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That was followed by a rather-less-formal birthday cake-cutting ‘ceremony’ and a chance to chat with the deeps and their loved ones. Deeps being deeps they were keen to tell their sponsor about recent deeds (hence the wry look from the senior rate, pictured below by LA(Phot)
wardroom. Aside from the usual Trafalgar Night goings- on, there was some unusual entertainment to bring an end to proceedings courtesy of Lts Rob Frost and Helen Oliphant. The two junior offi cers played the trumpet and violin (not typically complementary instruments...) in rousing renditions of classic sea shanties.
to provide magnifi cen
aboard the £1bn destroyer in Portsmouth Harbour as Diamond held her inaugural Trafalgar Night dinner. CO Cdr Ian Clarke said his chefs and stewards “pulled out all the stops” t fare in Diamond’s
NOW this is something you don’t see every day: a submariner in No.1s on ch.
NOW thi i thi d ’t
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NOW this is something you don’t see every day: a submariner in No.1s on horseback in front of Admiralty Arch.
The deep in question is WO2 Nick Robinson who took advantage of a tri-Service course to ride with one of the Army’s foremost ceremonial formations, the King’s Troop Royal Horse Artillery.
The deep in question is WO2 Nick Robinson The masters of ceremonial duty – mainstays
of Trooping the Colour and, until its demise a decade ago, the Royal Tournament – throw open their stable doors and allow equestrian novices into the hallowed riding school at St John’s Wood for a fortnight every year, offering a taster to all ranks across all three Services. Among the successful applicants this year was the senior rating from the Submarine School at HMS Raleigh... who quickly found that his rank counted for zero when he arrived at the troop’s barracks. All ‘students’ were required to work alongside the gunners and bombardiers in the stable lines and attempt to scale the incredibly steep learning curve from the bottom up (no pun intended).
This meant a 5.30am start every morning getting acquainted with a stiff brush, pitch fork and shovel...
...Only when the mucking out was fi nished could there be any thought of saddling up. “I’m not sure I was fully prepared for two hours of proper graft before breakfast and for the fi rst couple of days I was defi nitely ‘in-the- way-bloke’,” says Nick. As well as learning how to muck out, tack up, feed and care for the horses, the two weeks sees the new riders spend about 35 hours in the saddle, culminating with a six-fence showjumping competition and a ride through central London. “The fi r
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st day was pretty daunting for all, including the people who had ridden before. My only previous equine interaction was on Blackpool beach in the 1970s and I’m not sure ten minutes on Dobbin the donkey was going to cut much ice here.”
By the end of week one, all riders were happily trotting and cantering and able to clear single fences, with the fund for ‘unscheduled dismounts’ mounting up nicely.
As wellasexpert riding instruction from the Troop’s equine masters, the two-week course features sessions with the master saddler and the master farrier, giving a fascinating insight into skills not seen in the RN for centuries.i th RN f The middle Sunday was a rest day for the
As well as expert riding instruction from the Troop’s equine masters, the two-week course features sessions with the master saddler and , giving a fascinating insight ti
As well as expert riding instruction fr it kill t
rookie horsemen. Unless your name is WO2 Nick Robinson. He returned to his nautical roots by taking part in the Great River Race with HMS Raleigh comrades on the Thames. Gig crews are expected to row their boats 22 miles up the Thames from the Isle of Dogs to Richmond. The Raleigh crew crossed the line in 2h 51m – just behind a (much younger) Dutch Navy team – to take third place in the Services category.
And then it was back to the Dobbins – and more demanding ‘manoeuvres’: multiple jumps (which seemed to have been raised...) while the instructors were being more exacting, demanding fewer mistakes from riders. They also introduced gun drill courtesy of some of the oldest serving artillery pieces in the world (they saw action in the Great War). The 13lb guns used by the Troop for ceremonial occasions are kept in a humidity-controlled compound and polished to a standard that has to be seen to be believed. One gunner is responsible for the cleanliness of each gun and limber... and after a gallop and salute across Green Park on a rainy day, they certainly needed some work.
The skills taught to the riders over the two weeks were tested on the last day with a ride in the busy London traffi c from St John’s Wood to Buckingham Palace. Mindful of the exceptional standards normally displayed by his soldiers, King’s Troop Regimental Sergeant Major Warren Mahoney kept a watchful eye as the 12-strong course set out for the group photo in front of the Artillery Memorial in Hyde Park Corner. That was followed by a trot across Piccadilly Circus, around Trafalgar Square and a quick stop under Admiralty Arch. “This is a once-in-a-lifetime, money-can’t-buy experience and the memory will last long after the gluteal soreness subsides,” says Nick. ■ Any sailors or marines who fancy spending two weeks with the troop can find details in DIN 2010DIN10-030.
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