More than 70 people were keen to explore the treasures of the Historical Museum at its annual open day last Saturday.

“It was a very successful day,” said Bruce Adams, President of the Forbes & District Historical Society. “We had a huge increase in people attending. They were very impressed with our exhibits and many said they would come again to spend more time looking at everything.”

One of the newest additions to the mu- seum, a fully restored Ivel tractor, was one of the most popular exhibits on the day, especially when it was started up at 1pm and 3pm. “All the boys liked the tractor with about 40 people watching us start it up,” said Bruce. He said the 114-year-old tractor, which is one of only seven left in the world and took about 700 volunteer hours to restore, worked perfectly when started up.

There was something for everyone to get excited about. Elaine Huckell and Anne Reade were thrilled looking through wedding photos of Forbes locals on display.

Michelle Mahlo said she had not been to the museum for years and savoured the lux- ury of taking her time without being hurried on by the kids.

The museum at 11 Cross Street is open from 2 to 4pm daily.

The stress fracture is a common overuse injury seen in athletes who participate in endurance and high load bearing activities. Stress fractures in the lower limb account for between 80 to 90% of all stress frac- tures, and in runners contributes to almost 16% of all injuries.

During periods of relative inactivity, with osteoporosis or eating disorders, the den- sity of bone decreases. If loads on the bone become repetitive or abnormally high, and the bone is not given enough rest to allow for adaptation, the rate of stress-induced microfractures in the bone exceeds the rate at which the bone can repair, and stress fractures develop.

The typical complaint with stress fractures is of a gradual onset of pain. Initially there is just pain with activity that subsides with rest, but returns when the aggravating activity is resumed. Local tenderness and swelling is often found at the fracture site and pain is easily localised as opposed to shin splints, which produce a more diffuse pain.

Treatment initially involves rest from the aggravating activity for approximately four to six weeks. It may also require bracing or the use of a cam boot. In some cases surgery may even be required. Return to sport should be gradual to allow time for adaptation within the bone. It is important that all biomechanical and nutritional causes be addressed to prevent recurrence. Cross training and participating in a variety of different sporting activities can help minimise the risk of stress fractures.

It is important to remember if you recognise the symptoms early and treat them ap- propriately, you can return to sport at your normal playing level.

“For the fitness of you”

Linda Reilly

Forbes Shire Council has commenced the process to purchase the 72-hectare site of the former Lachlan Vintage Village.

It was resolved at Council’s March meeting that the Mayor and General Manager would negotiate a purchase price with the owner.

“These negotiations were successful and at the April Council meeting, Council re- solved to go ahead with the purchase.” Mayor Graeme Miller said. “The contracts have been drawn and it is hoped they would be close to exchanging very soon.”

“Once the purchase is finalised, Council will consider the proposed uses prior to making a resolution. A master plan for the land will then be developed, which will include consultation with the Forbes community. This is a truly exciting opportunity for Forbes.” said the Mayor.

“The large site will allow Council to consider drainage and stormwater solutions for the area.” he added. “The site also has a number of zones that can potentially lead to residential and tourism developments. There are no other opportunities for residential development in this area, therefore the purchase of this site is a huge step for more land to be made available for residential development.”

The Mayor said the master plan would de- fine the concept and maximise the potential of the site.

The Lachlan Vintage Village was established in the early 1970s on land bordering the Newell Highway that was originally goldfields. The village was a historically authentic recreation of the NSW gold mining and early farming era. It is recorded that during the 1990s there was a down-turn in interest in Australian colonial history. Due to this, the Old Sydney Town, north of Sydney set out according to James Mee- han’s map of Sydney in 1803, closed to the public in 2003, and the Lachlan Vintage Village closed in 2004.

By Dianne Collie

The majority of drivers in the Parkes, Forbes and Lachlan Shire area are law abiding when it comes to wearing seatbelts and using mobile phones.

The latest observations results indicate a combined 99.1% seatbelt wearing rate and a 0.8% mobile phone usage rate.

The surveys are conducted bi-annually. Councils’ Road Safety and Injury Prevention Officer, Melanie Suitor, said survey staff conducted observations for an hour in the morning and an hour in the afternoon.

According to Melanie the seatbelt wearing rate is higher than the state average of 98%. The best location was the Parkes Highway recording 100% compliance in the afternoon. The worst location was the Forbes Urban locatin with a 96% wearing rate in the afternoon with 14 people observed un-restrained.

“While our seatbelt wearing rate is better than the state average, it is disappointing to report that 59 people were observed not wearing a seatbelt,” Melanie said.

The combined mobile phone usage rate was 0.8%, with three survey locations recording 0%: Condobolin Highway, Parkes Urban and Parkes Highway. Forbes Urban was the worst location with a 4.2% usage rate as 13 people used a phone whilst driving.

Are you happy with your current financial situation? Is your current financial situation so good there’s no room for improvement? If the answer to either question is ‘no’, then there are plans you can put into place that will provide a clear pathway to a better financial future.

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