Australians don’t drink Fosters because we generally don’t drink beer until a little older - so kids get brainwashed into believing Vegemite is good whereas fosters, well even underage drinkers spurn that crap! Apparently the version of fosters brewed in the UK is not as bad, but when I was over there, there were far better beers to drink so I didn’t try it.
The advertising for it in the UK makes sure a drop will never pass my lips - unless you want to prise my jaws open when I have shuffled off this mortal coil and force it in, no guarantee I won't spit it outeven then!
I only have one thing against Australia, and that is Fosters!
Oh no, this thread has been hijacked by beer drinkers. I like Stiegl beer from the heart of Austria, Salzburg. 
Love vegemite too 
73 Andrew VK1AD
Fosters is a good snake bite preventative, if you can get the snake to have a skinful. Then you will be best mates.
Not all Fosters is the same. Dunno about Fosters in the UK but some of it as available locally is quite acceptable to my palate. Grange on the other hand is over-rated. So are most French reds. Plenty of alternatives at 20% of the price that would be as good or better in a blind tasting. Marketing!
Vegemite is a versatile and pleasant food other than when plastered on a piece of bland white bread. It makes a great winter soup, excellent additive to gravy and sauces. Not so sure about its use in ice cream. Yes you can buy that, along with peanut butter, honeycomb and a raft of fruit flavours. Ain’t it marvelous what a chemist can do with petroleum.
I’m also not sure about vegemite’s efficacy when rubbed on the ears but dollops on rocks around the perimeter of your operating site will deter most creatures and people. Comparable with DEET but broader spectrum.
73
Ron
VK3AFW
On Sunday 26th Feb 2017 Peter VK3PF, Ken VK3KIM and myself activated White Timber VK3/VE-060.
Ken’s 4WD Range Rover got us halfway in but very deep wheel ruts and a steep rocky section meant we decided to walk the last bit. Peter, carrying all the gear, led the charge up the 4WD track, followed by myself and then Ken trudging up to the AZ. Near the halfway point I spied the rear part of a brown snake slowly moving off the wheel track into the grass in the centre. I paused until it had disappeared, counted to 5 and strode past. No further sightings.
It may have been a young Alpine Copperhead after grasshoppers - no water nearby - or more likely a White Lipped Brown snake. I didn’t want to poke around looking for it’s face to get a good ID but they are fairly common in the high country.
HF conditions were atrocious so the reptile’s appearance was the high point of the walk.
73
Ron
VK3AFW
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Compton
I was introduced to Fosters 35 years ago when I was a thirsty student. Here was a beer that was strong compared with most UK canned beers and tasted better than most canned “lagers”. It also came in bucket sized tins. All the essential requirements for student drinking in one handy can. 
The cans were made from some damn good metal because I used a few of them to repair the exhaust pipe on my car. I don’t know what Renault used for exhaust pipes but it didn’t last in UK weather.
Now in the last 35 years, UK beer has undergone a revolution. There are now thousands of small craft breweries producing a fabulous range of beers that are available in supermarkets, small shops and pubs. Back then there was a much more limited choice of beers and they were not trivially easy to find. Against that, Fosters was easy to find and better than just about everything commonly found. (IMHO).
That was then.
I’m still using drinks cans to fix exhausts. The aluminium heat shield on my Hilux fell off the other day. There has been a catalytic reaction between the aluminium and steel washers aided by salty , wet UK roads. I’m about to cut up some aluminium Coke cans to make some over-size washers to go between the shield and the mounting points. But Andy why don’t you buy a new heat shield? Well it seems Toyota think a piece of 22guage bent aluminium about 15cms wide by 1m long is worth £400+vat. Ow! 
Hi Andy,
“Is worth £400+”
Half of that is agents mark up and freight costs. Al cost £2, cut to size, bend, punch mounting holes £4. Knowing size of shield, how to bend and where to put holes, £194.
I’d consider using larger stainless steel wasters. The new Al ones won’t last long and then you will have to empty some more cans.
Many years back it became a sport at cricket matches to crush in one hand the empty can. So many antics were associated with this ritual that it became entertaining and was shown on TV in between ball deliveries. When the ZL’s attempted to do the same they were amazed at the strength of the VKs until they realized we had Al cans and theirs were steel.
Snakes have been known to stick their head in a can (baked been type with top cut but not removed) and get stuck when they tried to reverse out. The lid closed tighter the more they pulled. Doesn’t work with modern beer cans. The discovery of dead snakes with their heads in bean cans led to stories about backed beans being poisonous. .(Added to show some on-topic content).
73
Ron
VK3AFW
The current Aluminium took 9 years to react itself away. Another 9 years from some cans will do me. By then my Ute will be just “run in”
I remember one climbing meet in the eastern Carneddau when my friend broke his exhaust parking at the end of the road. There was a baked bean tin nearby and it was put to good use to do a temporary repair by the light of several headtorches. I doubt that it poisoned any snakes before it rescued us!
Back in the 70’s the climbing club had a hut at the end of the tarmac road leading to the western access to Craig Cwm Silyn, GW/NW-020. We had to cross a field with a number of boulders in it to get to the hut, and at the entrance to the field there was a slate with “Beware of Adders” painted on it. We often looked for the adders but never saw one. One day we mentioned this to the farmer who owned the field. He told us that he had never seen one, either, the sign was there to deter tourists!
If anyone is interested in some more details of our (VK3IL/VK3YY/VK3JBL) Tiger snake activation, I’ve now added it to my blog here: Southern Alps weekend – 17-19 Feb 2017 | VK3IL Blog
73
David
VK3IL
A man had to be rescued and evacuated by a helicopter this last weekend in our EA2/NV area up in the North, near the Pyrenees mountains after his hand had been bitten by an adder / viper.
Let’s be careful when in the field or mountains in these days, as the snakes are all just waking up after the long winter sleep.
73,
Guru
Location: Spring Hill VK2/St-036
Date: 19/3/2017
Frequency: irrelevant
Animal: Cow
Proximity: <1m. At the far left of the photo my pole can just be seen. Poor photo technique. Operator error.
Equipment damage: imminent
Operator reaction: mainly concern for the equipment and antenna.
Actions of animal: Used tongue to sample the 300 ohm feedline for ZS6BKW type doublet. Didn’t get to chew - feedline rescued in time.
You have some really strange reptiles Down Under!
Admittedly not lethal and not a reptile.
Not lethal? In the UK cattle cause about five deaths every year! Not all from bulls, either - a heifer with a calf can be really dangerous.
Lucky you that his Dad wasn’t around… 
Cheers,
Guru
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Maybe that red groundsheet I’ve been using isn’t such a good idea 
You may have a point there. The object of interest originally was my blue groundsheet/tarp. I folded that up mighty quick and put it out of sight. but those hooves wouldn’t be good for any of my equipment or me, so sitting on the ground with that towering above me was a tad disconcerting.