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February 1st 1941: The first anniversary of the formation of the 6th Fd Regt at Hopu Hopu with Officers and NCOs. Festivities commenced with dinners in Officers and Sergeants Messes. Fortunately all those NCOs who had left us at Hopu Hopu for the Army Schools at Trentham arrived in Maadi just four days previously - all newly commissioned and were able to attend the celebration as were all other officers and NCOs of the Regiment who were either temporarily or permanently detached at the time.
At the conclusion of the dinner the CO read from his book RO No.1 containing the names of the first officers and NCOs to report at Hopu Hopu , and additionally the Troop Rolls of the original four Hopu Hopu Troops. At 9am the officers adjourned to the Sergeants' Mess by invitation - and here the official record of the rest of the evening's doings closes due to a hiatus in the memory of the recorder .
February training continued with a series of Battery exercises covering night occupations, night marches and withdrawals as well as the passing of orders from RHQ to Btys. The cold weather of the winter months, Dec/Jan, disappeared early in Feb and on 10th Feb we returned to shorts and shirts. Well Feb 10/11 proved to be about the two coldest days of the year and everyone froze and yearned for long trousers. However, the weather picked up on Feb 12 and really warm weather set in. It rained a bit on the 10th and 11th, the first rain we had experienced since our first week in Maadi.
On 12th Feb, the Regt went back to the Nile to practice for the Divisional Regatta and to select teams. The event of the morning was Lt Grady Whittaker's plunge into the Nile while boarding his Recce boat. In spite of that, he and Lt Bert Tansley managed to figure very successfully by winning the final for that event.
The Divisional Regatta took place on Friday Feb 14th and the Regiment was represented in every final, and finished well up with a 1st and 2nd. E Troop won the 4-Oar Assault Boat Race, and B Troop won the 16-Paddle Canoe Race, a good record for four events.
The week ending Feb 23rd saw both batteries out in force on what promised to be our last manoeuvres before going on the Divisional Trek, which is tentatively set down for March 1st. However, with our present equipment it was hard to see how we were going to do it but no doubt the usual postponement would come along.
Gunner LDE Cordes died as the result of infantile paralysis at 2nd General Hospital 2NZEF Helwan on Feb 16th, making the fourth death in the Regiment.
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