Thor Prohaska - Rockhampton Boys Grammar School

At this time in my life I very enthusiastic about flying and I thought that my future career was as a pilot. The Rockhampton Grammar School (RGBS) was the first school in Australia to offer aviation science as a part of its secondary school curriculum so I enrolled in the flight training program. Over the next couple of years my enthusiasm for flying diminished and was replaced by an interest in the more fundamental questions of life such as, 'why are we here' and 'what can I do to leave the world a better place'.

During this time I learnt to surf and skateboard, and first read about snowboarding in the surfing magazine Tracks. I developed an interest in sustainable living and spiritual traditions. I remember being very keen to start my first economics class because I thought that economics was about doing things economically. What a shock. It just didn't seem to make sense when I was taught that there had to be a certain percentage of people unemployed and that there must be continual growth and expansion. To this day I still disagree with both of these views. I believe that not only can everybody have a job but that everybody needs a job for their own well being and for the health of society.

Just for the record I didn't get my pilot's licence. I was the school 1500 metre running champion. I was awarded the trophy for most improved athletic performance. I was a house prefect in 1975 and as such shared the responsibility of running a dormitory. I completed my year 12 studies in 1975. My academic results were sufficient to gain entry to Queensland University but I chose instead to go to teachers college.

In between finishing school and starting teachers college I worked in the Moongunya Coal mine as a labourer.

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