How long is a piece of string?

One day Pete Worsnop decided to find out how much string was in a string vest. We went out onto the sports field beside the NAAFI at Nicholson Barracks and started to unravel one. It didn't come apart easily as on a Tom and Jerry cartoon, but the increasing length of string had to be pulled through the next loop on every turn. I gave up after about 20 minutes and hopped through the window into the NAAFI (a popular route). Pete carried on for hours and completed the job, and I'm hoping someone can recall what the answer was. Further along from the NAAFI was the WRAC quarters (I'm sure someone can contribute a memory on that), and one of the girls was 'Irish Anne'. Pete and I bumped into her a year later in the middle of Singapore - I was going to say a small world, but I think in the Forces it happened quite a bit.

With thanks to Streak Hobson  for this contribution.