Saturday, November 26, 2005

Training Ride

We rode up to Hornsby and out on the old highway, got a bit wet, used makeshift bin-liner waterproofs to keep warm, ate pie at 'Pie in the Sky', flew home and dried out on the Harbour Bridge. Group riding skills were excellent in the heavy traffic on the way back down the Pacific Highway and spirits were mostly high in some appalling conditions. Nice work Adrian, Chris, Lynsey & Roo!

I'll be donating $60 from the ride to the Amy Gillett Safe Cycling Foundation. Amy Gillet was a member of the Australian cycling team who died when they were struck by a car in Germany in July. Cycling safety is an issue close to my heart and I feel that this is a very worthwhile and relevant cause. Click here to find out more...

Leave me a message or send me an email if you would like to know about the next session in the New Year








Paul Mac and The Presets...

... played at the metro last night. I was there with my housemate Cath.

The Preset were brilliant. They really didn't five a s**t, just as you'd expect from a pair of rock stars!

Paul Mac's 'Panic Room' was good, but not quite as good as I'd hoped. it was really hard to understand what he was saying between songs, he seemed a bit weary and I don't think he was really connecting with the audience. Don't get me wrong, the guy is a huge talent, just he seemed to be a bit lacking a bit of Mojo... Abby Dobbs had a strong presence on vocals. Dreamy and sexy. GRRR!

The Presets are here
Paul Mac's website is awesome - you can listen to the whole album, the first track is pumping!

Tuesday, November 22, 2005

TI Workshop and Cockatoo Island Swim



Last weekend was the TI workshop and the Dawny-Cockatoo Swim on the Sunday morning.

My friend Belinda came up from Melbourne for the weekend and 'did the double' - click here to read her race report from the ocean swim. My housemate Josh also swam, completing his first ocean swim without any difficulty. Official photo report is here. Results will be here once they are posted.

The TI workshop was one of our best ever. I was lucky enough to be working with Kim Gould and all of the participants picked up the new ideas really well.

All in all a great weekend!

Monday, November 14, 2005

... something to inspire ...

There is something about an extreme challenge that can lift the human spirit and gives a person the opportunity to face their doubts and fears head on and to grow bigger and stronger. Physical challenges and in particular sporting events are an opportunity to test oneself and often to compare achievement to others'. I have been fortunate enough to experience some amazing 'growth moments' in my life, all of them connected with my heart and many of them through sport.

Many people face challenges in their life that are part of the daily fabric of their lives. Some of the life challenges that people face are things that I find hard to comprehend, as I don't have any direct experience of hardship. All of my challenges so far are out of choice. I hope that some of my personal challenges in the future will involve helping others who have less choices.

Two guys I know from my rowing days at university are attempting an extreme physical challenge that few have completed. Dan and Rich are competing in the 2005 Atlantic Rowing Race. In just over 13 days (Sunday 27th) they will set off in a 24ft craft 'Atlantic Prince' from the Canary Islands and will, along with 25 other teams, attempt to complete the 2,550 nautical miles across the Atlantic to Antigua in the West Indies.

They are aiming to win the pairs event and also to break the record, which stands at just over 40 days, and are hoping to raise £50,000 for Cancer Research UK and the Make-A-Wish Foundation. As part of their preparation, these guys broke the world record for one million metres on a rowing machine - a shade over 3 days! If you are anything like me, you will enjoy reading about their adventures to date and following their progress online at www.atlanticprince.com. If you want to support the guys and have the chance to win £1000 you can enter a competion to guess their finishing time.

Rich and Dan, here's wishing you the adventure of a lifetime and hoping that you achieve your 3 goals!

Friday, November 11, 2005

India's marathon boy, aged three


What do you think about this?

Its an article about a kid who runs marathons in India - AGED THREE!

Click the title to check it out...

What do you think? This is something you are bound to have an opinion on so go ahead and share it by leaving a comment!

Monday, November 07, 2005

Wow - what a weekend!


It was a good one so I thought I'd share...

On Friday night Cath and I left the clues for the treasure hunt. This involved a bit of crafty stencil work and some exploration of the more 'interesting' parts of our 5-floor warehouse complex.

On Saturday morning Rod took me to the St George Rowing Club. I used to do a lot of rowing between 1995 and 1999 before I started triathlon but I don't think I've been in a boat since then! The first outing was a time trial so I decided to go for a light paddle insted to get used to being in a boat again. Rod showed me the map of the waterways, coach Ron allocated my scull and off I went. Great to be back on the water and to my relief it all came back to me pretty quickly, although my balance was somewhat suspect! Second outing was a quad with Rod, Daniels and Andrew. It was great to be back in a crew boat, it felt great for a scratch crew and we even managed some cheeky starts which left me grinning broadly!

Our Hawaiian party kicked off with the treasure hunt. Teams had to answer 10 questions about the housemates by discovering clues around the building. The winning team of Andrew, Dan, Dan, Emma and Leilani scored 23.5 out of 30. Awesome! The questions are here (click link and scroll down) in case you missed out ;-)

Josh opened up a classy cocktail bar in his room and we served up Water Melon Martinis, Thailand Iced Teas, Lychee Lime Caprioscas and Tequila Mockingbirds until we ran out of ingredients. Lani's home made pesto and humus dips were a big hit too. Thanks to everyone who helped to pump up the pool. It was officially 'opened' and the party moved into phase 3...

Well I'm out of time so if you want to know the rest you'll need to find someone who was here. In the meantime click here to check out the rest of Emma's outstanding photos.

PS The award for the best outfit has to go to Wendy for her outstanding coconut bra which she was kind enough to share upon leaving! It was actually rather comfortable - I'm sure that Piers can confirm...