As previously indicated I was planning to participate in this years Takapuna Beach Cup, a 42 km changes outrigger race held on Sat 26 February.
Just back from a flying trip to Auckland. A fantastic event and one well worth planning to do at some stage. I am hoping that it will become a regular part of our calendar.
Here are the output from the two GPS's I had onboard. Firstly from my Locosys BT-31 (see here) which records it's position every second, and my Garmin Forerunner 301 (see here) which records every now and then (ie about every 10-20 sec). The Locosys gives a lot more detail.
PACT - Erskineville Road / Redfern (Thu 24 Feb 2011)
As promised, the above is the first photo from my new S95 camera. A great little camera and one that I had always hoped Canon would release. Very similar to the G10 but much smaller physically. On top of that it has RAW file support.
PACT - Erskineville Road / Redfern (Thu 24 Feb 2011)
Another photo of the Roller Door of PACT. This was some time in 2006 I am guessing (will dig the photo out of the archives) and I waited for the motor bike to come into view. Got really lucky with this one, with Rainbow Flag at the back motorcycle which complemented the diminishing rainbow colours of the Roller Door.
Mentioned in a recent post (Sun 20 Feb 2011) that I have often photographed this Roller Door of PACT. Typically, I use this scene to take the first photo of a new digital camera.
The above photo was one of the first photographs I took with a new Canon Powershot Pro1. It was late in the afternoon and I liked the long shadow (see here specifically) of the power pole behind and to my right. I would use this camera for all my Europe 2005 photos. It was a beautiful camera and it failed on me when we did our last walk on the main range with Jenny on the 01 Jan 2009.
Today I bought a Powershot S95 and this Roller Door was the first photo I took with it. I am a creature of habit for sure. Once I get it off the camera I will post it here.
This is a chapter out of a presently unreleased book on the Thought Behind Elite Level Performance, by Mark Dobson. The chapter explores how the level of clarity of your goals influences your ability to achieve them. It uses all sporting examples but is easy to relate any life.
Stumbled across this last week. Really interesting to me and quite relevant. Definitely made me think a lot about what has happened (an inkling here and here) and what could be (just as vague an inkling here). In some ways I have lived this and know it to be true, how else can it all be explained? Anyway, hope you find it just as interesting.
In some ways the Indentity/Destiny quote above is similar to a recent quote from Seth Godin:
The experiences you create are the moments that define you.
This is a chapter out of a presently unreleased book on the Thought Behind Elite Level Performance, by Mark Dobson. The chapter explores how the way you see yourself impacts your performance. It offers strategies and insights on how to adjust your identity with a series of workshop questions at the end. It uses all sporting examples but is easy to relate any life.
Recently wrote about our trip to London in Aug 2005 where we spent an afternoon on the South Bank. The highlight was watching the sunset over London for The Eye and capturing this photo of Jenny.
Another highlight was seeing the new Wembley Stadium under construction on the horizon. As a kid I watched the Big Match and watching the FA Cup Final at Wembley Stadium was always something I looked forward to in early May of each year. We would stay up late in front of the heater and the game would start about 1am on Sunday morning. Was excited to watch my team, Westham United win the FA Cup in 1975 (more on Westham United later).
Here is a visual record of that afternoon on Sun 28 Aug 2005.
I remember as a kid, the 1973 controversy of Gough Whitlam's (the then Prime Minister of Australia) support of the $1.3 million purchase of a painting, that some said only took a couple of hours to drip, not brush. Also remember seeing the movie, Pollock when it was released in 2000.
When I am travelling, often look for abstract photos. This is one that I took on the day we arrived by train in Truro (on the Cornwall Coast), from London. It had been painted on the wall of the local Tesco that sided a path along the river we had just walked.
Red - PACT - Railway Parade / Erskineville (Dec 2010)
Have often photographed this roller door at the PACT Theatre which is just around the corner from where I stay at Alexandria. Drive past it most days. The building has recently been painted to this brown colour, after many years as a blue, with the roller door featuring many colours from a rainbow.
For this photo, the position of the late afternoon sun cast interesting shadows (I like shadows) on the wall and roller door. When I noticed the red haired lady running past, I waited until she was in the perfect position under the red A and in front of the shadow cast by the bricks on the right hand side of the roller door.
Skip - Erskineville Road / Newtown (Fri 28 Oct 2004)
Skip and Bob - Erskineville Road / Newtown (Fri 28 Oct 2004)
Skip and Bob - Erskineville Road / Newtown (Fri 28 Oct 2004)
Skip and Bob - Erskineville Road / Newtown (Fri 28 Oct 2004)
Mona Lisa - Erskineville Road / Newtown (Fri 28 Oct 2004)
The background to these photos ..
I had just flown in that morning from Shanghai (via Singapore) where I had bid farewell to Jenny and Joanne. I was excited about the trip there for the World Dragon Boat Championships at Qingpu just to the west of Shanghai (I was just an excited spectator and photographer in those days - definitely inspired me to get into dragon boating on our return). During the return flight I had already decided that I would go back to meet Jenny and Jo in Shanghai on their return from a group road trip and some traveling by themselves (which included 5 days on the Yangtze River). It would be a surprise for them and we would spend the last 4 days in Suzhou and Shanghai where I would celebrate my 44th Birthday.
Thought I would walk up to Newtown to keep myself awake as I had not slept much on the over night flight from Singapore. Had my tiny IXUS and I was photographing the Mona Lisa and I remember Skip asking me about what I thought of the painting and her smile. I said I liked it and I remember doing some googling later and found a couple of really interesting pages (should have them somewhere - will try to find them).
Following this initial conversation it was easy for me to ask Skip whether I could take some photos of him in front of the painting. He was a more than willing performer. Bob was just there sitting on the step smoking a cigarette and they seemed to know each other.
For the closeup photo at the top of the page I remember being quite taken by his jacket (it was a hot mid-Spring day) and the large ring he had on is finger. So I just asked him to raise his hand to his sunglasses. I was happy with the result. I remember printing some of these photos and leaving an envelope with them (and some Mona Lisa related web pages) at the Church just around the corner in King Street.
This is the closest I have ever come to doing something like what LottieP does everyday at Sydney Spy (definitely one of my favourite blogs).
Should try to do more of this kind of photography. Skip was the one who engaged with me first - not sure that I could initiate the first contact to do this kind of portrait photography on the street. Though I should try to get out of my comfort zone a little.
The warrior of light views life with tenderness and determination.
He stands before a mystery, whose solution he will one day find. Every so often, he says to himself:
'This life is absolutely insane.'
He is right. In surrendering to the miracle of the everyday, he notices that he cannot always foresee the consequences of his actions. Sometimes he acts without even knowing that he is doing so, he saves someone without even knowing he is saving them, he suffers without even knowing why he is sad.
Yes, life is insane. But the great wisdom of the warrior lies in choosing his insanity wisely.
Whether you made the full 400km or not here's how working towards it would have transformed your body over the last 40 days...
You would have increased the number of capillaries in your paddling muscles. More oxygen rich blood can now reach the muscle fibres to see you paddling harder for longer... awesome!
The density of mitochondria would have increased in your paddling muscles . These little babies use oxygen to break down glucose and fats to create the energy that fires your muscles. The more you have the faster you can paddle for longer ... yeah!
You would increased the number of enzymes available to breakdown fats. The more of these you have the better you are able to use fat as fuel source and conserve precious sugars for passing other crews, catching runs and big finishes... you gotta love that!
You would have improved your muscular efficiency. Through repetition your brain now better coordinates all your paddling muscles so they work smoothly and seamlessly together. This minimises energy use to see you paddling harder for longer... and looking good too!
The number of red blood cells and hemoglobin would have increased. This sees your blood now have a greater oxygen- carrying capability.The more oxygen in the blood, the more blood to your paddling muscles, the harder you can paddle for longer... wow!
Thanks Billy for this great initative. The 400 km in 40 days was definitely what I needed for where I was at the beginning of January 2011.
Thank you - Geoff, Marty, Norm, Christian, Todd and Billy - Had just done a successful Individual Time Trial for Prague that morning at Penrith - just made it to the start and we had a great race all things considered. - State Titles OC6 Long Course - Ettalong - Sat 09 May 2009 (picasa)
A really moving Ceremony with close to 264 breast cancer survivors on the water from all over Australia. Was honoured to be asked to participate as part of the Illawarra Dragons Abreast Team who I steered. Jo steered the Brisbane Team. Thank You.
Premier Opens Final - CNY 2011 - City Dragons - Steve de Costa Filming and Steeering(12 Feb 2011)
To Steve de Costa and your City Dragons Team. Congratulations on an outstanding victory in yesterdays CNY 2011 Premier Open's Final at Darling Harbour. You and your team had to race all your races as if they were the Final, and then won the race that counted the most. BTW, the best piece of Dragon Boat racing footage I have ever seen. Love the quick little sneak views to the left and right towards the end of the race. You drove your team hard to the finish line. Shows great skill as a steerer. Congrulations again.
Filmed at Hard Rock Calling 2009, Hyde Park, London, UK. 28-6-2009
Random Recollection - was just poking around Youtube and decided to track this track down.
Born To Run was the first Record I purchased, probably as a 16 year old in 1976 - would have been 4th Form or Year 10. I remember buying it at Woolworths in the main street of Wagga Wagga. We had only just moved there after 14 years of living in Tamworth. My sister had a part-time job at Woolworths on the checkouts and she could do all the bill item additions in her head - times have changed.
Nice to see what interested me back then and the memories it brought back.
Self-esteem is all about how an individual feels about himself or herself.
When someone doesn’t reach their full potential and their talent is wasted, it is likely to be through a lack of self-esteem.
The first part of that feeling comes from others around them, and the other part comes from within.
That’s why we need to be careful about who we hang around with and listen to.
My advice to my athletes is to look at all your positive attributes and don’t dwell on things that will limit your performance.
It is all about confidence and believing in your abilities. You either believe in yourself or you don’t! It’s not what you are; it’s what you think you are.
Bennett's great talent is to encourage self-belief in his players. To give them confidence.
Many have said it over the years without ever understanding why.
His trick is that he can sell it.
As coaches we can all sit in a team meeting and tell our players that they'll dominate the opposition.
That we've trained harder for longer and that we're better prepared, that our talent is superior.
So that's what you've got to ask yourself: can you sell it?
Bennett can. And he can because he believes in it. That confidence, those beliefs, are then in everything he does.
It all sounds so simple, doesn't it? It's no harder than saying be true to yourself, which we can find in any self-help book. But if you keep peeling back the layers eventually you'll get to the soul of it, which is that it takes great courage to do that. [..]
Bennett wins the hearts of his players first.
With that he gains their faith and, with that, belief.
The rest all falls into place.
[..]
The most noticeable difference was the confidence in the players.
Premier Mixed Final - Chinese New Year 2008 - "Pain is temporary. It may last a minute,.." - Darling Harbour (Sat 16 Feb 2008)
Premier Mixed Final - Chinese New Year - "Pain is temporary. It may last a minute,.." - Darling Harbour (Sat 16 Feb 2008)
Pain is temporary. It may last a minute, or an hour, or a day, or a year, but eventually it will subside and something else will take its place. If I quit, however, it lasts forever. It’s Not About the Bike, published May 2000, Lance Armstrong
All Done!! - Premier Mixed Final - Chinese New Year - "..but eventually it will subside and something else will take its place. If I quit, however, it lasts forever." - Darling Harbour (Sat 16 Feb 2008)
All Done!! - Premier Mixed Final - Chinese New Year - Dragon ".. but eventually it will subside and something else will take its place. If I quit, however, it lasts forever." - Darling Harbour (Sat 16 Feb 2008)
Good luck to all this weekend, Chinese New Year 2011 - Year of the Rabbit.
Let it go Let it roll right off your shoulder Don't you know The hardest part is over Let it in Let your clarity define you In the end We will only just remember how it feels
Today I heard this song for the first time in at least 2 years. The above is a video and the lyrics are below.
It is swelting in Sydney as I write this, at the end of hot summers day and I am covered in sweat. Spent this lovely Saturday afternoon on Sydney Harbour paddling in an OC6 from Glebe to Middle Harbour and back. Very windy, very hot and tough conditions. Still a great session and it makes you realise how lucky we are to have this beautiful city, it's harbour, the experiences we make for ourselves and the friendships we have with each other.
Pacific Dragons OC6 Mixed Crew - Paul, Jenny, Geoff, Marie, Liz, and Leslie - Ettalong / Central Coast - Jan 2007 (picasa)
Anwyay, on the way back to Alexandria from the session, in Wilson Street / Newtown [Note: 1], I had my radio on and heard this song.
Instantly, I became quite emotional (actually started crying uncontrollably - yes I'll admit it) and had to pull over. It was the song I had been trying to find for the last 19 months, since Jenny left us. I did not know it's title or any of the lyrics. All I knew was the tune. As a result, this made it difficult to track down. Apart from the tune, I also felt it was a Matchbox Twenty song.
Jenny had talked about it on it's release, when someone in her Cancer Support Group played the song at one the weekly Tuesday meetings. It seemed to mean a lot to Jenny and all her colleagues at the Group.
I had tried to find the song many times since Jenny's passing, and I now know I was looking in the wrong place, as it is Rob Thomas song, not a Matchbox Twenty song (I had even bought a few Matchbox Twenty CD's to try and find the song, obviously to no avail).
While listening to the song in the car this afternoon, all I tried to do was remember (my memory is not that flash) a line from the chorus so that I could search for it as soon as I got back to Alexandria. The line I remembered was:
A quick search found the above video and I then realised the song was from a Disney Animation Movie Meet The Robinsons, which I know little about (I am sure it is very good - actually have half a feeling that Jenny and Jo may have sneaked it in one Tuesday afternoon at the Movies. Will check with Jo). So I have no idea of the meaning of the song in the context of the Movie. Though with every song I think we are allowed to bring our own experiences and interpretations to it, even if we mishear the lyrics (I am reassured that this is OK :-).
Over the years, when Jenny was with us, I would often force myself to stay awake at night, so that I could hear her breathing (we were both good sleepers and it was often a race to see who would nod off first). The sound of her breath, and the silhouette of the rise and fall of the sheets covering her chest, gave me some reassurance. I could not comprehend that one day the cancer might extingusish the breath of this amazing person (where do I start to explain) and take this beautiful woman from us.
I think of those nights and the small hours where I would lay awake watching and listening to her breath - I would often tell Jenny that it was like music to my ears.
Anyway, I will leave it that. I will buy the CD and put the song on my iPhone. I need to listen to it some more and try to make the connection to the song that Jenny and her friends at the Sutherland Shire Cancer Support Group made to it. I suspect for me it might mean something completely different to Jenny as I can already see some things that I have felt since Jenny left us.
A bit of ramble but it is nice to capture these fragments of my memory here.
Needless to say, very excited to have found this song
Maybe the The hardest part is over?
I know in writing this: These small hours - Still remain
As we said to each other every night (and I still do) as we lay in bed before nodding off to sleep:
Good Night, Sweet Dreams, God Bless, Love You.
With love and fond memories .. Geoff
[Note 1]: I love Wilson Street ( Newtown) - so many little things have happened there recently and over the years (at least in my own mind). Maybe these are some of These little wonders the song refers. I know these little things have helped me a lot over the last 19 months as I move through the grieving process [see Quote: Half a Life - NYT Book Review (12 Sep 2010) (17 Oct 2010) - in some ways that post was a real turning point for me when I look back at it now].
Let it go Let it roll right off your shoulder Don't you know The hardest part is over Let it in Let your clarity define you In the end We will only just remember how it feels
Our lives are made In these small hours These little wonders These twists and turns of fate Time falls away, But these small hours These small hours Still remain
Let it slide Let your troubles fall behind you Let it shine, Till you feel it all around you And I don't mind If it's me you need to turn to We'll get by It's the heart that really matters in the end
Our lives are made In these small hours These little wonders These twists and turns of fate Time falls away But these small hours These small hours Still remain
All of my regret Will wash away somehow But I cannot forget the way I feel right now
In these small hours These little wonders These twists and turns of fate Yeah, these twisted turns of fate Time falls away Yeah, but these small hours, These small hours Still remain
Yeah, oh they still remain These little wonders All these twists and turns of fate Time falls away But these small hours These little wonders Still remain
Fantastic footage of the Men's Coxless Four Final at Sydney 2000. The camera work is so good on this. You can actually see up close, each of the rowers and how they respond to the race, from the start to the finish as well as the post race celebration on the water.
