Purposeful Meandering Around Remote WA - Week 8

Saturday started as Friday had finished, mother nature had unleashed herself overnight with howling winds and rain scrawls lashing most of Victoria, the temperature reflected the conditions and the time of year and we were grateful to be indoors. We’d soon packed up, the local tv news highlighted some the damage from the overnight winds. We headed into the centre of St Arnaud for a look around before continuing our travels across central Victoria. The coldness ensured we didn’t get out of the car too often. Occasionally we would stop to find a geocache, only to regret getting out of the car. By lunchtime we’d reached Bendigo, the warmth of the day had slightly improved and we took some time to look around. We’d been to Bendigo on a number of occasions but marvelled at the old tourist tram and old buildings which litter the Main Street. Just north of town in Huntly is one of the best pie shops we’ve found and the timing was perfect to once again feast on what they had to offer. Pushing on, we had a look through the large rural township of Shepparton before heading to Benalla for the night, where we spent another lazy night indoors.

Our penultimate day, Sunday started at slow pace as we needed to be in Beechworth for 12pm, so we spent to first couple of hours geocaching around Benalla and Wangaratta before making our way across to Beechworth. The alpine areas directly ahead of us still had blizzard warnings in place and as such there was no views of the snow capped mountains of Victoria. Just before lunch we found ourselves in Beechworth which was perfect timing to allow us to feast on the yummy pies from the famous bakery. We did a bit of sightseeing before making our way around to the Billsons Brewery which had the girls in our family delighted. Spoilt for choice and offering many flavours that aren’t in the shops yet we walked out with an ample supply of the products…. Back on the road and continuing northwards we soon crossed the border, back into NSW and the realisation that our holiday was quickly coming to an end. Heading north to Wagga we’d decided to spend our last days catching up with friends. By late afternoon we were catching up with geocaching friends for coffee and we had dinner with an SES friend who’s currently in Wagga for work.

Monday was a similar story to the previous day, we only had a few hours drive to be home but spent most of the day stopping off to catch up with friends. By lunchtime we’d made it to the SES office at Goulburn where we had lunch and shared the tales of our trip with our good friend Macca. The final leg of our journey home was uneventful and sadly our seven and half week holiday was done. We’d seen so much of remote Australia it’s hard to pick a highlight. We’ve ticked off a number of bucket list items and done it with some great friends. We truly do live in a beautiful country.   

Trip summary 

Total km’s - 17308km 

Longest distance in one day - 972km 

Shortest distance in one day - 92km 

Most expensive fuel - $3.70/ltr 

Cheapest fuel - $1.83/ltr 

Total fuel for trip - 2215ltr

Fuel cost - approx $5k

Max fuel carried when full - 187ltr

Max water carried - 120ltr drinking water 

Total number of nights - 52 

Total number of nights in swag - 44 

Number of nights under the stars (free camping) - 20 

Most expensive campsite - $73 

Number of time zones - 3 

Number of States - 6 

Number of State Corners - 3 

Remotest town visited - Punma or Wingellina

Furthest point from home - Carnarvon 

Most northern point from home - Broome 

Most Southern point from home - Penola 

Most Western point from home - Steep Point 

Best place we stayed - Karajini NP 

Worst place we stayed - Roadside quarry (eatin by midgies) 

Number of window screen chips - 3 

Number of tyres destroyed - 1 

Lowest temperature - minus 1 

Highest temperature - 38 

Number of Deserts crossed - 5 

Bucket list items completed - 5 

Number of Corrugations - 1,946,761 

Average fuel consumption - 13.7ltr/100km 

Number of flies swallowed - 6 

Vehicle damage - Battery, Tyre, Front hub, Windscreen, Solar panel, countless scratches

Purposeful Meandering Around Remote WA - Week 7

Saturday in the Simpson desert and we were reminded how cold this place can be, a cold wind howled between the dunes and with no protection from the vegetation we felt rather cold and exposed. This was day 4 of our crossing and the plan was to be in Birdsville tonight. The QAA line has marked call points starting at No:23 and descending to No:1 which are designed to radio ahead for oncoming traffic and/or to identify your location if you breakdown. With our struggling in 4WD we wondered whether we needed to use one of these as a reference point. As the day progressed the numbers came down, we progressively made it over each dune. At No:3 we had a significant creek crossing to negotiate and with recent rains it was flowing well. Garth made it across and setup as our recovery, but thankfully we made it across the water unaided but needed help up the muddy slope on the exit. Pushing on we finally reached Call point No:1 and what lay ahead was “Big Red”. This ominous 30m high sand dune has multiple tracks up it depending on your skill or vehicle capability. Given the minimal drive from the front hub we took the easiest line and were very grateful to reach the top on our first go. For the next hour we laughed and commiserated with others as they tried their best on the tougher lines, some broke parts others eventually taking an easier line. Big Red marks the end of the Simpson Desert and the last 40km into Birdsville was a pleasure to drive. We quickly setup camp in the van park and basked in our first shower in days. Our evening was spent at the famous Birdsville hotel enjoying a meal and drink.

We’d decided to have a lay-day on Sunday, which was a welcome change. A relaxing start ensued, with a cooked breakfast and no real plans for our day in Birdsville. We caught up on some washing and a few chores around the car. The most exciting thing we did was the 30min walk around the 3 streets in town and refuelling the car. Being Sunday all shops in town shut by midday, so that leaves the pub and the artesian bore for attractions. Around 3pm the rush of new travellers arrive in town and the peace was broken. Our relaxing day was much needed and great for recharging our bodies.

Monday dawned with us rolling by 8:00am. We drove the short distance to the Birdsville Bakery where we met up with Garth and Tom, we all feasted on the local delicacies for breakfast. Once on the road our plan was to travel the Birdsville track but recent rains had closed it for the past week, thankfully we were lucky the track had opened to limited vehicle access. We made our way out of town and soon realised why the track had been closed, water covered the track and surrounding areas in multiple spots. At times we’d be travelling the track at 80km/hr and all of a sudden we’d be in water up to the sills of the car. We quickly learned that best option was straight through the water, going around the outside in the soft mud was dangerous but we had a lot of fun learning the hard way. By lunch time we’d made it to Mungarianne Hotel, this was to be our intended overnight campsite but after some discussion we decided to keep going. Despite the publican telling us the road was better the further we went south, we were still faced with multiple spots where water covered the entire track. By mid-afternoon we arrived in Maree which meant we’d ticked another box of Australian tracks. Continuing south our goal for the night was the historic township of Farina. We stopped along the way to collect some firewood and just before dusk we arrived at Farina, which appeared to be a popular choice as the place packed with travellers. We struggled to find a spot but once we did, we settled in for a night around the fire with a few beverages and a warming port. With our plans for the remainder of our trip taking us in different directions this was our final night as a 2-car convoy.

Tuesday started like any other day, except Farina in winter is a very cold place. Our extremities froze, the dew covered everything and we all struggled to get going. Garth said his goodbyes early as him and Tom had a lot of ground to cover today. We took our time, doing a bit of sightseeing and stopping at the seasonal bakery in Farina for some outback baked bread. Heading southward we quickly drove into rain scrawls and howling winds with the car temp struggled to reach double digits the entire day. We had a few stops as we drove south, at Hawker we inspected the working seismograph located in the petrol station, while in Peterborough we were gripped by steam train fever. Late in the day we found ourselves in Clare, we’d had enough driving for the day so we lashed out and found a cabin for the night as the predicted subzero temps didn’t lend itself to sleeping in a swag. Ahh! the warmth of a heater and comfort of being indoors for the night.

Wednesday started slowly, the comfort of being indoors had us struggling for motivation but eventually we were packed up and on the road again. The cold weather conditions hadn’t eased and for much of the morning we were happy to drive, staying warm while in the car. We’d made our way back towards Renmark where we planned to visit another state corner. MacCabes Corner is another surveyors mismatch. I’m sure the intent was for all 3 borders (NSW/SA/VIC) to align but once again that’s not the case. Around lunchtime we arrived at the nearest parking point to the corner, we then set off on a 2hr return walk to reach our final corner location for this trip. Situated on the banks of the Murray River this tranquil spot is very different to the others we’d visited, but the magnitude of reaching our final corner in Australia was lost because the post was neglected. Once back in Renmark we spent a few dollars attempting to clean the car, the mud had got that thick on the car we were getting dirty simply getting in and out of the car….. it was a sad moment as we washed away some great memories. By nightfall we were setup in a motel ready to watch the deciding “state of origin” game. All new south welshman know how that ended and I’m sure half the motel heard us cheering a great win.

Thursday started with the morning tv shows advising of severe weather coming across the SA state in the coming 24-36hrs, while this didn’t deter us from our plans we were conscious of the pending weather. We spent much of our day driving through various towns in the Murray and Mallee regions of the state. Travelling through the Murray region we watched countless pickers in hundreds of orchards picking oranges and mandarins. A similar scenario was playing out throughout the day with the countless vineyards we drove past. We passed some very popular brand name wineries that we’ve enjoyed. By days end we’d managed to stay one step ahead of the weather but chose a comfortable option for our night in Naracoorte.

Friday sees week 7 coming to an end, we woke to rain and that was the tempo for the day. We headed out to the Naracoorte Caves hoping for something a little more than a guided tour through a cave, but we quickly reminded ourselves how spoilt we are having various roping cave systems so close to home. After a short look around we left disappointed but not surprised. With rain continuing to fall and temps in the low single digits we soon found ourselves in Victoria. The weather wasn’t any better, there was even a severe weather warning for areas near where we were driving. Around lunchtime we stumbled across the site of a story for the ages. In 1864, 3 kids went missing for 9 days. OMG! they were eventually found alive 100km from their home. We both struggled to grasp the magnitude of such an event in todays society….. Moving on we passed through the rural towns of Edenhope, Horsham and Dimboola before deciding the small town of St Arnaud was enough for today. The rain hadn’t let up and the temps remained in the single digits. It was a no-brainer that we opted for the comfort and warmth of something more than the swag for tonight.

7 weeks into our trip and the end is near.

Purposeful Meandering Around remote WA - Week 1

And just like that, we’re off on our latest adventure. Something that feels like it’s been in the making for years (maybe it had) has finally come to fruition. We originally started planning this road trip pre COVID, it ground to a halt as lockdown cancelled all travel, it was even put on hold while we went on an overseas holiday. Yep, this trip has been in the making for a long time.

As our departure date drew near, we almost had to cancel before we started. The unpredictability of the weather saw WA experience unprecedented rain in March, much of which still lies in patches effecting our route to this day. It felt like there was a different hurdle every week, some bigger than others.

Setting off at 4am an err of caution hung over our route from the outset. The weather had thrown us another curve ball, the Simpson Desert and surrounding areas had 25mm of rain fall overnight, turning dirt roads into mud skid pans which in turn, isolates communities and forces councils to close roads in and out of the desert region. Not to be deterred, our 4 vehicles combined for a mid-highway teleconference where plan B was hashed out….. Never let the weather spoil a good adventure and as night fell on day 1, we found ourselves resting up in Mildura.

Another chilly pre-dawn start had us watching the sun rise as we trekked across the Mildura plains. The early morning highlighted the amazing rustic colours of the grape vines as we travelled through the Riverland region of SA, by mid morning we found ourselves in the quaint little town of Morgan, a historic town on the banks of the Murray River and a perfect spot for breakfast. Pushing further west we were amazed by how many wind turbines we seen, they stretched for miles in either direction. We stopped in the small rural town of Jamestown and were surprised to learn it was the birthplace of R.M Williams. With a few planned geocaching stops it was mid afternoon before we reached Port Augusta. From here it truly feels like you’re entering outback Australia, whether you’re heading west or north there’s not much beyond this point. We turned north towards our nights destination of Woomera. Alas our progress was quickly halted by Sunday roadworks which stretched for more than 10km and slowed our progress dramatically. Needless to say the last few kilometres were done as the sun faded below the horizon. We setup camp in Woomera never felt so good.

Monday morning we rendezvoused with our first convoy car in the Woomera village, we shared our stories of our journey thus far whilst looking around military weapons on display. We were soon pushing north to Roxby Downs, a town solely built to support the Olympic Dam mine operations. It was like an oasis in the desert, not for its appearance, but had everything for every occasion. This was the end of the bitumen for us and we deflated our tyres for corrugations that lie ahead. Continuing further north the arid remoteness was quickly at the forefront, the dirt road was in pretty good condition and by midday we’d made it to the Oodnadatta track. It wasn’t long before we arrived at the Lake Eyre lookout, unfortunately the cold wind and overcast skies made this less appealing than the last time we were here. Continuing further west, we stopped at Coward Springs where we were pleasantly surprised to meet the remaining 2 vehicles of our convoy. Once again we shared our adventures thus far, while some of us had a swim in the natural thermal pool. Next stop was William Creek and we were surprised to see Pat Callinin’s 4x4 crew in this remote town filming an episode. Pressing on it was another couple of hours of rough trails before we arrived in Coober Pedy. We immediately checked in to Riba’s Underground Caravan Park for a couple of nights. While most of the team took the underground option, we braved the overnight rain scrawls and camped above ground.

Tuesday dawned under cloudy ‘n’ windy skies, the overnight rain didn’t have much of an impact on us but we found out later the roads we’d travelled yesterday were near impassable today. We opted for a rest day having already travelled 2200km in only a few days. By mid morning we headed into town where we posed for a group photo at the “blower truck” before doing our own thing around town. Given the size of Cobber Pedy much the day was spent bumping into one another at a tourist attraction, the supermarket or the petrol station. Returning to the caravan park late in the day we all agreed the underground lifestyle of fossicking for opal wasn’t for us. With another big day ahead of us on Wednesday we spent the remainder of the afternoon prepping vehicles and enjoying an extended happy hour.

Wednesday dawned with temps in the single digits and the clouds hung low and rain showers loomed. We had a big day ahead of us with 8+hrs of driving to negotiate. By 8am we were on the road, but for the first couple of hours we drove through rain and fog as we pushed north, We stopped at a few roadhouses which dot the Stuart Hwy. For much of the way we played leap frog with a convoy of Army trucks that were heading in the same direction. Just before lunch we stopped for the obligatory SA/NT border crossing pics. By lunchtime the skies had cleared, the sun was shining but not offering a lot of warmth. It allowed us the benefit of an outdoor lunch at another roadhouse. The driving was endless and monotonous, at Eldurrah we turned west and onto the home straight, but the finish line was still another 260km away. Eventually as the 8hr mark elapsed we pulled into Yulara. We quickly setup camp before heading to the sunset viewing area at Uluru. Under patchy skies the Rock didn’t disappoint us as the sun brought out the beautiful colours for all to see. No sooner was that complete and we headed back to the Yulara watering hole to prepare for State of Origin……. Alas that’s enough about the footy, we all know how that ended and so did our night.

Thursday - this is where our holiday really started, everything we’d done in the past 5 days lead to this point. We woke to the threat of rain, we even had a few spots of rain which had us bouncing out of bed only for the rain to clear and the sun to appear. We spent the morning being tourists around Uluṟu and doing some last minute chores. At midday we rendezvoused at Kata Jutjuta for a quick bite to eat before heading west. For the first 50km of the Great Central Rd we were blessed to be driving on the bitumen and making good time, we were soon airing down our tyres and the adventure was getting real. The outback offered up an array of wildlife that had us constantly watching for traffic hazards, whether it was feral cats, wild horses, cows and the odd camel we were amused by what was on the road. We had a quick stop at the community of Docker River before stopping at the NT/WA border for the obligatory photos and border shenaigans. Pushing further west we eventually made our way in the community of Warrakurna where we setup camp for the night out the back of the roadhouse. After dinner we enjoyed our first outback campfire under the millions of stars.

Friday dawned as our coldest morning of the trip, the thermometer said 3.2deg and coupled with a heavy dew it wasn’t a whole lot of fun. We quickly packed up and headed to the nearby BOM weather out-station where we watched the staff release their daily weather balloon into the atmosphere. Surprisingly it reaches heights of 30km and can drift for over 200km before exploding back to earth as consumable junk. By mid morning we were heading further west where we made it to the local community of Warburton, this is approximately halfway along the western section of the Outback Way and it’s a popular spot to refuel, which they conveniently charge for @ $3:60/ltr for diesel. As they say, “they have it, you need it, so you’ll pay whatever price”. Continuing just out of town we left the main dirt road to join the “Gunbarrel Hwy”. Despite its name it’s actually a narrow, corrugated overgrown 4WD track that throws up countless challenges. For the remainder of the day we averaged 30km/hr over some rough and rugged terrain. The car got some new pin-striping courtesy of the vegetation and on a couple of occasions we had to stop for running repairs. With the sun setting before 5pm we opted to stop early where we hoped to dry out swags from the mornings dew. As night fell, families enjoyed their respective dinners before we all adjourned to the campfire for our first round of port.

Our Saturday morning started really early, a local bird chirped like a persistent alarm with each family blaming the other for not getting up to stop the persistent noise, coupled with a body clock telling us it was a lot later, there was no way we’d be staying in bed much past 6:30am. With week 1 almost complete we’d driven over 3600km and were on the other side of the continent, thank goodness the weeks ahead would start to slow down. Packing up we’d set off by 8:00. The rugged terrain was unrelenting with our speed varying between 10 and 60km/hr it was hard to stay focused. The mornings highlight being a memorial to Len Beadell, the founder of so many outback tracks in the region that nowadays are used by likeminded travellers wishing to explore remote locations. By lunchtime we’d only managed to travel 85km and it looked like we’d be spending another night in the middle of nowhere. Recent rains ensured parts of the track were slippery, muddy and a lot of fun. At some point just after lunch the track literally flicked a switch or we went into a different council zone but we were able to increase our speeds up to highway speeds and for the remainder of the afternoon we made great time. We occasionally had to slow for water crossings or the dumb camel that run down the track blocking our progress for almost 2km’s before eventually heading into the bush. Around 3:30pm we arrived at the remote cattle station of Carnegie Station where we setup camp. With daylight fading we had to do some minor running repairs on the Colorado after a suspension part rattled loose.

1 week down and 7 to go. The hard yards getting to the other side of the country have been achieved, now it’s time to enjoy arid remote locations of WA.

For the love of Canyoning

For years, I’ve enjoyed doing the odd canyon trip in the warmer months, most of the time it’s been a social trip through Macquarie Pass Canyon with the occasional adventure to the Blue Mountains. This summer I’ve made a concerted effort to get out and explore more canyons, especially the slotted canyons of the Bluies.

With a like-minded, similar skilled buddy we’ve had some great days exploring far more canyons than I’ve ever done in previous summers. The sandstone slotted canyons of the Blue Mountains NSW are often indescribable when it comes to explaining the views and grandeur of such places. The hustle and bustle of suburbia is left far behind as you slip down into the depths of a creek that’s taken hundreds of years to cut a pathway through the soft sandstone floor.

Over the summer we had great some trips through Empress Canyon, Fortress Canyon, Pipeline Canyon, Grand Canyon, Serendipity Canyon, Lower Wollangambie section, Hole in the Wall and Macquarie Pass Canyon. Each of the canyons is spectacular in its own right, whether it’s the adrenaline rush of abseiling down a giant waterfall, the slip n slide of going down a watercourse, an abseil into a blind abyss or navigating a chasm full of glow-worms, thrill keeps drawing me back.

Don’t let it be said that age is a barrier.

20 Years of Navshield

When I first joined the SES I recall some guys asking me to compete in a 2 day rogaining event specifically for Emergency Services, at the time I didn’t take up their offer but loved hearing of the their adventure the following week.

A year later and at a different SES Unit I once again had an opportunity to participate in what’s called Navshield and this time I jumped at the chance. The year was 1996 and I recall went to the Blue Mountains, to area called the Blue Labyrinth where over 2 days we hiked to various checkpoints in the bush (mostly off-track) in attempt to gain the highest points score. By the end of the weekend I was sore and scratched but I was hooked.

Now it’s 2016 and I’ve just competed in my 20th Navshield event. It’s something I’m very proud to achieve and something that I look forward to each year. I’ve only missed one year since I started and I think that was due to the birth of our son.

Those 20 appearances have been filled with so many highs and a few lows as I reflect. Considering we would average 25-30km walking in a 1-day event or 40-50km in a 2-day event I’ve covered a lot of bushland and seen some amazing country. On 5 consecutive occasions we won the SES category, I’ve placed 5th outright in the leading class of the 2-day event, I’ve placed 3rd outright in the leading class of the 1-day event and then in my 20th year when some would say “I should be slowing down” we won the class 2 category. Couple those achievements with the countless team members I have hopefully shared my skills and knowledge upon.

Each year the stories of past events are told over and over again to unsuspecting newbies, like the time we walked in the snow or walked in the torrential rain for 8 hrs straight or stealthily hid in the bushes to avoid other teams or did the event without sleeping or camped under the tension power lines only to joke in the morning that glowed from the radiation given off by the lines and so the tales get bigger and bigger, but one thing is for certain – I’ve loved my 20 years of participation at Navshield.

Weekend sport dominates our Winter

Having spent the second half of last year travelling I know Ethan was chomping at the bit to return to his weekend soccer this year. He hadn’t seen many of his soccer friends for quite a while so registration day rolled around he was full of enthusiasm. What was equally rewarding for us as parents but especially me, was to Sam so keen to play Netball for the first time. She’s always been our dancer and still continues down that path but with no encouragement from us Sam was eager to give it a go. She registered at the local club and soon slotted into a team with girls of similar experience. 

Both kids began their respective seasons with gusto, for Ethan his year away from the sport was evident in his speed and ball skills but over time he improved and by year’s end he was once again one of the top 3 players in the team. Collectively as a team the results didn’t fall their way this season with the U10 white team managing only 2 wins and as many draws.

For Sam in here first year of a team sport we couldn’t have been prouder, she started the season not knowing the rules or the positional plays but as the season unfolded Sam held down various positions on the court from both WD to GK and GD, each time she did it with 100% and came off the court having learned something new each time. Similar to her brother’s results they struggled against the more skilled teams winning only 1 or 2 games.

As the season and winter wound up the most pleasing thing for us as parents was to watch the enthusiasm from both our kids as they are both keen to do all again next season…… As a parent I can’t wait  

Charity Shield - Dragons v Rabbits

In the 31 year history of the Charity Shield it had never been played outside of Sydney, so when the game was scheduled for WIN stadium I wanted to take Ethan (our son) who is a huge Dragons fan to this historical Dragons V Rabbit’s match.

There was a good mix of fans spread around the ground both hoping for their respective team to win and the game got off to a solid start with both teams hitting the ball and each other hard. I was amazed at just how big some of these guys are, the Burgess Brothers especially.

The Dragons let in 1, then 2 soft tries and the signs didn’t look great. However the quickly hit back giving their fans some hope, but it was short lived with the rabbito’s running away with the game. The Dragons defence was non-existent and the offence was stagnant. At half-time it is 22-4 to Souths.

The 2^nd half surely had to be better but it wasn’t to be and the rabbits soon run in a few more tries. A couple of big-name player injuries halted the game for a while but when the score blew out to 32-4 it was all over. Not to lie down the Dragons did fight back scoring a few late tries to add some respectability to the score.

 
Ethan and I had both had enough with 10min to go and we opted not to be among the many who boo'd the Dragons off the field. The final score of 32-20 was no indication of how poorly the Dragons played. It might have been a trial match but the St George-Illawarra Dragons have a lot of improving to do otherwise it’ll be a long year.

I felt sorry for Ethan who came to watch his favourite team, only for them to get smashed.

3 Generations attend T20 Big Bash

My parents had come to visit over the Christmas break and while they were visiting I thought it’d be nice if I took my father and my son to the cricket. Over the years Dad and I had attended many one-day games, but Ethan hadn’t experienced live cricket. We chose a T20 BBL game in Sydney. 

 Ethan had been watching the Aussies win the Ashes and could regularly name many of the players, so as game day arrived he was naturally excited. It was his personal goal to catch the ball as it was hit over the fence. Arriving at the ground early we were pleased with our seats which near the fence and in a good position for straight drive "6".

 The Sydney Thunder was playing the Brisbane Heat and while the ‘Thunder” hadn’t been playing well we were optimistic for a good result. The game started with plenty of crowd participation and the Thunder were fielding and bowling well. Ethan’s smile and excitement was worth admission and on one particular occasion the ball whistled over our head for a 6. Try as we might, we just couldn't get our hands on the ball.

 The “Heat” managed a score of 165 which was an achievable score for the “Thunder” and they started the run chase well, but true to form they quickly faded and when Mike Hussey was given out the writing was on the wall. Thankfully for us, the prospect of hitting one of the many beach balls that get thrown around the arena kept Ethan entertained as the cricket was going from bad to worse. The “Thunder” could only manage a dismal 117 all out.

 Unfortunately the result wasn’t our way but the cricket was a lot of fun and a great bonding session of 3 generations for the Bere’s.

Our kids and their sport

As proud parents, all we ever ask of our kids is that they try and do their best at whatever they apply themselves to. On the sporting arena our kids have taken to sports dominated by their gender. Sam is heavily involved with dancing while Ethan loves his soccer and athletics.

Since returning to dancing this year, Sam has been improving tenfold and this year has been a member of a dance troop which has competed in many dance estidfords. Her hard efforts have been rewarded with a 2^nd placing at one particular estidford.

Ethan is once again heavily involved in his soccer. He played indoor throughout the summer months and then quickly made the transition to outdoor soccer where he once again plays for Figtree. As an U8 the boys now have goalies, take throw-in and corner kicks, all of which Ethan has taken in his stride. Ethan with his lightning speed has fitted well into the right wing position and has scored a mountain of goals. He’s also been picked to play in a development squad which gives talented boys an opportunity to shine…. In both forms of the game he’s shown great potential.

On the athletics field both kids attended their school athletics carnival and while Sam enjoyed the experience and did her best, it was Ethan’s athleticism that shone through. He finished the day with a 2^nd in the 100 & 200m race and 1^st in the 400m race and equal 1^st in the discus. This achievement was enough for him to secure U8 age champion and a place on the team heading to the zone athletics carnival in August.

Once again we are very proud of our children’s efforts.

Ethan turns 7

One of the joys in my life is watching the kids grow up and as a proud parent I get great satisfaction in watching them enjoy the spoils of life’s adventures.

Over the past weekend Ethan celebrated his 7th birthday. He kicked off the celebrations with a few of his mates coming over for a small birthday party. In typical 7 year old fashion they were non-stop for 3 hours.
Saturday morning was soccer. This is Ethan’s first year playing and to-date, he loves it. In one of the best displays yet, Ethan played an absolutely fantastic game of soccer. His ability to weave past players, turn on the ball and tackle continuously was a pleasure to watch.

Sunday 24th was Ethan’s birthday and it was no surprise that he was up early in anticipation of receiving his presents. The joy on his face as he opened his presents and sat on his new bike are ones to treasure. The massive new Lego set won Ethan and for the next 3 hours we collectively assembled a new Lego Police station.

To complete the day we surprised Ethan by taking him watch the Matilda soccer team play the Ferns at WIN stadium. The Aussie girls put a good show and I was pleasantly surprised by their soccer ability. The 1-1 draw was a good result considering the Matilda’s were outplayed for most of the game.

Happy Birthday Little man.

State of Orign - Game 2

It has always been one of those sporting events that I’ve wanted to witness first hand, but have never got around to doing. That was until game 2 of the 2011 series. The NRL State of Origin QLD V’s NSW of recent years has been a lopsided affair with the better side QLD being victorious for the past 5 years. However a new coach and some passion to win have seen the NSW Blues eager to win a series.

Telstra Stadium at Homebush was the venue for game 2. NSW were already down 1 nil, so this match was do or die. Gloomy skies and cold nights had been the norm for the past week and game night looked to be the same. Whatever mother nature threw at us, we’d be ready. Plenty of warm clothes and raincoats were a must, but someone must have been shining on Telstra Stadium and the Blues that night cause everything was perfect.

82000 people had gathered for this game. A sea of blue was everywhere. The blue wig-brigade took up half the stadium and were all in fine voice, chanting New South Wales, New South Wales. It was an amazing spectacle and great to be a part of.

The game was played at a furious pace and QLD took an early lead and seemed to be on their ever-menacing rampage. Some of the hits from both teams would have most people dazed and concussed but these guys kept putting their body on the line time and time again. At half time it was 8-6 QLD.

The second half was a repeat of the first, both teams made line breaks and on a number of occasions a try was sure to result except for great defence. Eventually the relentless pressure by NSW resulted in a try out near our corner of the field. Almost all the 82000 fans went wild. Soward kicked the goal from the sideline and NSW lead 12-8. Could we tie the series, time would tell.
As the clock ticked down NSW hung onto their slender lead, but you knew the “never say die” attitude of QLD could not be underestimated and again QLD went extremely close to scoring a couple of times. However this time the luck was with NSW and with only minutes till full-time, Soward made a break and unselfishly passed to Minichiello who crashed over for the winning try. Soward added the extras for a 18-8 victory to NSW.

My first “at field” experience of S of O couldn’t have been better. A win for NSW and the series was alive going to game 3. The weather had remained fine and the 80000+ fans left joyfully and dry. What a great night.

V8 Supercars – Sydney 2010

This year’s Telstra 500 had a little more hype associated with it than last year, because this round would decide the championship. James Courtney had a slim lead of defending champion Jamie Whincup and nether team could sit back and watch what the other would do.

As with last year I headed up on the Saturday to par-take in the days’ activities. Cloudy skies with the forecast of rain were expected, this coupled with rain over the past few days had kept teams guessing on race setup. As we arrived on track the heavens had opened making the Fujitsu V8 cars very unstable as they tried to qualify for their race.

We watched a few laps before heading through some of the pavilions and onto the pits where we were amazed to see the biggest indoor pit garage I’ve ever seen. The pit pavilion housed 8+ B-double racecar transporters plus a double pit bay for each team, all this in air-conditioned comfort. It was great to get up close to the teams as they worked on their cars. Over the day we saw an engine change, some panel repairs and various other minor improvements.

As the race drew close we made our way around to “turn 11” which is at the back of the train station and is at the end of a 600m straight. We had a position right on the fence, which proved to be very entertaining.

The race started as per the script and from our position we got to witness numerous cars clip the concrete barriers, various overtaking manoeuvrers and a good 180deg spin. The race was marred with a number of pace car incidents that kept the racing exciting. Late in the race the weather played a big part in the outcome of the race and the championship with a downpour of rain catching most of the field on slick tyres, as the track became a skating rink. The resulting accidents and carnage saw over half the field retire from the race. Those that had played Russian roulette with the weather and gambled on wet tyres came to the front, giving rookie driver Jonathon Webb his first race win.

As always the V8’s proved to be very entertaining with the Sydney venue being a great spectacle.

September @ the Bere’s

What a month! it was filled with non-stop activities. Both at home and afar.
It all started with us undertaking a small project in our backyard. Our first vegie garden had the kids so excited, yet so frustrated. We cleared out the side passage of overgrown weeds and shrubs before sowing the soil in preparation. We then took the kids shopping where they bought some small seedlings, a tomato plant, zucchini, spinach and carrots for a start. The kids excitement turned to disappointment when the following day the vegies weren’t ready for picking….. How funny are kids.

The final round of the footy season saw us go and see the Parramatta Eels take on Auckland Warriors. It was our first game for the year and while the Eels couldn’t make the playoffs it was great to take the family. It was part of my fathers day gift and one I thoroughly enjoyed. The result didn’t go our way but to see my little man o enthusiast in his sport and to sit on my lap for the whole game was very special.

Fathers Day was a very special time for me. I had one of those days that will always be etched in my memory. We shared the day as a family and I received some lovely gifts from the kids and Leonie. After a lovely brekkie, and a bit of shopping, lunch on the road, we topped off the day by a nice dinner at home. While my day was very special the wind was blowing up a storm at home.

The Fathers day windstorm that lashed the Illawarra and South Coast resulted in our Unit having some 700+ request for assistance. By far it was our biggest event for the year, we had SES units, RFS strike-force teams and NSWFB brigades assist us complete the jobs which saw us operational for a week straight. During this time, I did 2-days as the OC-operations controller which was a huge initiation to my new role.

On Monday 6th Sept I was appointed to my new role within the unit. I am now the Deputy Controller – Rescue at Wollongong City. It’s something I never dreamed of when I first joined some 17 years ago. The role sees me as 2nd in-charge and responsible for managing the field response to all operations. It also had me in the hot seat on my first day as I had to do a media interview for WIN TV.

As the windstorm jobs wound down we were presented with a drenching of rain. So much so that we were placed on high alert for flash-flooding and another 60+ jobs were taken. Many jobs came from residents who didn’t realise they’d sustained damage from the windstorm. It would be another 3 days before finally we could close down SES.

The annual Petersborough Golf day was once again a huge day. A round of golf at Shellharbour Links followed by a luncheon at Shelley’s Workers resulted in great day. Considering the frequency of how much I’ve swung a club of late I was very happy with my golfing ability.

The windstorms of 2 weeks earlier had seen our Navrescue event cancelled but that didn’t stop SES, we were at it again. This time we were doing mapping assessments around the streets of Wollongong. It was pleasing to see all members deemed competent.

Not normally written in this blog but in late September I finally got out to a bit of caching. I hide 3 new caches in the Shellharbour area while last Sunday I managed 11 finds around the Campbelltown area.

School holidays started in the last week of September and the kids headed off to Grandma’s, which left Leonie and I to enjoy some quality time together. So much so that we took off to the lovely couples retreat at Bingle Tree for a 2-night stay.

As the month comes to an end, we are picking up the kids and heading off to QLD for a week. The kids are so excited to be going to Movie World, but that’s another month.

State of Origin in 3D

The first State of Origin against NSW and QLD this year was also the launch of 3D television. Me and 4 mates were fortunate enough to win tickets to see the game at an in-store promotion held at Joyce-Mayne Warrawong. The big lounges and in-store footy food certainly made you feel as those you were part of the crowd.

The concept of 3D TV sounds exciting but the reality is I don’t see the concept taking off. There are limited TV cameras at the sporting event so the viewers view of the game is different to those who watch the normal game, there were no replays and you have to watch the whole game with the special $100 glass’s on. Don’t get me wrong, it was a great experience to be a part of and the “depth of field” that 3D TV gives is unbelievable. The players had body and shape, while the crowd shots were incredible.

As for the game, well it wasn’t the result any NSW fan wanted to see. We were totally outplayed and the players must take the loss as a wake-up call. We as fans, deserve better.

Come on NSW.

V8 Supercar - Hot Lap

For anyone who has an interest in car racing at some point you would have dreamed about doing a hot lap around a racetrack. Yesterday, my dream became a reality when I was guest at the ‘888 Vodafone Racing Team’ sponsors day. At this point I must thank my very good friend for the invitation.

With the recent crowning of the drivers championship going to 888 racing there was a certain buzz in the air as we arrived at the track. I was a little naïve to what happened at these functions but when I seen people suiting up in race suits I had to wonder if my dream would become a reality. Sure enough, I was to get that lap.

After wandering the pit garages checking out the various teams offering their sponsors the same deal I was soon filling out the necessary paperwork and being fitted for a race suit, gloves and a helmet.

Time seemed to stand still as I waited for my turn but eventually it was my turn. Butterflies, anxiety, adrenalin and excitement all seemed to describe the way I felt. Here I was, being straped into the passengers seat of Jamie Whincup’s V8 supercar. After a few last minute instructions, we were off. Entering the track the first thing to hit me was the heat, with no air being channelled in my direction it quickly became hot and stuffy. Next thing was the acceleration and braking capabilities, its flat-out or stop in these cars and no sooner did we negotiate one corner, we were preparing for the next. The car is loud, very restrictive in personal movement and very quick. It took 3-4 corners before I had time to realise this boyhood fantasy was really happening. After that, I had time to have a look around, as best I could. I couldn’t see Jamie, I could only see his hands on the wheel, the shift changes, his legwork and the small telemetry display and obviously the view straight ahead.

As we roared around the track my senses were working overtime. The temperature, the smell of ethanol, the G-forces and the view seemed the make time now go so fast. The ripple strips were thumping under my seat, the lack of body roll is incredible and then theres’ the rush of speed as we thundered down the main straight. 250km/h is apparently how fast we were going, but with nothing to gauge speed against we could have been going more or less.

No sooner did my lap start and it was time to peel back into the pits and my 2 laps were coming to an end. After shaking hands with Jamie and thanking him I dragged my sweaty body from the car. “What a rush” but how do they do it, lap after lap.

A dream became a reality, thanks Rod.

V8 Supercars - Sydney

I’ve always been a fan of the V8 Supercars and on many occasions have made the trip to Bathurst or Eastern Creek. This year however saw the inaugural Telstra 500, held at Olympic Park, Homebush.

Looking at the schedule, Saturday looked like the best day to go, if we weren’t burnt out after a days car racing we could hang around to watch Cold Chisel. So with this in mind we arrived at Olympic Park nice an early on the Saturday. Great weather and big crowds were already present.

We soon heard the noise of the first cars roaring around the track and quickly took up a vantage point. The atmosphere of the event quickly sucked us in. This was exactly what Sydney had been looking for. After making our way through various pavilions we found a good spot on turn 1 to watch some racing. Here we could see the cars kiss the wall or opt out down the escape road.

In the afternoon we checked out a few more vantage points before settling on turn 2-3. This turned out to a crucial part of the track where drivers often out-broke their opponents into the dogleg corner.

After 74 laps Garth Tander was crowned the winner of the inaugural race. Our day ended watching a few more races and a walk through the merchandise tents.

City Vs Country

For the first time, the annual City Vs Country NRL game was held in Wollongong. A few of us from work decided to brave the cold weather and head along to last Friday nights game.

The game started fairly slowly and didn’t seem to have the hype of usual rep games. The crowd attendance was poor and those of us who were there stayed very quiet. Possibly due to the standard of football we were watching. At half time it was 16-6 to Country.

The second half proved to be a little more exciting, City stormed back to the lead and looked like winning the game, but Country who for most of the game were the better team made a late run and tired up the score. Both teams traded late field goals but neither team could land the elusive point and the game finished at 22-22 and was declared a draw under international rules.

Whilst it was good to get out and watch a game of footy, it certainly didn’t live up to expectations.