Wonderful Achievement.

Here is a link to a nice little article about Taylor's school team winning the Counties Manukau Schools title. It was a wonderful achievement

You can read it here.

The final game they played was an absolute cracker and Taylor was the Captain for the day.  She is normally Vice Captain anyway but there captain was off injured.  Man I was   (as most parents were) a wee bit vocal. It was seriously thrilling and one of the games of the year for me personally, and trust me I have sat through a few!.

As anything with sports there are ups and downs and the following week with Taylor taking part in Auckland Trials she injured her leg in the game the day before and couldn't partake.  Thankfully she gets another chance next Monday.

It is great to see Taylor be a part of some great teams, creating memories for the future. Knowing what it feels like to be apart t of a team spirit, as well as  accepting the good, and the some times heart breaking experiences.  She is developing life long friends. And a passion for excellence.  

Of course the upside for me is that while she is  busy with football she has no time for boy friends...which is good cause I haven't got around to getting my gun license yet.

A view point.

I tend to keep my social commentary and personal points of view on sensitive topic to myself.

But a few days ago I found this open letter to the IOC penned by Stephen Fry.  It is well written and I think it is true.

I found it touched a relevant nerve.

There is an element of truth to what he says.

You can read his brilliant article here..Stephen Fry

I hope he does not mind me posting it!

Personally though,  the only effect a boycott would have, would be to punish the athletes who have worked so hard to get there.  

It is ironic when I think back to the Moscow boycott of 1980.....initiated by the USA opposing the Soviet  invasion of Afghanistan...

Overall, as much as I agreee with his thoughts, I would rather see sports and politcis not mixing.

Feel freee to voice an opinion..

The Perfect Corner.

Sunday once again was a wonderful day.  With winter all but non existent it was decided that a few of us would go for a social ride.  Andy on his k1300 r (affectionately called Brutus), Bruce on his VFR 800 ( affectionately called ..."underpowered"), a couple of other guys from IAM and Myself.  Andy is an observer and Bruce is all but, Brett and Peter, although yet to pass there test are both excellent riders.  

So all of us are heavily influenced by our IAM training, or more specifically "Road craft".

It was a day for just riding, no observing or debriefs, just a good ole fashion ride around some of the wonderful roads the west coast has to offer. 

It was while we were riding , and while I was following Bruce that we began to discuss the perfect corner.  The beauty of intercoms allowed us to discuss a few things while riding.

Bruce is a very talented rider, who demonstrates the art of cornering so precisely and elegantly it is  a pleasure to watch.  Of course it is a continuing process for all of us.  But from where I looked, when it is done well, it is a pure art form and a beautiful thing to behold.  Bruce is very very precise and carries excellent corner speed.  

It got me to thinking how much my riding has changed over the last few years. How my desire for smoothness, precision and perfection seems to encompass my riding so much now.  And I don't just mean when the roads are dry and the camber perfect.  

I mean when you come into a off camber, wet, shiny corner and and yet put your bike around it perfectly, exiting under throttle and feeling the bike drive out.  It is a wonderful feeling.  More importantly knowing why it felt good and being able to rinse and repeat at will.

Cornering on a bike, is one of my life's greatest pleasures.  It is why I ride.  I never perfect every corner exactly as I would like all the time, ...but that doesn't stop me from trying.  

On our way back Bruce was leading with me tucked in behind.  We managed to put a bit of distance between us and the others, but i warned Bruce that Andy loves a challenge and would only give us a few minutes before he would attempt to chase us down.....six minutes later Andy 's light appears in our mirrors....I love motorbikes.