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Wednesday, April 29, 2009  

Timing a mountain bike race around Lake Hawea and personal responsibility

Over the last few months I've quietly been working on a timing database for a relatively new annual mountain bike race which was held last Sat., The Contact Epic.

It was quite a job and by the time it was all up-and-running six Macs were needed as we published to a plasma TV live and within minutes to the event's web site.

The thing I love about this race is the way my friends Dani and Aaron, the race organisers, have put the issue of personal safety and responsibility squarely, where it belongs, in the hands of those competing: There are no pre race bike checks for the course which is between 90-125 Km around Lake Hawea and a long way up the Hunter Valley, and no check on clothing and food - just recommendations. The course is very rugged and with lots of ups and downs with a serious river crossing and nearly all is very exposed to the weather. My friends in Wanaka Search and Rescue do monitor the remote sections and it's an invaluable exercise on checking our communication systems.

The start was at dawn and incorporated with an ANZAC Day Dawn Service on the Hawea Dam. It was very moving as light fell on the mist on the lake, with a prelude of classical opera singing [which seemed to de-amp many of the athletes]. I stood there before taking this shot with my iPhone, contemplating how my grand-father and father who served in the Boer War and WW2 respectively, survived the horrors and how they maybe would feel now, on moments like these, when we increasingly honour their fallen mates to the tune of a sombre bugle call...


My timing crew...


One of the first athletes home negotiating the height difference transtition into the Hawea Hotel's lovely back garden...


And the weather was great! 577 folk finished. There were some nasty falls this year which seemed due to drafting - where the person behind fails to anticipate the changing nuances of the track.

So after what was a 14+ hr. day for me, and the next day, Sunday I found myself enjoying the rest and the warm weather preceding a few days of forecast rain.

There was a bellbird in these trees in my backyard...




And while a bellbird's chorus comes from heaven, you should check out the surprise singing of an angel here: Susan Boyle

... if you'd like insights into why this angel has rocked the Internet: Bob Cringely explains

Gregor, thanks for the "heads up" on Susan.

posted by Donald  # 3:11 PM Comments: Post a Comment

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