. March 2018 .
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| The Crew |
Gidday!
Well.... this month has been a bit crazy! A bit of tripping about. Some catching up with friends and some fun partying! The Vancouver Sevens was a highlight. Some Waimate folk gather in a foreign land. St Patrick's day is always a good one. We had a visit from our Vancouver buddies
Oh, there was also a little bit of sport as well...sort of.
Some familiar visitors hit town as well.
Vancouver
We had been talking about going to the Vancouver Sevens for a while. This year we said "Enough talk, let's go!"
So we arranged to stay with Tonya and Russ (who live in Vancouver now) who were also going to the Sevens. We flew up on the Thursday so that gave us all of Friday to hang out and do something. Since there is a ski field about 10 minutes from their house, that got the vote!
Tonya, Michelle and Dave headed up there for the best part of the day. Being a Friday meant that it was a bit quieter, which was a good thing for those that hadn't been skiing for while! We were a bit rusty for starters since it had been about 4 years since last skiing, but it came back and we were soon feeling relatively comfortable.
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Dave stayed upright for most of it!
We had been up to Grouse Mountain once before so the place was reasonably familiar. It was amazing weather and they had plenty of snow as well. With it being quieter, there were no queues for the lifts so we had loads of runs down various slopes. Tonya and Michelle even went to the highest one thinking it was a blue run but realised too late that it used to be a black run - Michelle barely managed to stay upright but it wasn't pretty!! Next time they came down on a narrower run which wasn't as steep and much easier!
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Michelle and Tonya, ready to go!
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| It was pretty cool skiing so close to the city. Great views! |
We had a really cool time up in the snow. But by the end of the day we were starting to fade and the legs were starting to tire (especially Michelle's as she'd been dragged along with Tonya to a workout that morning which was quite different from what she was used to). Fortunately there was a nice bar/restaurant where we could unwind and practice the art of Apres Skiing. An amazing day!
Sevens - Day One!
Saturday morning was soon upon us. After a scrummy breakfast to prepare us for the day we donned our costumes - cows for the Kiwis and Leprechauns for the O'Connors - and headed to town.
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| Those Leprechauns really are strong! |
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| That's Terry Fox behind us |
We met up with a few more of Tonya and Russ's friends at the rugby. Let the fun begin!
Lots of crazy costumes and a great atmosphere.
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| The crew! |
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Marty the chicken - there were feathers everywhere!
Even on the second day there were still feathers floating about, and he wasnt even there on the Sunday!
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| Fun times! |
At some point during the day, Dave wandered off the get some more beers when a voice called out to him. It was Ken Edh who grew up (figure of speach...) in the same home town as Dave (Waimate, NZ). He was also in the Army in NZ while Dave was as well. What a small world it is! What are the chances?
Neither of them knew that the other was there, but Ken somehow recognised Dave (amongst about 30,000 people) wandering past in his Cow Suit! Lucky he didn't go the Udder way....
Anyway, the two Waimos had a good old chinwag and a couple of beers. If anyone is passing through Abbotsford (near Vancouver), look him up!
We even found some of our long lost heard!
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| "Moo-ving on up!" |
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| They lost Wally |
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Even the Rugby was great!
(On the first day anyway!)
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After the Rugby we headed out for dinner (Yes, still in our outfits). There were dressed up people all over town having fun. After dinner it was home for a quiet nightcap, which for some reason ended up in a marshmellow fight! Someone may have had one too many drinks...
Day Two!
Sunday morning was a little more challenging to get up to. But get up we did!
Different costumes for Day Two. Giraffe suits for the O'Connors and Pirates for us!
Russ's suit may have been a tad too short for him but it did the trick!
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| We had to walk through the neighborhood for a bit which raised a few eyebrows. |
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| Made it! All set for another big day! |
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| We were in |
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| Those pesky Fijians are everywhere! |
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| Found the criminal element - probably Australians. |
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Bumped into another mate of Russ and Tonya's (Richard).
We had met him a year or so ago when we went sailing around Vancouver island.
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| These guys made a real effort to dress up. So realistic! |
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| Hope he didn't notice that beer dribbling down his arm! |
Just when you thought there couldn't possibly be any other people from Waimate lurking about in Vancouver...
Another of Dave's High School buddies shows up! Glenda Morgan (now Granucci) who lives in Truckee (Lake Tahoe), just happened to be in Vancouver for the weekend. They met up after the rugby at a local bar.
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| It's been a while! |
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| Clearly some of us age better than others... |
Another bonus catch up for the long lost Waimos! It was very cool to catch up after so long.
Next up, time to call a taxi....
OK, so the Taxi didn't happen and we wandered into a bar instead and bumped into a bunch of Slappers. Or is it Flappers?
We can only assume that they were at the rugby too, otherwise we might have been in a different type of bar! We had a few drinks and a few games of pool with this lot before finally getting a taxi home.
So, we eventually made it home and spent Monday chilling (recovering), shopping, and packing for our trip back to Cayman that night. Before we left, Tonya cooked an awesome dinner! (Spoiled!).
It was a tired couple of Pirate/Cows that staggered off the plane in Cayman on Tuesday after flying through the night!
Randoms
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| The girls all dressed up for Leigh's birthday party! |
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| Marty & Leigh |
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| Me Ocker mate |
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| Dave had a birthday in March as well. The girls at his office organised a cake! |
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| Sam and Jake both made the Cayman Swim Team for CARIFTA 2018. Here's the team with the Councillor for Sports |
Irish 5k Jog
Dave took part in the Irish Jog fun run again this year. There is over a thousand people in it so it's a pretty big deal for a small island.
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Deegs did it in his Leprechaun suit....
Just like he did about 9 years ago (see below)
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| Our first Irish Jog in Cayman (2009) |
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| Nothing worse than being photo-bombed when you are stretching after a hard run |
Gaelic folk
The Gaelic crowd always have a big day on St Paddy's day. They play Gaelic (Irish v the rest), Gumboot (Welly) Throw, Tug 'o War and a few other competitions. Most of them involved a beer at least in close proximity.
Michelle played in the Ladies game. They came off second best, but it was very close, had a lot of fun, and quite a few Ciders after!
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| The Gaelic Crowd |
Aquathlon
(Yes - We know. We didn't come up with the name!)
The kids took part in the 'Aquathlon' the the afternoon of St. Paddy's day. Sam teamed up with Molly, and Jake &Tommy Teamed up. The Baileys would do the 600m swim leg and the Kehoes would do the run.
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| Jake comes out of the water in 3rd, or maybe 4th |
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| Sam wasn't far behind |
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| Tommy brings it home after his 2 miles |
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| Molly on the burst! |
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| Lisa had a team as well (Michelle just watched this time - lazy girl)! |
Tommy and Jake finished in 4th place over all. Molly and Sam would have been the first Female team in, but they didn't have a trophy for that. Maybe next year! A good effort though on a hot day!
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The Carifta team that took part in the Aquathlon were forced to stand and face the sun for several hours
as part of their training...
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| Down at one of the Irish Bars with Jacko...as one does. |
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| Caught up with Vania who was back in town briefly after being away for a few years |
They're Back!
So, about 10 days after leaving Vancouver, Russ & Tonya come down to Cayman for a week or so in the sun! They were accompanied by Skyler & Garrett, as well as Heather, Mike & Sam (Vancouverites who also came to the sevens with us). We have spent a couple of evenings hanging out with them, as well as a beach day followed by a day out on the water.
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| Friday night - The Mudslide maker is on a mission |
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| Saturday - The swim-up bar is working fine! |
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Michelle watches the sunset.
I guess she just wanted to get closer than everybody else.
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| A nice end to a nice day |
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| Sunday - off to Stingray City, Rum Point etc |
Just before the stingray got overly friendly and gave Michelle a huge hickey on her arm!
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| Jake exits the boat |
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| Catch! |
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Michelle got a nibble on the bicep from a Stingray.
Jake is being Jake
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| The Moray came out for the snorkelers! |
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| A quick stop at Rum Point for provisions |
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| Lining up said provisions |
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| Meanwhile Sam and Sky where hanging out with this lot |
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| Hanging out at Starfish Point |
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| Got it! |
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| Double trouble |
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Still showing that bite -
and Jake appears once again
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| Happy Crew! |
It was a fun day out. The weather behaved. Some of the revellers may not have.
Click here for more pics from our day on the water
Phew!
That was a fairly busy month! Time for a break!
Unfortunately we now have to pack up and head to Kingston (Jamaica) for Easter. The kids are swimming in the CARIFTA Games (Caribbean Champs). We will report on that in the April issue.
That was a fairly busy month! Time for a break!
Unfortunately we now have to pack up and head to Kingston (Jamaica) for Easter. The kids are swimming in the CARIFTA Games (Caribbean Champs). We will report on that in the April issue.
If you are interested, you can follow progress on the site(s) below (hopefully!):
Web page:
Streaming:
Results:
Psych Sheet - shows all of the events and the entry times for swimmers:
It kicks off on Saturday morning (Jamaica Time) with heats in the mornings and finals from about 5:30 pm each night until Tuesday
On Wednesday Jake heads to 'James Bond Beach' (of 'Dr. No' fame) to swim in the 5km Open water event.
So, that's a wrap!
Catch you soon!
Happy Easter!
