logo

We've been together so long and gone through so many experiences &ndash

Posted by admin   ·     ·   Jump to comments

We've been together so long and gone through so many experiences – some scary, some funny but on the whole just a great time. From living so close to be suddenly going our separate ways will be quite sad. Today was our last gym session – not being a great lover of the gym you would have thought I would have been over the moon – but there was a hint of sadness in every face.For me the memories are so numerous I can hardly pick particular moments out, but the frightening ones will always be there – the wild broach in the middle of the night in the Southern Ocean probably stands out. I was below getting undressed when it happened – getting back on deck my first thought was whether anyone was hurt or over the side – 10 seconds of complete panic as I tried to pick out who was still on deck and whether they were all OK followed by momentary relief as I found out everyone was still on board.Seeing our bowman Jason Carrington collapse on leg three and wondering if he had had a complete kidney failure or something equally serious was another situation I would not like to repeat. Dodging the ice on leg four belting along in the pitch black, completely out of control yet another.But nothing will dispel the good memories – the look on everyone's face when we achieved our first win in Auckland, the massive number of boats and people that came out to meet us when we arrived in Sweden, and the wild cheer as we got our first place prize at the prize giving in Gothenburg are just some of the recollections that will linger.The feeling of camaraderie after a race such as this cannot be put into words. It is simply something that will always be with me and the guys after being through so much together.Right now we are doing the final planning for the last leg – sail lists have been handed in and currents, winds and navigational hazards examined.

As with any other leg, no stone has been left unturned – the boat has been fully serviced, the boys have been in the gym and we are ready to do battle for the final time. Twenty four hours of hard work and that will be it.Even if we don't win and are left with second place overall I'll have been proud to have been involved with this campaign – its been a whirlwind of highs and lows, hard work, incredible endeavour, and altogether amazing sail-boat racing, all of which will provide me with much bar talk for many years to come.As for the future, right now I have no plans – I'm going home to chill out. I've got to mend the fence that blew down over the winter and feed my cats.. A short tram ride from the Pyramid Arena where Lennox Lewis and Mike Tyson were finally engaged in gloved combat last night Memphis was witnessing another clash of might and muscles, though this time the weapons were bat and ball.

The Memphis Redbirds and the Oklahoma Redhawks may be minor league as far as baseball is concerned but the sport they represent is currently embroiled in a Major League scandal. Unlike other major United States sports, American football, basketball and athletics, there is no official testing in spite of the Baseball Commission's desire to do so. The players' union will simply not agree to it, claiming it is an "invasion of privacy''.The only time the cheats are likely to be caught out is if they are selected for the Olympic Games, where the International Olympic Committee insist on testing competitors in all sports. So "baseball junkies'' can be banned from the Games – but not from their sport.Evidence of how America's favourite sport has become infested with drugs comes to light because a number of players have "blown the whistle'' on what goes on in the locker room.

readers comments

Comments are closed.

NBA

NBA

MLB

MLB

NFL

NFL

NHL

NHL

WWE

WWE

Your sideblock text goes here