Western Plains invites racers to 'boldly go'
- Last Updated: Friday, 06 July 2012 15:44
The second of the five Space Race missions set by Western Plains was manned by enthusiastic crews last Saturday.
Team Pleione (Samantha Wallace and Shannon Finch) came home first for the second week in a row. Team Electra (Kate Hagan and Samantha Smart) were second and Team Atlas (Robert Barwick and Jingming Chow) took third place. After the Space Race, adults were encouraged to try a little Star Trekking of their own. Nineteen sprinters (including some enthusiastic space cadets) were given a map and a different mission to finish as soon as possible. Robert Barwick rocketed home first (12:02), closely followed by Kerrie Mitchell (12:15) and Dale Wallace (12:32) took third place.
The next Space Race will take place at 8.30am (followed by the Star Trek at 9.30am) on the 3rd March at the Dubbo Christian School, Sheraton Road.
Police help Summer Series runner to world record time
- Last Updated: Friday, 06 July 2012 15:44
Shady spots at the latest Summer Series included one which was being staked out by police. Phil Harding, picking up controls at the end of the event came across a late model Mercedes which suddenly burst open and had men jumping out of the car and into the nearby bush, swiftly followed by the arrival of an unmarked police car full of gun toting constables who dashed after them. Says Phil 'in a short space of time, there were police everywhere.'
Being told that there were police dogs on the way as well, Phil picked up the controls as quickly as he could so he could 'move along' before the whole area was shut down. Late runner Richard Green came across Phil with his pots in hand, having come up short at the actual sites, so took advantage of the opportunity to bag the controls. With a quick one, two, 40 points were scored in what must be the fastest split between controls ever managed at a Summer Series.
Many thanks to Phil Harding, Ross Barr, Terry Bluett and The Manly Daily for the facts underpinning this world record event.
The O'Shea - having your cake and eating it too
- Last Updated: Friday, 06 July 2012 15:44
Twenty three teams competed for the traditional O'Shea pinetree cakes this weekend. There were new faces, some drawn in from the recent successful Central Coast Summer Series, well known faces who make this an annual family event, and some faces from as far away as Queensland.
The format this year 'deepened our experience with SI' said organiser Colin Price. The pairs relay on Saturday had both members of the team running two legs each, a running time of about 60 minutes in total for each competitor. This was followed by the night event where the fastest time of the team scored, meaning that both members of the teams had an incentive to run. 
Planners have helped to expand the appeal of this night event by making it shorter, simpler and predominantly on street maps. Sunday's score event tested the planning skill of the competitors; a single score course had to be divided between the two team members who then had to come in through the finish together.
Overall champions were Alex Massey and Damien Welbourne (Long Pair) and Gordon Wilson and Jai Di Tommaso (Short Pair). Full results can be found here.
Newcastle pair, Jenny and Damian Enderby make finals of 2011 Lake Macquarie Masters Sportsperson of The Year
- Last Updated: Friday, 06 July 2012 15:44
Newcastle pair, Jenny and Damian Enderby made it to the finals of the 2011 Lake Macquarie Masters Sportsperson of The Year. Although they were pipped at the post by worthy winner Libby Sowter, Jenny said 'it was still a great honour to get to the finals and rounded off a very successful year for us both.'
Damian is better known for his mountain biking activities, and he and Jenny have just returned from Adelaide where they were competing in the Australian Mountain Bike Championships. Sponsored by Thule, Jenny and Damian travel extensively to compete in both mountain biking and orienteering.
