aussie! aussie! aussie! oi! oi! oi!

BRRrrrrrr it was cold at 1:30 this morning when the bus pulled out from West End Aquatics and another group of Kiwi West Swimmers was let loose on an unsuspecting world!!!!!

The trip to Wellywood was uneventful with Eve “EVEL” Athersuch keeping even the most determined sleeper (me) from catching even the slightest bit of shuteye.

Arriving at 4am we looked great as we strode purposefully through the terminal to begin the worst part of any trip - the ole hurry up and wait! “Ladies and Gentlemen check in for our Sydney service will be delayed by about 10mins” which is airline speak for 1 hour of a line not moving.

All was not lost though as a person of indeterminate gender (Lets call him/her Pat) provided a floor show which had much less to do with talent and much more to do with bucket loads of “P” !!!!

The police came and had a wee chat with Pat who continued merrily/manically pirouetting through the check in process! (Keep an eye out for Pat later in the day!)

EVEL was clearly looking for an early lead in the ”Whose parent will cringe the most” stakes as she left her passport, boarding pass and departure card in the last loo before the border. Alert team managers covering the rest room averted chaos!

Sam Love was next to put a point on the board with his forgotten Up & Go breaching security and disappearing into the bin. Coach Andrew posted a point by leaving his passport at the Explosives random search and Jess Love added a point for Team Love by leaving her cell phone behind.

Onto the plane and much to the disgust of the keep of aeronautical knowledge Rumbal it was not the 737 model advertised on the Qantas website but a far inferior model! Pat was on our flight and the antics of the androgynous one in changing seats in a mini skirt was a giggle for all, just ask Alex, he was in the row behind.(just as well he wasn’t eating at the time)

Frustrated by not scoring any points Ben 10 (Elkington) checked yes on the swim flu monitoring form where it said do you have headaches? (And he does, just not today)So Ben got to say hello to the nice people at Sydney’s flu taskforce centre.

We made it through the rest of Sydney airport with no drama and settled in for the 4.5 hour flight to Darwin. Wiser heads changed into shorts before landing in 32 degrees and we rolled into an airport awash with Arafura Banners and volunteers who couldn’t be more helpful.

We changed plans and swimmers, Coach, Sara Jane and Denise went straight to the Causarina pool in a bus provided by the organisers. We shared the bus with some of New Zealands Paralympics development team (tennis players and wheel chair athletes) while Roger ,Tim and Donna took all the bags to Free Spirit resort in our vans and car.

The swimmers had a 1 ¼ hour loosen swim in the competition pool alongside the local Darwin Team. They looked awesome in their uniform all day and the drink bottles and personalised caps looked great at the pool. Coach had a live interview with ABC NT radio about the team and met with our team’s media liaison person.
An Aussie style BBQ by the pool for dinner here at Free spirit and the day is done.
The Managers and swimmers worked as a great team today through all the hiccups and laughter.

Tomorrow we visit the crocs !!

Take care
Andrew (Coach in the sun )

Darwin here we come....

The swimmers heading off to Arafura, had a training session yesterday afternoon afterwards there was a meeting to discuss safety, procedure and expectations. The swimmers were handed out their team uniform which included personalised named swimming caps, gear bags and tops.

The Arafura team will be leaving from the West End Pool car park at 1.30am on the 7th of May. Travel down to Wellington by Bus, fly up to Auckland over to Sydney then on up to the Northern Territory and Darwin.

After looking at different videos of the 2007 event. This is more than just a trip to Darwin or even a swimming event. It is going to be an amazing experience where they will interact with over 2,500 athletes from all around the world and take part in an opportunity most will never experience.

It’s been 2 years of preparation and a lot of hard work by many people. Kiwi West Aquatics would like to thank all of the members families and friends who have given up a lot of their time to ensure the success of the trip - Have a great time and enjoy the moment.

DAY 110 - SENIOR SWIM CAMP

Earlier this year as part of preparation swimmers travelling to the Arafura games in Darwin had to attend the Senior swim camp. The day started off with a training session at the West End pool followed by lunch then on up to Stratford.

Much of the training was spent at the Hawera 50m outdoor pool where the swimmers were put through their paces with an underwater video camera and analysis software used to help with stroke work

The first of the outdoor 50m sessions in the early morning and then after exhaustive preparations we are off to the beach for the day and back again for another session tomorrow night.

This is the type of day that will really challenge the swimmers not just in the workouts but also in their creativity as well as the Cadbury challenge kicks into gear with the sand sculpture competition.

The team have settled into the camp well, the Managers are functioning well and working great as a team and the coaches are getting into the nitty gritty.

Winner of the beach sculpture challenge went Jenna's team with their Mermaid sculpture. Jenna's team were also the overall winners of the Chocolate Challenge.

DAY 164 - Garage Sale

THANK YOU TO ALL OUR HELPERS

A Huge thank you to everyone who helped out with the Garage Sale on Saturday. Plenty of donated goods were sold, items left over of value will be listed on trade-me to be sold.

Kiwi Allstars have setup a trademe account as a fundraiser to sell any items members or friends of members may want to get rid of.

If you are planning a big clean out and dont mind donating your no longer needed items to a great cause keep us in mind.

We will be sending more details about how the trade-me fundraiser will work.

Keep an eye out for the Swim-a-thon in February 2009

DAY 201 - Swimming Schedule

click to view Swimming Schedule

The swimming competition will be held from Sunday 10 May to Tuesday 12 May, 2009. Separate events will be held for male and female swimmers in the following age groups: 12 years and under, 13/14 years, 15/16 years, 17 years and over, Open (limited events) and multi disability.

A swimmer may compete in his/her age group and open events only. An invitational 100 metre freestyle event will also be held. No entry standards will apply and heats will be seeded in accordance with FINA Rules.

The multi-disability events also incorporate the Oceania Open Paralympic Championships.

DAY 212 - ACCOMODATION

Team Accomodation
Free Spirit Resort in Darwin

The team accomodation has been booked at the Free Spiorit Resort in Darwin. The FreeSpirit Resort is a 4 star resort in Darwin, located 16kms south of Darwin CBD on the Stuart Highway. The cabins booked sleep 3 per cabin

The resort is only 13kms from the Darwin Airport. Palmerston (a common name) is only 3kms away. Set on 11 hectares of lush tropical landscaped gardens, the location and facilities are perfectly positioned to provide a relaxing haven to satisfy all needs, not 1 but 3 swimming pools to enjoy and our jumping pillow (for children of all ages, is the only one in the Territory).

MEALS
A huge task with most camps and trips is ensuring swimmers are provided with meals to fit around training and competions. The resort have agreed to provide meals at times of our choosing and provide a packed lunch for competitions.

Click link to view website Free Spirit Resort in Darwin

MAP LOCATION

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DAY 219 - Casuarina Pool

Arafura Games
Pool, Shopping Mall and Marrar Sports Grounds

click on the plus [+] or minus [-] synbols to zoom in and out, also click on the map and hold the button down to move around the map


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