Saturday, March 10

In the early morning, Tom volunteered at a local bike race – he was a “handler” which means you make sure that people don’t walk across the course during the race.

It was a beautiful day, so we decided to go out to the beach to watch the Nutri-Grain Ironman competition. This is not the triathlon kind of Ironman, but instead a surf lifesaving event that is held all summer, culminating in the championships that just happened to be held at our “local” beach this year. The field had been narrowed to 18 – men & women – and believe me, these young people are FIT. Baywatch has nothing compared to these specimens. The competition consists of swimming, surfboard paddling and rowing something they call a “ski” which looks like a cross between a kayak and a rowing shell. There are three rounds – each round includes all three disciplines – and there is only a 5 minute break between each round. Buoys are set up out in the ocean at varying distances, and the competitors must swim/paddle/row around the buoys in a race for the shore, where they run around the grandstand before starting the second and third section of the round.

I have a hard time imagining doing any of these three things once, let alone all of them three times in a row. Each round eliminates 6 contenders, so the final heat is a race between the top 6. The competition is fierce, and there is substantial prize money to be won. The competitors are Australian lifeguards (called surf lifesavers) at various beaches and they come from all over the country to compete. The woman that won did so for an unprecedented 4th time – a new record - and her friends and family were in the grandstands to cheer her on. It’s such an accessible event - little kids line the edge of the area where the competitors run, and the contestants high-five the kids as they go by. Very typical of Australian family and sportsmanship values.

We’ve been having a great time with our entertainment book – picking out restaurants in different areas to try. This is a city with a wonderful “eating out” culture, so there are lots to choose from. It’s also a place with plenty of al fresco dining, so we try to take advantage of that whenever we can.