So some bad news and some goods news. Bad news is that I got cut from the Lincoln University side, good news I have already found a new team to play for. I am now a proud member of Springston Rugby Football Club which plays in the Country competition. After I and a couple other guys got cut we were all left with the prospect of not playing or joining a country side. Waihora RFC was already full so we were told about Springston and their need for some back players. On Thursday I went to their practice and I think I have found a team I can enjoy and learn some good rugby. Springston is a real community team as I showed up early and watched all the kids from U-10 to U-18 train on the fields. After meeting the coach and a couple of guys, who were glad to hear I was a back, practice started by putting up the goal posts. Welcome to country rugby. After that we were led through fitness by an old farmer who was definitely more agile and flexible than any of us. We then went through practice and afterwards if you wanted you could go get a beer and a meat pie at the clubhouse. All the guys I met seem like very down to earth farmer types who play and train hard but also want to have a good time. What attracts me most of all is that I will get a lot of game time since that is probably the only and best way to improve. Fortunately there was no game this weekend so I will be able to travel with everyone else to Kaikoura to celebrate Alex's birthday and enjoy a weekend outside of Christchurch.
First Test: We had to answer 2 out of the possible 3 questions and write an essay for each answer. The test was alright I guess, don't really have anything to judge it on. The room was set out like a stereotypical english classroom test taking class and run by three very stereotypical old school english test proctors, very grouchy and unsmiling.
Otherwise not much else is happening.
Let me know how you all are,
Cheers,
Benja
Thursday, March 26, 2009
Saturday, March 21, 2009
No News is Good News
It has been a while since I have last written a post so I will try and re-cap on what has been happening in NZ.
Last weekend was alright. I stayed on campus and watched rugby on Saturday afternoon. I first watched the Lincoln Colts (U-21) and the Prem side play against Otago university. It was a trial game and there were not enough spots on the side so me and a couple of other guys were asked to sit it out but were guaranteed to play the next game on Wednesday. The colts lost 13-10 in a close game but the prem side got blown away by a really fit Otago team. So far all we do every practice is fitness training, which basically consists of various sprint drills for an hour straight. The speed of game here is a lot faster than the USA and since everyone has been playing since they were young handling is not worked on a lot, atleast not right now.
On Sunday I went with Nathan and Hannah to the Christchurch flower show, and it actually was a lot more interesting than I thought it would be. They had some really cool exepidtions that made you feel like you were underwater or in a pretty magical forest. Later we went to Winnie Bagoes, probably the best Italian restaurant I have ever been to. They have a lot of gourmet pizzas like Thai Honey Chicken that include sweet sauce, baby corn, peppers, onions, chicken, and although it sounds really weird is absolutely amazing. I don't think I have ever eaten pizza slowly because I wanted to savour every taste, but this and other dishes I have tried like Cajun chicken pasta are all just as good.
The school week went well, not very exciting. We had a good inclass debate in Practice and Management of Organics, where we were split into two teams and had to debate whether Organics has a postive impact on the environment. We had been working in our respective teams for two weeks before but the debate was interesting and the pros and cons of both conventional and organic methods were all brought to life using academic research.
On Wednesday we had our last trial game against High School Old Boys, a club from Christchurch. I played half the game as a winger and I had an ok game, however I need to work on my belief that I really do belong out on the field with everyone else and not second guess myself because I have not been playing as long. We lost the game 30-10 however that is mostly due to them having a huge forward pack. One of their props was 6 foot 6 inches and weighed 286- 308 lbs or 130-140 kg. Although this guy looked like a giant obese baby he was really strong and mobile getting out to the wings and centers and yeah basically it was a bitch trying to tackle him. Each of his legs were the size of my waist. Anyways it was a good game and we learned a lot as a team.
Yesterday (Saturday March 21) Nathan and Lori and I went into Christchurch and spent the afternoon walking around the shops and just enjoying the day. Later that day we met up with the majority of our group and made our way to Winnie Bagoes. This was the third time I had been there and it is still amazing. Everyone really enjoyed their meals however Nathan, Brad, and I decided that we wanted to watch the new Underworld movie at the cinema in Riccerton, a suburb of CHCH. We made it to the bus exchange with 2 minutes to go, Brad with his pizza in a box, got the the cinema, waited in a long line, got our tickets, got to the theatre and only had to waita few minutes before the adverts started. Basically our timing was perfect. Unfortunately after the movie we realized we missed the bus back to Lincoln by 3 minutes and since the next bus arrived an hour later started walking back to lincoln. We walked for a good 5o minutes before we got to a suitable bus stop and took the bus back home. Over all a really good day.
Sunday: Had a 10 am morning practice today, as usual it was fitness, but overall it went well. We did a couple new drills that I am going to tell Coach back at Cornell about but otherwise nothing exciting. We find out on Tuesday which of the two colt teams we have made so hopefully everything works out.
So that is everything from me. Let me know how you are all doing and don't forget to write.
Cheers,
Benja
Last weekend was alright. I stayed on campus and watched rugby on Saturday afternoon. I first watched the Lincoln Colts (U-21) and the Prem side play against Otago university. It was a trial game and there were not enough spots on the side so me and a couple of other guys were asked to sit it out but were guaranteed to play the next game on Wednesday. The colts lost 13-10 in a close game but the prem side got blown away by a really fit Otago team. So far all we do every practice is fitness training, which basically consists of various sprint drills for an hour straight. The speed of game here is a lot faster than the USA and since everyone has been playing since they were young handling is not worked on a lot, atleast not right now.
On Sunday I went with Nathan and Hannah to the Christchurch flower show, and it actually was a lot more interesting than I thought it would be. They had some really cool exepidtions that made you feel like you were underwater or in a pretty magical forest. Later we went to Winnie Bagoes, probably the best Italian restaurant I have ever been to. They have a lot of gourmet pizzas like Thai Honey Chicken that include sweet sauce, baby corn, peppers, onions, chicken, and although it sounds really weird is absolutely amazing. I don't think I have ever eaten pizza slowly because I wanted to savour every taste, but this and other dishes I have tried like Cajun chicken pasta are all just as good.
The school week went well, not very exciting. We had a good inclass debate in Practice and Management of Organics, where we were split into two teams and had to debate whether Organics has a postive impact on the environment. We had been working in our respective teams for two weeks before but the debate was interesting and the pros and cons of both conventional and organic methods were all brought to life using academic research.
On Wednesday we had our last trial game against High School Old Boys, a club from Christchurch. I played half the game as a winger and I had an ok game, however I need to work on my belief that I really do belong out on the field with everyone else and not second guess myself because I have not been playing as long. We lost the game 30-10 however that is mostly due to them having a huge forward pack. One of their props was 6 foot 6 inches and weighed 286- 308 lbs or 130-140 kg. Although this guy looked like a giant obese baby he was really strong and mobile getting out to the wings and centers and yeah basically it was a bitch trying to tackle him. Each of his legs were the size of my waist. Anyways it was a good game and we learned a lot as a team.
Yesterday (Saturday March 21) Nathan and Lori and I went into Christchurch and spent the afternoon walking around the shops and just enjoying the day. Later that day we met up with the majority of our group and made our way to Winnie Bagoes. This was the third time I had been there and it is still amazing. Everyone really enjoyed their meals however Nathan, Brad, and I decided that we wanted to watch the new Underworld movie at the cinema in Riccerton, a suburb of CHCH. We made it to the bus exchange with 2 minutes to go, Brad with his pizza in a box, got the the cinema, waited in a long line, got our tickets, got to the theatre and only had to waita few minutes before the adverts started. Basically our timing was perfect. Unfortunately after the movie we realized we missed the bus back to Lincoln by 3 minutes and since the next bus arrived an hour later started walking back to lincoln. We walked for a good 5o minutes before we got to a suitable bus stop and took the bus back home. Over all a really good day.
Sunday: Had a 10 am morning practice today, as usual it was fitness, but overall it went well. We did a couple new drills that I am going to tell Coach back at Cornell about but otherwise nothing exciting. We find out on Tuesday which of the two colt teams we have made so hopefully everything works out.
So that is everything from me. Let me know how you are all doing and don't forget to write.
Cheers,
Benja
Monday, March 9, 2009
D-Day
Today the weather was really beautiful and right before practice the sky turned grey and dark clouds started to gather. We all turned up at the field with the cold wind around us and started to warm up. As soon as warm ups were over it started to gently hail and we were all moved indoors for the announcement for this Saturday's game. I didn't make the team. To be honest I could kind of see this coming, I had a shitty trial day and my opponent for the position is on a scholarship at the school so they have an invested interest in him. Nevertheless we were told that we would still play a game next Wednesday against a local team, maybe that will be my chance to impress...it pretty much is my only hope if I want to continue to be an active part of the team. If I am cut from the team next week then I will just go and play for one of the country teams, however I hope it does not result in that...the shitty weather definitely represents my feelings and I could not help but imagine the other fullbacks face when we had a 40 minute boxing session after we were told the news...I guess I just have to get faster and stronger, however I am already as fast and 8 kg heavier then my opponent...not to brag but right now I feel like I am getting into some of the best shape of my life. I've been lifting and running hard since I have arrived and my hall mates have already said that I look like I've lost weight however the scale remains the same, I definitly feel leaner and stronger. Anyways I know you all wanted to hear if I made it or not. It's not what I wanted to tell you but it isn't over yet.
Sunday, March 8, 2009
pictures from Hanmer Springs
Car ride to Hanmer Springs
On the hike
Messing around on the hike
On the way to the waterfall
The water fall
Waterfall
Under the waterfall
Saturday, March 7, 2009
Hanmer Springs and the last Trial
Yesterday Nathan, Jennifer, Sarah, Mandi, Rachel, Hannah, Julia, and I piled into Jennifers's Mitsubishi Chariot and headed to Hanmer Springs, home of the hotpools. The drive over took around two hours and as always the New Zealand landscape did not fail to impress. One moment that particularly struck me was a small crystal blue stream running through a emerald green pasture with the mountains in the distance. It really looked like something out of a story book.
Hanmer Springs is a very touristy town (read a couple of streets) and was very full. We couldn't get beds at the hostel but we found a house that was on a nightly rent of $150, with 7 people staying over it cost each person as much as the hostel would have plus they would get real beds, free milk, and two TVs with all the channels, over all an absolute steal. The reason that 7 people were staying and not 8 is because I had to leave later that afternoon to get back to Lincoln so I would not be late for my trials the next day. The earlist bus in the morning left too late so I had to cut my time short.
Regardless in the next 5 hours we all went on a 2.5 hr hike up the side of the mountain to reach a 40 meter waterfall that was just magical. I'll put pictures up in a little bit once everyone else arrives back. After that we went on a short 30 minute hike in the fir trees at the base of the mountain. New Zealand doesn't fail to amaze me in the variety of the nature. Two weeks ago we were in the west coast in tropical forest and yesterday we were in a real temperal forest and these two places are seperated by one mountain chain.
Trial Day: Where to start.... You remember the receiver in the movie The Replacements, the one who couldn't catch, that was basically me today. I wouldn't drop the ball but I would fumble it before getting control each time. However I had a couple of good runs and I think coach could see I was better then how I played. In the 3rd quarter I switched teams with the other fullback, hopefully it was just because he wanted to see what the other fullback could do and not because I kept fumbling. My new team was pretty dejected and kept conciding tries, but I constantly kept trying to rally them and keep their spirits up. Basically not to give up hope. I know the other fullback was very mute so hopefully this will go in my favor. When I was on the other team I aslo took a pretty big knock to the head (Don't worry Mor I was not concussed). I went into a ruck and either collided heads with someone else or someone's knee, but what I do know is that I hit the left side of my head hard and my left side was tingling for a while, eventually it went away but I was definitely left rubbing my noggen for a bit. At the end of the game Coach could see I was shaking my head and I explained that I didn't know what was wrong with me today and that my hands were acting up on me, he laughed and asked if I knew what YouWho (not sure of spelling) was, I didn't and he chuckled and said Glue. Hence I am the receiver from Replacements. We find out of Tuesday what the teams for the game next week are, if I do not get into the first Colt side I'm just going to have to work and practice hard and push the other fullback for his position...we will see.
Don't forget to write,
Love you all,
Benja
Hanmer Springs is a very touristy town (read a couple of streets) and was very full. We couldn't get beds at the hostel but we found a house that was on a nightly rent of $150, with 7 people staying over it cost each person as much as the hostel would have plus they would get real beds, free milk, and two TVs with all the channels, over all an absolute steal. The reason that 7 people were staying and not 8 is because I had to leave later that afternoon to get back to Lincoln so I would not be late for my trials the next day. The earlist bus in the morning left too late so I had to cut my time short.
Regardless in the next 5 hours we all went on a 2.5 hr hike up the side of the mountain to reach a 40 meter waterfall that was just magical. I'll put pictures up in a little bit once everyone else arrives back. After that we went on a short 30 minute hike in the fir trees at the base of the mountain. New Zealand doesn't fail to amaze me in the variety of the nature. Two weeks ago we were in the west coast in tropical forest and yesterday we were in a real temperal forest and these two places are seperated by one mountain chain.
Trial Day: Where to start.... You remember the receiver in the movie The Replacements, the one who couldn't catch, that was basically me today. I wouldn't drop the ball but I would fumble it before getting control each time. However I had a couple of good runs and I think coach could see I was better then how I played. In the 3rd quarter I switched teams with the other fullback, hopefully it was just because he wanted to see what the other fullback could do and not because I kept fumbling. My new team was pretty dejected and kept conciding tries, but I constantly kept trying to rally them and keep their spirits up. Basically not to give up hope. I know the other fullback was very mute so hopefully this will go in my favor. When I was on the other team I aslo took a pretty big knock to the head (Don't worry Mor I was not concussed). I went into a ruck and either collided heads with someone else or someone's knee, but what I do know is that I hit the left side of my head hard and my left side was tingling for a while, eventually it went away but I was definitely left rubbing my noggen for a bit. At the end of the game Coach could see I was shaking my head and I explained that I didn't know what was wrong with me today and that my hands were acting up on me, he laughed and asked if I knew what YouWho (not sure of spelling) was, I didn't and he chuckled and said Glue. Hence I am the receiver from Replacements. We find out of Tuesday what the teams for the game next week are, if I do not get into the first Colt side I'm just going to have to work and practice hard and push the other fullback for his position...we will see.
Don't forget to write,
Love you all,
Benja
Wednesday, March 4, 2009
Gondola and other news
Last Saturday I went with Nathan and the Missou girls to the Gondola just outside of Christchurch. As soon as we arrived it started to drizzle and I have now become convinced that whenever I go on a hike or any other outdoor activity outside of rugby the weather has to be overcast, foggy, and rainy. We decided to walk up the mountain side and take the gondola down. The walk was very steep and picturesque even in the poorer weather and gave us an incredable view of Christchurch and Littleton when we were about half way there. There were a number of memorials along the way in rememberance of the first pioneers (women and children of Littleton) who climbed the moutain and looked down in awe and courage of making their future in NZ. Unfortunately we did not walk behind the memorial and continue on the trail to the gondola but walked along the road hoping it would wind up, it didn't, so we turned back, corrected our mistake and reached the gondola just when the weather turned really bad. At the top we were supposed to see a wonderful 360 degrees of the surronding area but thanks to the fog visibility was 0. After a nice and deserved hot chocolate we made our way down via the gondola, which was a little eerie since you couldn't see anything, and made our way home. On the way back we realised we would not be able to make dinner in time so we ate at a nice Italian restaurant and came back to the dorms wet but satisfied.
Sunday: Rugby Trials! They went well as the post before mentioned, practice has continued and I do think that Colts is the right place for me. We haven't done so much tackling or game situations, rather we have focused more on fitness, but I think that in a week or two it will get a little more intense and more demanding.
Tuesday: Field Trip day. At Lincoln every two weeks the tuesday is a field trip day for the whole school. Therefore if you do not have a field trip then you do not have class. I had a field trip out to a sheep farm but I later realised that it was optional and I didn't really need to be there. Regardless it was interesting to hear the farmer speak and tour his farm looking at the pastures, soils, management systems etc. Unfortunately the weather again was against me and I think I am going to invest in a pair of Gum Boots so that my socks can stay dry and I don't risk getting foot rot.
On other news I have been learning a couple of NZ slang words. First off we have "Mint" this is the equivelant of "cool" or "awesome" in the US. So someone can reply "that's mint" or just "mint". Another saying which I enjoy more is "Sweet As." this can also be used in replacement of cool, awesome, sure, etc. So when someone says something and you agree you can just say Sweet As. Other observations are that the door knobs are really low in NZ, between your knee and your fingers when you straighten your hand. I've gotten used to it but it was pretty annoying in the beginning since you had to awkwardly bend to open the door.
Otherwise feel free to write and stay in touch. Cheers.
Sunday: Rugby Trials! They went well as the post before mentioned, practice has continued and I do think that Colts is the right place for me. We haven't done so much tackling or game situations, rather we have focused more on fitness, but I think that in a week or two it will get a little more intense and more demanding.
Tuesday: Field Trip day. At Lincoln every two weeks the tuesday is a field trip day for the whole school. Therefore if you do not have a field trip then you do not have class. I had a field trip out to a sheep farm but I later realised that it was optional and I didn't really need to be there. Regardless it was interesting to hear the farmer speak and tour his farm looking at the pastures, soils, management systems etc. Unfortunately the weather again was against me and I think I am going to invest in a pair of Gum Boots so that my socks can stay dry and I don't risk getting foot rot.
On other news I have been learning a couple of NZ slang words. First off we have "Mint" this is the equivelant of "cool" or "awesome" in the US. So someone can reply "that's mint" or just "mint". Another saying which I enjoy more is "Sweet As." this can also be used in replacement of cool, awesome, sure, etc. So when someone says something and you agree you can just say Sweet As. Other observations are that the door knobs are really low in NZ, between your knee and your fingers when you straighten your hand. I've gotten used to it but it was pretty annoying in the beginning since you had to awkwardly bend to open the door.
Otherwise feel free to write and stay in touch. Cheers.
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