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| The garden gnome at the back? That's me!! |
As I wrote yesterday, it was the Norwegian national holiday yesterday and one part of the celebrations is the so called Kapproing (rowing race). The first year we came in second, something we thought was very good since it was our first time! Then last year we did even better and came in first. We were so proud of ourselves because we had done good.
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| I am never the most elegant getting out of a boat |
So, our hopes were high for this year. Yes, we had one new guy on the team, but he was a good solid guy that could keep rowing for six minutes without any problem. All the others had been on the team at least once before so everybody knew the drill. A good start, hard rowing until a good turn and then hard rowing on the home strait. We even had the same boat!
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| The average age was 69 and you had to have had at least 2 heart surgeries to be on this team |
Unfortunately the same boat was a little bit off this year. We had already changed one oar with the pink boat (it got broken last year by an overzealous rower) and we had found some oar holders that actually were good. Also from the pink boat. And then on Friday during our last training, we found that our oar holders had been stolen! Three of them were ruined. The oars could fly out at any point.
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These (hunky) firemen didn't have any oar or timing trouble.
They beat everybody! |
Today during the race, two of our rowers had severe trouble with the oars. They 'lost' their oars twice each and each time it happened the rower behind them and to a lesser degree the rower in front of them was hindered. Which caused timing problems: the left was out with the right for part of the race and in the end we made it in 06.44. A time that was 40 seconds slower than last year!
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| The mixed team winners |
And the beggars of the title? Well, there are several beggars in town and they had been roped in by a church charity. They weren't that good, but they didn't have to fight the oars and finished before us! They won! In other words, they were better than we were!!
Next year we will have to make certain the oarholders are perfect. And the timing. And the oars. Because the rowers were perfect!
Nice title. Hope you had fun despite the problems.
ReplyDeleteDespite the problems you certainly had a lot of fun !
ReplyDeleteWow, I wish I was out there going swimmie with everyone! BOL
ReplyDeleteGrr and Woof,
Sarge, Police Commish
Nobody swam! It was way too cold, plus there is quite a current. And that current will take you out to open sea within no time at all! The banks are really high as well, which means I always have trouble getting back on land.
DeleteHari OM
ReplyDeleteI guess Sarge, with his fur coat, wouldn't have worried about the temp! Still, I think you did wonderful just to enter and to get to the end - in spite of the hurdles!!! YAM xx
Hurdles? Good heavens no, those weren't there. We were on water you know and it was a straight line in and a straight line back. Unless you were rowing with the Salvation Army: they thought a zig-zag line was more to their liking!
DeleteBut I do understand the hurdle thing and next year we will not have any of those hurdles and there will be just a tiny bit more training and a perfect boat next year.
Ok, so our fur-ends in South Africa, Wally and Sammy, were saying on faceybook yesterday that there was a Norwegian parade in their gardens! In South Africa! Don't fret about those 44 seconds. You'll get em next time!
ReplyDeleteThere were Norwegian parades all over the world. The funniest one I saw was one where a group of about six men from one of those arctic stations picked up their flags and walked around the building they were staying in a couple of times.
DeleteOh, and we will get them next time! Because this was really bad.
How kind of your team to have shared the honors this year!
ReplyDeleteWell, that would be one way of looking at it. Like saying we came in second and then not mentioning there were only two teams in our class!
DeleteCrikey ..... your boat was SABOTAGED!!!!!!!!!!! How bad is that?? Mind you the pink oars looked great! Nice contrast with the green, aye?? Shame about the sheila in the orange cap. What was SHE thinkin'? You did really well considering your boat was SABOTAGED!!!
ReplyDeleteThis boat race certainly looks like lots of fun...and despite the missing oar holders sounds like you had fun anyway! Norway...Hey! My mom's great grandparents on her fathers side came from Norway!
ReplyDeleteoh dear. Lots of work needed then to regain the crown next year.
ReplyDeleteSo sorry for the troubles you encountered during the race. I'm sure that next year you will win!
ReplyDelete