Category: Sport

My two favourite types of sport are cricket and motor racing but other sports may get a mention in this category.

Snapshot Sunday: The Cricket World Cup

It’s hard to believe that it is four years since the men’s Cricket World Cup was held in Australia and New Zealand. Although David was sick as the tournament began I was able to attend a match in Hobart and eagerly watched the matches in other states and in New Zealand on TV. This time around it is being held in England and Wales and I have subscribed to a sports channel for a month so I can watch it. I watch a game most evenings even if Australia is not playing; might as well get my money’s worth. As the matches start in the early evening our time and go on till 2 or 3 am I don’t always stay for the end, there are handy replays the next day. The format of the tournament is a bit different from the last time and I have rather missed seeing Scotland, Ireland, the Netherlands, and Zimbabwe although Afghanistan and Bangla Desh are participating. As it is summer in England it is, of course, raining a lot and several matches have been completely rained out which is a pity as it may affect the outcome. In the event of a washout, teams are awarded a point each. Australia has been lucky not to have had a match washed out so far. It is a shame for the fans at the ground who sit in the rain all day hoping for some cricket until the officials finally decide it is too late to play.

My photos are from matches that I attended at Blundstone Arena in Hobart in the past. I haven’t been to a match in a couple of years now and don’t know if I will ever be able to attend another.

  • Blundstone Arena under a cloudy sky.
    Blundstone Arena under a cloudy sky.
  • The World Cup Trophy
  • Michael Clarke during the Australia v Scotland pool game at Bellerive Oval, Hobart
  • Steve Smith on the field at Bellerive at the Australia v Scotland World Cup Match in 2015.
    Steve Smith on the field at Bellerive at the Australia v Scotland World Cup Match in 2015.
  • Mitchell Starc – Australian Fast Bowler – Bellerive Oval March 2015

Cee’s Fun Foto Challenge: Hands

Human Hands

The last time I did a challenge involving hands I was able to go out and find a few interesting models or photos of hands but not this time. It’s been very wet for the last few days and doesn’t look like improving.

I wondered if it was possible to take a photo of my own hand. It is if you use a smartphone and hit the button with the knuckle of the other hand while using it to hold the phone. Not the most flattering photo of my hand but it worked.

My hand

Looking back over my old cricket photos I found some featuring hands. These were all taken at a match I attended in 2010.

Mitchell Johnson

Michael Clarke and Ricky Ponting.

Ricky Ponting Bellerive Oval 2010

 

The Sydney to Hobart Yacht Race 2018

Today I made my second trip to Hobart to see the yachts that had completed the race. On Friday when I was there only the four super maxi’s had arrived so I knew I would have to do a second trip. The last yachts arrived this morning, New Year’s Eve, apart from half a dozen who had retired for mechanical reasons during the race.

The Line Honours winner this year was once again “Wild Oats XI” who survived not only a very tight battle with the other three super maxi’s but a protest after the finish. Never a dull moment with Wild Oats XI.

Sydney Hobart Line Honours Race Winner 2018

She was followed in by “Black Jack”, “Commanche” and “Infotrack”.

  • Second placegetter Black Jack
  • Third place getter Commanche
  • Fourth place went to Infotrack

Handicap winner was “Alive” who was the fifth yacht over the line. “Alive” is a Tasmanian owned yacht, one of three Tasmanian yachts who started the race. Unfortunately, this was one of the yachts I was not able to find.

As everyone had arrived by the time I got to the wharf this morning there was not so much frantic activity. Some crews were doing maintenance or packing up gear for the return journey, others were entertaining friends on board their yachts. Other yachts were empty and sitting quietly waiting for the return trip. There were a few empty spaces so I supposed that some of those yachts might have been out sailing as there are a few local races on the Derwent or they might even have left for the return trip although most competitors like to celebrate the New Year in Hobart. I did not spot “Wild Oats XI” today, so if she was not out on the Derwent she had probably left for her next race. You don’t often see her after the official presentation.

Even so, there were a lot of people about looking at the yachts and a lot to photograph as I wandered about looking for my favourites and for any other interesting ones. Patrice is a regular competitor I’ve come to recognise because there is always a large teddy bear on board. I noticed several other teddies on deck and when I read up on her I found that the crew of Patrice have been supporting a kids cancer charity for the past ten years.

Patrice raising money for kids with cancer.

I thought a bit about names, it’s interesting what people name their yachts. The most boring ones are those who race under a sponsors name. Some like macho names like “Gunrunner”, “Smuggler” or “Daredevil”.  Some names are traditional for their owners like “Helsal” and “Ragamuffin”. “St Jude” is probably a nod to the fates. Quetzalcoatl must have been named to annoy the race commentators who have to try and pronounce it. My favourite this year was the unfortunately named “Trumpcard”. Someone had put a piece of tape over the name and renamed it “Wild Oats XII”.

  • Quetzacoatl
  • Quetzacoatl
  • St Jude
  • Trumpcard

There were not many overseas entries this year but I did find a few, from the USA, China, and Germany.

  • Noah’s II from China
  • An entry from the New York Yacht Club
  • Joy Ride, Seattle WA
  • An entry from Hamburg, Germany

I took a lot more photos of the race fleet today so I may post a few more of them another day.

Snapshot Sunday: Wild Oats XI

Sydney Hobart Line Honours Race Winner 2018

Here is the line honours winner of the Sydney Hobart Yacht Race for this year. Yes, it is Wild Oats XI again. The four super maxi’s that finished the race arrived on Friday morning and this photo was taken just a few hours later on. I’ll have a full wrap up of the race in the next couple of days after I’ve been back to Hobart to take pictures of the rest of the fleet.

Cee’s Black & White Photo Challenge: Field

Sports Fields

I decided to make sports fields the theme of this post. All the ones pictured are used for multiple sports but I have only visited in summer to watch cricket.

This photo was taken in 2010, my first ever time at a cricket match and the first time I had seen inside Bellerive Oval. There is a big new grandstand where the two small ones are now which is a shame in a way because you can’t see the mountain as well as before.

My first visit to Bellerive Oval in 2010. It looks very different now.

In the lead up to the Cricket World Cup practice games were held at suburban grounds. This was at Kingston and I especially liked the way the ground staff had prepared for the game which was between Scotland and Tasmania.

patterns in the grass. Kingston Oval.

Another first for me was to travel to Launceston on my own to see a charity cricket match at Aurora Stadium.

Aurora Stadium, Launceston, Tasmania

This one was taken at the playing fields at Rupertswood, a grand old house in Sunbury, Victoria. Cricket history has it that the legend of “The Ashes” began here. Apart from the modern lighting towers, this place has not changed a lot.

Playing fields at Rupertswood, Sunbury, Victoria

On the same trip to Victoria, my friends and I went on a tour of the Melbourne Cricket Ground.  It was not a match day and I am unlikely to ever see any cricket played there because I won’t go to the mainland in summer if I can avoid it. However, I can imagine these empty stands full of excited fans on Boxing Day the traditional first day of the post Christmas Test Match because I have seen it many times on television.

The Melbourne Cricket Ground.

Snapshot Sunday: King of the Mountain

Peter Brock at an F1 support race in Adelaide.

The late Peter Brock’s Holden Commodore on the Adelaide circuit.

Today the day of the Bathurst 1000 motor race an iconic race for Australian motor sport fans.

David and I used to watch the race on TV every year. He loved it, probably as much for the history of it as the actual racing. As time went on I didn’t watch the whole race as it goes on for several hours but would just stop every now and then to get an update.

Since he’s been gone I’ve put the TV on in the morning for the start and watched a bit. This year for the first time I didn’t do that. I haven’t been watching the series all year and many of the drivers are unfamiliar to me. It feels a little weird as it’s been such a long-standing tradition but in truth I don’t feel the same about it any more.

My photos today are two old ones, not taken at Bathurst but at the Adelaide Formula 1 Grand Prix where the V8 Supercars were a major support event. Pictured is Peter Brock who won Bathurst 9 times;  more than any other driver.

 

A Photo A Week: Action

It’s Not Just Cricket

I do enjoy action photography although I find it quite difficult. We used to go regularly to the Australian Grand Prix when it was held in Adelaide and I took many photos there, most of them still not on the computer as this was in the days of film.

Between 2010 and 2017 I practiced my skill at capturing moving objects at  cricket matches at Bellerive Oval in Hobart. I went to a lot of games in that time always striving for the perfect capture, when I wasn’t busy cheering for our team or groaning at some awful play that is. The photography part was always fun even if we lost. Here are a variety of shots from those years.

Australian fast bowler Mitchel Starc.

Looking up at the ball

One of the few occasions I’ve captured the ball leaving the bat.

practice before the game.

Spin bowler

The Hurricanes warm up before a game.

Tim Paine, Hurricanes and Australian wicket keeper.