Blogs from Eugene, Oregon, United States, North America - page 2

Geo: 44.069, -123.082 On Saturday there was only an afternoon session so we got to sleep in and relax for the morning. It was another warm sunny day but with a cool breeze. We managed to get our front table again which gave us a great view, especially for the relays. The most exciting competition was in the Men's Pole Vault. This started at 2-30pm and continued throughout the session. We had Jack Hicking in this. He vaulted well and improved his PB to 5-40 before going out. Every vaulter in the field did a PB with the winner, Chappelle from France improving by about 20cms. They just kept jumping out of their skins! In the Men's Discus Matt Denny and Mitchell Cooper threw well gaining 4th and 5th spots overall. An excellent effort though it ... read more

Geo: 44.069, -123.082Tuesday was the first day of competition. We arrived at the track about 9-45am ready for the start at 10am.As we walked to the gate we passed the Eugene Bomb Disposal vehicle outside the Warm-up Track. I don't know whether to feel reassured or frightened! The Heptathlon and Decathlon both started today and there were Aussies in both so we were keen to follow them. Cedric Dubler from Queensland had been to the last Oceania Champs so I know him and he is a great young man. He ran a PB in the 100 and followed that up by jumping 7-47m in the Long Jump, a new Championship record for the Decathlon. Cassie Simmons in the Heptathlon also ran a PB in her hurdles, a good start for the team.We were sitting up in ... read more

Geo: 44.069, -123.082We embarked on this very long day at 6-15am when we headed to the airport in Adelaide. Flight to Sydney at 8am was fine having 3 seas for just us. In Sydney we had time for a great Chicken Laksa in the Qantas Lounge before boarding the plane for LA and leaving at 1-25pm. We were on the new A-380 upstairs in Economy but got the short straw in seats. I was in the middle of a row of four with two brothers next to me, Queenslanders in their late 20s who could only discuss drinking, Rugby, girl friends and hooning around in cars. Difficult to read with them nattering on.It was a 12 and a half hour flight. I dozed a little,(while said brothers were engrossed in watching Captain America) read my book, ... read more

Although shooting Martens Rapids in a rubber raft took less than a minute, the exhilaration lasted much longer as we viewed the excellent frame-by-frame digital images taken by Lily (lillian@westcoastactionphotos.com and www.westcoastactionphotos.com). As you can see in the four photos we purchased, we are surrounded by churning white water as Frank, our river guide, appears quite gleeful, skillfully negotiating the raft through the tight spots on the McKenzie River. (www.rivertrailoutfitters.com) Another special Eugene experience was grilling a whole rock fish that Stephen and Judy purchased at a local market the day it was caught. Stephen baked it to perfection on the deck and served it with a flourish, accompanied by grilled vegetables, roasted potatoes and Judy's freshly made aioli. This stunning meal was topped off by poached pears served with a reduction sauce of port and ... read more

More than 250 species of birds use the Fern Ridge Wildlife Area, located about five miles west of Eugene. Fern Ridge is a natural reservoir that encompasses protected marshland, small islands and open shallow water, providing critical sheltered nesting and breeding habitat for domestic species, and more importantly, for the migratory species. My brother Stephen and his wife Judy are avid birders and took us to Fern Ridge midmorning on a beautiful sunny day. Due to the dry weather and unusually low water levels, we could walk beyond the dense, tall grasses on the shore along a wide gravel berm out onto the wide marsh expanse so that we stood at the edge of what is called "low pool"--an open expanse of mudflat and low water one-half mile across. We paused frequently to sight through a ... read more