Yesterday, the Sunday of the Spring Bank Holiday, my priority was getting the Blog writing up to-date and to continue with the quiet purpose created on Saturday. As it became evident that the warm sunshine was also continuing I felt urge twinges or twinge urges to join in among the crowds of families and couples, twosomes and groups of friends, enjoying the holiday good weather in some activity, as here in the north, contrasting with the torrential rain with localised flooding in he midlands and the south, we experienced the birth of summer.
I did go out, briefly, for milk, marge and for what else I do not remember but I knew if I would feel out of place if I just took off on my own without and planning and psychological preparation. I was however in a holiday mood so work remained secondary throughout the day although I did a little.
I watched Lewis Hamilton win the Monaco Grand Prix. I have been to Monaco. It is a fake place full of fake people pretending they are real.
In terms of racing Grand Prix winning Monaco is liking finding the Holy Grail and told you can keep it. Lewis desperately wanted to win, so did his team but Ferrari and their drivers outsmarted and claimed both places at the front of the grid by a fraction of a second. Then rain was forecast which changed everything. Usually Monaco is settled by who is at the front of the grid. It is almost impossible to pass another car unless there is agreement because one is faster than the other and you gain places if the car in front fails. or has an accident, or you have the strategy, or is it tactics, of the right tyres, refuelling, and your pit stops are faultless, thus gaining vital seconds to increase a lead or get ahead of another car.
In such a situation there are only three reasons to come and watch the event. The first is to be seen as being there, similar to the Cannes film festival, another overrated location for those with too much money and time, or on the make and who wish to be noticed. The second is that you are related to one of the driver's; I use the term loosely, or one of the owners, officials and media people, so you are participate in the pre and post event hype and hospitality where you should be able to see the actual race on TV.
The third reason only works if there is rain when the chance of a good smash up increases. Because of safety precautions you are unlikely to witness a driver be killed, not like in the good old days. On Sunday, as the rain torrented Lewis was one of the first cars to hit a barrier and need to enter the pits to replace a tyre. This enabled a quick refuel which meant he could delay changing tyres until the weather cleared. The accident won him the race, although nerve and skill played its part. The result placed him at the top of the driver's championship again.
The Doncaster Rovers beat Leeds to win promotion to the Championship of the football Leagues. Thus Hull is now two leagues above Leeds. This is extraordinary and it will be interesting to see if Mr Ken Bates sticks with his money at Leeds. Back at his former home, the Chelsea Russian fired his manager because he came second in the Premiership and one of his players slipped when he had the chance to win the Champions League Final. Mr Grant will survive with the compensation from his £5 million a year four year contract or whatever it was. The whole business has become obscene but it is a business we depend on much like the arms trade and exploiting immigrants. Rather like Monaco, Wimbledon, the World Cup, the Olympics, Epsom, The Arc etc you need lots of dosh, a helicopter and a chauffer and a minder or two to be part of such occasions and enjoy without the hassle, leaving for something else if the event does not turn out well. Some people use the same approach to their relationships.
I also watched part of an amazing turn of events at the cricket and Monty Panasar scuttled New Zealand out for just over 100 runs, enabling England to win if the batsman played to standard. I no longer go to Test Matches or international one day events unless with the former it is the last day, there are good concessions and the home side appears destined to win, but the result is not certain. The cost is prohibitive and enjoyment speculative. This is why those accepting or paying for hospitality spend the first part of the day at the official reception, drinking a glass of bubbly or two, and then there is the prolonged lunch and afternoon tea reducing the time watching the cricket by half, sometimes behind glass as with football if the weather is unpleasant.
The highlight of the evening was Lost, which did not disappoint the its build as the first of an explosive end of season two parter in which we move towards finding out why only a handful of others manage to get off the island back to their home.
There was a season of Sherlock Holmes (Christopher Lee being Christopher Lee a good guy) and Dr Watson( Patrick McNee being a good Dr Watson) in three hour adventures, none of which I saw in their entirety because of other TV interests.
I enjoyed a salad mixture of herring in tomato sauce and slice olives, sun dried tomato, carrot, sunflower oil etc and then a chunk of roast pork and crackling with a crispy vegetable mixture, some grapes and some ice cream.
I went to bed late, still in a holiday mood. The severe weather conditions were forecast to move further north but only as far a part of Lancashire and Yorkshire. There were reduced prices for the Manchester Test where the weather forecast was cloudy and cold from a fierce wind. There was also the Northumberland Show at Corbridge which sounded a good day out but not for someone on their own. My choice was an important one game at Durham which they had to win to ensure a place in the semi finals of the competition which they won last year at Lords where I had a ticket but did not travel because my mother was admitted to hospital. The game was also not scheduled to begin until 12.00 so it did not matter if I slept on and could also check on what the actual weather was like.
I was able to prepare picnic food and drink, remember the sun tan lotion, but miss-placed the soft sun hat and forgot my pair of light weight binoculars but otherwise was ready to leave about quarter to eleven on what was a hot sunny day sheltered from a fierce sharp north easterly wind. Although I live at the Furtherest point in South Shields from the Durham Cricket ground I get there quicker than the Theatre in Newcastle although the journey involves a couple of extra miles each way. This is because the only part of journey involving stops and starts is the couple miles to get to the two lane dual carriage way of the John Reid Road, to then join in a second dual carriage way which continues after a roundabout to the South Shields spur of the AIM and which joins the Newcastle spur just before the Washington Service Station where there are two Travel Lodges, ideal stopping places for those coming for an overnight stay, as Durham and Sunderland are also equidistant to the south west and to the east. Shortly after the service station the left hand filter is taken to Chester Le Street where the dual carriage way continues directly to the ground involving only a couple of sets of traffic lights and treble of roundabouts. There is comparatively inexpensive park for the day ay at £3.20 and the journey time is less than 30 minutes for the 14 miles. At the Chester Le Street turn off you can one road eastwards to the home of Lambton's where there was a Safari Park or westwards to the impressive Victorian Village and farm complex of the living museum at Beamish.
Although I have not been to all the Cricket grounds of England Durham has one of the best settings and arrangements, set by the river Wear with banks of trees rising to the Lumley Castle Hotel where I have stayed but did not attend the Elizabethan Banquet. The dual carriage continues towards Durham City with Chester le Street Town centre to the right. On the left is the pleasant riverside park where there is sometimes a fair or circus, a steam engine fair, but usually it provides good walking at lunch times. Yesterday however, without the additional seating I choose to explore the ground as it has been developed over the past decade, and where it is always prone to flooding from the river as the ground is adjacent separate by a pleasant bank of grass and trees which has been built up. Here there was an old in door indoor cricket centre which has now been demolished to provide a parking and picnic area for Members cars, and where between the main scoreboard and the northern sight screen stand there room to bring ones own comfy chair next to the boundary board. This area give way to a temporary stand for international matches once or twice a year but for the rest of the season the ground has that friendly and local club feel which is at the heart of English Cricket unlike the concrete grounds of London, Manchester and Birmingham, where for county match days one sits alone among vast areas of emptiness.
Durham has avoided this although between the scoreboard and the new Media centre above the southern wicket end a new concrete stand begins the fixed seating area with now surrounds the rest of the stadium playing area. Behind the Media Stand is the Chester Le Street/Durham multi sport facility comprising the in door cricket centre, the main sports centre building and a new scent centre which all overlook the athletic track and athletics field sports centres, the tennis courts, football pitches and all weather areas for all kinds of sports. The main Durham Pavilion and Members building has doubled in size in terms of length since the ground first opened where the Members first floor restaurant is now half its length and where one can watch the cricket from tables behind glass when the weather is cold early season , early morning or late evenings. At the back of this stand is a pleasant public bistro with a few outside tables, the club shop and box office and other facilities. There is also now a purpose built major health and fitness centre which is used by firms and the public as well as adding to the facilities for the player's and their families.
Cricket unlike football remain a club game in that its members talk to each other, sit in familiar groups and welcome visitors. This was important at Durham because the visitors usually won and the Durham wicket area took some time to settle and get right. In fact Durham players preferred to play away from home for many years as a consequence, that is until the last five years when management and team clicked and Durham produced world class players such as Collingwood the Captain of the England's one day team and Steve Harmison who rose to become one of the world's fastest and top bowlers with a sensational tour of the West Indies He is presently out of form and favour with the English selectors which meant he was playing yesterday and one of the attractions of the day. He did not take a wicket but it was evident that he is on his way back to top class form.
Arriving early I was able to pick my spot, above the bowlers arm, avoiding the last row of the stand where the wind howled through a narrow gap in the support. At the end of an aisle giving plenty of space for legs and my back pack. The crowd was good but it still enabled most of us to sit with a seat gap to the next individual or group. The sun tan was important because it was red hot at times and only as the match drew to a close around 6.30 did the sun hide fully behind the rapidly moving clouds. The game could not have gone better if planned. Durham hit two four off the first two balls and had scored 70 runs in ten overs where 40-50 is the average start for the first 10 of 50 overs. The second wicked was lost with 180 runs on the board, more than the subsequent entire Derbyshire Innings. The opening batsman M.J Di Venuto hit 138 runs highest score ever by a Durham player in this form of completion against Derbyshire and the team scored a total of 298 runs again higher than the previous total which was reached when the total over was 60.
The aspect of the game which I appreciate most was the way the team appeared to be organised and its spirit. The was an effective professional, determined and winning quality about it which was lacking in all my visits until the semi final last year. Although Derbyshire has some quality batsman and looked as if they were going to make more of a match they were held to 44 runs for a couple of wickets in those first 10 overs and it was evident that they would never be able to improve to necessary run rate without taking risks which the new Durham was able to exploit as catches were held and run out stumping. It was an excellent day and chat around me lived up to expectations, while someone with a radio and headphones kept us abreast of England's progress to victory in the first test at Old Trafford and Stockport's win in their final play off. I returned home at seven to a glass of Villa Icona, a South African Red, a small plate of fresh prawns which would have made salad sandwiches had I not run out of bread and the a pork stir fry using a good portion of chopped pork, tout mange and string beans with the rest of a courgette, noodles and a strong portion of chilli sauce
This was enjoyed while watching the Test match highlights and then at 9 the first of the Britain's Got Talent and then the Bertelucci film, the Dreamers both of which I will leave for the next writing, noting now that the day proved to be something of an experience overload which will take another couple of days to recover.
I did go out, briefly, for milk, marge and for what else I do not remember but I knew if I would feel out of place if I just took off on my own without and planning and psychological preparation. I was however in a holiday mood so work remained secondary throughout the day although I did a little.
I watched Lewis Hamilton win the Monaco Grand Prix. I have been to Monaco. It is a fake place full of fake people pretending they are real.
In terms of racing Grand Prix winning Monaco is liking finding the Holy Grail and told you can keep it. Lewis desperately wanted to win, so did his team but Ferrari and their drivers outsmarted and claimed both places at the front of the grid by a fraction of a second. Then rain was forecast which changed everything. Usually Monaco is settled by who is at the front of the grid. It is almost impossible to pass another car unless there is agreement because one is faster than the other and you gain places if the car in front fails. or has an accident, or you have the strategy, or is it tactics, of the right tyres, refuelling, and your pit stops are faultless, thus gaining vital seconds to increase a lead or get ahead of another car.
In such a situation there are only three reasons to come and watch the event. The first is to be seen as being there, similar to the Cannes film festival, another overrated location for those with too much money and time, or on the make and who wish to be noticed. The second is that you are related to one of the driver's; I use the term loosely, or one of the owners, officials and media people, so you are participate in the pre and post event hype and hospitality where you should be able to see the actual race on TV.
The third reason only works if there is rain when the chance of a good smash up increases. Because of safety precautions you are unlikely to witness a driver be killed, not like in the good old days. On Sunday, as the rain torrented Lewis was one of the first cars to hit a barrier and need to enter the pits to replace a tyre. This enabled a quick refuel which meant he could delay changing tyres until the weather cleared. The accident won him the race, although nerve and skill played its part. The result placed him at the top of the driver's championship again.
The Doncaster Rovers beat Leeds to win promotion to the Championship of the football Leagues. Thus Hull is now two leagues above Leeds. This is extraordinary and it will be interesting to see if Mr Ken Bates sticks with his money at Leeds. Back at his former home, the Chelsea Russian fired his manager because he came second in the Premiership and one of his players slipped when he had the chance to win the Champions League Final. Mr Grant will survive with the compensation from his £5 million a year four year contract or whatever it was. The whole business has become obscene but it is a business we depend on much like the arms trade and exploiting immigrants. Rather like Monaco, Wimbledon, the World Cup, the Olympics, Epsom, The Arc etc you need lots of dosh, a helicopter and a chauffer and a minder or two to be part of such occasions and enjoy without the hassle, leaving for something else if the event does not turn out well. Some people use the same approach to their relationships.
I also watched part of an amazing turn of events at the cricket and Monty Panasar scuttled New Zealand out for just over 100 runs, enabling England to win if the batsman played to standard. I no longer go to Test Matches or international one day events unless with the former it is the last day, there are good concessions and the home side appears destined to win, but the result is not certain. The cost is prohibitive and enjoyment speculative. This is why those accepting or paying for hospitality spend the first part of the day at the official reception, drinking a glass of bubbly or two, and then there is the prolonged lunch and afternoon tea reducing the time watching the cricket by half, sometimes behind glass as with football if the weather is unpleasant.
The highlight of the evening was Lost, which did not disappoint the its build as the first of an explosive end of season two parter in which we move towards finding out why only a handful of others manage to get off the island back to their home.
There was a season of Sherlock Holmes (Christopher Lee being Christopher Lee a good guy) and Dr Watson( Patrick McNee being a good Dr Watson) in three hour adventures, none of which I saw in their entirety because of other TV interests.
I enjoyed a salad mixture of herring in tomato sauce and slice olives, sun dried tomato, carrot, sunflower oil etc and then a chunk of roast pork and crackling with a crispy vegetable mixture, some grapes and some ice cream.
I went to bed late, still in a holiday mood. The severe weather conditions were forecast to move further north but only as far a part of Lancashire and Yorkshire. There were reduced prices for the Manchester Test where the weather forecast was cloudy and cold from a fierce wind. There was also the Northumberland Show at Corbridge which sounded a good day out but not for someone on their own. My choice was an important one game at Durham which they had to win to ensure a place in the semi finals of the competition which they won last year at Lords where I had a ticket but did not travel because my mother was admitted to hospital. The game was also not scheduled to begin until 12.00 so it did not matter if I slept on and could also check on what the actual weather was like.
I was able to prepare picnic food and drink, remember the sun tan lotion, but miss-placed the soft sun hat and forgot my pair of light weight binoculars but otherwise was ready to leave about quarter to eleven on what was a hot sunny day sheltered from a fierce sharp north easterly wind. Although I live at the Furtherest point in South Shields from the Durham Cricket ground I get there quicker than the Theatre in Newcastle although the journey involves a couple of extra miles each way. This is because the only part of journey involving stops and starts is the couple miles to get to the two lane dual carriage way of the John Reid Road, to then join in a second dual carriage way which continues after a roundabout to the South Shields spur of the AIM and which joins the Newcastle spur just before the Washington Service Station where there are two Travel Lodges, ideal stopping places for those coming for an overnight stay, as Durham and Sunderland are also equidistant to the south west and to the east. Shortly after the service station the left hand filter is taken to Chester Le Street where the dual carriage way continues directly to the ground involving only a couple of sets of traffic lights and treble of roundabouts. There is comparatively inexpensive park for the day ay at £3.20 and the journey time is less than 30 minutes for the 14 miles. At the Chester Le Street turn off you can one road eastwards to the home of Lambton's where there was a Safari Park or westwards to the impressive Victorian Village and farm complex of the living museum at Beamish.
Although I have not been to all the Cricket grounds of England Durham has one of the best settings and arrangements, set by the river Wear with banks of trees rising to the Lumley Castle Hotel where I have stayed but did not attend the Elizabethan Banquet. The dual carriage continues towards Durham City with Chester le Street Town centre to the right. On the left is the pleasant riverside park where there is sometimes a fair or circus, a steam engine fair, but usually it provides good walking at lunch times. Yesterday however, without the additional seating I choose to explore the ground as it has been developed over the past decade, and where it is always prone to flooding from the river as the ground is adjacent separate by a pleasant bank of grass and trees which has been built up. Here there was an old in door indoor cricket centre which has now been demolished to provide a parking and picnic area for Members cars, and where between the main scoreboard and the northern sight screen stand there room to bring ones own comfy chair next to the boundary board. This area give way to a temporary stand for international matches once or twice a year but for the rest of the season the ground has that friendly and local club feel which is at the heart of English Cricket unlike the concrete grounds of London, Manchester and Birmingham, where for county match days one sits alone among vast areas of emptiness.
Durham has avoided this although between the scoreboard and the new Media centre above the southern wicket end a new concrete stand begins the fixed seating area with now surrounds the rest of the stadium playing area. Behind the Media Stand is the Chester Le Street/Durham multi sport facility comprising the in door cricket centre, the main sports centre building and a new scent centre which all overlook the athletic track and athletics field sports centres, the tennis courts, football pitches and all weather areas for all kinds of sports. The main Durham Pavilion and Members building has doubled in size in terms of length since the ground first opened where the Members first floor restaurant is now half its length and where one can watch the cricket from tables behind glass when the weather is cold early season , early morning or late evenings. At the back of this stand is a pleasant public bistro with a few outside tables, the club shop and box office and other facilities. There is also now a purpose built major health and fitness centre which is used by firms and the public as well as adding to the facilities for the player's and their families.
Cricket unlike football remain a club game in that its members talk to each other, sit in familiar groups and welcome visitors. This was important at Durham because the visitors usually won and the Durham wicket area took some time to settle and get right. In fact Durham players preferred to play away from home for many years as a consequence, that is until the last five years when management and team clicked and Durham produced world class players such as Collingwood the Captain of the England's one day team and Steve Harmison who rose to become one of the world's fastest and top bowlers with a sensational tour of the West Indies He is presently out of form and favour with the English selectors which meant he was playing yesterday and one of the attractions of the day. He did not take a wicket but it was evident that he is on his way back to top class form.
Arriving early I was able to pick my spot, above the bowlers arm, avoiding the last row of the stand where the wind howled through a narrow gap in the support. At the end of an aisle giving plenty of space for legs and my back pack. The crowd was good but it still enabled most of us to sit with a seat gap to the next individual or group. The sun tan was important because it was red hot at times and only as the match drew to a close around 6.30 did the sun hide fully behind the rapidly moving clouds. The game could not have gone better if planned. Durham hit two four off the first two balls and had scored 70 runs in ten overs where 40-50 is the average start for the first 10 of 50 overs. The second wicked was lost with 180 runs on the board, more than the subsequent entire Derbyshire Innings. The opening batsman M.J Di Venuto hit 138 runs highest score ever by a Durham player in this form of completion against Derbyshire and the team scored a total of 298 runs again higher than the previous total which was reached when the total over was 60.
The aspect of the game which I appreciate most was the way the team appeared to be organised and its spirit. The was an effective professional, determined and winning quality about it which was lacking in all my visits until the semi final last year. Although Derbyshire has some quality batsman and looked as if they were going to make more of a match they were held to 44 runs for a couple of wickets in those first 10 overs and it was evident that they would never be able to improve to necessary run rate without taking risks which the new Durham was able to exploit as catches were held and run out stumping. It was an excellent day and chat around me lived up to expectations, while someone with a radio and headphones kept us abreast of England's progress to victory in the first test at Old Trafford and Stockport's win in their final play off. I returned home at seven to a glass of Villa Icona, a South African Red, a small plate of fresh prawns which would have made salad sandwiches had I not run out of bread and the a pork stir fry using a good portion of chopped pork, tout mange and string beans with the rest of a courgette, noodles and a strong portion of chilli sauce
This was enjoyed while watching the Test match highlights and then at 9 the first of the Britain's Got Talent and then the Bertelucci film, the Dreamers both of which I will leave for the next writing, noting now that the day proved to be something of an experience overload which will take another couple of days to recover.
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