I have a date...

...with some V8's.

We booked our tickets over the weekend, for the inaugural Townsville 400 V8 Supercars race next year. The track looks interesting, and should give reasonable lap times (I don't like the short tracks with super low lap times, like Symmons Plains in Tasmania, where the average race lap is 55 seconds). You can see the design map here: Reid Park Designs Released. We're in the grandstands just at the end of the main straight, opposite the pits. We ended up going for the 3 day grandstand pass, and will make an extra-long weekend out of it. We may yet spring for a paddock pass to go and check out the pits - they'll no doubt be available on the day though, so we can pick them up later.

Accommodation in Townsville is already very scarce, but we're able to camp in Jess' cousin's back yard, so that solves that problem. Jess and Sally are coming down on the Sunday - they have single day general admission passes, which unfortunately means they can't get up into the grandstands. But we'll no doubt work out a roster system so everyone gets the good seats for some of the day.

Should be fun!

More info : V8 Supercars - Townsville 2009

New Toys

So I finally gave into temptation this morning, and picked up a Nintendo DS.

I've been tossing up whether I should get one for a while now, since I think it will be absolutely perfect for the long plane flights on our holiday next year. But I finally couldn't wait any longer, so we went hunting at the local shopping centre. BigW didn't have any of the limited edition red/black ones any more, and didn't think they were getting any more. Same story at Target. Dick Smith didn't have any at all. My last hope was Electronic Boutique, and whaddayaknow - luck!

The console came in a bundle deal with one of the NintenDogs games for free (the bundle was actually $2 cheaper than the bare console - what's that tell you about not even being able to give NintenDogs away?), and we picked up Lego Batman as well.



It's a completely ridiculous game, but it's just so much fun. I've only played about 30 minutes of it yet, and have just completed the first mission, but it's a real blast. I played 5 minutes of Lego Indiana Jones about 6 months' ago on a friend's Wii (that just sounds so wrong), and it was cracking fun, so I'm happy to see that this is just as good.

I'm going to be scouring the Pre-Owned bins at the shops between now and when we leave, as I'd like to pick up a copy of New Super Mario Bros (basically the good old original SMB, made specifically for the DS) and either MarioKart or Diddy Kong Racing. The games are pretty cheap, especially if you can buy them pre-owned or older releases, and there's a fair variety of types available.

While I was taking pictures, I thought I'd shoot one of my new work phone (next to the old one)


As well as our new video camera (in it's docking station)





Sorry for the lack of quality, but it was very late when I was taking these, and bed was calling. I'm still struggling with the FullHD settings on the camcorder - I'm not sure if there's a problem with the footage or if my computer is just too slow to be able to render and display it properly, but I hope I can figure it out soon.

Green Island Ho!

What better way to spend a Friday than relaxing on a tropical island paradise?

Last Friday, Rossco came up to Cairns. Rossco's our account exec at the place we purchase all our IT equipment from for work. We've been dealing with him basically exclusively ever since I started with the firm. Not only is he a great account exec who understands our business and our particular needs, he's also a bloody top bloke, and a good mate to boot.

He has a couple of clients who are based in Cairns, so he managed to wangle a trip up as a sales/networking expense, and decided that we should all head out to Green Island for the day. So, along with a bunch of engineers from another place in town, we jumped on the Sea Cat and headed out around 10:30am. The day was already quite hot, but we had all come prepared with sunscreen and water. The rum on the boat didn't hurt, either, and helped to pass the time on the 30 min trip.



Never one to shirk his duty, Rossco was even working on the way out there! Eeither that, or he was having a play with one of the engineer's brand new Blackberry phones - depends on whether his boss is reading this or not!)





As you can see, we had picture-perfect weather for the day, and the ocean was as flat as a board. Once we arrived, the first order of business was to adjourn to the pool, and stake out a nice shady spot. We managed to beat the crowd there, and secured the prime spot for ourselves.



The only problem was the parade of middle aged Japanese tourists past our spot. It seems the new hot fashion for middle-aged, balding and slight fat Japanese men is the skimpiest Speedo's that money can buy. It's an interesting look, and the girls that were with our group were not really that impressed!

Lunch followed the pool, where we were joined by some of the native wildlife:


After a couple of bottles of very nice white wine, it was surprisingly time to head back, as the last ferry cat leaves at 4pm. So we made our way back to the pier, managing to snap a couple of parting shots on our way.







All in all a lovely day on the island. Certainly the rum on the boat helped pass the time on the trip back, just as it had on the way out. The party kicked on into the night with drinks at Ba8, a ritzy cocktail bar right at the Marina, and Rossco, Jess and I ended up at a Steak & Grill joint for dinner. The ribs were divine, and I've promised myself that I'll have to go back and have them again, when I'm in a slightly better state to appreciate them!

I hadn't been to Green Island for probably 4 years, and it was great to be able to go back. The only problem now is that Jess wants me to take her! Thankfully locals get a discount on the ferry tickets, and everything else is quite reasonably priced (especially for a captive audience on the island), so we might pop over in a month's time. You can stay overnight on the island at a resort, but it's very expensive, so we'll probably just go for the day trip.

I certainly enjoyed the day, and I hope Rossco-san had a good time as well. Was great to meet the others on the trip, and the evening activities were most enjoyable. Certainly beat being at work!