Wednesday 30 April 2014

Kodaline

I did intend to write a single post about seeing Kodaline and McBusted in concert, but unfortunately an evil stomach bug prevented me from going to see McBusted last night. I honestly don’t think I have ever missed an event I have paid for in advance before due to illness. It is quite frustrating to have wasted my money and more so to have missed out on what no doubt would have been a great night out. Thankfully, I am feeling much better today.

It was over a month ago now that I saw Kodaline live at Birmingham’s O2 Academy. It is predominantly a standing venue, but luckily the disabled section was seated. I am far too old to stand for long periods these days! Kodaline have to be the coolest band I have seen to date, as you probably know I tend to edge more towards pop than rock. However, as soon as I heard Kodaline’s debut single ‘High Hopes’ on the radio, I pre-ordered their album and have been hooked ever since.

It was a completely different experience seeing a non pop act. The atmosphere was similar with people singing along to the songs and cheering uncontrollably, but there were no fancy gimmicks, no costume changes and very little conversation. It was all about the music, which seemed to just work. It was also interesting that they didn’t finale with their biggest hit, as is usually the case. I enjoyed every second and look forward to their next album.

I’ve got high hopes...

Friday 11 April 2014

Comps in Brum

Last month saw me compete in Birmingham twice, for two different sports; goalball and athletics.

Birmingham Novice Tournament:
This was the second tournament I have played for Nottingham and this time I was playing for our A team, although both of our teams are very good. We played as a three, so had no substitutes. I quite enjoy this set up since the games don’t last for long at that level. Unfortunately, we lost our first game, a combination of poor communication and silly mistakes. This meant the highest we could finish was fifth overall, which we easily managed floating through our following three games. To be honest I felt like we had the ability to win the entire tournament, but there are no second chances.

I was hoping to play at intermediate level tomorrow in Cambridge, but a freak injury has prevented me, which I’m gutted about. I’m not sure how much more goalball I’ll be playing in the coming months, as athletics will now take priority with just seven weeks to go until Commonwealth selection.

Midlands Open:
I have trained at The Alexander stadium a million times and raced outdoors there on several occasions. However, I have never competed indoors there before and don’t intend to again. The warm up area was like a cattle market and when you need two lanes to do even striders, it’s near impossible. I made the best use of what space was available before my race.

For the first time ever I nearly false started, which immediately impacted upon my performance. 60m in 8.91, nothing special and nowhere near the speed I showed in Glasgow. Nevertheless, it was a good opportunity to get another race in before the outdoor season commences.

It’s still yet to be decided, but I will open up my outdoor campaign either on 30 April or 7 May depending on how I am feeling. One thing is for certain, this is going to be my most testing year to date, but hopefully my most successful one too. Commonwealths, Europeans, let’s go!