Blogs

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Follow the whole nine yards here (a 95 part series) :- Half Marathon Blog

Why I am running:- West Coast Eisteddfod - Bryn Seion Church

For details of how to sponsor see - this post

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The facts as they stand currently:-

I will be away working for up to 5 days a week between now and July 6th. These away jaunts could prove very lucrative and will contribute the lion's share to the WCE finances for this year. Opportunities for training are few and far between while I am on the road so the chances of my being in shape for a half marathon on July 4th are pretty slim.

There are , however, plenty of other marathons in the later part of the year. I am currently looking at two in September that would fit the bill perfectly. I do not anticipate being under anything like the same time pressure after July 6th and a September date would ensure time for adequate preparation. I will attempt to keep the running blog alive up till the date that I run but please do not expect me to post from a camp ground with no wifi 15 miles from the nearest Starbucks

This is all a bit disappointing for me as I was looking forward to running the Sauvie Island half marathon BUT I had no idea that I would be working out of town for a month and a half when I made the initial commitment. I will run this year but I think it should be later because I cannot pass up the opportunity to make money between now and July.

What does anyone think? Should I go ahead and postpone or just try for the 4th anyway?

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Follow the whole nine yards here (a 95 part series) :- Half Marathon Blog

Why I am running:- West Coast Eisteddfod - Bryn Seion Church

For details of how to sponsor see - this post

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Getting packed for another week on the road with my clipboards. This time we are going to the Oregon Coast. I must admit that with my rather punishing work schedule I have had thoughts about not being able to get in shape in time for the 4th. However I guess I still have ten weeks and here is a ten week training schedule for reaching half marathon standard:- http://running.competitor.com/2012/03/training/rock-the-trails-10-week-advanced-off-road-training-program_48069

I guess this is the schedule I'm going to need

More tomorrow assuming wifi is available in the area where we are staying.

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Do you have an upcoming Welsh or Celtic event? Are you looking to sell tickets online? Then look no further. The AmeriCymru Welsh Directory now offers a full online ticketing service at this url:- Add Event

If you are an AmeriCymru Welsh Directory member you have two options:-

1. You can log in and add your event yourself, or

2. You can contact us at americymru@gmail.com and we will be happy to work with you to create and promote your ideal event page.

There are many online ticketing services. Eventbee, Eventbrite, Brownpaper Tickets to name but a few. How do we differ from the competition? As far as I know they all charge 1 dollar per ticket but do not offer any assistance with page creation or promotion. We offer BOTH!

Here is our West Coast Eisteddfod 2012 page:- West Coast Eisteddfod 2012

For 1 dollar per ticket sold ( a cost which can be added to he ticket price ) we will create a similar ( or completely different ) page and help you promote it on the web.

If you are interested in taking advantage of this offer please contact americymru@gmail.com and we will get to work on your page

( All events on the AC Welsh Directory must be Welsh or Celtic themed and will be subject to approval prior to publication )

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Today we are proud and pleased to present the official West Coast Eisteddfod 2012 poster. Designed by Peter Lewis with collaboration from Jen Delyth . Download printable PDF HERE

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Follow the whole nine yards here (a 95 part series) :- Half Marathon Blog

Why I am running:- West Coast Eisteddfod Bryn Seion Church

For details of how to sponsor see this post

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Adding my blog post today from the public library in Bend Oregon. I have approximately 25 minutes of wifi time before they close so this will be , of necessity, a brief update. Suffice it to say that I will be keeping up my training while I am here although of course I will not be able to measure my progress in terms of circuits around the turnip patch. I will have to devise a new route around the various yurts in the campground where we are staying. The air is a lot fresher and cleaner up here than it is in Portland and that is a big plus for running. I hope to be back tomorrow with a further update meanwhile enjoy the video below- Marathon Thoughts.

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Follow the whole nine yards here (a 95 part series) :- Half Marathon Blog

Why I am running:- West Coast Eisteddfod Bryn Seion Church

For details of how to sponsor see this post

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Hi all....I will be leaving early in the morning for Bend, Oregon. Another working trip and this time I will be staying in a tent. I really don't know what the wifi situation will be so please don't expect miracles

I will of course attempt to keep the daily running blog going ( and my training schedule ) but that will probably involve a trip to Starbucks each evening assuming that there is one nearby.

A number of people have inquired about this strange temporary job that I do for a few months a year which involves travelling and staying in tents, motels etc. For the benefit of our UK readers please let me attempt an explanation ( I will be mercifully brief ).

In 26 states of the US there is a system whereby people and interest groups who have the requisite funds can hire an army of petitioners to gather signatures for statutory or constitutional measures which ( given that they reach quota ) are placed on a ballot each year. If those measures are successful at the polls they become law. Basically it is a form of government by annual plebiscite. Of course State laws do not always supersede Federal laws and this leads to interesting legal and political conflicts.

These jolly little jaunts help to pay for the WCE. And so...expect more from me tomorrow ( but dont hold your breath ) and meanwhile enjoy this video about the real reason that runners run

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Reproduced with kind permission from David Western's Portland Lovespoon Blog

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Laura here, again... I think I mentioned already that I was a little excited at the prospect of making a cage of roots. As much as people always seem to enjoy moving parts, I thought this might warrant a little further discussion.

Hmm. So, when I started thinking about approaching the cage, I thought, what are the defining characteristics of the cage? Is it that there are 4 posts? Not necessarily, but there usually are 4, and they are usually all parallel, evenly spaced, relatively straight and usually the back posts are aligned behind the front posts when you cut the blank.

Yeah - I didn't want to do that.

Really, the main considerations for designing balls in a cage have to do with carving and finishing access, and containment of the balls. More specifically, having access for your tools (including your hand holding the tools, in the positions you need, with the leverage you need) to all parts of the inside and outside of the cage and the balls, not to mention being able to hold the work piece without breaking it while carving and finishing the cage, the balls, OR any other part of the spoon! AND, the other big consideration is that you need to make sure to keep the balls contained. No escaping! There's a balance to maintain.

Now, when Dave and I decided we'd have 4 caged balls in this spoon, I immediately started to think of how to make it different than the typical caged balls. I envisioned roots and vines, and even took a few pictures....

So here I was, having all these lovely visions of organic, climbing, meandering roots, and then I think of a typical cage. Here's a typical very simple cage with a couple egg-shaped balls, so you can see what I'm trying not to do, too:

This one only has two balls, and it's laying on its back, so they're spread out. If it had four, the cage would probably have been longer, and when it stands upright, as spoons usually do when they are displayed, they'd all just sit in the bottom, and you'd have a boring, empty cage. So I also figured I'd subdivide the cage a bit, either with branches, or by the irregularity of the posts themselves. And since I'd do that, I guess I didn't need to have all the balls the same size, either, which could allow me some more interest with the thickness of everything, too. That's another thing about cages - they to some extent need to be as deep as they are wide. So - with avoiding a plain cage in mind, here's the first thing I drew...

I was a little worried I might scare Dave too much with that one, though (it kind of abandons all the helpful tools like symmetry, parallel lines, reference to the front & back of the board, etc.) so I drew another, a bit more like the typical form...

Note - on this second one, I may have some of these tapering posts opening up a little too much, but I figure we'll probably build them out a little more with some more foliage or something. It's just a start.
Anyway, I really liked the first one. But the more I thought about it, those nagging questions kept coming back to me - like - What kind of wood are we going to use? Who is going to carve first? Anyway, I sent them off to Dave to make sure we were even still on the same page, and see what he thought about either of them.

He liked the drawings, and confirmed that direction-wise, we still seemed to be on the same page, which was great to hear. Of course he had the obligatory words of caution about the twisted cage, which I fully expected and absolutely fully agreed with - I just AM, perhaps, a little bit of a glutton for punishment. While he was reviewing them, I think another consideration started to bother me, though - and that was about strength. I am really counting on a pretty strong wood choice, I think - and even with a strong wood choice, all the weight we're talking about having in all the rest of this spoon may be too much. This only represents about the bottom half of the spoon - and by far, the lighter half. The twisted cage doesn't stay with the grain of the wood - so it loses a significant amount of strength that way. So - I decided I may just save this one for something smaller of my own, and try again for our root cage here. So I shared my thoughts with Dave, told him I thought I'd go for something in between the two drawings above, with a little more focus on strength, and by the way, what wood did he want to use?

So, this is what I drew next.

I've heard back from Dave, and we agree - we'll go from here with the cage. Still don't know what kind of wood he has in mind, though. I know he's working on all sorts of wonderful things up around the tree in the upper part of the spoon, though, so I'm looking forward to seeing what's next!!!


Don't forget to get your tickets to win this spoon! I really think something special is brewing here!

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Follow the whole nine yards here (a 95 part series) :- Half Marathon Blog

Why I am running:- West Coast Eisteddfod Bryn Seion Church

For details of how to sponsor see this post

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OK so I missed a few days due ( largely ) to circumstances beyond my control BUT we're back today and more determined than ever before to see this thing through

I have been working away for most of the last week and wasn't able to run as much as I would like. With 58 days to go I am beginning to realise both the enormity of the hill I still have to climb and how little time I have left. Suffice it to say that I can just about manage 3 miles at the moment so I've got plenty of work to do. Getting to half marathon readiness is still perfectly possible in the next two months but I'm going to have to devise a training schedule and stick to it daily. I hope to post something along those lines very shortly.

Also the long awaited sponsorship page will be posted by next Monday at the latest. Watch this space for more tomorrow.

Hope none of these guys ( see video below ) are me the day after

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