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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.

We apologise for the cheesy title but we are naturally very pleased and excited to be able to announce that plans for the Left Coast Eisteddfod in Portland this August are now beginning to firm up. This week we secured the location for the event in Portland, Oregon: it will take place at the Crystal Ballroom on Saturday, 22 August 2009.

Below is a shot of the view of the ballroom from the stage. The Crystal Ballroom has been a Portland nightlife destination for many decades, glamorously famous for its dance floor: a wooden floor on a ball-bearing base, below a balcony of fixed seating, with two bars - one in the balcony and one at the back of the ballroom itself. The ballroom overlooks downtown West Burnside Street, a main boulevard which bisects the north and south halves of the city and just blocks from Powell's Books, the largest independent bookstore in the United States, probably in the western hemisphere.

The ballroom is on the third floor and in addition to that floor, we have the second floor, which is another bar and dance floor - photograph of that bar, intrepidly claimed for Wales by AmeriCymru member, Hugh Roberts, at the bottom of this post, below.

So far confirmed to attend are:- Chris Needs , Bruce Anderson , Niall Griffiths , Oceans Apart and David Western . Other announcements will follow. There is every chance, should our funding situation continue to improve, that we will book a second and possibly a third day It was our original intention to stage a three day event and we are exploring various sponsorship options with interested parties at the moment.

The program for the event is in the beginning planning stages but so far we're looking at a Welsh market/tradeshow with vendor spaces during the day and seminars/appearances by lovespoon carver David Western and author Niall Griffiths on the ballroom stage and performers appearing in the ballroom in the evening.

The winners of all our online Eisteddfod competitions will be announced at the event. The Short Story Competition is being judged by Lloyd Jones and Peter Thabit Jones is judging the Poetry Competition. Judges for the other competitions have yet to be announced. David Western will announce the winner of the Left Coast Eisteddfod lovespoon he is creating and auctioning for the event.

We're working out additional presentations and possibly appearances and events at other locations near the Crystal Ballroom: book signings and other events. We'd really love to hear from anyone about events they'd like to see at this, any ideas anyone to make it even bigger and better.

We want to thank all our members and contributors for helping us get to this point and giving us an opportunity to promote Wales and modern Welsh culture in the western USA. We really hope we see a lot of you here and plan a special event for AmeriCymru members.

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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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By default, anyone can view a member's profile page and list of friends on a public social network on Ning. It's now possible for members to change this from the "Privacy" section of the "My Settings" area. Here's what a profile page looks like if you choose to only have content visible to network members:

In the above example the text reads:-"THIS PROFILE IS SET TO PRIVATEYou must be a member of this network to view this profile."

Members can choose to show their page to everyone, give access only to network members or limit to just their friends. Network Creators and Administrators can still view all information on the social network.

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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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After too many weeks away from the project, its high time to get back to work on the Left Coast Eisteddfod spoon! This week I'm going to work on the maple leaf and the star.

These elements require radically different handling to make them look as they should. The leaf needs to be soft, curvaceous and 'flowing', while the star needs crisp angles and a uniform rigidity. Those with a keen political eye will note that the maple leaf is on the left and the star is on the right...I'd like to be able to take credit for a bit of a political wit with that one, but it was actually just an accident of placement. Perhaps I should have put them both in the centre (or center) to avoid any political misinterpretations!

Anyway, the key thing with the maple leaf is to make it appear 'leaf-like' which is easier said than done. While cutting the leaf on the scroll saw, I was careful to make the tips of the leaf appear to bend slightly. This creates a bit of tension, which in turn makes the leaf appear to have some movement despite being completely static. To further enhance this illusion, I exaggerate the 'hills and valleys' between each leaf tip by using a curved knife (a gouge works good too) to create a concave surface.

I've become a huge fan of curved knives for this type of work and have pretty well forgotten all about my gouges. Because I work on such a small scale, these knives are the perfect tool and are both light and fast in the hand. I'm careful with leaves to not overwork things and make the surfaces too smooth.

A bit of texturing helps give the leaf a vitality which disappears if the surface is too homogenous. There is a tricky area at the bottoms of the valleys where the wood grain changes direction which must be handled with care. Because I don't want to sand my leaves (which kills the vibrant look completely) I need to be very careful in this area. Nice shallow cuts are generally the answer, but occasionally I will fair out a rough patch with a small, curved scraper blade.

The star is a completely different kettle of fish. Here the surfaces will ultimately need to be as flat an fair as I can get them. The intersections of the angles need to be kept crisp and should be as straight as possible. I like to get a facetted look to the star with each arm having a central ridge from which the wood falls away meeting in a valley between sections. To get each arm faired properly, I take advantage of a skewed knife which allows me to cut on a bit of an angle. When the majority of the shaping is done, I go back over the star with a smaller straight knife to clean up any rough spots or fraying. I could cut the star all flat and on the same level, but I have found that facetting it in this manner makes it look a bit more regal and impressive.

Next week I'll have a go at the Celtic knotwork which is always good, dangerous fun! If the spoon is going to break anywhere, the Celtic knotwork is generally the place it happens. But that won't happen on this spoon because I'm doing it for a cause and my Karma will be good!

Please don't forget that the purpose of this spoon is to raise money for the Left Coast Eisteddfod! Without your support, it will be very difficult to get this worthwhile event off the ground. Every dollar you send in will give you a chance at winning this spoon and I very much hope that you will see your way to making a donation!