Proud Westies At National Event
The Western NSW Squad were proud participants at the recent National Dragon Boat Championships on Queensland’s Sunshine Coast.
Although the squad, consisting of Warren and Donna Edwards, Bill and Beth Thomas, and Rochelle Smith of Parkes, and Claire Davis and Chris Favelle of Forbes, did not win any medals the experience of paddling 500m races in a highly esteemed national event was an amazing achievement in its own right.
Other accomplishments were personal best (PB) times in every single race category, including women’s, mixed and open, with a fourth place as the best placing, and one PB by 15 seconds.
“It was a fabulous day on Lake Kawana,” said state coach Deb Clarke. Assistant coach Lou Linke agreed, congratulating the team on a great campaign: “You did Regional NSW proud!”
If there were prizes for mutual respect and team camaraderie then no-one could have achieved a higher rating. For team member Rochelle Smith it was all about the bond they share: “Thanks to everyone for being so fun and respectful of each other.”
The Westies, as they were known, included teammates from Bathurst, Orange, Dubbo, Lithgow and Wagga Wagga.
By Beth Thomas
CDS Does It For Sixth Time
Currajong Disability Services (CDS) took out overall honours in the Western Region Annual Swimming Carnival for the sixth time in seven years at Parkes Swimming Pool recently. The event saw a strong field of 105 entrants from as far afield as Temora and Cowra, the 2017 defending champions. Yet it was Currajong, lead admirably by Ian
“Thorpedo” Kaupke, and Condo CDS representative Tim McDonald who dominated early, with some impressive performances from Jamie Cook also.
Chris Spicer, Jaime Porter, Tara Dennis and Jay Crouch put in some strong performances and Kyal Sauer and Thomas Davis were competitive.
“CDS went very well and competed in the right spirit,” said Activity Co-ordinator and carnival organiser, Currajong’s Indigo Kriedemann. “Each year we see fantastic friendships and relationships develop and we were delighted to continue that with the other organisations and clients again this year,” said Indigo.
The carnival, one of the flagship events on the regional calendar, also featured novelty events and a relay. “Everyone had a go, which is all you can ask from competitors to volunteers,” said Indigo.
“We can’t thank everyone enough, especially our CDS volunteers.”
By Dane Millerd
Footy Tipping Results – Round 1
Paragliding First For Trundle
Trundle will be the epicentre of Australian Paragliding over the next five days with Australia’s first ever ground tow competition. A total of 35 pilots, including members of the Australian team, will take part in the Wings Out West ground tow paragliding competition at a tow paddock 6km west of Trundle. Pilots will be towed to around 800 metres above ground where they will release from tow and fly a challenging air navigation course using GPS technology.
The towing technology has been developed by a Dubbo local, Phillip Mansell of Fly Dubbo, and is used at most flight training facilities around Australia. During the five-day competition starting today, each day’s task could take the pilots anywhere within a 100km radius of Trundle depending on weather conditions. The central west is a popular location for cross country flying with the flatlands around Trundle offering some interesting challenges.
The navigation tasks take them to designated GPS turn points and will require the pilots to generally fly for three to fourhours covering 50 to 100km. Pilots score points for being the fastest to the designated GPS goal mark. The pilot with the most points over five days will be crowned the 2018 champion.
Paragliding is a growing adventure sport around the world. At the recent World Championships, the Australian team came 5th, well above their ranking of 14th.
To fly a paraglider, pilots are required to be licensed, receive specialist training and to maintain their rating each year. Paraglider pilots stay aloft by riding rising currents of air. Pilots need to be able to identify the location of the rising currents (thermals) by looking for clues on the ground and in the air.
For more information contact the organiser, John Brassil on 0419 285 802.
Parkes Punch Above Weight In Pennants
After play in Forbes last Sunday the Division 3 side of the Parkes Golf Club were the only team guaranteed a spot in this weekend’s semi-finals of the CWDGA Pennants. Parkes secured three semi-final berths from four divisions with Divisions 2 and 4 both earning the wins they needed to gain a spot in the finals.
“Outperforming many of the bigger clubs such as Duntryleague, Mudgee and Bathurst is very pleasing for us,” said Parkes Golf Club captain, Peter Dixon. In a very tightly contested competition, Parkes topped Pool B in Division 2 after a 5-0 victory over Cowra. Brendan Chambers claimed a comprehensive 4 and 3 victory, and Phil Barnard secured a 2 and 1 victory.
Joe van Opynen continued his unbeaten run to win 2 and 1, and Tim Burke scored a 3 and 1 victory. John Green won his match 4 and 2, and Division 3 topped their pool with a 3-2 win against Bathurst.
With the help of an eagle three on the 15th hole, Todd Jayet remained undefeated with a big 5 and 4 win. Peter Bristol (3 and 2) and Jake Hodge (19th) gained the two wins to claim the tie for Parkes.
In Division 4 Terry Walsh secured one of the biggest wins seen in the CWDGA competition winning nine of the 11 holes he played. Dr Dave Harwood claimed a comprehensive 6 and 5 victory, while captain Jarrod Kemp claimed the vital win 1 up to secure the tie.
Division 1 played their final match of the year against a strong Bathurst team, going down by a narrow 3-2 margin.
Lachlan Buesnell (2 and 1) earned his second victory, Rob Hey (2 and 1) claimed his match, while Denis Howard (3 and 2), Peter Dixon (3 and 2) and Aaron Wilkie (2 and 1) were beaten.
Divisions 2, 3 and 4 will play their semifinals in Dubbo this Sunday. Division 2 will play Mudgee, Division 3 play Wentworth and Division 4 play Wellington.
By Denis Howard
Parkes Council Touch Teams Tops
The Parkes Shire Council teams won both the men’s and mixed divisions of the 26th Local Government Touch Football Carnival held in Parkes last Saturday. In the grand final Parkes beat the Brisbane Council in a close match 6-5.
A total of 17 teams from the eastern states took part. The full results for the carnival are:
MEN’S A FINAL
Parkes Shire Council vs Runners-up – Brisbane & Redland City Councils; final score: 6-5. Player of the Grand Final: Beau Tanswell (Parkes Shire Council)
MIXED A FINAL
Parkes Shire Council vs Brisbane & Redland City Councils; final score: 7-6. Player of the Grand Final: Jack Elliott (Parkes Shire Council)
MIXED B FINAL
Condobolin Boomerangs vs ‘CanYouTouch’ ACT Government; final score: 7-6. Player of the Grand Final: Jordan (Condobolin)
MIXED C FINAL
‘Strong & Bitey’ Bega Valley Shire Council vs Cabonne; final score: 11-5. Player of the Grand Final: Sam Jobson (Bega Valley Shire Council)
BEST DRESSED AWARDS
Best Dressed (Overall): Clan McSingleton from Singleton Council. Best Dressed (After Five Wear): Corn Baggers from Brisbane and Redland City Councils
‘Grant’ Win For Maree
Maree Grant is the 2018 Parkes Women’s Bowling Club Singles champion. She played Cherie Frame in a thrilling final. Cherie took an early lead, but then Maree took the lead to win the game in a strong position 25 – 16.
In other games Di Howell and Joan Simpson defeated Isabell Svendsen and Liz Byrne 15 – 13, while Kate Keogh, Francis Charlton and Gwenda Carty won 17 – 6 playing Di Greenhalgh, Margaret Hawken and Brenda Davies.
The No4 Pennant teams were defeated in both games in the first round in Cowra. Next week the teams have a bye on Tuesday and on Thursday they play Forbes and No3’s play Canowindra in Parkes.
Nominations for Club Pairs open on 6th March and close on 20th March. Committee meeting will be on 2nd March.
To play social bowls ring table selectors Brenda Davies and Maureen Miller between 8.30am and 9am. Social roster Di Greenhalgh.
By Rosemary Mitchell
Thrilling Bowls Final On Cards
Two superb matches were played in the semi-final of the Championship Singles this week. Cherie Frame defeated Robyn Morgan by getting 3 points on the last end to win 25- 21. Maree Grant’s match against Brenda Davies ended with a final score of 25-20.
The final will be played next week with Cherie Frame versus Maree Grant – a game not to be missed. In other games played Chris Cox and Gwenda Carty defeated Isabel Svendsen and Flo Riseborough; Di Howell, Merilyn Rodgers and Frances Charlton defeated Valmai Westcott, Margaret Hawken and Marja Iffland, while Wendy Hendry, Maureen Miller and Minnie Riordan defeated Di Greenhalgh, Rosemary Mitchell and Joan Simpson.
Winners for the day were Chris and Gwenda and runner-ups Di, Rosemary and Joan. Raffle winners were Barbara Collier and Maureen Miller.
The No 4 Pennants teams will be travelling to Cowra next Tuesday to play the first round of pennants, and Thursday we play Parkes Railway Diggers at their club.
By Rosemary Mitchell
17 Teams In Council Clash At Cheney
The table is set to determine the top council footy team at the 26th Local Government Touch Football Carnival at Cheney Park tomorrow. Parkes Shire Council staff are ready to go head-to-head with their Council counterparts from 16 other local governments from the eastern states.
The annual event, hosted by Parkes Shire Council and sponsored by JR Richards & Sons, has become a staple event on the local government social calendar.
Parkes Shire Council’s General Manager, Kent Boyd said: “This year we will welcome teams from ACT Government, Bega Valley Shire Council, Brisbane and Redland City Councils, City of Canada Bay, and Lake Macquarie just to name a few.”
The purpose of the day is to put stamina, strength and sporting ability to the test as the teams vie for the title of the fittest and most skilful organisation, but the day is also a great social junket.
“The competition for Best Dressed Team is always hotly contested, with Brisbane City Council returning in 2018 to defend their title,” said Kent. Teams will play a round-robin style tournament with two grades in both the men’s
division and mixed divisions. Aside from bragging rights for the year, official prizes will be awarded to the winners and runners-up, as well as the player of the final. For the more social participants, prizes are up for grabs for the best dressed team. This year each of the teams will also be presented with a special gift.
It is expected the tournament will inject around $40,000 into the local economy with 200 players converging on Parkes for the weekend. Set to be a great family-friendly day out, residents and visitors are encouraged to cheer on the teams from the sideline with the carnival kicking off at 9am.
- « Previous Page
- 1
- …
- 92
- 93
- 94
- 95
- 96
- …
- 118
- Next Page »