I'm listening to the 4th Test against the West Indies in Barbados on a new radio. Not just any radio, this is a PURE EVOKE flow, Digital Audio Broadcast (DAB), internet-connected radio in piano black, with Snoozehandle. It is more than a radio though, it's expandable. I can add a speaker and turn it into stereo (mono is more than fine for listening to the cricket) and I can attach my iPod if I want to and it's got a USB port for updates - I do like a bit of room to breathe...
The black piano finish with burnished metal handle, speaker grill and ariel ooze a certain style which is complimented by the display. As well as showing the time it also has the match score update continuously scrolling up the OLED display. I'm never at a loss to know the score, which is really important when the commentators are off on some reverie, recounting some match from ten years ago and arguing about who caught who, when what you really need to know is the score! Well, there it is, in vibrant OLED green/yellow!
The sound quality is superb; a nice clear, warm sound from the 3" speaker. Tony Cozier's rich West Indian lilt emanates from the little black box in perfect contrast to the no-nonsense Yorkshire, drill of Jeff Boycott. It has touch sensitive controls which work really well. The whole thing exudes quality, it is a perfect blend of design and technology.
Oh, and when the cricket's finished, it has PURE sounds. These are atmospheric sounds of; birdsong, heartbeat, thunder etc... A sort of match comedown soundtrack depending upon how England have played. How cool is that?
Oh, and England are 221 for no loss!
RP
Copyright © 2009 THE GREEN ORCHARD Ltd. All rights reserved.All other products or brand names mentioned are trademarks or registered trademarks of their respective holders.
Thursday 26 February 2009
Tuesday 24 February 2009
Another Draw!
Designer Balls
Paul Smith Cricket Ball!
I found this at Bloomsbury in Bristol whilst wandering around aimlessly. I'm not sure what the ECB would make of it but it's kind of cool in an 'over-priced, totally useless, money to burn' kind of way.
RP
Copyright © 2009 THE GREEN ORCHARD Ltd. All rights reserved.All other products or brand names mentioned are trademarks or registered trademarks of their respective holders.
I found this at Bloomsbury in Bristol whilst wandering around aimlessly. I'm not sure what the ECB would make of it but it's kind of cool in an 'over-priced, totally useless, money to burn' kind of way.
RP
Copyright © 2009 THE GREEN ORCHARD Ltd. All rights reserved.All other products or brand names mentioned are trademarks or registered trademarks of their respective holders.
Sunday 22 February 2009
A Draw
Why so sad?
Yes, it's been a couple of days and some of you may be thinking this is old news - After such a good start, England only manage a draw with West Indies in 3rd Test!
Well, I've been sulking.
RP
Copyright © 2009 THE GREEN ORCHARD Ltd. All rights reserved.All other products or brand names mentioned are trademarks or registered trademarks of their respective holders.
Yes, it's been a couple of days and some of you may be thinking this is old news - After such a good start, England only manage a draw with West Indies in 3rd Test!
Well, I've been sulking.
RP
Copyright © 2009 THE GREEN ORCHARD Ltd. All rights reserved.All other products or brand names mentioned are trademarks or registered trademarks of their respective holders.
Thursday 19 February 2009
The Nightwatchman
Ah, The Nightwatchman! That hunched figure in macintosh and flat cap, his right arm held aloft with lantern, flickering in the dark. He walks to the brazier, glowing orange, providing the only warmth to the chill of the night air. He places the lantern down on the floor then warms his hands and rubs them together to generate a little warmth into his old bones. The moon shines down as a mist starts to seep into the ground...
Oh, I've just found out that 'The Nightwatchman' is a lower order batsman, sent in to play in dimming light toward the end of the day, to protect a more valuable batsman for next day's play! That makes more sense. I did wonder at the brazier ruining the pitch...
RP
Copyright © 2009 THE GREEN ORCHARD Ltd. All rights reserved.All other products or brand names mentioned are trademarks or registered trademarks of their respective holders.
Oh, I've just found out that 'The Nightwatchman' is a lower order batsman, sent in to play in dimming light toward the end of the day, to protect a more valuable batsman for next day's play! That makes more sense. I did wonder at the brazier ruining the pitch...
RP
Copyright © 2009 THE GREEN ORCHARD Ltd. All rights reserved.All other products or brand names mentioned are trademarks or registered trademarks of their respective holders.
Gardyloo!
I was bought a calendar of 'Forgotten English' for Christmas that details old, lost words day by day and yesterday's word was 'Gardyloo'. This was the call sign of medieval maids just as they emptied the contents of the chamber pot, out of the window, into the street below!
Sir Alan Stanford with his 'dealings' and the fallout for Giles Clarke and the ECB - Gardyloo!
Coincidence?
A fitting word of the day!
RP
Copyright © 2009 THE GREEN ORCHARD Ltd. All rights reserved.All other products or brand names mentioned are trademarks or registered trademarks of their respective holders.
Sir Alan Stanford with his 'dealings' and the fallout for Giles Clarke and the ECB - Gardyloo!
Coincidence?
A fitting word of the day!
RP
Copyright © 2009 THE GREEN ORCHARD Ltd. All rights reserved.All other products or brand names mentioned are trademarks or registered trademarks of their respective holders.
Testing Times
I'm sat here waiting for the last day of the 3rd Test against the West Indies to start in anticipation. It has been an excellent few days with so much happening. England look in command but the West Indies give you the feeling that they won't collapse in a heap like England did in the 1st Test not so long ago! The Recreation Ground has proved to be a godsend, not least with the commentators who keep praising its 'atmosphere' and its 'history' and its 'location' and anything else they can think of (you'd think they had shares in it!). Strauss proved his captaincy by championing what became a 503 run lead, capturing 169 runs in the 1st innings himself. Collingwood pleased everyone with his eighth Test century. Owais Shah has fitted into the team well at the expense of Bell and Swann's bowling has pleased and impressed everyone. The worrying news is of Flintoff's hip injury and all the uncertainty that brings. England's bowling today to try and level the Test will be interesting to watch, not least to see if Flintoff plays.
So, just a mouseclick away, the pop-out player beckons, awaiting my command. The West Indies are 143 for 3 and rain has delayed play on the 5th day - it's all happening! Or not as the case may be!
RP
Copyright © 2009 THE GREEN ORCHARD Ltd. All rights reserved.All other products or brand names mentioned are trademarks or registered trademarks of their respective holders.
So, just a mouseclick away, the pop-out player beckons, awaiting my command. The West Indies are 143 for 3 and rain has delayed play on the 5th day - it's all happening! Or not as the case may be!
RP
Copyright © 2009 THE GREEN ORCHARD Ltd. All rights reserved.All other products or brand names mentioned are trademarks or registered trademarks of their respective holders.
Monday 16 February 2009
That's better...
Ah, listening to the 3rd Test in Antigua on the radio yesterday at my parents-in-law, as England, led from the front by captain Strauss made amends for the collapse in Kingston last week. The sun must have been shining down on the Antigua Recreation Ground and you could have been forgiven for thinking I was in the Caribbean. The heating was on and there must have been some serious lagging in the loft because I was sweltering! I half expected to see palm trees, a beach and the blue of the Caribbean sea out of the French windows...
I listened, ball by ball as first of all England beat the dreaded 51 runs, then Strauss got his half century, England made a hundred and Strauss made his century and beyond. By the time we left, England were 168-1 and I needed IV fluids to restore my fluid balance in the balmy heat of Wiltshire in winter! England's reign continued whilst in the car home and then on the laptop into the evening. England finished on 301-3 and I re-hydrated myself back at the 'clubhouse' known as home.
A great day's listening but I must remember to take water rations next time...
RP
Copyright © 2009 THE GREEN ORCHARD Ltd. All rights reserved.All other products or brand names mentioned are trademarks or registered trademarks of their respective holders.
I listened, ball by ball as first of all England beat the dreaded 51 runs, then Strauss got his half century, England made a hundred and Strauss made his century and beyond. By the time we left, England were 168-1 and I needed IV fluids to restore my fluid balance in the balmy heat of Wiltshire in winter! England's reign continued whilst in the car home and then on the laptop into the evening. England finished on 301-3 and I re-hydrated myself back at the 'clubhouse' known as home.
A great day's listening but I must remember to take water rations next time...
RP
Copyright © 2009 THE GREEN ORCHARD Ltd. All rights reserved.All other products or brand names mentioned are trademarks or registered trademarks of their respective holders.
Saturday 14 February 2009
ARGghhh!
Everyone to the A.R.G. on Sunday - O.K.?
RP
Copyright © 2009 THE GREEN ORCHARD Ltd. All rights reserved.All other products or brand names mentioned are trademarks or registered trademarks of their respective holders.
Friday 13 February 2009
Life's a Beach - Sand Stopped Play!
I'd just sat down to listen to the 2nd Test match, the banter from TMS setting the scene.
West Indies won the toss and put England in to bat on what was reported to be more of a beach than a pitch. This suited England and is what they would have probably chosen if they had won the toss.
Shah in for Bell / Anderson in for Harmison / Panesar playing. The National selector put a positive spin on what he called 'Bell's blip' in form.
Strauss was off the mark with 2 runs.
The scoreboard wasn't working and lots of people were still outside trying to get into the ground. At 14:08 rain stopped play with England 6 for no wicket.
14:34 and Cook was facing his 1st ball after the stoppage and was off the mark, long leg for a single.
The bowlers however were increasingly stopping short of bowling after their runups due to not being able to get a grip on the surface of the outfield!
Then, MATCH ABANDONED FOR TODAY after 10 balls - England 7 for no wickets!
Confirmed by match referee - Alan Hurst.
Looking into options.
Best laid plans... and all that - Life's a beach!
RP
Copyright © 2009 THE GREEN ORCHARD Ltd. All rights reserved.All other products or brand names mentioned are trademarks or registered trademarks of their respective holders.
West Indies won the toss and put England in to bat on what was reported to be more of a beach than a pitch. This suited England and is what they would have probably chosen if they had won the toss.
Shah in for Bell / Anderson in for Harmison / Panesar playing. The National selector put a positive spin on what he called 'Bell's blip' in form.
Strauss was off the mark with 2 runs.
The scoreboard wasn't working and lots of people were still outside trying to get into the ground. At 14:08 rain stopped play with England 6 for no wicket.
14:34 and Cook was facing his 1st ball after the stoppage and was off the mark, long leg for a single.
The bowlers however were increasingly stopping short of bowling after their runups due to not being able to get a grip on the surface of the outfield!
Then, MATCH ABANDONED FOR TODAY after 10 balls - England 7 for no wickets!
Confirmed by match referee - Alan Hurst.
Looking into options.
Best laid plans... and all that - Life's a beach!
RP
Copyright © 2009 THE GREEN ORCHARD Ltd. All rights reserved.All other products or brand names mentioned are trademarks or registered trademarks of their respective holders.
Thursday 12 February 2009
Yorkshire Tea
Yorkshire TeaTo the traditional sounds of leaf on teapot... (Thanks The Orb - Check LFC's remix)
RP
Copyright © 2009 THE GREEN ORCHARD Ltd. All rights reserved.All other products or brand names mentioned are trademarks or registered trademarks of their respective holders.
Snow on pitch
Snow on pitch at Bath CCCThey'll have to move that before the next match!
RP
Copyright © 2009 THE GREEN ORCHARD Ltd. All rights reserved.All other products or brand names mentioned are trademarks or registered trademarks of their respective holders.
Wednesday 11 February 2009
It's coming home...
It's coming home, it's coming home, it's coming, (Football's) Cricket's coming home!
Telegraph article talks about possibility of Twenty20 cricket at Wembley!
RP
Copyright © 2009 THE GREEN ORCHARD Ltd. All rights reserved.All other products or brand names mentioned are trademarks or registered trademarks of their respective holders.
Telegraph article talks about possibility of Twenty20 cricket at Wembley!
RP
Copyright © 2009 THE GREEN ORCHARD Ltd. All rights reserved.All other products or brand names mentioned are trademarks or registered trademarks of their respective holders.
Anticipation and Patience
There is a time when anticipation starts. There is no big revelation, no cloudburst, fanfare or pyrotechnic display just a mild dawning. It is time, anticipation is there.
Anticipation around the 2nd Test in the West Indies starts around now; not too soon after the 1st Test, not too late before it all becomes too commonplace. It seems to me that everyone seems to have written off England, missing the point that this is a Test, it is carried out over several days and several matches. Patience is required as well as sweeping batting an fast bowling. This isn't a one day blast to see who can slam the most flamboyant runs for the cameras. It is an intricate game of stealth and patience, it is a mental game and above all, it is a team game.
I for one will be glued to my laptop screen (metaphorically speaking), listening to the 2nd Test in Antigua this coming Friday with anticipation (after all, it is Friday the 13th!). And a little patience.
RP
Copyright © 2009 THE GREEN ORCHARD Ltd. All rights reserved.All other products or brand names mentioned are trademarks or registered trademarks of their respective holders.
Anticipation around the 2nd Test in the West Indies starts around now; not too soon after the 1st Test, not too late before it all becomes too commonplace. It seems to me that everyone seems to have written off England, missing the point that this is a Test, it is carried out over several days and several matches. Patience is required as well as sweeping batting an fast bowling. This isn't a one day blast to see who can slam the most flamboyant runs for the cameras. It is an intricate game of stealth and patience, it is a mental game and above all, it is a team game.
I for one will be glued to my laptop screen (metaphorically speaking), listening to the 2nd Test in Antigua this coming Friday with anticipation (after all, it is Friday the 13th!). And a little patience.
RP
Copyright © 2009 THE GREEN ORCHARD Ltd. All rights reserved.All other products or brand names mentioned are trademarks or registered trademarks of their respective holders.
Tuesday 10 February 2009
England need a manager
There's a lot of talk about England needing a manager (see The Surfer's blog). Just not one of them Bank Manager's that are so in the news at the moment though! Eh?
RP
Copyright © 2009 THE GREEN ORCHARD Ltd. All rights reserved.All other products or brand names mentioned are trademarks or registered trademarks of their respective holders.
RP
Copyright © 2009 THE GREEN ORCHARD Ltd. All rights reserved.All other products or brand names mentioned are trademarks or registered trademarks of their respective holders.
Use Your Loaf!
There's not a day goes by without the press reporting upon England's need to use their heads and how it's all about thinking for oneself and personal responsibility 'n'all.
Maybe it's got to the point where its 'A Matter of Loaf or Death'!
RP
Copyright © 2009 THE GREEN ORCHARD Ltd. All rights reserved.All other products or brand names mentioned are trademarks or registered trademarks of their respective holders.
Maybe it's got to the point where its 'A Matter of Loaf or Death'!
RP
Copyright © 2009 THE GREEN ORCHARD Ltd. All rights reserved.All other products or brand names mentioned are trademarks or registered trademarks of their respective holders.
A Big White Horse!
'The Angel of the South' - that's what it's being billed as! A large white horse, 50 metres high (that approx. 150 feet high in old money), designed by Mark Wallinger, sited in Ebbsfleet!
I'm not a horse'y person, I would have liked to have seen a giant set of stumps with a bat and a ball! 50 metres high!
The Times The Times The Guardian
Intro page with pic of horse: Ebbsfleet Landmark Home
RP
Copyright © 2009 THE GREEN ORCHARD Ltd. All rights reserved.All other products or brand names mentioned are trademarks or registered trademarks of their respective holders.
I'm not a horse'y person, I would have liked to have seen a giant set of stumps with a bat and a ball! 50 metres high!
The Times The Times The Guardian
Intro page with pic of horse: Ebbsfleet Landmark Home
RP
Copyright © 2009 THE GREEN ORCHARD Ltd. All rights reserved.All other products or brand names mentioned are trademarks or registered trademarks of their respective holders.
Monday 9 February 2009
Distractions
As the snow and ice melt away (although if you are unlucky enough to live in the South West, another deluge is forecast for this evening) tracks are left in the mud of the landscape from the games people played in the snow, sitting like scars and it calls to mind what must be left on the pitch at Sabina Park in Kingston. So as the critics both inside the team and out start to dissect the result and discussions have inevitably turned to the money, showered upon individual players by the IPL like flower petals on some new-found deity, we have to ask; does money lead to distractions?
Well, I know if I was just signed up to £170K a week I'd be putting maybe a little thought into replacing my 2" of bare forearm, just above the wrist for a Rolex Submariner Date and maybe I'd spend just a couple of seconds about replacing the clapped out French saloon I drive for something with a sweet-sounding exhaust and a picture of a bull on the bonnet and just maybe I'd looking to take my old jumper down to Oxfam and trade up to an Italian-sounding suit. I wouldn't be distracted though.
HOWZAT?
'Oh!'
RP
Copyright © 2009 THE GREEN ORCHARD Ltd. All rights reserved.All other products or brand names mentioned are trademarks or registered trademarks of their respective holders.
Well, I know if I was just signed up to £170K a week I'd be putting maybe a little thought into replacing my 2" of bare forearm, just above the wrist for a Rolex Submariner Date and maybe I'd spend just a couple of seconds about replacing the clapped out French saloon I drive for something with a sweet-sounding exhaust and a picture of a bull on the bonnet and just maybe I'd looking to take my old jumper down to Oxfam and trade up to an Italian-sounding suit. I wouldn't be distracted though.
HOWZAT?
'Oh!'
RP
Copyright © 2009 THE GREEN ORCHARD Ltd. All rights reserved.All other products or brand names mentioned are trademarks or registered trademarks of their respective holders.
Sunday 8 February 2009
Red and Yellow and Pink and...
'Panesar takes a run up to the stumps and releases a yellow ball for a reverse spin...' wait a minute, rewind. 'Panesar takes a run up to the stumps and releases a pink ball for a reverse spin...' whoah! pink ball? Yes, it could be. Yellow, pink, white and other colours as yet to be determined are all in the running for floodlit Test cricket. The Times (Saturday, 7th February 2009, Sport P21) provides an exclusive discussion of the drive for floodlit Test cricket at Lords.
First the cricket jumper, then the introduction of the referral system for the umpire, now the famous red ball. All crickets icons are being dismantled , one by one. The game will son be unrecognisable, fans will be co-ordinating their clothes in line with the ball being played soon! 'A pink crocodile brogue in harmony with a yorker bowled under floodight'.
I suppose the benefits of batting into the balmy evening night, under actinic light as England strike a six at Lords is worth a little change.
I'm off to buy my pink crocs - artificial leather of course...
RP
Copyright © 2009 THE GREEN ORCHARD Ltd. All rights reserved.All other products or brand names mentioned are trademarks or registered trademarks of their respective holders.
First the cricket jumper, then the introduction of the referral system for the umpire, now the famous red ball. All crickets icons are being dismantled , one by one. The game will son be unrecognisable, fans will be co-ordinating their clothes in line with the ball being played soon! 'A pink crocodile brogue in harmony with a yorker bowled under floodight'.
I suppose the benefits of batting into the balmy evening night, under actinic light as England strike a six at Lords is worth a little change.
I'm off to buy my pink crocs - artificial leather of course...
RP
Copyright © 2009 THE GREEN ORCHARD Ltd. All rights reserved.All other products or brand names mentioned are trademarks or registered trademarks of their respective holders.
Stumped!
What do I write? No play today all out for 51 yesterday, so I'm stood here, playing catch with myself, not exactly bowled over by the prospect. I daren't read the Sunday papers, god knows what the headlines will be!
Ah well, back to the nets...
RP
Copyright © 2009 THE GREEN ORCHARD Ltd. All rights reserved.All other products or brand names mentioned are trademarks or registered trademarks of their respective holders.
Ah well, back to the nets...
RP
Copyright © 2009 THE GREEN ORCHARD Ltd. All rights reserved.All other products or brand names mentioned are trademarks or registered trademarks of their respective holders.
Saturday 7 February 2009
3rd lowest total ever!
England all out for 51
Collapse, rout, disintegration - so, moving swiftly on to Antigua - 2nd Test.
(I mean, I went out for an hour and everything seemed OK. Not brilliant but OK, something to work with. The worst of it is I was really looking forward to listening to the cricket tomorrow as well!)
RP
Copyright © 2009 THE GREEN ORCHARD Ltd. All rights reserved.All other products or brand names mentioned are trademarks or registered trademarks of their respective holders.
Friday 6 February 2009
I mustn't mention the snow again
I mustn't mention the snow again, I mustn't mention the snow again, I mustn't mention the snow again. 'It's snowing again!' Owww!
Well the bowling didn't go as planned on day two - West Indies 160-1 in reply at close of play (I just love the language of cricket, don't you?). Hopefully a good night's sleep, a stiff talking to and a re-group will have done the trick. Yes, that's what it needs. Straussy and his gang can now get out there and take some wickets.
I'll be listening to it on the radio. I'd love to be watching it on TV but I haven't got Sky (damn you BBC for not bidding for TV rights for everything!). I'm not a 'Luddite', resisting the march of progress, hankering after a gentler age. No, I'm a 'Can't affordite'. Sky's core dump of everything you don't want mixed in with a little bit of what you do want (like Test cricket) doesn't speak to my credit crunch-strapped wallet.
So, it's internet-based 5Live Extra cricket with its scorecard visual or car-based Long Wave cricket with a little bit of static on top for me. If I place an exotic-looking drink with an umbrella in it on my desk, eat a banana and put a desert Island backdrop on my laptop I can almost believe I'm there - almost.
Oh, did I mention? It's snowing again.
Come on England!
RP
Copyright © 2009 THE GREEN ORCHARD Ltd. All rights reserved.All other products or brand names mentioned are trademarks or registered trademarks of their respective holders.
Thursday 5 February 2009
All of a Twitter
This is more of a Twitter than a Post
Just logged on to BBC Video player for the Live video scorecard (audio only) and found out that Flintoff went for 43 - gutted. The're on their way to 300 now but still!
RP
Copyright © 2009 THE GREEN ORCHARD Ltd. All rights reserved.All other products or brand names mentioned are trademarks or registered trademarks of their respective holders.
Just logged on to BBC Video player for the Live video scorecard (audio only) and found out that Flintoff went for 43 - gutted. The're on their way to 300 now but still!
RP
Copyright © 2009 THE GREEN ORCHARD Ltd. All rights reserved.All other products or brand names mentioned are trademarks or registered trademarks of their respective holders.
Link in Park
The snow has fallen again just to rub in, a little further how nice the weather must be in the West Indies at this time. As you look around at the impassable side roads and the whitened parks filled with people off work and off school, you see everyone unable to resist picking up snow, forming a ball and throwing it.
It's just a natural instinct and you are in the minority if you are not tempted. So, even in the grip of winter you can still feel a small link with the Caribbean sun that will be shining down on Sabina Park as England come out to finish their innings and then bowl, to hopefully turn around the game that started out yesterday as a struggle.
It's a pity I can't feel a link with the warmth though!
RP
Copyright © 2009 THE GREEN ORCHARD Ltd. All rights reserved.All other products or brand names mentioned are trademarks or registered trademarks of their respective holders.
It's just a natural instinct and you are in the minority if you are not tempted. So, even in the grip of winter you can still feel a small link with the Caribbean sun that will be shining down on Sabina Park as England come out to finish their innings and then bowl, to hopefully turn around the game that started out yesterday as a struggle.
It's a pity I can't feel a link with the warmth though!
RP
Copyright © 2009 THE GREEN ORCHARD Ltd. All rights reserved.All other products or brand names mentioned are trademarks or registered trademarks of their respective holders.
Wednesday 4 February 2009
A TRIP TO THE NORTH
It got decidedly colder the further we went North (I consider Birmingham North). There was a distinct chill in the air, the atmosphere seemed to bite! Oh, it's because they didn't have any heating on in the service station we stopped at. There was just the coldest weather since 1955-56 winging its way in from the East, snowfall expected. Why would you not have the heating on? A sign on the wall opposite read 'We want to make it better' followed by an apology for inconvenience caused during improvement works which were under way. 'Make it better? Just put the bloody heating on!'.
'I'm just off outside to warm up!'.
Well, as the day wore on, the snow came. It swirled ad whirled and ran ahead of the chill wind that ran at its heels. It was a numbing cold that threatened to make bits of my body so cold they were in danger of being snapped of. Important bits!
In the grip of the snow, the threat of more snow, the threat of ice and the threat not getting across the Pennines, we pushed on. Across the Pennines! But not before braving the deepening threat and trekking out to Old Trafford.
On this cold, cold day the curving cream wall etched with black letters played circumference around the white hospitality tent roofs.
The red rose (oh how it galls a Yorkshireman to even mention it - only joking) blooms between the railings. Both belie the sport to come in a more conducive weather forecast under a hopefully blue sky. It was a fleeting visit as we had to press on but I hope to visit again someday and watch play at this Test ground.
Crossing the Pennines, the hypnotic falling flakes of snow danced at the windscreen like silent sirens, tempting you into a false sense of security. You could have been forgiven for thinking you were watching a television screen with only one channel. It drifted onto the left side of the road, trying to get a hold on the dark grey and fill the gaps between the the white lines. Few people were about and those that were were driving the other way. As we got nearer our destination the snow got stronger, bolder and deeper. The wheels span and we passed spinning cars and queueing cars but inched our way into the heart of South Yorkshire.
We made it with minutes to spare before the weather closed in further and effectively closed down the county for the night and most of the following day. It was where we stopped, we stayed. I never made it to Headingley, the roads would have been to treacherous and we had to get back before more 'weather' closed in. It will have to wait for another day.
On the way back down to Wiltshire I did get to listen to England's opening at Sabina Park, a slooowwww beginning but serviceable, workmanlike.
RP
Copyright © 2009 THE GREEN ORCHARD Ltd. All rights reserved.All other products or brand names mentioned are trademarks or registered trademarks of their respective holders.
'I'm just off outside to warm up!'.
Well, as the day wore on, the snow came. It swirled ad whirled and ran ahead of the chill wind that ran at its heels. It was a numbing cold that threatened to make bits of my body so cold they were in danger of being snapped of. Important bits!In the grip of the snow, the threat of more snow, the threat of ice and the threat not getting across the Pennines, we pushed on. Across the Pennines! But not before braving the deepening threat and trekking out to Old Trafford.
On this cold, cold day the curving cream wall etched with black letters played circumference around the white hospitality tent roofs.
The red rose (oh how it galls a Yorkshireman to even mention it - only joking) blooms between the railings. Both belie the sport to come in a more conducive weather forecast under a hopefully blue sky. It was a fleeting visit as we had to press on but I hope to visit again someday and watch play at this Test ground.Crossing the Pennines, the hypnotic falling flakes of snow danced at the windscreen like silent sirens, tempting you into a false sense of security. You could have been forgiven for thinking you were watching a television screen with only one channel. It drifted onto the left side of the road, trying to get a hold on the dark grey and fill the gaps between the the white lines. Few people were about and those that were were driving the other way. As we got nearer our destination the snow got stronger, bolder and deeper. The wheels span and we passed spinning cars and queueing cars but inched our way into the heart of South Yorkshire.
We made it with minutes to spare before the weather closed in further and effectively closed down the county for the night and most of the following day. It was where we stopped, we stayed. I never made it to Headingley, the roads would have been to treacherous and we had to get back before more 'weather' closed in. It will have to wait for another day.On the way back down to Wiltshire I did get to listen to England's opening at Sabina Park, a slooowwww beginning but serviceable, workmanlike.
RP
Copyright © 2009 THE GREEN ORCHARD Ltd. All rights reserved.All other products or brand names mentioned are trademarks or registered trademarks of their respective holders.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)