Author Archive

Hotel sighted at last

Sunday, August 1st, 2010

A rather belated posting relating to our final Tuesday run from Nomansland for this year. We did an anti-clockwise loop round Fritham. For the return leg, Alex and I joined Neil on a slight detour to hunt out the elusive Bramble Hill Hotel. In fact, we got rather closer than I had anticipated and had to make several attempts to escape the walls of rhododendrons that line the lawns!

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Bohemia and back

Tuesday, July 20th, 2010

For tonight’s run from Nomansland, Neil had planned a route out through the Hamptworth Estate to Bohemia. It started well enough albeit as a bit of a road run. We were still on track when we were within spitting distance of Bohemia at which point we decided to follow the track back through the woods to Telegraph Hill. Unfortunately something went wrong around Franchises Lodge and we continued east rather than going south to Telegraph Hill. Ian and Peter then picked up on the next bridleway that leads back to Telegraph Hill. Sadly, when the rest of us tried to cut back to join them we picked up a different path and then proceeded to wiggle our way through the forest. Miraculously, we then rejoined the other party when we eventually re-emerged in to the open. Another 75 minute run!

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New WESB/WPS book

Friday, July 16th, 2010

I’ve just been asked to review a new book entitled “Application Development for IBM WebSphere Process Server 7 and Enterprise Service Bus 7“. I can certainly vouch for the credentials of one of the two IBM authors having worked with Salil Ahuja. As part of the AIM Early Programs team he’s in a perfect position to have both a breadth of knowledge across the products and a good understanding of what customers need and want to know. The sample chapter online (which happens to cover mediation module development) looks promising so I look forward to receiving my review copy.

Long run with the locals

Tuesday, July 13th, 2010

With two locals out for tonight’s run from Nomansland I had hoped that we might finish a bit closer to the hour. Ian lead us on a tour round Canada Common and we then returned via another closer encounter with the Bramble Hill Hotel. Sadly this turned out to be longer still than last week’s run both in terms of distance and time, and without the sunshine!

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Green Race

Friday, July 9th, 2010

I made it out for my second RR10 of the year on Wednesday. It was at Flemming Park where the race uses the old golf course. I can’t say that I particularly enjoyed it as there are far too many twists and turns for my liking. I was grateful for some support from a Winchester runner who urged me to join him in catching the competitor in front. Unfortunately when he caught the guy he then proceeded to take him with him through the field. It did at least spur me on for a bit. I can’t complain too much though as I did improve my position to 18th.

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Illusive hotel

Tuesday, July 6th, 2010

I’d missed the last couple of runs at Beaulieu Road Station whilst on vacation and with the arrival of a new month, the venue had moved to Nomansland. Sadly, no-one who knows where they’re going turned up so we had to rely on Neil. 😉 Having poured scorn on Peter for being unable to find the Bramshaw Hill Hotel from Fritham, we then proceeded to miss it again on tonight’s run. All due credit to Neil, following a dash along the road through Bramshaw he recovered his sense of direction. All in all a good run if a little long at nearly 80 minutes elapsed time (if only about 60 minutes running).

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Welsh Holiday

Saturday, July 3rd, 2010

869I’m just coming to the end of two weeks of vacation of which we spent the first 10 days on a family holiday to Wales. We originally had had various plans for an overseas trip but, apart from anything else, we’d failed to get Duncan a passport! In the end, we spent a week in a ‘lodge’ at a place called Timber Hill near Broad Haven in Pembrokeshire and then, because the original plan had been to find some mountains, up to a cottage in Llanberis for 4 nights.

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Sprint weekend

Monday, June 14th, 2010

866We had a fun weekend of orienteering blessed by some good weather. On Saturday it was the Winchester Urban Race. This started and finished at the Rugby Club and the 1:5000 map stretched south to the Cathedral and Wolsey Castle. If you think city racing is all about tricky route choices influence by narrow cut-throughs, dead-ends, and control sites where the side of the feature is all important, then the event wouldn’t have disappointed you. (more…)