June Theme Day: Under Construction

A new bridge is being built to replace the old King Street Bridge at Glenelg. This project commenced in March and is due for completion in December this year at a cost of $9 million. The first half of the bridge has been demolished and this week pylons are being erected.

The bridge links a small peninsula at North Glenelg. During the construction period motorists have to detour several kilometres and boats (including mine) on moorings near the bridge have been temporarily located. Come on December!

Today is City Daily Photo bloggers' theme day: Under Construction. Click here to view thumbnails for all participants

Coca-Cola Bottle Blast

This free community event courtesy of Coca Cola is touring the nation; it was here at Glenelg last weekend.

Three activities were on offer; Jump ‘n Dunk, Trapeze Air and Spring ‘n Bump. The queues were long, but the patrons looked pretty happy after the experience.

Cruisers and choppers

You often see a small group of cyclists riding their distinctive bikes at Glenelg. On Saturday after Lance's Ride the members of the Francaise Des Jeaux team were fascinated by them and gave them a try; quite different to the sleek racing bicycles they usually ride!















Originating in the US, cruisers enjoyed popularity there during the 1930's to 1950's. They feature a sturdy steel frame, balloon tyres, single gears and an upright seating position. Lowriders and choppers, with their characteristic elongated frame, banana seat and tall upward-swept handle bars, appeared during the 1960's.

Chopper bicycles originated in California, where youths started customising their bicycles with elongated seats and 'ape-hanger' handle bars. The term chopper originated in the 1950's when post war veterans started 'chopping' their motor bikes to make them more distinctive.

Joe, pictured with his red cruiser, explained that replicas of the original cruisers, lowriders and choppers are available from stores here and overseas, but many of the bikes are further customised by their owners.

Ride with Lance

A couple of days ago Lance Armstrong, in Adelaide for the 2010 Tour Down Under, gave an open invitation on Twitter to cyclists to join him on a training ride. Over 5000 people replied and even more turned up; my wife and I included. It was a buzz; lots of people lined the route and cheered us on.
















The event attracted not only a large contingent of the lycra-clad racing cyclists, but also many less serious riders of all ages and on all kinds of bikes.

More Wake Wars

What a spectacle! Not only did the riders leave the water, they did acrobatics in mid air.
































It was hard work on such a hot day; not just for the wakeboard riders but me also. I spent quite some time out in the sun trying to get some good shots. This was a real challenge for me; still learning how to get the best out of my camera.

Wake Wars 2010

Airborne! On the weekend at Glenelg's Patawalonga Lake the many of the world's top wakeboard riders gathered in Australia's premier wakeboard event.

Spectators lined the shores for a good view; trying to stay cool on one of our hottest summer's days - 42 degrees celsius.

Hanging about at Glenelg

Jetty jumping! A pastime for many local lads and girls. Some really put on a show, like this lad who dived from a high pole several meters above the top of the jetty. Obviously proud of his achievemnts he came to check out my photos.

Over the years the local authorities have tried to stop this activity as there have been some terrible injuries; but it seems their efforts have been to no avail as the jumping is still going on.

New Year's Eve fireworks

Glenelg is one of Adelaide's prime public places for people on New Year's Eve. Promoted as a 'dry zone' it is a place for young and old to see in the new year. At midnight there was fireworks show from the end of the jetty that lasted about ten minutes.

Every year I plan to have a party on my yacht and motor out and anchor just off shore to see the fireworks. Yet once again the weather was not kind; after a scorching hot day a cool change came in - windy and lumpy seas.

Our new trams

This is one of Adelaide's new trams; a French-built Citadis. It made its first public run on Proclamation Day; a return trip from Glenelg to the City.

This tram is one of six recently purchased from the Mintra, the Spanish Rail Authority. They will supplement our existing fleet of eleven German built Flexcity Classic trams.

Proclamation Day at the beach

South Australian's enjoy a public holiday on Proclamation Day, December 28th, the day when in 1836 the Province of South Australia's government was constituted and a proclamation was read; a proclamation "requiring all to obey the laws, and declaring the Aborigines to have equal rights, and an equal claim upon the protection of the Government with the white colonists."

Read the full wording of the proclamation here.

So what do we do on the day? Some people go to the beach; this is Glenelg beach looking north from the jetty.

This is a view of the beach south of the jetty.

You can view other of my related blog entries; Proclamation Day, The Old Gum Tree and HMS Buffalo.

Bay Sheffield Carnival

The Bay Sheffield Carnival is an annual event in its 123rd year, featuring the state’s richest and most famous footrace; a 120 metre sprint. It is a free event, held at Colley Reserve in Glenelg.
This year a near record 714 athletes from all over Australia competed.

There are events for men and women, and even a series of sprints for under 14 year olds; sponsored by Mars, with a prize for each child that runs; you guessed it - a Mars Bar.

Aquathlon

This was the start of the South Australian Elite Aquathlon today at the Bay Sports Festival. The event consisted of a 1.7km run, 500m swim, 1.7km run, 500m swim and a final 1.7km run.

After the run .... shoes off and goggles on

Now for a swim

Out of the water after the last swim and sprint home to victory!

A new start

Today I went out for a sail; nearly the start of Summer and a new start to my blog after an extended three month break.

Today's sail was in idyllic conditions; a great way to show off one aspect of life in Adelaide to Julia and Hayley, a couple of bonnie lasses from Scotland.

A welcome sight

At last! On Friday workers were removing the temporary barriers from the Patawalonga marina lock. The lock has been out of action for six weeks while they have been doing major maintenance on the lock gates. Maybe a day's sailing will be in order this week!

Tired old bridge

Lots of doubt has been cast over the future of the King Street Bridge due to its decline, whether it be repaired or replaced. A news report last week of almost certain funding from the federal government will ensure its replacement. Work could begin on a new bridge within a year.

I shot this photo from my boat, moored in the Patawalonga.

Winter sailing

Cloudy but fine; this is the way I spent the first day of winter - sailing in very mild and pleasant conditions off Glenelg.

Glenelg beachfont

A few years ago there was major redevelopment of the foreshore at Glenelg, including these new facilities - a new building for the Glenelg Life Saving Club and an entertainment complex' The BeachHouse.

Shags on a rock

This morning I went out for a sail expecting a decent breeze; instead it was almost dead flat so what else to do but take photos. These shags (cormorants) are perched, not on a rock, but on one of a series of concrete blocks a few hundred metres offshore from Glenelg.

These concrete caissons were built in 1914 as part of a breakwater for Glenelg. In 1915 the project was abandoned after a severe storm. These "Glenelg Blocks" are often frequented by local fishermen and divers.

ABC Wednesdays - K for Korfball

A couple of weeks ago I spotted this game in action on the beach at Glenelg. Korfball is played in 50 countries, but is particularly strong in the Netherlands where it originated.

There are six teams in Adelaide, and they usually play in the ETSA Park stadium. The teams each have 4 men and 4 women. Here is a link to the Korfball SA website.

The ABC Wednesday meme was created by Denise Nesbitt. To find out more about ABC Wednesdays and see other participants' contributions click here.

Chalk Drawing

Last Sunday as part of the Fringe Festival, artist Annalise Rees drew with chalk on the pavement by the Broadway Cafe; drawings depicting the local Glenelg area. The image above is the Glenelg Town Hall. Children were invited to participate in their own Kid's Chalk area.