I attended the Australian Cycling Track titles during the week in Sydney. I had to play with the settings regularly to get consistent results. I need a much faster tele lens!! Current Olympic mens sprint champion Ryan Bailey (racing in black) was in action. Sprint_Racing
Unfortunately, he had a dramatic crash.  Champ_Crashes
There was plenty of great close racing taking place with spots for the Beijing Olympic Games on offer. Here_I_Come Looking_Ahead
The Teams Pursuit is also a favourite event of mine to watch. Two teams line up on opposite sides of the track and race each other. The race can be won if the last rider of the other team is caught by the pursuing team, otherwise it is determined over a distance. The lead rider leads the team for a lap and then he swings up high on the bank before rejoining the end of the train. NSW_Pursuit_1 WA_Pursuit
I particularly enjoyed the AWD tandem class (Athletes With Disabilities). The rear cyclist is blind and is guided by the lead cyclist known as the Pilot.
Tandem_Pursuit

My local park has a great selection of native animals on display. The park is great for families to walk around and have a picnic on. Here are some photos of Eastern Kangaroos, Red Kangaroos and Emus.
The Eastern Grey Kangaroo (Macropus giganteus) is a marsupial found in southern and eastern Australia, with a population of several million. Although a big Eastern Grey male typically weighs around 66 kg (145 lb.) and stands almost 2 m (6 ft.) tall, the scientific name, Macropus giganteus (gigantic large-foot), is misleading, as the Red Kangaroo of the semi-arid inland is larger.
The Red Kangaroo (Macropus rufus) is the largest of all kangaroos and the largest surviving marsupial. It is found across mainland Australia, avoiding only the more fertile areas in the south, the east coast, and the northern rainforests. Red Kangaroo's legs work much like a rubber band. The male Red Kangaroo can leap in full force approximately 9.14 meters in one leap. Males grow up to 1.8m (6 feet) tall and weigh up to 187lbs . Females grow up to 1.1m (3.6ft) tall and weigh up to 77lbs . Tails can be up to 1m (3ft) along.
The Emu, (Dromaius novaehollandiae) is the largest bird native to Australia. It is also the second-largest extant bird in the world by height, after its ratite relative, the ostrich. The soft-feathered, brown, flightless birds reach up to 2 m (6 ft) in height. The Emu is common over most of mainland Australia, although it avoids heavily populated areas, dense forest and arid areas. Emus can travel great distances at a fast, economical trot and, if necessary, can sprint at 50 km/h (30 mph) for some distance at a time. They are opportunistically nomadic and may travel long distances to find food; they feed on a variety of plants and insects.

Eastern_Grey Baby_Red Big_Red Emu_1 Emu_2 Emu_3  

Some images I took while watching groups of scuba divers at La Perouse, southern Sydney a few weeks back.
The_Long_Walk Checking_Gear Waters_Edge Checking_Out_Below Diver_Below

The Roulettes are the Royal Australian Air Force's elite formation aerobatic display team that showcase Air Force flying skills to the Australian public. Team members are flying instructors at the Air Force's Central Flying School. The Roulettes currently fly Pilatus PC-9/A aircraft. This demonstration took place at the Wings Over Illawarra airshow, south of Sydney.
RAAF_1 RAAF_2 RAAF_3 RAAF_4 RAAF_5 RAAF_6 RAAF_7

The sound of waves on sand is Sydney’s theme song, and this short and sensational walk (2.5 km) is a heart-and-soul symphony, wrapping up the very best of the city’s coastline. In an easy, one-hour stroll, the trail follows the headlands between Bondi and Bronte, cresting high to offer a view of sea-carved sandstone and crashing waves, then dipping down for a close-up look at some of Sydney’s best-loved beaches.

With the Pacific Ocean as a backdrop at either end, you’ll find smart cafes where you can chill with a bluewater view. The walk begins at the southern end of Bondi Beach, near the Bondi Icebergs outdoor swimming pool and ends at Bronte Beach, a popular spot with families who favour the shady lawns. Across Bronte Road from the park is a row of super-slick cafes.  Bondi_3 Tamarama_1 Tamarama_2 Tamarama_3 Bronte_1 Bronte_Pool

Nestled between the high rises at Milson's Point and the Sydney Harbour Bridge, there is an amazing little amusement park called Luna Park.

(I've been to Sydney a number of times in the past few years, but it's always been in either June or July, which is Wintertime in Australia, and the park has always been closed.  This time, I timed my visit for December and I finally got an opportunity to wander around the park.)

Opened in 1935, Luna Park was modeled after the grandaddy of all amusement parks, Coney Island in NYC.  The towers of the entrance gates are designed to resemble the art deco style of New York's Chrysler Building.  Between the Towers hangs The Face  which was modeled after the traditional fairy tale character 'Old King Cole'.  

Although it's gone thru several renovations and is no longer as large as it used to be, the midway is still a pretty interesting place to hang out, take your chances and try your luck at winning a prize (and people watch on a sunny weekend).  

The end of the midway brings you here, where imitation really IS the sincerest form of flattery....

a last look back towards the entrance makes me glad I braved the raindrops and finally made a visit to this place.

And Pablo, even though the 'real' Coney Island may one day fade away, take comfort in the fact that it's memory will live on forever, halfway across the world in Sydney, Australia.

These photos are of the rockpools at Coogee Beach, Sydney. I like No.3 for it's reflections. Taken as the sun was going down. Coogee_1 Coogee_2 Coogee_3

Standing in 260 acres of parkland overlooking historic Parramatta, Old Government House is Australia’s oldest public building. For seven decades, it was the ‘country’ residence of 12 early governors of the colony, including Governor and Mrs Macquarie who, from 1810 to 1821 preferred the clean air and space of rural Parramatta to the unsanitary and crime ridden streets of Sydney Town. The central block of the house was built in 1799 by Governor John Hunter, however the appearance of the house today owes most to Governor and Mrs Macquarie. Their 1815 extensions   transformed the house into an elegant Palladian style residence in the English manner. The main rooms of the house have been recreated to the tastes and styles of Mrs Macquarie, influenced as they were by distance and a climate very different to ‘home’.  The rear yard once was a tennis court. Old Government House was built on Darug land, home to the Burramatta tribe. There is evidence of their occupation on the site; the firestick management of land and trees which still bear the scars of bark stripped to build canoes. In Old Government House, you can see how shells from Aboriginal middens were used to strengthen household mortar. Also located on the site is a wonderful restaurant looking directly onto the house.  
Govt_House_1 Govt_House_2 House_Door Rear_Door Dining Fence_Rails

Hawaii - what a place! I am sure that a lot of you folks on this site would have visited this lovely place once before. My wife and I absolutely love it. We have been many times over the years and it's only a short 8.5 hour hop from Sydney. I actually got engaged to my wife in Hawaii. The plan was to propose at the top of Diamond Head after doing the hike. We made the hike with me rather nervous at the prospect at what lies ahead. We got to the top, relaxed and admired the view, as there was only us there at the time on the small viewing platform. The time for me to pop the question came. Very nervously, I turned around and to my horror about 30 Japanese tourists had turned up in a flash!! The romantic moment was well and truly gone and I was not real happy! We hiked down to the bottom and rested under the shade of a tree. This time I popped the question .... and of course she said yes! So, Hawaii apart from being a beautiful place is very sentimental for us. Haunama Bay is just sensational. Catamaran Diamond_Head Marina Fishing Haunama_Bay_1 Hanauma_Bay_2

Action from the 2006 UCI World Cup meet at the Sydney Olympic Velodrome. I go every year and love the racing and action. The World Cup is a four meet tournament with a meeting being held in Australia, United States, England and Russia. For the images of the bikes in motion I slowed down the action a bit to give a sense of movement.
Winding_Up A_Touch_Over Concentration France_Vs_Canada Full_Steam Team_Pursuit

The Sydney Fish Markets are located at Pyrmont near the heart of the city. It is a busy place with fish mongers plying their daily trade. The markets are all full of eateries and fish’n’chip shops. My wife and I had lunch down there a few weeks ago. We sat outside by the water’s edge and enjoyed our lunch and the sunshine. After lunch I got the camera out and took some photos of the place. Ofcourse any place like a fish markets is going to have it’s local birds hanging around and there was certainly no lack of them this day. The nearby ANZAC Bridge is the longest cable-stayed bridge in Australia, and amongst the longest in the world. The bridge is 32.2 metres (105.6 ft) wide and the main span is 345 metres (1131.9 ft) long. The bridge was given its current name on Remembrance Day in 1998 to honour the memory of the soldiers of the Australian and New Zealand Army Corps (ANZAC) who served in World War I. An Australian Flag flies atop the eastern pylon and a New Zealand Flag flies atop the western pylon. ANZAC_Bridge Fishing_Boat Gullsn_Ropes Kids_Feeding_Pelican Pelican_and_Friends Two_Pelicans

Bare Island, La Perouse is a protected marine park in southern Sydney which has an abundance of sea life. Every weekend and most days of the week groups of scuba divers converge on the area to dive. It is a great place to do your first sea dives. One Sunday morning I watched with interest as a mother taught her young daughter to snorkel. They were both geared up in wetsuits and I watched the mother meticulously prepare her daughter adjusting her shoes, mask, snorkel and float pack before they entered the water. The girl looked enthusiastic – but apprehensive at the same time. I could hear the girl’s mother reassuring her as they edged into the shallow water from the rocks. A few shrieks and cries came from the young girl. Her mother grabbed her and spoke to her clamly and before long the girl was snorkelling in the shallows. I later saw them out of the water walking back to the car. The young girl was excitedly re-counting to her mother all the wonderful things she saw under the water!  
Zipping_Up Shoes_On Mask_On In_You_Come Just_Breathe

Bicentennial Park was created during the 1980s, in time to celebrate Australia's Bicentenary in 1988. The 100 hectare natural heritage site provides an important wetland ecosystem with 40 hectares of beautiful parklands. Bicentennial Park is part of Sydney Olympic Park and offers visitors recreation, nature-based tours, environmental education and outdoor event experiences. The Park offers free entry, BBQs, picnic areas, playgrounds, pathways and cycleways, parking, access to the wetlands, salt marsh and bird hides.
Mangrove Split_Plank Close_Mates Lonesome Great_Egret Chained_To_The_Wheel

These photographs were taken from the deck of the Ring Walk at the Brickpit at Homebush Bay. In the background of the photograph ‘Ringwalk’ you can see the stadiums that were used for the Sydney 2000 Olympics. The Ring Walk is an elevated circular walkway that allows visitors to access and view the Brickpit from above while preserving the habitat of the endangered Green and Golden Bell frog.

The Ring Walk is 550 metres in circumference and is raised 18.5 metres above the sandstone floor of the Brickpit. The Ring Walk allows many people to experience the Brickpit while fully recognising it as a fragile habitat. The Ring Walk is a delicate circular viewing platform on a braced cruciform structure comprising a series of light, thin, flat steel poles which lightly touch the base of the pit.
Ringwalk Brickpit_1 Brickpit_2 Cogs Old_Machine Bricks  

Put the bike in the car, the camera in the backpack and went for a cycle around the Homebush Olympic Park site. This was the area where we had the Sydney 2000 Olympics. The area is all parklands and nature reserves and trails now. A great place for young families to visit. In a by-gone era Homebush Bay was an active shipping area with the Newington Armoury housed there during the war years. The wharf in these photos is just rotting away. Lots of new apartment complexes have been built in and around the bay and it is now a trendy place to live. There are a few 'shipwrecks' throughout the bay which are interesting.
Old_Wharf_1 Old_Wharf_2 Old_Wharf_3 Tired_Nails Shipwreck

I recently visited the Leura Cascades and other waterfalls in the Blue Mountains region about 90 mins out of the Sydney CBD. There had been recent rainfall so the water was flowing over the small falls. Waterfall_2 Waterfall_3 Waterfall_4 Waterfall_5 Leura_Cascades  

Every November there is an exhibition of sculptures by the sea along the famous Bondi to Bronte coastal walk. The route is about 3.5 kilometres and there is usually about 100 pieces of art, sculptures and statues to look at along the way. Some of the art is right out of left field, with some being more modern and contemporary. A lot are in the price range of $80,000 each!! I have included 2 pictures of my favourites from that day . The photo 'Caretakers Cottage' is on the northen tip of the southern headland at the entrance to Sydney Harbour. It is the house in which the caretaker of the Hornby Lighthouse would live. There is a magnificent view of the harbour from here. I was fortunate enough to have my wedding photos taken around the cottage with the harbour as a backdrop. The lighthouse was opened by Sir William Denison, Governor of New South Wales, in 1858. The construction of the current Macquarie Lighthouse was begun in 1881 and the light was first exhibited in 1883. With the connection of the city power supply in 1933 the light was converted to electricity. The lighthouse was fully automated in 1976.The keepers were eventually withdrawn in 1989. 'The Gap' is a well known cliff top spot in Sydney.
Art_By_The_Sea Sculpture_By_The_Sea Caretakers_Cottage Hornby_Lighthouse Macquarie_Lighthouse The_Gap

Victoria Barracks in the Sydney suburb of Paddington is one of the best-known examples of military architecture in Australia. The majority of the barracks was constructed, using locally quarried sandstone, between February 1841 and April 1848 and the outer walls in the ensuing two years. The barracks were occupied by British troops up until 1870 and then taken over by the New South Wales colonial forces. Following Federation in 1901, Victoria Barracks remained the focal point of military activity in New South Wales and, among other units, housed the various headquarters responsible for administering and co-ordinating it. The first actions taken in New South Wales to recruit forces for service in both world wars occurred at Victoria Barracks. Between 1931 and 1936 the barracks was home to the Royal Military College of Australia and from July 1938 to July 1940 it also housed the Command and Staff School. Victoria Barracks remains in use today and is currently home to both Headquarters Land Command and Headquarters Training Command. I like 'VB 5' for it's diminishing lines aspect and also 'VB 6' which is an amazing tree behind the barracks.
VB_1 VB_2 VB_3 VB_4 VB_5 VB_6

Being summer in Australia I have had the chance to get out and do some photography. I love the beach anyway, so  what better chance to capture some images? These are from a few beaches in Southern Sydney. I watched the 'Novice Surfers' for a while as they contemplated going in. They were funny to watch as they tried to surf! 'Beach Kid' was quite cute. He explored the shoreline while his Dad was kite surfing (which will be another post shortly).
Elouera_Beach North_Cronulla_Beach Lifesaver_Hut Beach_Kid Beach_Fence Sand_Track Novice_Surfers

This is a set of photos from St. Mary’s Cathedral - Sydney, the ANZAC War Memorial in Hyde Park, Sydney and the National War Memorial in Canberra. ‘Cathedral Spire’ is a photo from Hyde Park towards  the Cathedral. The photo ‘Pieta’ is a replica statue of The Pieta which is located inside the main entrance. The statue depicts the Virgin Mary holding the body of her son Jesus Christ after his death. In less than two years Michelangelo carved from a single slab of marble, one of the most magnificent sculptures ever created. His interpretation of the Pieta was far different than ones previously created by other artists. Michelangelo decided to create a youthful, serene and celestial Virgin Mary instead of a broken hearted and somewhat older woman. When it was unveiled a proud Michelangelo stood by and watched as people admired the beautiful Pieta. However, what was pride quickly turned into anger as he overheard a group of people attributing the work to other artists of his time. That anger caused Michelangelo to add one last thing to his sculpture. Going down the sash on the Virgin Mary, Michelangelo carved his name. He later regretted that his emotions got the best of him and vowed to never sign another one of his works again. The original Pieta stands in St. Peter’s Basilica, Rome.
The photo ‘Canberra Memorial’ was taken at the National War Memorial, Canberra just before the bugler walks through the door, stands to attention and plays ‘The Last Post’ to close for the day. The photo ‘Fallen Soldier’ is of a statue in the ANZAC War Memorial, Sydney. The photo depicts a fallen soldier being carried on his shield with his sword. The acronym (ANZAC) stands for Australian and New Zealand Army Corps, whose soldiers quickly became known as ANZACs. The pride they took in that name endures to this day, and ANZAC Day remains one of Australia and New Zealand's most important national occasions. ANZAC Day marks the anniversary of the first major military action fought by Australian and New Zealand forces during the First World War. ANZAC Day is commemorated by Australia and New Zealand on 25 April every year to remember members of the Australian and New Zealand Army Corps (ANZAC) who landed at Gallipoli in Turkey during World War I. Commemorative services are held at dawn, the time of the original landing, across both nations. Later in the day, ex-servicemen and women meet and join in marches through the major cities and many smaller centres. Commemorative ceremonies are held at war memorials around both countries.  Sadly, there are no Australian soldiers left who took part in World War 1. The following is a verse of The Ode that is said during the minute of silence on ANZAC Day commemorations:

They shall grow not old,
As we that are left grow old,
Age shall not weary them,
Nor the years condemn.
At the going down of the sun,
And in the morning
We will remember them.
Lest We Forget.

Cathedral_Spire Cathedral_Interior Mary Pieta Canberra_Memorial Fallen_Soldier