Fifteen Love

Despite living on Wimbledon Park Road for nearly two years when I was working in London, I had never got the chance to actually ever watch any live professional tennis. When I got a call from a good friend last Saturday afternoon asking if I wanted to go to the "The Legends Rock Dubai" tennis tournament I jumped at the chance.

The tournament was held at the Irish Village and I always wondered what it would be like inside the tennis stadium. Upon entering, I was greeted with a nicely presented, intimate arena. With the weather a perfect 24c and a cool breeze, it was a wonderful evening to sit outside and watch some tennis.

The first match was Thomas Muster playing Michael Stich in the third place playoff. I had admired Stich's service for many years and vividly remember him dominating Wimbledon on the fast grass surface with his power serves. While some of the flat out speed might be gone the same graceful action was evident and it was great to watch:




Sadly Stich lost in a competitve yet friendly match. Then after, we were all in a for a real treat, with the doubles exhibition match with Pat Cash and Mansour Bahrami versus Cedric Pioline and Mikael Pernfors.

For the next hour or so Mansour really stole the show, with lavish through the leg shots, cheeky jokes with his opponents and often some quite outrageous tennis shots. It was excellent fun and I would have loved to seen a double match with both Mansour and Nastase. Here they are at the end of the match and Pat Cash was wearing his trademark headband - which you can buy online with proceeds going to charity.



The atmosphere at the tennis was really family friendly with an MC between matches, rock music between sets and some great entertainment between matches. My favorites were two opposing dance troupes who put on a great show for about ten minutes:



Following the light hearted previous two matches the final between Jim Courier and Paul Haarhuis was a much more intense and serious affair. Quite rightly, considering there was $50,000 on the line for the victor. While Paul Haarhuis easily won the match it was a real treat for me to see Jim Courier in action. He really is a legendary tennis player of the modern era and to see the unusual whipping service that he produces was a treat. I managed to get a shot that I thought really encapsulated the energy he puts into it:



It was a really entertaining evening and something I would highly recommend going to at least once. It is especially family friendly and even better for me - I got in gratis thanks to my friends. A perfect way to unwind after the hectic Rome party at the start of the weekend. Tomorrow is the final of the Dubai Sevens - more live sport - I can't wait.

Camels to Cheese

An action packed weekend has left me with the odd sensation of the the end of week break being entirely too long. To take it in reverse, there were a lot of bleary eyed expats walking around the city this morning in the wake of late night watching the Rugby World Cup Final.

A big group of us headed down to the Barasti Bar to watch the game and despite fears that there would be queues to get in and we would not be able to see anything the opposite was true. Barasti had gone to great lengths to ensure plenty of screens and staff on hand and the only chaos was trying to get out of the car park after the game. From a match perspective - Congratulations to the Springboks they have been the form team during the tournament and equally congratulations to England.

They had been written off and the first pool games were dire. However the bulldog spirit showed up for the last three games and I was proud to be an English rugby supporter again. Win, lose or draw last night - I felt England had nothing left to prove and it all looked a game too far considering the amount they had given in beating Australia and France.

The Bokke will enjoy their win and I spent all evening marveling at the basketball style skills that the Boks displayed at the lineout. That was world class.I look forward to the Lions touring South Africa in 2009 to test their worth against the world champions

Early in the weekend I took my guests Anna and Matt out for the classic day trip to Hatta Pools with a stop at the Hatta Fort Hotel for a spot of lunch. It is always nice to get a small break into the rugged countryside surrounding Dubai. On the walk into the hotel there was a nicely decorated camel waiting patiently to take tourists on a short ride.





Following a dip in the Hatta Pools and a quick drive back to Dubai we all headed out for "Cheese" at the nightclub called the Lodge. This was the opening night of the club following the Ramadan break. I had never been there with the full place was open. I was amazed at the size of the venue particularly the huge open air dance floor surrounded by bars and VIP Gazebos. The large group I was with and the accompanying 2500 other guests certainly had a tremendous time that evening. Here are the lads from Villa 16 enjoying themselves:



The winter is now well and truly here and we have all ready made sure we have our tickets for the Dubai sevens. The camping trips, dhow cruises and villa parties are all being planned over the next couple of months. With the weather cloudy and 11c in London - I know where I would rather be.

Note: Part of this blog was quoted in the Gulfnews 23rd October 2007

XV

International rugby weekends hold a special attraction for me. It is one of the few things I have missed over the last 12 months since having moved to Dubai. Basically the regime is a week long and includes:

1. Reading the internet news feeds on both teams preparation's
2. Watching the pundits on the TV review the teams chances
3. Talking to my colleagues about how the match will go

And on the morning of the game:

1. Enjoying the broadsheet analysis of the match
2. Typically whilst enjoying a "Full English Breakfast" essential in preparing for the drinking marathon ahead
3. Donning the team colours and meeting up with old friends to enjoy a couple of pre-match refreshments

The walk into the ground is great - with a noticeable palpation of excitement from the crowd, then the first glimpse of the lush green field when you first take your seat. The anticipation as the teams run out and the anthems sung. This for me is always the best part - the build up. The excitement. The crowd. The noise. The smells. The atmosphere. The match in some ways is incidental to a fantastic day out with your friends.

Last weekend I was able to experience this exact thing - only this time I was at Loftus Versfeld Stadium in Pretoria, South Africa. I was in the fortunate position of being invited to a business partners box for the second test match between South Africa and England.

The match was a foregone conclusion. Though England put up a strong defence for the first fifty minutes holding them 22-22 and even going into half-time with a slight lead. This had the huge partisan crowd slightly on edge




The wheels on the chariot soon came off 30 minutes later - as I witnessed an unanswered try deluge from South Africa. To leave the hapless England team fatigued, bruised and defeated by an impressive 33 points:



Results aside - England have a lot to do in three short months prior to the world cup. Sure, they had 30 players left in England, sure there was a stomach virus in the squad. Nevertheless they were battered twice in two weeks - comprehensively. South Africa can consider it job done and will look forward to refining their plans through the Tri-Nations.

Me on the other hand - I wore my England shirt with pride. Much to the dismay of numerous South African supporters, Loftus is a pretty hostile place in this respect. I admired their team loyalty as many of them Brai'd hard before the match and the smell of lamb chops hung heavy before and after the match.

It was an excellent day - and my first chance to see live Rugby Union in South Africa. I dearly hope to go again.

I was also really impressed that once the players had left the field they opened the gates up for the children to run riot on the field. A lot of kids were having the time of their lives - sad we can not do the same at Twickenham:




Roll on the Tri-Nations and the World Cup!

Go you good thing

After a marathon of six weeks constantly travelling I was looking forward to a relaxed weekend in Dubai. I was in the midst of mooching around Ibn Battuta shopping mall looking for somewhere to get my ever growing under control when I got a number of text messages urging me to go to the Dubai World Cup horse racing meet.

I had been interested in going but I had failed to secure corporate tickets - however I wanted to go and have a look as I was told it was a "do not miss" event. After a text message exchange I dusted off my best suit, most ridiculous shoes and hopped into a cab to Nad Al Sheeba.

The International Village is where it seemed the majority of people were and I was impressed. It was very spacious with a number of the major bars from around Dubai being present such as The Irish Village, Barasti, Double Decker and Waxy O'Connors to name but a few. The weather turned up for the day and sun glasses and big hats (for the ladies) were de rigeur:



The last time I went racing in the UK - the only thing that remained in common between both trips was the large amount of alcohol I managed to consumer. I certainly did no gambling or studying the "Racing Post" for the form. Though there was plenty of other form on show to be looking at...

With over 50 000 people in attendance it was difficult to meet up with people but my group decided to give it a try and we ended up in the "Bubble Lounge" where only Champagne was being sold. When in Rome...





We were quite fortunate to be in the Bubble Lounge when the fireworks prior to the main races started. It was spectacular and made a nice accompaniment to a glass of Bollinger!



Once the formality of the World Cup race and awards ceremony was done with - the International Village then proceeded to turn into the largest outdoor nightclub I have ever been in. Here Tamsin, Rawan and Catherine stop from dancing for two seconds to pose for a photo:



It was great day out, if

1. You like to get dressed up
2. You enjoy people watching
3. You like to have a drink
4. You like to have a dance
5. You can put up with the toilet queues

It seemed to me that everyone was partying extra hard - maybe it had something to do with the wash out of the last Dubai 7's or more likely six hours drinking in the sun. Either way I will be back next year.

EDIT: Part of this post was quoted in the Gulf News 4/4/07

Holy Bologna

There are a couple of words that hold something magical for most young men – these are “Ferrari” and “Maranello” This week I was privileged to experience a little bit of both.

Once the flight to Milan finally managed to leave a fog bound Dubai airport – we finally managed to get to Bologna after a negotiation with a taxi driver to drive me and some colleagues the 200km from Milan. I have to say that I was a little disappointed that my first ever trip to Italy and Bologna was marred by a large number of graffiti strewn buildings. Spray paint graffiti is quite noticeable in its absence in the parts of Dubai I have frequented. However later that evening a stroll down the main drag confirmed that Italians are inherently stylish in all details of their appearance and the cappuccino and moped culture is alive and well.

I have been lucky in my career to have visited the F1 factories for Mclaren (in the fabulous Norman Foster designed McLaren Technology Centre - outside Woking), the Williams factory in Oxfordshire and the Red Bull Racing factory on the old Jaguar Racing site. Each time you can not help but marvel at the mix of high technology design with traditional hand craft finishing that goes to create F1 race cars. The Ferrari factory had a very different feel to the ones I had previously seen. For a start the scale of the place is simply huge – we had a mini-bus to ferry us between various sites on the tour. The thing that strikes you first is that the test track is central to everything they do. In the two days we spent on site – the howl of the Ferrari V8 and V12 engines was always in the background as F430s, F559s and F612 Scaglietti's were put through their paces. We also spotted one or two cars that were obviously prototypes being heavily taped up to disguise their final appearance.

The tour was split essentially into two parts. First up was a visit to the F1 factory – here everything is shrouded in top secrecy and on our visit there there was only a test car – with the two race cars and spare being in Bahrain preparing for the opening Grand Prix of the season in Melboune on March 18^th. Unlike the other tours we spent a fairly limited time in the F1 factory – no visits to he wind tunnel or anywhere where they machine the components for the car. I was a little disappointed but it was soon made up for.

A short drive on the minibus – took us to the Ferrari factory where they produce the road cars. It is a place where I am fortunate to say I have stepped foot in. Everywhere you look there are homages to their illustrious history as engineers quietly go about their work and a long line of Ferrari's stand in a noble queue awaiting completion of the elite few who have the wealth to own one of these beautifully crafted vehicles.

Highlights for me in the hour we spent in the factory were:

1. The aqua blue F430 being prepared for a customer in Qatar

2. The long lines of traditional sewing machines for crafting the leather clad interiors

3. The 35 stations an engineer visits as he alone assembles a Ferrari engine which at the end he then signs

4. The F1 and road cars from yester-year lined up next together showing the evolution of the brand

5. That the only cars allowed on site other than Ferraris and Maseratis were Fiats

Sadly one is not allowed to take photos while on site – but I managed to take a team photo outside the test track:

Also a couple of photos of the meeting room where we held our business meeting for the two days:

Here a plane and F1 car just outside the meeting room:

Sometimes it was hard to concentrate when this is hanging on the wall in the meeting room:

I think this is Enzo Ferrari the founder... either way it is a nice quote:

We went to eat one night in a great Italian restaurant that was full of Ferrari memorabilia:

A nice collection behind the bar:

Overall it was a fantastic two days to be steeped in the history of probably the most famous marque on the planet. I now look forward to two things:

1. The start of the grand prix season

2. The day I can afford a Modena 360

I also want to extend a note of deep gratitude to my colleagues at AMD who made this trip possible.

You can count on some things...

Like Jonny Wilkinson returning to play in his first England Rugby International and doing something remarkable - in this case against Scotland at the weekend going through the card (drop goal, conversion, try and penalty)

Like the England International Football team playing in a mid-week fixture with a host of first team choices unavailable through injury and the scratch team putting on a poor performance for the manager to be vilified in the UK tabloid press the following morning.

Like when it snows in the UK and the country goes into shut down. All I did was to get up a little earlier, clear the snow from the car and drive down empty roads. I am not sure how my trip home later today will be however - I can imagine fairly fraught. A picture from the office window this morning:

Gazumped

The Dubai International Capital group have withdrawn from their proposed take over of Liverpool FC. This leaves George Gillett who owns the Montreal Canadiens ice hockey. Shame really I would liked to have a little piece of the Red Army in Dubai.

Dubai Reds

After some press speculation it looks like the Football Club I have been a life long supporter of will be taken over by the Dubai International Capital Group.

I am pleased Liverpool FC have found investors of this nature and I think the long term success and outlook of the club will be assured. The promise of a new ground and some further investment into a few key players will really bolster things.

It took an old friend and even bigger Liverpool supporter than myself to find the Dubai Liverpool Supporters club - know as the Dubai Reds. Checking their website one of their goals is:

"To make watching televised Liverpool matches an ‘event’ to be enjoyed with fellow supporters."

This really is the tradition I got use to during the four years I lived in Liverpool. The "match" was usually a major family event with food and drinks put on and many people invited over. Even if the result did not go Liverpool's way - it was always good humoured and enjoyable.

My only question is will the Dubai Reds be serving scouse?

Going a bit barmy

I am now back in Dubai following a couple of weeks in Australia. It was very relaxing and actually it was nice to get some warm weather as Dubai has been decidedly cold and wet.

After spending a fun filled week in Perth I headed over to Melbourne to stay with an old friend of mine and also to go and watch the Day 3 of the 4th Ashes Test. A lot has been written about the capitulation of England to Australia in this series and the Melbourne and Sydney tests were about as comprehensive wins could be.

I found solace in that spending a day with the "Barmy Army" was really a great cure all. For eight hours I sang and drank with them. Wickets were tumbling (14 that day) but this only encouraged them to sing louder and longer. The Australian fans were all a bit bemused by it - to be fair English sports supporters have decades of refining their songs to have poke fun with good humor at not only the players and the away support but themselves as well.

Here is a little example of "Jimmy" one of the Barmy Army's Generals leading with his "one song":




After England had suffered an innings and 99 run defeat - the Barmy Army were not to be moved. They stood there and sang their Anthem for 90 minutes till moved on by the police "We are the army, the Barmy Army, we are mental and we are mad, we are the loyalist cricket supporters the world has ever had" and repeat...

However the song is true in so much " we are the loyalist cricket supporters the world has ever had" - I left with the feeling that England's cricket team on their recent run of form are very lucky to retain such supporters. Good on you lads.

Sven, Sven, Sven Goran Eriksson

The ex-England manager somewhat randomly made a visit to the Dubai office last Thursday. Sadly I was in Turkey as I would have liked to ask the chap a question or two!

Knockout Stages

There will be a lot written about England's performance or lack of it this evening in the 2-2 draw. For me the whole thing is simple:

1. England finished top of the group
2. The avoid playing a dangerous looking Germany
3. Bring on Ecuador
4. Michael Owen sadly injured

Anything else is histrionics - oh and smashing goals from Joe Cole and Stevie G. I had to watch the BBC highlights just to here the Motson goal commentary - I can't help but enjoy it.