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Balls n broomsticks

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Trying to bring different sports into scottish football match day programmes. Quidditch seemed like a good idea! Paella and Bovril  Balls and broomsticks  A few years back a change in living location from near the beach to close to the mountain and river brought about some new and interesting run routes. The mountain has found me getting a little closer to some wild boar than I would have wanted. Running down the river route has offered up a variety of views, birds, butterflies and broomsticks. Of course seeing broomsticks makes one stop and look, and in this modern world, pull out the phone and fall down a google hole trying to find an answer to your puzzle.  Barcelona Eagles Quidditch team was the answer. Turns out they are one of hundreds of teams that train and play all over the world. Now to those who are not familiar with the wizarding game of quidditch made famous by J.K Rowling and the world of Harry Potter this needs some explaining. The game involves seve
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The wee club of Barcelona

Here is another wee tapas serving of Paella and Bovril  Part of my job is to teach the “art of international small talk”. One of my favourite topics that somehow always comes up is football. Time can fly by when the exchange of of opinions and loyalties is discussed between students. When this question was asked  “Which club has drawn one of China’s largest audience’s for a player’s debut?” the immediate answer of many was FC Barcelona, a few mentioned “one of the Manchesters”. Only the author of the question seemed to know the answer  RCD* Espanyol, the “other team” in Barcelona. 40 million had tuned in from China to watch Wu Lei's 12 minutes on the pitch. For a comparison in Spain the viewing figures didn’t even make the 180,000 mark. So it would seem that this Chinese following has made Espanyol the most watched team in China. With this little snippet of football trivia now on the table this opened up the conversation to questions about supporting “the wee team” of Barcel
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Here we go again

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Well let us give this blogging thing ago again. To those that don’t know I am a Raith Rovers Fan living, working, training, in Barcelona. For the last 13 years I have made the Catalan capital my home. But this hasn’t stopped my love of Raith Rovers and scottish football. Occasionally I pen an article to appear in Raith’s match day programme and in the past I have posted the articles on this blog. Here we go again. Fresh from the paella dish to you metaphorical footballing plates. Here is paella and Bovril.   Paella and Bovril   Across the rooftops of the back of Barcelona a game kicks-off. Local residents can hear cheering, grumbling and the occasional naughty word. They know it is football but they say to themselves “però Barcelona no juga aquesta nit”. You are correct fellow Barcelonians, this is no midweek Champions’ League football, this is Scottish Championship play-off final football. This is a big game, this calls for “the works”. Projector, screen and Raith TV c
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Disappeared for a while to do something special............IRONMAN 70.3 Edinburgh

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My weekends have always a been filled with sport. But over the last few years it has been more about me doing the activities rather than watching.  A few weekends ago I took part in something truly amazing.  Brief race report  Finished but not perfect.  The race was always going to be hard and I was worried that it would defeat me. I had trained throughout the winter and was the strongest I had ever been.  Being a native Scot I should have known better and remembered that even the sea swims in Scotalnd have hills! Honestly, I probably should have pushed for more hill sessions from my trainer but I didn't. The goal was to finish. Even if I had to crawl across that one at 8hours 29mintues and 59seconds I was going to finish.  On the morning of the triathlon the goal was just to get the wetsuit on. If anyone had given me even a hint of an out I would have been back in the car and home in a shot. I was nervous. But I shouldn't have been. We, and when I say we I mean the amazing sup
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I BLOOMIN' WELL DID IT

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Hola  Well I did it. I faced the jelly fish, spent over 3 hours in the saddle and then sang Geordie Munro around 13kms of a very very very long running course. I did a half ironman.  I am sore but so proud of getting there and I did need that motivation from TRI-ing for The Rovers especially on the run. If I could have stopped I would have!  Still time to show your support at  http://www.raithtrust.org.uk/?p=2182 Carol.
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The final training days before the big one! Support TRIing 4 the Rovers

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Aaaaaaahhhhhhhhhh only a few days until I do this!  Support TRIing 4 the Rovers 
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Time to come clean and explain my absence from the blogosphere.

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Wow it has been a long time since I prepared a paella and bovril. Well I have been busy, busier than I thought I would be to be honest.  As some of you may know from previous servings of PnB I have been on a triathlon journey with Raith and this year I decided to go long, 1.9km swim, 90km cycle and a half marathon run to finish off. So 8 months ago I got back into the training routine and my word I don't think I was quite ready for the time commitment.  5 to 6 days a week either in the water, on the saddle or in my running shoes sometimes up to 5 hours a day. I just about had enough time to tune in to the Rovers during the season.  I hope this rather larger than normal dish of paella and bovril will explain a little.  TRIing for the Rovers.  Just like one Brownlee brother helped the other across the finish line I am gonna need  some help getting to mine, and thru the 7 hours it will take to get there!  Please help a me on my 70.3 triathlon journey
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