The Fat Lady Has Sung

The team managed to make a great come back from 11th place to achieve 6th place. With just about the whole team gaining a pb and many fantastic individual swims

Blog Contributions
If there are any team members who would like to make a contribution (Posts, Comment or Photos) to the site please email me and I'll add them to the blog. kiwimw@gmail.com

Team Photo with trophy after meet: 6th Place (293.5 Points)

1st Place (Womens 13-14)
Jenna with 74.5 points

1st Place
Women 13-14 200 LC Meter Medley Relay
Harriett, Ursula, Jenna, Claudia

2nd place
Women 13-14 400 LC Meter Medley Relay
Harriett, Leandri, Jenna, Claudia

1st Place
Men 13-14 400 LC Meter Freestyle Relay
Sam, Angus, Alex, James

2nd place
Men 13-14 200 LC Meter Medley Relay
James, Kurt, Alex, Sam

2nd place
Men 13-14 400 LC Meter Medley Relay
James, Kurt, Angus, Alex

[Editors Note]

How does the saying go. "The best laid plans blah, blah, blah..." I think it would be appropriate to thank the Coach & Team Managers Tina, Veronica, Lee, Karen & Andrew for service above and beyond the call of Duty. "Anything & everything can go wrong, its what we do to make it work that makes the difference."

The Last Hurrah!

update from Andrew - Sent Sat 7th July 11:30pm (Hawaii Time)

All righty then here we go, 11.30pm on our last night at camp.... all the kids packed their bags tonight in order to fly home tomorrow night. I think that they may have to buy some new cases after our final shopping trip tomorrow!!!

I see that you can link through to the results so I'll let you know some of the things going on behind the scenes. Today we started at 16th on the team points and thanks to some great individual and relay (double points score!! it's like scrabble really) we finished the day on 8th place. Targeting 5th by the end of Tomorrow!!!!!!

Our boys seem to have a mystical charm that attracts American Girls because there is a constant stream of them through our team area, they start by trying to swap some gear and stay for hours!!

After the meet today we had a BBQ with the Hawaiian Swim Club, the team hosting the meet, and it was great to watch the interaction between the kids as they talked about their schools, the differences and what it's like to live in Hawaii/NZ plus lots of other stuff.

The meal we shared was representative of all of the cultures that have been introduced to Hawaii over time American Pizza & Nachos, Teriyaki burgers, Macaroni salad, Chicken Katsu, Korean BBQ chicken and Kim Chee, Chinese Noodles (hot), Japanese noodles (cold) and spam musubi (look it up!) with Apple pie, Haupia and Macadamia nuts for dessert. Then the boys taught the Hawaii Swim club swimmers how to play bullrush and it was all on!!!!!

On the way back to camp we stopped at the ATM to get much needed cash injections for the team. The T-shirts for the meet are cool and custom printed in the designs of the kids choice! - Plus a shaved ice after competing is a must.

Back at camp the local wildlife made an appearance with wild pigs (yes!), Giant spiders, gecko's and Owls emerging from the night.

We have a long day tomorrow around 30 hours from when we leave Camp until we drive into the WestEnd Carpark (approx 2pm Tuesday 9th). So no training Tuesday PM for Hawaii tour kids; they have some great caps that they have traded and they can wear these at training... Andrew

Just A Bit Of Swimming

update from Andrew - Sent Fri 6th July 11:02pm (Hawaii Time)
- Photos inserted if & when available

Well we finally got to do what we came for. We Toasted all those of you who have made it possible for our team to be here at lunch and then set off to the pool.

The ride to the pool was marred by a bitter escalation in the ongoing battle between me and the team rebel and all round trouble maker Bridget Maher. When she viscously and maliciously ripped off my team hat and threw it out onto the four lane highway. While Bridget insists it was an accident I have my doubts. It certainly put a smile on the teams face though.

We sent an advance party to the pool to secure our seating and get settled in, Lee, James D, and others from our unwell section set up for the rest of the team. We looked great and our uniforms are once again in high demand. Our hosts from the YMCA stayed at the meet and acted as our cheering section.

Down to brass tacks!!!!
No Marshall, so all kids focus was on the first few races to see how a meet can possibly function without a part which is at every meet they have ever been to. It is too late at night for me to list all the times but PB's from (please excuse me if I have left anyone out)

• Margot
• Nadine
• Liam
• Sarah
• Harriet
• Claudia
• Caleb
• Regan
• John-Joe
• Troy
• Alex
• Angus
• Sam
• Sam
• Christina
• Kurt
• and to top off the night Jenna took away 2 medals a Gold (200IM) & Silver (50 Freestyle).
  

Keep in mind that a long course PB is different from a short course conversion. Hopefully we will be able to take some swimmers off the sick list by tomorrow afternoon.

Our boys seem to be a hit with the girls from the Kona swim team with coach having to regain their focus back onto the pool several times tonight. Tomorrow we are singing the national anthem in the opening ceremony and the boys will issue their Haka.

USA swimming value the input of coaches much more than NZ Swimming with coaches having a direct line to the meet director without having to try to communicate through a manager!! ...& the Coaches all got a free dinner at the pool.

In my last snorkel today I saw a turtle and remembered that sharks eat turtles so i got out.... Andrew"

Dont Stop Till You Get Enough

update from Andrew - Sent Wed 4th July 10:09pm (Hawaii Time)
- Photos inserted if & when available

It's the 4th of July in the USA today flags flying and fireworks a popping. At Camp Erdman there are other campers here who stay anywhere from a week to a month and tonight they have a 4th of July dance! ...of course when the Kiwi boys heard of this, they were dead keen to impress upon the local American girls their incredible dancing ability ????.

So taking the lead young Sam Regan asked the camp staff if it would be possible for the Kiwi Allstars to be in on the Dance, and after roping me in to chaperone we were off.

It was a very funny sight our boys in a group surrounded by circling groups of American girls. Our boys did not have the courage to face outward and realise that the girls actually wanted to dance with them and the girls did not have the courage to try and break up the Kiwi boys!

The team left the dance with none of the boys' having spoken to a single American girl; and of the girls, a special shout out to Steph White who despite having everything but the kitchen sink thrown at her by a shirtless American teen kept the dignity of the Kiwi Allstars name.

We had a visit from the Hawaii swim club coach today who is also the meet director, this gave us a chance to catch up on the peculiarities of US swimming (ie. No Marshalling, You have to make sure you are ready to go when they call you)

With the meet only 2 days away I am very conscious that some of our team are struggling with the environment. The YMCA staff here have made it easy to accommodate the team members who may need only a taste of adventure for the day rather than a full blown expedition.

As for the shopping in Waikiki Sarah Houston from the Shoppy, Shoppy Till You Droppy Droppy group set the shopping world on fire today!!

Everything is going great & your kids are doing you proud, I can't wait to get to the meet....
Coach.

Sun, Surf & Fireworks?

update from Andrew - Sent Tue 3rd July 11:27pm (Hawaii Time)

Today started with a great workout under the palm trees and beside the sea. All of the swimmers have a target within each workout of finishing at least one water bottle and this morning they did well. The main set was some 20 yard sprints which the kids enjoyed.

After a great American breakfast of pinky finger size sausages, omelette's and tater tots (ala napoleon dynamite) we headed off to the "Hawaiian Waters", water park. The kids slid, surfed and then experienced the WAL MART phenomenon which includes 4th of July fireworks. Back for dinner and singing/Haka practice then a campfire, marshmallows and water melon.

Tomorrow we split into three for our day in Waikiki the Looky Looky group, The Surfy Surfy, Shoppy, Shoppy group and the Shoppy, Shoppy Till You Droppy group (I wonder if you can guess which kids chose which groups).

In a change to the program we are working out with the Hawaiian Swim Club at the Salt Lake Pool near the airport.

The swimmers are rising to the challenge of a busy schedule, a foreign country, a drastic climate change and a major dietary adjustment. By the time Friday comes around we'll be ready!!!!!!!

What's Great About Camp?

update from Lee - Sent Tue 3rd July 08:02am (Hawaii Time)

The question "What's great about Camp Erdman?" has brought a number of responses so far after one and half days in Hawaii.

The Food
We had a great lunch of salad bar, chicken salad, tuna salad, plus macaroni and cheese, breaded chicken pieces, lemonade with lemons.

The Swimming
Some had a great work out in the 25 yard pool with our own "Andrew-made" lane lines from NZ and Camp-made flags with yellow caution streamers instead of the traditional flags.

The Beach
Soft, golden sands just beside our cabins with rock pools where we now have a school of tiny fish and baby and not so baby crabs. And wonderful warm water to wade into after a hard day at camp. Falling asleep with the sound of gentle waves lapping the shore...

The Odyssey! You May Ask?
It is the most challenging and one of the largest rope courses in the world. This ropes course is in a unbelievable setting between the ocean and the mountains. It is so amazing that it is hard to
describe. Try to visualize this: about 9 levels of wires over 25 meters high strung between three towers the length of a rugby field. The swimmers were in groups of eight and worked together for over two hours transversing all types of physical and mental obstacles to complete the course under the direction and encouragement of their Camp Erdman leaders. Please be assured that everyone was safely belted into and double attached to the structure's wires at all times, with hard hats.

After they learned to trust their abilities they were tight-wire walking as high as any circus performer and working together in teams to jump between platforms, swing forward on a wooden bench, and walking solo, in pairs and in quads. At first there was apprehensive laughter and by the end there was the laughter of satisfaction of accomplishment and exhaustion.

End Of Day (Mon 2nd July)
The evening ended with another workout, dinner and then team meeting. Andrew briefed the children on the next day, where we are going visit tourist America, i.e. the Water Park (Disneyland in the water). So far, the camp feels very much like being in New Zealand. We occupy a group of cabins by the beach and pool that we have all by ourselves. The water park that we will visit should be quite a contrast.

It was to bed with lights out at 9:30 pm. And by all accounts all went to sleep quickly and quietly, awaiting the 5:30 am alarm for the next work-out Tuesday morning.

A Note For The Parents
The camp is well appointed and our team of Camp leaders are professional and work well with the swimmers on the camp activities. Any of our additional requests are met with a smile and taken care of quickly. The camp is handling our transport
in small school buses. And you would be proud of your children's behavior.

The Eagle Has Landed!

update from Andrew - Sent Mon 2nd July 10:03am (Hawaii Time)

Well we arrived into Hawaii all in good spirits and all kids made it through customs easily. As we stepped out of arrivals all the team got "leid".

We went to "Jack In The Box" for a traditional American dinner and the kids soon realised that a large size of anything in the US means really large!@!!!!!

Lights out at Camp Erdman around 1am Hawaii time, then up for training at 6am (NZ 4am) this morning, a light drizzle giving way to blazing hot!!!. Breakfast consisted of pancakes and sausages with stewed apple???

Kids are now rock climbing and doing archery. Camp is like a postcard picture very beautiful - more news later...

And They're Off!

After 18 months of preperation at 3.30am the Kiwi West Allstars (KWA) team managed to all turn up on time for the bus ride to Wellington where they would catch a domestic flight to Auckland and on to Honolulu from there. Estimated time of arrival 8-9pm Sunday 1st July (Hawaii Time).

Good news is that its currently 26 degrees in Hawaii with mostly fine weather predicted for the next week.

Left: photo taken for St Peters College Newsletter

Aloha! Mahalo!

KIWI WEST ALLSTARS 2007
The Westend pool was packed on Saturday Night with parents and swimmers from the 2007 Kiwi Allstars team heading over to Hawaii next week, to compete at the 59th Keo Nakama Invitational.

The swimmers were fitted out with all their tour uniforms and gear, kindly donated by Colorado Clothing. Kiwi Allstars touring teams are obligated to learn the National Anthem and National Haka, from what I heard everyone did a fantastic job.

Swimmers from all over the world will be competing at the swim meet including teams from Texas, Nevada, San Francisco, Australia, China and Guam to name a few.

Itinerary includes:

• A day at Hawaiian Waters - Water Park.
• Shopping in Honolulu.
• 4th Of July Celebrations.
• Dinner at the Polynesian Cultural Centre.
• ....and if they get time they will try to fit in a little swimming.

The Kiwi Allstars will be staying at Camp Erdman, (Where part of the TV show "Lost" is filmed) set amongst the bush and white sandy Hawaian beaches, the Allstars will be sharing the camp with 200 other youths, providing a once in a lifetime experience.