I'm baaaack from Outward Bound

[Number One]

Crikey! That was tough and as ungrateful as it sounds I am soooooo pleased to be back with my boyz, in my house without those bloody nazi instructors messing with my head and torturing my body.

No doubt once ALLLLL the pain wears off I will be able to look back with real fondness of that journey but tonight I just plan on getting into a decent bed, tucked up with my decent man and sleeping in to a decent hour.

....Just need to remember to set my alarm for 6am so I can go for that 3km run, dip in the cold sea followed by a cold shower that I got so fond of...NOTTTTTT!!!!!!

Pleased to see my man kept the Cock and Balls thread going with some piccies of Sebastian (and another tasty boy) grrrrrooowwwllll - now that's the kind of Mansicle you savour! Isn't he good....keep him on I think. :2thumbsup

Anyway - will have a good read through threads tomorrow - for now it's off to bed...might get some sleeping in too :whistle::hug::drool:

[Grub]

Good job - bling awarded! Looking forward to hearing ALL about it.

I found that while we were there, even on the last day, we couldn't wait to leave. I think the boat was only 300m offshore when we looked back and realised what we were leaving behind

[Trudes]

Good to hear you're back safe and sound, you missed a good night last Saturday, we tried and tried to get your hubby to buy some gadgets, but he just couldn't be persuaded!!!

[DUCATI*HARD]

do they still feed you those dog biscuits down there:bleh:

[McDuck]

I think i would prefer the spirit of NewZealand. But then i am biased.

[Number One]

Good to hear you're back safe and sound, you missed a good night last Saturday, we tried and tried to get your hubby to buy some gadgets, but he just couldn't be persuaded!!!

Hee hee - I heard it was an entertaining evening. Rest assured that though you couldn't convince him to buy on the evening he was taking it all in and during our debrief this morning he presented me with the brochure we had lying around and we compared items of interest. Might be a pre-christmas spending spree on the cards I think :whistle:


Good job - bling awarded! Looking forward to hearing ALL about it.

I found that while we were there, even on the last day, we couldn't wait to leave. I think the boat was only 300m offshore when we looked back and realised what we were leaving behind

Thanks for the bling. And yes I suspect it is something that becomes more meaningful and appreciated as you reflect on it after the fact. There was a 60year old fella at the airport when we were leaving who reminisced his time at OB (when he was 16) with us - obviously it stays with you forever!



do they still feed you those dog biscuits down there

Sure do! Infact saddly they were the highlight of my solo rations! :blink:


I think i would prefer the spirit of NewZealand. But then i am biest.

Well, though I don't know alot about how they run that I can firmly say that after spending two full days sailing and rowing and a night sleeping on the Cutter...A Sailors life is not for me...got rather sea sick too so couldn't appreciate it fully :sick:

[McDuck]

Hee hee - I heard it was an entertaining evening. Rest assured that though you couldn't convince him to buy on the evening he was taking it all in and during our debrief this morning he presented me with the brochure we had lying around and we compared items of interest. Might be a pre-christmas spending spree on the cards I think :whistle:



Thanks for the bling. And yes I suspect it is something that becomes more meaningful and appreciated as you reflect on it after the fact. There was a 60year old fella at the airport when we were leaving who reminisced his time at OB (when he was 16) with us - obviously it stays with you forever!




Sure do! Infact saddly they were the highlight of my solo rations! :blink:



Well, though I don't know alot about how they run that I can firmly say that after spending two full days sailing and rowing and a night sleeping on the Cutter...A Sailors life is not for me...got rather sea sick too so couldn't appreciate it fully :sick:

SONZ is a 10 day program for teenagers and we learn how to sail the boat etc. It is real good fun.

[Nasty]

Babe welcome home .. now you missed the first and second tupperware party but you can come to the third at my place on the 13th i am sure the lad will babysit :) ... BTW great job on surviving the hell of OP!!:niceone:

[Number One]

SONZ is a 10 day program for teenagers and we learn how to sail the boat etc. It is real good fun.

Ok - well I'm a bit beyond teenager so not an option for me.

[deanohit]

I take it you didn't run in to any wild pig hunters in the bush then? :devil2:
Not suprised when I'm still up here :( but oh well, will be down there in 3 weeks!

Glad to hear you enjoyed it No1, so how warm is the water down there?

[Number One]

I take it you didn't run in to any wild pig hunters in the bush then? :devil2:
Not suprised when I'm still up here :( but oh well, will be down there in 3 weeks!

Glad to hear you enjoyed it No1, so how warm is the water down there?

Hi Deanohit. No hunters or pigs to be seen anywhere, just american and swedish tourists (thankfully not naturalists!) and a few grotty, noisy possums. Had the pleasure of being visited by a Morepork both nights on the solo - he just came and hung out with me for about half an hour each night as the sun was going down.

The water was bloody cold but they had us working so hard physically (and in the full heat of the day) that it was actually a welcome relief to get in. The part that really hurt was the cold outdoor shower we had to have following the dip in the sea...took my breath away everytime! We couldn't go straight into the indoor showers and actually we only got to have two of those the whole time anyway. They really didn't give us any down time at all - we were constantly on the move to the next thing and even toilet stops were few and far between - not very helpful when they kept encouraging us to drink water...my poor Woolworths bladder really struggled -at least I was constipated though - that could've been even worse!!!! :(

Bloody fantastic place though and the weather was absolutely fantastic - came back quite brown. Hopefully you'll be as lucky!

Bloody fantastic this land we live in :cool:

[deanohit]

The part that really hurt was the cold outdoor shower we had to have following the dip in the sea...took my breath away everytime!
Ahhh, that beautiful spring water fresh out of the cool ground! :lol:

Bloody fantastic place though and the weather was absolutely fantastic - came back quite brown. Hopefully you'll be as lucky!
Yea, mum was saying it has been really hot down there. Should be good for those relaxing evenings after a full on day. :beer:

Bloody fantastic this land we live in :cool:
Too bloody right! :2thumbsup

[Number One]

mmmm beer - could've really done with one of those..infact could do with one now but don't have any...however a Magerita will go down a treat - 2.20 isn't too early is it (well too bad anyway!) :innocent:

[deanohit]

.infact could do with one now but don't have any...however a Magerita will go down a treat - 2.20 isn't too early is it (well too bad anyway!) :innocent:

5' o'clock some where in the world! :niceone::drinkup:

[fireball]

ahh the memories of OB... i do trust they looked after you well!
so come on what watch do you belong to more details.. god i miss that place 22 days was not enough for me when i was down there on course.....

it will be one of the best things you have done in your life.....

fancy a run in the morning?:woohoo:

[McDuck]

Lol i remember the spirit of NZ like it was last week, even tho it was like 5 years ago. Tempting to go back as crew member :)

[Number One]

I was in the McKenzie watch doing the OB Professional 'Navigator' programme so only 8 days. Bascially they crammed almost all of the 21 day course experiences into the 8 days so while we were fed, watered and our safety was ensured I wouldn't say they 'looked after us' as such more that they were working really hard to break us as quickly as possible so we could get to the same place at the end of our 8 days as the 21 dayers get to at the end of their prog. I noticed a distinct difference between the way the instructors of the 21 day programmes related to their groups versus the 8 dayers. Ours were very hands off and quite cold actually. The 21 dayers seemed to have heaps of downtime while also getting to spend more time doing all the various activities - I think I might have enjoyed the 21 dayer more as they got to have really good goes at things...Plus they all looked to be having an absolute ball and seemed to behave as if they were on a summer holiday camp.

[fireball]

yeah the 2 programs are completely different but both do what they are intended for i can say the only thing i hated about OB was the tramp up mt cullen

but congrats on surviving

[Number One]

I'm a bit of a pack horse and so can tramp loaded up until the cows come home quite happily - what killed me was the 12.5km run from Mistletoe bay back to Anakiwa - I don't do running well and usually only run when chased...dependant of course on who it is that is doing the chasing :devil2:

[McDuck]

Yea. There are always things you remember.... like climing the mast of the ship :shifty: Or being up the bow spirit in big surf :eek: Or being up the bow spirit in big surf with dolphins :laugh:

So many fun things to do.. apart form the 6am swim in april....

[deanohit]

- what killed me was the 12.5km run from Mistletoe bay back to Anakiwa
Friend of mine runs the 18km from Anikiwa to Lochmara in under 2 hours twice a week. Bloody took me 2 days to do the same, mind you, I was hunting and scaring the Outward Bounders.:devil2:

Do you remeber the name of where you did your solo No1?

[Swoop]

our safety was ensured I wouldn't say they 'looked after us' as such more that they were working really hard to break us as quickly as possible so we could get to the same place at the end of our 8 days as the 21 dayers get to at the end of their prog.
HTFU!

climing the mast of the ship :shifty: Or being up the bow spirit in big surf :eek: Or being up the bow spirit in big surf with dolphins :laugh:
Bowsprits are MADE for fun, no matter what the weather!!!

[McDuck]

HTFU!

Bowsprits are MADE for fun, no matter what the weather!!!

Oh yes. Yes they are.... :yes:

[Duc]

I did the Dads and Lad course a couple of years ago. In fact spent my 51st Birthday there - first night and under canvas.

Loved it all except the running (and the writing). Even begged them to let me swim and stay in the water while they ran. No way. Came home with bad knees.

Funny thing is I thought I would miss "alcohol" but didnt. Water was good

[Number One]

Friend of mine runs the 18km from Anikiwa to Lochmara in under 2 hours twice a week. Bloody took me 2 days to do the same, mind you, I was hunting and scaring the Outward Bounders.:devil2:

Do you remeber the name of where you did your solo No1?

Yeah it took me two hours to the 12.5km! Davies Bay was where I was parked up I was between two forks in the creek. Bloody lovely and peaceful - almost spiritual that was.

PS: Doing this from work - in looking for additions to myCock and Balls thread I think I might have invited in a virus - damn PC is stuffed. Old man has it hopefully he gets it fixed soon or Sully60 will go mad with withdrawals! I am away again from tonight. Looking forward to coming home properly :yes:

[Number One]

HTFU!

Oh and Swoop, if that means what I think it means - thanks soo much for your input :not:

[rwh]

Ok - well I'm a bit beyond teenager so not an option for me.

IIRC they do 3-day adult voyages too.

Haven't done one though - I did voyage 17 on SONZ whenever that was (20ish years ago?), and a few Volunteer Crew training voyages in the 90s on both SoNZ and SoA.

I did Outward Bound in the early 90s too - I think I enjoyed most of it. It's one of those things that you definitely get out what you put in - decide to enjoy it, and you will much more. Came back from that the fittest I've ever been.

Richard

[deanohit]

Davies Bay was where I was parked up I was between two forks in the creek. Bloody lovely and peaceful - almost spiritual that was.
Yep, I've camped in Davies bay a few times, beautiful in there, and good fishing as well, at least they gave ya a nice spot to have a rest. :laugh:

[Number One]

...at least they gave ya a nice spot to have a rest. :laugh:

True dat. Not that it would've mattered where they put me...I think would've passed out for rest anywhere. Little Sully kept me up each night for the week leading in so I was buggered and running on empty before I even got there :laugh: Body (and mind) feel really good today - done time on the exercycle and walked up the 12 flights of stairs to my office will be a much fitter version of myself in no time. It was a great kick start all right! :Punk:

[Swoop]

Body (and mind) feel really good today - done time on the exercycle and walked up the 12 flights of stairs to my office will be a much fitter version of myself in no time. It was a great kick start all right! :Punk:
So you did HTFU then!!?

Said, once again, with tounge firmly in cheek!

[Number One]

So you did HTFU then!!?

Said, once again, with tounge firmly in cheek!

Yes I did and it was btw 'a cup of wake the fuck up' - as you'd said it would be. Sometimes we learn the most from experiences that hurt don't we....

[R6_kid]

Harden up! What watch were you on?

I thouroughly enjoyed the whole experience personally, my only problem is that at the moment i'm having trouble sleeping for less than 12hrs at a time!

I was on Rutherford Watch... the guy who instigated Movember at the second morning assembly!

[007XX]

Yes I did and it was btw 'a cup of wake the fuck up' - as you'd said it would be. Sometimes we learn the most from experiences that hurt don't we....

YAY...You're back!!! :woohoo::woohoo:

Sorry, didn't read the whole thread, but will a bit later, promise! :D

We all missed you...and yes, your man was good keeping your thread up and running. :yes: It's just a shame it's so darn hard finding pics of good men.

[R6_kid]

The 21 dayers seemed to have heaps of downtime while also getting to spend more time doing all the various activities - I think I might have enjoyed the 21 dayer more as they got to have really good goes at things...Plus they all looked to be having an absolute ball and seemed to behave as if they were on a summer holiday camp.


Heh, more down time! The only time we got an actualy break was when we went and did our service, and that was only because the DOC Supervisor who was there didn't like the particular job we were doing (weeding) and decided to finish 3hrs earlier than we were supposed to! Other than that we were all action packed too

After each expedition (sometimes two) we spent a day at Anakiwa doing stuff around there like rock climbing/high ropes etc.

Our first expedition was 3days sailing, in which we went out to the Cook Straight (barely) but still sailed there all the same, and had a play around Blumine Is, Ships Cove, and a Bird Sanctuary.

We also did two days Kayaking, an initial two day bush hike (to learn the skills for the big one), a three day solo (read sitting doing nothing for three days going out of your mind), we finished with a three day (two night) hike from Mount Riley to Mount Royal, which was 38km or so then got back from that at about 5.30pm and were then told we were doing the half marathon the next day at 6am...

There is much more to it of course, in all honesty you guys did look pretty busy, but we didn't have so much 'downtime' as you may think although we did 'debreif' each activity at night for a half hour or so before getting prepared for the next days activities, but I certainly don't remember having any scheduled breaks until we had completed the half marathon!

[deanohit]

Our first expedition was 3days sailing, in which we went out to the Cook Straight (barely) but still sailed there all the same, and had a play around Blumine Is, Ships Cove, and a Bird Sanctuary.

Good on ya for doing the sailing, used to see them on my way out the straight each day when I worked on a fishing boat. Beautiful on a nice day, hell on a wet windy shitty day. :crazy:
I regularly camp on Pickersgill Island next to Blumine, did you guys sail through the narrow passage?
The bird sanctuary is Motuara Island, we took one of NZs only captive albino Kiwi on there with DOC one time, poor bastard couldn't hide very well. The birdlife out there is amazing, the birds are incredibly tame, some will fly right onto your shoulders.:clap:

[R6_kid]

Good on ya for doing the sailing, used to see them on my way out the straight each day when I worked on a fishing boat. Beautiful on a nice day, hell on a wet windy shitty day. :crazy:
I regularly camp on Pickersgill Island next to Blumine, did you guys sail through the narrow passage?
The bird sanctuary is Motuara Island, we took one of NZs only captive albino Kiwi on there with DOC one time, poor bastard couldn't hide very well. The birdlife out there is amazing, the birds are incredibly tame, some will fly right onto your shoulders.:clap:

Yep we sailed through the passage, due to my handy knowledge and skillful timing on the tacks it was a doddle! We stayed both nights in Wharehunga Bay on Arapawa Is. and the first day we sailed we had dolphins following and swimming around us from around 11am til we made camp in the bay... which was when they started showing off - pretty cool to see!

[Number One]

There is much more to it of course, in all honesty you guys did look pretty busy, but we didn't have so much 'downtime' as you may think although we did 'debreif' each activity at night for a half hour or so before getting prepared for the next days activities, but I certainly don't remember having any scheduled breaks until we had completed the half marathon!

I guess I assumed the 21 dayers had lots of down time as we heard lots of jamming sessions and singalongs plus saw people lazing around in the sun alot - we were sooooo jealous!

To those who might be thinking that I'm just a big girls blouse I have since found out that
* The intructor team were had 'issues' behind the scenes.
* The course we we were meant to be there to do (which was meant to be a customised and specifically designed and targetted programme) was muddied by what the instructors thought we were there to do.
* The instructors actively shut out and undermined our facilitator and the lack of engagement with us as a group was not 'the norm for OB'.

So all in all and since speaking with others I find that my 'reaction' was based on 'real and pervasive' dynamics so I wasn't just imagining it all

Others who have done OB talk about how great their instructors were (both really tough but human too!) ours didn't seem interested in us at all and nor did they actually do many of the activities alongside us...they just stood back and watched passing judgement on our skills/fitness and/or lack thereof. I now understand this was not the traditional OB experience.

Our instructors talked the talk but they never really walked the walk. Personally I think they just had stink ttitudes and were not skilled/expereinced or flexible enough to adjust to the 'quiet energy' of the group dynamics they were presented with.

I should at this point add that I learnt heaps! Achieved a whole lot of things I thought I couldn't and feel really lucky to have had the opportunity! So I'm not completely ungrateful or hateful - promise! :innocent:

[deanohit]

I should at this point add that I learnt heaps! Achieved a whole lot of things I thought I couldn't and feel really lucky to have had the opportunity! So I'm not completely ungrateful or hateful - promise! :innocent:

Thats what really matters then aye. :niceone:

[Number One]

aaaaye men