mostly music related
Yep as 'A' whoever it is said, I shall update now.
Strings SYF was held on 29 April at Republic Poly. Though there was much contention about the ivory tower standards applied unprecedently by the judges this time, music judging is and will always be subjective, esp. when all there are so many different variables in the competitors- eg. different pieces, different conductors, different interpretation...unlike say the Tchaikovsky music competition where everyone plays basically almost the same repertoire thus judgement tends much more towards objectivity. Yes, RIJC got Gold with Honours, and I must say our playing warranted it. Though there were some minor squibbles over Nielsen intonation and Shostakovich tempo changes (wow it was damn abrupt in figure 22), we def played our hearts out and it turned out way better than I hoped.
However, I and lumps couldnt really be happy, cause of a particular result which mentioning anymore will do no good. I'm certainly not qualified to judge anyone's playing (even with the existence of ahem ahem recorded documents), but based on effort put in alone, they should have secured top honours. Though I didnt hear them play (not from lack of trying!), I knew what kind of performance they must have put up. They know what they want. However, instead of blaming the judges or themselves, just let it go, as SYF isnt everything. Continue to hold high quality concerts (RISE concerts are certainly of the highest standards), and establish your reputation in RI. RISE FTW!!!!!!!!!!
And the week after was elections. Well, even though I ran for certain posts, I didnt get it, which I emoed for two minutes then stopped emoing. Congratulations to the 5 new exco who certainly deserved it more than me (at least in terms of VISION), haha better plan more concerts k. I certainly dun plan on vegetating as a musician in RIJC.
Oh yes and I'm playing for VJC concert this Sat haha! My third time guest playing liao, only this time under a different conductor. Very ambitious programme, Beethoven 5th Finale, Pirates (Again!?!?), Some "The Bat" Quartet by Strauss, and dig this...Polotvesian Dances by Borodin! Hahahahahahahahaha. I love this piece. Though tempi is somewhat slow......
Haha and my bike career has suffered greatly. Stress, distraction, indifference? I train barely thrice a week now, compared to 4-5 times in sec 4 (OMG THOSE were the days) and paid the price in my Malaysia trip on Labour Day. Though the terrain was very tough (at least 15 undulating hills of avrg gradient 5%), it was no excuse as I completely bonked out of energy after 66km, and had to cab back to the jetty. Argh how embarrasing. Back, calf and spirit pain =( Well, i'll have to squeeze out more trng time i guess. And do back extensions at the gym (damn high risk injure ur back one).
To end off, COME SUPPORT ME (and deb and hongrui) at VJC concert this SAt!!! ITs at VJC =.= so haha come down for a night of damn power music. This is the kind of concert which throws the stereotypical boring classical music out of the window, so for cynics, come down in full force kk! ^^^^^^^^^
-Random note: my new idol is Kenenisa Bekele (10,000m in 26:17.53)
Update: My original post was of the above length, but i realised its quite boring thus i shall splice it up with some damn cool bike pics and explanations for the layman!
Topic: Time trial/triathlon bikes
A time trial bike is used in races where the course is almost completely flat. The special features of time trial bikes are basically aerobars which are two bar-like extensions that protrude out front for the cyclist to grab hold of. Gear shifters are placed on top of the bars to facilitate shifting while in the aerodynamic position. Thus the cyclist is forced into a crouching forward, flat back position, which wind tunnel tests have found to be the most aerodynamic LEGAL position. (Hint hint there are even more aerodynamic positions, but are banned by the UCI, cycling's international governing body). For the layman, the more aerodynamic your position is, the faster you will be in races with NO EXTRA EFFORT required.
TT bikes are usually heavier than road bikes, and are more expensive due to the extremely tricky construction process. Carbon fibre is usually the material of choice, due to its unmatched stiffness-to-weight ratio and its ability to be molded into almost anything. Below are some of the most recent, drooling TT bikes, which victor likes to term as bike porn:
TT positions:
sexy eh. Which leads to a very pertinent question: Do you love cycling because of the equipment, or in SPITE of the equipment?