Two Americans emigrate to New Zealand from Colorado,
USA.
We talk about
our life in Nelson, New Zealand.
July 2009 | Blog home | September 2009
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Well the Tour is over and we are in mourning. I guess only about 330 days until the next one. What a great Tour it was. If you haven't heard by now, Lance finished in third place behind Alberto Contador and Andy Schleck. There were a few key storylines throughout:
Of course the main battles seemed to be off the bike between Alberto Contador and Lance. Very interesting little soap opera. I can understand Alberto's frustration in having another Tour contender added to the team mid way through the season. Initially Lance was going to focus on winning the Giro d'Italia but that was out the window after his crash and broken collarbone in a race about a month prior. So the Giro was more for training for Lance's real goal - the Tour de France. It was really clear that Alberto has felt slighted and threatened by the Lance addition to the team. It's now even more clear that Alberto has felt that he is entitled to team leadership and that should not have been questioned. I used to like the kid but now see him for the jackass he really is. Very clear that he doesn't appreciate the team concept (he never thanks them, rather attributes everything to himself). He attempted to act professional during the race itself but has since made some rather amateurish comments. In any case, Lance is on to Team Radio Shack and will be back to the Tour next year battling Alberto and Andy again.
Here are a few quotes from cyclingnews.com that sum it all up:
"My relationship with Lance Armstrong is zero," Contador said in a Madrid press conference, according to AFP. “He is a great rider and has completed a great race but it is another thing on a personal level, where I have never had great admiration for him and I never will."
Armstrong responded via his Twitter feed on Monday evening, and was clearly angry. “Seeing these comments from AC (Alberto Contador). If I were him I’d drop this drivel and start thanking his team. W/o (without) them he doesn’t win.”
He then followed that up with another message, referring back to comments he made when Contador got the hunger knock in Paris-Nice and lost the race lead.
“Hey pistolero, there is no ‘I’ in ‘team’. What did I say in March? Lots to learn. Restated,” Tweeted Armstrong.
Mark Cavendish - the great British hope won 6 stages and now owns the record for total number of stage wins but a Brit. He dominated the final sprint in Paris and won by a couple seconds. The Columbia team simply dominates the sprint lead outs - Hincapie and Renshaw are beasts. Bradley Wiggins from Garmin finished 4th - this guy has won several Olympic medals on the track and has now fully dedicated to the road. He lost a lot of weight for this year and was able to stay with the climbers in the mountains. He doesn't have the acceleration of Contador but certainly can limit his losses - he could contend for a podium spot in the next few years.
These two bothers really brought the battle to team Astana. They announced their attacks and followed through. The did all they could to get the win for Andy and get Frank on the podium. Probably too much of an ask. They might have been better served to get a stage win for Andy on Mt. Ventoux rather than work to get Frank on the podium. In any case, Andy is a great talent but he loses too much time in the time trials and wasn't able to drop Contador in the mountains so he has some work to do. Check out Andy's blog on cyclingnews.com.
What a stage. On the downside, the racing didn't live up to expectations as the final battleground for the GC but the fans were unreal - several reports stated the crowds of approximately 500,000 spectators lined the 21km road up the mountain.
The good news is that during the race there were no reports of positive tests. Unfortunately it wasn't a completely clean Tour as one stage winner has since been suspended for alleged doping. Spaniard Mikel Astarloza was the first caught and hopefully, if there were other cheats, they will be caught in the next few weeks. In an effort to be completely transparent on the doping issues, Brad Wiggins has released all his testing results. Another bit of discouraging news is the head of the French anti doping agency believes there might be up to two new types of doping products being used by riders in the Tour.
Good recap on Bike Radar: http://www.bikeradar.com/news/article/tour-de-france-wrap-up-22562
As for my picks? Ugh, not so good. I did pick Contador as the winner (who didn't) and picked Lance to finish 5th (3rd) - all else I was way way off. oh well, there's always next year.
For Part 1 of my earthquakes blog, visit the prior entry from July.
I'll repeat my disclaimer from part 1: the content I am sharing with you on earthquakes is NOT my own writing, I have compiled it from a few sources I want to cite up front: most of the content is from Eileen McSaveney. 'Earthquakes', Te Ara - the Encyclopedia of New Zealand, updated 21-Sep-2007,
URL: http://www.TeAra.govt.nz/EarthSeaAndSky/NaturalHazardsAndDisasters/Earthquakes/en
A bit of text was also found at the GNZ site, http://www.gns.cri.nz/index.html
Remember that the North Island and its continental shelves, which lie under the sea, are on the Australian Plate, as is the land west of the Alpine Fault in the South Island. The rest of the South Island is part of the Pacific Plate.
Ocean crust of the Pacific Plate is descending under the eastern North Island and Marlborough. Here the land has splintered into long blocks separated by major faults. Along these faults, the blocks have intermittently shifted both horizontally and vertically. Some have been tilted upward, forming mountains such as the Tararuas in the North Island and the Kaikōuras in the South Island. Movement on these long faults has produced several earthquakes of magnitude 7 or greater, such as the 1848 earthquakes along the Awatere Fault in Marlborough, the 1855 Wairarapa (Wellington area) earthquake, and the 1888 earthquake along the Hope Fault in North Canterbury (Christchurch area).
In the central North Island the brittle crust of the overlying plate is being pulled apart, and parts of the region are subsiding. Small earthquakes, related to volcanic activity rather than crustal stress, also occur in the central North Island volcanic zone.
Near the south-western end of the South Island, the roles of the plates are reversed. Here the Australian Plate has a thin crust of oceanic rock. Just offshore from Fiordland, it descends beneath the thicker continental crust of the South Island. The magnitude 7.2 Fiordland earthquake in August 2003 was a subduction earthquake – the result of the oceanic rock under the Tasman Sea moving up to 5 metres inward under the South Island. (The recent quake mentioned 'round the world and in part 1 was also in Fiordland.)
Subduction also causes very deep earthquakes. These earthquakes occur within the sinking oceanic crust as the stiff slabs are bent downward. There are distinctive zones of deep earthquakes beneath the North Island and Marlborough, and under Fiordland.
In the central South Island, the colliding Australian and Pacific Plates are both thick continental crust, so one plate cannot sink under the other. Instead, the crust of the Pacific Plate is being buckled, broken and forced upward, creating the Southern Alps. The boundary between the plates is the huge Alpine Fault. It’s the "on-land" boundary of the Pacific and Australian Plates. Earthquakes along the Alpine Fault have often been very large – there have been earthquakes in the magnitude 7 range near Arthur’s Pass and Murchison in 1929 and Īnangahua in 1968.
The Alpine Fault, which runs for about 600km up the spine of the South Island, is one of the world’s major geological features. It has ruptured four times in the past 900 years, each time producing an earthquake of about magnitude 8. Approximate rupture dates are 1717AD, 1620AD, 1450 AD, and 1100AD. Its rate of horizontal movement is about 30m per 1000 years — very fast by global standards. Each time it has ruptured, it has also moved vertically, lifting the Southern Alps in the process. In the last 12 million years the Southern Alps have been uplifted by an amazing 20,000m, and it’s only the fast pace of erosion that has kept their highest point below 4000m. So the fault has been responsible for building some of New Zealand’s most spectacular scenery.
The fault has a high probability of rupturing in the next 40 years. The rupture will produce one of the biggest earthquakes since European settlement of New Zealand, and it will have a major impact on the lives of many people. In between earthquakes, the Alpine Fault is locked. All these things make the Alpine Fault special.
I had a lot of feedback from my 29 July blog posting about New Zealand's 'scary' socialised medical system. Some of it I posted, but there were quite a few private exchanges. The story below is from a regular blog follower still living in Michigan but wanting to move. My notes in brackets are for comparison to how this woman would have been treated in New Zealand.
Last fall my wife was laid-off. She had the best health care out there (state/gov employee-school counselor). Once that was gone we transitioned to my insurance, also a teacher but under the guise of "private contractor."
I had reconstructive wrist surgery under my wife['s insurance], the rehab started under my new insurance which is the famed HSA. They didn't cover any of it. The therapy w/ insurance was $385, since I didn't have any they gave me a discount 67% at $125. Why?
[In NZ if the wrist injury was the result of an accident, all treatment including physical therapy would have been covered under the ACC programme - similar to worker's compensation. If non-accident, after diagnosis by doctor and initial cost to see doctor of $30-50, all treatment free.]
Next on the agenda, the HSA covers an annual physical, my wife had said physical but the doctor's office billed it as something else, something that the insurance company does not cover. So to get some cholesterol, basic blood work, discussion w/ doctor was $285 for 30 minute visit and $1300 for the blood work. Ouch. Even though it was billed/coded wrong, the office won't change it and are being a real ....
[No billing codes here, no hassles on what happened - you pay $30 - $50 to see a doctor, less if you want to see a nurse, and you are diagnosed. Blood tests are free, results are free, all sent electronically to your doctor and part of your medical record. You can pay for a double visit if you want to spend more time with your doctor than the alloted 20 minutes.]
Anyways [...] 2 people w/ masters degrees, a 2002 car and 1994 car can't even get the basics of life. We work with kids, do the right thing, save, treat people with respect, work hard, have no debt besides our mortgage and we are a few steps away from being financially ruined. If that is the case for us, what about the rest of people who are less fortunate?
My friend joined the army, in part because his family had major financial troubles, went bankrupt and....has to get health care because he has 4 kids. Wonderful family, hard worker, now he will be gone off/on for years.
[At least your friend and his familiy are now getting some of the best medical care anywhere, a socialised system that is free to all its users - the veterans administration. I would dare say anyone in America would take the VA and it's health care over health insurance companies any day - including the radical right who claim to love the troops so much. Too bad the radical right can't see the forest for the trees. Good luck to your friend.]
The writing has been on the wall for awhile for me, but I think it is setting in for my wife and that should speed up the process of getting out to NZ. I am sure it is not perfect, but if you have doubts remember our story.
No, no system is perfect, but it is a system based on health care being a moral right of everyone, not a privilege for those who can pay for it.
Wouldn't you know it - the day after I make this post, the government announces it will change it's pay structure for physical therapy under the ACC scheme. Rather than full compensation, they will likely pay only partial, starting in November. But hey, for a therapy appointment averaging $85, based on the news story, partial reimbursement is still a good deal.
New Zealand's not perfect by any stretch, but they are constantly striving to do the right thing.
Well it's finally here, the government has spoken and our roads should be a bit safer because of it. Of course it makes sense to ban mobile phone use while driving, I don't think that is even in dispute. Now enforcement is going to be the biggest issue but watch this space because I'm sure Angela will be able to describe how they catch you by December. The only problem with this new law in that it also covers cyclist. Crazy you say? I agree. Anyway, take a read of the story as printed on the NZ Herald website.
4:00AM Friday Aug 14, 2009
By Mathew Dearnaley
Drivers will be banned from using cellphones in their vehicles from November under new rules that will also require motorcyclists to use their headlights during the day.
Transport Minister Steven Joyce announced yesterday that also from November, drivers talking or texting while at the wheel would face fines of $80 and would receive 20 demerit points.
Motorcyclists could be fined $100 for driving without headlights on during the day.
Drivers can have their licences suspended for three months if they accumulate 100 or more demerit points within two years.
Transport Ministry figures show the number of motorcyclists killed or injured rose 48 per cent in two years, from 896 in 2005 to 1328 in 2007.
Mr Joyce welcomed the new motorcycle regulations.
"The number of motorcycle crashes has increased rapidly in recent years as motorcycle use has grown in popularity again.
"This requirement will help to ensure that motorcyclists are visible to other road users."
He was philosophical about the new cellphone fines.
"If that's what it takes to get the message across, then maybe that's a good thing because we certainly don't want people texting and we don't want people using hand-held phones."
The previous Labour-led Government had proposed a $50 fine and 25 demerit points.
Mr Joyce acknowledged that raising the monetary penalty ran against a general trend towards reducing fines in favour of demerit points.
That had been done to counter public perceptions that road safety enforcement "is some sort of revenue collection system, which it is not".
"We need to send a strong signal to all road users that it's not on."
The cellphone penalties will be the same as those for driving between 11km/h and 15km/h above the speed limit.
Mr Joyce said mobile phones or other telecommunications devices were a contributing factor in 482 injury crashes and 25 fatal smashes between 2003 and last year.
He expected the ban to be widely accepted, as 76 per cent of surveyed AA members and 86 per cent of respondents to a Research New Zealand poll had favoured such a move.
The ban is a safety compromise, as drivers will be able to use hands-free phones or two-way radio systems, and there will be exemptions for 111 calls made in emergencies.
Mr Joyce said that was because many business and tradespeople depended for their livelihood on being available to take phone calls.
He understood hands-free phones were less distracting to operate than hand-held versions.
But he said hands-free users should still pull over to make or receive calls whenever possible.
Waikato University road safety researcher Associate Professor Sam Charlton praised the minister for banning drivers from using at least hand-held phones.
But he said international research over the past five years had found hands-free phones to be equally asdangerous.
That was because of the diversion of attention demanded by any form of phone conversation in which the other party was unaware of road hazards facing the driver.
But Business New Zealand chief executive Phil O'Reilly considered the ban a "sensible compromise", as many self-employed people needed to be available to customers.
That meant being able to receive calls in their vehicles, while taking care not to put themselves out of business by causing road crashes.
BMW spokesman Piers Scott said all new vehicles supplied by the company had fittings for hands-free phones, and any staff members caught using a hand-held version while driving would lose the use of company cars.
DRIVING PENALTIES
* Using a phone, $80 fine and 20 demerit points
* Speeding (starts at) $80, 10 demerit points
* Riding a motorcycle without a headlight, $100.
* Not wearing a seatbelt, $150
* Not carrying a driver's licence, $55
* Not holding a current driver's licence, $400
I'll repeat my disclaimer from parts 1 and 2: the content I am sharing with you on earthquakes is NOT my own writing, I have compiled it from a few sources I want to cite up front: most of the content is from Eileen McSaveney. 'Earthquakes', Te Ara - the Encyclopedia of New Zealand, updated 21-Sep-2007,
URL: http://www.TeAra.govt.nz/EarthSeaAndSky/NaturalHazardsAndDisasters/Earthquakes/en
A bit of text was also found at the GNZ site, http://www.gns.cri.nz/index.html
New Zealand has a national network of instruments and data centres, GeoNet, which detects and monitors earthquakes, volcanic activity, large landslides, tsunamis, and the slow deformation that precedes large earthquakes. Data from instrument stations throughout the country is transmitted via satellite, radio and computer links to centres at Wairākei and Wellington, which are operated by the Institute of Geological and Nuclear Sciences. Computers automatically analyse any earthquakes above a given magnitude, and transmit warnings to staff on duty. GeoNet centres can provide information within minutes of a major event to assist emergency services in a rapid response, and high-quality data is freely available to researchers.
Don rushes to this site when he feels the rocking and rolling: http://www.geonet.org.nz/earthquake/quakes/recent_quakes.html
Some areas of New Zealand have a higher probability than others of damage from earthquakes. The frequency of large earthquakes can be estimated from historical records of earthquakes since European settlement, from geological evidence of past large earthquakes, and from instrumental records of smaller quakes.
Geological studies provide evidence of the timing and size of past earthquakes. By examining faults where they cut the surface and digging trenches through them, scientists can determine when these last ruptured and how frequently they moved in prehistoric times. As earthquakes commonly recur along faults, their history may indicate their likely future behaviour.
Additional information about possible future earthquakes comes from measuring land movement in areas that are being deformed, using techniques such as Global Positioning System (GPS) measurements and radar. This information can be used to identify areas where the likelihood of earthquakes is increased or reduced.
Accurately predicting ‘the big one’ remains a conundrum for scientists. Over the centuries, many signs of an impending earthquake have been proposed. Animals are thought to behave strangely – sheep and cattle were restless 15 minutes before the 1968 Īnangahua earthquake. Some earthquakes have been preceded by unusual lights in the sky. These may be related to changes in the ground’s electrical conductivity. But the claim that earthquakes are preceded by ‘earthquake weather’ – sultry, ominous conditions – is unproven, as no direct correlation has been found between weather and seismic activity.
Earthquake swarms or foreshocks have heralded some earthquakes, including the 1888 North Canterbury, 1929 Murchison and 1987 Edgecumbe quakes. In the weeks before the North Canterbury and Murchison earthquakes, people reported booming noises – small earthquakes that were heard rather than felt. More often, however, powerful earthquakes have struck with little warning, or even following a quiet period.
The ability to accurately predict an impending earthquake could result in life-saving measures, including evacuation of a region. But the social and economic cost could be high if the prediction proved to be wrong. The ultimate goal of prediction is to save lives and minimise damage, disruption and the cost of recovery. As yet there is no sound scientific basis for earthquake prediction, so communities in regions with a high probability of earthquakes must be prepared, by designing earthquake-resistant buildings and structures, planning for civil defence, and educating the public on emergency measures.
Watch this video that shows New Zealand's Prime Minister is going to be on David Letterman sometime in September. Apparently they've been courting him for some time, so be on the lookout. Luckily we get Letterman over here.
