News Splash

The 2007 Oamaru grand coracle race yesterday rocked the boat and then some.
Radio personalities went in the water.
Welshmen sustained injuries.
Three schoolboys went home from Oamaru harbour tired and happy with prizes to share among their mates.
Race organisers John Baster and Adam Ardouin hobbled about Friendly Bay on their sea legs all morning supervising the smooth running of the event.
But it wasn't all plain sailing for Adam, who during the morning ripped the toenail of his left foot clean off.
Thanks to forward planning, safety officers from St John Ambulance were on hand to attend to Adam's bloody toe (see picture; shows Adam resting his foot on race winner Mike Lillian's coracle, with Adam's daughter Bronwen Ardouin at right).
It was a non-coracle related injury.
Wife of Adam, Julie French, laughed from sheer relief about the incident afterwards during an interview with Coracle Oracle, The Friendly Bay Chronicle.
Adam says he also tried to crack jokes about it at the time with ambulance staff.
Adam and Julie weren't the only ones making light of the occasion.
Good-natured competitors stepped up to the podium (three upturned plastic crates) and received applause and congratulations after each heat.
A young rower watching the event from the water in a boat of more advanced design was overheard saying "this is so gay".
She and a fellow rower then overbalanced their boat.
It must have been the wash.
As the poster for the race promised, egos were dampened, reputations fell, and there was glory in the name of local watersport.