Rebel Run Sydney review

The Rebel Run Sydney was held on Sunday 27 October 2013 at Homebush in Sydney.

The event was previously known as the Run4Fun, and is a sister event to the huge City2Surf.

The change of name coincides with a change of format. Previously it was just a 10km race, but from 2013 it became a choice of three races - a Half Marathon, 10km and a 3km.

I entered the 10km race, which I have done every year since its inception for all but one year.

The run takes place in Sydney's Homebush Olympic Precinct, which is a very flat course and that encourages you to do a PB. The only problem is that it is late in the season and seems to take place on a warm day every year, making that PB a bit more difficult. This year it was a week earlier than previous years, being on the last Sunday in October rather than the first Sunday in November.

The race itself is very well organised. You'd expect them to know what they were doing if they can run the City2Surf.

The 10km race was the last to start, and was scheduled for an 8.30am gun. However there was a delay. The announcer said he was waiting for clearance from the race director. At about 8.40am, he said there was an incident on the half marathon course that was causing the delay.

While I believe that someone's health comes first, they need to anticipate and work around incidents. A late race is not a good race. People time their supplements to release at certain points and a delay will disrupt this. Also, it was a warm and sunny morning and we were waiting at the starting line in the heat.

As I said, the course is very flat. However for someone like me who is a plodder these days, there are gentle rises throughout the course that I might not have worried about several years ago, but these days I feel every step of the way. I'm not complaining - that's all part of the joy and challenge of running.

Being in the Olympic precinct means there are vey few spectators cheering along the way, which is a bit of a shame, but in a way the solitude is humbling.

The highlight, and probably the big drawcard for most people, is that fact that the finish line is inside the ANZ Stadium, the same stadium where the Olympic events occurred and other sporting events take place, such as the NRL Grand Final. It's a rare opportunity to run into a stadium, albeit it is almost empty (see picture above). You enter the stadium following the famous blue line that the Olympic Marathoners followed in 2000 and have about a 100 metre dash to the finish line. It's not much but it's certainly a memorable highlight.

I like this race, hence I try to do it every year. I think its popularity is growing, and the break up of the races should help build its popularity in the coming years. I certainly hope so.

Woolworths Kingsgrove - new store

The Woolworths store at Kingsgrove in Sydney's South opened last Thursday, 17 October 1013.

It's a brand new store and one of which Woolworths seems to be very proud. So I thought I'd check it out. 

While it has its good points, it seems there are a few bugs that need to be ironed out, particularly in staff training. 

Let's start with the good points. 

The aisles are fairly wide and short. It is well lit. The fridges have doors on them to keep products fresher (see pic 3 above). The butchery looks good.

Now, the not so good points.

Staff didn't seem to mind blocking aisles with trolleys. The staff member who put the trolly in the middle of the walkway in picture 2 saw me approaching, but did nothing to move the trolley. He left it there for the duration of my visit - approx 15 minutes. 

Staff also didn't mind walking in front of customers. In my opinion, a customer ALWAYS has the right of way.

Staff didn't pay customers much attention. I was virtually ignored the entire time I was there, whether it was by staff behind serving counters or ones stocking shelves. A polite recognition of the customer goes a long way towards good customer service.

The much heralded stock was a bit disappointing. For example, they boasted a pizza bar. It turned out to be nothing more than the usual Woollies pizzas. 

It appeared they had TOO MUCH space. Some aisles were doubled up with stock, and there was a fridge with lots of nearly out of date flavoured milk. 

The worsts thing for me was at the checkout. I used the self service. A product that was on the shelves as being on special scanned at the full price. I complained to the staff member who said I had to scan my 'loyalty card' (she should have called it the 'Everyday Rewards Card'). I pointed out to her that the item was on general sale, not just for those with a card. She found it difficult to believe and I showed her the shelf sign, which supported my point. There was no apology, no acknowledgement of error, nothing. I chose not to purchase the item, although by rights, under supermarket practice (but not law) they are obliged to give me the item for free.

In conclusion, I was hoping for something a little bit special with the new store, but I was left disappointed. 

Southern Sydney Volunteer Expo at Hurstville

The Southern Sydney Volunteer Expo was held at the Hurstville Entertainment Centre on Thursday 10 October 2013.

Around 50 stalls were manned by not-for-profit organisations from the St George and Sutherland area.

Each was offering places for the services of volunteers.

Some well-known organisations were present, such as Red Cross, the Cancer Council and Rotary, as well as some lesser known groups, including Hammondcare and Sydney Alliance.

It is indeed an honourable thing to volunteer your services to assist the less fortunate in our society. And the expo was an excellent opportunity to get a glimpse into the groups in the local area in need of voluntary assistance. Many of them receive no government funding, such as the group assisting people with Parkinson's Disease.

The event was run by Keystone - an organisation that promotes volunteering in the area.

Many of the stall holders were keen to chat to passersby, keen to recruit the services of new volunteers.

Others were happy to allow people to pass by without even making eye contact. I understand many of these people were probably volunteers themselves, but they let a potentially valuable resource slip through their fingers.

Each group had plenty of communication for people to take away, such as leaflets and brochures, and some had the ubiquitous lollies and freebies to attract you to their table.

The Hurstville Entertainment Centre is certainly showing its age. I remember going to functions there in the 1960s and it appears nothing has changed. One of the problems the auditorium has is acoustics. For a function such as an expo, it is too noisy. A few hundred people in the room trying to talk at the same time made it very difficult to hear people, especially those who were physically unable to speak loudly.

I left my contact details with a few organisations. I'll be interested to see who contacts me and how long it takes.

Sydney Kings NBL Fan Day Darling Harbour

The Sydney Kings basketball team in the Australian/New Zealand NBL, held their fan day on Sunday 6 October at Darling Harbour.

All players on the roster were present, as was coach Shane Heal.

With the first game of the 2013/14 season a week away, it was an opportune time to promote the game and the new-look team.

Several new players have joined for the season, including exciting American Guards Charles Carmouche and Jesse Sanders.  

Captain Ben Madgen is back after an excellent season in 2012/13.

On a beautiful Sydney Spring day, the event was well attended, and the kids loved meeting the players. They held mini competitions for kids, giving away a load of tickets and shirts. The players got involved and encouraged the kids to have a go.

All players were armed with pens to sign autographs, and happily chatted with fans. Some sailors, in town for the Naval celebrations, also dropped by. And the day wouldn't have been complete without the beautiful cheer girls or the Kings Lion mascot.

Nudie juices were also given away, which was greatly appreciated on such a warm day.

The Game Day was a good promotion for the Kings and the game, which doesn't enjoy the publicity it deserves. It often amazes me that overseas sports receive more media attention than our domestic basketball competition.

The first game for the Kings is on Sunday 13 October at the Sydney Entertainment Centre against the Melbourne Tigers.

Let's hope the Kings, in their 25th season, have a great year.

Ikea Tempe store review

I visited the Ikea store at Tempe the other day for the first time. I have been to other Ikea stores, but this was my first visit to the huge Tempe outlet that opened about two years ago (Nov 2011).

Apparently it is half as big again as the Homebush store - so it's massive.

I won't comment on the quality of the products, as I don't believe I am qualified to do that.

The store itself, however is another thing.

For such a large store, most of it is very homely and well laid out, being divided into clear categories, for example 'Living Room' and 'Office'. As usual with Ikea stores, you are guided through a one way path to meander past as many products as possible. Obviously they are relying on impulse buying as much as planned purchasing. There are always short cuts if, like me, you are impatient.

The good thing about Ikea is that you rarely need staff assistance in the store. Everything is clear - what you see is what you get. The choice is huge and the quantities are enormous.

That is of course one of the marketing tricks to get you to buy. When you see large quantities of stock, you suspect that they are priced cheaply. That's not always the case at Ikea, however some things were very reasonable, namely the smaller items like kitchenware and homewares.

Ikea is famous for its innovative homewares, and the Tempe store has them in abundance.

Being school holidays, I expected the store to be crowded, but given its size, it was not as bad as expected. The busy staff kept things moving, especially at the checkouts, so the wait was not excessive.

An integral part of Ikea is the Swedish food that you can buy at the cafe, restaurant and grocery store. I have to say that none of it took my fancy - it all looks very mass-produced and unappetising, but perhaps I was just brought up on good old fashioned non-Swedish cooking. As for the famous $1 hot dogs, I'll leave them to the kids.

I had applied for and printed a temporary loyalty card, called Ikea Family, before visiting the store, however I didn't see any signs instore telling me what benefits I could enjoy once I as there.

So, Ikea Tempe - it's huge, it's fun if you like browsing interesting homewares. Skip the food unless you have low expectations.