New Zealand is seeing a substantial increase in demand from the older ageing population for fitness, exercise and personal trainers, according to ExerciseNZ chief executive Richard Beddie.
He says they now know not only that exercise is needed as people we age, but also why this is the case. There are many providers catering for the ageing market, something that was rare 15 years ago.
Waikato University health and behaviour doctoral candidate Wendy Sweet says today’s ageing population, especially in the developed world, have many advantages over previous generations – not least access to research into ways to stave off age-related conditions.
Beddie says Baby Boomers who have not yet retired are in an excellent position to take advantage of significant positive benefits of exercise as well as increase both their life expectancy and their enjoyment of their later years. Living longer is not enough anymore. We know people want to live better and longer, by being active now.
“We believe the key message should be regardless of age, start now. Because even people who are already in the older age demographic, starting now will have huge benefits, and the corollary of that is the earlier the better. People should think of exercise as their body’s retirement savings system - the sooner people start, and the more they do, the better they will be.
“The key thing in starting now is do so in manageable micro-steps. In many cases finding an activity that the person enjoys is key, be it dancing, tai chi, yoga, Pilates or going to the gym. While there is a lot of information and guidelines about how much activity to do, in the short term the focus should be on forming a habit of being active - and using this to build towards long-term regular exercise.”
Beddie says hundreds of Kiwi personal trainers, gyms and fitness facilities are seeing a surge in older people seeking to get fitter. New Zealand’s best trainers and gyms will be vying for honours at the Exercise NZ awards 2017 in Auckland on November 25.
“ExerciseNZ is excited that there has never been so much interest in how Kiwis are ageing. With the last of the Baby Boomers heading into retirement over the next decade, they are not only the next generation of older people but they will be the fittest ever in our country’s history,” Beddie says.
| A Make Lemonade release || August 16, 2017 |||
The Twin Shift mounts on the end of a flat handlebar, and automatically moves both derailleurs ...
It can be a tricky business, selecting the proper gear combinations on a dual-derailleur bike. You always want to avoid "cross-chaining," a situation in which the chain is stressed by being placed at too much of a lateral angle (such as if it were running from the outermost chainring to the innermost sprocket, or vice versa). French inventor Rolland Norbert is attempting to address the situation, with his Twin Shift.
The grip-style shifter mounts on the end of a flat handlebar. With a series of single click-twists, users can move up and down through the gears, as the Twin Shift automatically moves both the front and rear derailleurs accordingly. It does so entirely by mechanical means – no batteries are required.
Not only does it keep riders from cross-chaining, but it also means that they only have to shift once for each gear-change, as opposed to having to shift both the front and rear derailleurs separately.
Plans call for the system to be made in versions suited to 3x6, 3x7 and 3x8 drivetrains.
It is claimed to be compatible with most existing frames and components, and is currently the subject of a Kickstarter campaign, where a pledge of €70 (about US$82) is required to get one. Assuming it reaches production, delivery is estimated for next June.
Prospective backers might additionally want to check out the Synchrobox system. And if they're willing to spend a bit more money and don't mind periodically recharging batteries, Shimano's XTR Di2 electronic shifting system also automatically shifts both derailleurs together.
| A New Atlas release || August 11, 2017 |||
Emma Tucker writes in deZeen that bicycle company Brompton has borrowed Formula One racing technology to create an electric version of its bestselling folding bike.
Aimed at easing city dwellers' commutes, the Brompton Electric relies on a battery that clips onto the front of the bike and stores away into a separate bag for easy carrying.
Brompton partnered with Williams Advanced Engineering – part of the Williams Group, which also owns the Williams Martini Racing Formula One team – to develop the bike's bespoke motor.
It is calling Brompton Electric the most technically advanced model it has ever produced.
"We've spent five years taking Williams Racing technology and integrating it into the Brompton," said company CEO Will Butler-Adams.
"It has been harder than any of us imagined but we believe we have created a product that will inspire more people to get out from under the ground, out of their cars and back onto a bike to rediscover their cities."
Brompton's folding frames date back to 1975, when Andrew Ritchie built the first one in his flat in London. The brand opened its first factory in 1988, and today makes more than 45,000 folding bikes each year – making it the UK's largest cycle manufacturer.
Aimed at city dwellers, Brompton bikes fold up to a third of their size, so can be carried on trains by commuters, or packed into the boot of a car.
While a typical Brompton weighs between nine and 13 kilograms, depending on the model, the Brompton Electric has a weight of 16 kilograms. However the 2.8-kilogram battery can be removed and carried separately, to make it easier to use.
"The vision for the Brompton Electric was to make a product that was as light as possible without sacrificing durability, and was extremely compact," said chief design and engineering officer Will Carleysmith.
The Brompton Electric can run for up to 50 miles on a single charge, and there are three power assistance levels for cyclists to choose from.
Brompton has also released an accompanying smartphone app, that lets users track their mileage and customise settings for the bike.
The decision to launch the bike was fuelled by the increasing demand for e-bike ownership across mainland Europe. This trend has resulted in several new launches, from Pininfarina's sports-car-inspired design, to KiBiSi's lightweight OKO bicycle.
According to Brompton, sales in cities remain behind the trend, because customers lack safe places to keep bicycles. Because of this, it is calling the Brompton Electric a "game changer".
The Brompton Electric is now available to be reserved – as either two or six speed versions, in white or black – and the first models will be shipped in early 2018.
| A deZeen release || August 2, 2017 |||
The most radical of the new Ultime trimarans, the incredible Gitana 17 is designed to foil at over 50 knots and cross up to 900 miles a day, crewed by just one solo skipper. Elaine Bunting talked to designer Guillaume Verdier at the launch
A revolutionary 100ft fully foiling oceangoing trimaran capable of covering more than 900 miles in a day and sailing at speeds of 50 knots was launched in Lorient this week. Designed by Guillaume Verdier, the foil genius behind the America’s Cup winning Emirates Team New Zealand, Gitana 17 is designed to be sailed solo and to beat the round the world record.
Gitana 17 is the latest of the race boats backed by Baron Benjamin de Rothschild. The 100ft ‘Ultime’ trimaran is the culmination of three years of work by the team and brings together developments from areas as diverse as the Vendée Globe IMOCA 60s, the America’s Cup and the MOD70 trimarans.
This is a beast of a boat and significantly different from others in the growing ‘Ultime’ development class such as François Gabart’s Macif and Thomas Coville’s Sodebo. For the first time, this is a boat designed around foil performance.
According to the design team, Gitana 17 will be able to foil at speeds of 48-50 knots in 16-25 knots of true wind and seas of 6-8m – typical Atlantic conditions. It could also sail across the Southern Ocean in non-foiling mode at up to 40 knots.
“Foiling is not that [hard] but to do that and be stable in waves is a lot more difficult and this is a first stage to doing that,” explained Guillaume Verdier. “Previously the boats were designed to go offshore and slowly the foils got into that, but we have designed the appendages as a principal [part] and tried to have a platform that goes well with that.
“It makes a boat that is a little heavier because there are more systems to control the foil, more hydraulics and the platform is stiffer in torsion.”
The foils on Gitana 17 share some common thinking with those on the America’s Cup boats – the outer float foils are an L-shape. The main daggerboard on the central hull, however, is a shape never seen before on these boats and features a large horizontal component to help with roll control.
Continue here to read full article and view video and graphics
Emirates Team New Zealand’s (ETNZ) win of the America’s Cup is a tremendous sporting victory, but it is also a victory for brand New Zealand, particularly when it comes to shifting international perception of who we are as a country. While the common associations with beautiful scenery and amazing food are positive, we know that as a country, we have so much more to offer the world.
The America’s Cup has helped position us as a smart and innovative nation, filled with entrepreneurs and world-leading tech companies. That’s’ because off the back of ETNZ’s incredible win, there’s an extraordinary story to tell about some of the New Zealand companies whose technology has played a role in helping return the Auld Mug to our shores.
Another America’s Cup is in the history books and although the actual Cup itself might not have been as exciting as the Louis Vuitton World Series competition with its capsizing, collisions and man overboard, the entire event was pretty impressive. And now, with a new Defender at the helm, the all-consuming, burning question is asked: “What now?”
On the AC site it read: “When Emirates Team New Zealand sped through the finishing line on Monday afternoon in Bermuda to win the 35th America’s Cup, the team also crossed a starting line of sorts – this time for the 36th America’s Cup.” Going on to state: “The moment Peter Burling steered the New Zealand boat across the line to win the America’s Cup, the RNZYS accepted a challenge from Luna Rossa’s Circolo della Vela Sicillia (CVS) for the 36th America’s Cup.”
That is the first installment of the many answers to the “what now” question and it’s definitely a big one – the “who” if you will. Luna Rossa has been part of other America’s Cups and many are glad to see them back in the game. For those who don’t know, the way it works now is that these two teams will huddle together and map out all the logistics, including the rules and boats, for the next event.
“We need to put in place an exciting event that takes a lot of what has happened here, because there is a lot of good that’s happened here…”
Emirates TeamNZ Grant Dalton
Hmmm. Is Dalton hinting that the race will once again be run in high-speed foiling catamarans? Hard to say but it’s probably safe to assume it will be another cutting edge style event. To the dismay of hard-core traditionalists, the smart money isn’t on the 36th America’s Cup being held on J-class yachts. However, there is talk, maybe rumor is a better word, of the Cup possibly returning to monohulls. Some have speculated that perhaps a foiling mono that employs much of the speed and excitement the cats have generated would keep the interest peaked and the technology moving forward. Not too long ago Beneteau announced its plan to race a fleet of foiling monos for the famous Le Figaro singlehanded race in 2019 and the legendary Volvo Ocean Race announced it will use “foil assisted” monos in 2017-18 edition. It certainly seems in the realm of reality that organizers would seize the opportunity to both push the envelope further and placate monohull purists, which there are many.
Of the criticisms of the 35th AC, this notion of meat over mastery has to be on the top of the list. Boiled down there were only a couple of men on the boat actually sailing – the rest of the crew simply generated energy, on bicycles no less! For sailing purists nothing was as disappointing as seeing exercise bicycles installed on flying boats and calling it sailing. But this is the interesting element of the America’s Cup event – rules are written specifically for the contest and design teams get to the business of cracking codes and solving engineering puzzles.
It’s still a rumor but definitely an interesting notion. Beyond the boat design, the new AC Defenders are also expecting more teams to participate. In a recent interview on New Zealand radio Peter Burling & Blair Turk said they anticipated most or all of the 35th teams would be back with expectation of more teams. It would stand to reason that the Kiwi team would concentrate on making the next AC as affordable as possible since they struggled firsthand with what was called an “extremely strict budget.”
For now, while the Challenger and Defender spitball what will become, we sailing fans can blab to each other what we think is best (post your thoughts below!). It’s fun for a while but anticipation gets old. Soon we will see the whats and wheres, only to no doubt be answered with some resounding “whys??!!?”
| A Sailing Association of Ametrica release || July 14, 2017 |||
British bike manufacturer Orro have released the all new Terra C model road bike this month. Featuring sigmaIF – a combination of Innegra™ and Sigmatex carbon fibres, to produce a completely redesigned frame.
Orro’s mission is to create the best and most stylish bikes for serious riders. Their headquarters in Ditchling at the foot of the Sussex Downs, provides an area of outstanding natural beauty; an inspiration and a perfect testing ground for their bikes.
The Terra C is one of several bikes in the Orro range that feature Sigmatex carbon technology. The Terra C has a lightweight frame, tyre clearance and geometry aimed at the emerging adventure riding scene, while retaining the speed and handling of a road bike. Offering the same light weight performance as more traditional carbon fibre reinforcements, sigmaIF offers improved impact resistance and damping properties – absorbing energy and reducing vibrations, which makes for a smoother ride.
“sigmaIF is so versatile and we have been able to completely customise the fibres to improve the strength in critical areas to ward off rock strikes and other such impacts.” – Orro.
In addition to cycling, sigmaIF has been the chosen solution for a diverse range of sporting applications including paddle boards, ice hockey sticks and surfboards. sigmaIF has a greater damage tolerance which reduces failure in such applications where impact resistance is essential.
| A Sigmatex release || July 5, 2017 |||
Each of the five Formula One cars suspended from this 35-metre-high installation are intended to represent key moments in the career of race-car driver Bernie Ecclestone. [. . . ]
DeZeen: 5 July 2017: More Clips
Emirates Team New Zealand and 'Auld Mug' were welcomed at Emirates Group headquarters by Sir Tim Clark, president Emirates Airline, and Gary Chapman, president Group Services and dnata, along with Jeremy Clarke Watson, New Zealand Ambassador to the UAE
Ahead of their highly-anticipated welcome in Auckland, the winning crew of Emirates Team New Zealand arrived in Dubai, home of main sponsors Emirates, on Monday to proudly celebrate their America's Cup win.
Emirates Team New Zealand and 'Auld Mug' were welcomed at Emirates Group headquarters by Sir Tim Clark, president Emirates Airline, and Gary Chapman, president Group Services and dnata, along with Jeremy Clarke Watson, New Zealand Ambassador to the UAE.
Later in the morning, Emirates employees were given the chance to take pictures with the America's Cup trophy.
Emirates' sponsorship of Team New Zealand dates back to 2004 and has helped bring the Emirates brand to many parts of the world. Emirates announced its renewed commitment to Team New Zealand in March 2015 as the team took steps towards mounting their challenge for the 35th America's Cup, the oldest trophy in international sport and the pinnacle of world sailing. The team has held a number of America's Cup titles including clinching the trophy in 1995 and successfully defending the title in 2000. Emirates Team New Zealand celebrated an overwhelming victory last week at the final match-off in Bermuda taking the 35th America's Cup in a 7-1 win over Oracle Team USA.
After the title victory, Team NZ boss Grant Dalton had said: "We just can't wait to get home."
Emirates has been committed to New Zealand since 2003, and the airline currently operates 35 return flights per week to New Zealand via its two gateways, Auckland and Christchurch.
And apart from Team New Zealand players and officials, the cup is also getting deluxe treatment as they fly home from the America's Cup in Bermuda first class. The silverware Auld Mug stands 1.1m tall and weighs more than 14kg, and is safely ensconced in its Louis Vuitton suitcase.
Meanwhile, details of Emirates Team New Zealand's Americas Cup victory parade have been announced with the cup set to be greeted by tens of thousands of proud Kiwis lining Auckland's Viaduct Harbour on Thursday to welcome the winning crew.
Start at 12.30pm on the corner of Wakefield St and Queen St, the parade will run down to Princes Wharf and the team will then do a sail past ending at the Queens Wharf even as ticker tape, banners, plenty of Team New Zealand flags and patriotic cheering will welcome the men home.
| A KT Report/Dubai release || July 3, 2017 |||
With Challenger and Defender intently going over their America's Cup campaigns and trying to evaluate the other's performances, there is a fair chance that they'll be looking at the latest content from a new 3D Video application which takes them aboard their rival's AC50 - sitting in the 'shotgun seat' wrote richard Gladwell earlier this week in sailingworld.com.
Earlier in the 35th America's Cup Regatta, Race Director Iain Murray confirmed that the teams would have full access to a suite of performance data from their competitors.
That is expected to include content that Oracle Team USA and Emirates Team New Zealand have recorded from an onboard camera stack to gather content for a new 3D Video viewing experience.
The application is the latest development from New Zealand-based Animation Research Limited or ARL who first made their mark 25 years ago with real-time graphic animation in the 1992 America's Cup in San Diego.
That product, now Virtual Eye, while originally designed for the TV broadcast has been extended into a multitude of platforms and devices from mobile phones to PC's smart TV's. ARL have used their market leader position to dominate the sports animation space - covering everything from gliding to cricket, motor racing and golf, as well as sailing.
Continue to the full article on sailingworld.com || June 22, 2017 |||
Palace of the Alhambra, Spain
By: Charles Nathaniel Worsley (1862-1923)
From the collection of Sir Heaton Rhodes
Oil on canvas - 118cm x 162cm
Valued $12,000 - $18,000
Offers invited over $9,000
Contact: Henry Newrick – (+64 ) 27 471 2242
Mount Egmont with Lake
By: John Philemon Backhouse (1845-1908)
Oil on Sea Shell - 13cm x 14cm
Valued $2,000-$3,000
Offers invited over $1,500
Contact: Henry Newrick – (+64 ) 27 471 2242