Team New Zealand has overcome America's Cup holders Alinghi to win the Louis Vuitton Pacific Series.
Trailing 1-0 in the finals coming into Saturday's racing, the hosts pulled off three wins in a row to win the best-of-five series with one race to spare.
They won a gripping race four by 20 seconds after taking a narrow early lead and refusing to relinquish it despite being pushed all the way by the Swiss boat.
Trying to catch a glimpse of the final deciding race from this vantage point at savage memorial
The Taharoa domain is a 538 ha recreation reserve containing three freshwater lakes known as the Kai Iwi Lakes. It is situated 35km northwest of Dargaville. The domain can be reached by travelling along State Highway 12 to the junction of Omamari Road which is well signposted. It is a further 11km along Omamari Road and then Kai Iwi Lakes Road to the domain. The Kai Iwi Lakes which cover an area of 305ha are suitable for a range of water based recreational activities. These include boating, diving, fishing, sailboarding, swimming, yachting and water skiing. Pine plantations covering some 60ha have been established around the north eastern margins of the lakes. An extensive walking track system has been developed within the reserve. Sheltered camping and picnic facilities are also available for visitors to the area. The Taharoa Domain is 2.5 km from the Tasman Sea. Walkway access to the coast is available though an adjoining farm property west of the domain. The nearest road access to the coast is at Omamari 8km to the south.
creek near NZ embassy
The structure itself is composed of a grid-like formation that serves as both structure and facade, integrating the stairs, walls, and roof into one cohesive system. Instead of form being dictated by function, Herzog and DeMeuron’s design effectively removes the distinction, making function and form one in the same.
Such a large-scale and highly-trafficked building raises questions of waste, efficiency, and cost, but the “Bird’s Nest” seems to pose innovative, green solutions to a variety of potential building issues. Its green features include a rainwater collection system, a translucent roof that provides essential sunlight for the grass below, and a natural, passive ventilation system.
Perhaps the most unique feature of the structure is its “cushion” system which strategically fills the spaces within the building’s facade to regulate wind, weather, and sunlight. On the rooftop, the inflatable cushions fill gaps to weather- and waterproof the stadium. “Just as birds stuff the spaces between the woven twigs of their nests with a soft filler, the spaces in the structure of the stadium will be filled with inflated cushions.” Coincidentally, the cushions will be made from ETFE, the same material used to create the translucency of the “bubble building” across the Olympic park.
Sculptural rather than an architectural sensory overload like many a contemporary stadium, “it meets all the functional and technical requirements of an Olympic National Stadium, but without communicating the insistent sameness of technocratic architecture dominated by large spans and digital screens.”
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anton santos pics
waiting...waiting...waiting...
.....ahhhhhh!
-nooohhhh!
standing tall...literally.
stuck between a rock (marx) and a hard place (lenin).
me in foreground to show scale
business end of an IRBM
tail section - upclose and personal
