IT WAS at the eleventh hour that my intrepid colleague Nicola O’Driscoll and I were asked to represent the Limerick Post in the Media Charity Skate Challenge at Limerick on Ice.
With precious little preparation done by these two skating novices, we showed up at the Arthur’s Quay venue on Monday evening as rank outsiders, although anyone who stuck a cheeky fiver on us could have been in for a hefty payday!
Alas it didn’t turn out like that. The teams from Live95FM (Suzanne O’Brien and Denis Tierney) and Spin South West (Louise Cantillon and Stephen Murphy) proved to be somewhat more adept on the ice, with yours truly nervously lurching about the place like a car that has failed the NCT eight times.
The evening got off to a rather inauspicious start as one of the contestants slipped during the first challenge and hit the ice head first. Thankfully they got up and soldiered on bravely for the remainder of the event when many others would probably have thought ‘sod this for a game of soldiers’.
Skating forwards was a slow enough process for the Limerick Post’s male representative (Nicola had got the hang of it much more quickly). As for skating backwards, my main concerns were not falling on my rear end and not being overtaken by any trespassing tortoises there may have been.
At least when the hockey sticks were brought out we showed that we meant business. Our penalty taking prowess restored respectability on the scoreboard and our conversion rate of four out of six was far better than anything England could manage at a World Cup.
The challenge concluded with a frenzied bout of musical chairs. Who was the first to be knocked out in this round? That’s right, it was me. But I can say that Bambi on ice comparisons would be unfair…to Bambi.
It was the Spin South West pair of Louise and Stephen who took the honours with a highly impressive display of ice skating, but in the end the ‘Posties’ put in a respectable showing.
Nicola and I came away in full agreement that, despite not leaving with the trophy, it was an enjoyable experience and there was a degree of healthy competition, but also a real camaraderie, between the three teams.
So, like Elton John, I can say I’m still standing. Merry Christmas!
