Update: "Manchester" gathering. I may have struck gold - a club I contacted has an annex they use for football overspill, and I'm told we can hire half the hall (two courts) for £20 an hour from 6 till 10. The club is in Croxteth, Liverpool (well, the outskirts - roughly five mins east of St Helens on the A580). Are prospective NW attendees OK with this? M.
..that's fine, Sir Mark; i'm sure the attendees will accommodate. Croxteth, Liverpool it is!..Btw, any photos to share?..
UPDATE : List of who will come for the BC get-together events MANCHESTER-based: Venue : Croxteth, Liverpool Time: 18:00-22:00, Tuesday 31st July 2012 Courts: 1 & 2 (half the hall of the futbol overspill) - jamesd20 (James D.) - ctjcad - Sevex (Matt) - Mark A (Mark) ; if someone can give him a ride.. - amleto - Swiftlegend (Ollie) LONDON-based : Venue: Harrow Leisure Centre, Christchurch Avenue, Harrow, Middlesex, HA3 5BD Telephone: 020 8901 5980 Time: 17:00-20:00, Saturday 4th August 2012 Courts: Arena 1, Courts 1 - 4 Website: http://www.better.org.uk/leisure/harrow-leisure-centre/ - Boggieeiggob - 1984AllEngland (James) - R20190 + friends - ctjcad - Fengwei - dolbydog (Frankie) + gamelessx25 (Jack) - chichee - HK50plus - Benwilluk - Ollie - anthemtwins - ckyew - Fu-tu? - Syaoran_Style? (Tarek) & co. - drew tze en - ant01 (please add your name to the list above if you'd like to join~thx)..
Mark, According to wiki quite a rough neighborhood. probably not a good idea for visitors to leave at 10pm and rely on public transport. may be you've some local knowledge to the opposite? extract from wiki; Description Croxteth has an L11 postcode, which is also the same postcode for neighbouring Norris Green and Gillmoss. Other areas surrounding Croxteth include Fazakerley and Kirkby. The Croxteth Park estate is a separate large residential area built on the edge of Croxteth Country Park and in the L12 (West Derby) postal code area. In recent years Croxteth has become synonymous with gang violence, as reported in local[3] and national[4] press. Indeed, Merseyside police's Staysafe campaign[5] was in response to anti-social behaviour and gang violence in Croxteth as well as neighbouring Norris Green and Clubmoor. On 22 August 2007 an 11-year-old boy, Rhys Jones, was fatally shot in the car park of the Fir Tree public house[6] on the Croxteth Park estate, which was followed by major interest and coverage from the national media. The shooting has been directly attributed to gang violence.[7] (See Murder of Rhys Jones) In January 2008, Shelagh Fogarty, a BBC Radio Five Live presenter from Liverpool had a gun pointed at her while filming a TV documentary in Croxteth.[8]
^I did consider, but I doubted whether anybody would be using public transport. There's still Sutton on standby if it turns ot Crocky is a war zone...
wow...but at the same time who would want to rob & harm several fun-loving badminton racket-toting blokes?.. I think it depends which part of Toxteth, here's an input i got from another link: "Also Princes Rd and the area of Toxteth around Princes Park is nice. Overall, the south of the city is much nicer than the North. Places to avoid in my opinion are Kensington, Norris Green, parts of Croxteth, parts of Tue Brook, Anfield and Walton, but again they aren't bad all over." http://uk.answers.yahoo.com/question/index?qid=20080621054158AAO2cog
have to be honest never been there before. just that the name Croxteth rang a bell so I google it. it turns that it is the place where the 11 years old boy been shot. as long as you guys are not rely on bus/train etc just make sure you have the spare wheels (a full set of them) ready in the boot, and a good jack to release those bricks.
Ahh, the memories.. ..here're a couple of links down memory lane...Can the 2012 London Olympics BC get-together top them both??.. 2008 Beijing Olympics BC get-together: http://www.badmintoncentral.com/forums/showthread.php/49819-Olympics-2008-Who-s-going 2010 Thomas & Uber Cup BC get-together: http://www.badmintoncentral.com/for...s-amp-Uber-Cups-BadmintonCentral-get-together.... http://www.badmintoncentral.com/for...Thomas-Uber-Team-Tournament-(Kwun-Drifit-Cup)
I know they are quite stringent on what you can and can't bring into the Olympic venues, just wondering if you know if you're allowed to bring in DSLR cameras and food+drinks? In the Olympic park apparently you're not allowed to bring any food or drink other than those from the official sponsors such as McDs.
I can offer people lifts home. Anyone within reasonable distance of the M62 betweent the venue and Leeds. I will have 3 spaces free.
Re rules on bringing cameras.. ..i was notified from another BCer, who is also helping out at the venue as one of the people with special pass, that they won't allow DSLR esp. with telephoto lens(es). But yes, they should allow any regular P&S camera.
Err, whether you get to bring the P&S camera into action, is another matter ..... I would expect a super strict enforcement of picture capturing stuff from within the playing arena. They are so eagle-eyed and good in low lighting conditions .......
My name seems to of slipped from the Manchester(ish) list, to the London one, could I be reinstated please? I'm ok for sure, am happy to give Mark a (assuming I am in fact?!) lift and like James will have spare places/seats to help out with lifts afterwards if anybody wants/needs.
if the world championship last year at wembley is anything to go by DSLR is ok but you're not allowed to use it during play. and drink & food are definitely no no. hotdog with beer will set you to about 10 quids, you've been warned. but there will be lots of eating places outside the arena within walking distance.
I can't really see anything going down - it's got its own car park, and we'll be the only ones in there. We can pay at the door on the night.
is it the croxteth sports centre you made enquire to? if so, it does looks very rough. there been shooting outside the lobster pub next door to the centre.
After looking around the official games website, it appears you are allowed to bring a DSLR with lens, as long as it's less than 30cm long and you're not using it for commercial purposes. Oh well, rules out my 4000mm lens then! lol http://www.london2012.com/mm/Docume...Prohibitedandrestricteditemslists_Neutral.pdf
..the "no-photography during play" rule is already well known & has been in effect for nearly ages, esp. during AE and any tourneys related in London. So, not a surprise. But for those who want to bring in their P&S into the playing venue & use it, they still can do so at their own risk.. Regarding the rules on whether we can bring in photography/camera equipments, that link above is one of them. Here's another link specifically for the Wembley arena: http://www.london2012.com/mm/Docume...adiumprohibitedandrestricteditems_Neutral.pdf "professional-style cameras (any camera with interchangeable lenses) or recording/transmitting devices."