The Simon Jacques Files
Tuesday 10 July 2012
The Cliffhanger lament...
Thursday 5 July 2012
Cliffhanger 2012 is here!
Cliffhanger is here! 6th, 7th and & 8th July 2012 - Sheffield Graves Park
Cliffhanger is the UK’s largest outdoor-pursuits festivals, based in one of Sheffield’s biggest green spaces. We're pretty sure that it's actually the UK's biggest outdoor festival for outdoor folk, with over 20,000 visitors in 2 days.The aim of the event is to Inspire & Involve. Featuring elite competitions and / or professional demonstrations in rock climbing, orienteering, kayaking, mountain biking, running, mountain boarding, skateboarding, slacklining, adventure racing and more, visitors are able to watch incredibly talented sports-people of all ages at the top of their game, and then take part in the very sports they have just been inspired by.
Just a few days until Cliffhanger kicks off and the big top marquee's up and this year promises to be bigger and better than ever.
- NEW 50k Cycle Sportive + MTB slalom & X country
- NEW 5k trail run
- NEW live music stages on Fri & Sat evenings
- NEW onsite camping village
- NEW online advance booking
Organised by Sheffield City Council with Heason Events, we’ve teamed up with Rat Race Adventure Sports to put on a ‘Festival within a Festival’ at Rat Race Basecamp for that quintessential summer festival vibe with onsite camping and a live music arena on Friday and Saturday nights.
The move to a new venue - Sheffield's Graves Park, the city's largest green space - means even more of all the elite competitions and family-friendly have-a-go demos we're renowned for.
Once you've paid your £7 entry (£6.50 online in advance & free for accompanied under 16s) there's loads to do for free during the day including:
- British Bouldering Championships in the big top marquee + 7 mobile climbing walls with free coaching.
- Trials bike stunt displays, Welsh Bocking, Slack-lining, Bike Polo, Roller Derby, Cycle Speedway, Scuba Diving, Story Tent, Caving, Disc Golf, Skateboarding, Parkour and a Rope Course.
- Plus NEW Mountain Bike Downhill Slalom and Cross Country Eliminator Races and three Orienteering Courses.
RatRace Basecamp are hosting an onsite camping village as well holding a 5k Rat Run trail race on Saturday and 50k Rat Ride Cycle Sportive out into the Peak District on Sunday.
And we can't wait for the chance to chill out with a drink at the beer tent, listening to the great line-up of live music on Friday and Saturday nights. If you want to get in the mood, why not listen to the Spotify playlist of the bands on the line-up.
Want to get a taster of what's in store? Check out this excellent video of last year's event by film-maker Dan Habershon--Butcher.
Festival co-organiser Matt Heason from Heason Events says: “We’ve had a brilliant run of festivals at Millhouses Park but Cliffhanger’s become such a fixture on the climbing calendar and so popular with lovers of all outdoors and adventure sports that we’re aiming even higher this year with a bigger venue and even more have-a-go activities, demos and elite competitions.”
Jim Mee, Managing Director of Rat Race Adventure Sports says: “When you’ve exhausted yourselves at Cliffhanger, come along to RatRace Basecamp and listen to some absolutely stonking live music and enjoy our beer tent and the rest. That’s not forgetting the Rat Race Store of course, crammed full of shiny stuff from bags to bikes; racks to ropes. Then pitch your tent in the BASECAMP village and enjoy a night or two under the stars.”
Find it all out here!
http://www.cliff-hanger.co.uk/
Monday 4 June 2012
CUD - U - LIKE
Thursday 22 March 2012
The Molster & Her Free Kicks...
This is our Mollie dog, who we are looking after at the moment as she has been playing far too hard & ruptured her cruicient knee ligament.
As with any good footballer with this injury, after major surgery we are keeping a good eye on her with numerous trips to the (V.E.T) post surgery. She may not take a penalty again in the United / Wednesday derby we fear…
Miss Mollie Collie is feeling pretty bored, depressed & frustrated in the fact she can’t be up & about sniffing other dogs bums in’t park as she is pretty much queen of the profession and commands her manor accordingly…
However she is a tough old girl and has a nice new bright blue & white lead to match her collar, so she must be feeling better already…
Get well soon our Mollie Collie… we love you…
Si
Monday 5 March 2012
Sheffield Adventure Film Festival - 9th - 11th March 2012 - Music!
ABC are playing the Rotherham’s Women’s institute, Richard Hawley’s putting up shelves, Joe Cocker’s off surfing and the Arctic Monkeys are washing their hair...
However if you want to catch some of Sheffield’s other great artists, they will all be down at the Showroom from Friday 9th – 11th March at The Sheffield Adventure Film Festival.
Full line up is here:
http://www.shaff.co.uk/other-stuff/live-music/
and this year we have a Song writing workshop for the first time!
http://www.shaff.co.uk/other-stuff/live-music/shaff-songwriting-workshop/
What is it?
The songwriting workshop is an event to bring together people with an interest in songwriting in an informal way and in a supportive environment with a focus on helping you find other ways of gaining inspiration for lyric writing.
Who is running it?
Fiona Hughes. Fiona writes in the tradition of guitar based singer songwriters. Her songs are simple and from the heart. Her forthcoming album 'Everything I Am' includes collaborations with Iain Archer (Snow Patrol/Tired Pony) and Paul Statham (Dido) amongst others. Fiona also writes for other artists under the banner 'The Avantia Project' and is currently completing an eighty song multi genre, multi media project for release 2012. She has studied Music Production, including scoring for film, at ATM studios in Bristol and has an MA in Songwriting from BathSpa University. Fiona will be running a songwriting workshop 10th/11th March in association with SHAFF. Spaces are limited so book now. For more detail click here. Samples of Fiona's music can be found at
Who is it for?
Anyone who is interested in song writing and particularly in developing their lyric writing
I've never written a song before, does that matter?
Not at all.
How much does it cost?
The workshop is free, you will need to pay to see the films. See ticket prices.
What do I need to bring?
Pen and paper for writing down all those inspired thoughts.
Do I need to bring an instrument?
You can if you like. The focus is on lyric development so it's not absolutely necessary. You don't need to be able to play an instrument to attend.
Where is it?
We will meet at the Rutland Arms pub, www.rutlandarmspeople.co.uk which is just down the road from SHAFF at 13.00 on Saturday 10th and then again at the same time, same place on the Sunday.
Format*
Saturday
13.00 -14.00 Introductory discussion on the basics of songwriting and the ways of gaining inspiration. Issuing of 'Inspiration Toolkit'
14.00 Make our way to SHAFF and watch some of the amazing films available to put our 'Inspiration Toolkit' to work.
17.00 Regroup and compare notes.
17.30 Finish and either go home to work on our songs or stay around to gain more inspiration/work on songs/watch more films/support the live acts.
Sunday
13.00 - 14.00 Playback and feedback.
14.30 - 15.30 Songwriters will be paired up to collaborate.
15.30 - Return to SHAFF for more film and live music.
How Can I Sign Up?
Drop us an email.
*Format and timings may vary depending on the needs of the group.
Please come along and show your support, bring an instrument, play and jam, sing if you want to, you never know we may find another Jarvis…
…or Tony Christie…
Cheers
Si
Watch the trailer at:
www.shaff.co.uk
Friday 3 February 2012
Captain Jack Sparrow Meets Human Resources...
One fettle & tuning sesh later and I got the thing in tune for us to perform "Bad Moon Rising" with me in my work suit on the gob iron (Harmonica) and Jack growling his way through the tune as usual... he very politely offered to pay me a quid for the performance - which I thought was far too much, so I offered to pay him for subjecting him to the shrilling squeals of the gob iron.
Although he did insist I take a swing of his rum for payment and I had the honour of being first mate for a few songs and somehow passing students and the good people of Sheffield tagged us as legends. . .
Nah I said, I'm just a wanderer that meets with Jack now and again to play some tunes, albeit out of tune most of the time. Captain Jacks the Legend playing into the late freezing hours & being gracious and friendly to his public & admirers.
After our song he was swamped by scantily clad pretty young things and after a blues jam in the bitter cold night and more swarming giddy girls we parted a pirate plundering the shores of Sheffield.
Every time we jam Jack always bemoans his guitar is f*****g shite and yes it really is, its a beaten up piece of crap that never stays in tune, yet it gets battered back into working order to a certain extent.
I wish I could give Jack a decent plank, however I don't really think he would take it , the instrument and the man gives the performance which carry each other.
As for tonight, a Pirate and a pin striped Human Resources man bonding on a typical Friday night in Sheffield?.. Why hell not? here's to you captain!
Wednesday 21 December 2011
Every Picture tells a story number 6: Happy Christmas!
6am, and I languidly rise from my lightly, dream dusted slumber...
Kicking the bedpost, an act of habit never learned from, despite the pain of yet another stubbed toe, I raggedly dress in the dark so as not to wake the rest of the household.
I have never been able to sleep in on Christmas morning, as a young lad so exited to see what Santa has brought or a flaky student staying up at some digs until being kicked out in the early hours.
These days it’s more of a hope that the snow has come and with it a fantastic sunrise may occur…
Christmas 2010 and the westerly winds had blown in fat, white flakes of snow covering the peak district eastern edges, blanketing the crest of harsh grey/black gritstone edges and the knarred trees that grow out from the frozen earth.
The smell of winter filled my senses in the dull light as I made my way, with skin shuddering in the razored wind to the aptly named Windy Corner at Stoke near Grindleford.
Altogether it made a perfect setting for the white cold moon hovering in the dark sky, which made way for the yolky sunlight to appear and illuminate the land over Curbar Edge.
The magnificent grit edges of Froggatt and Baslow peeked out from the top of the cold mist, which rose from the streams and rivers like some large primordial phantom of romance. The church bells in Calver began to peel and the twinkling lights of the local villages appeared in the valley as people were waking up to their Christmas presence.
A fellow early riser appeared from Jacobs ladder from Stoney Middleton, on a lone walk towards Eyam and we nodded and gave our Christmas morning greeting.
The sun was being lazy, disinterested and troublesome, however I managed a capture of the buttercup-hued skyline with the breathtakingly Christmassy scene scape.
The biting wind on my face and licking cracked lips, with the picture in the can, meant I decided to start back down the icy road to Mum’s house then Dad’s for the rest of the Christmas day, safe in knowledge that I had spent time being that early rising as a giddy, excited kid again……Happy Christmas all! Si x