Team Pav’s Good, consisting of a number of dockerlanders, was put together by the very astute Joanne House. Martin Luther King had a dream but he wasn’t the first. Joanne had a dream long before that King bloke jumped on the dreaming wagon and at least hers had a huge degree of merit to it. She dreamed of sorting out, recruiting, training up and winning the City to Surf fun run for all Fremantle fans. Joanne, pictured on the right with two other members Shelly and Belinda Doig, spent several months trying to recruit only the finest athletes. She burnt the midnight oil night after night perfecting the criteria and matching up appropriate candidates who she deemed fit to wear the classy and coveted dockerland Team Pav’s Good T-Shirt. The team finally was reduced to five members. These five members were the chosen five. They were the elite. The five that were selected, recruited, taken in and hand crafted by Joanne. The five that would bring the much desired and sort after City to Surf Fun Run Trophy back to Fremantle. Yeah sure possibly they were only the five who signed up. But that, plus the fact bribery of cold beers at the Sail and Anchor had to be offered, is beside the point. These five were carrying all the hopes and dreams of all us dockerlanders who couldn’t make the cut or rather couldn’t make the 7am start time!

* Notice the normal sized sunglasses on the girls. Unlike the West Coast Eagles, members of Team Pav’s Good aren’t part time welders!

So all five arrived in time for Joanne’s pre-race inspirational speech. I’m led to believe it was a belter which caused a great deal of nerves for competitors from several of the other poxy teams. The members of a team, going under the name of Team Cousins, standing nearby suffered simultaneous anxiety attacks. They panicked, took off their shirts and bolted for the river.

When competing in a fun run event some people use certain methods to keep themselves amused and their minds off the pain. One of Joanne’s techniques is to imagine your self hurting less than those around you. She believes if you believe it strongly enough then it actually occurs. The hurt you’re experiencing leaves you and enters those around you. The muscle of Team Pav’s Good, Geoff “Bouncer” Doig and Tim ”Peter Phelps” Christensen decided to take Joanne’s advice on board. They came up with the idea of having a contest within a contest along the way. They kept score on how many other members, wearing anything Blue and Gold, they could knock over. It was a genius idea. It was truly transporting your hurt on to some one else and the humour it generated took your mind off things. Bouncer Doig managed to win the extended version of Whack and Eagle by the narrowest of margins at the end of the count but let’s be fair dinkum here, in a game such as that, apart from the trail of blue on gold lying on the pavement, are there really any losers?

Given, when City to Surf rankings came out pre-race, Team Pav’s Good was ranked number one, it’s somewhat embarrassing to give the competition a hiding and win by a suburb or two. That’s why Team Pav’s Good had the class and humility to hang back and give the second rate fun runners a head start, before then going on to embarrass them. It was then Belinda Doig looked up and saw the population of China in front of her. After she regained consciousness she said something about possibly biting off more than could be chewed. Joanne slapped her and said “That’s loser talk! At Fremantle, and in Team Pav’s Good, we super size everything. So stop hailing that cab and get moving.”

So the race was going beautifully at the half way mark. Team Pav’s Good had progressed to about midfield, many of the opposition looked to be tiring and Bouncer Doig was in front by four over Phelpsy Christensen in Whack an Eagle. Everything was going according to plan. About another kilometer up the road it was then time for Joanne to give the signal to step things up. It was time to make the move which would no doubt turn out to be the pivotal moment. All five members picked up the pace and went on a Josh Carr inspired niggle and sledging campaign. No one was spared. “You’re not going to make it back to the nursing home grandma” Shelly Doig told some mature lady who was dragging her feet. “That’s weak as piss” shouted Belinda Doig. “Get out of that stroller and pull your wait,” she told the 11 month old blue and gold clad baby. While a little taken back, but impressed at the same time from the girls efforts, the guys couldn’t not get in on the action. Bouncer Geoff spotted Daniel Williams a few metres away. “Look out Daniel, Micky O’Loughlin is coming” he shouted. Needless to say, after freezing like a rabbit in the spotlight, that was the end of Daniel’s fun run. Phelpsy Christensen called out, “Look out guys Daniel Kerr is up ahead” That caused every bloke in the crowd to cringe and, with hands covering the dusters, sent them legging it to the nearest sports store for a protector box.

After the barrage of well timed verbal comments and several jumper punches from Joanne, the crowd in front of them, like Adam Hunter playing full time in the forward line, heard the footsteps and ducked for cover. It was if they thought Troy Cook was coming through because they parted like the red sea. This is when Team Pav’s Good took advantage of the break they created. They shot through hip and shouldering anyone in their path as they made their way towards the front.

The finishing line appeared and the fantastic five hit full pace. It was like watching five Brett Peakes carve up the opposition all at once. If it was team eagles then four people would have had to block competitors so just one of them could get away. Not Team Pav’s Good though, they were going to start as a team, race as a team, sledge as a team and win as a team. All five members crossed the line and broke the ribbon as one, bringing home the City to Surf fun run to Fremantle. In doing so they absolutely smashed the long standing world record which was held by the infamous Kevin the Kenyan.

But Team Pav’s Good didn’t end the day’s events there. They went straight back to the finishing line and gave it to every competitor, wearing blue and gold, who managed to finish. Granted there weren’t many who finished but those who did copped a “Loser” “Plank” “Crab” and many more. They nailed them all and it brought just that little bit extra enjoyment for all us supporting Pav’s Good from the sidelines.

dockerland congratulates all members of Team Pav’s Good for taking out the 2006 City to Surf Fun Run. They did us proud and Joanne House put in a magnificent captain’s effort. We hope the crew have a few weeks off and then get back into pre-season training to be tip top to defend the title in 2007.

dockerland’s City To Surf 2006 Champions
Team Pav’s Good

Fine Print – While very little care has been taken regarding accuracy of above mentioned results and incidents, we do our best to make the entire day sound how we all would have liked it to go. Belting of Eagle’s fans and sledging of old ladies may unfortunately actually not have occurred but we can’t be entirely sure.

Princess Margaret Hospital Big Walk

For those who cant wait until next years City to Surf you can join in the Princess Margaret Hospital Big Walk coming up in a couple of weeks on Sunday the 22nd of October. It’s a big bugger of a walk. It starts in Perth and finishes in magnificent Fremantle, probably at the Sail and Anchor.

It’s for a great cause, assisting the Princess Margaret Hospital in helping beat childhood cancer. So if you can spare a Sunday and feel like getting some exercise then join up and get walking.  For further details please see the attachment. – Princess Margaret Hospital Big Walk