The NRL season is well and truly over, but Storm star and ex-Sunshine Coast player Harry Grant is still an action man during the off-season.
The live-wire No.9 has been carving up a wave pool in Yeppoon and will get behind the wheel of a monster truck at Bokarina on Saturday.
Grant took to the waves at The Surf Lakes Plunge Pool, which looks like an awesome version of artificial wave-making.
How do I know this, being a washed up knee boarder? Well, I ran into ex-pro surfer and local lifeguard Shane ‘6-Star’ Bevan (apparently 5 stars are never enough).
Shane was invited to the pool and he thoroughly enjoyed the experience, returning with some great footage.
While he was there he ran into Yeppoon product Grant.
They are both goofy footers so it’s pretty hard to tell them apart when it comes to surfing – well that’s what Harry told me when I spoke to him this week, but he has never been short of confidence.
Harry’s confidence might get tested out on Saturday night, when he saddles up in the Monster Truck show at his old Falcons home ground, Sunshine Coast Stadium.
He’s set to take part in the Monster Thrillmasters Extreme Show.
It seems he has gazumped Falcons CEO Chris Flannery, who was the pin-up boy last time the big trucks were in town.
The organisers have gone for the Storm boy this time around.
I asked him how he went in practise and he said he thought he killed it until he watched the vision back and he couldn’t believe how slow it looked.
I did wonder whether they would throw the little bloke in one of those mini trucks but he was adamant that he would be driving the big Broncos rig and I am wondering who will be more nervous, Harry or Storm coach Craig Bellamy. My money’s on Bellza.
Chance meeting triggers an awful memory
I participated in the Rotary Lift the Lid on Mental Health walk and it was an awesome event that I really enjoyed until about halfway when I saw someone who triggered an awful memory from my past.
It was actually more than 50 years ago, but when I saw my old footy team mate Peter Schwartz on Sunday it seemed like yesterday.
Now, I am talking about a traumatic occasion when I had to play him at tennis at Palmwoods in the local championships and I thought I was a chance.
How wrong could I be. He beat me in straight sets and I never won a game.
But that wasn’t the worst part. About halfway through the slaughter I threw a tantrum and smashed my racquet and cracked the thing nearly in half.
After I stopped carrying on, I went over and asked my Dad to get my other one from the car and he just told me: “No you can play with that one if you want to carry on like an idiot.”
So I played the rest of the match with it held together by catgut and spent most of it sobbing, what an idiot!
I probably need to do another mental health walk this week to erase the memory.
Seriously though, it was awesome event. Well done to Vicki Stewart and all involved.
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