SIMON TIERNEYfinds ways to live well with less cash
Adventure extreme sports
Somebody told me once that I am not a very adventurous man. I remember feeling wounded by this comment. Nobody likes to be told they are unadventurous. It hit right at the heart of my image of myself as an intrepid and spontaneous thrillseeker. She said this because I chose chicken rather than escargot on a menu. How dare she. A sense of adventure is unique to each person. I may not climb fancy mountains or eat shelled molluscans, but I am an adventurer in my own right. Why, only last week I chose a mochaccino over my usual Americano. Nobody can ignore that kind of whimsy.
Unique Ascent(Co Donegal, uniqueascent.ie, tel: 087-7584810) specialise in adventure climbing in Donegal. They are offering eight passes (four couples), worth €120 for a pair, for a day of sea stack climbing to the first people to email uniqueascent@gmail.com. More people have stood on the moon than have visited this sea stack. Fact.
The Oysterhaven Centre(Kinsale, Co Cork, tel: 021-4770738) is giving away six free sailing and windsurfing activity days (worth €96). The first people to email sinead@oysterhaven.com will get the places.
If you want to see kitesurfing and stand-up paddle boarding in action, Puremagic Watersports(370, Clontarf Road, Dublin, tel: 01-8054912) is hosting this year's Battle of the Bay competition, today and tomorrow, on Dollymount Strand. There are also three places available for a three-hour introduction to kitesurfing (worth €120 each) to the first people to email info@puremagic.ie.
Zipit Forest Adventures(Lough Key Forest Activity Park, Co Roscommon, tel: 051-858008/zipit.ie) is a high-wire aerial forest adventure. There are five free tickets (worth €25) available to the first people to email info@zipit.ie, with the subject line "Climb it, Swing it, Surf it, Zip it!"
Gaelforce Events(Leenane, Co. Galway, tel: 095-42006) runs large-scale adventure races around the country. Volunteering to be a member of the crew is an opportunity to be part of something special, especially for those interested in work experience in the events/adventure sectors. All volunteers receive free accommodation and food. See gaelforceevents.comfor details on how to apply.
Killary Adventure Company(Leenane, Co. Galway, tel: 095-43411) is offering a three-hour kayaking session on Killary fjord. There are three free pairs of passes (normally €46) available to the first people to email bookings@killary.com.
Sculpture in Woodland(Devil's Glen Wood, Ashford, Co Wicklow) is a free collection of wooden sculpture by Irish and international artists. Nobel laureate Seamus Heaney described it as "an act of faith in the worth of art itself". Open every day, 9am-9pm. See coillte.ie.
Last but not least . . .
Ciarán Burke of The Garden School(Egool, Kilmovee, Ballaghderreen, Co Roscommon, tel: 094-9649943) has set up the New Growth Project, whose aim is to provide free horticultural training to unemployed people. Burke is a qualified horticulturalist, garden writer and lecturer. See thegardenschool.iefor details.
