A cat forum. CatBanter

If this is your first visit, be sure to check out the FAQ by clicking the link above. You may have to register before you can post: click the register link above to proceed. To start viewing messages, select the forum that you want to visit from the selection below.

Go Back   Home » CatBanter forum » Cat Newsgroups » Cat anecdotes
Site Map Home Register Authors List Search Today's Posts Mark Forums Read Web Partners

Olympic Nocturnal Zoomies--Team Competition



 
 
Thread Tools Display Modes
  #1  
Old August 15th 08, 07:10 PM posted to rec.pets.cats.anecdotes
Shiral
external usenet poster
 
Posts: 731
Default Olympic Nocturnal Zoomies--Team Competition

Tabby: Good evening I’m Tabby Barncat, welcoming you to the final
round of the Team Zoomie Dash here at our Darkened House Venue. With
me tonight is Simon Streamline, also known as “Streamline Sime” thanks
to his thus far undefeated Zoomie Gold Medals from the 2000 and 2004
games. Some wonder why the Zoomie events are traditionally held at
night. Simon, any insights?

Simon: Thanks, Tabby for inviting me. Zoomies are always held at
night to maximize our natural tendency to go crazy at that hour. It
does make seeing the action a little more difficult, of course, but
for us cats, seeing in the dark is no problem!

Tabby: (Laughing) True, very true, Simon! Now, for our viewers, can
you summarize the rules of competition for Zoomie Dashing? What are
the important things that contestants must do to accumulate the high
scores?

Simon: There are three very important elements of Zoomie competition,
Tabby. First is unpredictability—creativity is essential here. Then
there’s speed—you have to be a high-octane pussycat for the all
important galumphing, and thirdly, noise. The routine should involve
running, jumping—both up and down—and climbing. You must run either up
or down at least one staircase at top speed. Sudden reversals of
direction add greatly to a contestant’s score. Sliding for a distance
across the floor is highly encouraged. You get extra points if you
manage to use area rugs as toboggans. Knocking over piles of books is
a bonus point. Polished wooden floors are the best area for sliding,
but a good clean stretch of kitchen linoleum works also. They should
move from room to room with each other and it helps if they’re doing
the same basic things at the same time, but are not required to mirror
one another’s actions.
In competition Zoomie Dashing, there is of course the element of team
work. Both team members should start at the same moment, and end
within three seconds of each other. There is a five tenths point
deduction if one team member carries on for more than three seconds
after the other one has quit.

Tabby: Thanks Simon. I do want to touch on something you said a moment
ago about noise. Why is that important?

Simon: Tabby, we cats are always praised for our ability to move
silently, which is of course one of our most appealing attributes.
But in the galumphing part of Zoomies, we need to be heard. When you
the galumph in competition, you should try to sound like a herd of
wildebeests stampeding over the African Veldt.

Tabby: Wildebeasts? Really?

Simon: Well, that’s the ideal, Tabby. Obviously not everyone can reach
it. You have to pick your terrain to maximize the amount of noise you
make when you galumph. For some reason, we sound louder from below
when we galumph on an upper storey level. This Zoomie course will be
excellent for that, as there’s a long upper hallway with a hardwood
floor at this venue.

Tabby: Ahah, our first contestants have decided to begin their
competition on the Bed element. Our first team up consists of Cora
Calico, and her littermate Connie. And they’re off!

Simon: A very good start, going from apparent cat nap to balletic
leaps off the lower right corner of the bed, and almost reaching the
bedroom door—Ah, I see they’re going straight into the long galumph.
Good speed, and Connie Calico has excellent formation and speed, while
Cora Calico is a bit behind her, but I’d say they’re both a little too
quiet. This is where thudding is important, they’ll be marked down
for that—Ooo, good touch, now they’re thudding down the stairs!

Tabby: Oo, I see that Cora used the front door mat as a sled for a
minute, there on the hair pin turn at the bottom of the stair case—
leaving it nicely bunched up. Connie Calico went a little wide on her
turn and they collided for a moment, but they’ve straightened out
again and are racing around the dining room, making an obstacle course
of the chair and table legs.

Simon: They may not make as much noise, but I give them full marks for
speed and agility, Tabby. Cora is doing a chair giant slalom with
almost no reduction in her speed. Connie has jumped up onto a chair
seat and is wiggling her way through the open spaces in the chair back—
a nice unpredictable element, but I think it’s slowing her down, too
much.

Tabby: Yes, Oh dear, the space is a little too narrow and she’s
backing up. She’ll have to hurry to catch up to Cora. They’re
supposed to enter and leave each room together, isn’t that right?

Simon: Yes, Tabby. Oh dear, she ran into the kitchen a full second
after her littermate. But look, they both leaped up onto the kitchen
counter at the same moment and just avoided a collision! That’s a
VERY difficult move, and Cora had to leap over the fruit bowl almost
at once, and sent an apple and a plum rolling onto the floor.
Excellent surprise element!

Tabby: They’ve dismounted the counter and are now tearing into the
living room in tandem—they’re galumphing as one, Simon!

Simon: They’re really flying now and oo! I think they’re headed for
their tower in the corner of the room! Yes! Connie is under the coffee
table now and Cora is just above—SCORE! Over goes the knitting
basket! Good, now they’re racing one another up to the very top of
their tower, Connie up the ladder and Cora climbing the central pole,
Connie getting there just a little ahead. Excellent wild looks on both
their faces—they’re really rolling and out of control!

Tabby: Look at them go! Connie is leaping from the top of the tower to
the floor—excellent form on her back arch and she must have landed a
good five feet away from the base of the tower—Ouch, that had to hurt,
Cora had an uncomfortable encounter with the Venetian blinds on the
living room window on her way down. But now they’re out into the
front hallway again and are heading BACK up the stairs at a gallop—
maybe looking just a little tired, now.

Simon: A little, yes. They need more unpredictability to really score
high in this event, Tabby, but they have time to polish this. It’s an
excellent, exciting starting routine, and as I mentioned earier, they
get huge marks for speed and agility. Listen to them go! They’re
making a lot more noise on their second galumph run Maybe they just
weren’t warmed up enough, before.

Tabby: And Cora and Connie Calico finish their routine simultaneously
leaping up and curling up around the sleeping Hoomin in the bed,
coming back full circle to their starting position.
Simon: Their combined finishing score is a 15.75, Tabby. I’d say
that’s a bit too generous. They’re both still barely more than kittens
and they have a lot to learn about polish, for all their enthusiasm.
But our next team is down in the livingroom, having decided to start
their Zoomie route from the sofa.

Tabby: Our next Zoomer team are Hector and Hilary, a pair of Havana
Browns. They were the silver medal team Zoomers back in 2004, weren’t
they, Simon?

Simon: They were indeed. Hector and Hilary are a team to watch, for
certain Tabby. They’re the best, noisiest galumphers in the
competition here, and they’d really love to up their standing to
finish with the gold medal this time. Where they’re weak is in
wildness and unpredictability. They’re very polished, but rather
predictable. They don’t make the risky, spontaneous moves.

Tabby: And they’re off! Hilary has pounced on the dozing Hector
lying on the sofa seat, and they’ve both jumped to the living room
floor. Hilary pauses to bat at a ball of yarn knocked to the floor by
Cora, but now he’s hurrying to catch up with Hector and they’re neck
in neck as they speed into the kitchen—

Simon: WOW! What a leap! Hector has jumped up to the top of the
refrigerator and from their to the top of the kitchen cabinets and is
racing along the kitchen at cabinet level! He sure has excellent hind
leg spring! Hilary by contrast has made a flying leap onto the
kitchen rag rug and got a good toboggan effect from the slide—he would
have gone farther if he’d had more speed and momentum built up—
Hector’s dismounting the cabinet and lands on the kitchen Island and
from there to the floor, almost landing on Hilary as they both head
into the dining room, shoulder to shoulder. I see they’re electing to
circle around the dining room table, rather than try to contend with
the chair legs. Less difficulty, in running around rather than under,
but it doesn’t do to copy one’s competitor’s routines too closely.
Variety is the key for Zoomers.

Tabby: And they’re racing down the hall! Rather than negotiate the
hairpin turn up the stairs at speed, Hector has jumped up to the newel
post and from there, to the stairs.

Simon: It saves time, yes, but it’s going to lower his stair climbing
score—they’re supposed to climb the whole flight, as Hilary is doing.
He had to get back under control as he slid into the coat closet door
trying to make that u-turn at the bottom of the stairs at speed. And
now they’re galumphing in tandem as only Hilary and Hector can!

Tabby: I see what you mean about the noise! Would you say they sound
like stampeding Wildebeests, Simon?
Simon: They sound as close to that ideal as ten pound pussycats can,
Tabby. They’ve really set the mark for noisiness and leaping, today. I
guess Hector and Hilary realize they have to adjust the difficulty and
high-risk element to get the best Zoomie scores—they’re really on
tonight. Oooh, that sounded like a painful crash up there, Tabby!
That’s the danger of speed, you do lose some control and agility.

Tabby: Ah, they’re up again—turns out they knocked over the upper hall
table—too bad about that Famille Rose jar that was resting on it—it’s
in smithereens. And they’re in the bathroom—Hilary’s in the bathtub,
even, while Hector’s poised on top of the shower doors.

Simon: You get more points if you hit more rooms, but a bathroom is a
dead end, Tabby. They need to get turned around and out of there.
Hector is doing some amazing leaping, today though. But we have to
remember, variety. As for the Famille Rose vase, the contestants have
to knock over something, and get extra points if it breaks.

Tabby: Ah, they’re out of the bathroom and are galumphing back toward
the staircase—just look at Hilary go! I don’t think his paws have
touched a third of the stair treads—ooh, once again he hits the coat
closet door at the bottom—

Simon: Ouch yes. But he’s playing it cool, Tabby—trying to convince us
he meant to do that. But he’s walking, not running now—pretending that
he wasn’t running at top speed three seconds ago. Ouch, Hector just
landed on top of Hillary—still in Zoomie mode, not having realized
that Hilary stopped. That’s going to cost them. Their combined score
is a 15.95

Tabby: As is their wrestling fight on the front hall floor. Hilary’s
batting at Hector—oh dear. Let’s cut over to Willie, at the Kitchen
Bottle Cap Hockey venue. Over to you, Willie:

Willie: Thanks, Tabby. We’re here at the quarter final round of the
Olympic Bottle Cap Hockey tournament. It’s the Siameses vs the
Persians in this round, fighting to see who will advance to the final
round. Taking aim at the goal is Mei Chi, a great Hockey player.
She’s lining up her shot, she bats it bast Ahaseurus the, Persian goal
keeper under the refrigerator and—SHE SCORES!! The score is 3-2 in the
Siamese team’s favor—
Ah. That’s a problem with bottle cap hockey—you have to get your
hoomin to get the bottle cap out from under the fridge. It seems that
Mei Chi’s shot was so powerful, the bottle cap is out of paw reach—Oh
wait, never mind. Ahaseurus has found a petrified pea over by the
stove and the game is back in play! He gives the pea a good swat with
his right front paw and it skitters over near the sink, almost out of
bounds, but Mei Chi intercepts and knocks it back toward Ahaseurus.
But Persian Forward Xerxes sends the pea skittering down the length of
the kitchen toward the diningroom doors---EEEK! GREEBLING ATTACK,
GREEBLING ATTACK! Run away! Run Awaaaaay!

Melissa
  #2  
Old August 15th 08, 07:55 PM posted to rec.pets.cats.anecdotes
Will in New Haven
external usenet poster
 
Posts: 5,073
Default Olympic Nocturnal Zoomies--Team Competition

On Aug 15, 2:10*pm, Shiral wrote:
Tabby: *Good evening I’m *Tabby Barncat, welcoming you to the final
round of the Team Zoomie Dash here at our Darkened *House Venue. *With
me tonight is Simon Streamline, also known as “Streamline Sime” thanks
to his thus far undefeated *Zoomie Gold Medals from the *2000 and 2004
games. *Some wonder why the Zoomie events are traditionally held at
night. Simon, any insights?

Simon: Thanks, Tabby for inviting me. *Zoomies are always held at
night to maximize our natural tendency to go crazy at that hour. It
does make seeing the action a little more difficult, of course, but
for us cats, seeing in the dark is no problem!

Tabby: (Laughing) True, very true, Simon! Now, for our viewers, can
you summarize the rules of competition for Zoomie Dashing? *What are
the important things that contestants must do to accumulate the high
scores?

Simon: There are three very important elements of Zoomie competition,
Tabby. First is unpredictability—creativity is essential here. *Then
there’s speed—you have to be a high-octane pussycat for the all
important galumphing, and thirdly, noise. *The routine should involve
running, jumping—both up and down—and climbing. You must run either up
or down at least one staircase at top speed. *Sudden reversals of
direction add greatly to a contestant’s score. Sliding for a distance
across the floor is highly encouraged. You get extra points if you
manage to use area rugs as toboggans. *Knocking over piles of books is
a bonus point. *Polished wooden floors are the best area for sliding,
but a good clean stretch of kitchen linoleum works also. They should
move from room to room with each other and it helps if they’re doing
the same basic things at the same time, but are not required to mirror
one another’s actions.
* * * * In competition Zoomie Dashing, there is of course the element of team
work. Both team members should start at the same moment, and end
within three seconds of each other. There is a five tenths point
deduction if one team member carries on for more than three seconds
after *the other one *has quit.

Tabby: Thanks Simon. I do want to touch on something you said a moment
ago about noise. Why is that important?

Simon: *Tabby, we cats are always praised for our ability to move
silently, which is of course one of our most appealing attributes.
But in the galumphing part of Zoomies, we need *to be heard. When you
the galumph in competition, you should try to sound like a herd of
wildebeests stampeding over the African Veldt.

Tabby: Wildebeasts? Really?

Simon: Well, that’s the ideal, Tabby. Obviously not everyone can reach
it. You have to pick your terrain to maximize the amount of noise you
make when you galumph. For some reason, we sound louder from below
when we galumph on an upper storey level. *This Zoomie course will be
excellent for that, as there’s a long upper hallway with a *hardwood
floor at this venue.

Tabby: Ahah, our first contestants have decided to begin their
competition on the Bed element. Our first team up consists of Cora
Calico, and her littermate Connie. And they’re off!

Simon: A very good start, going from apparent cat nap to balletic
leaps off the lower right corner of the bed, and almost reaching the
bedroom door—Ah, I see they’re going straight into the long galumph.
Good speed, and Connie Calico has excellent formation and speed, while
Cora Calico is a bit behind her, but I’d say they’re both a little too
quiet. This is where *thudding is important, they’ll be *marked down
for that—Ooo, good touch, now they’re thudding down the stairs!

Tabby: Oo, I see that Cora used the front door mat as a sled for a
minute, there on the hair pin turn at the bottom of the stair case—
leaving it nicely bunched up. Connie Calico went a little wide on her
turn and they collided for a moment, but they’ve straightened out
again and are racing around the dining room, making an obstacle course
of the chair and table legs.

Simon: They may not make as much noise, but I give them full marks for
speed and agility, Tabby. *Cora is doing a chair giant slalom with
almost no reduction in her speed. Connie has jumped up onto a chair
seat and is wiggling her way through the open spaces in the chair back—
a nice unpredictable element, but I think it’s slowing her down, too
much.

Tabby: Yes, Oh dear, the space is a little too narrow and she’s
backing up. *She’ll have to hurry to catch up to Cora. They’re
supposed to enter *and leave each room together, isn’t that right?

Simon: * Yes, Tabby. Oh dear, she ran into the kitchen a full second
after her littermate. *But look, they both leaped up onto the kitchen
counter *at the same moment and just avoided a collision! That’s a
VERY difficult move, and Cora had to leap over the fruit bowl almost
at once, and sent an apple and a plum rolling onto the floor.
Excellent surprise element!

Tabby: They’ve dismounted the counter and are now tearing into the
living room in tandem—they’re galumphing as one, Simon!

Simon: They’re really flying now and oo! I think they’re headed for
their tower in the corner of the room! Yes! Connie is under the coffee
table now and Cora is just above—SCORE! Over goes the knitting
basket! *Good, now they’re racing one another up to the very top of
their tower, Connie up the ladder and Cora climbing the central pole,
Connie getting there just a little ahead. Excellent wild looks on both
their faces—they’re really rolling and out of control!

Tabby: Look at them go! Connie is leaping from the top of the tower to
the floor—excellent form on her back arch and she must have landed a
good five feet away from the base of the tower—Ouch, that had to hurt,
Cora had an uncomfortable encounter with the Venetian blinds on the
living room window *on her way down. But now they’re out into the
front hallway again and are heading BACK up the stairs at a gallop—
maybe looking just a little tired, now.

Simon: A little, yes. They need more unpredictability to really score
high in this event, Tabby, but they have time to polish this. It’s an
excellent, exciting starting routine, and as I mentioned earier, they
get huge marks for speed and agility. Listen to them go! They’re
making a lot more noise on their second galumph run Maybe they just
weren’t warmed up enough, before.

Tabby: And Cora and Connie Calico finish their routine simultaneously
leaping up and curling up around the sleeping Hoomin in the bed,
coming back full circle to their starting position.
Simon: Their combined finishing score is a 15.75, Tabby. I’d say
that’s a bit too generous. They’re both still barely more than kittens
and they have a lot to learn about polish, for all their enthusiasm.
But our next team is down in the livingroom, having decided to start
their Zoomie route from the sofa.

Tabby: Our next Zoomer team are Hector and Hilary, a pair of Havana
Browns. *They were the silver medal team Zoomers back in 2004, weren’t
they, Simon?

Simon: They were indeed. *Hector and Hilary are a team to watch, for
certain Tabby. They’re the best, noisiest galumphers in the
competition here, and they’d really love to up their standing to
finish with *the gold medal this time. *Where they’re weak is in
wildness and unpredictability. They’re very polished, but rather
predictable. *They don’t make the risky, spontaneous moves.

Tabby: * And they’re off! Hilary has pounced on the dozing Hector
lying on the sofa seat, and they’ve both jumped to the living room
floor. Hilary pauses to bat at a ball of yarn knocked to the floor by
Cora, but now he’s hurrying to catch up with Hector and they’re neck
in neck as they speed into the kitchen—

Simon: WOW! What a leap! Hector has jumped up to the top of the
refrigerator and from their to the *top of the kitchen cabinets and is
racing along the kitchen at cabinet level! He sure has excellent hind
leg spring! *Hilary by contrast has made a flying leap onto the
kitchen rag rug and got a good toboggan effect from the slide—he would
have gone farther if he’d had more speed and momentum built up—
Hector’s dismounting the cabinet and lands on the kitchen Island and
from there to the floor, almost landing on Hilary as they both head
into the dining room, shoulder to shoulder. I see they’re electing to
circle around the dining room table, rather than try to *contend with
the chair legs. Less difficulty, in running around rather than under,
but it doesn’t do to copy one’s competitor’s routines too closely.
Variety is the key for Zoomers.

Tabby: And they’re racing down the hall! Rather than negotiate the
hairpin turn up the stairs at speed, Hector has jumped up to the newel
post and from there, to the stairs.

Simon: It saves time, yes, but it’s going to lower his stair climbing
score—they’re supposed to climb the whole flight, as Hilary is doing.
He had to get back under control as he slid into the coat closet door
trying to make that * u-turn at the bottom of the stairs at speed. And
now they’re galumphing in tandem as only Hilary and Hector can!

Tabby: I see what you mean about the noise! *Would you say they sound
like stampeding Wildebeests, Simon?
Simon: They sound as close to that ideal as ten pound pussycats can,
Tabby. They’ve really set the mark for noisiness and leaping, today. I
guess Hector and Hilary realize they have to adjust the difficulty and
high-risk element to get the best Zoomie scores—they’re really on
tonight. Oooh, that sounded like a *painful crash up there, Tabby!
That’s the danger of speed, you do lose some control and agility.

Tabby: Ah, they’re up again—turns out they knocked over the upper hall
table—too bad about that Famille Rose jar that was resting on it—it’s
in smithereens. *And they’re in the bathroom—Hilary’s in the bathtub,
even, while *Hector’s poised on top of the shower doors.

Simon: You get more points if you hit more rooms, but a bathroom is a
dead end, Tabby. They need to get turned around and out of there.
Hector is doing some amazing leaping, today though. *But we have to
remember, variety. As for the Famille Rose vase, the contestants have
to knock over something, and get extra points if it breaks.

Tabby: Ah, they’re out of the bathroom and are galumphing back toward
the staircase—just look at Hilary go! I don’t think his paws have
touched a third of the stair treads—ooh, once again he hits the coat
closet door at the bottom—

Simon: Ouch yes. But he’s playing it cool, Tabby—trying to convince us
he meant to do that. But he’s walking, not running now—pretending that
he wasn’t running at top speed three seconds ago. Ouch, Hector just
landed on top of Hillary—still in Zoomie mode, not having realized
that Hilary stopped. That’s going to cost them. Their combined score
is a 15.95

Tabby: As is their wrestling fight on the front hall floor. Hilary’s
batting at Hector—oh dear. Let’s cut over to *Willie, at the Kitchen
Bottle Cap Hockey venue. Over to you, Willie:

Willie: Thanks, Tabby. We’re here at the quarter final round of the
Olympic Bottle Cap Hockey tournament. It’s the Siameses vs the
Persians in this round, fighting to see who will advance to the final
round. Taking aim at the goal is Mei Chi, a *great Hockey player.
She’s lining up her shot, she bats it bast Ahaseurus the, Persian goal
keeper under the refrigerator and—SHE SCORES!! The score is 3-2 in the
Siamese team’s favor—
* * * * Ah. That’s *a problem with bottle cap hockey—you have to get your
hoomin to get the bottle cap out from under the fridge. It seems that
Mei Chi’s shot was so powerful, the bottle cap is out of paw reach—Oh
wait, never mind. Ahaseurus has found a petrified pea over by the
stove and the game is back in *play! He gives the pea a good swat with
his right front paw and it skitters over near the sink, almost out of
bounds, but Mei Chi intercepts and knocks it back toward Ahaseurus.
But Persian Forward Xerxes sends the pea skittering down the length of
the kitchen toward the diningroom doors---EEEK! GREEBLING ATTACK,
GREEBLING ATTACK! Run away! Run Awaaaaay!

Melissa


WhisperedAnd only a few city blocks away, you can HEAR the silence
as the cuddle-sleep competitors go into the second hour of the six-
hour short course. This is Hugo Sumwere and I'll be covering the short
course, the long individual on Caterday, the two-cat competition on
Sunnyday and, of course, the cat-hoomin cuddle sleep on Mudday. With
me is eight-time gold medalist Floyd, Sleepy, Shorthair. Who looks
most on form so far, Sleepy?
zzzz
Whispered It looks like Sleepy has gotten into the spirit of the
event. We will have reports for you later in the event.
zzzz

--
Will in New Haven
  #3  
Old August 15th 08, 10:32 PM posted to rec.pets.cats.anecdotes
Granby
external usenet poster
 
Posts: 10,742
Default Olympic Nocturnal Zoomies--Team Competition

Whispering Willow Walker here, if anycat needs a partner for the zoomie
races, I am very good at them. I get put in the DOG cage sometimes because
I go so fast and so long and make so much noise, just let me know.
"Will in New Haven" wrote in message
...
On Aug 15, 2:10 pm, Shiral wrote:
Tabby: Good evening I’m Tabby Barncat, welcoming you to the final
round of the Team Zoomie Dash here at our Darkened House Venue. With
me tonight is Simon Streamline, also known as “Streamline Sime” thanks
to his thus far undefeated Zoomie Gold Medals from the 2000 and 2004
games. Some wonder why the Zoomie events are traditionally held at
night. Simon, any insights?

Simon: Thanks, Tabby for inviting me. Zoomies are always held at
night to maximize our natural tendency to go crazy at that hour. It
does make seeing the action a little more difficult, of course, but
for us cats, seeing in the dark is no problem!

Tabby: (Laughing) True, very true, Simon! Now, for our viewers, can
you summarize the rules of competition for Zoomie Dashing? What are
the important things that contestants must do to accumulate the high
scores?

Simon: There are three very important elements of Zoomie competition,
Tabby. First is unpredictability—creativity is essential here. Then
there’s speed—you have to be a high-octane pussycat for the all
important galumphing, and thirdly, noise. The routine should involve
running, jumping—both up and down—and climbing. You must run either up
or down at least one staircase at top speed. Sudden reversals of
direction add greatly to a contestant’s score. Sliding for a distance
across the floor is highly encouraged. You get extra points if you
manage to use area rugs as toboggans. Knocking over piles of books is
a bonus point. Polished wooden floors are the best area for sliding,
but a good clean stretch of kitchen linoleum works also. They should
move from room to room with each other and it helps if they’re doing
the same basic things at the same time, but are not required to mirror
one another’s actions.
In competition Zoomie Dashing, there is of course the element of team
work. Both team members should start at the same moment, and end
within three seconds of each other. There is a five tenths point
deduction if one team member carries on for more than three seconds
after the other one has quit.

Tabby: Thanks Simon. I do want to touch on something you said a moment
ago about noise. Why is that important?

Simon: Tabby, we cats are always praised for our ability to move
silently, which is of course one of our most appealing attributes.
But in the galumphing part of Zoomies, we need to be heard. When you
the galumph in competition, you should try to sound like a herd of
wildebeests stampeding over the African Veldt.

Tabby: Wildebeasts? Really?

Simon: Well, that’s the ideal, Tabby. Obviously not everyone can reach
it. You have to pick your terrain to maximize the amount of noise you
make when you galumph. For some reason, we sound louder from below
when we galumph on an upper storey level. This Zoomie course will be
excellent for that, as there’s a long upper hallway with a hardwood
floor at this venue.

Tabby: Ahah, our first contestants have decided to begin their
competition on the Bed element. Our first team up consists of Cora
Calico, and her littermate Connie. And they’re off!

Simon: A very good start, going from apparent cat nap to balletic
leaps off the lower right corner of the bed, and almost reaching the
bedroom door—Ah, I see they’re going straight into the long galumph.
Good speed, and Connie Calico has excellent formation and speed, while
Cora Calico is a bit behind her, but I’d say they’re both a little too
quiet. This is where thudding is important, they’ll be marked down
for that—Ooo, good touch, now they’re thudding down the stairs!

Tabby: Oo, I see that Cora used the front door mat as a sled for a
minute, there on the hair pin turn at the bottom of the stair case—
leaving it nicely bunched up. Connie Calico went a little wide on her
turn and they collided for a moment, but they’ve straightened out
again and are racing around the dining room, making an obstacle course
of the chair and table legs.

Simon: They may not make as much noise, but I give them full marks for
speed and agility, Tabby. Cora is doing a chair giant slalom with
almost no reduction in her speed. Connie has jumped up onto a chair
seat and is wiggling her way through the open spaces in the chair back—
a nice unpredictable element, but I think it’s slowing her down, too
much.

Tabby: Yes, Oh dear, the space is a little too narrow and she’s
backing up. She’ll have to hurry to catch up to Cora. They’re
supposed to enter and leave each room together, isn’t that right?

Simon: Yes, Tabby. Oh dear, she ran into the kitchen a full second
after her littermate. But look, they both leaped up onto the kitchen
counter at the same moment and just avoided a collision! That’s a
VERY difficult move, and Cora had to leap over the fruit bowl almost
at once, and sent an apple and a plum rolling onto the floor.
Excellent surprise element!

Tabby: They’ve dismounted the counter and are now tearing into the
living room in tandem—they’re galumphing as one, Simon!

Simon: They’re really flying now and oo! I think they’re headed for
their tower in the corner of the room! Yes! Connie is under the coffee
table now and Cora is just above—SCORE! Over goes the knitting
basket! Good, now they’re racing one another up to the very top of
their tower, Connie up the ladder and Cora climbing the central pole,
Connie getting there just a little ahead. Excellent wild looks on both
their faces—they’re really rolling and out of control!

Tabby: Look at them go! Connie is leaping from the top of the tower to
the floor—excellent form on her back arch and she must have landed a
good five feet away from the base of the tower—Ouch, that had to hurt,
Cora had an uncomfortable encounter with the Venetian blinds on the
living room window on her way down. But now they’re out into the
front hallway again and are heading BACK up the stairs at a gallop—
maybe looking just a little tired, now.

Simon: A little, yes. They need more unpredictability to really score
high in this event, Tabby, but they have time to polish this. It’s an
excellent, exciting starting routine, and as I mentioned earier, they
get huge marks for speed and agility. Listen to them go! They’re
making a lot more noise on their second galumph run Maybe they just
weren’t warmed up enough, before.

Tabby: And Cora and Connie Calico finish their routine simultaneously
leaping up and curling up around the sleeping Hoomin in the bed,
coming back full circle to their starting position.
Simon: Their combined finishing score is a 15.75, Tabby. I’d say
that’s a bit too generous. They’re both still barely more than kittens
and they have a lot to learn about polish, for all their enthusiasm.
But our next team is down in the livingroom, having decided to start
their Zoomie route from the sofa.

Tabby: Our next Zoomer team are Hector and Hilary, a pair of Havana
Browns. They were the silver medal team Zoomers back in 2004, weren’t
they, Simon?

Simon: They were indeed. Hector and Hilary are a team to watch, for
certain Tabby. They’re the best, noisiest galumphers in the
competition here, and they’d really love to up their standing to
finish with the gold medal this time. Where they’re weak is in
wildness and unpredictability. They’re very polished, but rather
predictable. They don’t make the risky, spontaneous moves.

Tabby: And they’re off! Hilary has pounced on the dozing Hector
lying on the sofa seat, and they’ve both jumped to the living room
floor. Hilary pauses to bat at a ball of yarn knocked to the floor by
Cora, but now he’s hurrying to catch up with Hector and they’re neck
in neck as they speed into the kitchen—

Simon: WOW! What a leap! Hector has jumped up to the top of the
refrigerator and from their to the top of the kitchen cabinets and is
racing along the kitchen at cabinet level! He sure has excellent hind
leg spring! Hilary by contrast has made a flying leap onto the
kitchen rag rug and got a good toboggan effect from the slide—he would
have gone farther if he’d had more speed and momentum built up—
Hector’s dismounting the cabinet and lands on the kitchen Island and
from there to the floor, almost landing on Hilary as they both head
into the dining room, shoulder to shoulder. I see they’re electing to
circle around the dining room table, rather than try to contend with
the chair legs. Less difficulty, in running around rather than under,
but it doesn’t do to copy one’s competitor’s routines too closely.
Variety is the key for Zoomers.

Tabby: And they’re racing down the hall! Rather than negotiate the
hairpin turn up the stairs at speed, Hector has jumped up to the newel
post and from there, to the stairs.

Simon: It saves time, yes, but it’s going to lower his stair climbing
score—they’re supposed to climb the whole flight, as Hilary is doing.
He had to get back under control as he slid into the coat closet door
trying to make that u-turn at the bottom of the stairs at speed. And
now they’re galumphing in tandem as only Hilary and Hector can!

Tabby: I see what you mean about the noise! Would you say they sound
like stampeding Wildebeests, Simon?
Simon: They sound as close to that ideal as ten pound pussycats can,
Tabby. They’ve really set the mark for noisiness and leaping, today. I
guess Hector and Hilary realize they have to adjust the difficulty and
high-risk element to get the best Zoomie scores—they’re really on
tonight. Oooh, that sounded like a painful crash up there, Tabby!
That’s the danger of speed, you do lose some control and agility.

Tabby: Ah, they’re up again—turns out they knocked over the upper hall
table—too bad about that Famille Rose jar that was resting on it—it’s
in smithereens. And they’re in the bathroom—Hilary’s in the bathtub,
even, while Hector’s poised on top of the shower doors.

Simon: You get more points if you hit more rooms, but a bathroom is a
dead end, Tabby. They need to get turned around and out of there.
Hector is doing some amazing leaping, today though. But we have to
remember, variety. As for the Famille Rose vase, the contestants have
to knock over something, and get extra points if it breaks.

Tabby: Ah, they’re out of the bathroom and are galumphing back toward
the staircase—just look at Hilary go! I don’t think his paws have
touched a third of the stair treads—ooh, once again he hits the coat
closet door at the bottom—

Simon: Ouch yes. But he’s playing it cool, Tabby—trying to convince us
he meant to do that. But he’s walking, not running now—pretending that
he wasn’t running at top speed three seconds ago. Ouch, Hector just
landed on top of Hillary—still in Zoomie mode, not having realized
that Hilary stopped. That’s going to cost them. Their combined score
is a 15.95

Tabby: As is their wrestling fight on the front hall floor. Hilary’s
batting at Hector—oh dear. Let’s cut over to Willie, at the Kitchen
Bottle Cap Hockey venue. Over to you, Willie:

Willie: Thanks, Tabby. We’re here at the quarter final round of the
Olympic Bottle Cap Hockey tournament. It’s the Siameses vs the
Persians in this round, fighting to see who will advance to the final
round. Taking aim at the goal is Mei Chi, a great Hockey player.
She’s lining up her shot, she bats it bast Ahaseurus the, Persian goal
keeper under the refrigerator and—SHE SCORES!! The score is 3-2 in the
Siamese team’s favor—
Ah. That’s a problem with bottle cap hockey—you have to get your
hoomin to get the bottle cap out from under the fridge. It seems that
Mei Chi’s shot was so powerful, the bottle cap is out of paw reach—Oh
wait, never mind. Ahaseurus has found a petrified pea over by the
stove and the game is back in play! He gives the pea a good swat with
his right front paw and it skitters over near the sink, almost out of
bounds, but Mei Chi intercepts and knocks it back toward Ahaseurus.
But Persian Forward Xerxes sends the pea skittering down the length of
the kitchen toward the diningroom doors---EEEK! GREEBLING ATTACK,
GREEBLING ATTACK! Run away! Run Awaaaaay!

Melissa


WhisperedAnd only a few city blocks away, you can HEAR the silence
as the cuddle-sleep competitors go into the second hour of the six-
hour short course. This is Hugo Sumwere and I'll be covering the short
course, the long individual on Caterday, the two-cat competition on
Sunnyday and, of course, the cat-hoomin cuddle sleep on Mudday. With
me is eight-time gold medalist Floyd, Sleepy, Shorthair. Who looks
most on form so far, Sleepy?
zzzz
Whispered It looks like Sleepy has gotten into the spirit of the
event. We will have reports for you later in the event.
zzzz

--
Will in New Haven


  #4  
Old August 15th 08, 11:39 PM posted to rec.pets.cats.anecdotes
Kyla =^..^=`
external usenet poster
 
Posts: 171
Default Olympic Nocturnal Zoomies--Team Competition

Hihi Willow, Pookie here. I'll be your partner for the zoomie races. I
like to zoom around and try and knock Meowmie down. I'm Mosey's neffew.
Right now it's too hot here in Seattle to zoom anywhere, so I'm just flopped
on the floor.
nosepoink
PookieCat
Whispering Willow Walker here, if anycat needs a partner for the zoomie
races, I am very good at them. I get put in the DOG cage sometimes
because I go so fast and so long and make so much noise, just let me know.
"Will in New Haven"
On Aug 15, 2:10 pm, Shiral
Tabby: Good evening I’m Tabby Barncat, welcoming you to the final
round of the Team Zoomie Dash here at our Darkened House Venue. With
me tonight is Simon Streamline, also known as “Streamline Sime” thanks
to his thus far undefeated Zoomie Gold Medals from the 2000 and 2004
games. Some wonder why the Zoomie events are traditionally held at
night. Simon, any insights?

Simon: Thanks, Tabby for inviting me. Zoomies are always held at
night to maximize our natural tendency to go crazy at that hour. It
does make seeing the action a little more difficult, of course, but
for us cats, seeing in the dark is no problem!

Tabby: (Laughing) True, very true, Simon! Now, for our viewers, can
you summarize the rules of competition for Zoomie Dashing? What are
the important things that contestants must do to accumulate the high
scores?

Simon: There are three very important elements of Zoomie competition,
Tabby. First is unpredictability—creativity is essential here. Then
there’s speed—you have to be a high-octane pussycat for the all
important galumphing, and thirdly, noise. The routine should involve
running, jumping—both up and down—and climbing. You must run either up
or down at least one staircase at top speed. Sudden reversals of
direction add greatly to a contestant’s score. Sliding for a distance
across the floor is highly encouraged. You get extra points if you
manage to use area rugs as toboggans. Knocking over piles of books is
a bonus point. Polished wooden floors are the best area for sliding,
but a good clean stretch of kitchen linoleum works also. They should
move from room to room with each other and it helps if they’re doing
the same basic things at the same time, but are not required to mirror
one another’s actions.
In competition Zoomie Dashing, there is of course the element of team
work. Both team members should start at the same moment, and end
within three seconds of each other. There is a five tenths point
deduction if one team member carries on for more than three seconds
after the other one has quit.

Tabby: Thanks Simon. I do want to touch on something you said a moment
ago about noise. Why is that important?

Simon: Tabby, we cats are always praised for our ability to move
silently, which is of course one of our most appealing attributes.
But in the galumphing part of Zoomies, we need to be heard. When you
the galumph in competition, you should try to sound like a herd of
wildebeests stampeding over the African Veldt.

Tabby: Wildebeasts? Really?

Simon: Well, that’s the ideal, Tabby. Obviously not everyone can reach
it. You have to pick your terrain to maximize the amount of noise you
make when you galumph. For some reason, we sound louder from below
when we galumph on an upper storey level. This Zoomie course will be
excellent for that, as there’s a long upper hallway with a hardwood
floor at this venue.

Tabby: Ahah, our first contestants have decided to begin their
competition on the Bed element. Our first team up consists of Cora
Calico, and her littermate Connie. And they’re off!

Simon: A very good start, going from apparent cat nap to balletic
leaps off the lower right corner of the bed, and almost reaching the
bedroom door—Ah, I see they’re going straight into the long galumph.
Good speed, and Connie Calico has excellent formation and speed, while
Cora Calico is a bit behind her, but I’d say they’re both a little too
quiet. This is where thudding is important, they’ll be marked down
for that—Ooo, good touch, now they’re thudding down the stairs!

Tabby: Oo, I see that Cora used the front door mat as a sled for a
minute, there on the hair pin turn at the bottom of the stair case—
leaving it nicely bunched up. Connie Calico went a little wide on her
turn and they collided for a moment, but they’ve straightened out
again and are racing around the dining room, making an obstacle course
of the chair and table legs.

Simon: They may not make as much noise, but I give them full marks for
speed and agility, Tabby. Cora is doing a chair giant slalom with
almost no reduction in her speed. Connie has jumped up onto a chair
seat and is wiggling her way through the open spaces in the chair back—
a nice unpredictable element, but I think it’s slowing her down, too
much.

Tabby: Yes, Oh dear, the space is a little too narrow and she’s
backing up. She’ll have to hurry to catch up to Cora. They’re
supposed to enter and leave each room together, isn’t that right?

Simon: Yes, Tabby. Oh dear, she ran into the kitchen a full second
after her littermate. But look, they both leaped up onto the kitchen
counter at the same moment and just avoided a collision! That’s a
VERY difficult move, and Cora had to leap over the fruit bowl almost
at once, and sent an apple and a plum rolling onto the floor.
Excellent surprise element!

Tabby: They’ve dismounted the counter and are now tearing into the
living room in tandem—they’re galumphing as one, Simon!

Simon: They’re really flying now and oo! I think they’re headed for
their tower in the corner of the room! Yes! Connie is under the coffee
table now and Cora is just above—SCORE! Over goes the knitting
basket! Good, now they’re racing one another up to the very top of
their tower, Connie up the ladder and Cora climbing the central pole,
Connie getting there just a little ahead. Excellent wild looks on both
their faces—they’re really rolling and out of control!

Tabby: Look at them go! Connie is leaping from the top of the tower to
the floor—excellent form on her back arch and she must have landed a
good five feet away from the base of the tower—Ouch, that had to hurt,
Cora had an uncomfortable encounter with the Venetian blinds on the
living room window on her way down. But now they’re out into the
front hallway again and are heading BACK up the stairs at a gallop—
maybe looking just a little tired, now.

Simon: A little, yes. They need more unpredictability to really score
high in this event, Tabby, but they have time to polish this. It’s an
excellent, exciting starting routine, and as I mentioned earier, they
get huge marks for speed and agility. Listen to them go! They’re
making a lot more noise on their second galumph run Maybe they just
weren’t warmed up enough, before.

Tabby: And Cora and Connie Calico finish their routine simultaneously
leaping up and curling up around the sleeping Hoomin in the bed,
coming back full circle to their starting position.
Simon: Their combined finishing score is a 15.75, Tabby. I’d say
that’s a bit too generous. They’re both still barely more than kittens
and they have a lot to learn about polish, for all their enthusiasm.
But our next team is down in the livingroom, having decided to start
their Zoomie route from the sofa.

Tabby: Our next Zoomer team are Hector and Hilary, a pair of Havana
Browns. They were the silver medal team Zoomers back in 2004, weren’t
they, Simon?

Simon: They were indeed. Hector and Hilary are a team to watch, for
certain Tabby. They’re the best, noisiest galumphers in the
competition here, and they’d really love to up their standing to
finish with the gold medal this time. Where they’re weak is in
wildness and unpredictability. They’re very polished, but rather
predictable. They don’t make the risky, spontaneous moves.

Tabby: And they’re off! Hilary has pounced on the dozing Hector
lying on the sofa seat, and they’ve both jumped to the living room
floor. Hilary pauses to bat at a ball of yarn knocked to the floor by
Cora, but now he’s hurrying to catch up with Hector and they’re neck
in neck as they speed into the kitchen—

Simon: WOW! What a leap! Hector has jumped up to the top of the
refrigerator and from their to the top of the kitchen cabinets and is
racing along the kitchen at cabinet level! He sure has excellent hind
leg spring! Hilary by contrast has made a flying leap onto the
kitchen rag rug and got a good toboggan effect from the slide—he would
have gone farther if he’d had more speed and momentum built up—
Hector’s dismounting the cabinet and lands on the kitchen Island and
from there to the floor, almost landing on Hilary as they both head
into the dining room, shoulder to shoulder. I see they’re electing to
circle around the dining room table, rather than try to contend with
the chair legs. Less difficulty, in running around rather than under,
but it doesn’t do to copy one’s competitor’s routines too closely.
Variety is the key for Zoomers.

Tabby: And they’re racing down the hall! Rather than negotiate the
hairpin turn up the stairs at speed, Hector has jumped up to the newel
post and from there, to the stairs.

Simon: It saves time, yes, but it’s going to lower his stair climbing
score—they’re supposed to climb the whole flight, as Hilary is doing.
He had to get back under control as he slid into the coat closet door
trying to make that u-turn at the bottom of the stairs at speed. And
now they’re galumphing in tandem as only Hilary and Hector can!

Tabby: I see what you mean about the noise! Would you say they sound
like stampeding Wildebeests, Simon?
Simon: They sound as close to that ideal as ten pound pussycats can,
Tabby. They’ve really set the mark for noisiness and leaping, today. I
guess Hector and Hilary realize they have to adjust the difficulty and
high-risk element to get the best Zoomie scores—they’re really on
tonight. Oooh, that sounded like a painful crash up there, Tabby!
That’s the danger of speed, you do lose some control and agility.

Tabby: Ah, they’re up again—turns out they knocked over the upper hall
table—too bad about that Famille Rose jar that was resting on it—it’s
in smithereens. And they’re in the bathroom—Hilary’s in the bathtub,
even, while Hector’s poised on top of the shower doors.

Simon: You get more points if you hit more rooms, but a bathroom is a
dead end, Tabby. They need to get turned around and out of there.
Hector is doing some amazing leaping, today though. But we have to
remember, variety. As for the Famille Rose vase, the contestants have
to knock over something, and get extra points if it breaks.

Tabby: Ah, they’re out of the bathroom and are galumphing back toward
the staircase—just look at Hilary go! I don’t think his paws have
touched a third of the stair treads—ooh, once again he hits the coat
closet door at the bottom—

Simon: Ouch yes. But he’s playing it cool, Tabby—trying to convince us
he meant to do that. But he’s walking, not running now—pretending that
he wasn’t running at top speed three seconds ago. Ouch, Hector just
landed on top of Hillary—still in Zoomie mode, not having realized
that Hilary stopped. That’s going to cost them. Their combined score
is a 15.95

Tabby: As is their wrestling fight on the front hall floor. Hilary’s
batting at Hector—oh dear. Let’s cut over to Willie, at the Kitchen
Bottle Cap Hockey venue. Over to you, Willie:

Willie: Thanks, Tabby. We’re here at the quarter final round of the
Olympic Bottle Cap Hockey tournament. It’s the Siameses vs the
Persians in this round, fighting to see who will advance to the final
round. Taking aim at the goal is Mei Chi, a great Hockey player.
She’s lining up her shot, she bats it bast Ahaseurus the, Persian goal
keeper under the refrigerator and—SHE SCORES!! The score is 3-2 in the
Siamese team’s favor—
Ah. That’s a problem with bottle cap hockey—you have to get your
hoomin to get the bottle cap out from under the fridge. It seems that
Mei Chi’s shot was so powerful, the bottle cap is out of paw reach—Oh
wait, never mind. Ahaseurus has found a petrified pea over by the
stove and the game is back in play! He gives the pea a good swat with
his right front paw and it skitters over near the sink, almost out of
bounds, but Mei Chi intercepts and knocks it back toward Ahaseurus.
But Persian Forward Xerxes sends the pea skittering down the length of
the kitchen toward the diningroom doors---EEEK! GREEBLING ATTACK,
GREEBLING ATTACK! Run away! Run Awaaaaay!

Melissa


WhisperedAnd only a few city blocks away, you can HEAR the silence
as the cuddle-sleep competitors go into the second hour of the six-
hour short course. This is Hugo Sumwere and I'll be covering the short
course, the long individual on Caterday, the two-cat competition on
Sunnyday and, of course, the cat-hoomin cuddle sleep on Mudday. With
me is eight-time gold medalist Floyd, Sleepy, Shorthair. Who looks
most on form so far, Sleepy?
zzzz
Whispered It looks like Sleepy has gotten into the spirit of the
event. We will have reports for you later in the event.
zzzz

--
Will in New Haven



  #5  
Old August 16th 08, 12:06 AM posted to rec.pets.cats.anecdotes
tanadashoes
external usenet poster
 
Posts: 2,879
Default Olympic Nocturnal Zoomies--Team Competition

YAY!! The Feline Olympics are ON!!!

Pam S. who wishes she were this good at reporting.

"Shiral" wrote in message
...
Tabby: Good evening I’m Tabby Barncat, welcoming you to the final
round of the Team Zoomie Dash here at our Darkened House Venue. With
me tonight is Simon Streamline, also known as “Streamline Sime” thanks
to his thus far undefeated Zoomie Gold Medals from the 2000 and 2004
games. Some wonder why the Zoomie events are traditionally held at
night. Simon, any insights?

Simon: Thanks, Tabby for inviting me. Zoomies are always held at
night to maximize our natural tendency to go crazy at that hour. It
does make seeing the action a little more difficult, of course, but
for us cats, seeing in the dark is no problem!

Tabby: (Laughing) True, very true, Simon! Now, for our viewers, can
you summarize the rules of competition for Zoomie Dashing? What are
the important things that contestants must do to accumulate the high
scores?

Simon: There are three very important elements of Zoomie competition,
Tabby. First is unpredictability—creativity is essential here. Then
there’s speed—you have to be a high-octane pussycat for the all
important galumphing, and thirdly, noise. The routine should involve
running, jumping—both up and down—and climbing. You must run either up
or down at least one staircase at top speed. Sudden reversals of
direction add greatly to a contestant’s score. Sliding for a distance
across the floor is highly encouraged. You get extra points if you
manage to use area rugs as toboggans. Knocking over piles of books is
a bonus point. Polished wooden floors are the best area for sliding,
but a good clean stretch of kitchen linoleum works also. They should
move from room to room with each other and it helps if they’re doing
the same basic things at the same time, but are not required to mirror
one another’s actions.
In competition Zoomie Dashing, there is of course the element of team
work. Both team members should start at the same moment, and end
within three seconds of each other. There is a five tenths point
deduction if one team member carries on for more than three seconds
after the other one has quit.

Tabby: Thanks Simon. I do want to touch on something you said a moment
ago about noise. Why is that important?

Simon: Tabby, we cats are always praised for our ability to move
silently, which is of course one of our most appealing attributes.
But in the galumphing part of Zoomies, we need to be heard. When you
the galumph in competition, you should try to sound like a herd of
wildebeests stampeding over the African Veldt.

Tabby: Wildebeasts? Really?

Simon: Well, that’s the ideal, Tabby. Obviously not everyone can reach
it. You have to pick your terrain to maximize the amount of noise you
make when you galumph. For some reason, we sound louder from below
when we galumph on an upper storey level. This Zoomie course will be
excellent for that, as there’s a long upper hallway with a hardwood
floor at this venue.

Tabby: Ahah, our first contestants have decided to begin their
competition on the Bed element. Our first team up consists of Cora
Calico, and her littermate Connie. And they’re off!

Simon: A very good start, going from apparent cat nap to balletic
leaps off the lower right corner of the bed, and almost reaching the
bedroom door—Ah, I see they’re going straight into the long galumph.
Good speed, and Connie Calico has excellent formation and speed, while
Cora Calico is a bit behind her, but I’d say they’re both a little too
quiet. This is where thudding is important, they’ll be marked down
for that—Ooo, good touch, now they’re thudding down the stairs!

Tabby: Oo, I see that Cora used the front door mat as a sled for a
minute, there on the hair pin turn at the bottom of the stair case—
leaving it nicely bunched up. Connie Calico went a little wide on her
turn and they collided for a moment, but they’ve straightened out
again and are racing around the dining room, making an obstacle course
of the chair and table legs.

Simon: They may not make as much noise, but I give them full marks for
speed and agility, Tabby. Cora is doing a chair giant slalom with
almost no reduction in her speed. Connie has jumped up onto a chair
seat and is wiggling her way through the open spaces in the chair back—
a nice unpredictable element, but I think it’s slowing her down, too
much.

Tabby: Yes, Oh dear, the space is a little too narrow and she’s
backing up. She’ll have to hurry to catch up to Cora. They’re
supposed to enter and leave each room together, isn’t that right?

Simon: Yes, Tabby. Oh dear, she ran into the kitchen a full second
after her littermate. But look, they both leaped up onto the kitchen
counter at the same moment and just avoided a collision! That’s a
VERY difficult move, and Cora had to leap over the fruit bowl almost
at once, and sent an apple and a plum rolling onto the floor.
Excellent surprise element!

Tabby: They’ve dismounted the counter and are now tearing into the
living room in tandem—they’re galumphing as one, Simon!

Simon: They’re really flying now and oo! I think they’re headed for
their tower in the corner of the room! Yes! Connie is under the coffee
table now and Cora is just above—SCORE! Over goes the knitting
basket! Good, now they’re racing one another up to the very top of
their tower, Connie up the ladder and Cora climbing the central pole,
Connie getting there just a little ahead. Excellent wild looks on both
their faces—they’re really rolling and out of control!

Tabby: Look at them go! Connie is leaping from the top of the tower to
the floor—excellent form on her back arch and she must have landed a
good five feet away from the base of the tower—Ouch, that had to hurt,
Cora had an uncomfortable encounter with the Venetian blinds on the
living room window on her way down. But now they’re out into the
front hallway again and are heading BACK up the stairs at a gallop—
maybe looking just a little tired, now.

Simon: A little, yes. They need more unpredictability to really score
high in this event, Tabby, but they have time to polish this. It’s an
excellent, exciting starting routine, and as I mentioned earier, they
get huge marks for speed and agility. Listen to them go! They’re
making a lot more noise on their second galumph run Maybe they just
weren’t warmed up enough, before.

Tabby: And Cora and Connie Calico finish their routine simultaneously
leaping up and curling up around the sleeping Hoomin in the bed,
coming back full circle to their starting position.
Simon: Their combined finishing score is a 15.75, Tabby. I’d say
that’s a bit too generous. They’re both still barely more than kittens
and they have a lot to learn about polish, for all their enthusiasm.
But our next team is down in the livingroom, having decided to start
their Zoomie route from the sofa.

Tabby: Our next Zoomer team are Hector and Hilary, a pair of Havana
Browns. They were the silver medal team Zoomers back in 2004, weren’t
they, Simon?

Simon: They were indeed. Hector and Hilary are a team to watch, for
certain Tabby. They’re the best, noisiest galumphers in the
competition here, and they’d really love to up their standing to
finish with the gold medal this time. Where they’re weak is in
wildness and unpredictability. They’re very polished, but rather
predictable. They don’t make the risky, spontaneous moves.

Tabby: And they’re off! Hilary has pounced on the dozing Hector
lying on the sofa seat, and they’ve both jumped to the living room
floor. Hilary pauses to bat at a ball of yarn knocked to the floor by
Cora, but now he’s hurrying to catch up with Hector and they’re neck
in neck as they speed into the kitchen—

Simon: WOW! What a leap! Hector has jumped up to the top of the
refrigerator and from their to the top of the kitchen cabinets and is
racing along the kitchen at cabinet level! He sure has excellent hind
leg spring! Hilary by contrast has made a flying leap onto the
kitchen rag rug and got a good toboggan effect from the slide—he would
have gone farther if he’d had more speed and momentum built up—
Hector’s dismounting the cabinet and lands on the kitchen Island and
from there to the floor, almost landing on Hilary as they both head
into the dining room, shoulder to shoulder. I see they’re electing to
circle around the dining room table, rather than try to contend with
the chair legs. Less difficulty, in running around rather than under,
but it doesn’t do to copy one’s competitor’s routines too closely.
Variety is the key for Zoomers.

Tabby: And they’re racing down the hall! Rather than negotiate the
hairpin turn up the stairs at speed, Hector has jumped up to the newel
post and from there, to the stairs.

Simon: It saves time, yes, but it’s going to lower his stair climbing
score—they’re supposed to climb the whole flight, as Hilary is doing.
He had to get back under control as he slid into the coat closet door
trying to make that u-turn at the bottom of the stairs at speed. And
now they’re galumphing in tandem as only Hilary and Hector can!

Tabby: I see what you mean about the noise! Would you say they sound
like stampeding Wildebeests, Simon?
Simon: They sound as close to that ideal as ten pound pussycats can,
Tabby. They’ve really set the mark for noisiness and leaping, today. I
guess Hector and Hilary realize they have to adjust the difficulty and
high-risk element to get the best Zoomie scores—they’re really on
tonight. Oooh, that sounded like a painful crash up there, Tabby!
That’s the danger of speed, you do lose some control and agility.

Tabby: Ah, they’re up again—turns out they knocked over the upper hall
table—too bad about that Famille Rose jar that was resting on it—it’s
in smithereens. And they’re in the bathroom—Hilary’s in the bathtub,
even, while Hector’s poised on top of the shower doors.

Simon: You get more points if you hit more rooms, but a bathroom is a
dead end, Tabby. They need to get turned around and out of there.
Hector is doing some amazing leaping, today though. But we have to
remember, variety. As for the Famille Rose vase, the contestants have
to knock over something, and get extra points if it breaks.

Tabby: Ah, they’re out of the bathroom and are galumphing back toward
the staircase—just look at Hilary go! I don’t think his paws have
touched a third of the stair treads—ooh, once again he hits the coat
closet door at the bottom—

Simon: Ouch yes. But he’s playing it cool, Tabby—trying to convince us
he meant to do that. But he’s walking, not running now—pretending that
he wasn’t running at top speed three seconds ago. Ouch, Hector just
landed on top of Hillary—still in Zoomie mode, not having realized
that Hilary stopped. That’s going to cost them. Their combined score
is a 15.95

Tabby: As is their wrestling fight on the front hall floor. Hilary’s
batting at Hector—oh dear. Let’s cut over to Willie, at the Kitchen
Bottle Cap Hockey venue. Over to you, Willie:

Willie: Thanks, Tabby. We’re here at the quarter final round of the
Olympic Bottle Cap Hockey tournament. It’s the Siameses vs the
Persians in this round, fighting to see who will advance to the final
round. Taking aim at the goal is Mei Chi, a great Hockey player.
She’s lining up her shot, she bats it bast Ahaseurus the, Persian goal
keeper under the refrigerator and—SHE SCORES!! The score is 3-2 in the
Siamese team’s favor—
Ah. That’s a problem with bottle cap hockey—you have to get your
hoomin to get the bottle cap out from under the fridge. It seems that
Mei Chi’s shot was so powerful, the bottle cap is out of paw reach—Oh
wait, never mind. Ahaseurus has found a petrified pea over by the
stove and the game is back in play! He gives the pea a good swat with
his right front paw and it skitters over near the sink, almost out of
bounds, but Mei Chi intercepts and knocks it back toward Ahaseurus.
But Persian Forward Xerxes sends the pea skittering down the length of
the kitchen toward the diningroom doors---EEEK! GREEBLING ATTACK,
GREEBLING ATTACK! Run away! Run Awaaaaay!

Melissa


  #6  
Old August 16th 08, 12:08 AM posted to rec.pets.cats.anecdotes
tanadashoes
external usenet poster
 
Posts: 2,879
Default Olympic Nocturnal Zoomies--Team Competition


"Will in New Haven" wrote in message
...

WhisperedAnd only a few city blocks away, you can HEAR the silence
as the cuddle-sleep competitors go into the second hour of the six-
hour short course. This is Hugo Sumwere and I'll be covering the short
course, the long individual on Caterday, the two-cat competition on
Sunnyday and, of course, the cat-hoomin cuddle sleep on Mudday. With
me is eight-time gold medalist Floyd, Sleepy, Shorthair. Who looks
most on form so far, Sleepy?
zzzz
Whispered It looks like Sleepy has gotten into the spirit of the
event. We will have reports for you later in the event.
zzzz

--

WTG Will and Hugo. I look forward to reading more results from the various
venues in The Feline Olympics.

Pam S. awed by how good the reporters and commentators are for all the
events thus far


  #7  
Old August 17th 08, 10:21 PM posted to rec.pets.cats.anecdotes
Shiral
external usenet poster
 
Posts: 731
Default Olympic Nocturnal Zoomies--Team Competition

On Aug 15, 4:06*pm, "tanadashoes" wrote:
YAY!! *The Feline Olympics are ON!!!

Pam S. who wishes she were this good at reporting.

"Shiral" wrote in message

...
Tabby: *Good evening I’m *Tabby Barncat, welcoming you to the final
round of the Team Zoomie Dash here at our Darkened *House Venue. *With
me tonight is Simon Streamline, also known as “Streamline Sime” thanks
to his thus far undefeated *Zoomie Gold Medals from the *2000 and 2004
games. *Some wonder why the Zoomie events are traditionally held at
night. Simon, any insights?

Simon: Thanks, Tabby for inviting me. *Zoomies are always held at
night to maximize our natural tendency to go crazy at that hour. It
does make seeing the action a little more difficult, of course, but
for us cats, seeing in the dark is no problem!

Tabby: (Laughing) True, very true, Simon! Now, for our viewers, can
you summarize the rules of competition for Zoomie Dashing? *What are
the important things that contestants must do to accumulate the high
scores?

Simon: There are three very important elements of Zoomie competition,
Tabby. First is unpredictability—creativity is essential here. *Then
there’s speed—you have to be a high-octane pussycat for the all
important galumphing, and thirdly, noise. *The routine should involve
running, jumping—both up and down—and climbing. You must run either up
or down at least one staircase at top speed. *Sudden reversals of
direction add greatly to a contestant’s score. Sliding for a distance
across the floor is highly encouraged. You get extra points if you
manage to use area rugs as toboggans. *Knocking over piles of books is
a bonus point. *Polished wooden floors are the best area for sliding,
but a good clean stretch of kitchen linoleum works also. They should
move from room to room with each other and it helps if they’re doing
the same basic things at the same time, but are not required to mirror
one another’s actions.
In competition Zoomie Dashing, there is of course the element of team
work. Both team members should start at the same moment, and end
within three seconds of each other. There is a five tenths point
deduction if one team member carries on for more than three seconds
after *the other one *has quit.

Tabby: Thanks Simon. I do want to touch on something you said a moment
ago about noise. Why is that important?

Simon: *Tabby, we cats are always praised for our ability to move
silently, which is of course one of our most appealing attributes.
But in the galumphing part of Zoomies, we need *to be heard. When you
the galumph in competition, you should try to sound like a herd of
wildebeests stampeding over the African Veldt.

Tabby: Wildebeasts? Really?

Simon: Well, that’s the ideal, Tabby. Obviously not everyone can reach
it. You have to pick your terrain to maximize the amount of noise you
make when you galumph. For some reason, we sound louder from below
when we galumph on an upper storey level. *This Zoomie course will be
excellent for that, as there’s a long upper hallway with a *hardwood
floor at this venue.

Tabby: Ahah, our first contestants have decided to begin their
competition on the Bed element. Our first team up consists of Cora
Calico, and her littermate Connie. And they’re off!

Simon: A very good start, going from apparent cat nap to balletic
leaps off the lower right corner of the bed, and almost reaching the
bedroom door—Ah, I see they’re going straight into the long galumph.
Good speed, and Connie Calico has excellent formation and speed, while
Cora Calico is a bit behind her, but I’d say they’re both a little too
quiet. This is where *thudding is important, they’ll be *marked down
for that—Ooo, good touch, now they’re thudding down the stairs!

Tabby: Oo, I see that Cora used the front door mat as a sled for a
minute, there on the hair pin turn at the bottom of the stair case—
leaving it nicely bunched up. Connie Calico went a little wide on her
turn and they collided for a moment, but they’ve straightened out
again and are racing around the dining room, making an obstacle course
of the chair and table legs.

Simon: They may not make as much noise, but I give them full marks for
speed and agility, Tabby. *Cora is doing a chair giant slalom with
almost no reduction in her speed. Connie has jumped up onto a chair
seat and is wiggling her way through the open spaces in the chair back—
a nice unpredictable element, but I think it’s slowing her down, too
much.

Tabby: Yes, Oh dear, the space is a little too narrow and she’s
backing up. *She’ll have to hurry to catch up to Cora. They’re
supposed to enter *and leave each room together, isn’t that right?

Simon: * Yes, Tabby. Oh dear, she ran into the kitchen a full second
after her littermate. *But look, they both leaped up onto the kitchen
counter *at the same moment and just avoided a collision! That’s a
VERY difficult move, and Cora had to leap over the fruit bowl almost
at once, and sent an apple and a plum rolling onto the floor.
Excellent surprise element!

Tabby: They’ve dismounted the counter and are now tearing into the
living room in tandem—they’re galumphing as one, Simon!

Simon: They’re really flying now and oo! I think they’re headed for
their tower in the corner of the room! Yes! Connie is under the coffee
table now and Cora is just above—SCORE! Over goes the knitting
basket! *Good, now they’re racing one another up to the very top of
their tower, Connie up the ladder and Cora climbing the central pole,
Connie getting there just a little ahead. Excellent wild looks on both
their faces—they’re really rolling and out of control!

Tabby: Look at them go! Connie is leaping from the top of the tower to
the floor—excellent form on her back arch and she must have landed a
good five feet away from the base of the tower—Ouch, that had to hurt,
Cora had an uncomfortable encounter with the Venetian blinds on the
living room window *on her way down. But now they’re out into the
front hallway again and are heading BACK up the stairs at a gallop—
maybe looking just a little tired, now.

Simon: A little, yes. They need more unpredictability to really score
high in this event, Tabby, but they have time to polish this. It’s an
excellent, exciting starting routine, and as I mentioned earier, they
get huge marks for speed and agility. Listen to them go! They’re
making a lot more noise on their second galumph run Maybe they just
weren’t warmed up enough, before.

Tabby: And Cora and Connie Calico finish their routine simultaneously
leaping up and curling up around the sleeping Hoomin in the bed,
coming back full circle to their starting position.
Simon: Their combined finishing score is a 15.75, Tabby. I’d say
that’s a bit too generous. They’re both still barely more than kittens
and they have a lot to learn about polish, for all their enthusiasm.
But our next team is down in the livingroom, having decided to start
their Zoomie route from the sofa.

Tabby: Our next Zoomer team are Hector and Hilary, a pair of Havana
Browns. *They were the silver medal team Zoomers back in 2004, weren’t
they, Simon?

Simon: They were indeed. *Hector and Hilary are a team to watch, for
certain Tabby. They’re the best, noisiest galumphers in the
competition here, and they’d really love to up their standing to
finish with *the gold medal this time. *Where they’re weak is in
wildness and unpredictability. They’re very polished, but rather
predictable. *They don’t make the risky, spontaneous moves.

Tabby: * And they’re off! Hilary has pounced on the dozing Hector
lying on the sofa seat, and they’ve both jumped to the living room
floor. Hilary pauses to bat at a ball of yarn knocked to the floor by
Cora, but now he’s hurrying to catch up with Hector and they’re neck
in neck as they speed into the kitchen—

Simon: WOW! What a leap! Hector has jumped up to the top of the
refrigerator and from their to the *top of the kitchen cabinets and is
racing along the kitchen at cabinet level! He sure has excellent hind
leg spring! *Hilary by contrast has made a flying leap onto the
kitchen rag rug and got a good toboggan effect from the slide—he would
have gone farther if he’d had more speed and momentum built up—
Hector’s dismounting the cabinet and lands on the kitchen Island and
from there to the floor, almost landing on Hilary as they both head
into the dining room, shoulder to shoulder. I see they’re electing to
circle around the dining room table, rather than try to *contend with
the chair legs. Less difficulty, in running around rather than under,
but it doesn’t do to copy one’s competitor’s routines too closely.
Variety is the key for Zoomers.

Tabby: And they’re racing down the hall! Rather than negotiate the
hairpin turn up the stairs at speed, Hector has jumped up to the newel
post and from there, to the stairs.

Simon: It saves time, yes, but it’s going to lower his stair climbing
score—they’re supposed to climb the whole flight, as Hilary is doing.
He had to get back under control as he slid into the coat closet door
trying to make that * u-turn at the bottom of the stairs at speed. And
now they’re galumphing in tandem as only Hilary and Hector can!

Tabby: I see what you mean about the noise! *Would you say they sound
like stampeding Wildebeests, Simon?
Simon: They sound as close to that ideal as ten pound pussycats can,
Tabby. They’ve really set the mark for noisiness and leaping, today. I
guess Hector and Hilary realize they have to adjust the difficulty and
high-risk element to get the best Zoomie scores—they’re really on
tonight. Oooh, that sounded like a *painful crash up there, Tabby!
That’s the danger of speed, you do lose some control and agility.

Tabby: Ah, they’re up again—turns out they knocked over the upper hall
table—too bad about that Famille Rose jar that was ...

read more »


Bump thread
 




Thread Tools
Display Modes

Posting Rules
You may not post new threads
You may not post replies
You may not post attachments
You may not edit your posts

vB code is On
Smilies are On
[IMG] code is On
HTML code is Off
Forum Jump

Similar Threads
Thread Thread Starter Forum Replies Last Post
Nocturnal Parade Kreisleriana[_3_] Cat anecdotes 2 January 20th 08 12:34 AM
Sammy's competition... Time with Daddy GraceCat Cat anecdotes 3 December 29th 04 09:01 PM
The result of the funky feline competition 2004 Heather-SCOTGIRL Cat health & behaviour 4 February 22nd 04 08:53 PM
FUNKIEST FELINE COMPETITION Heather-SCOTGIRL Cat health & behaviour 12 February 14th 04 11:53 AM
Nocturnal howler. Sue Cat health & behaviour 14 October 10th 03 06:38 PM


All times are GMT +1. The time now is 08:05 PM.


Powered by vBulletin® Version 3.6.4
Copyright ©2000 - 2024, Jelsoft Enterprises Ltd.
Copyright ©2004-2024 CatBanter.
The comments are property of their posters.