Let me kick off the introductions forum by introducing myself.
I'm Simon - originally from South Australia, but moved to Sydney in the late 90's for work (just in time for the Sydney Olympics!). I work in IT - but currently run my own consulting business (web application and software development) and operate several websites which my business generates income from.
I have been building and managing online communities for nearly 20 years now:
I must confess that I am not a runner or athlete myself - I'm more of a cyclist and I enjoyed rowing while in high school.
I became interested in athletics through my son - when he was 5 years old and in his first year of school, we signed him up for the local soccer club, which he loved. It soon became apparent that he was a very fast runner on the field - to the point where even parents from other teams would come up to us after the match and comment "wow, he is fast!".
So when it came time to choose a summer sport, we decided to try Little Athletics and joined the Northern Suburbs Little Athletics Club in the U6 age group. My son took an instant liking to running and competing and he still competes for the club, now in the U14 age group this year. He also competes in Athletics NSW events for UTS Norths and has enjoyed success at a state and national level - winning gold at the 2021 Australian Athletics Championships in Sydney as part of the U14 4x100m team representing NSW. He also took the bronze medal in the 90m hurdles.
I am heavily involved with NSLAC where I was an age manager for 4 years before joining the committee - I am now Results Officer and I also built the new website for the club and manage the online store for uniform sales.
I'm a bit of a stats geek and enjoy watching local and international athletics events online with my son.
I decided to start this site as a way of building a community for athletes and their families to share information and our love for running and athletics.
I'm Simon - originally from South Australia, but moved to Sydney in the late 90's for work (just in time for the Sydney Olympics!). I work in IT - but currently run my own consulting business (web application and software development) and operate several websites which my business generates income from.
I have been building and managing online communities for nearly 20 years now:
- Somersoft - property investment forums - founded in 1999, I took over administration in 2002 and ran the site on behalf of the owners until it was archived in 2015
- ZooChat - zoo and animcal conservation community - I founded in 2003
- InvestChat - investment discussion forums - now merged with PropertyChat - originally started as InvestEd in 2005, then renamed InvestChat in 2016 before merging with PropertyChat in 2020
- PropertyChat - property investment forums - I founded in 2015 and now the main focus for my business
I must confess that I am not a runner or athlete myself - I'm more of a cyclist and I enjoyed rowing while in high school.
I became interested in athletics through my son - when he was 5 years old and in his first year of school, we signed him up for the local soccer club, which he loved. It soon became apparent that he was a very fast runner on the field - to the point where even parents from other teams would come up to us after the match and comment "wow, he is fast!".
So when it came time to choose a summer sport, we decided to try Little Athletics and joined the Northern Suburbs Little Athletics Club in the U6 age group. My son took an instant liking to running and competing and he still competes for the club, now in the U14 age group this year. He also competes in Athletics NSW events for UTS Norths and has enjoyed success at a state and national level - winning gold at the 2021 Australian Athletics Championships in Sydney as part of the U14 4x100m team representing NSW. He also took the bronze medal in the 90m hurdles.
I am heavily involved with NSLAC where I was an age manager for 4 years before joining the committee - I am now Results Officer and I also built the new website for the club and manage the online store for uniform sales.
I'm a bit of a stats geek and enjoy watching local and international athletics events online with my son.
I decided to start this site as a way of building a community for athletes and their families to share information and our love for running and athletics.
