PSC golf from the Cafe Kronborg

Monday May 30
Eastern Star
Stableford

The Eastern Star Country Club And Resort was host for a stableford competition in two flights, A Flight 0 to 16, and B Flight 17 and above. The course on the day was in good condition but was on the dry side.

Brian Noguer

Brian Noguer took the A Flight with a fine 37 points, on a countback from Gene Rooney, also 37 points. Bill Plath was in third with 34 points.

Aussie Barry Kerr took the B Flight with 37 points, on countback from Steady Arthur Bailey, with Anita Lundberg the Grandma from Sweden in third place with 36 points.

Both ‘Near the pins’ were taken by Big Mike Gaussa.

Thursday June 2
Bangpra
Stableford

I can remember ‘the good old days’ when a trip to Bangpra started the juices flowing, and also the fear of getting on the wrong side of the pin. Bye Bye was one of the favourite comments of the caddies, and the fairways used to be grassed and ideal. Bunkers were well raked with good sand in them, and a trip to the restaurant meant the best rainbow ice cream in the area. Well, the rainbow ice cream is still there.

Brian Kerr

On the day with bare hard fairways, semi-unraked bunkers and greens sanded, serviced and uncut, the ball jumped where it felt like. I know green repairs have to be undertaken, but I never remember Bangpra so poor. Probably a selective memory.

So, good scores were not expected, and anything near net par, was expected to be hard to beat. In fact both Flights - A Flight 0 to 15, and B Flight 16 up - had one good score but the B Flight were the pick of the day.

Park Duc Eun

In the A Flight, we had one good score when Norman Andre came in with a good 37 points. Then we got down to the good, but unlucky on the day, players. In second with 33 points was a very surprised Derek Brook ahead of a countback for third on net 32 points, won by Gene Rooney with Bill Myles just missing out. Bill in fact missed a putt of not more than 3 inches, I saw it, which would have put him in second. It has happened to all of us.

In the B Flight we had a winner who has just returned to the area. Park Duc Eun won with an eye popping 44 points. This young man started playing with us last year and is improving in leaps and bounds, he is soon to play in the A Flight. Second was Toy Theobald with 37 points, a score I thought would win. In third was ‘The Admiral’ alias Dave Richardson, who had 35 points.

Norman Andre

Now back to the Clubhouse, where a dip in the hot tub and a rainbow ice cream made some of us feel better. T.T.F.N.

PSC golf from Tropical Bert’s Beach Bar

Tuesday May 31
Khao Kheow
Stableford

We thought long and hard before deciding to carry on with our day out at K.K., as the last time we played, the Monthly Tournament, the course had been so wet that balls off the fairway were difficult to find if plugged, and any incline collapsed under your feet.

Nooket Gummer (left) in the winner’s enclosure back at Bert’s.

Still these taken into consideration, it was decided that this was such a super course we would chance it. With a fine breakfast safely tucked away, an early start was taken to allow the diversion on Route 7 to be allowed for. Thus we arrived early, relaxed and eager to go.

One of the things it is so difficult to understand is why is Bangpra so dry, when K.K. is so wet. Maybe its those picturesque mountains behind the clubhouse.

On the first tee, the weather was a little threatening, and during the round we had a little wind and the odd spot of rain, but all in all the round was fine, and A & B nines were as tough as ever. The Course - well pretty wet, but give it a little time and it will be back to it’s best.

Even so most of the players played well, and all enjoyed the test, so we will be back. Of course the Khao Kheow Beef was fine, and set us up for the trip back and some of Bert’s fine free chicken and chips.

Back at Bert’s and we had a winner, who whilst coming down in handicap, is regularly in the winner’s enclosure, when Nooket Gummer won again. One other winner of note was in the near pins when Jeff Wylie won all four of the ‘Better Players’ category, well done. T.T.F.N.

Winner: Nooket Gummer

Near Pins: Jeff Wylie (4), Andy Evans, Allan Gummer, Roy Plimlett and Bob Noble.

Long Putts: Derek Brook, Keith Avery, Bill Knight, Thong Padivian and Andy Burr.

The Beautiful Game?: What next for football’s home?

Riz Taylor

Pele once called it ‘The Church of Football’, and Bobby Moore famously hoisted the World Cup here. Ferenc Puskas and his ‘Magical Magyars’ once walloped England 6-3, Fanny Blankers-Koen won four gold medals for Holland and Bob Geldof’s “Live Aid” concert raised desperately needed cash from a public shocked by scenes of starvation in Africa. And it all happened in one venue.

I am, of course, talking about Wembley Stadium.

Wembley. The very name conjures up images of great sporting moments that will vary depending on your generation and your football team. Almost every Englishman (and citizens of many other nations too) will have at least one or two Wembley moments etched into their memory banks.

Despite being the self-proclaimed ‘Home of Football’, Wembley Stadium has hosted a multitude of events in its time, including boxing, the Olympics, American football, greyhound racing and even skiing. The late Pope John Paul II even graced Wembley’s presence by holding a mass in the stadium in 1982.

But let’s face it, the place was a dump. Sat in one of the ugliest and most awkwardly reached locations England has to offer, by its closure for redevelopment the crumbling Wembley had become a dinosaur. Restrictive viewing was, quite literally, a pain in the neck, and the allocated legroom seemed designed to accommodate 80,000 vertically-challenged dwarves.

So let’s not get misty-eyed about the place. The image of David Seaman diving in what seemed slow-motion to then fumble (and let in) Dietmar Hamann’s free-kick for Germany in the 2000 World Cup Qualifier on a rainy, miserable afternoon sums up the place for many. It was time for a change; something new and inspiring. Kevin Keegan certainly agreed, fittingly announcing his resignation from his England manager position in the toilets following the match.

Onwards and upwards, then. The bulldozers arrived soon afterwards and construction began on a new Wembley; a stadium to eclipse all others and befit the nation that invented the beautiful game.

Yet from the outset the Wembley project has been a tale of disaster. Originally conceived as a multi-purpose stadium to accommodate a variety of sports, including athletics to aid Olympic and World Athletics Championship bids, the ongoing saga of Wembley, its spiralling costs and the careers it has sacrificed along the way makes for uncomfortable reading.

The latest news is that Multiplex UK, a subsidiary of the Australian-owned construction company undertaking the building work, has announced that it will make huge losses on the project, and doubts are beginning to surface of the stadium’s readiness to host the FA Cup Final in 2006. That is yet more bad news for the Football Association, who borrowed 400 million pounds to fund the project and may miss out on some much-needed gate receipt money.

During the early days of arguments over what the stadium should or should not contain, the wonderful Millennium Stadium in Cardiff was designed and built for a paltry 110 million pounds. Set in a cosmopolitan city groaning under the weight of cafes, restaurants and pubs that cater perfectly to the visiting football fan, perhaps an extra season of cup finals and playoff games in Wales isn’t the worst outcome for supporters. The only issue is that getting to and from the Welsh capital on match days makes Bangkok’s well-documented traffic issues seem like a spot of light congestion.

But for everyone waiting for the all-new Wembley, the waiting goes on. And on, and on.

Stateside Success

Meanwhile, England arrived back on home soil from what was billed a ‘meaningless’ tour of the USA in buoyant mood, after back-to-back wins against the USA and Columbia. Stars such as Rio Ferdinand and Wayne Rooney had ruled themselves with wafer thin excuses, but the performances of some of the peripheral squad members brought into replace them delighted manager Sven Goran Eriksson.

The standout man was Manchester United’s Kieran Richardson, who took his chance by scoring both goals in England’s first match against the United States.

Eriksson also reserved praise for Tottenham’s Michael Carrick, who impressed in the central midfield role against Columbia, as well as the other squad members yet to fully establish themselves in the squad. The Swede sounded upbeat when asked about England’s World Cup chances:

“With a year to go, and if we don’t have any injuries, things look very good,” he said.

“I’ve never had a squad so strong, and I am very, very confident in the players.”

Michael Owen showed no signs of depression after leaving Liverpool last summer to win trophies at Real Madrid, as he jetted in for the second match against Columbia and netted a hat-trick in a 3-2 win. The three goals propelled him to fourth-place in the all-time scoring chants, overtaking Alan Shearer, Sir Tom Finney and Nat Lofthouse.

Scotland kept their slim World Cup chances alive with a win over Moldova, whilst the Republic of Ireland allowed Israel to come back from two goals down to earn a draw in a bad-tempered match in Dublin.

I Beg Your Pardew?

It’s a warm welcome back to the Premiership for West Ham, who defeated Preston in the Championship playoff game last week. Their reward will be a windfall of an estimated 30 million pounds and the opportunity to rub shoulders with the Premiership glamour clubs such as Fulham and Birmingham City

Yet even after this achievement many Hammers’ fans still called for the head of manager Alan Pardew. You have to feel for the poor guy, who surely deserves a crack at the Premiership next season despite his lack of popularity with a large contingent of his club’s supporters. He looks destined for an uphill struggle to overhaul Sunderland, big-spending Wigan and another established Premiership side in order to stay up, particularly if Sunday League defender Tomas Repka is still on the club’s books come August.

The Square Ring

by Howie Reed

Well looks like the next time the Scotsman and I get together for a few ambers ones it’ll be me doing the “shouting”. Scott Harrison was back to his old “best fighter” status when he knocked out challenger Michael Brodie (35-3) in four stanza’s as a tune up to Tszyu-Hatton. Harrison came out aggressively in the first staggering Brodie. The next two rounds they exchanged punches with Brodie getting an advantage if one believes the judges. In the 4th Harrison landed a left hook to the kidney that sent Brodie to the canvas where he failed to beat the 10 count. It was over in 46 seconds of the 4th. My beating at the hands of my Scottish friend will last a lot longer. Brodie retired from boxing promptly after the fight.

I have to apologize to my Pal “The Flying Frog” as I was unable to tell for sure if Thailand was getting Kostya Tszyu (31-1)- Ricky Hatton (38-0) live on TV. Tried my best but came up short. So much for being the second best boxing scribe in Asia. Bummer! What I did get right was predicting Ricky ‘The Hitman” Hatton’s (39-0) spectacular performance over 11 gruelling rounds before a packed house in Manchester’s MEN Arena. Must be something in the water as Hatton, a 4 -1 underdog where gaming is legal, was in control from the opening bell with a relentless attack that got stronger as the fight progressed. After the 11th Johnny Lewis, Tszyu’s trainer, suggested that the fight be stopped. There was no argument from the now ex-champ. “You’ll notice I didn’t argue. I just didn’t have it tonight.”

While the American TV commentators and three Yank writers had the fight close the official scores were 107-102, 106-103 and 105-103. The Square Ring had it 106-104 for Hatton. There could have been a bit of controversy had the bout gone to the score cards. In an early round Tszyu landed a body punch on the beltline that sent Hatton down. Referee Dave Parris, who didn’t have one of his finest nights, called it a low blow. “Both fighters went down in the middle rounds from low blows. The shot that dropped Hatton was on the beltline, while the punch that felled Tszyu was very low.” The writer quoted understated the Hatton low blow. It was intentional and a point should have been taken away. Referee Parris also assisted Hatton by allowing almost any tactics. Would it have made a difference? Probably not. As Tszyu said after, “Hatton was the better man tonight.” All hail the champion. Now let’s see if he leaves the friendly confines of Manchester and strikes while the iron’s hot.

How many times have you said to yourself, “The most difficult part of the road back is the first step?” OK but if you didn’t say it someone did. For most boxers that retire, the moment comes when they realize that they really didn’t want to leave the ring. For those boxers that don’t retire but are coming off a terrible loss the trip back is much more difficult because believe it or not boxing is more mental that physical. A case in point is former WBC Flyweight Champ Medgoen Singsurat (41-3). In 1999 he was scheduled to meet Manny Pacquiao for the title. Pacquiao didn’t make weight, lost the title on the scales and then put on a lacklustre performance to get KO’d in 3. Singsurat one the first 2 round in a walk.

The new champ’s first title defense went according to blueprint with an easy 12 round UD (120-105, 119-109, 118-110) over Masaki Kawabata (16-3-2). Then came the meeting with Malcolm Tuncao who at the time was 10-0 and looked like another walk in the park. At the Srimnang Outdoor Stadium in Udon, Singsurat got taken to the woodshed. Trailing on two of the three judges cards Singsurat got TKO’D in 7. Since then Singsurat has fought a bunch of guys that shouldn’t be allowed in the same city as the ex-champ let alone the same ring. The latest was Tata Polinar (2-9) who lasted 5 rounds before kissing canvas. Now reports are circulating that Tata Polinar really wasn’t the name of the boxer. Not hard to find a “fugazi” for a 2-9 boxer.

Since the loss to Tuncao, Singsurat has gone 22-1, which looks OK until you look at the combined win-loss records of the boxers he’s faced. 274-191-33. The one loss in this run was to Joven Jorda (12-19). Tuncao (17-1) only held the title through one defense. In his second Pongsaklek Wonjongkam knocked him “cattywampus” in the opening stanza. Tuncao fights on July 23 at Madison Square Garden in New York for the IBF Super Fly title against Luis Alberto Persz (23-1). Singsurat fights stiffs. Got to take the big step.

Got a note from Pal “OR” Cross. “Now I have a question and a comment for you: What is Teddy Atlas’ background? I’m guessing he was a pro boxer at one time and am curious as to what sort of fighter he was. Was he?”

Yes, Atlas was an amateur boxer and took a route that was kind of familiar years ago. In was hanging around the gym when he got busted for two felony counts in three days. He was grabbing gold chains off people’s necks. Got caught. His Physician father refused to bail Teddy out until Teddy’s mothers threatened divorce. The bail was posted.

Teddy’s pal was Kevin Rooney (who would become a trainer) who had just win the 1975 New York Golden Gloves title at 175. Rooney was training in the Catskills under the tutelage of Cus D’Amato who gained worldwide fame as the man behind Floyd Paterson. Atlas went to D’Amato’s to train. Training with Cus you had to follow his rules. When Atlas did he was welcomed into the family. Cus went to the judge and got Atlas probation as long as Atlas kept his nose clean. He did. Atlas would win the 139 pound Golden Gloves title with all wins coming by KO’s. He also played football hurting his back which ended his boxing career. D’Amato said, “You’re a trainer.” D’Amato would have a second life in the spotlight when he took in a young tough named Mike Tyson. (Tyson fights Sunday in Washington DC against a stiff but then so is he.) Tyson’s first trainer was? Teddy Atlas. He left the Tyson fold after Mike had tried to take some liberties with Atlas’s high school aged niece. Teddy cornered Tyson in the gym, put a gun to his head and said, “If you ever touch my niece again I’ll blow your ******g head off.” Exit, Atlas to be replace by? Kevin Rooney. Atlas was the trainer of Michael Moorer and lately he tried to straighten out Michael Grant. You can’t win’em all. How about them apples? I’ll drink to that.

FRB’S a dying breed - PH3

Pattaya hash is getting old. In the early days there were many FRB’s, sadly they are a dying breed. Machines are replacing leg power, look at all the cars and pick ups surrounding the A site, these are only out numbered by the chairs. Apparently we all parked at the wrong “A” site or so we were told later, presumably the real “A” site was flat with no hidden ankle breaking holes, no dead bodies though at least at this point. I was late, I am always late, however it turns out I am not as late as the GM Flying Frog.

We waited, read some hash sheets, others were chatting. I stood near the beer truck and the back table was in place earlier than normal. Dr Pinky was stood next to it. From the direction of the bus Sun Flower wandered over towards Dr Pinky and she was carrying a very limp duck, (I have not substituted a U for an I) carefully she laid it on the beer truck table, Dr Pinky, ever ready to assist, pulled out his stethoscope and listened to the birds chest. After a moment or two Dr Pinky stared at Sun Flower then looked up into her eyes and said, “I am so sorry your pet has passed away” Sun Flower appearing distressed wailed “are you sure?” (No reference to the hasher). “Yes I am sure. The duck is dead” he replied. “But how can you be sure?” she protested. “I mean you have not done any testing on him or anything. He might just be in a coma or something.” Dr Pinky rolled his eyes, turned around and went behind the beer truck. Moments later he returned with a black Labrador retriever. As the duck’s owner Sun Flower looked on in amazement, the dog stood on his hind legs, put his front paws on the beer truck table and sniffed the duck from top to bottom. He then looked at Dr Pinky with sad eyes and shook his head. Dr Pinky patted the dog, gave it a biscuit and took it back around the front of the beer truck and returned a few moments later with a beautiful cat. The cat jumped up on the table and also sniffed the bird from its beak to its tail and back again. The cat sat back on its haunches, shook its head, meowed softly, jumped down and strolled off towards the jeep for a tuna sandwich. Dr Pinky moves his focus and looked Sun Flower in the eyes and said, “I’m sorry, but as I said, “this is most definitely, 100% certifiably, a dead duck.” Dr Pinky then picked up his bag and reached inside and pulled out a bar bill book and pen, he then scribbled quickly on it and tore out the top page, which he handed to Sun Flower. Sun Flower still in shock, took the bill.”15,000 baht!” she cried. “15,000 baht just to tell me my duck is dead! You crazy, you crazy Dr Pinky she bemoaned” Dr Pinky shrugged. “I’m sorry. If you’d taken my word for it, the bill would have been 1,500 baht. But with the Lab Report and the CAT scan, it all adds up.”

In the mean time a group of perhaps 8-10 persons VV, Peler, Fini, Smiling Brown Spider to mention a few had congregated around Ringworm, each was clutching a news letter, as they quizzed him about the meaning of all those long words in last weeks write up.

Finally the GM arrived, “form a circle” he shouted from his truck, and obediently we did.

As we were getting the information about next week’s Betty Boop run three gun shots rang out from only a few hundred meters away, probably Marathon Man Odd Job creating some of his own breaking news again. New shoes were dealt with and we were off following the rail track, yep you got it, in the direction of the gunshots. The first part of the run twisted us around with some old paper, false trails and loops but it kept the pack together. I was walking along with General Kidney Wiper “****ing Embassy” he grumbled “US$600 just for a visa and you have to be finger printed”, he continued that he may be away for a few weeks as he is going to open a religious book shop in Guantanamo Bay. Through a gully and another good false trail, across the road and a check at the end of an open field. A large group was now forming, most were being distracted by jet another pack of yapping dogs, On-On, was called and we started to run, we were not the only things that had started to run, from the corner of the field a huge FRB (Fast Running Buffalo) came charging towards the pack we scattered in every direction, however the FRB seemed to have taken a liking to Homo Simpson, which is understandable as he is half Norwegian, 1.5 tons of muscle and horns shot past Homo and seemed to miss by inches, it crashed off into the undergrowth, meanwhile as Homo Simpson was emptying his shorts out, thankfully we were on a false trail so could exit the area in the opposite direction, if ever there was a visual warning to walk near cattle and FRB’s that was it.

Over some dried out rice paddies and we were back in sight of the rail track and the final Blue check.

A-Holeo claimed that this was easy, the A site is just down there to the right, we picked up the paper 200 meters to the left and continued in that direction, we weave through shrubs and there was the On In the other type of FRB’s back in about 55 mins, so plenty of exercise for those who wanted it. I walked in past Uncle Pervy’s ever growing gang Drippy, Dr Pinky, ET, Sir Airhead guzzling his home brew , I wandered over near the rail tracks . Miserable C. was whining about the A site, Apples Turnover responded, “well you are the trail master you should check each A site for suitability,” at this point Terminal 4 Skin turned up to comment, “would you two like some cheese to go with that whine”.

The lights go on and its time to form a circle, instantly we are told that the hash shit will be loosing his trophy tonight, but to whom? Sun Flower is hash flash tonight we are informed, which for a moment sounded exciting then she appeared with the camera around her neck, this week’s raffle was conducted by Seaman Swallow the normal prizes and free pass to the bucket. The Bad RA Sir Airhead took over, Hares Mr. Dog and A. Hopper placed themselves on the ice, clearly the RA figured that they should receive hash sh*t for the gunshots, A site, bad smell, packs of dogs, FRB’s so he asked King Yao Yao: “Good run,” he said. So that was that and they got away with it. Which is more than can be said for Wank-King who had dropped a tiny piece of trash in the circle and correctly received the Hash Trash award. A-Holeo was brought in with the new squeeze who really only requires the cosmetic flat head to be perfect and was named Chipmunk. The Chicken Person then serenaded us with a song about Sir Air Head, which was claimed to have been written by Karamba as it made no sense at all. As it had already been decided that the hash sh*it was going out tonight, the GM brings in poor harmless A. Hopper, apparently he went to the On On bar last week and committed the heinous crime of eating before he had bought a drink, this now leaves him mentally scared for life after receiving the Hash Sh*t award. The judge in this case assures us that he is a fine upstanding community member and the punishment was in no way influenced by the fact that he too owns a Hash Bar. Visitors, returnees too many to mention, and leavers with the biggest cheer of the night that A-Holeo was leaving. The French and anybody else who would admit to speaking French were rightfully iced for totally destroying the EU. As Europeans we expected this, as is just normal French pouting because a German took over at Airbus Industries. The German’s were also iced, it seems they are blessed, if they are now unemployed they can get a 20% discount on services from pros, so long as they have an unemployment card, this however is of no use in Pattaya, as there are supposedly none.

For this reason entirely after the Hash Hymn sung by Aussies and the fact that I did not have time to go to Ban Chang where apparently there are some... I went home!

On On
BNB

Rossi does it again at Mugello

Well, Valentino Rossi on his Yamaha did it all over again! Mugello was a virtual repeat of the events of Le Mans three weeks ago. First of all Rossi edged out Gibernau in the dying seconds of the qualifying period to snatch pole. Max Biaggi completed the front row. Second row qualifiers were Nicky Hayden (Honda) John Hopkins (Suzuki) and Capirossi (Ducati).

Rossi could only manage fourth away off the line but that is an improvement on his earlier starts. It was obvious from the off that the Ducati’s have the starting technique sorted since they claimed positions one and three into the first bend with Gibernau filling the sandwich between Capirossi and Checa.

Within the space of one lap Rossi forced his Yamaha passed all three so that he led at the start of the second lap.

Sete Gibernau drifted backwards until by lap five he was in fifth place. The on-board camera views of his front wheel showed he was having tyre or handling problems from the front end and he duly slid off on lap six after losing the front going into a corner. This DNF compounds the disastrous season Sete is having as Honda’s number one man.

Rossi was unable to extend his lead significantly from Max Biaggi and they duelled for the front for much of the race. Behind them there was a ding-dong battle for the third podium spot between Melandri and Capirossi making it a four-way Italian battle, which was won in determined style by a very persistent Capirossi.

Biaggi successfully overtook Rossi at a corner where the vociferous crowd was entirely for Biaggi. Three laps from the finish Rossi retook the lead at the same corner to silence Biaggi’s fans. There are those that would say this was deliberate policy by Valentino!

So, rostrum places were Rossi, Biaggi and Capirossi followed by 4. Melandri, 5. Checa, 6. Hayden, 7. Barros, 8. Tamada, 9. Edwards and 10. Nakano. Notably, this was a good result for Tamada on his return from injury.

Rossi now stands on 120 points, a record for this stage of the season, followed by Melandri on a distant 71 with Biaggi third on 67.

On Sunday June 12, the MotoGP circus comes from Catalunya, Spain. Sete Gibernau will be desperate to make a good showing in front of his home crowd, but would do well to remember he needs any points he can get, another DNF is not what he wants.

Broadcast time for MotoGP from Spain is expected to be 7 p.m. Thai time, but check your TV listings.

Sails ahoy at the Ocean Marina this weekend

This Saturday and Sunday June 12 - 13th will see another exciting weekend of yacht racing from Pattaya’s Ocean Marina. Races begin about 10 a.m. on Saturday and finsh in the early afternoon on Sunday.

Some 12 yachts are expected to be out racing this weekend. If anyone wants to crew on a racing yacht or to take out their own chartered boat with a skilled skipper, helmsman then then call 038 237 752 for details. You can charter and race your own yacht for 10,500 baht for the whole day and take four friends along for the exciting ride.

Want to know how crew a yacht?

The internationally recognized sail training organization International Yachtmaster Training Inc. based in the USA has recently licensed Gulf Charters Thailand Ltd. based at Ocean Marina to open a Yachtmaster training school. The opening course will start on the June 25 and lasts for five days.

This class is for the IYT International Crew Certificate 50% of which is in the classroom and 50% on the water on a yacht. Alternatively for those who can only study on weekends, the course is also available over three consecutive weekends also commencing on the June 25 and culminating in an entry of one of the Gulf Charter fleet boats in the increasingly popular race weekend that takes place every other month from Ocean Marina.

Cost of the course is 25,000 baht and at the end of the course the student will have progressed from no knowledge of boats whatsoever to being a competent responsible member of a crew who can understand and carry out all the commands given by the skipper

For more information contact: Gulf Charters Thailand, Ocean Marina, 167/5 Moo4 Sukhumvit Hwy (Km 157), Tel. 038 237 752, fax. 038 237751 or email: phil @ gulfchartersthailand.com