BEETLE!!!

Canberra Baptist Beetle nights are always a competitive affair. Particularly when you have 3 Jackson siblings who don't like to lose to each other. Add in their 3 cousins, Sam, Tash and Rachel and their uncle Ian who they have trained up to be future champions (not Ian he's past it...he can only see out of one eye!). Then add the Beaumans who are keen to knock a Jackson or Joyce off the podium any chance they get. Then you have the rest of the church keen to prove that Beetle is just a game of luck and a Jackson/Joyce winning the last 10 Beetle nights is just coincidence...I think not!



So who won though, surely that's all that matters...well yes but lets not rush. The night started well for me, rolling a Beetle in the first round of the night, with Moriah (I finished well, rolling a Beetle with Moriah on the last round of the night)! He continued pretty well as 2 rounds later I rolled another Beetle...and then another straight afterwards. I was off to a flyer...66 after 5 rounds. How could anyone catch me from here...well...then Sam happened. I got a 4, 1 and then a 2 in three rounds. Oh no! Now I was back with the rest of the dice-rolling fanatics that were at the Beetle night.

I was still in the hunt though. I continued ok to half-time (you know a sport is serious when you need a half-time to cool down in). I got a further 2 Beetles but sadly others yelled out Beetle, nano-seconds before me. Half-time score 135. Not bad. But wait...what...Penny and Al were both beating me...no! I was off the pace by about 15. Ok at least I was there on their heels just as we were about to come round the bend and head down the home straight...and we all know I am a good finisher.

I made sure to eat up well during half-time. 3 pieces of chocolate cake, 2 Tim-Tams (I would have had more but they went so quickly), 2 biscuits and some chips. Topped off by some strong orange cordial. Now I was ready. Only problem was some rumours had started to circle during half-time that I wasn't playing fair...that I wasn't following Beetle etiquette!!! What! Etiquette is for losers. They were saying I hadn't let anyone else roll. So what, this is a competition, I need to be in control of my own fate. They said it is Beetle etiquette to ask your partner if they would like to roll. I did. I asked them, "do you mind if I roll...no...good". But no this wasn't going to do, apparently. After half-time I was forced to draw and follow this so-called etiquette.

But "enough," you say, "we don't care about etiquette either...tell us who won already"...alright, alright.

The 2011 Canberra Baptist Church Beetle Champion is...

Penny Jackson

It seems to be her week. Winning the famous Jackson cook-off. And now taking the coveted CBCBC crown. I was so close. Only 9 points behind. Penny got 254 and I got 245. Belinda Beauman came in 3rd with 238, knocking Al into 4th on 221. If it weren't for Sam, my cousin I would have won. "Sam, I know your reading this...you lost me the game!" When I was with her she got me a 1 and a 2...a 1 and a 2! I later remarked to her that "I was crying inside", I was devastated. I soon got over the loss though, when I received 2nd prize...a block of kit-kat chocolate (plus I had 5 fun-size chocolates to help me through the pain as well).


But wait...there's more! After arriving home the judges recounted the scores to confirm the result and...



wow!!!


There was a miscount???


I recalculated Penny's score...no it seemed ok...


Al ran the numbers through the calculator and out came...


244!!!


One below me...


That means...


I won!!!


After another check we found the error...Penny added an extra 10 when adding 7 to 82 getting 99 instead of 89. A simple error normally with little consequences but this...this was momentous...finally I have surpassed my sisters and won my first beetle night, in the process denying my sister a repeat crown...by 1 point!

What a night...