Pecs & Co

sooo, got back to the gym two days ago, after a 2 months hiatus :s 


well, i must say it feels good being back to the sweat room! feelin those calories shed off, thos muscle burn and the body exhaustion!! i must say im feeling those annoying sore muscle days, but its the fruit of perseverance that overcomes all the pain


yes, no pain, no gain boys n girls !! 


gotta make up for the lost muscle mass and shave off my tiny love handles hahaha  
gettin back in shape is the nest priority! health is often taken for granted, be careful not to fall in this trap and take care of your body for it takes care of your soul :)




@Alexi13


That's my buttermint for the day


Follow me on Twitter.com/Alexi13

Tribute to Champions !!

We are The Champions, my frieeeennndd!!! 

Champions OMD Racing

Yessss indeed readers!!! 

This past weekend (22-23 Oct '10), OMD Racing has won 1st place !!!! in the 24hr Karting Challenge - Round 2 at the Dubai Autodrome... in the Corporate racers leg..the race within the race!!!

A brief background on this whole thing… the Dubai Autodrome holds yearly 3 rounds of 24hr Karting Endurance Challenges, where both professional racers and corporate teams, ordinary auto enthusiasts and adrenaline junkies, posing as Clark Kent(s) during their day job, and passionate auto racers on the weekends :D 

Round one was held in March of this year, and our team ranked 2^nd after battling a series of misfortunes!! Well, in 24 hours of racing, you are bound to misfortunes! Of all sorts and shapes..

Well this 2^nd round, we knocked everyone else off the grid (corporate wise ;) ) Yup, we brought home the gold…

OMD Racing is a powerhouse fueled by determined racing enthusiasts!! Meet the team:

Thomas "Tom" El-Khoury - our Team Captain

Ziad "SignorZ" Jammal - our resident Hulk!

Saleh "TheGhazal" Ghazal - The poser of the team! And damn good at it too!

Maher "Il Ghazal" Ghazal - The Speedy Gonzales!

Firas "Kikous" Ghazal - The Screaming push we all love with his "GHADDAAAAABBBB" (arabic for anger, as motivation)

Saleh "Wolf" Agha - The fierce predator!!

Antoine "ASD" Challita - The restless attacker!! 

Mustafa "Moe" El Khatib - The Smiley face!

Ali "AA" Awada - The Wacko!! (moi!!)

Rawad "Insomniac"El Khoury - The priceless pit crew member!

and last but not least of all 

Hisham "The Boss" Abi Nassif - The master of ceremony, the graceful Pit Manager!! Hats off – RESPECT AND LOVE!!

With an early start, we all gather up at 8 am on friday, attend the teams briefing session, driver weighing session, registration and random picking of the kart numbers  - 20 was our calling card... we head onto our pit, set up the table, the comms for driver-pit contact, the pit board, the Mac with the trusty excel sheet, racing gear and the essential sleeping tent!! 

Practice goes well, car aint that perfect, but we decide to test it out on the qualification run, hmmpppfff barely satisfied, we come off 14th on the grid..

Safety car rolls the karts out, ready, set, GOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

With a thunderous rolling start, we pick up the pace and position ourselves into 10 positions after the first coupla hours, where we decide to change karts after realizing the deficiency in power output of ours.

With that done, the hours start piling up, drivers rotating (each driver is allowed a stint of 60 mins max, no back to back), night settles and track conditions change. Desert humidity peaks its ugly side in, and the track becomes slippery for the karts!!  we push through the night, resting our fast drivers with their intermittent sleeping breaks to keep those energy and concentration levels in check...

15 hours into the race, and voila, last round's bad luck decides to hang around :s

power output of the car decreases

kart's front axis misaligned

tremendous understeer on left cornering

wheel bearing starts grinding to the suspension arm

wheel almost pops out!!!

Change of kart is mandatory to keep our lead for the last 5 hours!!! 

With a monstrous battle for the lead without competition, overlapping them by 5 laps, the misfortune reduced it to a mere lead of 1 lap and 45 seconds into the final laps!!!! 

Thankfully, our determination, concentration, the never endless adrenaline pouring out of us more than sweat, and our biggest asset, our chief strategist's tactics, The Boss's eagle eye strategies pushed us through to crush the competition, lead the corporate teams in the race and achieve a well deserved and earned W I N !!! 

OMD Racing would like to thank the organisers of the race, the race directors, the race marshals, the race mechanics and most importantly their supporting fans and groupies!!! 

special thanks go to Dani, Rami, Lina, Reem, Marc, Faisal, Wael, Elie, Lana,  Sally, Ban, Dima, Anna, Lama, Sirine, Soulaf and Cirine!!

Sorry if we forgot anyone else, rest assure we are forever thankful !! 

Come cheer us on at the next round on December 10-11 2010!! 

Follow the racers on Twitter

@wousil - Tom

@zjammal - SignorZ

@TheGhazal - TheGhazal

@Hippo_crit - Il Ghazal

@firasghazal - Kikous

@tfehh - ASD

@SalehAgha - Wolf

@Alexi13 - AA

@Hisham75 - The Boss

@Rawadkh - Insomniac

Lovestruck

we boys don't like chick flicks
we boys don't go all "awwww" at puppies
we boys don't cry on watchin' series/movies


but we boys fall in love at one point, a true genuine love and macho land is invaded by those flying unicorn ponies, sliding on rainbows between marshmallow houses and pink grass... 


She makes my world go round, she is my love


Lana i love you :)

I See You and the World Through You

Je t'aime (by @LaSahely)

Waiting for Godot?!

did you get 5 mins to think about your day today? 
did you get 5 mins to think about your parents today?
did you get 5 mins to think about next week's plans?
did you get 5 mins to think about that pending favor for a friend?
did you get 5 mins to read about world news?
did you get 5 mins to practice your guitar lessons?




in this modern day and age you barely have some alone time, to either check up on your family, friends you havn't seen since college, practice on your new guitar... we live in such a fast paced age, such a flooded system, that we developed the special skill to cram and live a + 24hrs day into a single day... 




i am lucky to still have the now scarce "Me Time" almost every day,, with my daily commute from DXB to ADH, i get to have some "Me Time" to enjoy, whenever my boss (who rides with me almost daily) is on the phone.. i get to switch off from the world for coupla minutes during the long straights on the drive (thank you cruise control and comfy seats!!) These are like tiny bites of ur fav chocolate, where you can forget about the coming surprises in your inbox, the freezing office, etc...




yet the best time i have found to really switch off from the world, escape it all, and forget about everything, and indulge in the much needed self reflection which keeps me sane in this crazy world!
my refuge, the plane!! 


yes the plane is becoming my favorite place in the world right now (other than my lover's arms). With an almost monthly commute in the phallic fuselage, ive grown accustomed to its serenity. Surely my best isolation tools (Beats n iPod 160GB) come in hanndy to fliter out the screaming babies, the talkative "OOO-MMM-GGG, cnt-believe-u-r-on-the-same-plane-as-me convo people", the snoring neighbour and the random PA annoucement of the captain's horn blowing,, 

and this is it, you, alone, your fav track ON, a good book/movie/anime and you are off to an amazing time... away from the whinning of your other half, the smartphone! to be able to just have 3 hours of peace while awake,, this is priceless!! 




this is when you plan your weeks to come, this is when you organise your activity list, this is when you take your time missing the ones you love, this is when you come up with your best ideas, this is when you are you...




take a trip people, u deserve it !




@Alexi13


That's my buttermint for the day


Follow me on Twitter.com/Alexi13

Pandora's Box

love, life’s pandora’s box!! 

My All :)

so full of surprises it does not come with a manual, so scary that the only protection is abstinence, gives you such a high that coming up with a cure is banned, so heart warming that global warming might be a result of it,, 

never thought id be writing about love, i mean there goes my man card out the window ! 

well, how many of you think that these fairly tales we read about are so hard to come by? how many of you think that soul mates are only in movies? how many of you have listed your perfect match criteria and then started to cross off stuff just to find som1? 

The thing about love, is how unexpected it is, you could be walking down the street bump into the woman of your life, say sorry and smile and find urself happily ever after, or say hi and smile and walk away without both you knowing what might have happened... i never accepted that and always followed through after the hi n smile,, till i found her...

till i found my baby girl, till i found the one who makes me laugh hard, till i found the one that warms up my heart with her smile, till i found the one that can reach with her arms around the world just to hug me, till i found the one that bakes the most amazing cakes, till i found the one that can give me the best goosebumps at the best and most unexpected times, till i found the one that can Ikea my heart as her own refuge with such ease, till i found her,,, 

all of that at the most unexpected of times, i found love, the journey is crazy and never enough!! 

i love her 

@Alexi13

Follow me on Twitter.com/Alexi13

Missing you

My gorgeous Mom! 

Momy, tu me manque 

Momy, shta2tillik

Momy, nedostaješ mi

Momy, I miss you

This has been the longest I havnt seen my mom, 4 loooong months 

This motherly love I long for so much, your radiant smile than can make me bounce back from the deepest abyss, your lullaby that used to put me to sleep oh how I long for it, your hugs that fill me with millions of solar eruptions, your scolds that put me back in check, your amazing food that puts me in such a high, your healing touch when I have a bobo,,, 

Momy, I cannot wait to put my head on your shoulder, that shoulder which nothing can mute its peacefully loud silence.

I love you…


P.S: cal your mom now, tell her you love her...




@Alexi13

Ridin' The Wind

 

Just got my baby Jade fixed up, new chain, new chain sprocket and new front tyre and we both feeeeeling goooooood!!! 

So what might have gone off in my mind to get a motorbike in Dubai ?! with an accident every, ekhh i lost count :s 

Jade: '06 Honda CBR 600RR

I must say it is not the sanest of things to do :$ but it was out of both a boyish dream to ride and ride fast, the whole experience, the adrenaline rush of it and lately the convenience of it, 8 months of the year that is in the desert.

It admit i went off a little crazy on a bit at first, after coupla falls, i had to tone it down and care for my safety more, much more!!  with that said, the convenience of a bike in Dubai is unparalleled!! Still the dangers never keep on popping out in the way, from the unexpected patches of water/oil, the crazy drivers, some even trying to run you off, to the slippery car park flooring... staying on super high alert and concentration is part of the fun too :) 

how many times did u circle the mall parking for more than 15 mins looking for a parking spot, sometimes even missing a movie cuz of it? well i don’t cuz i always park in the “bike zone”, the sidewalk hahaha!! 

how many times did you get stuck in traffic cuz of a silly fender bender and the drivers rubbernecking? well i just zip through and never miss an appointment :p 

ahhh  gas, with the long drives in Dubai, im happy refilling my baby costs me only 20Dhs for a full tank to get me zipping along for 150Kms !!! 

Ahhhhhh, the Crotch Rocket factor, yess, yess, it is an insaaaannneee feeling to reach the high speeds on the bike feeling every bit of wind, sand, dust, wiper water and yes, the infamous insects :s !! and nothing beats the feeling of driving under the rain in Dubai, as scarce as it is, i wait for it!!  just makes it even more challenging even more dangerous!! 

one of my vices is my adrenaline junkie side, it must admite, it gets me in trouble most of the time!!  i just can’t over it though, it is so addictive, even when driving go karts which barely touch the 90Km/h mark on the track, i still feel so high on adrenaline!! 

on a last note, try to get on a bike, experience it, embrace it even for once, it is exquisite and remember, ride fast but safe !!  ride the wind 

@Alexi13

That’s my buttermint for the day!

Follow me on Twitter.com/Alexi13

Fight Night

 

Yeppp,,totally a guy thing (ok some girls like it too)!

         This weekend went off with my buddy Zee to attend a fight night organised by the gym we go to, well i havnt in a while but next week its back to kickboxing!!. The gym KO Promotions’ coach Zack Taulafai had 8 of his fighters on the ring tonight !!! and alll except one have walked away with a victory!! impresssive skills all of them from Boxing to Kickboxing to Muay Thai to MMA (Mixed Martial Arts).

Part of the action, with my trusty Nikon 3000D

         The place was packed, energy of the crowd overwhelming!!! and the fighters daammmmnnnnn so energetic and determined!! 

         Sitting there watching every fight has ignited in us the desire to be up there on the ring!!  we were on our feet most of the time, and when not, we were throwing punches and ducking to every punch and kick! i gotta be honest, im scared for my nose hahaha... i guess this fighting instinct is something we all have in us as leftover from our ancestors’ survival instinct, the survival of the fittest!! 

         Some would ask, why would some1 go through all this training, sacrificing sleep hours to train early morning and after work, to remain on a strict diet, to go the extra mile!! and all for what? for a chance to come back bruised the next day to work, to feel lousy from losing after so much time spent training, to do a simple mistake that will make him go down, to risk passing out from a kick (like what happened to one of the fighters, he came crumbling down faster than the twin towers, yet it seemed an eternity)... i suppose, no i believe that the chance to come out victorious, to lift that trophy/belt up high, to earn the satisfaction of all the hard training and sacrifices, to be the king of the ring, yes that truly overweighs the cons!! 

         Humans have always felt the need to surpass themselves, to become stronger, tougher, smarter than the rest since the beginning of time, simply because it meant being able to survive! we still have this survival instinct whether we feel it or not.

i just hope i keep on driving back home with my buddy Zee from these fights singing “Eye of the Tiger” rather than “Ouch i have a Black Eye!!”

@Alexi13

And that's my buttermint for the night!! 

Follow me on Twitter.com/@Alexi13

Boys And Their Toys

So I went Karting today!! 

Yesss Yess.. boys and their toys!! 

It all started out of boredom, when one day we decided to pass time me and some buddies, all of a sudden we find ourselves competing with each other for the best lap times (duuuhhhh, we are boys!! hellooo!!!) 

My buddy Zee is a formula 1 freak and loves it, he started sharing how most F1 drivers start off in karting, and we asked around and found that some competitions are on the calendar in the Dubai Autodrome! Ali and Zee, HOOKED!

We started training more, gathered some friends, got the support of our company and entered a 24hrs endurance race!!! yes the results were good :D 

Another round of this race is up in 4 weeks and we had our first training session 
tonight,, 

It is quite a pleasure to be part of a team that strives on friendly competition, we are able to push each other to our best performances with the classic guy teasing process!! Guess our male hormones are the hardest to control, our ego always finds a way to pop up and challenge others, even when we know we can’t be up to the challenges! Yet, I believe this is grounds for a healthy team spirit, ok sometimes ;)