Get Over It - by Catherine Gasparini
Often in life we hear the expression to “build a bridge” in order to overcome obstacles or challenges which come our way. Well, on September 19, 2005 Lisa Martin, Sheridan Mowle and I did the next best thing, we climbed a bridge instead. First, a little about ourselves.
I am currently waiting for university to begin after deferring studies. I spent my year off working casually in retail to save a few dollars and traveling around Europe on several trips including a Contiki tour. Among other things, one of my achievements was achieving a long awaited goal of climbing the Sydney Harbour Bridge.
By my side on this quest stood fellow CF-conquerors Lisa Martin and Sheridan Mowle. Lisa Martin is a secondary school teacher who has raised countless dollars and awareness for CF over the years. This has been done through school fundraising and touring with well known country music group The Wolverines. She also spent several weeks gallivanting around Europe at the beginning of 2005.
Sheridan is 24 and lives in Goulburn. On January 5, 2000, she received a double lung transplant and has never looked back. She is the secretary of the Goulburn & District CF Group, is the Groups & Conferences Officer at the Goulburn Visitors Information Centre and is studying a course in tourism. Like Lisa and I, Sheridan is a keen traveller and has visited more than ten countries in the past five years.
So the three of us, together with my beloved Dad (couldn’t leave him behind could I?) assembled at Bridge Headquarters. As all personal belongings are to be handed in before the climb, our poor guide was inundated with all of our Ventolin puffers. After having a little giggle to ourselves for over-stuffing his small medical supply bag, Lisa (diabetic) hands him a pack of lollies too. Once gowned up in the oh-so-sexy wind shielded uni-sex grey tracksuit provided, it was time to begin. Perhaps our souvenir shot glasses best describe the 134 meter climb;
‘With no barriers, no sense of time, no going back, just onward, just upward, the ferries below the size of matchboxes, the Opera House shrinking away across the harbour. 1337 stairs, 1 ½ football fields above the water, and a breathtaking view of Sydney, surrounding suburbs and all the way to the mountains, [our] heart’s pound, [our] legs shake, [we] feel every breath…’
While the top views were spectacular, passing motorists also had a pleasant view of the three of us on top the archway doing a victory dance- The Macarena. 
On a serious note, all four of us (us three CF’s and one dad) found the actual climb quite easy, with a moderately slow pace and an incline much less than our pre-conceived notions. We certainly recommend it to others for a great day of personal satisfaction.
Oh, and if anybody was enjoying a cruise along the Harbour that day (or even a swim at Manly beach) and was struck by a air-borne, high velocity, chunky hunk of CF phlegm, you have Lisa to blame for letting that one loose at the top during 70km/h winds. Boy, did it have speed and might! Just couldn’t resist, could you Lisa? ……
