Sometimes some coincidences are a bit too wierd. Katie and I lost a lovely friend just before Chtistmas in 2001 – Abigail. Abi was only just 30 and died of cancer, and as always seems the case in these dreadful losses, the last few months were horrible for everyone involved. Abi was dignified and humerous to an extent that still sends shivers down our spines. But a strange anecdotal coincidence occurred the very last time we saw Abigail. Continue reading “Abigail’s Legacy – a haunting coincidence”
Lily dancing to Boards of Canada
Had a nice teatime chill with Lily and Elsie last night whilst Katie went out tot he gym for the first time since Elsie was born… including some freeform art dance by Lily, totally unprompted, to my favourite album of all time. Continue reading “Lily dancing to Boards of Canada”
Omnipresent
Teatime in the Haygarth house, and Elsie’s at the end of her third hour of eating, Lily, who has an allergy to sitting at the table, has arisen and decides to make herself omnipresent
Derby National Trophy – the cyclocross season ends
Sunday was the last race in the 2009 Cyclocross National Trophy series, where I finished 21st overall… my best ever. It’s more a case of lies, damn lies and statistics though when you look at it. I gathered very steady points (apart from the first race in Abergavenny where I had a bit of a mechanical), and all around me people seemed to have poor or inconsistent seasons. Continue reading “Derby National Trophy – the cyclocross season ends”
Elvis slowed down
Got a new phone last week – the LG Viewty – and one of the terrific things about it is its slow motion (120 frames per second) video setting…
Continue reading “Elvis slowed down”
British National Cyclocross Championships 2009
A great day out. It’s such an event for me – and to have it at Bradford, within the hour from home, was such a pleasure. Adding to that pleasure was the fact that mum, Katie and the girls could all come out and watch me on the relatively short day trip.
Continue reading “British National Cyclocross Championships 2009”
Happy Birthday to Royksopp… and me
Today, I am 39. To celebrate, Röysopp have released a fantastic new tune for me. (Well. For their tenth birthday actually)
Happy Birthday to us. Have a listen… it grows. I thought it was a cover of the fab Altered Images tune at first.
Fine tuning for the Nationals
Given that my chances of finishing much higher than 30th position in next Sunday’s national cyclocross championships are as slim as a cigarette paper, an outside may think I’m a bit obsessive trying to hone my training down for a one-hour race. I maybe am, but it’s the only way I know.
Christmas and New Year went fairly well for me in terms of fitness and wellbeing. I got tired a couple of times and ate a bit much a couple of times, but I managed to keep ticking over and seem to have repaired any form-damage before it took hold. I also managed to dispense with a cold just before Christmas meaning that (hopefully) my immune system is that bit more robust now.
Sunday’s race is a double whammy for me in some ways. Obviously it’s the nationals, and at the nationals eveyone is that bit more psyched. It’s also in the north of England; something that hasn’t happened for many a year. And with it being at Peel Park in Bradford, a venue I’ve put in my best rides at during national trophy events in 2006 and 2007, I’m bubbling over with excitement. All we need now is shed loads of rain to make it muddy and nasty, and I should be in my element. Not only that, but I’d be made up if Rob Jebb could do a ride at Peel Park – he does tend to excel on the muddier courses and won there in 2006. Fingers crossed for a ‘home’ victory (well – nearly).
Having the Todmorden Cyclocross last Sunday was a great bonus. Whilst I didn’t give it my everything, I gave it pretty near to everything for most of the race. It’s a perfect time for a good race – one week before – in that it blows away any cobwebs and allows you to get some proper intensity through your body in a way that you can never do in training. I was pretty pleased to be quite far from being lapped at the end of the hour over a relatively short course. I also found my bike handling fine after three weeks off racing. On Monday I had the day off work and squeezed in a fantastic ride over some great hilly roads – including Cragg Vale – technically the longest climb in England at 5.1 miles of undisturbed ‘upness’ see profile below or view ride in Google Earth here. Tonight is an hour on the Turbo, with an hour fell running on Wednesday then some cycling hill reps on Thursday… it’s all a bit focused and serious at the mo. That’s how I like it.
Lily at the Todmorden Cyclocross
Lily’s second race was another moment of intense pride for me – and for Katie. Again, she took te bull by the horns and rode flat out from start to finish on what was a ideal course for the Under 12s. There was a large field too, and she did herself proud. The Dad running round with her was largely just that this time – holding and pushing her on the dodgy bits of the course was kept to a bare minimum and she pedalled her little heart out. Eventually she finished 18th out of 28 under 10s – quite an achievement for a 6 year old.
I rode the senior race and really enjoyed (and hopefully benefitted from) the outing on a tough but really fun course just one week before the national champs in Bradford.
Elsie managed to kick her legs a lot during the whole thing in a combination of enthusiasm, mimickary and sympathy.
A really ace event organised by Mountainbike Guru Chipps Chippendale and we’ll no doubt be popping over to Todmorden next season for another hammering round the park.
Happy New Year
A lovely couple of days in our house just went by. Friends Rachel and Jon brought their three children to ours for a couple of nights and for the third year running we saw in the New Year with them. In order to try and keep the excitement levels up (and indeed try and stay up until midnight), we had a fancy dress theme of loutish Brits Abroad. (Well – it seemed right once I decided I was going to cook Tapas and Paella).
Photos of their stay here.