Feeling like I fell on top of the ‘lucky git’ pile. It’s a long story, but I mentioned to Katie about a year ago that I felt that Elsie got a lot more of my time that Lily did, because of our shared love of cycling, and the trips that Elsie and I have made to things like the cyclo-cross worlds in Hoogerheide, or the Tour de France in Paris. Katie suggested I should take Lily on a ‘school time’ ski break.
Continue reading “Lil and Dave Les Houches ski trip 2024”Tabor and Prague – Czechking it out in style
Winter weekend breaks don’t come in much better style than filling it with cyclo-cross fun…!
Fantastic mad 48 hours covering so much in Prague and Tabor – for the World Cyclo-cross championships.
Another year in paradise
Another lovely day in Buile Hill on Saturday brings the cyclo-cross season for me and Elsie to a close.
The third year running that this event has been dry, fast, and the death-by-a-thousand-corners course finally gave me the ride I’d waited for here, with a sweet end to my cyclo-cross season riding the v50 and then the Elite race cats.
Continue reading “Another year in paradise”Gralloched
How apt. More on that later.
A biggie
This was the second year of the UCI Gravel series and the first time a round had been held in the UK. The Gralloch was going to be exciting, star-studded, and a proper decent race. That it took place 3 hrs drive from home was a luxury and a lure. Plus, loads of the ‘cross people were there, too. It’s always a small world in off road cycling.
Continue reading “Gralloched”Cross at cyclo-cross – I’m on my knees
Not sure what to make of my cyclo-cross at the moment. On the one hand, I have great times and love the company, scene, people and racing. It’s pure, it’s serious, but it’s fun and friendly. But I’m fighting some proper demons at the moment with injury. I’ve had injuries before and worked out a way through or round them. But the latest thing (knee, totally out of the blue) really feels like a proper blocker.
Continue reading “Cross at cyclo-cross – I’m on my knees”3 Ups and 3 downs
I shouldn’t let the 3 Peaks Cyclo-cross get to me like this. I should know better. I’ve had my day in many ways and know that I’m never going to have another belter of a result in this beautiful race after 22 times around those hills. But this is what the race does to you. It gets inside you and niggles away.
Continue reading “3 Ups and 3 downs”Wasdale.
A big day out. A big and hard day out. But its done with now. I knew the day would come when i was satisfied to just ”finish” something. I guess this comes with age.
The second summer of COVID-complication holidays
The 2020 stuff seemed tame. We somehow managed last year to get to Anglsey and Scotland amidst what we then thought was chaos. Surely 2021 would be easier as restrictions eased.
Continue reading “The second summer of COVID-complication holidays”One child left: Lily’s 18th
Never really sure what the trend is with ‘coming of age’ these days. It’s all academic in one sense – 18 has it, really – there’s not much left in statute that you need to be aged 21 to do. But 18 seems so young… especially when it’s your own ‘child’ that becomes 18.
Continue reading “One child left: Lily’s 18th”Summer in Scotland – COVID calls for last minute panic holiday plans
In the strangest of years, the simplest of lovely holidays. When we’d originally planned to go to Portugal for the summer hols and meet up there for a spell with Sally and Simon & family, the idea of a COVID compromise of a trip to Scotland seemed a bit of a poor cousin. And in the run-up to that trip, it seemed like even that might be a stretch, too.
Continue reading “Summer in Scotland – COVID calls for last minute panic holiday plans”A Lockdown story – Getting the band together for a party.
Strange times. We all agree. And like everybody, Coronavirus-compromises have been made, and good times put on hold.
Amongst the irritations for me this spring was the 50th birthday party I had planned for 100 or so friends on Easter Saturday.
Part of the evening’s fun was to get some music friends together to play some of my favourite songs. People who had never played in the same band or together, but all of whom had played music with me at some time in my 50 years.
Continue reading “A Lockdown story – Getting the band together for a party.”An Outstanding Friday
The North West Cyclocross awards evening is always a good evening out. Seeing people who you almost always see in dirty lycra / helmets / bobble hats / waterproofs etc. Eeeh they do scrub up well.
Continue reading “An Outstanding Friday”