Jenny “First Cousin Once Removed” Holmes is visiting the UK and Europe at the moment and we had a great chance to catch up with her for a day last Sunday when she came to stay with Phil & family in Arkholme.

Jenny was plucked from this fine land at the tender age of six and whisked off to New Zealand by my cousin Mark and the rest of his family. Seeing someone who lives on the other side of the globe is always an odd thing, but seeing a 22 year old woman who was 12 last time I saw her is very strange… Life’s moved on in undescribable ways since the last time I saw her. I have two children and am… well… forty. Jenny is about to graduate and is no longer a little girl.

But what’s remarkably great is that there is such simple warm familiarity in “family” – something that never dies out however long that gaps are between visits.

Lovely to see you Jenny and let’s all maybe try not to make it such a long gap next time.

Photos here

It was a similar recipe to last year’s holiday there – but different in many ways as Elsie has doubled in age in that short year.

Lots of swimming, way too much very nice food, plenty of fresh air and – dare I say it – some rest. Just what you need for a change of scene after this dull period of the year, and a turbo-charge for the lighter-evenings-opptimism that follows.

Elsie and Lily thrilled us as is to be expected… holidays become about that when you’re a parent in manny ways… Lily was proudly swimming most of her time under the water (a real breakthrough) and Elsie was on tip-top form and keeping us on our toes in a fun way.

This year we also went with the bikes.  A risk in February, and one that was pretty on-the-edge for 7 year old Lily, whose hands froze on a short but fairly epic ride.  The long climb was tough at the start; the long descent even worse when she’d lost the feeling in her fingers.  Bad dad.  But the ‘green loop’ in the middle was met with lots of “whoop” noises from Lily and all.  A more thorough bike ride on the thrilling trails of Glentress during a quiet lull in activitiesmade it a bit more worthwhile having lugged the bikes all that way… but the other parts of the holiday were good training for me learning to tolerate looking at beautiful hills instead of somehow being in them.  A tough lesson.

Photos and video:

Browse here or watch a slideshow below

And so it was, last Saturday morning at c. 10am, I met up with Phil, Gareth, Adrian, John, Peter, Simon, Rob, Richard, Stephen, Sam and Jim for a walk in the Aran mounains, a strangely under-visited non-honey pot corner of Snowdonia. What followed for the rest of Saturday and Sunday was fairly predictable in places (the tone of the banter), hugely unpredictable in others (Gareth’s near-fatal near-head near-injury). Sitting down to eat well deserved and well-shaken lunches on top of hills was on the agenda; breathtaking cloud inversions and Broken Specters were possibly less easy to foresee.

… but that is the nature.  If we got together every year for a walking weekend (and we have done for ten years running now) and everything went too much to a formula, it’d be fine.  The unpredictables; those surprise views, the sudden outpouring of hymns in Welsh Male Voice choir stylee, the bizarre, twisted concepts that can arise from meandering conversations – those bits are the spreads to the bread.

A wonderful weekend; fine fellows all, and just a great opportunity to spend special time with great people.  Until next year…

See more…

• Day 1: Browse Photos | Slideshow | Route
• Day 2: Browse Photos | Slideshow

• Phil’s Blog & Photos
• Adrian’s Photos
• Steve’s Photos
  
• Flickr Pool | Flickr Pool slideshow

Luge champs

So the 17th January 2010 was the last day I was officially in my 30s. As far as British Cycling was concerned, I was technically still a senior, so founf myself on the start line racing with ‘those youngsters’ under 40 for the last time in a National series. From about three minutes into the race, it was clear that I’m going to suit being old, as my race deteriorated into a bit of a shambles…

The traffic issues caused by 80 charging cyclists on a course approximately 3m wide on the first lap of a slippy race is always a fun affair – and the further down the grid you are, the more these things become amplified and hence more entertaining. It came to a head for me when I was unintentionally cut up by someone avoiding some slip, crash of something a few riders ahead. The upshot of it all was that I took an awkward sideways swipe at a highly tensioned rope at the side of the course; hammered my leg into a wooden stake, then flipped off the bike over the rops, but somehow still attached to them by my helment strap. I had to take my helmet off before I could even untangle and collect myself, and was now pretty much at the back of the field of 80 riders.

After a semi-satisfying lap of passing people and trying to get things back together without panicking, I was just about settled in when I again cought my handlebars on a rope. This time it was entirely my doing, although I knew nothing about it until I’d landed on the floor having somersaulted off my bike at a fairly high speed. I only lost about 20 seconds with this fall, but it broke my resolve, and from then on it was just a matter of plodding on and pretending I was still racing… my last race as a senior wasn’t to be a satisfying result – like every single race I’ve ridden since September’s 3 Peaks Cyclocross.

I’m not feeling too distressed about the way the season went. I’m not the most talented rider out there and can only expect to do well when I really train – and training’s just an inconvenient add-on since life with the children and work is so busy. What I end up with is a slightly public slide from grace – I was 21st in the National Trophy series last year and 23rd in the National Champs – this year I haven’t even scored a national trophy point – and can’t ride the rescheduled champs. It’s quite a come down…

But – still – I love it all – I’ve been doing all of this through my own choice and you have to take the rough with the smooth. Age isn’t really much of a factor at all – Nick Craig rode both the senior and the veterans events on Sunday and had stunning rides in the circumstances. I know it’s been a bit of a wierd season for training / busy family life PLUS a mix of technical / equipment failures that were largely my fault, but could I truly imaging a smooth cyclocross season? Nah. It’s just not right. Roll on September 2010.

Some images below from British Cycling, Billy Reid of TEAM WHEEELBASE and Richard Seipp.

I hear a lot of people saying that they don’t feel any older when they get into their 40s, but I have lost all my hair overnight, become wrinkled, and put on two stones. Never mind. I can still rock out.

Photos below of the day…

In more of an attempt to wangle a good day out than anything else, Matthew invited me to a day’s leave Mountain biking, well in advance of today (largely because of a technical glut of annual leave he had to take) so when the snow came back earlier this week, we both knew we were in for fun.

We met up in Holcombe at 9:15 this morning and what followed was one of those very memorable outdoor trips. I’ve been out in the snow a bit lately on the road bike, cross bike and even on the Mountain Bike, but have obviously avoided full on open fell riding – simply because there just hasn’t been the time (all the other rides could be done under the guise of ‘training’ or getting the children to school / nursury). Today’s ride was in the name of adventure and fun. It certainly lived up to that.

The fact that we covered a total of 18 miles in 3 hrs of riding sums it up really. What amounts to a good healthy walking pace on most summer days was a pretty full on MTB adventure round Holcombe and Entwhistle in what varied between hard-packed icy snow (at best) and foot deep snow-wading and bike carrying in the cold midwinter sunshine.

The ride was fun, and was topped off by a lovely few pints at the Shoulder of Mutton and a sarnie with chips, before a quick shower and then a chance to pick Lily up from school (on the trailer bike) and an hour or so of sledging, later on.

I hope my forties are this good. Stay tuned.

Mobile crappy photos below

Some extreme snow conditions hit us today – but given that Lily’s school has a policy of always being open, we went for it on the trailer bike and my 29er with some slightly deflated tyres. Brilliant commute… no skidding, and cars strewn all over the roads, to help us onto the moral and literal high ground on this morning’s school run.

Photos and Videos below…

Amazingly the dying Christmas snow had its Swan Song and provided us with yet another chance to sledge (… this after I’d already taken Lily for her first bum-boarding lesson in the morning). A few bruised bums on the cold ice, and a very cold muddy foot for Libby after an all too predictable welly incident, but all somehow made it just better and more memorable.

Back to work tomorrow for me, but this flying visit helped it become a very memorable and valuable Christmas break.

Some photos here or slideshow below, and a short video below that…

A day at home with Bill, Jean, Sally, Simon, Olly and Hugh
Pics here or slideshow below

Video:

Boxing Day

Pics here or slideshow below

Video: