Hurrah!

TopGear back on on Sunday!

Faster! Harder!

s'funny - I have an oldie but goldie scooter song on the shuffle to run to now. It's hard not to 'sing' along when this comes on.

Please though, don't judge me on what I choose to listen to whilst running ;-)

Respect to the man in the ice cream van! (try about 3:26 in)

A change is as good as a rest

Running has been hard recently. After my last trip to Budapest I came home feeling refreshed, relaxed and full of beans so I went out and ran and ran and ran. It ended up being my longest run ever at 14 and a bit km. I was pleased but could tell it was a couple of km too far. I had started a niggle. I know now there is one way to end a niggle - do not run. Stretch and rest for a week and see how things go. So, a couple of weeks of stretching and gentle 20min recovery runs midweek and I feel great again.

Last weekend I decided a 6k gentle plod would be in order but it was not to be. Poor prep meant I needed a pee after 3k and started to go hypo (low blood sugar) after 3.5km. So I run-walked back and felt a bit miffed.

Last night I ripped off all the old trance from my ipod shuffle and loaded up a total change of scene with more variety. This morning I got up early-ish had a good low GI breakfast with a banana, coffee and energy gel. I made sure the bladder was not going to nag and went out. I breezed through 10km with no stopping, good pace (apart from a car getting in my way requiring a stop) and rhythm (good word that - had to look it up!). I think the recipe below is one I will use again:

• Get up early


• Eat a good brekky


• Only one cup of coffe


• Energy gel




• Eat one before running


• Take one for every hour of running and one spare




• Important one here: Change the ipod playlist every 6 months

Call me a creature of habit but a routine or formula or recipe is needed for consistent measurable results. The coffee thing is key I feel. Normally Saturday starts off with a couple of small cups of hot brown from the machine - I nice wakeup jolt indeed! I have been reading about caffeine affecting blood sugar levels in diabetics. It seems the best word is 'destabilising' - blood sugar could raise or lower with caffeine depending on the individual. Seems to lower mine so it's going to be phased out over time.

Red Bull Air Races Budapest

The warm up guy was quite good





There was so much action going on during the build up





This must be Kirby Chambliss as he was awesomely fast but a bit ragged and Peter Besenyei was consistantly high at the quadro eventually getting penalised...



Paul Bonhomme - eventually third. Incredible smoothness through the air - real finesse I can only dream of.



And superb accuracy through the quadro:



and so fast!



Mike Mangold was pretty sharp - well he did win it!



The fireworks were hard to capture but I like the accdental artistry of this snap:



Lots more pics here and more to follow...

Exclusive club

I now have over 100 hours total flight time in aeroplanes....still a newbie though - I need another 200 hours to get out of the 'killing zone'

Expect the unexpectable

So,
I went for a blood test today as part of the 'look after stupid diabetics' thing - it's nice to feel loved but it tends to get in the way sometimes. Anyhoo - I parked up in the Mount Vernon Hospital car park, got tested and got back to the car in 15 mins flat. Neat - efficient health service! Having been to this car park on a few previous occasions I know they sometimes charge for parking but not always...why? Dunno, it's the health service ya know! On this occasion the barrier was down and I needed to pay. 'No sweat' thought I - I have a quid or so in my possession.....TWO POUNDS FRICKIN FIFTY!!!! For 10 minutes parking!!! Outrageous! To top it off, I have £1.08 in my wallet and no notes. I have plastic so I thought any modern hospital will have a cash machine - better go pay up even though I feel mortally insulted... Dutifully trudging off to the main building I remember there is a change machine for notes (money grabbing bastards know when they are on to a nice little earner) but there is no sign of any cash machine. I *do* see a 'parking office' in the foyer however:

me: Is there a cash machine in the hospital?
oaf: No.
me: I've been in the car park for 10 minutes. I only have £1.08. How can I pay this ridiculous fee?
oaf: Gimme a quid and I'll give you a token to get out
me: !

And so I was released for a massive 60% discount!

To anyone who uses Mount Vernon Hospital:
Use this technique to not pay exorbitant car park fees.

I am not the fake steve jobs

This is the guy you're looking for...