I like this video, that is all.

Human-Powered Health from solve on Vimeo.

I lied - there is more

My finger is feeling quite a lot better recently, so I think I will have a short climb tomorrow.
Pretty psyched for it now, been a long time.

New Plan

Sooo, given that my hand is still not quite up to full pulling power, I have constructed a new plan for the end of the holiday.

A chap on UKC has offered a lift down to the south of france with our bikes (grenoble area) for about 70 squid.
From there we will cycle to another friends house near to Avignon (possibly via ceuse) and then have a few days off before attempting the Mt. Ventoux challenge.


View Larger Map

The Mt. Ventoux is an Haute Categorie Climb in the Tour De France and somewhat infamous for having 'killed' Tom Simpson in 1967.
Wikipedia describes it thusly:

"He began to wildly weave across the road before he fell down. He was delirious and asked spectators to put him back on the bike, which he rode to within a half mile of the summit before collapsing dead, still clipped into his pedals. Amphetamines were found in his jersey and bloodstream."

Personally, I think this is about the most hardcore deaths I have heard of.
He literally pushed himself to the death just to beat someone else to the top of a mountain.
It is worthy of a greek playwrite's grim imagination!




After we make a good push at the mountain we will descend and try to work our way back to the uk and home in time for the end of the holiday.
Hoorah!

Bristol, Cheddar and the Great Wide World

This weekend I went over to Bristol for my final shift in TCA and a leaving bbq.

While there however, I also managed to get out to cheddar a few times and belay Tris on his projects and take some pictures on the wall.

Also went for a cycle yesterday:

http://www.mapmyrun.com/routes/view/43537862



Tom


Tris


Bristol

Apologies

Apologies to anyone that likes this song for what I have done to it...



My finger is feeling a lot better for the icing, I climbed yesterday at SSP and it only twinged a little bit.

I am going back tomorrow to do some setting, more icing tonight should sort me out :-D

Rubiks what?

After noticing that I havent done any cubing in a long while, I found my cube in my slackline bag today.

I managed to solve it first time I attempted to do so while standing on the line which was nice, but it was pretty slow.

Just doing some more now to get my times a bit faster - and what do you know?
after a load of mediocre attempts 45ish times, I hit a sub thirty NL solve on about my 10th attempt... somethings up...

Gah, Neglected

...Still no climbing.
...No Rubiks.
...No Ukulele.
...No Fives.

I feel a bit awkward writing this under the subtitle of my blog now...

Sooooo...Long time no see...

:-/

Right,
Well,
Time for some news on my life.
I passed my degree in Chemistry with Management with a fairly dull 2.2, not much to say on the subject really - didn't get on with the course, and only really knuckled down to doing work in the third year. So probably a fair reflection on what I deserved. Never a 2.1 candidate after 3 years, but didnt deserve a 3rd because I am not quite that backward.

Coming out of university in May, I was hoping to go to Glasgow and work in the shiny new climbing centre being built in time for the end of the summer holidays. However, events have conspired to land me with a cushy new job in the South East of the country - and I cant complain one bit.

I climb fairly regularly with my old chemistry teacher whenever I am back home, and this summer was no exception. After having a bit of a chat about degree yadda yadda it transpired that the old Lab Technician at the school is leaving and the position was available.

After about a day the school had a crisp new CV sitting in their pigeon holes, and after a few interviews, I was offered the job!
SUPER!

So to look at the perks:
Climbing wall on Campus
Fives courts on Campus
3 meals a day if I want them
Free gym
Squash courts
I dont have to live in Glasgow
The grounds are beautiful
I am still within chemistry as a field
I have close ties with teaching if I want to take it up
and I get to work with a climbing mate who is (possibly) more keyed in than I am.
School Holidays - yaaadadaaaa!


Looking at the downsides:
I have to wake up at some odd hour in the morning, that up until now I was not aware existed.
I have to do work. For money....oh wait, that is sort of a perk too. Money - Sweet.


In other news - Last week I:
Ran 7.5 miles
Cycled well over 50 miles (getting well into this)
Went to rugby training
Bought waaaay too much new clothing (and now daren't look at my bank account)

I havent photographied much recently though, I am considering making my own slider, and possibly a crane. Though I have to question the wisdom of capturing nice footage if my computer is too slow to actually process it... not sure how to remedy that really.