The weekends are quite busy this year. This past weekend for example:
Friday I had an exam that was a real stinker. I managed to write for the whole three hours but it was a load of garbage. I recognised the concepts required to answer the questions but didn't manage to get the answers down on paper very coherently or in a structured manner. It was so bad that I came out of the exam straight to the pub on my own as I needed a drink and some time to think.
My son had had exams the previous Thursday, Friday, Monday and Tuesday at school but he didn't have the option of going to the pub. Hopefully his exams went better than mine.
Saturday morning I had to get the Christmas decorations out of the loft then my son and I had football, a cup match. The weather held off and we won 5-0 (I say "we" because I am team assistant manager and I had to referee the second half). Hopefully that puts us through to the next round (initial stages of the cup are on league basis, only the latter stages are knockout). Of course we cycled there and back (two miles each way) on the recently acquired tandem.
Saturday PM was my usual weekly trip to the supermarket. Our weekly shop seems to be increasing dramatically in price all the time despite the fact we are being told there is deflation in the UK. I then had to get the ladder out to put up the external Christmas lights and clear out the guttering which has been overflowing for a few weeks and which my wife was complaining was wakiung her in the night. Our house is two storey and I was quite nervous up the ladder as two friends have fallen off ladders in the last month, one died leaving a wife and two daughters and the other was in hospital for a few days with a broken arm and concussion.
My son and my wife put up the decorations in the house including the tree (come December 1st my son insists we have the tree up)
Putting up decorations only serves to remind me to get started on the Christmas cards. Those of you who are used to getting Christmas cards from me early December are probably wondering where the cards are this year, well, time, work, exams, etc have defeated me so far but the writing of cards is on my to-do list. Please bear with me.
As for buying Christmas presents, there a couple of weeks yet before I have to start that. The longer you wait the less choice there is in the stores and so the easier it is to buy. That's my logic anyway. Actually the last couple of years my daughter has come out with me but I don't think that is going to happen this year.
I was supposed to go cycling with my mate Big G on Sunday but it was raining first thing so I took my son to the cinema with his cousin to see "Nativity" followed by a trip to Burger King. It is a good film. Made by the guys from "The Office" and very amusing and watchable.
After I got home I got permission from my wife and went out cycling on my own at 3:00 PM. I only went a total mileage of 27 miles but as I got to the furthest point, Box Hill, it got dark and it poured with rain. The tea shop was just shutting so I tempted fate and didn't stop. I didn't have any lights and it was a bit dangerous especially on the busy A217 dual carriageway but even though I was soaking and nervous of the traffic in the dark I was enjoying my first ride for a month. Got home for a quick shower then off to the evening service at the local church.
I couldn't have fitted anything else in if I had tried.
Tuesday, 8 December 2009
November 2009
The formation and registration of the Guildford Peloton has been moving forward. Perhaps not at a pace which we would have liked, but it has been progressing. The thing that has moved on most is the website. It is still being hosted on our member developers personal site as we have still to register the official site but please do take a look and give us feedback.
http://www.zarpix.com/GP/index.htm .
We are still awaiting the final designs of the shirts, the registration of the site and registration with British Cycling but those will come.
News from afar. The Guildford Pelotoners Australian associate has emailed me today to announce that despite being over the half century in age he has just won a Category D race. His wife believes that his success should not be broadcast as he was racing against kids (teenagers and girls) but he maintains there was a good cross section in the race with a number of veterans, some older than him. He is over the moon as he says "this is the only time my his life I have won anything" and to crown it he won a AUD $30.00 prize. You can see his picture and winning margin here
http://www.randwickbotanycc.com/Results%202009/5%20Dec%202009/results_5_Dec_2009.htm
In the West Sutton Little League (WSLL) (football) this season my son got selected for the "Hunters". At the first match the team manager asked the parents for a volunteer to be his assistant manager. As usual muggins here was duly elected. When I accepted I assumed (wrongly) that the assistant manager just organised on the weeks the manager can't make it. No sooner had I accepted the post than I was informed that I was now on the executive committee and needed to attend the executive meetings, and that I had to go through a CRB (Criminal Records Board check or as it is commonly known "Peado" check). Fortunately I came out clear on that as I did when the Scouts Association appointed me on to the local group executive committee.
The Tandem has come in handy for the football, the pitches being two miles from home with a lack of parking. My son and I have been cycling up and back on the tandem. I'm on the front, he is the stoker. There is a constant barrage of noise coming from behind me as we cycle. Fortunately I can't hear a word of it and just continue oblivious as to whether he is complaining or conversing (the former I suspect from the tone). Big G has agreed to do a proper road test with me in the Surrey Hills when we get the weather and can coordinate our diaries. We will have the discussion as to who goes on front and who is the stoker on the day.
Anyway, football, the Hunters started the season badly loosing a few games and starting the season at the bottom of the table. Since then we have been improving with some draws and some good wins (last 4 games have been 4-0, 5-0, 2-2, 5-0) and have clawed our way back up to the middle of the table as we have begun to gel and gain in confidence. These results haven't been without a lot of effort by Damien our manager and lots of frustration as we usually get possession for 90% of the game but seem to lack the ability to convert possession or corners into goals or even score easy goals.
My contribution has been a lot of warming the boys up with skills practice before each match, shouting during the matches, and refereeing the matches (some one from each team referees one half of the game) not to mention a near nervous breakdown each week.
There are two games left this season (the season stops at Christmas and a new season starts in January) and a couple of wins will leave us in third place in the league and in the semi finals of the cup. We can't quite catch the two top teams who started the season well but they have found it more difficult each week to keep up their winning ways. If we keep improving it certainly looks good for us in the second half of the season which starts after Christmas and the league starts afresh.
Talking of football. After finishing her degree at Leicester De Montford University (achieving a 2.1 in English and getting a prize for her dissertation) my daughter has been working at Leicester City Football Club. She has been working on the gate, with the youngsters that go on the pitch with the team, organising the half time youngsters penalty competitions and leading a "FanZone" initiative. She seems to be enjoying it notwithstanding that she is paid by the hour at the minimum wage so Dad has had still to help with the rent. She is now quite an expert on The Championship as well as Formula One.
Cycling really has taken a back seat for a number of reasons. Work has got in the way, the weather has been dreadful, I can't get out Saturday mornings because of football, and my training partner M has had a medical condition preventing him from training. Big G has committed to doing the Etape next year and he and I have tried to coordinate our diaries but thus far whilst we have done the odd ride we have not been able to get out together on a regular basis (more my fault than his, he has managed to ride most weekends).
Whilst I still have not got an entry to the Etape next year a good number of the Pelotoners have through various means (Etape.org, Cyclomundo, Sports Tours to name but a few). We will probably have more members doing the race next year than any previous years (and if we had club vests we are still not big enough to be noticed over clubs like London Dynamo, Devere and Addiscombe).
Pootle on everyone
http://www.zarpix.com/GP/index.htm .
We are still awaiting the final designs of the shirts, the registration of the site and registration with British Cycling but those will come.
News from afar. The Guildford Pelotoners Australian associate has emailed me today to announce that despite being over the half century in age he has just won a Category D race. His wife believes that his success should not be broadcast as he was racing against kids (teenagers and girls) but he maintains there was a good cross section in the race with a number of veterans, some older than him. He is over the moon as he says "this is the only time my his life I have won anything" and to crown it he won a AUD $30.00 prize. You can see his picture and winning margin here
http://www.randwickbotanycc.com/Results%202009/5%20Dec%202009/results_5_Dec_2009.htm
In the West Sutton Little League (WSLL) (football) this season my son got selected for the "Hunters". At the first match the team manager asked the parents for a volunteer to be his assistant manager. As usual muggins here was duly elected. When I accepted I assumed (wrongly) that the assistant manager just organised on the weeks the manager can't make it. No sooner had I accepted the post than I was informed that I was now on the executive committee and needed to attend the executive meetings, and that I had to go through a CRB (Criminal Records Board check or as it is commonly known "Peado" check). Fortunately I came out clear on that as I did when the Scouts Association appointed me on to the local group executive committee.
The Tandem has come in handy for the football, the pitches being two miles from home with a lack of parking. My son and I have been cycling up and back on the tandem. I'm on the front, he is the stoker. There is a constant barrage of noise coming from behind me as we cycle. Fortunately I can't hear a word of it and just continue oblivious as to whether he is complaining or conversing (the former I suspect from the tone). Big G has agreed to do a proper road test with me in the Surrey Hills when we get the weather and can coordinate our diaries. We will have the discussion as to who goes on front and who is the stoker on the day.
Anyway, football, the Hunters started the season badly loosing a few games and starting the season at the bottom of the table. Since then we have been improving with some draws and some good wins (last 4 games have been 4-0, 5-0, 2-2, 5-0) and have clawed our way back up to the middle of the table as we have begun to gel and gain in confidence. These results haven't been without a lot of effort by Damien our manager and lots of frustration as we usually get possession for 90% of the game but seem to lack the ability to convert possession or corners into goals or even score easy goals.
My contribution has been a lot of warming the boys up with skills practice before each match, shouting during the matches, and refereeing the matches (some one from each team referees one half of the game) not to mention a near nervous breakdown each week.
There are two games left this season (the season stops at Christmas and a new season starts in January) and a couple of wins will leave us in third place in the league and in the semi finals of the cup. We can't quite catch the two top teams who started the season well but they have found it more difficult each week to keep up their winning ways. If we keep improving it certainly looks good for us in the second half of the season which starts after Christmas and the league starts afresh.
Talking of football. After finishing her degree at Leicester De Montford University (achieving a 2.1 in English and getting a prize for her dissertation) my daughter has been working at Leicester City Football Club. She has been working on the gate, with the youngsters that go on the pitch with the team, organising the half time youngsters penalty competitions and leading a "FanZone" initiative. She seems to be enjoying it notwithstanding that she is paid by the hour at the minimum wage so Dad has had still to help with the rent. She is now quite an expert on The Championship as well as Formula One.
Cycling really has taken a back seat for a number of reasons. Work has got in the way, the weather has been dreadful, I can't get out Saturday mornings because of football, and my training partner M has had a medical condition preventing him from training. Big G has committed to doing the Etape next year and he and I have tried to coordinate our diaries but thus far whilst we have done the odd ride we have not been able to get out together on a regular basis (more my fault than his, he has managed to ride most weekends).
Whilst I still have not got an entry to the Etape next year a good number of the Pelotoners have through various means (Etape.org, Cyclomundo, Sports Tours to name but a few). We will probably have more members doing the race next year than any previous years (and if we had club vests we are still not big enough to be noticed over clubs like London Dynamo, Devere and Addiscombe).
Pootle on everyone
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