jaymiemart.com: Introducing......EDNA!

Shrewsbury. With two days off it was time to smell some fresh air, and get used to a full, progressive 8 n a half inches, twiddle the swizzle, pump the spenshon and get the Sheila’s prepared for racing.

Many of you will fondly remember Tony Tonka, Captain Scarlet, Mr Jones, Gertrude, Percy the whopper chopper, Ralf and Mick Slick? Well, its time to raise your glasses to Edna! She is a peach. From the top, Norco 2007 DH frame (small), Foes curnut forks (complete with blow off valve….plush, plush, plush!) Hope factory team issue MOTO V2 brakes, bulb hubs, headset, bar end plugs (in Barbados team colours) Hope factory etched Foes discs. Halo rims on Hope rear, foes front. Kenda team tyres, Fu

nn bars, MRP chain device, THE grips and bum rest.

We took full advantage today of the fine weather and piled up to Hopton Castle (Shropshire) for bedding in session. The tracks were dry and fast. We sectioned a lot and my first impressions on the bike were good, I felt comfortable at the helm and got a good feel for the technical stuff. At the bottom of the course, we hooked up with Bob, Fester, Bruan and a whole load of crazy welsh way-ells boys from the valleeys. They were mental, we found this massive flood and the guys drove through it, but Fester, in his £60 van de-valued it by £15 when his number plate fell off in the water!! Duck tape is good for MOST things Fester, but evidently, not number plates!! We piled into the back of Bruans pick-up and headed over to Caersws to do uplift on the new Nationals track. It was wicked, fast, really gloopy, rooty, off camber and steep as hell! I wasn’t real prepared for a full on DH sesh tho as I hadn’t been home for over a week, so all I had was a biggles style lid n goggles combo!! Looking good!! No kidding on this one, I had a fight with a terridactile up on tract, it bashed me into this tree, the colllision smashed my shoulder and it tore my arm out of the socket, my arm fell off, dissolved into the mud and I lost it!! I got over it pretty fast and was back up for more in about 5 mins! The aftermath bruise is the biggest thing since sliced bread by the way, Ouch!! By the end of the day, as the sun was setting, we had a jump jam on the table top at the end of the course!

I had a really fun day aboard Edna and recon we gelled pretty well!! I left feeling really happy and headed off in search of an Indian and a beer, all we could find late on was a Chinese and a chopstick, can't have it all hu!! A perfect end to a perfect day!

My first race is the SDA in April, I can’t wait, I sent a thunder cats ‘HO’ out to the usual suspects on the World Cup girl train and in an hour, the Elite Brit girls collaborative entry doubled! I just can’t wait to catch up with everyone and introduce Edna to some dry, fast Scottish trails!

So, is what I have learned this week, so far….Great times with great friends are plasters for the sole!! When it rains, look up, when it falls, look down, puddles are fun. Losers are people that are so scared of winning that they don’t even try. Slurp chocolate fountains (make sure you don’t get caught tho!!) Sometimes, the last thing you want is exactly what you need. After an important presentation, leave your lap top open, there is nothing quite like a photo of your friends bottom on the big screen to brighten a critique session and lighten a hungover day. When in doubt, seek a falafel out! Oh and did you know, there is a small village in Shropshire called Knocking, it has a village shop, its called the Knocking shop! K, and if thats not enough, I learned this week that you can buy meat balls in gravy here too, they are called Faggots!! I didn't believe it, until I asked a guy in the supermarket to show me where the faggots were. Hey presto! .