So Cal..the OC, Leguna Seca and too many SMOOTH MOVES to write home about!

The day after the marathon, I dragged my bags and limped pathetically to Heathrow, destination L.A. Catching each falling star on the way and putting it in my pocket!! Tara and Polly met me off the flight after a funny evening at the Ellen Degeneres show and we settled in in the O.C for a few days. I woke up on Tuesday and set out on Driving lesson #1! T can't drive right now, so I was at the helm in her nippy wee Lexus! We went to rehab where I spent most of the time rubbing my eyes!! Not because of jet lag, but in amazment of Tara's progress! In 4 months, she has come on in leaps and bounds. She has consistant, localised sensation and movement which can only be a good thing. She has mastered walking aided by her Forest Gump style leg supports and crutches and can kick both her legs out. Progress is slow but very very steady.

After a bit of car-barny and some major shuffling, we were packed and ready to hit the road north to Monterey. Kim, T and I chewed the fat and gased the entitre way along the 6 hour drive!! We landed in our hotel, dumped the bags and headed out for T with my sistas Fee and Jiggs. First day at the Sea Otter gave the indication of a biggy biggy event, it was like a festival, everyone and everything 'bike orientated' was there. The venue for the race was the infamous Laguna Seca track. The place was a hive of activity, roadies, xc, slalom, BMX, and DH, there was pretty much every kinda pie for kinda tastebud!! The pits were nestled in the bowl surrounding the track, the roadies raced the track and we raced on it's backside....OOOER!

Riding was cool. Buckle from Trek was a total legend and flew my bike over for the event. When I got there it was all built and ready to go! It was a little big for the course, but pedalled like a dream. I can't wait to get it onto the bigger Alpine courses and see how she handles, she still needs a name tho...hmmmm! CAECELIA????

Okay...so a low down. I finished 22nd in the DH, Fee came 3rd in the Slalom and 2nd in the DH, Buhl kicked ASS in the DH and took the win. Damion is rubbish at returning keys and has a bit to learn about wine but can cook up a juicy steak.Wagner's shit trilogy is just as funny 2nd time round. Kim is the most practical person I have ever met, a human swiss army knife. In and out burgers are finger lickin good. The Syndicate guys took over the podium. You drive on the right there, you drive on the right there!! I am no longer a California or root beer virgin. Fruit bats lurk in the trees in Monterey. Neven is officially the most lethial social handgrenade I know, full of great banter and laughter. You can get handcuff shaped bike locks which are great for locking people up?!

Tara has the funniest franglais accent, best used ordering in take outs!! Monterey has the BEST breakfast place ever and breakfast while I was away was the funniest meal of the day...SMOOTH MOVE!!. Facial hair is SO last season. 110mph on the freeway is apparantly a good move?! I scored 9 points on the KHS team funny board!!California produces some lucious vino and the biggest strawberries I have ever seen. Asking strangers for lifts is naughty unless they drive jeeps and you are with Neven! Reading glasses come in all shapes and sizes, som are good in a vertical position in bed?

Keep your eyes peeled for the May edition of the Dirt Magazine, there is a wee treat in there for y'all!! Which moose let the juice loose about this hooose? SET THE JUICE LOOSE! xx

26.2 miles, blood sweat and blisters!!

There I was on a dark December night, deluded after a long drive cross country racking my brains as to how I can go about raising money for a dear friend of mine Tara Llanes. Cast your eyes south and read her story below....

Cut a mammoth tail short, I ended up talking to some of my fellow Lucozade workers and low and behold, in mid January, I got news that I had made Team Lucozade Sport and I had a secure place to run the marathon. I was so excited, I know people who have tried for over 6 years to get a place to run in the race!! The excitement soon faded when the reality of actually putting your mind and body though the hours of training and then the actual race set in! Training was nuggets, I had to train up and down the country (As I am usualy away with work) and I trained in the dark in all weather conditions including snow, rain, sun, hail....in The Isle of Arran, the Lakes, most of the major cities, Edinburgh, London, Glasgow, Manchester BLA BLA BLA, you get the picture.

The tredmill helped me loads and I spent quite a lot if time running at a set pace over set distances on the 'milly the treadmill! I got my 10km time down to 53 mins, which ain't bad for a novice!! I found out a lot about running too, did you know that if you wear the wrong panies, your fufu can chaffage and it can fall off? Interesting!! I bet you didn't know that it is not uncommon for people to loose all control of their bowel and soil their panties whilst running? Note...I WAS NOT ONE OF THESE LOOSE BOTTOMED FOLKS!! I did however whitness some shameless shitting en route round the marathon course!! Also, it is not uncommon to need a wee en route, pretty obvious really, considering the average time is 4 1/2 hours and the average fluid consumption is arounf 2L. I am proud to admit to a spot or urban peeing, it was quite releaving actually!!

The build up to the big day was exhausting. As Lucozade are the title energy drinks sponsor, it was all hands on deck for the Expo! Me and my budding team of Sports Scientists were on hand giving runners last minute advice and tips for 4 days prior to the event! It is the busiest few days of our working calendar, actullay it is a working marathon!! My boss was a peach, he actually forced me to take the day before the event off and a day off it was, long lie in in my hotel and the ole feet were up!! My bro and sista in law took me out for T which was so well needed!!

Marathon day came in a blink of the eye!! There I was in my Team Lucozade Sport kit, all hydrated and well fueled. I past the 2 mile mark, looked over my shoulder and saw my friend Amy! Out of 36'000 folks, what are the chances of that? We ran together until the 25th mile, she was the best running buddy ever!! We also met Blind Dave and his team, he is the most amazing guy! I helped him with his nutrition stratergy and the London Marathon was the last in his 7 marathon challenge across 7 continents in 7 days, the third man in history to complete the challenge...oh, and he is blind!! I was lucky to run the last mile with 4 nativly dressed Massi warriors, they were amazing, they ran with bike tyre style foot covers held on with string. The crowds all the way down the course were 4 deep and the cheers were unreal, it was like a world cup for 26.2 miles!! My whole team waited in the rain at the last Lucozade feeding station at mile 23 to cheer me on, it was pretty emotional!! I swore at a team meeting that if I hit the wall, I would resign! My fuelling was textbook, I felt strong, hydrated and well fuelled the entire way, the only thing that held me back were a few monster blisters and a fat, feeble foot!!

I hope you never experience having to step upto the plate for a friend, but if you do, do something worthwhile, make it count and in the mean time, it is never too late to sponsor me!!

http://www.tarallanesroadtorecovery.com/ XX