then there was

the race. of course there's always the race.

i finally got to my physio to get some work done on my many aches and pains. there was twisting, there was stretching, there was the crunching of joints. it hurt. a lot. there is no part of your body, she said, that doesn't need attention. i shouldn't tell you i'm doing a 24hr endurance race in four days then i offered. she concurred. but i did it anyway.

the bit of the day that was sunshiney ie. the bit between the gales, rain and sleet and the gales rain and snow, was lovely. but wet. so yes kind readers it is true that i rubbed a hole in my nethers. pleasant it was not. but i'm not a man to let a bit of raw flesh hold me back, no i am not. so off into the darkness i went only to hear a suspicious cracking as i started down the slidey downhill. i looked behind me and saw what you see above. welcome to the seat of pain. yes, every time the back of the bike came up i was treated to a spike (or two) or just the blunt force of the seat post up my already raw bottom. my other bike was broken so i heeded the signs. enough was enough. i went to bed.

as strathpuffer's go for me this has to have been the best organised. at the very least gales didn't blow away the marquees this year and returning to the old start at contin was welcome, if tricky for the parking. all the stuff at the start was well put together and shows the experience of the last four years. i missed the cheering girls at the top of the hill but was more than compensated by the party caravan at the top of the forest road. on my last lap i climbed up to the strains of zeppelin banging out across the glen. it wasn't the best race for me but it's certainly the one i've

enjoyed the most.

aside from the spiking. obviously.