I've been training well, lately, but have also had a couple of weeks where work has had me travelling many, many miles. Travel wears me out, so training has taken a back seat at times.
There have been two reunions, lately. This has caused abit of melancholy and reflection, so although I don't normally cave in to such things, please bear with me.
"The older I get, the better I was."
The first was meeting up with a few of the guys that worked together on RAF Mountain Rescue, back in the 90's. We are all a bit older, maybe wiser, but still seem to like to hammer out a nice hill day...
...Well, they did. I'm a cyclist now (did you know that?) and was quite happy climbing up Snowdon whilst waxing lyrical about how mountain Rescue had seen me through the hardest bits of my life.
Scouse saw me through some of the very darkest times, when my body and mind were ravaged by the chemicals that turned all of the veins in my arms and across my chest and shoulders, black. It may be hard to believe, but I was a boxing and climbing skeletor impersonator then, with big muscles and gynmastic physique. I had veins all over the place, so it wasn't a pretty site.
We had gone up on an exped for a week in the Cairngorms as the team prepared for a Himalayan adventure. I was a right pain in the arse for the whole week, and Scouse put up with me. Everybody put up with me, and nobody slapped me!?
When I was diagnosed with cancer in 1993 (I think), it was only about 3 weeks after meeting Jo. She stayed, and didn't do a runner, so she's a keeper.
At the same time, I was out almost every weekend with M.R. and it seems surprising now, but they let me stay active as a team member and party leader. They did, however, ask me to slow down a bit, as I had a tendency to overdo it then, as now. Dan (The Boss) ended up banning me from the hill,and insisted that I just went climbing. I was a rock jock, and loved climbing every day, so this was heaven to me. My grade went up from that point, and this was close to the point where I did my first hard extreme route, only 2 or 3 weeks after my surgery. I took Dan climbing a few times and helped to push the grade of some of the climbers of the day, like Brendan, too.
That was a good summer, and the winter season of climbing was kind of great too!
Some of these guys were out with us this weekend, which was nice.
M.R. looked after me, let me tour the UK with them, teaching rock climbing craft and also getting in lots of new experience. I was fit and strong but, ultimately, I was baggage that they didn't really need.
I did solo my first E5 and E6 that year, but it was a few more before that became more normal.
The banter kept me going then, and it kept me going now as we turned around at the top of Snowdon, to start our descent...
...My legs were killin me! Cyclists are strong, but we only ever work concentrically. Try lengthening a muscle under strain (by going downhill) and it causes pain. Lots of pain.
We walked past the money post- which never had money in it in "my day" on both the climb and the descent. We got a photo of Paddy's boy next to it, shrouded in mist, but it's probably best that I don't show it as he's a minor and I haven't asked.
I couldn't walk straight for days. It was great fun!!
Another reunion was when I managed to get a room at the hotel and Fitness club where I used to teach circuits, 13 years ago. The same faces were there, and it was like I hadn't been away- except for the fact that someone else was doing all the shouting. We met in the bar afterwards, and caught up properly.
The Y-Club in Manchester is almost a spiritual home nowadays as I (and Jo) had some really good times there.
I'd rather do the shouting, mind you.
Could I walk properly after the circuit session?
Could I heck.
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