Continuing the Olympic theme

Perhaps the least arduous of our Olympic adventures this morning.  We rolled out of bed at 5.30 to head to the end of the road to see the flame off after spending the night in the council house.  

We were expecting a few people to have made the effort (it was very early) but were surprised to be greeted by around 1500 people at college green all excited and jostling for what they hoped would be a great photo opp.

5.59 came and a cheer arose from the crowd as the torch was lit.  We followed the trail of the flame as it bobbed its way towards us, then, lots of smiling, waving, cheering as it passed.

Then it was gone.. and the crowd dispersed, off to tell their stories, send their tweets (guilty) and post their blogs (also guilty).  

The Olympic train passes my office in another hour or so, but the gym is calling louder along with Kms 1996 to 2011(.5).  The end is well & truly in sight.

A longer post to come, but...

Using Ciclovia to Plan Your Streets « Project for Public Spaces

Ciclovia looks like an interesting way of promoting change in cities away from car use... Try it, cheaply, see if it works... Would like to see Britain's first cycling city try it out.

Clunky side extensions to the aquatic centre

My earlier post refers.
:-)

Olympic Pool

Much as I would like this to be about a titanic pool table, it is a quick post with a couple of images from our trip to the Zaha Hadid designed aquatics centre for London 2012.

The pool exceeded my expectations, which were admittedly low, in that it created a good environment for swimmers and spectators.

Despite the quite clunky nature of the extensions, it looks likely that the visuals for the main events have been compromised for the legacy set up (or is that better for sustainability?!). But I think, on reflection, that is a good thing in an attempt to avoid the white elephant status of the water cube in Beijing for which they are struggling to find uses.

It became clear once inside what the plan was for the legacy mode, and hopefully it will work well as a regular pool. Images to follow.

There were 4 primary materials visible: concrete, glass, stainless steel, and a bit if timber (if you look really hard!).  It's a tried & tested combination which seems to work well at the moment.  We'll have to wait and see whether it ages well. I have concerns over the steel!

The roof form inside is quite wavy, it will be interesting to see how it affects the sounds the swimmers hear.. You get the sense that it might focus things on them, heightening awareness of the crowd.

The diving boards reminded me of water spouts, which is appropriate I suppose, and I think they will be a focus for images during the games.

As I so often am with new Architecture, I was left with the question "how on earth are they going to dust that?!"

catch up....

Well, time has flown since we went to the Olympic stadium, we managed to clock up 2,100 miles driving to the south of France and back again, and had a great time eating bread, cheese & wine. And yes, we had boursin too.

The Olympic stadium was an interesting experience - the outside area is definitely coming together with the landscaping scheme - the abundance of water on the site makes a huge difference.  The stadium itself was interesting when we compared it to the Bird's Nest in Beijing.  The former was very much a multi-purpose venue - it was for the Olympics, but it was also sending a message to the world.  China had arrived.  London is very much a venue, functional and reasonably attractive from the outside.  Views on the inside were good, and when we visited, we were able to circumnavigate the arena (mostly - there was still some building work going on) which gave you the opportunity to see all the areas of the arena, and therefore, various sports, depending on your seat.  So from a spectator point of view, it should be a good venue.

I'll post some more pictures once I locate the lead to get the photos off the camera!

The weeks in the run up to the road trip were quite busy at work and home, and so the 2012 challenge, which is what this is all about after all, has taken a bit a back seat.  My average has dropped quite a bit, but I'm still at around 100/week which will keep me on track for 20.12 weeks.  However, with an impending silly period at work, coupled with the swimming leg of a triathlon relay coming up, I've decided to defer my completion until May 25th, finishing the distance with a 750m swim at the rowing venue for the Olympics.  It's also been rather helpful as I've realised how quickly muscle mass disappears when not being used - it's been tough getting back into it!

Next weekend sees us visit the Olympic site for the last time before the games to see the aquatics centre, which still looks a bit odd - the entrance - or rather where the entrance should be - is a classic piece of hadid handiwork, with doors on an angle disorientating the user.  The first time I went into an Hadid building at Vitra, I actually felt a bit queasy!

Anyhow - my spreadsheet tells me I have completed 1550km to date, so on my journey to Rome from Bristol, I have just reached the coast at Genoa - Rome is in sight!!!

Et bonjour provence

:-)

First images

Nice sunny day!

Onwards.

So after a blistering week where I surpassed my previous highest distance, work and preparations for our upcoming road trip gave me the lowest mileage week to date <sad face>

75km has put a bit of a dent in the average, but it's still holding out above 105km/week so we're on target for the 20.12 week target.  I need to make sure I can clock up 20km somehow in the next week while we're on the road.

My developing spreadsheet with distances etc seems to have dropped off in the update.  You can find my distance log here.

Sunday of this week sees us attending the Olympic Stadium in London for what I believe is the first test event there.  From the ticketmaster correspondence we've been getting I don't think it's going to be anywhere near full, unsurprising given that it will just be people like me, completing the 2012 challenge, who will be on display.  Oh, there is a bonus that we have a 'show' with lots of people from tv shows like X Factor singing for us.  Hoping to be long gone by then.

Wifi permitting, we'll post a few pictures and a small commentary when we've been.

I wonder how it will measure up...?

Viva.

So no sooner than I find myself in Switzerland, I blink, and I'm in Italy.

It feels like I'm on the final stretch of my journey as I make my way along the Aosta valley (where we recently skied - flying is so much easier). 

In reality though, I still have 800km to go to get to Rome, which at the current rate of progress will take me about 8 weeks. Although after attacking the treadmill on Tuesday, I may need to reassess that.. Still very sore two days after the event.

Tonight sees a visit (in the real world) to see Pop Will Eat Itself in their latest incarnation.  Expectations have been set relatively low by the latest album, but we'll go with open minds, and partially closed aural canals.

Masterchef

Delicious sounding recipes from the winner of this year's Masterchef.

#cantwaittotrythem

Recipes | Shelina Permalloo, Masterchef 2012 Winner

Cheese and chocolate.

I haven't had a chance to post for a while, it's been a busy few days.

Since reaching half way on the trip from Bristol to Rome, I've crossed the virtual border into Switzerland, a very fine country, and cycled around lake Geneva, pictured (you can't magine the gym as being quite as inspiring)

More tickets this week: we're off to an Olympic test event for ..... Synchronised swimming!!  The event itself is of a little interest as I used to know a few synchronised swimmers (? well what would you call them?) when I was training in the unsynchronised form of the event. I remember Sunday evening obsessions being accompanied by muffled tones of the Art of Noise.  No, the important thing is the event gives us a clean sweep of the 3 major Olympic venues well in advance of the games themselves, and for a fraction of the cost. Watch this space for more images in the coming weeks.

Ooh lookie

Last night on the bike was a struggle. I think that all of the miles may be catching up with me. My body crying out for a rest.

So it was with little enthusiasm I completed the distance chart and I didn't really pay much attention to it other than to get my rather lamentable 15k registered.

However, looking at my chart in the cold light if day, I notice I've just passed half way :-) . So even with a week off for skiing, I'm still on target to hit 20 weeks (averaging 110k per week at the moment). This may drop a bit as I take a day or two rest but I don't mind too much.

As I hurtle towards Switzerland it feels hard, but I have the impression that I'm through the worst.

Live blogging

So with my new funky phone I can ride and blog as I go. Not necessarily the easiest thing to do, but you've got to love the technology.

Head down and off we go.

Enjoy the day :-)

Velodrome visit.

So, a couple of weeks have gone by since we actually made it to the Olympic velodrome. The day was great fun, and even though we were only there for a series of heats, quarter finals and semi finals, there was enough excitement with quite a few of the big Team GB names putting a on show (Hoy, Pendleton, Varnish).

The velodrome itself was a great building, the views of the track inside were great, the atmosphere electric (especially during the Keirin) and the structure simple. For those who are interested, the roof consists of timber cassettes (hollow) suspended from cables strung across the arena from a steel ring beam, insulation was laid ontop of this, and the waterproofing above. Unfortunately, we were quite tightly chaperoned to the site so didn't manage a wide angle shot - but there are plenty out there... the e-architect site has lots of information about it and some development pictures.

The original conception for the building became known (to me anyway) as the floating pringle. I think the build has managed to maintain the idea in the delivery with a glazed wall beneath the roof providing a lightness to the roof and visibility into the velodrome - in places you can see down to the track to watch the cycling. It's quite enticing, and if you were just passing it would probably make you want to go in, and who knows... you might take up cycling!

Whilst the velodrome had us convinced, the rest of the Olympic park left a few more question marks. Because the majority of the buildings are either temporary, or designed for legacy mode, I came away with a feeling that it was all a bit cobbled together - and having seen the Beijing site a couple of years back, am concerned at what people will leave London feeling. As an example, the Hadid designed pool was value engineered to the extent that they took out most of the seating needed for an Olympic event, leaving a smaller legacy pool... which I can understand given the white elephant of the Water Cube. However, they've taken a (relatively) interesting legacy building not designed to be scaled up, the additions seriously compromise what the building looks like (again no pictures - sorry, but you'll see it in time!). The architecture doesn't flow particularly and the additions just look slapped on. The main stadium seems to hold it together, having been designed with the idea of removing a bit of it, but other areas feel a little lame. I'm sure it will all be brought together by what looks like a very exciting landscaping scheme.

We were both unconvinced by the overwhelming Anish Kapoor 'sculpture' - not quite sure what the plan is with it, but once the extra bits of the park get taken away, it's going to dominate the area... not a good thing.

However, I will save my last shot of the post for the approach to the site. I don't know if this is the final route (there were no signs to the Olympic Park from the tube, just cold volunteers (who were great) with big pink foam pointy fingers (which were not)) - but to get from Stratford Station to the site, you have to walk through the middle Westfield shopping centre.

Just what does that say about us as a nation?

Snowy update

So I survived the ski guiding on Tuesday, knocking off a couple of blacks on the way.

On Wednesday we had a private lesson to brush up on technique. The effects were immediate and amazing, with N's confidence increasing as the day went on. We ticked off red after red with abandon.

Thursday saw a bus trip to another resort, pila, which we explored with what seemed like half of Italy. The reds tumbled again and N did some runs which previously would have had her fleeing the hills. Very impressed with the improvement, and it meant we were able to get to the summit and enjoy a 360 degree panorama of the alps. Spectacular. As was the chocolate ice cream I had afterwards in the main town.

Today, a day off from the skiing to explore the nearby therme spa at pre st didier. Spent quite a bit of the day staring at a snow covered mont blanc from a hot tub, feeling very decadent. A feeling marred only slightly by the other half of Italy being there too. The mud bath was a hoot.

Hotel decorations

These are quite clever....

:-)

Glorious day

So the end of day 1 skiing. We survived unscathed. Was a glorious day, we both had too many layers on to start with.

Someone should have told us though that it was an Italian holiday. The place is heaving with the (mostly) guided missiles known as bambini.

The sun has been out all day and it has been what we call a good day for architecture. But, we only have the architecture of nature to cope with. Ah well. Enjoy ....

(ps. We're by mont blanc, the top of which is appx 1000m below everest base camp).

Good morning Italy!

Apologies for lack of velodrome post

Will rectify in due course.

In the mean time....

Our current view

:)

another day another hour challenge

So after last weeks timed ride, I decided to have another go this week... creeping closer to that world record with a 36.3km (L13). At this rate, I will be the new world record holder by the end of March. Something tells me though that the kms will become harder to shave off.

This week has been an eventful one on the challenge, with my route taking in Reims - celebrated appropriately - and getting tickets for the 2012 challenge event at the olympic stadium in London. We've also managed to get some tickets for a test event for the velodrome which is possibly the most attractive of the Olympic buildings from the images. Will update the blog with photos as we hit the events.

The world of cycling has also been in the news this week, with Armstrong, Ullrich and Contador all hearing long awaited news. Though if you believe the whispers, there may be more to come on the Armstrong story.

On a more positive (ahem) note, the tour of Qatar rolled out this week, with Tom Boonen (Belgium, Omega Pharma-Quickstep) taking the spoils.

30% done...

So that was January. Went very quickly, didn't it.

A month and a bit into the challenge, and I have managed to clock up just over 30% of the total. I'm feeling quite pleased with progress.

I have very vivid memories of Chris Boardman undertaking the hour record in the 90s and 00s, so it was with trepidation that I decided to undertake my own version of the challenge today... No streamlined helmets or carbon fibre monocoque frames for me, just cyberdog, a brown wall and a very welcome air conditioning outlet.

On reflection, maybe I should have gone for the carbon fibre approach - it's the only way I can explain the (negligible) difference in our respective distances. In 1996 Boardman covered 56.375km in the hour. Today, I managed slightly less.. at 34.2km.

In my defence, since the record was set, the UCI have changed the rules, and standardised the specification of the bike that should be used for the hour record. The subsequently set record currently sits at 49.7km, set by Ondřej Sosenka in 2005. So I'm close.

Today's image is from Marrakech. Nice textures.

One-quarter down.

So today I went public... sharing the link with my colleagues at work. I hope that it inspires me to keep it going!

Also today, I hit 505km, which marks the quarter way point of the challenge and finds me on the outskirts of Arras, the capital of the pas-de-calais department of Northern France, home to not one, but two world heritage sights.

The quarter way mark has been reached in just over 4 weeks, suggesting that, even with a couple of holidays planned, I should still be able to hit the 20.12 week target.

Image is unrelated: Katsura imperial villa gardens, just outside Kyoto.

Something for the weekend?

Hello, and welcome to the weekend.

As a result of my interest in Japan, I follow quite a few Japan-related blogs. Today, kirainet has posted a couple of lovely pictures which I wanted to share.

They were taken in the North of Tokyo. The first image is matcha - green tea (you're probably not going to see a much better example (IMO) of complementary colours!?), the second, a parasol. Both images reflect my photographic preference to zoom in on objects to the point where the background disappears and the objects get cropped..

The full post is here. The whole flckr set is worth a browse tbh.

And one of our own...

Bon soir!

So this evening, at the end of a 6.1k row, I raised my arms in triumph - I'd made it.

According to my route from google maps, I have tonight successfully arrived in France and pulled together enough 'water based'* km to get me across the English Channel, from Dover to Boulogne Sur Mer.

My sense of achievement is marred only slightly by a niggling tenderness in my hamstring. I think it deserves a bit of a rest.

The last few days has given me an awful lot more respect for these guys...

* rowing and swimming.

updated route

You may notice I've amended the route recently - this is to stop me becoming too obsessive about doing everything just right... and avoiding having to swim / row 450k from France to Italy. The route also gets me 20k closer to the centre of Rome.

:-)

test post..

One of the things I wanted to get out of this exercise was a chance to play with and look at how technologies can be used, linked, and played with to achieve different things on the interwebs.

So, after a bruising 20k on the bike this evening, I settled down to try & put my route on 'my maps' in Google. It was surprisingly made a little difficult by Google's removal of the 'export KML' button which apparently used to exist. Thanks though to Frank Taylor's Google Earth Blog I was able to find a work round.

And, fingers crossed... I should now be able to plot my virtual location on a virtual map. Starting steadily, I'll try a link.

So the route appears... but not the placemarker... will sleep on it. (Canterbury if you're wondering)

Quite pleased with this

Bike, Level 13...

Compare and contrast.

Location update

This morning sees me on the outskirts of Strood, near Chatham. I seem to be hurtling towards the channel only slightly concerned as to the crossing ahead of me.

I think a little more time on the rowing machine and in the pool are in order. (gulps as he looks onwards towards the jump from France to Italy).

And a picture of a wild goat.

location update

So having covered 245km to date, I thought I would refresh my route to Rome. Looking at it, I had initially selected to travel largely by motorway, which as a swimmer/cyclist/runner/rower is probably not that practical... So I asked google to let me have a route which kept off them. The amended route looks a bit more wiggly, but much more interesting.

According to the notes, I should be around near Forest Hill in South London by now.

And google street view tells me it's a slightly cloudy day there today.

In unrelated news....

Occupy Bristol have recently 'agreed to leave' College Green. The BBC coverage of the recent episode in the courts can be seen here. There is an onward link on that site to the occupy Bristol site which gives their side of things.

I will be glad to get the Green back.

(today also marked the first bike / treadmill full distance event followed by a very cold shower!)

Not 22k after all.

So I realised after completing 22k today (8.3 walking / 8.3 cross training / 5.4 bike) that actually only one of the days fell out of the reckoning.

This means that I only had 13k to make up.

Mission accomplished. Spreadsheet updated!

A Bristol sunrise for visual delight.

Strictly speaking....

I considered the challenge to start once I had decided to do it: on the 30th of December.

However, having had it brought to my attention, it does seem a little odd that it didn't coincide with the new year. So I'll be updating the spreadsheet to start from 2012 on the 1 Jan.

I'll just have to do a monster session on the weekend to make it up.


Thanks tony!

Going the distance.

Today was all about distance.

I now know I can do 20k on a bike, followed by 5k on my feet (albeit cross trainer). The rest is about time.

The importance of this, if you weren't already aware, is that these are the distances for a sprint triathlon - which is 750m / 20k / 5k.

I've updated the spreadsheet and it looks like 20(.12) weeks is doable for the challenge. I'll make that weeks in the country as we'll be hitting the slopes at some point.

Once an accountant.

So I decided that once a day was probably going to be a bit much. And I needed a way to track progress. So I now have a spreadsheet.

And stretching my use of technology that little bit further I have it in google docs - and it should be visible by clicking on this link >>> >>>click

There may need to be something to do with permissions, but I'll fix that as we go.

In the meantime, my 2012 challenge would, if carried out on the open road, get me from Bristol to the outskirts of Rome. Which is nice.

And for visual interest: a rarely seen view of the second Severn crossing.

Multi sports !

After an arduous day being good little consumers I managed to squeeze an hour in at the gym.

I Managed to clock up 17km (5k x-trainer, 10k bike and 2k rowing) and get home in time to explore the wonders of HDTV.

My 5k x-trainer time is coming down quite dramatically. Soon I'll be brave enough to try it on the treadmill.

A damp start to 2012

Today's 8.8km walk started in the dry, around 200m in the rain began to fall.

(1990.2 to go)

It didn't seem to deter the many walkers in Ashton Court out exercising their legs, children or pets. Quite muddy though.

Luckily the Clifton Sausage was open to provide sustenance for the final leg of the journey - on which we saw a graffito which made us chuckle and think of John.

My views on graffiti will be expanded upon in due course.