I must pay tribute to Rosie Swale-Pope, who this week completed a journey on foot which was far more epic than mine will be.
Five years ago, she set off from her home in Tenby to run around the world. The intention was to do it in two years, but in the event, she was away for five years. She arrived home with stress fractures and on crutches, but while away she conquered the freezing wastes of Siberia and Alaska, was hit by a bus, suffered from pneumonia and frostbite, and had a scare with breast cancer. Not to mention mad axemen and the like.
And did you see the size of the trailer she was pulling?
I have followed Rosie's exploits since she first hit the headlines when she and her then husband and two small children (I think one arrived during the voyage) sailed around the world in a small yacht. Of course the papers, being what they are, still talk of her as the blonde who "sailed around the world in the nude".
I think she has also sailed solo and she has trekked across the deserts of South America alone, except for a horse or two.
Read more about Rosie's big run here:
http://www.rosiearoundtheworld.co.uk/
Headlines about Rosie now say "Grandmother runs ... etcetera". If there is any press coverage of my walk, it will no doubt say "Grandfather ..." I have a granddaughter, Alexandra, who will be 24 in November this year, two grandsons - Joshua and Matthew - at university, and a delightful bilingual scamp called Alessandro (that's him in the picture, teaching me to be a Power Ranger), aged 4, who lives in Italy.
There are nearly two years to go to the finish of VBW. Is it possible that it will be "Great Grandfather walks the walk?" ... Over to you, kids. No pressure.
Sunday, August 31, 2008
More Silly Sossiness
I am amazed to find that I am not the sole progenitor of the phrase "Sausage Fingers".
A Google search on that phrase throws up 446,000 results! It is a recognised medical condition, and it also has some rather unseemly uses.
If you search on "Sausage Fingers" and Walking, there are 3,820 hits.
"Sausage Fingers" and Guitar produces 2,960 results.
But "Sausage Fingers" and Knopfler is far more exclusive. Only 8 pages, of which my posting of yesterday is one.
You probably knew all that.
A Google search on that phrase throws up 446,000 results! It is a recognised medical condition, and it also has some rather unseemly uses.
If you search on "Sausage Fingers" and Walking, there are 3,820 hits.
"Sausage Fingers" and Guitar produces 2,960 results.
But "Sausage Fingers" and Knopfler is far more exclusive. Only 8 pages, of which my posting of yesterday is one.
You probably knew all that.
Saturday, August 30, 2008
Sausage Fingers
My walking experiences in the last year have surprisingly put me in the position of being able to offer advice to guitar virtuoso Mark Knopfler. The normal position is that if he were to offer me advice, I would probably not understand it, I would certainly not be able to implement it, and in fact would have difficulty following the speed of his fingers as he demonstrated the advice.
The late great Hoyt Axton wrote and sang a song called "Bony Fingers" - he had this brilliant theory that this is what you get if you work your fingers to the bone. But what I have to tell Mark is about "Sausage Fingers", which is what you get if you walk long distance, especially in hot weather.
Gay and I both noticed it when we were doing a lot of walking in Central Otago, New Zealand, earlier this year. It must have happened before, but this was the first time it had struck us. You don't use your fingers a lot when walking, except, especially on that particular walk, to grasp the magnificent world-class date scones at the halfway mark -the Post Office cafe in Clyde. Under severe questioning it is possible that I could face up to the fact that the scones were inducing us every day into a 25 kms walk, which could possibly have led my mind to this whole concept of walking across half of Europe - those scones have a lot to answer for!
I don't think it was just the heat. In the same time scale, we were doing a lot of cycling on the Central Otago Rail Trail, so we were out in the same heat for the same length of time. with no sausage effect. The other day, when I walked 30 kms in 30 degrees, I had a full load of sausages long before I arrived home. Today Gay and I cycled 60 kms (also on a Rail Trail) - not a sossie in sight.
So it must be something to do with swinging the arms, blood rushing to the extremities, especially when in conjunction with the heat.
Anyway, it is impossible to do anything dexterous for some time after the walk has finished. At my puny level of guitar playing, I find it impossible to finger the correct frets or pluck the right strings. If I was not trying to play fingerstyle I would probably have trouble holding a pick. In fact, that's the sort of trouble I have even before going for a walk, but this is not the time for me to cry in your beer.
So, at last I can give Mark Knopfler some advice, which is, I am sure you will have guessed, that he should not go for any long distance walks just prior to a gig. Whatever the temptation, don't do it. Right, Mark?
And I don't mind you passing that advice on to your chum Eric Clapton.
The late great Hoyt Axton wrote and sang a song called "Bony Fingers" - he had this brilliant theory that this is what you get if you work your fingers to the bone. But what I have to tell Mark is about "Sausage Fingers", which is what you get if you walk long distance, especially in hot weather.
Gay and I both noticed it when we were doing a lot of walking in Central Otago, New Zealand, earlier this year. It must have happened before, but this was the first time it had struck us. You don't use your fingers a lot when walking, except, especially on that particular walk, to grasp the magnificent world-class date scones at the halfway mark -the Post Office cafe in Clyde. Under severe questioning it is possible that I could face up to the fact that the scones were inducing us every day into a 25 kms walk, which could possibly have led my mind to this whole concept of walking across half of Europe - those scones have a lot to answer for!
I don't think it was just the heat. In the same time scale, we were doing a lot of cycling on the Central Otago Rail Trail, so we were out in the same heat for the same length of time. with no sausage effect. The other day, when I walked 30 kms in 30 degrees, I had a full load of sausages long before I arrived home. Today Gay and I cycled 60 kms (also on a Rail Trail) - not a sossie in sight.
So it must be something to do with swinging the arms, blood rushing to the extremities, especially when in conjunction with the heat.
Anyway, it is impossible to do anything dexterous for some time after the walk has finished. At my puny level of guitar playing, I find it impossible to finger the correct frets or pluck the right strings. If I was not trying to play fingerstyle I would probably have trouble holding a pick. In fact, that's the sort of trouble I have even before going for a walk, but this is not the time for me to cry in your beer.
So, at last I can give Mark Knopfler some advice, which is, I am sure you will have guessed, that he should not go for any long distance walks just prior to a gig. Whatever the temptation, don't do it. Right, Mark?
And I don't mind you passing that advice on to your chum Eric Clapton.
Friday, August 29, 2008
Rocky Mountain High
I forgot to mention in yesterday's post that the route I walked yesterday, from Limoux to Puivert, is a strong possibility for the first leg of VBW - although in reverse. The other contender is Puivert to Mirepoix. Mirepoix is always worth a visit. It has a delightful mediaeval market square, complete with carved wooden gargoyles which have survived exposure to the weather for several hundred years.
The route I am beginning to map out for the whole walk is more likely to take me in the direction of Mirepoix than Limoux. It is one of few stages I would do mainly off-road. An old railway line was recently turned into a walking/running/cycling/horse-riding trail from Chalabre to Mirepoix, which would account for 21 of the 29 or 30 kilometres of the day's walk. It achieves this without wandering too far from the road, so the distance is not much different and of course it is much safer and more pleasant. We have cycled it several times.
There may be other stages where there is a convenient off-road alternative. Where these can be used without too many extra kilometres, I shall use them, but I shall not always be aware of their existence. I know about the Chalabre-Mirepoix trail because of local knowledge of my own area. If I were a stranger I would not know it is there. The signposting from the road is non-existent.
Yesterday I had a visitor to my blog from Denver, Colorado. This is where the Democratic Party National Convention is taking place this week. Could the visitor be Bill looking for a bolt-hole? Does he want to join me on the walk? Or could it be Hillary looking for somewhere to hide Bill for 70 days? Or Obama looking for somewhere to send Billary ...?
Speaking of Americans, we have been immortalised in someone else's blog! We have had an American family as temporary neighbours for the past two months. Unfortunately they went back to Nice (where they are ex-pat-ing for several years) yesterday They are a delightful family. They run a blog on their life in France and their last entry from Puivert is about Gay and myself, complete with photograph. Click on this:
http://www.frenchforawhile.blogspot.com/
It is the posting about "Our temporary neighbours" which you need to look at. At the time of writing it is the latest posting on that blog.
The route I am beginning to map out for the whole walk is more likely to take me in the direction of Mirepoix than Limoux. It is one of few stages I would do mainly off-road. An old railway line was recently turned into a walking/running/cycling/horse-riding trail from Chalabre to Mirepoix, which would account for 21 of the 29 or 30 kilometres of the day's walk. It achieves this without wandering too far from the road, so the distance is not much different and of course it is much safer and more pleasant. We have cycled it several times.
There may be other stages where there is a convenient off-road alternative. Where these can be used without too many extra kilometres, I shall use them, but I shall not always be aware of their existence. I know about the Chalabre-Mirepoix trail because of local knowledge of my own area. If I were a stranger I would not know it is there. The signposting from the road is non-existent.
Yesterday I had a visitor to my blog from Denver, Colorado. This is where the Democratic Party National Convention is taking place this week. Could the visitor be Bill looking for a bolt-hole? Does he want to join me on the walk? Or could it be Hillary looking for somewhere to hide Bill for 70 days? Or Obama looking for somewhere to send Billary ...?
Speaking of Americans, we have been immortalised in someone else's blog! We have had an American family as temporary neighbours for the past two months. Unfortunately they went back to Nice (where they are ex-pat-ing for several years) yesterday They are a delightful family. They run a blog on their life in France and their last entry from Puivert is about Gay and myself, complete with photograph. Click on this:
http://www.frenchforawhile.blogspot.com/
It is the posting about "Our temporary neighbours" which you need to look at. At the time of writing it is the latest posting on that blog.
Thursday, August 28, 2008
Training?
Am I in full training for The Big Walk? I have been asked this a number of times. The answer is no. I don't need to do any specific training for the walk yet, as it does not start for 625 days.
We shall be in New Zealand next year, from mid-January until mid-April. We shall, as usual, be doing a great deal of walking there, over 100 kms most weeks, and lots of cycling as well. When we get home in May, I shall, more than usual, maintain the high level of walking. Unusually, we shall then be here through the winter and spring, during which time I shall increase my weekly distance walked to near-VBW levels.
I always get plenty of exercise, normally a mix of walking, cycling, and - when the weather is against those two - a mixture of indoor rowing, indoor cycling and cross-country ski machine.
The problem with walking as exercise, especially for an ex-runner, is that it takes so long! At least twice as long, probably getting on for three times, as covering the same distance with both feet sometimes off the ground at the same time. Walking 30 kms takes up a large part of the day.
Today, as I had a dental appointment in Limoux, which is 30 kms away from home, by the shortest possible route, I decided I would walk back to give myself an idea how much walking time per day I should be planning for. I assumed 6 kms an hour, so expected to be home in 5 hours, which I was - to the minute. And that's with a climb from 180 metres to 680 metres, and in a temperature of 30 degrees Centigrade. I started the walk at 10.15, after leaving the dentist. Normally I would be on the road by 7 or 8 in the morning, so would escape some of the heat. But I will have to live with the climbing - France is a very hilly country.
One thing I was very pleased with, and that was the amount of traffic. I was walking on a D-road. Most of the time I could not hear a car engine, and was without motoring company for minutes at a time. I have started to plan my route from home to Caen, and hope to be on "white" D-roads for most of the journey, so they will all, I hope, be fairly traffic-free.
We shall be in New Zealand next year, from mid-January until mid-April. We shall, as usual, be doing a great deal of walking there, over 100 kms most weeks, and lots of cycling as well. When we get home in May, I shall, more than usual, maintain the high level of walking. Unusually, we shall then be here through the winter and spring, during which time I shall increase my weekly distance walked to near-VBW levels.
I always get plenty of exercise, normally a mix of walking, cycling, and - when the weather is against those two - a mixture of indoor rowing, indoor cycling and cross-country ski machine.
The problem with walking as exercise, especially for an ex-runner, is that it takes so long! At least twice as long, probably getting on for three times, as covering the same distance with both feet sometimes off the ground at the same time. Walking 30 kms takes up a large part of the day.
Today, as I had a dental appointment in Limoux, which is 30 kms away from home, by the shortest possible route, I decided I would walk back to give myself an idea how much walking time per day I should be planning for. I assumed 6 kms an hour, so expected to be home in 5 hours, which I was - to the minute. And that's with a climb from 180 metres to 680 metres, and in a temperature of 30 degrees Centigrade. I started the walk at 10.15, after leaving the dentist. Normally I would be on the road by 7 or 8 in the morning, so would escape some of the heat. But I will have to live with the climbing - France is a very hilly country.
One thing I was very pleased with, and that was the amount of traffic. I was walking on a D-road. Most of the time I could not hear a car engine, and was without motoring company for minutes at a time. I have started to plan my route from home to Caen, and hope to be on "white" D-roads for most of the journey, so they will all, I hope, be fairly traffic-free.
Wednesday, August 27, 2008
A Shining Path
Walking in Peru may at first sight seem to have little to do with the subject of this blog, which is a walk through France and UK, but bear with me.
I have always been interested in the pre-Columbian civilisations, and have long wanted to visit Peru. Gay is also keen to go. We were gearing up for this a number of years ago, but were deterred by the Sendero Luminoso - aka The Shining Path - a Marxist guerilla movement which was very active then, which seemed to have much the same aims as the Khmer Rouge of Cambodia (and we all know what happened there!) and which seemed to take delight in attacking tourists. We did not fancy becoming a statistic in a Killing Field. So Peru went on the back burner.
A few months ago my daughter Nicola said "So when are you going to go to Peru?" Always being one with a quick answer (not always the right policy) I immediately answered, "Next year" - next year being 2009. I vaguely remember that November is the ideal time to go, climatically.
But during my walk today, I had my usual torrent of thoughts, many about Vic's Big Walk - I really must take to carrying a dictaphone because by the time I arrived home I could only remember 11 points and I am sure there were more - and one of these was about Peru, in relation to VBW.
Gay is, as always, being very supportive to me about the whole thing. As stated before, she ideally would like to do the complete walk with me, but agrees that we need to go down the route of the battlebus. Also that unless we want to take a staff (people, not a stick) with us, she will be the chauffeur. So, she is taking a back seat (not while driving, I hope) so that I can fulfill my objective.
I have always been interested in the pre-Columbian civilisations, and have long wanted to visit Peru. Gay is also keen to go. We were gearing up for this a number of years ago, but were deterred by the Sendero Luminoso - aka The Shining Path - a Marxist guerilla movement which was very active then, which seemed to have much the same aims as the Khmer Rouge of Cambodia (and we all know what happened there!) and which seemed to take delight in attacking tourists. We did not fancy becoming a statistic in a Killing Field. So Peru went on the back burner.
A few months ago my daughter Nicola said "So when are you going to go to Peru?" Always being one with a quick answer (not always the right policy) I immediately answered, "Next year" - next year being 2009. I vaguely remember that November is the ideal time to go, climatically.
But during my walk today, I had my usual torrent of thoughts, many about Vic's Big Walk - I really must take to carrying a dictaphone because by the time I arrived home I could only remember 11 points and I am sure there were more - and one of these was about Peru, in relation to VBW.
Gay is, as always, being very supportive to me about the whole thing. As stated before, she ideally would like to do the complete walk with me, but agrees that we need to go down the route of the battlebus. Also that unless we want to take a staff (people, not a stick) with us, she will be the chauffeur. So, she is taking a back seat (not while driving, I hope) so that I can fulfill my objective.
How ideal, I thought, if the Peru trip (which would itself probably be a walking holiday, much of it at high altitude in the Andes) were to come after VBW, as a reward and a thank you from me to Gay for her loving and unselfish support in this venture, as in so many other things.
I put this to her, she agrees, so Peru is pencilled in for November 2010, and I shall now get on to our friend Janet Santamaria Fox to give her advance notice of this.
Janet is the manager of the Manchester office of Journey Latin America, which is an award-winning company specialising in - guess what? We met her when she arranged our visit to that place where one can see vast quantities of evidence of many of the other pre-Columbian civilisations - Mexico, in 1999.
If you have a yen to visit any of these places, you should contact Janet. Her e-mail address is:
janet.santamariafox@journeylatinamerica.co.uk
The website for the company is of course:
http://www.journeylatinamerica.co.uk/
So - it is now France to UK then on to Peru!
Monday, August 25, 2008
Are You Ready, Boots? - and Put A Sock In It
I mentioned in an earlier post that I have been using Columbia shoes for walking, and am very pleased with them. The particular shoes are Columbia Trailmeister. Wonderfully comfortable, light, supportive and fairly hard wearing. Built almost like a running shoe, but with more sole and a stronger top. A shame they are difficult to find in Europe, but as we pass through Singapore and spend several months in New Zealand each year, I manage to keep stocked up.
I have been using Trailmeisters for a few years. During our 3 months in New Zealand earlier this year, when Gay and I walked possibly not far short of the length of the Big Walk, I wore a pair out. The only problem with shoes of this modern construction is that the soles are not replaceable. This is the price we pay for the lightness and comfort. I did have an earlier pair of Columbia shoes re-soled locally and they look fine, but they are completely different, much heavier and stiffer. I can even hear the difference when I walk. I am using them for gardening.
One of the things I really like about Columbia, apart from their products, is their shining rebuttal of ageism. The company is run by 83-year old Gert Boyle. In Christchurch recently, noting that a Columbia shop had opened since our last visit, we paid it a visit. I flippantly asked the young man behind the counter how Gert was doing. He said that she was fine a couple of months earlier, when she came from Portland, Oregon to Christchurch, NZ, to open the shop! Shall I remind you of her age?
This is Columbia's home page:
http://www.columbia.com/Default.aspx
Another piece of equipment which I swear by for my feet is the Run 800 sock from Decathlon. Actually, I use two of these at a time.
I may have mentioned elsewhere in the blog that I used to be a runner, until my knee began to object. I ran on average 50 miles a week and raced most weeks, sometimes more than once in the week. I have used numerous different types of sock and have suffered the usual variety of blisters and various other types of damage both to myself and the sock. I started using the Run 800 sock some time before I gave up running and still use them for any athletic activity I am involved in (that includes walking). In fact they are rarely off my feet (I do change them regularly - I have numerous pairs). These are truly amazing socks. I have never had a blister while wearing them. In fact I have never worn a pair out or had a hole - and that is quite an achievement for me, especially in the toe area, as I have very active toes.
I shall certainly be using them during my preparation, for the whole of my walk and beyond.
For those who do not know, Decathlon is a French chain of sports and outdoor warehouses. They are also now in other countries, for instance UK. This is the sock concerned - I would recommend these to anyone:
http://www.kalenji-running.com/EN/run-800-2-pack-7013472/
I have been using Trailmeisters for a few years. During our 3 months in New Zealand earlier this year, when Gay and I walked possibly not far short of the length of the Big Walk, I wore a pair out. The only problem with shoes of this modern construction is that the soles are not replaceable. This is the price we pay for the lightness and comfort. I did have an earlier pair of Columbia shoes re-soled locally and they look fine, but they are completely different, much heavier and stiffer. I can even hear the difference when I walk. I am using them for gardening.
One of the things I really like about Columbia, apart from their products, is their shining rebuttal of ageism. The company is run by 83-year old Gert Boyle. In Christchurch recently, noting that a Columbia shop had opened since our last visit, we paid it a visit. I flippantly asked the young man behind the counter how Gert was doing. He said that she was fine a couple of months earlier, when she came from Portland, Oregon to Christchurch, NZ, to open the shop! Shall I remind you of her age?
This is Columbia's home page:
http://www.columbia.com/Default.aspx
Another piece of equipment which I swear by for my feet is the Run 800 sock from Decathlon. Actually, I use two of these at a time.
I may have mentioned elsewhere in the blog that I used to be a runner, until my knee began to object. I ran on average 50 miles a week and raced most weeks, sometimes more than once in the week. I have used numerous different types of sock and have suffered the usual variety of blisters and various other types of damage both to myself and the sock. I started using the Run 800 sock some time before I gave up running and still use them for any athletic activity I am involved in (that includes walking). In fact they are rarely off my feet (I do change them regularly - I have numerous pairs). These are truly amazing socks. I have never had a blister while wearing them. In fact I have never worn a pair out or had a hole - and that is quite an achievement for me, especially in the toe area, as I have very active toes.
I shall certainly be using them during my preparation, for the whole of my walk and beyond.
For those who do not know, Decathlon is a French chain of sports and outdoor warehouses. They are also now in other countries, for instance UK. This is the sock concerned - I would recommend these to anyone:
http://www.kalenji-running.com/EN/run-800-2-pack-7013472/
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