I made good friends on my recent trip to Paris. We were a group of
eight, thrown together by our willing to ride 250 miles (400km) from
London to Paris in order to raise funds for The Big Issue Foundation.
It all came together beautifully on the morning of the third day's
riding. We were heading across Normandy on a plateau with a tail wind,
riding in a bunch, taking turns on the front. We were rolling smooth,
and it felt amazing. Views across cornfields, sunshine, fresh air,
fast smooth road, hardly any cars, working together with good humour
and excitement. Paris was 90 miles away and we were cruising. Perfect.
I cycle regularly and so my legs were quite accustomed to longer
distance riding. I take my hat off to those on the ride who do not
ride as regularly. In the 140 participants, at least 100 I would say
were just everyday folk who decided that this is a good cause that
deserves their support. If I felt a little tired (and happy) to
arrive at the Eiffel Tower, they were even more so. It's amazing what
they did. Truly. Together we raised over £200,000 for The Big Issue
Foundation - important funds to help our homeless get back on their
feet and back into society.
So, thank you Alman, Sean, Wyn, Mike, Will, Tomas and our guide Barrie
for good memories and sharing the journey.
And thank you to over 50 generous friends and colleagues who supported
the cause and helped me to raise over £2000 In sponsorship. Thank you.
If you would like to support The Bug Issue Foundation, you can still
sponsor me. All donations count.
Sunday 24 July 2011
Tuesday 12 July 2011
You Can't Always Get What You Want
I was 21 years old, standing about 100m from the stage at the old Wembley Stadium with goosebumps on my arms, thoroughly enjoying the moment.
It was a warm July evening and Mick Jagger was singing to me. Yes, singing to me, directly at me. It wasn't that he was looking at me or anything so obvious. It was his words. "You can't always get what you want, but if you try sometimes, you'll get what you need". They hit me.
Now I'm not sure how I'd managed to be a Stones fan for all of my teenage years without having heard that song. But that's how it was. It was at Wembley that I first heard the song and the timing was perfect.
I'd just graduated from Manchester Uni. It wasn't exactly a celebration. I was in fact quite seriously pissed off. I'd ended up with a grade lower than I had expected. To make matters worse I had missed it by one mark. One mark out of six hundred. You couldn't miss the grade any closer. Despite my appeal to the examiners I could not leave with the grade that I had consistently scored in coursework all through my final year.
So, I was deep down pissed off, knowing I could have done better. It's a horrible feeling, that you let yourself down, but Mick picked me right up and in the course of four minutes turned me inside out and made me feel good again.
"You can't always get what you want, but if you try sometimes, you'll get what you need". The message was clear. You make your own success and it doesn't come free. You've got to work for it. It may not always go your way, but try hard, and you'll get your reward.
6 months later and I was listening to the same song on my Walkman sitting on a chairlift in the sun. I had my skis on and I was trying to see if it was possible to ski every high point and every low point in the Espace Killy ski area (Val D'Isere and Tignes, France). I had decided that I wanted to do a ski season and despite being flat broke with my credit cards maxed out, here I was, soaking up the sun and living the dream. Mick's words sounded better than ever because it was my own bloody mindedness that had made it possible for me to be working in a ski resort. (Oh yes, I skied the entire area that day: non-stop in 6h15).
So, here I am working in an internet start up in 2011. A little older, a little wiser. One thing remains true. Nothing in life comes for free. Success requires effort, persistence and belief. It also requires laser sharp focus and a view on the horizon that we're headed for. Mick was right, it's the trying, the striving, the effort that gets us what we need. No-one does it for you, you've got to make it happen yourself. You've got to try sometimes.
It was a warm July evening and Mick Jagger was singing to me. Yes, singing to me, directly at me. It wasn't that he was looking at me or anything so obvious. It was his words. "You can't always get what you want, but if you try sometimes, you'll get what you need". They hit me.
Now I'm not sure how I'd managed to be a Stones fan for all of my teenage years without having heard that song. But that's how it was. It was at Wembley that I first heard the song and the timing was perfect.
I'd just graduated from Manchester Uni. It wasn't exactly a celebration. I was in fact quite seriously pissed off. I'd ended up with a grade lower than I had expected. To make matters worse I had missed it by one mark. One mark out of six hundred. You couldn't miss the grade any closer. Despite my appeal to the examiners I could not leave with the grade that I had consistently scored in coursework all through my final year.
So, I was deep down pissed off, knowing I could have done better. It's a horrible feeling, that you let yourself down, but Mick picked me right up and in the course of four minutes turned me inside out and made me feel good again.
"You can't always get what you want, but if you try sometimes, you'll get what you need". The message was clear. You make your own success and it doesn't come free. You've got to work for it. It may not always go your way, but try hard, and you'll get your reward.
6 months later and I was listening to the same song on my Walkman sitting on a chairlift in the sun. I had my skis on and I was trying to see if it was possible to ski every high point and every low point in the Espace Killy ski area (Val D'Isere and Tignes, France). I had decided that I wanted to do a ski season and despite being flat broke with my credit cards maxed out, here I was, soaking up the sun and living the dream. Mick's words sounded better than ever because it was my own bloody mindedness that had made it possible for me to be working in a ski resort. (Oh yes, I skied the entire area that day: non-stop in 6h15).
So, here I am working in an internet start up in 2011. A little older, a little wiser. One thing remains true. Nothing in life comes for free. Success requires effort, persistence and belief. It also requires laser sharp focus and a view on the horizon that we're headed for. Mick was right, it's the trying, the striving, the effort that gets us what we need. No-one does it for you, you've got to make it happen yourself. You've got to try sometimes.
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