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Eight mile high

Carole, Keira and I are very fortunate in many ways. We live close enough to Central London to make access for work and play in town a simple matter. And we live far enough away to enjoy many benefits of (almost) country living. One of the very best things about where we live is the proliferation of trails and bridle paths for cycling on. This weekend we had grand plans. Keira wanted to go for a ride on Saturday and set a new longest distance for her ride. Her previous best was 5 miles.

In glorious sunshine we decided to head off towards Banstead and see how far we got. Within a few hundred yards of our house we are onto green belt agricultural land and the hedges are alive with greenfinches. As you can see from the picture, we’re at a high point and the views over the fields are lovely. We drop down to the local park and then begin a persistent 2 mile climb. We head through woods, and up dusty trails past goldcrests and any horse in their fields. Almost to the top of the climb and we stop for a Pepperami break. Yummy!

Pushing on we soon arrive in Banstead where Keira brilliantly suggests we stop for a pub lunch (bright kid). Trouble is – the only pub is shut for the day – they’ve all headed off for Derby Day! We end up in a nice café in the park and have bacon and eggs on toast.

What goes up – must come down, and the ride home was fun. We swooped and blasted back down the same tracks we’d earlier huffed and puffed our way up. When I’m cycling on the road I love the challenge of riding up hills. Off road – the reverse is true and we all arrived at the bottom of the long trail grinning. After a final short dig up another climb, we pootle the last few hundred yards home.

8.06 miles. Mission accomplished.

We all fell asleep in the afternoon, chuffed to bits with our eight mile high. I hope you found time for some fun this weekend?

It’s a long way to the top…

…if you wanna rock and roll. I thought it was AC/DC who penned those words so I Googled it and yep, it was. I’m not a big fan of theirs but it popped into my head when considering my next experiment and for now it’s stuck there.

I’ve been running What Goes Around for just over 18 months now and in that time I’ve made some very useful blunders, and by learning from them, I think I’m getting a few things right too. One thing is for sure, I wish I knew then what I know now. And until I invent time travel a wish it shall remain. What I could do though is share some of these experiences and mistakes, and other information in the hope that other small and growing businesses may not trip into the same potholes that we did. So here’s the plan – such as it is.

  1. Write up some of the best goof ups and publish them. Some here and some over at the house of XpertHR.
  2. Develop a business summary to be shared every month. To include stuff like headline income, expenditure, enquiry numbers, what seems to be working and what ain’t. Maybe also include blog figures and what subjects are attracting attention, and a couple of other social tool numbers as well.

I asked about this on Twitter a little while ago and received enthusiastic responses (including one from a pot plant!). So in the spirit of growing the market I’m going to give it a try. And as this experiment continues and I share more information who knows – maybe others will chip in with their own ideas about what and how and why.

More news to follow very soon. In this planning stage I would simply like to ask you, what would be helpful for you to see and learn about, what would you like to see included?

Windy wet and wonderful

The camping season has started! Ever since I was a boy scout I’ve enjoyed spending time under canvas (or whatever it is that tents are made of nowadays), and becoming a dad 8 years ago added even more excitement to the mix. We go camping several times a year with a group of families. We share our camping stuff, our food, our beer, and most importantly, our company. These trips are an essential part of life, and often I’m just too busy relaxing to recall quite what it was that made the last trip so memorable. This time though I felt I was tuned a little differently, and a few things stood out.

It was a very windy weekend, at times quite cold. This motivated us to be out and about much more than usual. We took a lovely walk from Beaulieu to Buckler’s Hard and watched buzzards soar, and sailing boats get whipped down the river. It’s good to feel the wind in your face.

We also took a walk to a pub for lunch. All of the 8 kids on the trip wanted to cycle and Pete bravely stepped up and agreed to lead the ride. This was Keira’s first time out on the road and I was pleased to see her so excited about it. The trip was just over a mile and a half passing by New Forest ponies and through a pretty village. Under Pete’s gentle guidance they had a great ride and there were loads of smiles waiting for us on arrival at the pub. It was great to trust a good friend to take Keira on an important journey. Letting go can be fun.

Keira with her bicycle at camp

Toasting marshmallows round the fire with the kids before they head to bed is a regular treat. On Saturday Keira was sat in Carole’s lap and we were reflecting on the fun we’d had as a group and a family that day. As Keira went to get ready for bed she pointed at the starry sky and said “Say good night to Grandma Anabel”, and gave my hand a squeeze. With a lump in my throat I did just that. Knowing where you’ve come from is vital.  

The inevitable rain came – though it had the decency to wait until our last day. I sat beneath a shelter watching for a few hours before facing up to the reality of packing a tent in the rain. And I really enjoyed it. The night before I’d been talking with Adrian about his and Laura’s recent walk along the West Highland Way which had been peppered with foul weather. Adrian said that they enjoyed everything Mother Nature hurled at them – it was all part of the experience. I recalled that encompassing thought as I stood in a soft English spring rain getting soaked, and I loved it. I went out of my way to take as long as I could to remove every peg, and tie every rope. Making the very best of what you can’t change can be strangely inspiring.

I hope you had a wonderful weekend too?