Santa Is Dead!!!

Is now the winter of my discontent? Being of African origin I absolutely loathe the British winter! In Kenya the worst we get is the rainy seasons but here you get hurricane force winds, lashing freezing rain, hailstones and snow, and bitterly cold temperatures. As a wheelchair user its the hands that suffer most, and no matter how nicely dressed you are your hands get filthy and make you feel unclean. I leave a double trail wherever I go shopping. I could never get away with committing crimes because the police would easily follow my tracks.

Training is going well (despite the weather), and last weeks sessions were great. I rarely get a pat on the back from my coach, Ken, but last week he was pleased with me. Most people see this time of year as a time for relaxing but as for me I feel driven to improve so I will continue to work hard and maybe have Christmas Day off!

The Christmas tree is up and I realise how quickly my son,Tim, is growing up. Just last year he believed in Santa but yesterday he wrote his list and started it, 'Dear Santa (mum and dad)'. It was sweet when he believed in Santa but at least I don't have to go to the trouble of putting talc on the floor and 'Santa's footprints', or leave a drink and biscuits then eat them so he thought Santa had actually been. This time last year we were at my dads home and then on the beach on Christmas Day itself. It is sad that people seem to have forgotten the true meaning of Christmas and seem more interested in material things.

Educating Essex 2

On Monday morning I was invited to speak to a group of media students at Harlow College. I was the first guest speaker to use the new lecture theatre and I was a bit nervous. I had prepared a powerpoint presentation and used a piece of music by Des'ree, 'You Gotta Be', as an introduction. There were about eighty students present as well as a couple of lecturers. I spoke about my life but more importantly about the way education can empower people. I had a good response and the students asked a lot of interesting questions. I spoke to quite a few students afterwards and they seemed to think it had been a positive experience so it was well worth taking the time to do.

Next it was off to Harlow Leisurezone for a photocall arranged by Harlow Council. It was to accompany the news that Harlow has been chosen for the London 2012 Olympic Torch Relay Route. This is great news for everyone in the town and will give people the opportunity to feel closer to the Games and be a part of history. I'll be there on July 7th to see the torch passing through. I'm really looking forward to it!

In the evening it was back to the track in the cold drizzly weather but as usual Ken soon had me sweating, sniffling, and working hard. By the end of an hour and forty five minutes I felt so proud because the session had been completed. Then it was home to cook dinner.

Educating Essex.

Training has been going on well, despite the cold and gloomy weather. I'm really grateful to my coach, Ken Day, for turning out to help me 6 days a week. He is so dedicated and I appreciate him. In these increasingly cold evenings I have been finding that my toes and fingertips have been freezing during training. However, I have discovered some excellent inner gloves made by Karrimor so I have solved the fingertip problem. Working on the toe problem.

Yesterday I went to Harlow Leisurezone to do my strength and conditioning work and it was great to work with John Campbell again. John is one of those instructors who pushes you to your limits, which is exactly what I need. Put it this way, after a session with John you know you have worked!

I have been watching 'Educating Essex' on Channel 4 with great interest because Passmores School is literally just around the corner from my house. A few years ago I was invited to the school to present awards to the children and I found everyone involved really friendly. There was a real family atmosphere to the school that I liked and the Head, Mr Goddard, went out of his way to support me. As a trained teacher myself, albeit one who has only ever taught in Kenya, I found the behaviour of the staff and students very interesting to observe. In Kenya there was nothing like detentions and counselling when a student makes a mistake, it was just a matter of how many strokes of the cane were dished out! In Kenya everyone believes in; 'Spare the rod, spoil the child'. If you were thrashed at school you would be thrashed again at home by your parents for disrespecting the teacher. How different things are here. I really admired the way Mr Drew dealt with the students. To me he is an excellent teacher who really cares about the students he teaches and there didn't seem to be any problem he couldn't deal with. He was just so calm and never seemed to lose his temper even when provoked. Mr Goddard, the Head, was equally impressive in the way he went about his work and who could imagine seeing such a powerful man crying on national television. I really admired that because he showed a very positive side of his character in that incident and he should be seen as a role model by other professional people. The students who featured in the series, in spite of all their problems, will look back at themselves and it will make them better people.

Power to the People.

I have been watching the party conferences of Labour and the ConDems, whose marriage seems in dire need of counselling before it ends up in the divorce courts! Daddy Cameron says one thing whilst Mammy Clegg says another, and the children are all arguing amongst themselves and asking who is going to pay the university fees, and how will they be able to buy their own homes when they graduate up to their eyes in debt. Before they got married mammy was so caring and promised the children they could have free education and daddy had promised a fairer society where all the children were equal. As Oliver Hardy would say; 'That's another fine mess you've gotten us into'. As for Uncle Ed? In Kenya, where I grew up, when mammy and daddy were contradicting each other the uncle would come in to sort it out. However, growing up in Africa, I would never have had the freedom to say such things unless I had a strong desire to disappear! Thank God for Democracy.
I was very saddened last week to hear of the untimely death of the great Professor Wangari Mathai, one of the greatest African women of all time. Some called her the 'Tree Woman' because she fought to preserve the environment against an oppressive regime that used all its power to supress her but she came out on top and went on to win the Nobel Peace Prize! What a fantastic role model and I personally drew a lot of inspiration from her resillience, her motivation, her strong will, and above all her humility.Rest in Peace and may her legacy live on.
Training has been going really well and I've had a good transition into winter training, and as my coach, Mr Day, puts it,'Every little drop fills the tank'. Every training session is vital and 2012 is literally just around the corner. I am determined to build on what I have achieved this year.

Catch Up.

Well, I have been so busy over the past month or so since my last entry that I haven't had the time to get near a computer so here is a brief account of what I've been up to.

First and foremost has been training training training with both my wheelchair coach, Ken Day, and in the gym with John Campbell. I don't know what I would do without these two great men but I owe them both a lot for their help and support. They have made me sweat and groan with pain but I wouldn't have it any other way.

I competed in Knowsley last month but the weather was not good and I wasn't totally happy with my performances but at least it was good to be back in proper competition after a long winter lay off. However, I did enjoy visiting Liverpool, a beautiful city, especially the Roman Catholic Cathedral, which is spectacular and very serene. It was also great to spend time with Pete Wyman and his family who kept me well fed and entertained. Thank you.

Off the track I have done a couple of days work on the 'Eastenders' set as an extra and am beginning to feel a real part of the family there. It's good fun even if we do only appear on screen for half a second! I even did a scene outside the 'Queen Vic' with a glass of orange! I've also visited a few schools to promote sport and healthy living and really enjoyed interacting with the youngsters I met. Finally I was honoured to be asked to open a charity shop for the St Elizabeth charity in Harlow. These events really make me feel humble but also very proud to be asked.

This last weekend I was at Stoke Mandeville for the BWAA International event and was much happier with my performances, especially getting a gold in the 400m, and doing 31.68 in the 200m, just outside my personal best. I just hope I can improve again in Switzerland this week, which will form the basis of my next blog. watch this space.

'Playground To Podium'.

Today I attended an event in Chelmsford as part of the Essex Team Ambassadors Scheme. The event was held at Chelmsford Sport and Athletic Park and was attended by around 70 children who attend mainstream school but have a disability. It was a taster day and children were given the opportunity to try different sports. It was a fantastic event and it was lovely to see the children enjoying themselves. I also enjoyed speaking to them about my own sport and achievements, and showing them some of the medals I have won during my career.

Training is going on well and I've finally managed to get out on the road with no problems. It was good to push on my normal 10 mile route and it felt great to be out and about again. I've changed my push rims to half an inch bigger in an attempt to improve my pushing technique. I'll let you know how it goes once I've given it a fair trial.

This evening its back on the track for some speed endurance work with my trainer, Ken Day. He's a perfectionist and he really makes me sweat, but I value the time he spends yelling at me and encouraging me to work to my limits! Talk about hard taskmaster!