Happy Birthday Tim!

Today is my sons birthday and I remember the day he came into this world pulled from my stomach. I looked at him and wondered where he could have fitted in my small stomach. Delivered prematurely yet he still weighed seven pounds, healthy and extremely beautiful. I remember looking at him when the midwife placed him in my arms, tears of joy streaming down my cheeks. I felt so complete as a woman. He was very white and had beautiful blue eyes, now he is transformed into a caramel coloured, brown eyed handsome boy, the joy of my life. I shall have to be careful later today when we cut his birthday cake and make sure I only take a small slice. I shall also remember that it was Tim's birth that set me on the path I follow today as an athlete.

The weather has definitely not been conducive to training outdoors so I've been training indoors on rollers and doing my strength and conditioning work. I miss being outside in the fresh air on the road. Let's hope the weather gets better soon so I can get out. To be honest, all my minor complaints are trivial compared to the suffering currently taking place in Syria. My heart goes out to all the men, women and children suffering so brutally at the hands of their own government and I cannot understand how the world can just sit back and watch it all unfold on their plasma tv screens! God show mercy!

Christmas Special!!!

It's finally here and you can feel children's excitement in the air..... I really hope we all remember the true meaning of Christmas before it became commercialised. A friend complained that Santa only works one day a year - I wish his job contract included Africa. When I was growing up we were lucky if we got some new clothes on Christmas morning to wear to church. However, I do enjoy seeing people go the extra mile to make the ones they love feel special. I am really looking forward to spending Christmas with my son - it's always magical when he wakes up on Christmas morning and races to the front room. His eyes go straight to the presents wrapped under the tree - I am a blessed and happy mum when I see that smile on his face, and I share in his joy as he rips the paper off his presents.

The tradition here in England is that you have turkey for lunch but this year we have pardoned the turkey and I shall be cooking duck instead. My son, Tim, really wanted goose but we couldn't find one anywhere, not even in Marks and Spencer, so he asked for duck! I really hope it will be fine but whatever happens nothing can spoil the joy of seeing his face in the morning. Roll on Christmas!!!

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.

Have Wheels Will Travel.

It's been a busy time since my last entry and I seem to have done an awful lot of travelling, not to mention a lot of time apart from my family.
First of all I went up to Liverpool by train to take part in the Knowsley Disabled Grand Prix event. It was great to be back in the wheelchair racing fraternity and having the opportunity to blow off the winters cobwebs with some good competition. My only complaint is that it was too windy to get any seriously good times.
I barely had time to see much of my son Tim before I was packing again and on my way to Heathrow to fly to Zurich. I love going to Switzerland because it gives me the opportunity to pit myself against the best racers in the world, and it is such a beautiful country. It was great to meet again with one of the women who inspired me to start racing, Louise Sauvage from Australia, and also to do some serious talking with a Canadian racer called Michelle Stilwell. Mind you, the schedules were pretty gruelling, getting up VERY early to travel to the meetings, and getting back just in time to sleep. Anyway, it was well worth going because I managed to get A and B Standard qualifying times. I now need to repeat, and better my times during the rest of the season.
It's good to be back home. I've had a lot of time on my own to think and I feel I am in a much more powerful position thanks to positive affirmation, self belief, and personal motivation.

Frustration!!

The past week or so has been extremely frustrating! First of all the weather has been terrible, forcing me to be confined to the gym and the dreaded rollers. OK, so the rollers are good for improving my stamina and general fitness levels but to be honest, nothing can compare to being out on the road and putting in the miles. So, finally, yesterday, the weather was lovely so I get into my racing chair and set off to do my 10 mile push. I'm just getting into my rhythm when BANG! My back tire gets a puncture so I'm forced to get home on a flat. Then,today, a change of wheels to my old ones with the spokes and what happens? The push rim starts to come off, along with a couple of spokes! Session ended before its really begun. I could have cried but what's the point? You just put on a brave smile and get on with life.

My new tires have just arrived in the post so I'll change the punctured one and give it another go tomorrow. I have to because I'm doing a half marathon a week tomorrow at Silverstone to try and raise some much needed funds for AbleChild Africa, a charity that is very close to my heart because it helps disabled kids in Africa to reach their own personal goals in life. I WILL do it, though its a very tough course so I'm not aiming to break any records. Just finishing will be an achievement.

That apart I was very privileged on Wednesday to attend the launch of a scheme run by 'Journey to the Podium' and sponsored by Essex County Council where a group of artists were commissioned to produce works of art inspired by selected athletes. The launch was held at Colchester United's stadium and I was genuinely honoured to see the work about me from Elaine Tribley and Dr Mark Curtis of Essex County Council's Heritage and Archive teams. It was really weird to see artwork about yourself but also very nice. Elaine also produced a book called 'Olympia' about her work and about me and I was thrilled to get two copies, one of which I'm going to send to my dad in Kenya. He will be so proud! Working with Elaine has really inspired me and made me understand art a lot better.Thanks Elaine! Dr Mark also produced a lifesize picture of me and when you press a button my voice can be heard talking about myself and my sport. Amazing.Thank you Dr Mark. What made the evening more special was having my husband, Norman, and my son,Tim with me. Tim was a bit puzzled by all the attention I was getting but he loved the artwork. A really memorable evening.

The Red Arrows.

Phew! Training has been going well but the poor weather has meant more gym work and sessions on the rollers. It's been tough but I'm determined to do well this season so I'm really pushing myself hard to prepare for my first race of the season at Silverwood next month.

Training apart I had the great privilege of being invited to meet the Red Arrows so I set off with my husband Norman and son Tim on Sunday morning. The journey didn't get off to a very good start because there was a replacement bus service from Harlow to Stanstead due to the never ending engineering works that seem to happen every weekend. I couldn't get on the coach so the staff at Harlow had to order a taxi to take me on the first part of my journey. We had to wait almost an hour at Stanstead before catching the train to Peterborough but the station staff were brilliant and really helpful. We had breakfast in the airport terminal before returning down to the train station where a ramp was waiting to get me on the train and I was put in a lovely, spacious wheelchair space.

How different was our experience at Peterborough! We had to wait an hour here as well but the station staff were their usual grumpy and rude selves. They left us to our own devices and we managed to find a space in the waiting room. We had to catch a train to Newark Northgate and when it arrived the grumpy staff member told us to wait with him, then made us hurry along the platform because he had been standing in the wrong place. There was no wheelchair space available so we were jammed into a very crowded area just inside the door, being told not to worry because it was only a 30 minute journey! The only consolation was that I was glad to leave the rude Peterborough staff behind. I have travelled through that station many times over the past 10 years and my experience has always been a negative one. They have no idea how to deal with disabled people and I can easily vote them the worst station staff in England!

At Newark we had to wait another twenty minutes in the freezing cold but at least the staff there were friendly and helpful and we completed the last stage of our journey to Lincoln with no problems.

We had decided to treat ourselves and stayed in a 'posh' hotel next to the cathedral. We had a quick look around but it was pouring down with rain and none of the restaurants near us had wheelchair access. We had a late lunch in one that my husband had to haul me up a step to get into but the food was nice so it was okay. Mind you, Lincoln is very hilly so we were very limited in our travels.

We had dinner in the hotel which was lovely then turned in for an early night after watching a bit of tv.

We had a delicious breakfast of fresh Lincolnshire produce and it was lovely to taste real fresh food for a change.

It was snowing when we got into our taxi for the short ride out to RAF Scampton where the Red Arrows are based. We had a brilliant time and were treated like royalty. An engineer took us into the hangar and explained everything about the planes and how they work. Then we went to the crew briefing where the Squadron Commander explained what the crew would be doing that morning. It was fascinating stuff and Tim was really enjoying it all.

We went outside and watched the planes taking off before being driven to the control tower where we watched the Arrows go through their routine. It was excellent,breathtaking stuff, and we took loads of photo's. We then had our photo taken beside the plane with the crew when the planes had landed before going back inside to watch the crew being debriefed.

We had an excellent lunch of chicken curry and the crew mixed with their visitors, signed autographs and posed for pictures. They are lovely people and Tim was thrilled with his autographed poster and toy plane. We all had a great time and I would like to say a huge thank you to everyone involved for giving us such a memorable experience.

The journey home was okay, apart from at Peterborough where we had to change and a staff member just ointed at the platform we needed and walked off, leaving Norman to push me up and down the steep ramps with me having to balance our luggage on my knees. However, even their ignorance couldn't detract from a great day that we'll never forget.

1000 Days to the 2012 Paralympics.

On Thursday I attended a fantastic event at Mark Hall Sports College in Harlow to celebrate a 1000 days to the start of the 2012 Paralympic Games in London. There were a lot of disabled children there to try out a wide variety of sports and they all seemed to have a great time. Who knows, we might even see some of them actually participating in the Paralympics in the future. Harlow has already produced three Paralympians in Noel Thatcher, the late, great, Isobel Newstead, and myself and it would be truly fantastic if we could add a few more in the years to come.
In the evening it was back to the gym for another session on the dreaded rollers. My muscles ached after a really hard session but I basked in the afterglow in a hot bath feeling really good about myself and what I'd achieved. I'm feeling really positive about myself and feel confident that if I can remain injury free I will do really well in the coming season.
Of course, athletes have Christmas to celebrate as well and my eight year old son, Tim, has to be the centre of my attention so I'll have to take a couple of weeks off to enjoy his pleasure and excitement at the arrival of Santa in just three weeks time, not to mention having to shop for the toys to put in Santa's sack! Come the start of the year it'll be back to my routine of training 6 days a week.