Day 6 was a bit mixed.
I had an awful lot on my mind today, and it was reflected in my sit skiing.
Having said that I got down 3 black runs ( my first post injury ) without major mishap, so a victory I suppose.

After stopping for lunch I switched on an app which records various stats.

Picture attached.

Russ

As I am Welsh, Mike thinks we are all this clever.

SOME OF THE ‘BRIGHTER’ MOMENTS FROM ‘’Welsh’’ BBC QUIZZES.
UNIVERSITY CHALLENGE (BBC2)

Jeremy Paxman:
What is another name for ‘cherrypickers’ and ‘cheesemongers’?

Contestant:
Homosexuals ?.

Jeremy Paxman:
No. They’re regiments in the British Army who will be very upset with you.

BEG, BORROW OR STEAL (BBC2)

Jamie Theakston:
Where do you think Cambridge University is?

Contestant:
Geography isn’t my strong point.

Jamie Theakston:
There’s a clue in the title.

Contestant:
Leicester

BBC WALES
Stewart White:
Who had a worldwide hit with What A Wonderful World?
Contestant:
I don’t know.
Stewart White:
I’ll give you some clues: what do you call the part between your hand and your elbow?
Contestant:
Arm
Stewart White:
Correct. And if you’re not weak, you’re…?
Contestant:
Strong.
Stewart White:
Correct – and what was Lord Mountbatten’s first name?
Contestant:
Louis
Stewart White:
Well, there we are then. So who had a worldwide hit with the song What A Wonderful World?
Contestant:
Frank Sinatra?
LATE SHOW (BBC WALES )
Alex Trelinski:
What is the capital of Italy ?
Contestant:
France.
Trelinski:
France is another country. Try again.
Contestant:
Oh, um, Benidorm.
Trelinski:
Wrong, sorry, let’s try another question. In which country is the Parthenon?
Contestant:
Sorry, I don’t know.
Trelinski:
Just guess a country then.
Contestant:
Paris.

THE WEAKEST LINK (BBC2)
Anne Robinson:
Oscar Wilde, Adolf Hitler and Jeffrey Archer have all written books about their experiences in what: – Prison, or the Conservative Party?
Contestant:
The Conservative Party.
BEACON RADIO ( PONTYPOOL )
DJ Mark:
For 10, what is the nationality of the Pope?
Ruth from Rowley Regis:
I think I know that one. Is it Jewish?
UNIVERSITY CHALLENGE
Bamber Gascoyne:
What was Gandhi’s first name?
Contestant:
Goosey?

GWR FM ( CARDIFF)

Presenter:
What happened in Dallas on November 22, 1963?

Contestant:
I don’t know, I wasn’t watching it then.
PHIL WOOD SHOW (BBC RADIO? SWANSEA)

Phil:
What’s 11 squared?

Contestant:
I don’t know.

Phil:
I’ll give you a clue. It’s two ones with a two in the middle.

Contestant:
Is it five?

RICHARD AND JUDY
Richard:
Which American actor is married to Nicole Kidman?
Contestant:
Forrest Gump.
RICHARD AND JUDY
Richard:
On which street did Sherlock Holmes live?
Contestant:
Er. … …
Richard:
He makes bread . . ..
Contestant:
Er .. ……
Richard:
He makes cakes . . ..
Contestant:
Kipling Street?
TAFF’S FM PHONE-IN
Presenter:
Which is the largest Spanish-speaking country in the world?
Contestant:
Barcelona.
Presenter:
I was really after the name of a country.
Contestant:
I’m sorry, I don’t know the names of any countries in Spain ..

NATIONAL LOTTERY (BBC1)
Question:
What is the world’s largest continent?
Contestant:
The Pacific.

ROCK FM ( CAMARTHANSHIRE)
Presenter:
Name a film starring Bob Hoskins that is also the name of a famous painting by Leonardo da Vinci.
Contestant:
Who Framed Roger Rabbit?

THE BIGGEST GAME IN TOWN (ITV)

Steve Le Fevre:
What was signed, to bring World War I to an end in 1918?

Contestant:
Magna Carta?

JAMES O’BRIEN SHOW (LBC)

James O’Brien:
How many kings of England have been called Henry?

Contestant:
Er, well, I know there was a Henry the Eighth …. ER. ER … Three?

CHRIS SEARLE SHOW (BBC RADIO TAFFY )
Chris Searle:
In which European country is Mount Etna ?
Caller:
Japan.
Chris Searle:
I did say which European country, so in case you didn’t hear that, I can let you try again.
Caller:
Er …….. Mexico ?

PAUL WAPPAT (BBC RADIO WALES )

Paul Wappat:
How long did the Six-Day War between Egypt and Israel last?

Contestant (long pause):
Fourteen days.

DARYL DENHAM’S DRIVETIME (VIRGIN RADIO)

Daryl Denham:
In which country would you spend shekels?

Contestant:
Holland?

Daryl Denham:
Try the next letter of the alphabet.

Contestant:
Iceland? Ireland ?

Daryl Denham: (helpfully)
It’s a bad line. Did you say Israel ?

Contestant:
No.
PHIL WOOD SHOW (BBC GMR)

Phil Wood:
What ‘K’ could be described as the Islamic Bible?

Contestant:
Er… …. …

Phil Wood:
It’s got two syllables . . . Kor . .

Contestant:
Blimey?

Phil Wood:
Ha ha ha ha, no. The past participle of run .. . ..

Contestant:
(Silence)

Phil Wood:
OK, try it another way. Today I run, yesterday I . . .

Contestant:
Walked?

THE VAULT
Melanie Sykes:
What is the name given to the condition where the sufferer can fall asleep at any time?
Contestant:
Nostalgia.
STEVE WRIGHT IN THE AFTERNOON (BBC RADIO 2)
Wright:
Johnny Weissmuller died on this day. Which jungle-swinging character clad only in a loin cloth did he play?
Contestant:
Jesus.

And they walk among us!

And I did go better.

More control and more speed, better turns on steeper pitches, with more confidence and relaxation being the key.

When I look back at a video of me from last year, although I thought I was fairly good then, I can see all my faults.

Under standing  what you’re doing wrong, and conversely well, is a big breakthrough.

Now when I crash I know why I did, rather than being  bewildered.

I have a couple more days to go, and I do expect to get better.

No blood ( from anywhere ) today.

Not for the first time, I have managed to injure myself internally inserting a catheter.

I can tell when after fully pushing one in, I get no release of urine. Rather, on pulling it out I get a lot of blood on the catheter.
What I’ve done is to push sufficiently hard to push through internal tissue and create a hole inside me somewhere that shouldn’t be there.
I guess this potentially also leads to infection possibly ( or probably ) as well as even more spasming.

On a lighter note, my skiing today was a lot better.
I watched myself on video ( Rob wearing my GoPro ) and realised that what I thought I was doing ( technique wise ) wasn’t actually the reality. That enabled me to change my style today which gave me a shit load more control. Well, that and some new snow.

Tomorrow, whilst leaving a bloody trail behind me, I may go even better?

A good friend had a big birthday party tonight in London.

Obviously I knew that by coming to France I’d miss it.

I did think about it for some time before I opted to choose trying my hand at skiing again over going to a  big night where I’d see lots of friends, plus the birthday girl.

It’s very easy ( in fact automatic now ) to convince myself that the party will be more straightforward for quite a few people if I don’t go, making my chosen option easier.

Pre injury I’d not have missed this party, no way. It’s just that now I feel odd at lots of social events. It’s not that I don’t want to go. I want very much to go. But not like this, not in this bloody wheelchair.

I’ve got a significant birthday coming up ( 30th ) but I really don’t know if I want to publicly ‘celebrate ‘ it . I thought I did a few months back, but now I’m erring on staying in and being depressed instead .. Hmmmm

I’m sure I’ve said this stuff before anyway.

So, I hope the night went well and that everyone had a fantastic time. It’ll no doubt be going on for a few hours yet, by which time I ought to be asleep. However……my bloody spasms are back – a bit different tonight – every 45 seconds or so only, but really violent ones.

I need sleep, so I hope I get some.

… started okay, as I’d  left off, or even better, and continued to be okay for 2 hours or so.

I cant tell how the snow ‘ feels’ now so I don’t know when it changes. When it did though I started crashing, and seemed totally unable to do  anything about it.

And that’s the bloody frustrating part.

I finished the day feeling extremely dejected.

Day 3 I had no instructor so haven’t gone anywhere.

It snowed a lot today, but then got warmer and seems to have significantly melted.

So ive got no idea how tomorrow will go.

Again ( as usual ) my spasms started with a vengeance at about 8pm and just kept going all night.

I did sleep for 5 hours, eventually propping myself up so I was in a sitting position in bed. That seemed to work – or at least I fell asleep. It’s not enough sleep though, not for me now.

We watched Everest last night – downloaded the film – I half watched it, as I was distracted by my legs. In 2000 Dan summited Everest – on an Army expedition – one of only 2 soldiers to get to the top on that attempt. As it happened, I was myself I’m the Himalayas doing a race called the Raid Gauloises, and I could see Everest from the Tibetan Plateau. I remember talking to him and wishing him luck ( a conversation in my head only ).

At the time the stats were very off putting – for every climber that actually made it to the top, 1 in 6 of those that did then died on the way down. For me, those odds were too short to contemplate trying it.

As I now have an expectation that things will generally go wrong for me, whatever I think in advance, it was no surprise to me that once I’d gone up in the cable car to meet my instructor,  I started to feel cold, followed by full on shivering, with little chance of warming up ( given I can’t exactly jump up and down when strapped into a fibreglass casket, outdoors in a snow storm )

Lifted out of the sitski again, and stuck back in my chair,  with 3 more coats and hot tea, it was about an hour before I felt sufficiently ok to go outdoors again.  The snow was still coming down and I gave myself about half an hour before I was frozen again.

So imagine my surprise when 3 hours later I still hadn’t even fallen over ( other than 10 feet off a chair lift ) and seemed to be in control of my ski rig to a large degree.

The soft snow gave me grip through my arm poles that I haven’t had before and made turning ( how you limit speed and control direction ) actually quite easy ( compared to previous sitski forays anyway ).

At this rate this trip could turn out a success?!

Thanks as always to Dan, to his building crew here, and to Kev Young for making this stuff possible.