There is a lack of sun, or just warmth up in Scotland which is made worse by the fact no one seems to put the heating on up here! The plan was to come up for a week to do a few things at once...

1. Visit my brother and finally see his place in Edinburgh where he has been now for over a year.

2. See Pollards new flat that he has been in for a long while now.

3. watch the famous Edinburgh XC

4. See some of Scotland where I have never been.

5. get some training in with guys like Pollard, Mulhare etc in different surroundings and scenary. 

I managed to do most of the above bar the training as my knee hasnt been playing ball and still having trouble although slightly different. I arrived late Friday night after catching a flight from Cardiff after work, of course I saw the evergreen James Thie who was bound to be at the airport (Always travelling somewhere). Pollard picked me up and we went to stay at his friends in Edinburgh. Saturday I went to Hollyrod Park and planned to do a session while I was there, my knee seemed fine so around the top of the big hill I did 9 mins and then 3x6mins. only when i stopped though to jog back to the tent my knee started to really hurt! Walking back after Mark finished his race my knee felt like it was going to snap. 

over the next few days we went to Glasgow to stay at his flat but unable to join him for training I had to be content with his turbo trainer in the flat. I spent a few days acting like his wife....cooking for him, cleaning up after him and not even a txt if he would be home late! Pollard doesnt have his tv connected to airial as he doesnt want to be corupted by emmerdale or Gordon Ramsey so its a dvd or nothing, the good that came out of it though was I found a programme called wilfrid on his ipad which was good along with all the planet of the apes series. 

The last 2 days have been back in Edinburgh with my big brother in his swish apartment near the city centre but still no running. I have been to see Dan Mulhares physio though and it seems to be the ITB band which I might of flared up running slightly different to protect my knee cap problem, it put my mind at ease though as i thought at one point i might have fractured something it was that painfull! 

Scotland is not quite as I imagined and I need to come back to see the mountains, lock ness and 'real' Scotland but Greenock was nice on the docks and Edinburgh has grown on me, especially after a little tour from Spencers girlfriend showing me the castle, hill top, certain buildings and of course Spencers workplace 'Rockstar'. I just cant do the cold though, it is bad enough down south but my bones are cold up here, im too skinny to be in anything under 15 degrees. 

Now looking forward to Tenerife tomorrow and 25 degrees.....lets hope the knee clears to get some training done! 

simx

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