Life in London is Freezing and Grim

December 15 Update - The Grim video is now available online:
http://www.atestabovetherest.com/?p=104
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But in a good way!

This weekend was one of the best I've had in 3 years of living in London. Why? It was freezing cold and really dirty.

Saturday dawned with a meeting at London's Jubilee Gardens, right next to the London Eye. With problems on the tube, Blinky and I ran the last two kms, with our full rucksacks strapped to our backs - a good little warm up. What followed, was a series of Freeze Mobs around London's top tourist sites. It was a great morning, best told by the literary genius that is Tooves. For full details on the 'mobbing', told in a way I could only wish to compete with, Tooves' blog is a great read with some excellent photos - I recommend it!

After a carbo loading dinner (the smallest ravioli I have ever seen), and a game of "Big Face, Little Face" the craze sweeping the nation, it was home to bed for a good night's sleep.

Sunday in Aldershot. If that doesn't sound Grim enough, then add in cammo nets, mud, frozen 'puddles' (lakes) and a balmy -2 degrees celsius. With support from photographer Zooby and camera man Kirt, 11 of us lined up at the start of the 8 mile course. Tom, Neil, G-Man, Kinsey, Kiwi, Blinky, Milo, Chrissy M, Nick M, Dave K, and me. With every last one of us finishing the 'race', it was a great show by The Everest Test team. It is interesting to note another numbers victory to Hillary, 6-5. Now we just need to learn how to play cricket.

We set off together, but as the field started to spread, the Sharlands and Kiwi bust out to the front, and were the first through the cammo nets.



Once through the nets, it was time to wade through the 'puddle' that only 15 minutes earlier had resembled Gorak Shep with it's thick ice and rock covering. Out came the 4x4s to break the top, ensuring that the water was still icy cold.

Baselayers on my legs kept me from getting too cold down below, except for my feet which turned to into solid blocks of ice. Luckily for me I also had a baselayer top too, as I fell in the water only to be dragged up by the scruff of my neck by the person behind me.

As we passed the 6 mile mark, the course stayed relatively flat, with only the odd block of ice in the way to trip the unsuspecting runner. Rounding the bend at the end of the course, there was one more puddle to go, so I picked up the pace and steamed through to overtake anyone who stood in my way.

It was tough, but we all enjoyed it, and it capped a brilliant weekend.