Hugh Trenchard

“Here we are,” said the gypsy cyclist to his newest friend. “Why don’t we stop here for a short break, and then we will ride up that mountain and look into the volcanic crater at the top! I hear there are bubbling lava flows, and I don’t know about you, but I can hardly wait for the ride up!”

“Ok,” said the woman, dismounting her bicycle and setting it down. “Funny, about the lava flows. Here I am – so far away from the long lines of traffic that snake down in the darkness of a northern evening. When it is October and dark after work and I am returning home in rush hour traffic, and I am descending a long hill, I see all the red lights ahead as though they had congealed into a flow of red-hot lava pouring down the cracks of a bursting volcano. Have you ever thought the traffic looked like that?”

“Hmmm…not so much,” replied the gypsy cyclist. “Traffic always mesmerizes me, but I usually would ride my bike to and from work. If I ever drove, I only felt frustrated – occasionally rage at the commute I had to take. I was much better on my bike.”

“Let me guess,” said the woman, laughing. “You were often late for work, weren’t you?”

The gyspy cyclist laughed too. “Yes, this is true. But it is the sense of confinement that traffic brings which frustrates me. It wouldn’t matter if it was Sunday morning and I had no place to be, or a rush to work on Thursday morning. I find more freedom here…” The woman looked along the road that ascended the mountainside. “No, not here,” said the gypsy cyclist, “in this beautiful country, though there is freedom here too, but here,” he touched the seat of his bicycle. “Here on my bicycle.”

“Oh,” said the woman. “I have felt that sometimes, maybe. But I love my work, and I don’t ride a bicycle like you do. Sure, I can get frustrated by traffic, just like anyone, but I always leave with plenty of time, and when I am in traffic I feel oddly connected with an entire global system of interacting people. Some of my friends have a hard time understanding this, but I am vital and alive and part of humanity when I am part of the traffic flows. I truly love it.

“Every day at work, I make calls to clients around the world. I broker meetings among colleagues in China, India, America – you name it – every day. We talk about the economics of trade between nations and we formulate policies that we hope will smooth the free flow of goods and services around the world. Some of my more left-leaning friends do not understand that we do this for the good of humanity. But my point is that these global connections leave me with a feeling of profound vitality. I feel as though I am one neuron in a vast global brain. Should I die, the brain lives on, but so do I within that brain, because I am part of that brain. Do you know of John Donne?”

“Vaguely,” said the gypsy cyclist.

“He wrote a famous sermon,” replied the woman. ” ‘No man is an island. Every man’s death diminishes me, for I am part of the main. Therefore never send to know for whom the bell tolls, it tolls for thee’. Does it ring a bell?”

The gypsy cyclist chuckled. “Yes, it does ring a bell. How is your work like John Donne’s sermon?”

“We are all part of a vast network of human interactivity. Like I say, it is a global brain. Remove one neuron from that brain, and we are all affected by it. But unlike Donne’s sermon, in reality, my death will barely register in the global brain. But because I am part of that brain, as are we all – even when we die as individuals, we live on within its vitality. Do you see? That is the profound urgency of mankind. We are here not only to survive as individuals and to perpetuate the species, but to ensure that the interconnected system remains robust and grows in complexity so that should any part of the system fail – like your death, or mine, or even mass deaths – the system lives on.”

“Hmm…” replied the gypsy cyclist. “You and I are very different. I have been alone for so long and have found vitality through the movement of all the sinews of my body. Since my wife died so many years ago, I could not live the life you lead.”

“I am sorry to hear of your loss,” replied the woman. “I don’t mean to make light of it, but I must disagree. We are truly not so different. The sinews of your body are like the clients I connect with from around the world. Each are a small part of a larger whole.” She paused, and looked up the road ahead. “I don’t know about you, but I think I’m ready to ride up this mountainside! I won’t be as fast as you, you know.”

“That’s ok,” said the gypsy cyclist. “If I ride ahead, I will always look back to see where you are, and if I am very far ahead, I will slow down to let you catch back up.”

“Ok. It’s agreed then,” said the woman. And together they mounted their bicycles and proceeded on their way.

Saturday

Just to recap the last few days, working backwards: today
I managed to hook up with the Burnside group ride for a three hour, mostly easy ride. Along the way were a few harder efforts, namely through Landsend and then along the waterfront on the way home. There were about ten of us on the ride, although it whittled down quickly before we came home through the waterfront as guys peeled off for home. The weather was cool but there was no rain. My bootyless feet were cold, and I could feel the cold and the lack of consistent riding mileage sapping my strength a bit when we turned up the speed along Landsend. That may be my last group ride before departing next weekend for Costa Rica.

Friday – no training at all

Thursday – I ran down to the Oak Bay track and proceeded to do a 5000m (12.5 laps) tempo run. I didn’t have a watch so I don’t know the time, but it felt smooth and relaxed but not flat out. So I’m guessing the time to be about 17 minutes. That workout felt great, and I would like to do more efforts like that, over the next few weeks in Costa Rica and here. I’d like to build to 4 X 17 minute 5000m as part of a workout while down south. After a cool down I zipped into the gym for 15 mins on the exercise bike, weights, calisthenics, and then a run home.

Wednesday – a 40 minute relaxed run

Tuesday – half hour run before weights, ride on exercise bike, and run home (about 12minutes from the gym at a relaxed pace).

Monday

So far the little bluebird is to my liking. I’ll stick with him for a while.

At Ased’s behest I decided to run the Arthur Taylor Cross Country race yesterday at Beaver Lake. In the end, Ased, unfortunately became victim again to a nagging injury and had to withdraw.

I knew the race would be low key, and indeed for the open/Masters event there were about eight of us at the line. The course was three loops of a 2.1 km course, give or take a bit, for a total of 6.4km. It was a fun little course that incorporated two significant hills and a lot of muck, water and turns. During a warm-up loop I actually became a little worried about the degree of hurt the course would inflict, but given how low-key the event was, there was no pressure.

I had heard there was a possibility Kelly Guest would race, and he was indeed present at the course with the kids he coaches. In the end he didn’t run, however, and from a review of the results of the 10km Bear Mtn race earlier in the day, I see he ran that one instead.

So, on a cool day that featured a few hints of sunshine, we were off after all the younger groups had finished their races. Three loops later and some good hard work salted by some slipping and sliding, I came in at 23.01. Not all that far behind was prolific runner and competitor, Gary Duncan in 24.44, approximately. Notably, Mark Ritchie, who came in third behind me and Gary Duncan, also had run the Bear Mtn race earlier that day.

I was glad to have made it out for that race, and it was nice to support a low key event like that. It was about the right sort of effort for me given my fitness and mileage at the moment. I was also glad to be reminded of the late Arthur Taylor, a man unrivaled in his passion for running. I have a few indelible images of him etched upon my mind.

Saturday, November 17, 2007

As a result of the recent dismissal of a litigant’s application to the nation’s highest court for leave to appeal, a small flurry of hilarious discussion resulted in certain professional circles. Although the various court records are public, the discussion that followed is not, so to ensure I don’t land myself in hot water, we’ll refer to the litigant as “litigant x” and the two lawyers in the discussion as “lawyer A” and “lawyer B” and me as “me”. Nor is my rendering below necessarily word-for-word.

Lawyer A (to the group by email): Congratulations to lawyer B for his hard work in seeing this case dismissed.

me (to lawyer A and lawyer B separately): Having assisted lawyer B in the preparation of the evidence, I well imagine litigant x will try to find some international court in which to commence proceedings against the governments of Canada. And I’m only half joking.

Lawyer A: I’m sure lawyer B will take it in stride…

Lawyer B: Yes. Unfortunately, however, we may have to find an agent to assist us with our filings in the Inter-Galactic Court of Ultra-justice. Maybe lawyer A has some contacts…Equally disconcerting is that litigant x is likely to consider the recent dismissal as a “win”…

Lawyer A: I’ll get right on it. I’ll check with the Justice League…
_______________

Ok, you had to be there and know all the history of the litigation, which I won’t get into. I was splitting a gut, though.

In any event, today was a short-ish ride of 1hr 45 minutes, partly in the rain, partly in the sun and under foreboding clouds, and partly with the wind and partly into the wind. A little bit of everything out there.

Friday – no training.

Thursday – after the LSB art show opening I ran to the gym where I did an additional 25 mins on the treadmill that included 2 x 5 minute intervals at the maximum pace the machine allowed, some weights/calisthenics, a short ride on the exercise bike and a run home.

Thursday, November 15, 2007

So, here we are, with the new template. This is a test post. Of all the options for a background, the drawing of the bluebird and branch attracted me with its understated simplicity. This is probably a contradiction, since so much of what I have to say is far too overstated and reflective of my vanity and conceit!