From the outset we had stated our preference for a Home Birth, although with an open mind about transferring to hospital if needed.  Our midwife, smiley, supportive Anola from the Stratford Road Midwifery Team, was all for it from the start.  As the pregnancy progressed well we began chatting with friends who spoke positively (and realistically) about their experiences of giving birth at home.  They also offered us some great advice and support (as well as a birth pool!).

As the due date approached we went along to an excellent antenatal class at Birmingham Women’s Hospital as well as a ‘Birth Rehearsal Day’ with Cat Morgan who runs the Pregnancy Yoga classes I’d attended throughout the pregnancy.  These were great for helping us to understand what was ahead of us.  Being able to visualise and understand what was happening as the contractions hit, understanding how I could help the labour progress through movement and positioning as well as finding ways to cope with the pain through breathing were invaluable on the day.

My contractions began in earnest at 4am on the 10th January, and as recommended we rested up, tried to relax and kept track of the frequency and intensity of the contractions.  By mid-morning the TENS machine went on and the notes had evolved into James’ star-rating system – each wave being followed by ‘was that a two or a three?’ or ‘that looked like a two’.  Whereas others may have needed to resist the urge to strangle him at that point, I think we did a pretty good job of supporting each other, staying calm and making it a really positive shared experience.

At 6:30pm, with the contractions (eventually!) becoming more frequent and lasting longer, a midwife came out to us and stayed for an hour to check my progress and examine me.  The verdict wasn’t quite what I’d hoped for: over 15 hours in and only just entering ‘established’ labour.  I was advised to prepare for the long-haul – rest, stay hydrated, get some food and try a bath and a couple of paracetemol.  I could be looking at another 12 hours of labour.  We were to ring through to get another midwife out when contractions became more frequent.

So, into the bath I went, cursing the fact that our shallow bath barely touched the base of my huge belly.  Within half an hour of getting out my waters broke and everything sped up.  We decided to call a midwife out to us, but after 20 minutes of trying to ring through, James eventually spoke with someone who broke the news that there was no midwife available to come out to us.  They were, however, able to offer us a room on the midwife-led ‘Birth Centre’ at the Women’s Hospital and use of their birth pool.

James got our bags together and managed to catch our neighbour, Sandra, returning home to ask if she could drive us the 10 minute drive to hospital.  We piled into the car with me kneeling on the back seat, focusing on my ‘horse breaths’ (a way to concentrate on long exhalations which is really effective at focusing your mind and slowing your breathing – but yes, it looks as daft as it sounds!).  By now I had the distinct feeling that we weren’t far off meeting our littl’un, prompting the revelation to James and Sandra in the front of the car that ‘I think the baby wants to be born!’.

(Just a little tip here.  When you’re in the midst of an emergency in a vehicle and you need to get somewhere quickly, ask a driver, not a cyclist where to go.  You may find that you end up in front of the wrong hospital unable to cut through the where you need to go without needing to drive all the way back round or drive up the cycle path.  Alternatively live somewhere where the nearest hospital doesn’t have a daft one-way system and poor signage.)

We arrived at hospital at 10:20pm and were immediately admitted to the Birth Centre.  After several contractions the midwife, Harriet, checked to see how far dilated I was.  She was as surprised as we were when she looked and told us that the baby was already there and that I could push when I was ready!  So, after about five minutes of pushing and only 15 minutes after arriving at hospital our little warm, red and crying bundle arrived.  Our boy Adam.  All 7lb of him.

Come the early hours Adam still wasn’t feeding, and later that night a ‘Pulse Ox’ test indicated that there was cause for concern and that further tests were needed on his heart and lungs.  We were transferred to the Neo-Natal Unit where Adam was put in an incubator to raise his temperature (for the first few hours), given oxygen and rigged up to monitors.  An x-ray revealed he had a chest infection, which can occur when there has been a quick delivery as the amniotic fluid can remain on the lungs.  He was prescribed five days of antibiotics, to be administered through a cannula in the back of his hand.  A heart scan also revealed two small holes in Adam’s heart which are common in babies, are not usually cause for concern and often heal by themselves over time (one has since healed, the other is likely to heal – we have another scan at the end of the month).

I’m not sure what hormones saw me through the rest of the day, but I’m grateful for them.  It was tough to see our tiny little boy who we dearly wanted to take home and get to know inside an incubator, and even more difficult to drag ourselves away from him to eat.  But, within twelve hours of giving birth I needed to keep myself healthy too.  However, the staff on the ward were so calm, friendly and genuinely compassionate, and everything was explained so well that it really didn’t occur to us to worry.  It was just unfortunate that Adam was ill.

The next few days in hospital saw me spending each day sat on the Neo-Natal Unit chatting with nurses and marveling at the way in which they went about their work.  We were on the Grasshopper Ward, which the sign on the door informed me was sponsored by the Cliff Richard Fan Club!  Each night I went off to Ward 4, a post-natal ward, and tried to get some kip before a midwife appeared to let me know when I was needed to be with Adam.  Traipsing nightly through empty hospital corridors in the early hours in a nightgown to try and feed a lethargic, poorly child was not exactly my most glamorous moment, but with supportive staff and a tiny, beautiful, bright eyed boy to cuddle I wouldn’t have been anywhere else.

On the Friday night Adam joined me on the post-natal ward (our first night together!) and on Saturday morning we transferred to the Transitional Care Unit where we could both be monitored and supported.  Without those few days of round the clock support we would never have managed to establish breastfeeding.  Gradually Adam took better and longer feeds, his colour returned to a healthy, rosy pink (he had a bit of jaundice) and his energy levels increased.  On Monday, after Adam had finished his course of antibiotics we were given the thumbs up to come home.

Throughout our stay I was overwhelmed by the care and attention we received from nurses and midwives.  I certainly didn’t need any convincing of the value of NHS staff prior to our stay, but to be on the receiving end for the first time was a real eye-opener about how hard staff work round the clock with a gentleness and compassion which feels over and above what is required.  Thank you so much to any of you who may be reading this.

We’ve also been taken aback by the support, gifts and cards we’ve received from friends and family.  My little Blackberry was a real source of comfort in the early hours on the ward, when I could read the lovely comments from people on Facebook, Twitter, e-mail and text.  Don’t underestimate how much it meant.

A little over a month in and James and I are having a great time getting to know Adam, going on little adventures with him and spending hours staring into his bright eyes.  He’s now been introduced to scores of family members and friends.  As with everything else so far, he takes it all in his stride.  We’re just a little bit smitten…

I think that’s rather good!

Over the past few years I’ve left running behind and cycled far more, I’d always call myself a cyclist as opposed to a runner anyway but I also happen to not pick up injuries on the bike. But cycling the distances I enjoy requires putting a lot of hours on the bike and with a child on the way something may have to give. So over the last few mounts I’ve been endeavoring to find my running legs again, and so far, so good

To help in this quest I’ve decided to take part in park run. It’s a free weekly 5km run that takes place on Saturday mornings in parks up and down the county, as well as in a few other countries. Its very simple, you register on line, print off your unique barcode, find your local run, turn up, run, have your code scanned and receive your result via text and e-mail. Here’s my first email:

Cannon Hill results for event #72. Your time was 21:02.

Congratulations on completing your 1st parkrun and your 1st at Cannon Hill today. You finished in 39th place and were the 34th gent out of a field of 246 parkrunners and you came 7th in your age category SM35-39. You can view the full set of results here.

21:02, not bad for my first 5km in about 7 years and no injury! I’ve some way to go to reach my best recorded 5km time of 17:53, but I’d be very happy to consistently run under 20mins with no injuries.

I’ve just taken a quick photo of Rach and the bump. Can’t help but think it looks like she’s being putting cushions up her jumper and playing games. We shall find out some time soon…

Looks a bit mad to me, which he clearly is! After getting to Germany for Christmas, a ride of over 850 miles, he decided it would be a good idea to cycle all the way back to Edinburgh again. The fact that he decided to ride 2600km (1615 miles) at the end of December definitely marks him out as a bit mad. Sure, I know I like to do stuff like this but I’m a cold wimp and would not even consider it at this time of the year. Good to read of adventures like this, a long distance ride, not a race, more of a tour in spirit, and at a time of the year when most people are putting their feet up.

Check out his blog Fearless and Unique for details of this and his other mad adventures.

Here’s an excerpt:

A San Francisco cable car holds 60 people. This blog was viewed about 2,500 times in 2011. If it were a cable car, it would take about 42 trips to carry that many people.

Click here to see the complete report.

However, the year has involved plenty of walks, a spot of yoga and yes, even a little cycling in between debilitating nausea and battling to get some work done.  I’ve done a wee blogpost over on my work website listing some of the past year’s work highlights – a very strange feeling to sign off work after almost 7 years of full-time self-employment.  ‘Little Bean’ has traveled far and wide already taking in America’s Pacific North West, the Ligurian hills, Pembrokeshire, Lewes’ crazy bonfire celebrations, a couple of trips to London, a few visits to Kent and even a weekend away in sunny Manchester.  We’ve enjoyed the delights of Moseley Folk Festival, seen friends performing Shakespeare and Arthur Miller and experienced a laser light show on the side of the Coulee Dam.  And we’ve joined in demonstrations to protect public services (which we can’t praise highly enough!) and safeguard workers’ pensions.

So, not quite as action packed as I’d anticipated, but I like to think that the strong, eye-watering kicks I’m experiencing are an achievement in their own right.  So… predictions for future endurance events?  I’m not even going to go there….

So the second half of this year I’ve been a good husband and dad to be and focused on DIY and getting ‘the nest ready’ as our neighbour puts it. Well maybe she is right about that. But it’s also been a period where I’ve explored my local trails after work. I have to thank Tom aka ‘The Carbon Monkey’ for that. He’s been much better than me blogging about out mini adventures so check out his site.

And for the past few weeks I’ve had the fortune, or maybe the misfortune to have had my legs well and truly ripped off by Mike Hall. He’s been training for the round the world race and to hopefully set a new world record. Yep, that’s a 18,000 mile bike race that leaves from London in February. Check out his site for more about that bonkers adventure.

Next year I’ve at least one big ride lined up, a nice 1000km round Scotland on the fixie in late June of which my biggest fear will be the midges. And if the timing is right (August) then I hope to have a go at a 800+ mile off road race in the UK, the EWE (England-Wales- England). But before that and in no more than 2 weeks, maybe a few days (eeek) I will take on the role of dad with all the challenges and joy that will bring. I hope to continue to ride my bikes too far and to juggle that with my new role as dad.  So the new chapter begins.

Due to MOT reasons I had to travel to Machynlleth by train the night before and had a fantastic nights sleep in my bivi bag on the side of a hill. Come Saturday morning a small huddle started to gather round a tipi in a cold field.
Bike envy started early with many exotic 29er’s and various bikepacking systems containing an ultra lightweight backpacking wish list were pulled from van’s and cars for last minute fettling. At 10am the 30 or so people rolled out of the field past the farm and up! And, up, and up, and up! The first climb nearly sent me back to the start wanting to bail. Seems my fitness had dropped further than I’d thought, but the clear blue skys and fantastic views kept my spirits up, well that and the thought that I’d quit to many rides this year to not make it round this one. I soon fell into riding with Clive and Jase and the miles started to pass by, well grind by if I’m honest, but they were going by.

The trails put together for this ride were a mixture of high open moors, forest tracks, single track, tarmac with occasional river thrown in so we could clean our bikes, (thinking Strada Florida here, check out this video). Due to the remote nature of the route, one of the challenges would be your approach to food. Do you carry everything you might need? But how much would you need? And how much does that weigh? Or do you carry enough to get between possible shops or pubs? What if they are closed? Clive and I both opted to take enough food to get between the two possible shop stops on route. Jase had enough to get round the whole way. So it was at Pontrhydfendigaid that Clive and I hit the pub and Jase rode on in to the dusk. It had taken us about 8 hours to ride 60 miles and the shop had closed. If the pub had not been open or serving food then I’m not sure what I would of done!

With sweet potato curry inside us and the sun now set, we headed back into the dark hills. I’ve always enjoyed off road riding in the dark, ever since those dizzy days of my twin vista lights and their combined 10w output. Lights have come on but the sensation remains the same, exploring with no visual landscape aids, just you and the trail, and the starts if your lucky. We rode Strada Florida in the dark.

Somehow,  leaving a forest I spotted another good bivi spot tucked up on a bank with soft dry grass. It was either stay here or risk having to push on for another 15-20 miles until we could find a place with cover not in a valley. Clive and I slept well until about 4am when the rain started. I learnt on Saturday night that without the use of a tarp, I’m unable to keep the rain from falling on my head using my bivi bag. At 6am, we were back on the bikes and heading in to a very misty night. After a long, step, rocky bridleway climb, the devils staircase, a remote moor top crossing, and crossing the hill top south of the Elan valley we found breakfast in Rhayader around 11am. Eggs and baked beans on toast with tea, ohhh the tea!

Back on the bikes, and topped up with water and food Clive continued to keep me entertained with stories of his many adventures, one of the benefits of a riding partner a good few years wiser than I. We soon picked our way up the final forest climb and down in to the Staylittle valley, nearly home. Thankfully there was no sting in the tail of this ride, indeed quite the opposite. The final few miles are a fast tarmac decent. Clive and I arrived back at 2.38pm, earning ourselves a green badge and a very welcome 3 course lunch, thanks Dee

So Clive and I took over 28 hours to ride the 200km, where as Kevin Roderick and Ian Barrington were back in 17h 23m. OK, they did not stop for sleep, but that’s one hell of a time! To be honest, I’m surprised I got round that ride at all, my current fitness did not desire a finish time at all.  Check out the results.

Does it deserve to be called the toughest mtb event in the UK? Well, most people are not going to be able to get round in one go so will need to sleep. It’s self supported, there are no race marshals to hold your hand or pink arrows to tell you where to go.  You might run out of food and water, and you will climb 4000m. I’d say a wet Kielder 100 is harder on the bikes, but the Bear Bones 200 is in a different league altogether, it’s was a real adventure and not just a race. It’s the toughest ride I’ve ever done on a mtb. But as one of the other finishers reminded us at the end “the weather made it easy”

Filed under: Bike Adventures, James's Stories ]]> http://everydaystories.wordpress.com/2011/10/17/toughest-mtb-event-inuk/feed/ 1 jamesrach Bear Bones Map BB200 green badge http://everydaystories.wordpress.com/2011/10/14/bear-bones-200/ http://everydaystories.wordpress.com/2011/10/14/bear-bones-200/#comments Fri, 14 Oct 2011 14:31:44 +0000 jamesrach http://everydaystories.wordpress.com/?p=541 ]]> Not been blogging for a while, Rach and I have been in the states exploring Washington and Oregon. We’re back now and this weekend I’m off out to Wales for a spot of Bikepacking. The event is the Bear Bones 200, a 200 Km self supported ride round mid Wales. We have to carry at least a sleeping bag and the expectation is that we sleep out overnight. I’m going down to Machynlleth tonight where I’ll grab a pizza and head out on to the hills to find a cozy spot for the night before the start tomorrow. Whilst in America I picked up some gear from Revelate Designs made for this type of trip and I’ve even put 9 gears back on the bike. Thanks again to the Carbon Monkey for the Exposure light hire. Should be a fun weekend