Manny started Saturday from somewhere beyond the back of beyond - the Loch Ossian hostel. First Corbett of the day was Meall na Meoig, then back to the track to collect the mountain bike and meet the crew for the day. Brenda, Archie, Sandra, Davy Duncan, Dave Rogers, Chris, Ellie and me biked and jogged the short distance back to the waiting vans, manned by Ken and Christine.
Archie then did some bike maintenance on Manny's MTB while Brenda and Manny had some 'van issues'. Shortly after the oven door shattered, the 'off switch' for the van had been flicked accidentally, resulting in much confusion and consternation as the vehicle showed no signs of life. Eventually the mistake was spotted, power was restored, and Archie and Sandra sped off to look for a new oven door.
Manny decided Beinn a'Chuallaich would be the day's other summit, so Ellie and Manny biked the 15 or so miles along the loch. One thing that has been noted during Manny's tour is that he is a seriously fast cyclist as well as an outstanding hill runner, and, crouched over the tri bars, he arrived just behind the cars, ready to climb the hill.
Brian Brennan joined the party at the foot of Beinn a'Chuallaich, fresh from several hours of LAMM training in the morning and looking for more. After days of sterling support effort, Davy Duncan and Ken Rumgay sat out this ascent, leaving the 6 Westies (Manny, Brian, Dave Rogers, Chris, Ellie, me) to climb the hill together. Again Brian generously took the brunt of Manny's misanthropic tirade on the ascent. Sherpa Rogers and his ridiculously big rucksack forged their own route, but met us as the summit for photos and abuse. An enjoyably fast run down the track took us back to the warmth and hospitality of the vans, where Brenda's Tea Room was doing a roaring trade as usual. I left for home, with Manny planning to cycle back along the loch to tackle 4 Corbetts on Sunday.
I'd like to pass on my personal thanks to Davy and Christine for their hospitality during the day. It was great to meet you both, and I hope to see you again later on this amazing venture.
Archie then did some bike maintenance on Manny's MTB while Brenda and Manny had some 'van issues'. Shortly after the oven door shattered, the 'off switch' for the van had been flicked accidentally, resulting in much confusion and consternation as the vehicle showed no signs of life. Eventually the mistake was spotted, power was restored, and Archie and Sandra sped off to look for a new oven door.
Manny decided Beinn a'Chuallaich would be the day's other summit, so Ellie and Manny biked the 15 or so miles along the loch. One thing that has been noted during Manny's tour is that he is a seriously fast cyclist as well as an outstanding hill runner, and, crouched over the tri bars, he arrived just behind the cars, ready to climb the hill.
Brian Brennan joined the party at the foot of Beinn a'Chuallaich, fresh from several hours of LAMM training in the morning and looking for more. After days of sterling support effort, Davy Duncan and Ken Rumgay sat out this ascent, leaving the 6 Westies (Manny, Brian, Dave Rogers, Chris, Ellie, me) to climb the hill together. Again Brian generously took the brunt of Manny's misanthropic tirade on the ascent. Sherpa Rogers and his ridiculously big rucksack forged their own route, but met us as the summit for photos and abuse. An enjoyably fast run down the track took us back to the warmth and hospitality of the vans, where Brenda's Tea Room was doing a roaring trade as usual. I left for home, with Manny planning to cycle back along the loch to tackle 4 Corbetts on Sunday.
I'd like to pass on my personal thanks to Davy and Christine for their hospitality during the day. It was great to meet you both, and I hope to see you again later on this amazing venture.
My photos are on the Flickr site, with more to come from others.
5 comments:
Hi Manny,after weeks of computer meltdown i have just spent the last 3 hours catching up with your blog and photos so far on your amazing journey.Having moved back to Orkney 3 years ago i'm limited for any good hillrunning(apart from Hoy!)although we had a great week at Lochgoilhead at easter and the occasional trip to my dads outside Aberfeldy which allowed the legs some climbing !It seems a long time since we raced against each other and just reading about your adventure makes me feel more ferry crossings should be made !
good luck to you,Brenda,family and support crew.I look forward to following your progress.cheers, Mike.
Good luck with the 4 Corbetts today heading over to Drumochter summit. I'll hopefully catch up with you next weekend when you should in theory be somewhere around Ben Rinnes.
Nice one, Manda - Hang in there - awesome weather on the way from Thursday for at least 10 days - maybe a couple of weeks - keep it going, pal
Johnston - I had to look up misanthropic ! Nice report
Swaz,
Glad to have been able to broaden your education a bit! I'll be back with the Gor-man in a couple of weeks so I'll post more drivel after that.
J.
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