#LIKEACHALLENGE 

A few (unedited) videos from my training at Motopark Krakow and basic notes about the exercises I performed. First, the slalom. Most of you will say: easy. Indeed, it’s probably easier than some other manoeuvres, yet surprisingly tricky if you want to do it smoothly and at one speed (keeping the accelerator pedal in the same position throughout). These are important rules if you want to be a good driver in general: executing any turns as smoothly as possible, without wastin

Only a few bullet points and photos, so I don't loose your attention on this seemingly 'boring nonsense'. But trust me, it's actually MEGA important: massively improves the quality of your driving and should you ever be involved in an accident (God forbid!), it could help lessen the severity of your injuries. I used to be one of those 'half sleeping/sitting position' drivers with my seat pretty much horizontal, seatbelt under the arm and one finger on the steering wheel. Ei

Straight to the point... after two weeks I’m still at around two to three revolutions in my two foot spin. A lot of ‘twos’ in that sentence, but these are the current figures. I’ve been practising a lot of other ice-skating moves last week, which will eventually help me improve the spin. I wrote it in the previous post that without solid basics I won’t be able to go much further with my pirouetting. I was obviously hoping (wishful thinking..) that it would all happen a bit q

Very belated post on the first training for my future racing licence. It took place a couple of months ago on the circuit at Motopark Krakow in Poland. Just to be very clear, it’s still a long way away till I actually get the licence (hoping for end of 2018, maybe 2019) and I’ll be taking part in amateur racing events in the meantime. There are various types of licences (mind you, they different a bit in the UK and Poland/continental Europe, so still figuring out which one to

It’s one of the most popular banger car rallies in the world and I’m taking part in in the 2018 edition! It takes 3 days and the route starts in St.Quentin in France (just north-east of Paris) and goes via Switzerland and Italy, finishing in dazzling Monte Carlo famous for those F1 races (and 0% tax). No Ferraris on this occasion though: in order to be eligible, my car has to be worth less than £500. Source: Flicker, Here Lawford There will be a lot of driving and burning

I just came back from a preview screening of 'I, Tonya', the film about the Olympic figure skater Tonya Harding, who, in 1994, was involved in a plot to harm her biggest rival, Nancy Kerrigan. I was only 10 years old back then but I remember the news headlines very well. I was a massive figure skating fan (I still am, hence the pirouette challenge) and together with my grandma I used to be glued to the telly when the skating was on. Probably like most people, I saw Tonya as

Where am I at after one week of training? Well, a bit further than on Monday. I can manage one revolution in my two foot spin (sometimes two, if I focus hard enough on my balance and coordination). Considering I started at ZERO a few days ago, not bad. The thing is, I know I've set the bar really high with 5 revolutions in my pirouette (otherwise it wouldn't be a proper challenge), but in order to achieve that I need to get the hang of all the other bits. It's like learning

Yesterday was my first day at the ice rink. I'm training at the Alexandra Palace , which is an iconic Grade II listed entertainment venue in North London stemming from the 1870s. It's primarily used as an events space for concerts, exhibitions and sports nowadays, but interestingly (at least for me, a telly director) it was a major production centre for BBC. I think they've still got some studios there to this day. I only managed to sort out my skates at the weekend. I t

Here's the revised final route. It differs a bit from the original as 2 days got completely eaten up by the Toubkal climb, so I wasn’t...