... or transport a la mode.
Viv managed to get hold of a coupon* giving discount on Segway rides in Staffordshire.
Too good an offer to turn down!
So last Friday we were racing around a forest track on Segways.
I found them amazing and can think of no other form of transport that is so instinctive to drive... except perhaps an elephant.
That's not just a flippant comparison, the machines respond to gentle touches of the hands and feet in a way that really makes them seem alive. Because there are no other controls, no levers or switches or buttons, there is a much greater similarity to that feeling of riding an animal than you have on most other vehicles.
I am reminded of elephants rather than horses because of the stability; horses always seem a bit unstable, like a bike, whereas an elephand feels... solid.
Acceleration on a Segway comes from simply leaning forward and putting more pressure on the ball of the foot, rather than the heel, and the Segways we drove can go up to around 20mph. Not fast, but these are off-road models.
The great trick is that the powerful gyroscopes only let you fall flat on your face if the machine is not properly charged, and it tells you if it is before you start. The sensation also felt rather like hang-gliding; I remember being surprised and delighted by the sensation of the wing taking hold of you and lifting you firmly but gently off the ground.Though the wind can be far more capricious that the earth, and a hang-glider takes months of practice before one is ready to ride a thermal.
The Segways took less than five minutes to learn, and we learnt by weaving our way in and out of a track of cones in a tiny space of around ten square feet. And everybody in our group of six took to it equally well.
I did find that extraordinary, when you think how long it takes to learn to ride a bike or drive a car. Here we were doing all these complicated manouvres in a resrticted space after only a few minutes. And then we were off to the woodland track.
So if anyone is stuck for something to give me as a present this Christmas....
Viv managed to get hold of a coupon* giving discount on Segway rides in Staffordshire.
Too good an offer to turn down!
So last Friday we were racing around a forest track on Segways.
I found them amazing and can think of no other form of transport that is so instinctive to drive... except perhaps an elephant.
That's not just a flippant comparison, the machines respond to gentle touches of the hands and feet in a way that really makes them seem alive. Because there are no other controls, no levers or switches or buttons, there is a much greater similarity to that feeling of riding an animal than you have on most other vehicles.
I am reminded of elephants rather than horses because of the stability; horses always seem a bit unstable, like a bike, whereas an elephand feels... solid.
Acceleration on a Segway comes from simply leaning forward and putting more pressure on the ball of the foot, rather than the heel, and the Segways we drove can go up to around 20mph. Not fast, but these are off-road models.
The great trick is that the powerful gyroscopes only let you fall flat on your face if the machine is not properly charged, and it tells you if it is before you start. The sensation also felt rather like hang-gliding; I remember being surprised and delighted by the sensation of the wing taking hold of you and lifting you firmly but gently off the ground.Though the wind can be far more capricious that the earth, and a hang-glider takes months of practice before one is ready to ride a thermal.
The Segways took less than five minutes to learn, and we learnt by weaving our way in and out of a track of cones in a tiny space of around ten square feet. And everybody in our group of six took to it equally well.
I did find that extraordinary, when you think how long it takes to learn to ride a bike or drive a car. Here we were doing all these complicated manouvres in a resrticted space after only a few minutes. And then we were off to the woodland track.
So if anyone is stuck for something to give me as a present this Christmas....
I dealt with B&B hunting in the last entry, but for those with less subtle, or less devious, minds, I will just say the search goes on.
I did try to persuade Viv to buy the house on the left as I thought it would make an excellent B 'n B.
But she objected on the grounds that it was too small and not cat friendly.
While I could appreciate the first point I could not really understand the second. I would have thought it was just the sort of place a cat would dream of living in.
I did try to persuade Viv to buy the house on the left as I thought it would make an excellent B 'n B.
But she objected on the grounds that it was too small and not cat friendly.
While I could appreciate the first point I could not really understand the second. I would have thought it was just the sort of place a cat would dream of living in.
So we took Georgie along to have a look for herself. As you can see she looks perfectly happy. But Viv still insists that the place is too far away from a regular supplier of high quality cat food, and that the other cats would laugh at Georgie's Brummie accent.
But I think the accent would soon wear off, and nowadays supermarkets deliver to the door wherever you are.
Sambo's Grave But I think the accent would soon wear off, and nowadays supermarkets deliver to the door wherever you are.
Our searches included the tidal island of Sunderland Point.
Once again I thought the beautiful house with a mooring just outside the front door could make a dream BandB.
But those of you who have seen Roman Polanski's Cul de Sac will understand Viv's objections.
Those of you who have not seen it must.
Oh, Francoise Dorleac!
We could have been so happy together, if it had not been for that tragic accident.
While on Sunderland Point we visited Sambo's Grave. Though it is very well known locally I had never been there before. I found the way that the grave had been cared over the centuries very touching, as well as the way in which it has become a small memorial to other people's loved ones.
It is an odd kind of pilgrimage to make, but these unrewarded acts of kindness are so rarely found that somehow that seemed enough to make a visit worthwhile.
* The word 'coupon' now has multiple meanings. Please ignore definition three and choose any other you think fits.
Once again I thought the beautiful house with a mooring just outside the front door could make a dream BandB.
But those of you who have seen Roman Polanski's Cul de Sac will understand Viv's objections.
Those of you who have not seen it must.
Oh, Francoise Dorleac!
We could have been so happy together, if it had not been for that tragic accident.
While on Sunderland Point we visited Sambo's Grave. Though it is very well known locally I had never been there before. I found the way that the grave had been cared over the centuries very touching, as well as the way in which it has become a small memorial to other people's loved ones.
It is an odd kind of pilgrimage to make, but these unrewarded acts of kindness are so rarely found that somehow that seemed enough to make a visit worthwhile.
* The word 'coupon' now has multiple meanings. Please ignore definition three and choose any other you think fits.
Finally this, from St Sylvia, patron saint of house hunters, florists, mental heath and everything else.