An anniversary

Anniversaries remind us to reflect - on both the bad and the good - and perhaps consider whether we have learned anything from them, commiserate on the lack of change or congratulate that we have progressed.

A year ago, on the weekend just gone, I came off my bike during a perfectly normal afternoon ride, breaking my collar bone and 7 ribs.

My first question to the paramedics - "is my bike OK?" (it was) and my second outburst "don't cut my kit off - it's brand new" (they didn't).

After a week in hospital, surgery to add metal to my shoulder and the best part of a month off work, I came away with some valuable lessons learned:

• it actually does hurt;

• we should be proud of our NHS and respect those who work within it;

• family, friends and health are everything;

• my clients are a blessing.

I've been reflecting recently that my increased business travel is curtailing my fitness, simply because cycling has become the core activity (outdoors or indoors - my Wattbike is broken at the moment and it's driving me nuts).

I used to be the guy who ran 10 km every morning of the week, no matter where I was - and loved early morning city centres.

Achilles tendinopathy put paid to that in 2018 (that was why I bought the Wattbike, although little did I know how useful it would be during lockdown).

Now I'm lucky to get out once a week, if at all.

The lack of cycling and running is turning me into a rather creaky classic car, constantly in need of repairs to niggling problems. I've completed 35 marathons over the years and couldn't run for a bus at the moment.

I think it's about time I got the running gear out again and started to take some tentative steps.

A year ago I broke myself - today I think it's time to fix.