Thoughts on America

January 2018: After a week in Trump’s America, working, travelling and meeting people, here are some thoughts: Work Start early, finish early Face to face meetings are great Redmond, WA has so many job opportunities The drinks fridge is impressive Microsoft is full of white & Asian people The Reno office is really quiet People …

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Skiing in Tahoe, USA

I was lucky enough to ski at Lake Tahoe in January 2018, while on a work trip to Reno, Nevada. It was very cold but beautiful and a great experience. It got me thinking - how does skiing in the USA compare to the European Alps? 20-Jan: Skiing at Heavenly Back in South Lake Tahoe …

Rotterdam Memories: 11 years later

I wrote this piece in 2017, after spending a week in Rotterdam. In September 2017, I was back in Rotterdam, 15 years after I first stepped off the plane in the Netherlands. First, I came to Maastricht on a university exchange in 2002. I loved it so much and it changed my world, that I …

Cycling in Gran Canaria: North vs South

Gran Canaria is a mecca for winter cycling, on the road and off-road MTB. For years I’ve spent a week around Christmas riding through the valleys and climbs on the southern coast, based out of Free Motion in Playa del Ingles. This year I explored the north of the island, based out of Las Palmas. …

Gran Canaria Cycling: Pico de las Nieves from Las Palmas

Route: 91km, +/-2855m, 5hrs, 20th Dec 2017 HC climb – for years I watched the Tour de France and didn’t really know what it meant. Hors Categorie – without categorisation. Climbs could be graded 1-4 depending on gradient and length. HC was invented for climbs off that scale – tougher than a Cat1. (In Ireland …

Cycling around the Netherlands

September 2017 Overall thoughts After 5 days of cycling around the Netherlands, there are a few great things I noticed and appreciated, which makes cycling safe, enjoyable and easy. Touring on a bike is such a great way to see the countryside. You discover so much more than going by car or train. It’s a …

Waterford Greenway

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FXayKRZjhDs It’s great to see such positivity and comments about the Waterford Greenway. It’s not even finished or officially open yet, but 2016 was a breakthrough year. I hope 2017 bring lots of new people to the area to walk, cycle and explore the beautiful countryside. The Greenway is a 46 kilometre paved trail on …

Camino Portugues: 4 days running

This is a detailed blog post about running the Camino Portugues from Vigo to Santiago over 4 days in September 2016.  Jump to these sections: Day 1: Vigo to Pontevedra – 33km Day 2: Pontevedra to Padron – 42km Day 3: Cambados to Pontecesures – 50km Day 4: Pontecesures to Santiago – 39km Gear: What …

Portugal: It’s not Spain

Irish people should be well aware that we’re not the same as our near neighbours across the water. No were not British. Yes, we speak English. No, we don’t have pounds. Yes, we do follow English football teams. No, we don’t all speak cockney. So, Portugal and Spain are kind of the same. Ear neighbours …

Trail Running in Portugal: Grande Trail Serra D’Arga

  Caminha, Portugal, 26 September 2016 This report is about running two mountain trail races in Portugal in less than 24 hours. I finished the main 33km race in 13th position after 3hrs 22mins of running over 33km. The night before I warmed up with a Sunset run over 17km. https://www.facebook.com/268751096494020/videos/1091588047543650/ I’m sitting in the …