back on the bike + electricity.....!

Yesterday was an important milestone in my recovery from slipping on black ice on 2nd January 2018 as it was the first time I had seriously ventured out on a bike since the accident.  After getting rid of the brace on 11th April I had gingerly tried a few revolutions on the bike but while it was possible it was clear that this was towards the limit of movement and that I should be very careful.
I am delighted that nearly a month on from being able to discard the brace and my discharge I was able to ride my Scott mountain bike a couple of times around Crystal Palace Park and cope with its hilly terrain while cycle shoes with cleats. Previously I had been wary about relying on getting my foot out of the pedal.

Malcolm Nicol consultant @Raigmore Hospital, Inverness

I continue to be very grateful to the excellent care I received from NHS Scotland – this is a real good news story. I am particularly grateful to the surgeon – Malcolm Nicol – and his team who did such a brilliant job reattaching my quads to my knee. It is also a testimony to the healing powers of the human body. I don't think I really ever thought that I wouldn't be able to ride a bike again but it is a wonderful feeling when you are actually able to do so. There is still a way to go before my leg and knee are fully back to normal but I can see real progress.

Electricity.....!! 
I have long been a fan of the Good Captain Beefheart, which includes the track Electricity. This classic composition came to mind as I stormed up an assortment of hills around Forest Hill, Sydenham Crystal Palace and Anerley, while test riding the Giant Road-E+ 2 Pro Electric Road Bike.

Giant Road-E+ 2 Pro Electric Road Bike

I have to say that riding an e-bike is a revelation, especially going up hills. With very little effort you sail up them barely breaking sweat. Initially it had seemed so easy that I forgot to change down gears, so wondered by I was struggling on the less steep ascent of Canonbie Road. I realised later that I had gone up this brute of a slope on the big chainring and in one of the higher gears.

Ian Uddin, the general manager at Cadence Performance (Crystal Palace), had stressed that when going up hills it was more effective not to pedal hard instead let the motor do the work for you. Having remembered that I ought to change down for the steepest hills I flew up Anerley Hill at 23.5 kms an hour! Startlingly quick – watch out Quintana!

You are, of course, still exercising by turning the pedals but you are no longer gasping for breath and asking why you are still subjecting yourself to this sort of strain and torture......   

Brilliant work from Malcolm Nicol leads to my dishonourable discharge

Surgeon Malcolm Nicol @Raigmore Hospital

Yesterday I had my last follow up appointment with Malcolm Nicol, the surgeon who supervised the operation on Thursday 4th January 2018 to reattach my quads to my left knee. 

Nicol was sufficiently satisfied with my progress following three weeks of the brace at 90˚ that he discharged me – a dishonourable one, I trust. Meaning that it is no longer necessary to wear the brace, which has spent all too long of the last nine weeks sliding down my left leg... I have to say that it was initially decidedly strange to walk without the brace. Even though covered by my joggers my left leg and knee felt curiously naked and exposed. Perhaps not that surprising seeing that I have been wearing either a splint or a brace since Tuesday 2nd January. 

Today I discovered that I can now manage a complete pedal stroke on a bike, although there is still a tightness, so I will have to take care. My excellent physio – Julie Porteous (Highland Physiotherapy) – warned that it would take 18 months before my quads and left knee were fully recovered.  

I am immensely grateful to Malcolm Nicol and his team at Raigmore for their brilliant repair job. My thanks also to the ward staff at Raigmore, the A&E Department and the local ambulance service at Kingussie for their excellent care.

See previous post on my operation etc.

Our NHS may not always be perfect but it is absolutely worth fighting to protect it. I shudder to think how much similar treatment would have cost me in the United States.....   

 

 One last outing for the brace: 11th April 2018

(above and below)

Should create a sensation on a cat walk... 

 

 

In memory of Netta – Janet Macintyre

 Netta on Mother's Day for the family tea at the Atholl Arms  

Netta (Janet) Macintyre: 

born in Keiss 20th May 1924 - died Kingussie 8th April 2018

Netta, CRM's mother and my mother-in-law, died peacefully and without pain early this morning in St Vincent's Hospital, the local hospital in Kingussie.

Back in 2013 Netta had an operation for bowel cancer, which gave her nearly five more years of life. Unfortunately her cancer returned at the end of 2017. Aged 93 Netta decided that she did not want to undergo any treatment other than pain control. She bore her illness with fortitude and dignity remaining cheerful, even though at times Netta was clearly in pain. Always keen to be fully alert she was at times reluctant to take her painkillers, although Netta never refused her small evening glass of Croft Original Sherry – her true 'medicine'!  

Netta had been admitted to St Vincent's on Monday 26th March when she became very agitated. The doctor's advice was that she was unlikely to survive. Remarkably by the following morning she was sitting up in bed and fully alert. This continued through the rest of the week and into the morning of Monday 2nd April.     

Netta had a great thirst for life. She loved meeting and chatting to people. It was typical that last Monday, her last morning of consciousness, she was busy writing and making phone calls – telling her friends that she was going home on Tuesday afternoon. Her last letter was to her 99-year-old friend Edna, who will be 100 in August. 

Sadly she never got home. Around Monday lunchtime she took a turn for the worse and had to be put on a pump to contain the pain. This medication put her into a deep sleep from which she never emerged.  

Netta was born in Keiss, a village on the Caithness North Sea coast just a few miles north of Wick, which was once a fishing village. Later the family moved to Wick – her father was a fisherman. Netta trained as a nurse – initially at Wick and then at Inverness, where she met Jimmy, her husband. They married in December 1946 and were together for nearly 65 years.

Netta and Jimmy renewing their wedding vows

on their Diamond Wedding Anniversary

with Rev. Peter Donald 

Jimmy and Netta celebrating their Diamond Wedding

16.12.2006

When Jimmy died at the end of January 2011 Netta moved to a flat in Newtonmore where she soon made a new and extensive circle of friends.

Netta remained very attached to Caithness and its special landscape (the 'big skies') – always keen to make return visits.  

She will be remembered by many people for her kindness, caring and her community work over many years in Inverness for Abbeyfield, Raigmore Hospital and other organisations. In March 2003 she was named as one of Scotland's Unsung Heroines at a reception to mark International Women's Day held at the Great Hall, Edinburgh and hosted by Helen Liddell MP, then Secretary of State for Scotland.  

Netta was a famous baker – her pancakes were legendary. She always had a remarkable pin-sharp memory for people and events.

Karen Shaw – Netta's main community nurse

She received remarkable and devoted care from the Highland NHS – from the community nurses – Karen, Mary, Dawn, Caroline and others, her doctor – Mary Cauldbeck, and the staff at St Vincent's Hospital, Kingussie.  

My slip on black ice on 2nd January of this year that separated my quads from my left knee proved to be fortuitous. It would have been impossibly painful to be driven back to London after my operation at Raigmore Hospital, Inverness to reattach my quads. It was also evident that Netta, always fiercely independent, now needed some support, so we stayed on at Newtonmore. It has been a great privilege for Carole and I to help support Netta during her final months.  


Netta is survived by her four children – Carole, Douglas, Anne and Tom – and a large extended family including four grandchildren and a great grandchild. 

The funeral will be held on Tuesday 17th April at Saint Bride's Church, Glen Road, Newtonmore, PH20 1DT at 3pm. Family flowers only please.

 Netta celebrating her 90th birthday 

Netta on the beach @Colonsay for Ruaridh and Susie's wedding
April 2016 (foto: CRM)

Isabel, Charlie, Netta and Carole
mid-February 2018

Pink and purple were her favourite colours 

Netta with her favourite hat 
2018

Netta & Carole: 
2018

 

Netta lunching @ The Letterbox Restaurant 

- mid-March 2018

     

Netta's last outing: 1st April 2018

The first Sunday in April was warm and sunny – a welcome change from the long winter. It was warm enough to Netta to go out in her wheelchair with her son, Tom, and his daughter, Zoe. 

 Netta – still alert and bright eyed

with Tom and Zoe

Zoe and Netta

Out to play @Rocpool, Inverness

View from the Rocpool restaurant

On Friday I got out to play for the first time since I injured myself through slipping on black ice on 2nd January. We took the train from Kingussie to Inverness to meet up with Diane and John, who we met in an international hotel in Beijing last year, for an indulgent Friday lunch at the Rocpool restaurant. 

The great advantage of having the restaurant's wine list on-line is that you can choose at least the first bottle in advance, so we were able to order a bottle of the Domane Wachau 2016 Grüner Veltliner even before we sat down. The GV (sensibly closed with a screwcap) was very crisp, clean and citric making it a good apéritif.

This was my first visit to Rocpool for a number of years and I was definitely impressed with the food, wine list and the quality of service. Both the food and wine list are typically Modern British eclectic with influences from many different cuisines. We opted for the set lunch – two courses for £16.95. It was little surprise, however, that after our two courses we went for either a dessert or cheese. 

Our starters:

 Fritto Misto of king prawn and baby calamari with
marinated plum tomatoes, fresh lemon, chilli &

crispy capers

  

Carpaccio of beetroot with Highland blue cheese & 

roasted hazelnuts with fresh mint and aged balsamic  

      salad of parma ham & shaved Williams pear with 

pecorino cheese, broad beans, lemon & mint 

Once we had finished the Grüner Veltliner we moved onto some red with an impressive – soft and spicy – 2015 Primitivo Salento, Critèra from Schola Sarmenti – as our initial choice.

Main courses: 

Pan fried breast of chicken with wild mushroom risotto, 

black pudding, rocket & shaved parmesan

Pan fried fillet of sea bream with oriental stir fry 

of baby pak choi, steamed jasmine rice & crispy fried
shallots with cashew nuts, sesame & basil

2nd red: 

2011 Colline Teramane, Montepulciano d'Abruzzo

Fantini Farnese

 

 

The 2011 Colline Teramane, Montepulciano d'Abruzzo Fantini Farnese is obviously from further north with greater acidity and also more structured than the Primitivo. 

Desserts & cheese:

 Affogato – vanilla ice cream with a shot of 

expresso & liqueur of your choice

 Triple chocolate praline tart with salted caramel ice cream

Instead of a dessert I opted for a selection of cheese from Rory Stone (Highland Fine Cheeses). All were made from ewe's milk.

A visit to Rocpool is definitely recommended..... 

 

  

From my recent experience we have to defend our great NHS

 

Following my recent experience of the NHS following my fall on black ice on Tuesday morning I am full of admiration for the NHS Highland from the ambulance crew that lifted me off the grass close to where I had fallen over and took me to Raigmore, the A and E department, Ward 3C and the operating team led by Malcolm Nicol. Everyone was so professional and caring. 

On Tuesday I spent about three hours in A&E before being x-rayed and given a splint. I had spent these three hours in a corridor but this wasn't a problem as there was plenty going – much more interesting than being in a cubicle. The doctor in A&E had correctly diagnosed what I had done to myself – ruptured the connection between my quads and my left knee. I was sent back to Newtonmore to return at 7.30 am the following morning. 

We were back by 7.30 and installed in Ward 3C Room 19 Bed 6. Unfortunately it wasn't possible for me to be taken that day but I was operated on the following morning. The operating team was well led by Malcolm Nicol, a consultant orthopedic surgeon. I chose not to have a general anesthetic instead I had a local anesthetic. An injection in my spine making the lower part of my body numb from my belly button down. 

I didn't have any sedation so I was able to chat to Malcolm Nicol and his team during the operation. We discussed the operation as well as cycling Malcom says that he had once raced round the the Bay of Poole. Fortunately he told me that cycling would be very good for my injury. 

It was fascinating that once the lower part of my body was numb I was unaware that my left leg had been lifted up as my brain was telling me that it was still flat on the operating table beside by right leg. The procedure meant cutting me open above the knee, doing some scrapping and then reattaching the quads using metal 'anchors'. These are held in place with permanent sutures. Then my flesh is put back in place with sutures that will dissolve. 

I was very impressed again ny the professionalism and the care shown by the team. 

After the operation I was wheeled into the large recovery room that I thought would be reminiscent of the pit stop area during a Grand Prix or the 24 hours at Le Mans with teams of medics clustered together ready to spring into action to deal with patients as they were wheeled in. 

Then back to my ward – I had been taken down around 10 am and was back around midday. Everything was fine until the local anesthetic started to wear off when my left knee area started to become very painful. I was given a series of morphine doses orally. These took a while to have an effect. Fortunately after a dose or so the next morning the pain subsided considerably and by yesterday I took no painkillers during the day. 

This is obviously going to be a long convalescence – 12 weeks in a splint. Six of these with my leg straight – no bending of my leg knee and then splint on all the time. Then my knee will gradually be allowed to bend over the next six weeks. Only after that will I be able to get back on the bike. Could be a very good excuse to buy an e-bike. 

Unfortunately this injury means that I will be unable to make Millésime Bio, the Renaissance tastings and the Salon des Vins de Loire this year. This will be the first year that I have missed the Salon since 1990, so I am very sad and disappointed about not being able to go this year but with the injury this is just impossible.  

As I have already said I am full of praise for NHS Highland for their outstanding level of care, professionalism and friendliness despite the pressure the health service has been put under my our uncaring government reducing real funding despite an ageing population.           

My left knee out of place due to the quads 

being ruptured

 Raigmore Hospital 

Part of the splint that covers almost 

my entire left leg

This morning's view from the patient's 

abode for the next 12 weeks

Not a great start to 2018....

Unfortunately I slid on black ice this morning and damaged my knee. This led to a visit to Raigmore Hospital in Inverness transported in an ambulance. After a couple of hours wait I was x-rayed and then allowed back to Newtonmore. However, I will be back at the hospital for surgery to repair the damage. 

The ambulance and Raigmore Hospital staff were fantastic – what a great institution the NHS is! 

Hope that normal service will be resumed as soon as possible. 

Fine lunch @the elegant Rocpool Reserve, Inverness

Entrance to Rocpool Reserve

Today we met up with two friends that we had met in China to have lunch at the Rocpool Reserve, part of the Albert Roux empire. 

As our friends were delayed by a slow running train from Aberdeen, we went to the bar and ordered a bottle of 2014 Vondeling from South Africa. This is an attractive blend of 50% Chenin Blanc, 24% Chardonnay, 13% Grenache Blanc and 13% Viognier vinified in 500-litre French oak. The 2014 combines good concentration with freshness in the finish. 

We chose a mix of dishes from the set-menu (£32.50 for lunch, £35 for dinner) and from the à la carte. We were impressed throughout by the quality of the dishes. 

  

 Bar area 

(above and below)

 2014 Vondeling from South Africa 

(above and below) 

First courses: 

 Roux's classic souffle 

– wonderfully light and delicate 

 Long, slow cooked pork 

Smoked mackerel 

 

Our red: 

2015 Fleurie, Château de Raousset 

a powerful and rich black fruited Fleurie  

Main courses:

Rabbit ballotine 

Assiette of lamb 

Our sweet wine: 

 2011 Coteaux du Layon 1er Cru Chaume, 

Domaine des Forges 

This 2011 Chaume half bottle from Domaine des Forges (Stéphane et Séverine Branchereau) was a delight with a lovely balance of rich but delicate fruit with good acidity in the finish. Still youthful this Chaume can last for many years to come.  A clear demonstration as to why 2011 is a very good vintage in the Layon. 

Our two previous wines had been served in entirely appropriate Riedel glasses., so it was very surprising that the restaurant produced small copitas for this wine. I asked instead for the Chianti style Riedel glasses that we had had for our white wine and this was immediately done. 

I hope that producing small copitas for the Chaume was an aberration – I'm sure that Albert Roux would not be happy to see a very fine Loire sweet wine served in such small and inappropriate glasses! 

We finished with coffee sitting out on the terrace in the warm Inverness sunshine. 

Rocpool Reserve is certainly recommended for an indulgent mid-week lunch. The wine list has an interesting range of wines from around the world with a fair number at reasonable prices for a restaurant of this class. It is, however, a pity that the only sparkling wine available is Champagne starting from £87 a bottle. What about listing a more affordable Crémant?