Talisman

I am currently about a third through Mark Cavendish' autobiography (up until 2009 at least) Boy Racer, having been inspired to read it after having seen the great man in action the weekend before last. It is very well written as it happens, and I like this writing style as much as much as I like the man himself, including his Manx accent.

Xylophone

I can't believe that after all these years Nick Skelton is still winning and competing - I remember watching him at Olympia over 30 years ago ! Several more finals tonight, which I shall be tuning in to after EastEnders

That's the word - I can't believe it's already a week since they were whizzing around Box Hill !

I don't think I would do any of them to be honest, as I know I couldn't work that hard, but I have given some thought to the idea of Olympic events for housekeepers - synchronised vacumming maybe or laundry throwing. Not sure if I would go for that though, I might decide to throw in the towel ...

I have got a bit behind with the challenge for the moment, and with my reviews also, but in the last few weeks I have managed to complete at least one more country - Romania - The Appointment by Herta Mueller. I am curently about two thirds through a German book - Fatal Tango by Wolfram Fleischhauer, which is okay but could be better. It is set partly in Argentina as well. The next book on the list is for Isle of Man - Mark Cavendish' autobiography (up to 2009 at least) Boy Racer.

Isles of Wonder - Olympic opening ceremony music.

Life in Box Hill has returned pretty much to normal since the races took place - if it wasn't for all the bunting you would never realise that anything had happened. I expect there will be a major influx of cylists though this weekend, once the ZigZag re-opens. It's too dangerous to drive down there at the moment due to amount of HUGE lorries removing all the barriers and so on. It is course though open for walkers. Today being my first of 2 days off, Coran and I got up early to try and do some filming around the ZigZag before the murals that have been painted on the road get ruined by tyre marks. The light was just right, with the sun breaking through. We managed to get through the security road block alright and walked right the way down (about 2 miles), taking pictures of all the different things that were written on the road, and of course the now a lot more famous views, then all the way back up again. Then a cup of tea at the top and on to Sainsburys for the weekly shop and lunch. The rest of the afternoon was spent watching various Olympic events and reading - what a day for Britain !

The ZigZag is now open for walkers at least (re-opens for cars at the weekend), so Coran and I are up nice and early as the light is so good to take some pictures. In the meantime, I am very happy to see that the Dorking Advertise rhas published the article that I sent them in the online edition - it would have been nice to have seen my name in print, but this way it will probably get more readers, so it's all good. It can also be read on my own blog (listed below - the paper edited it slightly as there were one or two profanities in there). In the meantime, I have now added some of the best pictures from the weekend to my Picassa account, which can be viewed here.

I am one of the lucky ones who can watch it at work. One advantage of working in a nursing home is the big screen TV in the lounge, plus the fact that a lot of residents have smaller ones in their rooms. I must have spent more time watching the telly this morning then than I did actually working. Luckily I finished at 2pm which meant that I could rush home to watch the Time Trial - what a win, what a year for Wiggo ! It can only get better.

Swimming Places - Julien Jabre

Got in from work about half an hour ago having gone home via Sainsburys for a cup of tea. I am sitting here listening to the opening ceremony soundtrack while trawling through my pictures to decide which ones to send to the Dorking Ad, along with a rtaher lengthy tome which I have added to my blog. I will leave them to edit it, if they choose, and I am sure they will.

Now there's a thought - too late now though sadly ! It has though been another amazing day. Once again Coran and I made our way up to the Smith and Western to film the ticket holders going in. The plan was to walk back to the village and then stay in one place for the 2 laps, but as I was standing there filming, a gentleman walked over to me and asked if I wanted a free ticket ! Well I wasn't going to turn that down. The only thing was there were 2 of us, but then one of the stewards offered us another one, so we rapidly emptied out water bottles and scrambled down an extremely muddly slope in the pouring rain to the Donkey Green. Coran hid in the bushes down the ZigZag filming (you are not supposed to do this, so hope this won't be googled), while I walked down to Straw Belle Slope, about a third of the way down the ZigZag. I managed to find a perfect spot right by the ropes and sat and listened to the commentary, looking for the riders as they raced up the lower slopes. The views here were even better than yesterday (as I knew they would be from the Test Race), and the crowd let up a huge cheer as they went past. After it was all complete I crossed the road to take some pictures of Butterfly Bend, the other ticketed area and then made my way back up to Coran at the Donkey Green for a cup of tea and the finish line. A huge cheer went up from the crowd who were viewing it on the big screen, and to get th silver really was the icing on the cake at the end of a fabulous weekend. Coran's video which was supposed to be 15 minutes long is rapidly expanding as she now has almost 6 hours of footage to edit ! During the weekend I took aorund 800 pictures as well, so between the two of us we did really well. Those villagers who went away for the weekend will be kicking themselves when they see what we have done !

Coran and I are gearing up for another day of racing here on Box Hill - the roads closed (according to twitter) half an hour ago, and the cycling clubs are beginning to make their way through. It is a later start for the women today, leaving from The Mall at 12 noon, and with just the 2 laps of the Hill, it should be a much quieter day for us. I am not sure how many miles both of us walked yesterday (at least 5 I would have thought - those who don't live here did a lot more), but my calf muscles were certainly feeling it last night. It felt like I just kept going on adrenaline, rushing between the crowds along Box Hill road to get to the next good viewing point for each of the 9 laps. It was worth it, as, my pictures are superb (although some of them are a bit blurred). I got some great shots of team GB, which when played about with a bit and cropped are going to look brilliant. I must remember to write to the Dorking Advertiser with my thoughts and send copies of the best ones. With ticket holders expected at 10am, Coran and I aim to leave around 9.15am. BBC Surrey are broadcasting from the Smith and Western until 5pm, so we will go up there to thank them for all their help yesterday, and interview a few people in the crowd before making our way back to the village hall to see Daphne and her team of helpers and of course Gary in the Post Office. The riders are expected around 2pm, but then I will be so knackered I will just plonk myself by the side of the road in a heap !

Brilliant day for Coran and I watching the Olympic cyclists come hurtling through our village - 9 times. Coran is making a film for the Neighbourhood Council while I had my stills camera, and between us we got some brilliant footage with terrific views, some at very close range. The womens race tomorrow should be a lot quieter as they do just the 2 circuits and start later, leaving from The Mall at 12 noon. This is good as it means that we can both have a very well deserved lie in !

Very much so for cyclists, especially at the weekends when I wouldn't even consider driving down the ZigZag now. While most cyclists are considerate and have as much right to use the road as car drivers, there are a small minority who are irresponsible in the extreme, often riding two or even three abreast on very narrow and windy country roads, which makes it impossible to overtake. Sadly it has caused quite a lot of antagonism between the two groups, and the problem is set to become a lot worse. This is one of the main reasons why a lot of villagers were so against the games. As for the walkers - loads of them too. There is a big adventure centre around the Hill which caters for school groups and those doing the Duke of Edinburgh Award and we often see them out and about too at the weekends.

It might seem that way from watching the race today, but actually as the crow flies it is not that close - the nearest train station is Dorking mainline 4 or 5 miles away and from there it is a good hour to get to Waterloo. I am not sure of the exact distance, but there is quite a lot of information on the National Trust areas at least here. The Wikapaedia page does not mention the village, like a lot of people failing to understand the difference between what most think of as Box Hill, and Box Hill Village which lies about a mile and a half from the viewpoint and Salamons Memorial. We have a population of probably around 1200, at least two thirds of whom are aged 50 plus and most of which live on the various park (mobile) home sites (many of whom have rules that state that only over 50's can live there) set back from Box Hill Road, which as a continuation of the famous ZigZag is the only means of access to the village. For a small village we are remarkably well catered for, with 2 shops (one of which doubles as a Post Office), a bike shop, our own Doctors surgery, Church and Village Hall, a pub and several other businesses (dog grooming parlour, garage etc). We also of course have our own village newsletter, Box Hill News, of which yours truly was until recently, the Editor. It is a brilliant location, 10 minutes from the M25, half an hour from Gatwick, and 20 minutes from Dorking, Epsom or Reigate. Being high up though it can seem remote, and sometimes gets cut off in the winter when it snows, but it is a fantastic place to live. We have lived here for 5 1/2 years now and moving here was the best thing we ever did !

I was the one in a white t shirt with red butterflies. Coran was in a grey and pink striped t shirt. We have both though had an absolutely amazing day. We are just so happy to have had the opportunity to see this and get this close to the action in what couldn't be a more beautiful space. Coran and I were up by 6am and out of the house by 7.30 to walk up the Smith and Western near the Donkey Green where BBC Surrey had set up. We had a chat with them and wandered among the crowds taking stacks of pictiues and chatting to the stewards and Police, and of course the Army officers were on duty. We managed to get right up to the ticket entrance point where Coran did some filming, and one of the Army men lent us his seat right by the side of the road, just inside the ticketed zone for the first few laps of the Hill. The riders were so close, you could feel the breeze on your face as they went by - incredible with such support from the crowd. As the race progressed we made our way slowly back through the village filming as we went, so that by the 6th lap we were almost back home. One of our friends from across the road had some scaffolding in his front garden which he allowed us to film from slightly above the road, which is where we got the best views, and then for the final lap we went to the end of the village by the two shops before slowly making our way back home to watch the final scenes on BBC1. It's a real shame we didn't get the gold, after such an intense effort, but team GB still did really well. We still have the womens race to look forward to tomorrow, so maybe we will have more luck then. I will there with my flag and my camera again. I estimate though that I must have taken at least 400 or 500 pictures today - as the riders approached I just kept it in burst mode and kept shooting !

I didn't watch all of it, as I was knackered having been up since 6am for work, and knowing that I would have to be up again at the same time today, but I loved the industrial revolution bit - those drums !

I have heard that SCC are expecting crowds of up to 1.1 million people around the route, with up to 25 or maybe 30,000 around the Box Hill loop. Alison who does the catering from her van opposite the camp ground is catering for 5000 and the ladies who work in the National Trust servery are being bussed up at 5.30am - rather her than me ! Some of them are staying with friends in the village and from I understand, are planning a pre games party. Good for them. If the crowds go get too much though, I will head home, collect a garden chair and just park it by the side of the road with my camera and water bottle and stay there ! Remember to look out for me then in the crowd scenes on telly and listen out for both of us on Radio Surrey ...

There is a air of excitement here around the Box Hill loop tonight as the final preparations take place with less than 11 hours now until the roads shut. Houses are festooned with flags and bunting and Headley cricket pitch is beginning to resemble a travellers camp as campers vans and motor homes turn up in their droves with accents from it seems all over Europe. Coran and I aim to leave early and get up the Donkey Green by about 8am to see the ticket holders coming in and will then make our way through the village filming as we go and talking to various people, locals and visitors alike. Radio Surrey will be up here in the morning again (they were live from Box Hill this morning), so we will stop off and chat to them as well at some point.

Thanks Ben - while there have been hiccups (some of them quite major ones at that), I am trying to remain positive about the Games (and I said this to the reporter), there are I believe more positives than negatives. The mood in the village seems a little more opimistic than it did, with bunting hangng from various houses and trees along the route, and both shops decorated. When I got home this afternoon, several people were sitting outside their houses in deck chairs and so on watching the action. I fully take on board what you say about it being a logistical nightmare and have said this myself on many occasions to both villagers and LOCOG alike, when I have had the chance to do so. It is not just the borough of Mole Valley where I live that they have had to consult with, but 8 other boroughs, and that's just for one event ! The fact that the NT areas of Box Hill are a SSSI has certainly complicated things. Having said all this, I will be glad when it is all over and life can go back to normal in what is usually our sleepy little village, whatever normal is ! Coran has been asked to do a video for the Neighbourhood Council, which we hope to also put on Youtube (SCC have confirmed that we can do this), so once it is uploaded, I will post the link on here.

Two days now to go before the big weekend and things are hotting up even further here in Box Hill (in more ways than one). I was interviewed by Sky Sports News yesterday which was interesting, and I understand (thanks Chrissie) that it was shown just before 7pm last night. I wasn't able to view it myself unfortunately, since we don't get Sky Sports, but Coran filmed it as well discreetly in the background, so I did get to see that, and from what I saw (even if I do hate the sound of my own voice), I did pretty well. Today though we have most of the teams coming through for a practise run with some very low flying helicopters. I missed most of the fun, as of course I had to work, and go and do the weekly shop, but the German team were whizzing past the Post Office when I stopped off to get the local paper. I will see them all again on Saturday anyway and the women too on Sunday. Coran filmed a lot of it for the video she is doing for the Neighbourhood Council website, so I will watch her footage later on. Hope it gets a bit cooler though, as I don't fancy standing out in this heat all day.

They said it might make the main Sky News, but of course that was a rather big but. I am just glad that the message is now out there though, as with the world's media about to be focussed on our little village, the more people that know about this the better. It is not of course all bad though, as there remain many positive things about the Games and I am sure that many of the local businesses will do very well from it - especially pubs and hotels - I know of at least one local pub that is charging four times the normal rate for his rooms, all of which were booked over a year ago - one so he says to an Italian politician. I will be there at the side of the road though waving my flag with the rest of them.

Believe me, that doesn't take much. Everyone knows what LOCOG stands for (LondonOrganising Commitee for the Olympic Games) but I said to the reporter that up here we call them Local Organised Chaos Optimisation Group. I hope that bit made it in ! It's a shame we didn't get the opportunity to see the report on TV, but Coran filmed it in the background as well, so at least I got to see her copy. From what I saw I did pretty good, although I hate the sound of my voice ! Maybe tomorrow I'll have another email from the BBC !