Paul Gordon

I laugh in the face of fear, and so after trying a kite jump on dry land, I found myself chuckling ironically as my effort exceeded all my expectations, it was amazing! For a brief moment in time I was set free to soar the air, leaping from the 2D plane to 3D felt magical, I felt alive and all powerful,  that time passed too quickly, I felt a shift in perception as my stomach floated from my navel to gently tickle my tonsils, “Uh Oh”, out the corner of my eye the horizon was rising quick, it was at this point I realised taking my kite out in a bona fide gale was stupid, and I was going to have to do some severe damage limitation, hurtling towards the ground, I forced my body to relax, and go with it, nothing left to do when in a predicament such as this but revert to my snowboarding experience,  “You tense, you break!” the quickest way to untense is to laugh and so I was laughing, admittedly half heartedly when I hit the deck.”Man Down!!  Man Down!!  sheeeees had a few big falls and broke a leg before and so after I stopped biting the grass, I hesitantly looked over my shoulder half expecting to see my leg protruding at a crazy angle, I was pleased when it wasn’t, I wiggled my toes Yay I’m kind of OK, Lottie had watched this happen, when she had stopped giggling she came to help, I couldn’t see her very well, cos of the pain face I was pulling, but I cud tell she was laughing hard on the inside I wanted to join her but agony suppressed any compulsion to show

Durdle Dor Cove

pleasure, so I just lay there for a bit groaning while she gradually recomposed herself. Pain and embarrasment are two of the craziest bed companions ever, but they seem to love each other, I got up as quickly as it was feasibly possible and fought the strong urge to buckle to the floor again, more  damage limitation, as my hot date was now in shreds, I’d have to man up and try to reclaim some shreds of dignity, damn you embarrasment, I just wanted to lie on the floor and sob for a while (I definitely would have if Lottie wasn’t around) you see I laugh in the face of fear, but cry like a baby when hurt and here I was adjusting to walking with one twisted ankle and one badly bruised heel, three weeks later my head is going doollally, confined to the house, daily icing, heating  and elevating the ankle hadn’t worked and so at 2.30am I cracked having turned over in my sleep I woke in pain, right thats it i’m heading out, three hours later I arrived in Lulworth Cove carpark, as I unpacked my kit from the boot a couple of joggers passed me and headed up a near vert path on the edge of a cliff, “Idiots” I muttered,  with a red hue spreading across from the East and a vast armada of angry clouds invading the coast, my hand was giving myself some huge self congratulatory pats on the backs,then out of the blue, pheeeeewthwack, pheeeewthwack “WTF!” my hand turned against me as somewhere in my sleepy head the Neuron connecting  my Brain to Ankle woke up, then connected Ankle to Path and was now connecting my Hand to Face repeatedly as the realisation that I’d be following the jogger’s footsteps dawned.

A 2km climb ensued and morning dew is beautiful, but deadly! as I jarred and slipped clumsily all the way to the Man of  War Cove. I love to clamber and despite aggravating my hindrance I was soon clambering over rocks like a

Smashing Boulder

mountain goat…………………

a mortally injured mountain goat, that wasn’t being chased, but more carefully picking and slowly testing each step before hopping awkwardly to its good foot.
The Dorset coastline is truly awesome some call it the Jurassic Coast others don’t, but with Lulworth Cove, Man Of War Cove, Durdle Dor and Stair Hole all within limping distance I really enjoyed my inpromptu day out.

The Tectonic forces which drove the alps skyward also created some crazy beautiful scenery along our Southcoast, stretching from Durdle Dor to the Needles, the rock strata has been turned on its head to form Vertical cliffs that once were a land bridge, long since broken and semi submerged, wind, erosion and land slips continually shapes this rugged region, Turner painted here, geologists flock here, rocks land on peoples heads here, pictures can only show so much, if you have the chance visit it, I did and can’t wait to go back. I may go and visit the doc first, it’s been 5 weeks, I hate having an illogical fear of waiting rooms.