Testing Lysebotn Up

When I was young Frank Zappa gave out an album called Joes Garage.  A great album.  One of the songs, which I don’t remember the name of, started like this if I don’t remember wrong:

“Why does it hurt when I pee, it jumped right up and grabbed my meat, got it from the toilet seat.”

The last few days I’ve had the same feeling about peeing, but I’ve had very little thoughts about anything jumping up from the toilet seat causing it.  It’s just that the song has been like catching me like “you’re stuck in a moment, and you can’t get out of it” (you know it’s U2 singing it if you’re a fan like me).

And then there is a nose keeping me being stuck in a moment.  The post chirurgical infection, even being treated by giving me antibiotics intravenous and isolating me from other patients in hospital because of the unwanted hospital-bacteria’s streptococcus and staphylococcus, seems like not have been gone despite the cures given.

Sunday 21.07. had a bad weather forecast.  Starting out from Rysstad in Setesdalen our main goal was to get to where the finish is for Lysebotn Up is and let Isabell try the route of the competition.  When it comes to driving, this was a day driving on narrow roads with a big motorhome.  Luckily there was a lot of so called “meetingplaces” where the road is made broader so meeting cars can pass each other.  But not all wants to respect and wait to pass in these meetingplaces.  They want to pass you coming against you, and coming from behind.  When cars come from behind I drive out on the first meetingplace I see, and let them pass.  But I don’t start letting them pass by stopping and moving out on the roadshoulder just because someone out of some god given thought mean they were given the right to drive as idiots on whatever road they drive on.  Its maybe at most 2-300 meters between the meetingplaces.  It’s the same for the cars you meet.  Why cant you just wait when you see that if you pass the meetingplace, it will mean at stop for both cars that has to pass each other close to getting into each other?  These situations only mean two thing – it takes longer time for everyone to pass each other and it is a potential for damages.  I just move my motorhome in the best possible position and make the other car pass – I’m not going to be the one causing anything.  Let the other one pay for his stupidity.  Because it is men acting like this – I didn’t observe a single woman carrying out such stupidity.  Before leaving the theme – an observation – why is it that most of the drivers and cars had the following similarity: men in the age seemingly +35 driving Tesla.  Just a thought – did they at the same time as buying a Tesla got a licence to own the road (even if the they dont pay road toll like the rest of us carowners)?

At last we arrived the place Øygardstøl which is the name of the place the finish line of Lysebotn Up is at.  There you find a café that is great s a viewpoint to look down to Lysebotn.  It is also the most used placed to walk to Kjerag – one of Norway famous places to have been at.  The reason is the famous "bolt":

The parkin places at Øygardstøl has to be paid for.  It would cost NOK 300 for us.  But when we talked to the parking guard and told him that Isabell was there to try the competition route, he said that we should stay for free.  I like to meet people that understands how much money we put into sport.  For some years sport has been about everything for the four girls living at home, and it has taken most of our income in addition to our reserves of inherited money.  The parking guard even arranged transport for us down the 7,5 km down to Lysebotn. 

The weather was bad during our test – it rained and was blowing.  When the road is wet like it was it costs extra effort for Isabell – as it does for everyone.  But if you’re energy level is four out of five possible, it’s’ really not what you want.  We started from the ferry pear  in Lysebotn.  I’ve divided the route into four parts.  The fist part is from ferry pear to the tunnel and is around 2,2 km.  It is the easiest part of the route and does not cost much.  Then comes the perhaps worst part of the route, the tunnel which is 1,1 km.  It is steep.  It can be divided in two; first a straight and steep part, a curve, and the next straight and steep part.  The tunnel really such the energy out of Isabell.   Out of the tunnel there is around 4,2 km to go.  Now she is tired, and it will only be about will.  Going for 2,2 km she will reach the start of the 2 km for young athletes.  This point is important.  She will already have been crying and will be in pain.  But at this point she will understand that it is possible.  Lysebotn Up is about 27 curves – more or less 180 grades.  A normal and standing cross country skier will use their body to create speed especially out of the curve.  Isabell loses all her speed.  She must correct for direction by using her poles to lift the sit ski through the curve.  Each curve is about losing more and more energy.  In the last 2 km she will reach the sign of 400 meters left to the parking place area.  Now she will use all the rest of her energy.  This is getting to the top in bad weather conditions.

Lysebotn Up is not about time used as such.  It’s about being able to do it.  To break through all of the pain, to challenge the body and spasm’s, to don’t let all the bad thought’s most of all telling you to stop win, and not at least be able to do what is probably at the utter border of what is possible to do for her and most sit skier in the world.  I think she is able to do it, but it will be her ever worst experience up to now.  Pain is said to be temporary – I do think it will last for some time after.

Having done the test we went on to Stavanger.  I had to go to the emergency ward to see a doctor in Stavanger.  Things were not good.    At the emergency ward they took tests and found out that I had elevated CRP and bacteria’s in my urine, giving the diagnosis urinary infection. How did I get it?  After hearing my story about the work out the other day, the doctor told me that a result of pushing a body so hard could be to get a urinary infection.  What I had done was to weaken the immune system.  Telling her about the night with sweating like having a flu and a water balance out of control was described by her as the close to the border of ending in a hospital, like I described in my blog the other day.  The doctor noted in addition to that doing what I had done was not to recommend for anyone, in addition she said that maybe I also should have considered that I am not longer a “young sheep”.  My nose – she did not examine it.  She said the antibiotics I got was of a “broad spectre”,  and that it most possible also would affect the nose it if it still was a infection there.  She recommended me to take contact with my hospital at home if things didn’t get better with the nose.

Then it was late evening, late dinner, and straight to bed – no blog – sleep was of high value.

The day after – Monday 22.07 – was just a day to calm down – we thought.  We did not get out of bed before around 12-1300.  Woke up to a rescue mission.  Isabell had lost her mobile under the water tank.  A place where a mobile phone can find its way to – a place that is close to impossible to reach for a human being.  We used several hours to try different solution – and gave up. 

Isabell and I had a special errand this day.  When she and I lived in Stavanger in her last year on secondary school in 2009/ 2010, we used to go to COOP Mega at the Amfi shopping centre at Madla nearly every Saturday.  There we bought two Brownies that tasted like heaven.  This time we bought 10, two for everyone – and everyone liked it very much.  Isabell and I had a great time living together in Stavanger that year.  Randi and Alexandra came down frequently, and Alexandra went to school in Stavanger one week each month.  This was the year people were “ash stuck” because of the Icelandic Volcano Eyjafjallajökulls. Randi got stuck at Gardermoen with our two dogs and cat with here, a fantastic story – but to long to be told here and now.

A little trip to the shopping centre Kvadrat, to IKEA, going to a pharmacy to fetch medicine, and buying grocery, it was back to the same camping as we left – Ølberg camping close to the fantastic beach “Solastrand” outside of Sravanger .  We tried out some new ideas to get Isabells mobile phone – and it succeeded.  Randi had bought some “tools” (for the kitchen) and she nailed it.  Randi washed some close, I made dinner, and it was another night going to bed – energy for anything else like writing a blog was gone.  Maya thought alreadu at IKEA thet is was time for bed.

Today Tuesday 23.07 the good weather has finally returned.  We have decided to stay for some days at this camping.  It’s as I noted close to the beach.  Our grandson Birk now must learn that its not action all the time.  Sometimes life is about being bored – and then find activities other than just sitting inside and playing on the iPad.  Lesson to learn – self activity – learning to be bored is something to learn.  This is hpw it looks like to be bored - looking at the outside world.

Isabell and I did her training on the sit ski as a trip to the grocery store.  It was about 13 km to got back and forth to COOP Extra at a place called Tjelta.  Isabell described it as an easy training – for me it was more than that.  We did some work out afterwards – me very “soft.”   We bought an ice cream each at the camping to give me some extra energy for the carbostore.

Birk learned in the end of the day that if you do an effort you will get friends at the camping, and life is great without the iPad.  Grand parents know how to push 😊

Relaxing, eating dinner surprising early this evening, and going to bed with the obligated glass of red wine.  Life is not to despise.