My Essential Christmas Gift Guide

Christmas is coming soon, it must be, our Cheryl has just turned on the lights in Oxford Street and all the big budget adverts are on TV. John Lewis launched their tear-jerker TV ad about Monty the Penguin this week – and clearly it’s worked because the Monty soft toy has already sold out.

The fact that this £35 stuffed Penguin has flown of the shelves (I do realise that Penguins don't actually fly) got me thinking that you’ve got to go early to get the must-buy Christmas presents and so this year for the first time ever I’m going to be prepared, and get my pressies sorted before the rush.

And so here is my plan to catch the must-buy gifts this year…

 

AirWheel - The Must Have Gadget Gift for Christmas 2014

 

The best boy’s toy for Christmas 2014 is without a doubt the AirWheel. This is the present that every gadget nut will want. It’s a self balancing electric unicycle and it’s going to revolutionise the personal transportation market. It has a top speed of 12mph (a pretty swift running pace) and you can go on roads, pavement, sand or dirt tracks and it’s easily portable. It’s easy to learn how to ride – no harder than riding a bike and I go everywhere on mine.

You can see my riding one in this video below and prices start at £424.99 at www.yesss.co.uk

 

 

For the lady in your life – you simply cannot go wrong with diamonds. And at fine diamond jeweller vashi.com you can get a classic Diamond Circle Pendant for only £269, or some diamond hoop earrings from £299 – it would cost you four times that in Bond Street. Or if you are really putting the boat out you could splash out £2,370 for round cut solitaire 0.95 carat diamond Side Stones Engagement Ring in platinum. But I don’t think I’ll have need of one of those for quite some time yet.

Beautiful Vashi.com Solitaire Ring Might Send out Wrong Signal - I'll Opt for Earrings

If you are not quite ready for the expense of precious stones then there is always the option of some opulent boudoir lingerie - I’ve taken some advice from my Made In Chelsea colleague Binky on this who tells me that Bluebella has a great range with designer styles at high street prices. Apparently the Lexi bra and briefs (£30 & £15 respectively at Bluebella.com) are very seductive, but to avoid accusations that this is basically a back-handed present to yourself, try buying some luxurious sleepwear like the Alexandria Chemise (£38 at Bluebella.com) as well.

The Bluebella Lexi Bra and the Alexandria Chemise - Gifts For Her...Honestly.
 

Every year there’s always a few dodgy Christmas sweaters knocking about and if you would rather avoid wearing one, I suggest you leave some heavy hints that any menswear gifts should be bought from theidleman.com – every single garment on this website passes the pub test. This is the most important quality control for any young man, which means that even the most festive numbers here would not make you the butt of your mates’ jokes down your local watering-hole.

TheIdleMan’s Bellfield range of sweaters is the acceptable face of Christmas jumper. Bellfield Asio Jumper With Mountain Jacquard (£40 @ theidleman.com)

 

TheIdleMan.com Jumpers - No Shame Down The Pub

 

For mum’s, aunties and wives who are looking to age gracefully, you will be doing them a massive favour by investing in a CACI Microlift. This home-use beauty gadget firms and tones the face and gets rid of wrinkles. Clearly this has to be given tactfully, carefully stressing that it has been given so that the beautiful matriarchs in your life remain so, and not that they need to use it in the slightest.

CACI Microlift £350 at Harrods.com, and for those with serious wedge there is an Exclusive Swarovksi Crystal version for £760 also at Harrods.com

The CACI Microlift Works Wonders On Wrinkes and Fine Lines

For dad’s – why not try to get the old fella to take care of himself a bit more with some male grooming products – like the Lab Series. If he is old school and resistant to moisturizing then cleverly style it as the latest post shave balm. Lab Series Shave Razor Burn Relief Ultra 100ml (£24.65 at escentual.com)

Happy shopping everyone,

Lots of love

Blood, Sweat and Burpees: My Week At No 1 Boot Camp Ibiza

It’s been a tough week but I’m so glad I’ve done my time at No 1 Boot Camp.

Last week I checked in looking decidedly lumpy – but now I feel fitter, healthier and I’ve got my six-pack back.

I’m also 8lbs lighter in less than a week – now weighing in at 12 stone 6lbs.

Credit: Max Lawless

Last week I was too ashamed to show my “before” picture, I’m only putting it out there now because it makes my “after” look even better. Another 3-4 days and I reckon I would have got back to my Men’s Health peak. but that said I’m happy with where I am.

The dreaded bar bell - harder than it looks! (Credit: Max Lawless)

 

How I did it was not easy – but there is no easy way to lose weight and get in shape.

No 1 Boot Camp’s resident trainer, former RAF PTI Andy Morris came up with the most fiendish physical torture I’ve ever had to endure – The Stairway of Doom - 181 steps of pain built into the side of a cliff and I had to run up and down them 10 times, with dumb bells and do exercises at the bottom with the weights.

 

Running up the hellish Stairway of Doom (credit: Max Lawless)

 

You can see how steep they are in the pictures – and they feel steeper with every journey.  They are situated near the picturesque Benirras beach but you don’t really feel much like taking in the view. This was agonizing muscle pain and a nauseating test of stamina.

 

Sweating up a storm at No 1 Boot Camp (credit: Max Lawless)

 

Back at the villa there were other special “games” that Andy had devised. There were boxing work outs in a Tabata style - High Intensity Interval Training (HIIT) where I had to hit the pads he was holding for 20 seconds with maximum effort, then 10 seconds rest, then repeat eight times. We repeated this six times in a row totaling around 30 mins. I felt sick with fatigue, was seeing stars and was sucking wind. Apparently this means you are doing it properly.

 

Tabata boxing at No 1 Boot Camp (credit: Max Lawless)

 

I’ve got to say I found it easier in the mornings to get motivated and had to get some energy by taking a couple of Forza T5 Super Strength capsules, which also helped me combat hunger pangs in the afternoons.

 

Taking a hard-earned break on the beach (credit: Max Lawless)

 

Then there was the burpees challenge. Just for anyone that isn’t familiar with a burpee – it is not some unfortunate bit of trapped wind due to indigestion, it is an exercise that has you drop from a standing position to a squat, then push out your legs, bring them back to the squat and then jump back to a standing position.

 

Rock climbing in the beautiful Benirras hills (credit: Max Lawless)

 

The burpee challenge starts off easy and then gets insanely hard. 1^st minute – one burpee, 2^nd minute – two burpees, and so on until 15^th minutes – 15 burpees. By the end you have done 120 burpees.

 

A bit of tranqulility with a yoga workout (credit: Max Lawless)

 

Thankfully there were also some gentler pursuits and the Hata yoga around the pool I found particularly relaxing – I attempted the Downward Facing Dog, the Sun salutation, the High plank and the Camel pose. There was also time for a bit of sun-bathing on the beach.

Despite the daily torture at the hands of PTI Morris, I’ve got to say I feel so much better about myself, not just that I look physically better either. There’s something really empowering about coming to No 1 Boot Camp and I’ll definitely go again. Maybe not for another six months though.

 

Bye for now Ibiza... I'll be back! (Credit: Max Lawless)

 

All the best,

Spencer xxx

 

Back To No 1 Boot Camp in Ibiza

I’ve woken up and smelt the coffee this week and realised that I’m in need of a total body de-tox. I have been partying far too much recently and it’s taken it’s toll on me, particularly on my waist-line.

The taut abs of my Men’s Health cover (nearly a year ago) have disappeared under, dare I say it, a very slight paunch.

Well enough is enough. I’m not going back to the bad old days of yo-yo diet Spencer so I’ve booked into No 1 Boot Camp for a dose of tough love, military style.

 

Pain in Paradise - Running on the Beach at No 1 Boot Camp Ibiza

 

I jumped on a plane to visit their camp in Ibiza – it’s only a cheap two hour flight and a short car ride and there I was – at their luxury villa near Santa Eularia.

The weigh-in came as a shock on day one – 13 stone. Not good. This is ½ stone more than I weighed from my Men’s Health challenge, and I’ve lost a lot of muscle mass and gained fat. But at least I know that with some hard work and determination I can turn it round with a week or two at boot camp.

 

Pity To Spoil Such a Lovely Beach With Press Ups

 

The next morning everything starts with a bang. Loud pumping dance music wakes you (well it is Ibiza after all) at 7am, and if the relentless thud of the bass doesn’t wake you the dulcet tones of former RAF Physical Training Instructor (PTI) Andy Morris will. Andy motivates all the campers with a special mix discipline and peer group pressure. He’s clearly turned down the volume on what he would have handed out to wannabe fighter pilots in the RAF and his boot camp style is much more about encouragement and getting the best out of people.

You can see what No 1 Boot Camp Work-out sessions are like in this video below.

 

 

PTI Andy Morris Reveals His Latest Torture Session

 

At 7.30am there is a fitness test in the grounds of the luxurious villa – which is running for 15 minutes, and then a test to see how many sit ups, push ups and burpees you can do.

Then back for breakfast which consists of eggs, mushrooms and spinach – absolutely no toast, bagels or cereals. The food is wheat free, gluten free, sugar free and unprocessed. At 9.30 we move on to an hour long beach run. It looks more effortless and fun in the photos than it is in real life. It’s harder to run on sand than it is on road, and your thighs soon feel the difference.

There is a quick half hour break for some frozen watermelon and nut energy balls and then it’s straight on to gruelling triathlon circuits and sea swimming. If that’s not enough, we then have to run back to the villa. I was exhausted.

 

A Nutritious Meal at No 1 Boot Camp - Zero Carbs

 

Lunch is quinoa and stuffed peppers and is tasty and provides a nutrient dense low carb diet. They don’t starve you here, you are given enough to eat, around 1,200 calories a day, but you are probably burning at least 2,000 with the work-outs so you are going to lose weight.

 

I Think It's Time To Take My Top Off

 

That's Much Better Now I Can Lift It

 

After lunch it’s a weights session followed by all over resistance circuits – by 3.30pm the most painful bits of the day are done, and then it’s down to some games around the pool, and the other campers were really friendly and up for a laugh.
 

Not So Fun Games Round The Pool

 

Time To Cool Down In The Pool

 

My Work Is Done Here - Time For A Bit of R&R

 

There was time for a bit of lounging by the pool and catching some rays. The weather is still sunny and warm, even though it’s not summer any more, and the location and scenery are breath-takingly beautiful.

 

Some Well Earned Sunbathing At The End Of The Day

 

Dinner at 6pm was a delicious Cajun baked salmon with mango and avocado salsa and then we settled down for movie night and bed by 9.30pm. Yes, I know that doesn’t sound like me but if you don’t get a good night’s sleep your body simply won’t cope the next day.

I’ve got another week of this to go – if I can stick it out - and then hopefully I will be ripped up and in top shape again. I’ll show you next week how I get on.

All the best,

 

 

 

 

 

Grabbing My Crotch In Front of 200 Women

I received a very strange invite asking me to come down to a TV studio packed with men and women and to publicly grab my own crotch.
 
Usually this sort of behaviour gets your collar felt for indecent exposure but on this occasion I was assured it would be all for the good cause.

Check Your Nuts Guys It's For A Good Cause

 
The cause was the Check One Two movement’s #FeelingNuts campaign, getting men to check for testicular cancer regularly. A most worthy campaign, I'm sure you'd agree, and I was happy to get involved. Over 2,000 new cases of testicular cancer are found each year in the UK, mostly in men from age 20-39 (so that’s me included), but thankfully this cancer has a relatively high chance of being cured, as long as you detect it early enough - hence this big awareness campaign for men to check their goolies.

Slightly Pained Expression Due to Recent Crotch Grab

 
So all you have to do is this:Send a twitter picture or video, or some other social media platform that you communicate on posting: “I’m #Feelingnuts” and then add something funny/witty/whatever and the all important #FeelingNuts and then challenge another couple of friends (girls and boys) to do the crotch grab challenge as well.

 

Jamie Was Wasting No Time At The #FeelingNuts Bar

Also while you’re down there it would be a good idea to check your gonads for any strange bumps which could be cancer.
The twitter campaign is building fast and so far Ricky Gervais, Jack Whitehall, Alan Carr, Hugh Jackman and even William Shatner have posted pictures of themselves delicately cupping their genitals.

Whitehall and Carr Cop A Feel for #FeelingNuts

 

A Very Agressive Crotch Grab From Ricky Gervais

 
The #FeelingNuts event was at the 02 Arena with my Made In Chelsea colleague Jamie Laing, and met up with Jack Whitehall who was hosting the event. We were interviewed by Jack’s former co-star on E4 drama Fresh Meat, actor Greg McHugh, who plays Howard on the show. Greg did the interview in the style of the Howard – the very nerdy and socially inept Scottish geology student.

So What's Your Favourite E4 Show - MIC or Fresh Meat?

It was possibly the most painful interview and was almost as awkward and grabbing my own crotch in front of the predominantly female crowd. Luckily it appeared to go down well with the audience. But I won’t make a habit of it.
 
All the best,

Feeling Nuts airs on 19th October as part of the ‘Stand Up To Cancer’ Season, a joint national fundraiser from Channel 4 and Cancer Research UK culminating in a live TV event at 7pm on 17th October. Standuptocancer.org.uk  or channel4.co.uk/SU2C for further information.

My Swingers Party Shame

I went to a swingers party this week. Given my reputation you could be forgiven for thinking the worst at this point, but it's not what you think.

The party was the launch of a brand-new lifestyle bar/club called Swingers in east London with a nine hole crazy golf course. Do you see what they did there?

Lauren FH and I at The Swingers Party

The venue is a uber-cool East London pop-up bar devised by a company called The Institute of Competitive Socialising – which is the brain-child of my friend Max Keble-White and has the basic premise that introducing a competitive activity to a bar/club helps break the ice to make new friends (girlfriends basically), and have fun times with old friends.

 

Fore! Me, Max KW, Charlie Morris and Hugo Taylor

I rocked up with old friends Hugo Taylor (he’s 25), and his business partner Charlie Morris, and the lovely Lauren Fraser-Hutton.

 

We teed off on the first hole and I immediately made the acquaintance of stunning new age singer Eurielle – she's got amazing track out called Carry Me, which sounds like Enya meets the Lord of the Rings soundtrack, it’s perfect post club chill-out music.

It's Rude To Point - Giving a Golf Lesson to Singer Eurielle

There’s no doubt she’s got a sublime voice but her golf technique left a little to be desired. I told her she need to keep her legs apart and have a firm grip of the shaft. I gave instructions from behind on how to follow through correctly as well.

 

Keep Legs Apart and a Firm Grip of the Shaft

The golf lesson was cut short when her boyfriend introduced himself. It seemed best at that stage to let Eurielle play through.

My game deteriorated somewhat at the half-way stage after some classic cocktails created by the Gentleman Jack bar-tenders were brought to us on the course by the amazing caddies who were dressed in golf outfits so garish that even pro-golfer Ian Poulter would think twice about wearing them. (BTW - I borrowed one of the caddy’s caps in these phtotos, and I made sure I gave it back afterwards).

Charlie, Hugo, Unicorn, Me, Eurielle and Max KW far right

After the refreshments kicked in I dropped a triple bogey on the fifth hole on a tricky raised green, and then went two over-par on the sixth leaving me trailing badly. I made up some ground at the end and shot a birdie on the ninth and final hole, but to my shame I still came in joint last on 34 with Hugo (nine over par) and was soundly beaten by both Lauren and Charlie.

A Bit Early for Movember - Max KW and I With Club Taches

But the premise of the bar certainly worked and it’s a great venue to go on a date, but don't forget if you are a gentleman you should always let your female company win. Well that’s my excuse anyway.

Lots of love,

 

 

 

Tops Off for 2015

The unseasonally good weather has been rather fortunate for me this week because I had to strip down to my waist for a revealing photoshoot outdoors.

It was to put the final touches to my 2015 calendar – my agent said it was a good idea to do one – I’m not entirely sure that people will want to see my face beaming out at them all through 2015 but it’s been done now anyway, so I’ll let you be the judge. You can have a sneak preview at www.signaturecalendars.co.uk and they can be pre-ordered now.

The Stylist Could Have Warmed Up The Body Oil First

It seems rather bizarre to be talking about the New Year when we are barely in autumn but that’s how it works in this showbiz world and so I found myself stood on the roof of an old warehouse in Greenwich being sprayed with body oil again and wearing an extremely tight pair of trousers.

Standing On A Warehouse Roof In Greenwich With My Top-Off

You may have noticed that I’m looking decidedly pale at the moment, my New York tan has long since faded and the one saving grace is that I’m in pretty good nick. This is remarkable because I’m currently going to about seven nightclub PAs a week – Bournemouth, Portsmouth, Liverpool, Worcester and Bristol in the past five days. I’m trying to keep the drinking down to a minimum (I'm only having Skinny Betches – vodka, fresh lime and soda) and trying to stick to four work-outs a week, and popping three Forza T5 Super Strength a day to keep the metabolism burning fat.

 

Trying To Catch Some Rays To Get Back My Tan

The Forza T5s have been a big help and body fat is down to around 11% and weight is around 13 stone, not quite Men’s Health cover material but only a couple of weeks of hard work and dedication away from that.

It's A Hard Knock Life Being Spencer Matthews

The problem is that now the University Freshers parties have started in earnest and with Christmas on the horizon (only 13 ½ weeks away) there is going to be plenty of temptation to keep me off the straight and narrow.

You Can Pre-Order A Signed 2015 Calendar Here Now

One thing that might help me stay virtuous was that had to spend a gruelling four hours personally signing all the front covers of my 2015 calendar. I’ve now got a serious case of RSI and so for the next few days at least I can barely raise a glass with my right-hand. See a video of me signing calendars below.

 

Lots of love,

Only Fat Guys Win At Tug of War

I’ve not played a game of cricket since I left school and so was a bit concerned when I was invited to play at the Bodo Schloss vs Raffles end of summer cricket match.

For those of you who don’t live in Kensington & Chelsea these are two of the biggest nightclubs in the Royal Borough, and there’s a fierce rivalry between the two, so this looked like becoming a bit of grudge match.

 

 

Bodo Schloss Tug of War Team Take The Strain

 

So much so that my team – Bodo Schloss employed the services of Surrey & England cricketer Jade Dernbach. This and the fact that I hadn’t bowled a ball for at least eight years made me worry that I might end up letting the side down a bit.

 

Going and Gone - The Bodo Team Hit The Deck

 

These concerns left me when I got a wicket on my first ball - I managed a nice bit of movement by the off stump, the batsman caught an edge and was picked up in the slips.

Our innings was looking pretty good when Hugo Taylor fell to Dernbach – at least he could say he was bowled by an England cricketer.

I’ve got to say Hugo did look impressive in whites – like a young Jeremy Irons in Brideshead Revisited, only with a deep St Tropez tan.

 

Hugo Taylor Chanelling His Inner Jeremy Irons

 

Jamie however let the Bodo side down, sartorially at least, by wearing his baseball cap back to front when he was keeping wicket, and his pre-match warm-up involved a cold bottle of beer.

 

 

Jamie's Rigorous Pre-Match Warm-Up Regime

 

Bizarrely Jamie bumped into Gordon Ramsay who just happened to be walking past the ground, just behind Sloane Square. It has been noted several times before that the pair bear a slight resemblance, but the twitter rumours are not true – Gordon is not Jamie’s father.

 

Separated at Birth? Jamie & Gordon's Long Overdue Reunion

 

It was all down-hill after lunch – there was a humiliating defeat in the lunch-time tug-o-war.  If anything my Forza fitness and weight-loss regime hasn’t helped me here. You need a bit of heft behind you for this “sport” and I’ve lost nearly a stone with the Forza T5 Super Strength and even though I’m much more toned, it’s sheer bulk that you need to win this game.

I was second in the row and kept my position but the guys behind lost their balance and the whole line collapsed and got dragged rather unceremoniously across the out-field.

 

Jamie Discovers The Joy of Champagne Popsicles

 

This drubbing in the Tug-o-war must have hit us hard psychologically. Our batting order collapsed in the same that we did with a rope in our hands. I only managed to score three runs and we lost by 165 to 85.

We drowned our sorrows with some champagne ice lollies afterwards.

Lots of love,

The £5m Car Race And How To Pull At The Lights

If you had driven past the St Pancras hotel in London you would have thought the billionaire Arab playboys were back in town again.

There was a queue of over £5m worth of supercars were parked in a line for the start of the DodgeBall Rally 2014.

 

 

Outside St Pancras Hotel With £5m of Supercars

 

Two Ferrari 430 spiders, Lambourghini Gallardo and an Aventador, a McLaren 12C, a Ferrari California, Audi R8, and my latest toy, the gorgeous Caterham Seven Roadster.

A small but perfectly formed pocket rocket – 0-60mph in 4.8 seconds, 175 BHP, top speed of 138 mph, from a 2.0l engine, which punches well above its weight and looks bloody sexy.

Check out the video below of me driving the Caterham car.

 

 

 

The Caterham Seven Roadster - Fun on Four Wheels

 

So sexy in fact that when stopped at the lights on the way down Oxford Street, wearing my new Taylor Morris Vredefort sunglasses when I was approached by a stunning model who came over and just started talking to me out of the blue and then gave me her number. That doesn’t normally happen, it’s got to be something to do with the motor I suppose, or the glasses, or both.

This Caterham car is without a doubt the most player thing I've ever owned.

 

 

Would You Give This Man Your Phone Number At The Lights?

 

Anyway back to the start of the race and there was much revving of engines as we prepared to put our cars on the Eurostar to start the first leg of the five day journey down to Monza – with Johnny Dodge’s merry men and women.

 

 

Johnny Dodge With His Audi R8

 

Johnny Dodge is a high-end party organiser and this little jaunt is going to visit all the six-star hotels from the Champagne region of France, to Zurich in Switzerland, then on to Lake Como, and then on to the Italian Grand Prix at Monza.

The last time I was involved in the Dodge Ball rally I didn’t actually make it off British soil. I was the passenger in a £220K Lamborghini Gallardo and the driver took a corner badly in the wet, spun the car, hit a wall and wrote the Lambo off completely before we even got to Dover.

 

 

Nearly New Lambo For Sale - One Careful Owner

 

I was actually asleep at the time and luckily emerged unscathed but it meant that the Dodge Ball race was seriously cut short for me that year.

Anyway this year I’m taking no chances with the car and for insurance purposes I have fitted a SmartWitness SVC1080 camera on the windscreen of the car. It’s an HD CCTV camera that records any incident and can be used as evidence of who is at fault if you are in a crash. Pretty important for me as I don’t want to have to pay for a new Caterham if someone totals this.

 

 

SmartWitness Camera Fitted Just Below The Rearview Mirror

 

But as an added bonus is that the quality of the footage is amazing so it’s great for making videos of motor sport races or road trips like this.

So wish me luck and hopefully I will actually get to France and back in one piece and I’ll see you all next week.

Lots of love,

 

Ice Ice Baby: I Took On The ALS Bucket Challenge

I have given in to an overwhelming number of requests to take the ALS Ice Bucket Challenge. Bad timing really given that summer is now officially over and the country has avoided Autumn this year and has instead jumped straight to freezing cold winter.

Bring it on... Awaiting my freezing fate

Just for anyone who has been living in a cave for the past month, the ALS Ice Bucket Challenge is charity campaign to raise awareness and money to aid research into Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis – or as we call it here in the UK – motor neurone disease. It’s very simple, you video yourself having a bucket of icy water thrown over your head and then you nominate three friends that then have to do the same within 24 hours.

My latest nomination was from singer/charity campaigner Stacey Jackson, but there have been several others, notably Rick Parfitt Jnr and Jamie Laing.

 

 

So far the challenge has raised £48m pounds for research into the disease which affects the brain and the spinal cord causing motor neurons to die and leads to gradual paralysis and eventually death.

There is no known cure for this terrible disease and seeing as I am a TV personality and not a neuro-surgeon, the best thing I thought I could do to help was to throw a bucket of icy water over my head.

 

Shock to the system

If you are thinking of doing this challenge then please do it properly. Pick a container large enough to bathe a small child. There needs to be much more than a couple of pints of freezing cold water – please note Simon Cowell and Stacey Jackson – perhaps you would both care to do it again?

Bill Gates and David Beckham did much better – both chose very decent sized containers of chilly water.

When I took my challenge I was doing a PR job for EA’s latest game Sims 4 and I was at a very high-end club called Meursault on Gloucester Road.

 

Soaked to the core!

The barman picked out a wine cooler which contained barely over a pint, I refused. Then a champagne bucket, still not big enough, then a magnum cooler, I pointed towards the rather huge Jeroboam bucket.

The bartender added a 50/50 mix of ice and water. I sat out on the pavement outside as the club didn’t really want two gallons of icy cold water poured all over the floor just before their lunch-time service started. Then the world’s coldest wet T-shirt competition began.

 

Shivering Spenny

It’s not the first time I’ve had a cold drink thrown over me, as viewers of Made In Chelsea will know, but this time at least it was for a good cause.

And now I have nominated Hugo Taylor, Caggie Dunlop and Lucy Watson to do their challenge in 24 hours, so let's see if they can handle it.

If you would like to donate to the motor neurone disease campaign please do go to http://www.mndassociation.org/news-and-events/Latest+News/the-mnd-ice-bucket-challenge

Time for a well-deserved pint!

See you next week,

Spenny x

A Smashing Day on The Race Track

This week I had a smashing time driving Ginetta racing cars  - literaly smashing, I crashed their 200 mph car twice.

Before I Crashed The Ginetta G90 Car Multiple Times

I was invited out to the Rockingham Race track by Rick Parfitt Jnr – the current British GT4 champion, rock star and all round good guy.

Rick Parfitt Jnr. and I in The Team Garage

It had been raining all morning and it’s my excuse that the wet road surface contributed to my ignominious exit of the track on the third bend.

Getting Ready For a Spin in The Ginetta G90

I shot off the road and into the gravel at about 120mph and the wall was approaching fast. I wasn’t too bothered about my safety - we were well strapped in and had race helmets on – I was more concerned with the fact that I had signed a waiver beforehand saying that I would pay for any damage to the car. As the crash barrier got closer and closer I got a sinking feeling deep in my stomach, and wallet.

Getting Tips From The British GT4 Champion

On race days I usually install a SmartWitness SVC1080 video incident camera – these clever devices are basically HD CCTV cameras that sits on your windscreen and shows who is at fault in an accident – which is pretty important when driving £90,000 worth of high-performance racing car. The SmartWitness Smart-I Drive camera is also hugely popular for parents who are about to let their older children loose on their family car.

Well and Truly Stuck in The Gravel

Sadly, on this occasion the SmartWitness camera would have only shown that the problem was my poor cornering but luckily no damage was done.

 

After lunch Rick Parfitt and Ginetta racing’s Paul Rees gave me a further pep talk on how to take the bends and by then the sun had come out and the road conditions were perfect.

 

Receiving a Pep Talk From Rick Parfitt and Paul Rees

Rick said I had the makings of a good racing driver – my commitment was total and I put the pedal to the metal at all times, I just needed some more practice.

On my second time on the track I achieved an impressive first lap time and buoyed with confidence started to look for a better racing line. At that point disaster struck again, I dropped gear to hit a tight right-hander and skidded right off the track again and straight into the gravel.

De Ja Vu

 

Thankfully it wasn’t a bad crash, the car still works fine, but the registration plate which was a bit wobbly from where we hit the front of the gravel. The only thing that was badly dented was my ego.

Checking The Hair Is Intact After A Spin

But I’ve definitely got the bug for racing now and thanks to Lawrence Tomlinson the owner of Ginetta racing I hope to be back on the track very soon.

PS. Also I’d like to say thank you to Laura Tomlinson for the lovely gift of some of her GinettaLifeStyle sporting clothes as a parting gift. I think she gave them to me because she was feeling a bit sorry for me when I put the car into the gravel for a second time.

Lots of love