Old enough to know better

Age is a funny thing. Now more than ever I am convinced it is as much in your head as your bones.

Right now my bones are giving me a gentle reminder of what I have done with my nearly 39 years so far but after the weekend just gone I am amused to know that I pulled up better than friends 6 to 17 years younger.

As a side note, actually writing that number is a little shocking - It dawned on me just last night how old I actually was last night when I was doing some paperwork.

You see, Saturday I did about 3 hours of kite surfing, working hard on some big tricks and actually landing some - back rolls, raleys, hand drag back roll transitions, kite loops - all the fun stuff that puts your body on the line.

Sunday afternoon had more of the same in a solid 30 knots of breeze and I have to admit that when I came off the water things were aching just a little.

I checked my phone and there was confirmation that my latest flame could just be the one I have been looking for.

"Heading over to the States sports centre for gymnastics at 7 with the gang. Wanna play?"

Now, I have never done gymnastics. I wish I had but tumbling and being thrown at mats has been strictly limited to martial arts while under the age of 22. Sure I tumble through the air under a kite but that is over water.

Wandering into the gym, I was confronted by a sea of blue bouncy fun like the biggest padded cell R.P. McMurphy had ever seen.

This is where the age thing hit home. Paperwork, sign your life away - gymnastics will kill you at some point so you do this at your own risk - you idiot. And how old are you?

In my head I am late 20's, 30 at the max. My fingers corrected that with the rude shock that somehow I had nearly got to 39 years old.

My partners in crime against gymnastics were all between 22 and 33 with the normal class participants more like 18-24. Scary to think of it this way but some of these guys and girls were born about the same time I finished school. Conceived the same time as I was trying not to.

For a moment I paused and wondered what on earth I was thinking. Why are all my closest mates so much younger than me. Am I that creepy older dude that hangs around making people feel awkward?

Then I realised that I can still out perform and out last most of these kids. Right now I am getting back to the fittest I have been and am pushing harder than ever. It feels great.

After an hour and a half, we were a ball of messy sweat and silly grins. Somersaults, back flips, spectacular crashes into mats and pits of foam blocks from the trampolines. An insane amount of swinging and grunting on the uneven bars and a hit to the nuts on the pommel horse. We had done it all.

Today the messages flowed in...this hurts, that hurts and while I have to admit I could do with a new set of quads, seriously kids you need to harden the fuck up.

I am ready to do it again and my only disappointment is that I have to wait until Sunday.