Chasing myself on the motorway was just surreal

13 April 2012

I was driving down the M42 when I spotted what I call my lorry', a big haulage vehicle with my image on it as part of a sponsorship deal.

It's surreal to approach something like that on the motorway. I drove past it and then pulled over in a lay-by to have another look. The driver must have spotted me as well as he pulled over and I got to meet Bob, the driver of my lorry, and have a chat.

He said: "I thought I'd meet you one day." Honestly, I'm not sure who was the more pleased to see each other. It looked great and it was nice to see the guy behind my lorry'.

I was travelling back from Silverstone, where I'd been to the British Grand Prix as a guest of David Coulthard, and what a day it was.

I love picking the brains of other sportsmen and women and I got a chance to do that again at Silverstone. I had a chat with Damon Hill, who was joking about me just looking at the ceiling all day long doing the backstroke, and I got to congratulate Lewis Hamilton after the race.

I also talked to Eddie Jordan and Mark Webber and was at the Red Bull motorhome as the Australian came back for the celebrations after the race.

It was a fantastic day, plus I got to see the Red Arrows. I used to go to air shows and watch them as a kid, so it was great to see their fly-by.

There has been a bit of a motoring theme to life of late. I watched the MotoGP on TV and I have to say Valentino Rossi is amazing.

He broke his leg six weeks ago and was one corner away from finishing on the podium on Sunday.

That's impressive and shows what you can do when you put your mind to it.

Continuing the sporting theme, I went to Wimbledon and sat on Henman Hill during the final weekend, just soaking up the atmosphere. Going to sporting events like that is a nice opportunity to take me away from swimming.

At the time I had a good suntan from being out in Europe competing but it's amazing how quickly the chlorine washes that off!

I'm feeling great in training and the next big thing for me is the European Championships in Budapest next month. I'll be doing the 50m and 100m backstroke and possibly taking part in the relays, although that will be decided at the meet.
It's important but it's not my benchmark meet.

That's the Commonwealth Games in October, for which I have already qualified. However, going to Hungary and representing Great Britain is always an honour and I can't wait to race.

I have to look at the big picture and, with just two years to go until London 2012, that's come even clearer into focus. It's something that's always in the back of my mind but having a two-year countdown gives you a bit of a buzz and
reinforces what each and every day is all about.

Last week I was named the BUCs (British Universities and Colleges) sportsman of the year. Training meant I couldn't make the ceremony but I'm told I get a nice glass ornament and receiving things like that is a real honour. It shows you're doing things right.

To find out what else Liam has been up to, visit twitter.com/liamtancock.