I was lucky enough to be sent out to Supercomputing 2017, held this year in Denver. Supercomputing, or SC, is the main High Performance Computing event of the year. If you work anywhere near serious compute, storage, or interconnects, this is where the industry gathers to compare notes, show off, and occasionally attempt to redesign reality.

With the continued growth and investment in HPC over recent years, OCF have a fair number of customers attending as well. That makes SC a useful opportunity to catch up properly, face to face, and ideally in the same room as vendors and subject matter experts. These meetings usually sit somewhere between productive technical discussion and mildly optimistic plans for world domination, depending on the time of day and caffeine levels.

This particular trip started with two problems. The first was man flu. Proper man flu. Wheezy chest, swollen glands, sore throat, and the general feeling that your immune system has handed in its notice. The second problem was geography.

Supercomputing is always in the United States. America itself is not the issue. The issue is that it is not Germany. ISC, the International Supercomputing Conference, is held in Germany and I have a soft spot for it, having grown up there. Germany is a short hop over the Channel. America is a full day of travel, multiple time zones, and a deeply questionable idea when you feel like death. Still, like every sensible man, I applied the traditional cure. A fistful of pills and stubbornness.

The day began at a distinctly unfriendly 3am. Breakfast and coffee were dealt with by 3:30, final checks done, and the i800 packed. I am reasonably sure Enterprise wanted it relocated to the airport and assumed I would do that for them. By 4am I was on the road.

My usual route to Manchester Airport takes me over Woodhead Pass. It is a great road on a motorbike. In an i800, less so. Especially when five or six miles in you discover the road is closed and the diversions are about as useful as a chocolate kettle. That added roughly twenty five minutes via the office, but after that the drive was mercifully uneventful.

At the airport the car was returned to the Car Rental Village, which is the first time I have seen that phrase used with a straight face. The vehicle was reversed into bay four, keys dropped into the return bin, and I boarded the number seven bus to Terminal 3.

Check in with British Airways was quick and painless, helped no doubt by the fact it was around 5:30 in the morning. Security was equally swift. After enough flights you learn how to strip and rebuild your bags and pockets just efficiently enough to keep everyone happy. From there it was Costa, via Currys Dixons, because shiny things still have power over me.

By the time I had eaten a cheese and tomato toastie, consumed a large amount of coffee, and done a bit of work, it was time to board. The first flight down to London was uneventful. I had an entire row to myself, which meant the inflatable pillow came out and sleep happened.

Heathrow was straightforward. Land at Terminal 5, walk to the bus transfer, and over to Terminal 3. No drama.

In Terminal 3 I headed to the far end, deliberately avoiding the moving walkways. I appear to walk faster than most people manage on a motorised platform, which rather defeats the purpose. Gate 34, Café Nero, more coffee.

Throughout all of this I was still fielding last minute calls from work colleagues. This seems to be a universal law. The closer you are to boarding or losing signal, the more likely someone is to ring you.

Eventually it was time for the long flight. Even once seated, messages were still coming in. At 11:25 the phone finally went into airplane mode and we were on our way to Denver.

The flight was not particularly busy and I ended up in seat 30D with an empty seat next to me. Space was claimed immediately.

Lunch arrived quickly. Chicken and cheese risotto, a mini bottle of red wine, and a Tribute beer. After that it was back to sleep. Pillow inflated, hugged, and the next five hours vanished.

When I woke up and my head caught up with the rest of reality, it was time for more pills and some entertainment. I bought a 3DS specifically for long haul flights and had it loaded with a few games. The next couple of hours passed between that and reading Making Every Photon Count.

Two hours before landing brought the second meal. Chicken mayo sandwich, bun, and coffee. At that point I decided to actually write the day down. Not on paper, but on the iPad. I bought a 12.9 inch iPad Pro a few months ago with the idea of using it instead of dragging a work laptop everywhere. This felt like a good moment to justify that decision.

With around forty minutes to landing, most of my kit was already packed. All that remained was to sit back and wait for the next stage.

Denver awaited.