Why Does Every Sports Star Think I'm Mad?

Michael Vaughan described me as "totally f***ing nuts" the other night at the London Hilton when introducing me to former Manchester United and Ireland footballer Kevin Moran at the Sir Alex Ferguson and Harry Redknapp bash. This was in reference to my various sporting challenges over the years such as fighting Roy Jones jnr, playing rugby league for Wigan, becoming a professional wrestler, completing the Cresta Run, running with the bulls in Pamplona, and so on. I wouldn't mind this description, and Vaughan only said this because I batted at number four for Yorkshire once in his absence and put on a 88-run partnership with Anthony McGrath against the South African province Boland (my contribution was, ahem, 14) which, naturally, made him fear for his place, but the Ashes-winning captain is not the first to refer to me in such glowing terms. The Sale Sharks Director of Rugby, Kingsley Jones, once introduced me to his whole squad as "a total madman" after previously witnessing me taking on Jonah Lomu in a one-on-one tackling session. "He's madder than the Mad Hatter," insisted Kingsley to 30-odd men. Then there was Juan Pablo Montoya. After I had spun a Mini Cooper in the wet at Silverstone with the Colombian former F1 driver as my passenger Montoya leapt out of the car, pointed his finger at me and shouted: You are a crazy f**er." Which, for those who know Montoya, is like being accused of being a crap singer by "Jedward!"