Challenge Accomplished - Part 2

Yes, we did it! One end of the country to the other, under our own pedal power! 1006 miles in 9 days!

It was a euphoric and emotional moment to cross the finish line, with more family and friends to cheer us over the line. Thank you to everyone who came out to support us along the way. Sharing the challenge has been important and we're glad that some of you have been able to share the occasion and see at first hand the scale of the event. Thank you also to the many people who have sponsored us - your support spurred us on the finish line. David has raised an enormous amount of money for The Macmillan Appeal whilst my fund-raising has been split between ParalympicsGB and Orchid Cancer.

The final day was very tough for me - I seemed to have nothing left in the tank for the final stage. Good job that there was not a Stage 10! The final stage took us from Launceston to Lands End. This was the shortest stage in terms of mileage but there were still some steep climbs along the north and south coastlines.

Thank you David for taking up the Challenge with me, for your companionship along the way, and for your patience with the slow pace on the final day.

Whilst on thank-you's, we owe enormous thanks to our wives and children for their support and patience through the months of training when they have allowed us to disappear for hours and days on end.

It has been an incredible journey in so many ways. Threshold Sports' strapline is "more is in you" - this has been proven again and again on so many levels by everyone taking part. There were many stories behind the participants' motivation and many of us were not true cyclists before taking up the challenge. But nearly everyone completed it and those that struggled on particular days showed true spirit and determination by being on the start line for the next day.

The cycling itself has been very enjoyable in a perverse sort of way. Some days it was just a matter of grinding it out to the finish, on other days we could have kept going! We have ridden through stunning countryside and it has certainly opened my eyes to the many beautiful areas of the UK. There is so much out there to see and experience and I hope to re-visit some of these places in the years to come - perhaps by car rather than bike though!

We have been exceptionally lucky with the weather. After the more than damp start we have been blessed with such good weather, with generally favourable winds.

The organisation has been faultless. The Deloitte / Threshold Sports team deserve every credit for their planning and delivery of such a fantastic event. This was the inaugural Ride Across Britain and I am sure that the 2011 will be even better. All of their partners - from catering, medics, outriders, to posh loos, posh showers, masseurs, to security, route planners and the signing team, all those setting up the base camps and erecting hundreds of tents each night, to the team from Halfords who kept our bikes on the road whenever there was a problem and the chaperone riders who made sure everyone got home each day, to the start/finish marshalls who set us off each day with a smile and provided a warm welcome at the end of the day. Everyone involved did their jobs fantastically and always with a smile. Well done everyone - an event to be proud of.

And huge congratulations to our fellow riders. From all walks of life, of all ages, of all cycling abilities. The hard training and commitment to the event paid off.

Today's ride - 93 miles, 7 hrs 20 mins cycling, 12.6 mph average

Total ride - 1006 miles, 72 hrs 26 mins cycling

All stats as per my cycle computer!
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Challenge accomplished

Well we've arrived at Lands End and accomplished our challenge.

More on today's ride to follow but may be tomorrow as party to go to!

Today's ride - 93 miles, 7 hrs 20 mins cycling, 12.6 mph average

Total ride - 1006 miles, 72 hrs 26 mins cycling

All stats as per my cycle computer!
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A Tractor Load of Lycra - Stage 8

Last night's base camp near Cheddar was quite spread out, so much so that our morning today started with a ride on a tractor trailer to the bike pens!

Mounted up and ready to roll by 7.20. The "starter" always has a joke to set us off but today every announcement he made was met with eithe a cheer or a boo so he had trouble getting through his spiel.

David and I both seemed to have more energy today and soon hit a good pace, sometimes in groups. More family out to see us today at Pitstop 2 and at base camp. This was really uplifting - thanks everyone. Thanks also for the many text messages. They keep us going. Energy started to run out towards the end and even a Magnum at a petrol station in Launceston didn't seem to have much impact on the subsequent hills.

So only 1 stage left for tomorrow!!!! Just 95 miles left to go!! Tonight's briefing consisted of lots of thank you's and awards to those that make the camp run so well.

My musings yesterday before I deleted the whole thing was about camp life. That suitcase that was so organised when I packed it is now a complete mess (and smelly). Much of our time in camp is spent queuing! Food, toilets, showers, beer, energy supplements, massages, medics, etc etc. As the week has progressed it seems that everyone has developed a routine to minimise the queuing. You try to cover off as many things as possible as you move around the site. Some people even combine activities so it is not unusual to see somebody queuing for the toilets whilst eating their breakfast, luckily I've not seen anyone trying it the other way round!

Anyway it is very late again given that we get up at 5 each morning. I know it is late by the amount of snoring going on around me in all directions!

Today's ride - 117 miles, 8 hrs 38 mins cycling, 13.5 mph average

Ride to date - 913 miles, 65 hrs 06 mins cycling
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A Ride of Two Bridges

Having just drafted today's blog, I have managed to delete it before posting0and it is too late to do it all again. Also there is no signal where the tents are so I won't be able to post until the morning.

So a much shortened version is that today's ride took us over two famous bridges - Severn Bridge and Clifton Suspension Bridge. Ok so not great photos but we're not on a sightseeing trip you know!

I'll try to re-capture some more of today's lost thoughts in tomorrow's blog.

Today's ride - 111 miles, 8 hrs 25 mins cycling, 13.2 mph average.

Ride to date - 796 miles, 56 hrs 28 mins cycling
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Stage 6

A quick blog tonight because it is 10.30 and we should be asleep! In fact David is and already snoring rhythmically next to me.....oh bliss!

A relatively easy day's cycling apart from the climbs at the end. I think most people felt yesterday the effects of 5 days cycling so today most seemed happy to follow a steady pace along a mostly flatish route.

Although the organised pitstops provide good food and enough, it is always the same! So by day 6 we were craving something different so when we spotted Tilly's Tearooms we dived in. A couple of cyclists were already there but the growing collection of bikes outside soon attracted more and more people to stop to the extent that they called in extra staff and had the butcher down the road send up more bacon! So proper latte coffee, a bacon roll and a slice of cake later we were back on our way. David, if he were awake and not snoring quite loudly now, would insist that I mention his restraint in NOT having a bacon roll!

Yesterday on stage 5, David's mother and father in-law came to see us at the first pitstop. It was great to have somebody cheering us in so thanks for coming along. Nev also took some photos of us posing with James Cracknell and Rebecca Romero.

Camped tonight at Ludlow racecourse should you be tracking our progress on a map!

Today's ride - 108 miles, 7 hrs 55 mins cycling, 13.5 mph average

Ride to date - 685 miles, 48 hrs 3 mins cycling
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Over half way!!

My personal nemesis of Kirkstone Pass started today's Stage 5. I had read so much about this 20% climb in the Lake District and was dreading it, having visions of grinding to a complete halt, not being able to unclip from the pedals and simply falling off, eventhough this is a move that I have practised several times on our training rides! Straight out of basecamp and onto the hill, it was a slow grind but we both made it! The picture shows David arriving at the crest and the picture does not show the steepness or length......believe me!

A small crowd of ride supporters had gathered at the top and I have to admit to feeling a little emotional as they cheered and clapped us all over the summit.
Beyond that the ride was fairly straight forward through Lake District, Lythe Valley, Heversham, where we had to sneak off route for us to look at David's old school, onto Lancashire through Bolton and into Cheshire where tonight's base camp is near Dunham Massey.

It's great to get the odd cheer and clap but special mention must go to some junior schools that have come out at the pit stops and screamed and cheered us all in. A real boost!

We both felt more tired today, we think from the cumulative effect of 5 days cycling rather than today's route but 25 miles out we hooked up with a group who got us back into a rythym and we eventually finished quite strongly getting into camp at about 5. Fluids and shower then a beer in the chill out tent whilst catching up on the rest of the world with the complimentary Telegraph!

After our meal, Paul Dickenson (the TV athletics commentator) chaired a discussion with some of the Paralympicsgb cycling team which was very interesting and entertaining.

Another early night beckons but what a fantastic way to spend a week! (now that it has stopped raining!!)

Today's ride - 114 miles, 7 hrs 59 mins cycling, 14.2 mph average

Ride to date - 577 miles, 40 hrs 08 mins cycling
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2012 Hopefuls?

Another great day's cycling through stunning scenery. Today's stage 4 route took us out of the Highlands, leaving Scotland at Gretna Green, through Carlisle and into the LakeDistrict as far as Ullswater. We promise that the sign in the picture says "welcome to England"!

Weather again fantastic and there will be few days in a year when it is as clear as it was today. Stupendous views looking back towards Scotland and ahead to the lake district.

The hard training seems to be paying off as although they are tough days we are coping well and recovering ready for the next day. However, over- confidence may have crept in as we have had a couple of beers tonight and a late night!

An extra pit stop was added today due to the mileage and we arrived here as part of a large group of about 25 cyclists. Riding in a group is much easier and the pace much faster. Exciting too!

Not long after leaving that pitstop, Rebecca Romero sped past, so we gave chase and we cycled with her for about 15 miles! Quite a privilege that the 3 of us kept together for that time, chatting along the way. Maybe she wasn't pushing as hard as David and I were but we like to think we were holding our own! Maybe we could try out for the 2012 Olympics.......or maybe not!

After the next pitstop, Rebecca passed us again but we didn't feel able to rise to the challenge a second time! There were hills to come at the end of the stage!

The campsite tonight is in a fantastic location near Ullswater. We are surrounded by peaks. As we move south it also becoming dark again at night.

I think I forgot to put the stats on yesterday's posting so two lots here:

Stage 3 - 129 miles, 9 hrs 18 mins cycling, 13.9 mph ave

Stage 4 - 131 miles, 8 hrs 47 mins cycling, 14.8 mph ave

Ride to date - 463 miles, 32 hrs 09 mins cycling
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Ice cold in Lomond

What a fantastic day we've had!

We were tucked up by 9.45 last night listening to the rain pattering off the tent. We were woken at 5
by the tune of the day - "just another manic monday" but to blue skies! The mist had gone to reveal snow capped hills - well a little bit of snow anyway!

A big day today - 130 miles and 10691 ft climbing. The first half of the ride took us up through the Highlands and the Scottish ski resorts. The scenery was breathtaking.

With big climbs there are also some long descents which are great but does invariably mean that you have to climb up again!

We skirted the shore of Loch Lomond, through the outskirts of Glasgow and to tonights campsite at. East Renfrewshire.

Today's treat was an ice cream at Loch Lomond - sorry that I didn't take the photo until I had eaten most of it!

We are both doing well - tired at the end of each ride but recovering well ready for the next day. All that training must be paying off!

Another big ride tomorrow so need to get to bed. Not sure that we get any reception at tomorrows camp at Ullswater so maybe no blog for a couple of days.
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Stage 2

The chill out zone was screening the match last night which proved a popular place to be after dinner but not a great result! Also a chance to sample some local ales!

Luckily the wind had dropped so the tent behaved and we had a decent night's sleep. Camping next to a loch brought clouds of midges which descended as soon as you crawled out the tent this morning. Everyone was keen to get cycling just to outpace the midges!

No wind made the cycling far easier but it has rained all day, pretty hard at times. Still, once you are wet you can't get wetter!

Yesterday's landscape was fairly barren or even desolate in places! Today the scenery has been spectacular in places. Mountain tops shrouded in mist, thickly wooded mountain sides and fast flowing rivers and waterfalls. We have also cycled half the length of Loch Ness but no sign of the monster! We are now camped near Fort William, stuck in the tent currently during a downpour but the weather is now meant to improve for the rest of the ride.

We have two pit stops each day which are always welcome sites where you can grab some food, extra drinks and of course visit the loo! These are very well organised like everything else including mechanics to sort out any problems.
Always good camaraderie on the road and an opportunity to chat to fellow riders as the miles clock up.

Today's ride - 99 miles, 6 hrs 48 mins cycling and 14.5 mph ave. 8537 ft climbing.

Ride to date - 203 miles, 14 hrs 04 mins cycling.
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Stage 1 - Done!

Previously I would have said that I could sleep anywhere. Well I can't sleep in a flapping pop-up tent that gets flattened by the wind every 10 mins! The weather was terrible overnight so everyone it would seem did not have a good night's sleep. Add to this David's fengshui moment in the middle of the night - square tent but D decides to shift to a diagonal position!

We wake up to more grey skies and howling wind. Breakfast is good with lots of nervous anticipation. By the time our red group starts at 7.30 it is raining aswell!

The first 50 miles is westerly along the N Scotland coast, straight into the wind, so is very hard work but the rain stops after an hour. Between 40 and 50 miles is a big 10 mile climb up Bettyhill. We then turn due south for the rest of todays ride and mostly follow the valley floor so is much more sheltered. Surprising how quickly 600 cyclists spread out along the road!

The camp and pitstops are extremely well organised. Showers good and hot at the end of the day.

Feels good to have completed Stage 1 - just 8 more to go!

Today's ride - 104 miles, 7 hrs 16 mins cycling, 14.3 mph average, 6518ft climbing
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Camp 1

Scotland in summer! Gale force winds and driving rain!

The weather aside the camp is brilliant! Great facilities and great food. There is a huge catering tent where we had the choice of about 4 hot meals plus a deli counter. Chocolate pudding and tea/coffee on tap. Another huge chill out canopy (with space heaters) and lots of easy chairs to relax in and cushions, throws etc.

Row upon row of tents, all identical, so good job they are numbered. Hope neither of us have to get up in the night as we may not may it back to the same tent!

Met James already! That will save us having to try and keep up with him on the ride.

Had our briefing for tomorrow then headed back to the tent to find it flattened! Consequently sleeping bag pretty wet in patches but been and dried it out by the space heater in the chill out tent so time to get into it while it is toasty warm

5.30 wake call, on road by 7.30, if the tent survives the night!
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British Cycling Membership - Gateway to the World

Well here we are on our way to John O'Groats, currently sat in Edinburgh airport having a coffee.

A short moment of panic earlier as David hadn't realised the need for photographic I'd for an internal flight! Luckily his British Cycling membership card was good enough to get him through check-in. Hopefully we can now forget my forgetting my wallet on a previous holiday!!

Flight to Wick is at 13.15 so we will go and grab some more carbs shortly before boarding. Cycling is a great excuse to just keep eating all day!
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Au revoir

Tonight, our bikes have been cocooned in pipe lagging, and deposited with the company that will be transporting them to John O'Groats.

This has come as a bit of a wrench - the first time that we have been parted since my cherished Cannondale Synapse came into my life! Its even been on holiday with me to Plymouth, Bournemouth and a weekend away in Pickering! Unfortunately it didn't get to go skiing!

Hope the bikes make it to John O'Groats OK otherwise we going to look pretty stupid. But when we are re-united, it will be the eve of the BIG EVENT!

What a difference a day makes.......

Somewhat different weather to yesterday! The forecast thunder storms did not materialise but it rained and it rained!

We have visited a café in Tadcaster on a few rides and at the weekends it seems to be a cyclists Mecca with people arriving on two wheels from all directions. Today, a steady stream of bedraggled cyclists entered for respite from the weather.

More of that important carb loading in the form of a full English breakfast! You can certainly build an appetite cycling!

And as it was our last serious training ride, we decided to finish it, just for old times sake, with a couple of pints and a packet of crisps! Very reminiscent of the type of cycling that we did before we signed up for RAB!

Another 76 miles which brings the current training on the road to 2,770 miles, so I'm hoping that the 1000 mile RAB should be a breeze - only possible snag is that its over just 9 days!
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Tax breaks for cyclists!

David and I have both have had our bikes serviced this past week ready for the big event. I have also had the girls's Kia Picanto serviced. My bike is 9 months old and done 2500 miles. The Kia is 12 months old and done 10000 miles. Guess which cost more to service?! Why is everything to do with cycling so expensive? Come on Dave and Nick - how about some tax breaks for cyclists!

Last week was another important week for training but its been another ridiculous week at work with early starts and late finishes so David has been out by himself.

However, we've been out together today and. Clocked up 109 miles. Boy, its been a very very warm day! We've been told how important it is to keep replenishing calories and carbs while you ride! So first stop was at Mr Moo's ice cream parlour near Hornsea for coffee and cake, followed by a takeaway piazza in Beverley for lunch and a much needed ice cream at the BP garage in Shiptonthorpe! Well, they need the cash!

David's house was a welcome sight - do we look warm?

Century Rides

The training programme is cranking up and we have now been completing 100 mile plus rides!! So I now know that I can cycle over 100 miles in a day - whether I can do it for 9 days running is still to be proven but that won't be tested until the ride itself.

When we registered for the ride, we had to self-assess our ability - as a result, David and I were classed as "Enthusiast" level and I think we only scraped into this category by scoring a couple of extra points for "owning a road bike" that we had in fact only bought a few days before!! The ride organisers have provided a training plan for each level and we have been following this as best we can over the last 9 months. It sets out riding hours or gym sessions for each day, with a few rest days thrown in for recovery. Depending on what else we've been doing, David and I have either been doing our own thing, or whenever possible getting together, especially for rides.

As we approach the ride, the number of hours to ride has been steadily increasing. Last weekend (remember that boiling hot weekend?) saw me ride just over 100 miles on the Saturday, then teaming up with David on Sunday to ride another 88 miles.

This last week should have been a key week with cycling for an hour or two every evening, However, work has been really busy with late finishes, so I have not made it out at all! Not good!

This past weekend, Saturday should have been a 2 hour ride but again I didn't get out (well, it was raining!) and was put to shame by David who still went out and clocked up over 80 miles! David and I did join up for a 7 hour ride yesterday - it was a very windy day, so at some points we were flying, pedalling on the flat at 27/28mph but then struggling to reach 10mph when you turned into the wind! A headwind certainly saps your strength and our route to the east coast meant a tough final 40 mile run home into the headwind. Still, at least it didn't rain and it was another 107 miles under our belts. We are pictured 62miles in at our lunch stop at Burton Agnes Hall.

Not only do we have to find time to fit in all this exercise but there are also hours spent on the internet looking for all manner of cycling gear and accessories. I'd never even heard of chamois cream before, let alone researched the pro's and con's of different brands, but I now smear it on liberally before each ride and probably have the softest bottom since I came out of nappies! My wardrobe now boasts more lycra than either denim or corduroy - not bad for a middle-aged man! Heck, that's the first time I ever thought of myself as middle-aged!

Shopping or training?

The welcome return of warmer weather made today's 63 mile ride more enjoyable than some of the recent training trips. That said sudden warm weather also brings a small plague of insects playing their favourite game to see who can cling on to the cyclist for the longest. Helmet vents double as insect scoops!

Today's ride took us towards harrogate...in fact David carried on to Harrogate to clear the shelves at the Specialized cycle shop but I was heading to Newcastle this afternoon (in the car!) so turned back for home after 2 hrs and left David on his shopping expedition!

Setting the Scene

I thought it might be useful to set the scene as to why I have started this Blog......

In the summer 2009 I read a newspaper article about James Cracknell, GB Olympic rower and gold medalist, and his plans to organise a charity bike ride from John O'Groats to Lands End in order to raise funds for ParalympicsGB, the charity that supports British athletes through each Paralympic Games. Before I knew it, I had signed up to ride 1000 miles in 9 days! Fortunately, I persuaded my friend David Lord to also take up the challenge. Other friends declined the invitation - you know who you are!

For a few years, David and I have done a bit of cycling in the summer months, mainly as a way of taking in a couple of pubs in the beautiful Yorkshire Wolds. However, this challenge has taken our cycling to a whole new level.

New bikes were purchased (well, we have to try and look the part) and in September 2009 embarked on a serious training program. Winter rides and frequent visits to the gym started a new way of life.

This Blog will chart the final stages of the training and our participation in Ride Across Britain 2010 or RAB2010 as it is widely known.