This is a snap of David and I at the iconic signpost just before Ric came in.
After 1050 miles and 80 hours of pedalling over 9 days we crossed the finishing line in Landsend at around 3.15pm yesterday afternoon. It was a brilliant moment. The sun was blazing, there was a big crowd and a huge cheer as we crossed the line. Sheridan, my wife and kids, Charlie and Daisy, were in the welcoming committee and we received our medal and had our photos taken. We had a shandy and a pasty on the grass bank and cheered the other cyclists over the line for the next few hours. There was a great party atmosphere and all of the finishers were elated. One of the great things about cycling is that it does not seem to damage your body in the way that other sports can do. I remember hobbling away from the London Marathon with legs that would hardly move for a day or two. After 9 days of cycling I feel physically good. Both of my knees seemed to sort themselves out although they did ache throughout the ride and needed frequent doses of ibuprofen.
Would I do it again....? Well, now is not the time to ask. I would certainly do another long distance cycling event and I would certainly do it with David and Ric who have been great fun through all of our ups and downs.
Finally a few folks to thank (sorry of it sounds like an Oscar speech....).
Thanks to all of you that supported the Dreamflight fundraising, thanks to Sheridan who organised all the accommodation and has been a unfailing supporter of the cause, it was her idea in the first place. Thanks to my cycling buddy Sean who dragged me around Bucks in the deep dark days of winter. Thanks to Mark who flew us up to Scotland – what a great way to start. Thanks to Jason who drove the support vehicle and was able to do the heavy lifting when we were walking wounded. And thanks to all of the blog followers for your moral support.
Thanks
Jonathan
What can you say about Day 8 of 9? It’s the day no one wants, it is an orphan of a day, it has no saving graces. The day is without the optimism of the earlier days where the bulk of the work is to be done and the miles get eaten away and yet it’s not the big final day with the ecstasy of the finish line. And so it was that we embarked upon Day 8 with nothing in the plan other than to get it over and done with. This was a longish day at 117 miles and with over 10,000ft of climb it was always going to be hilly and potentially difficult. In the light of all this we decided to change our nutritional strategy and stop for a bacon sandwich in the morning and find a decent place for a proper lunch. Previously we had forced down the unchangingly boring baps and wraps at the pit stop and then survive on gels and energy bars but we had had enough of that and the lure of the bacon sandwich became the focus of the day. I can recommend this nutritional approach to all aspiring athletes, it may be very inefficient in terms of glycaemic index but it sure made us feel 100% better and in the end it was a great day. We cycled strong and hard and fought our way up the hills with some fight in our legs. Let’s hear it for bacon!
There is some great news on the fundraising front. It looks as though we have enough money pledged to get to the target of UKP 9,000. The justgiving page is still a little short but the balance has been promised. Thanks to everyone who has supported the fundraising I have been really touched at the generosity people have shown and that is what it is all about I suppose. You can see the very best in people (and maybe in yourself) in the face of a real challenge and it reflects in the mood of all the participants , helpers and those of you who have been so generous donating. Thanks again.
Talking of real challenges this has certainly been the hardest thing I have ever done and it looks as though there will only be around 350 people who will finish all the stages out of a starting group of 600. I am sure this event will become an annual occasion as the prime long distance cycle event in the UK and will develop a reputation as a tough event that is accessible to average people in the same way that the big city marathons have now become. We will see.
Oh..... and the photo, well its amazing how attractive things become after 8 days on a bike.
(I am in some dodgy pub with no WiFi and no network coverage so I m not sure when this will get posted and I have skipped the photo to speed download)
We are a bit worn out now. We have covered just over 800 miles and if we had taken the quickest route we would be close to Landsend but the event takes us an extra 200+ miles so we can “enjoy” features such as yesterdays horrendous climb. I am feeling low on reserves and I think that we are all suffering now from the sheer grind of cycling tough terrain for this number of continuous days. It would have been great to take a break for a day maybe during the event – but that was never in the plan.
David and I have been cycling together and we try and pull each other through the lows. We have completely run out of conversation and talk total rubbish with each other as we cycle along. We do laugh a lot at not very funny things but we get a lift from each other. The third member of the team, Rick, cycles at a different pace to us so life is even harder for him as he spends most of the ride battling along on his own. Well done Rick and keep at it mate.
My lowest point is usually late morning. I struggle to eat enough breakfast as I am just not hungry at all when we get up at 05.00am and I try to snack on the energy bars during the morning but they are beginning to taste like something small pets nibble on. So, as I was feeling a bit sorry for myself this morning, I saw something inspirational. It was a Dad and Son team on a heavy tandem. Dad was well over 60 on the back and Son was probably in his mid thirties. They came powering past us all putting is to shame on our lightweight carbon fibre bikes. We recognised the pair as Dad is representing the Paralympics charity here at the event and Dad is totally blind. How about that.
The day started perfectly. Great weather, a good breakfast and we were on our way from near Manchester to Ludlow, about 110 miles. We knew that the first part of the course would be easy as we cycled through the Cheshire Flats. The highlight of the day was a massive hill in Shropshire called the Long Mynd. We had been warned by the organizers to pace ourselves and make sure that we had enough “gas” to get up “The Long Mynd”. The problem with this hill was that it came 90 miles into the ride when we were not at our strongest. So at about 3.00pm this afternoon we rumbled over a cattle grid and looked up at the near vertical climb that stretch off ahead. Generally, it’s pretty bad form to get off the bike mid-hill. If you are a proper cyclist you recite “pain is weakness trying to get out” as a mantra under your breath multiple times and get on with it. David is very strong on steep hills and generally finishes well ahead of me but as I looked ahead, up the hill, I could see he was in trouble. He said to me afterwards that the hill was so steep that the idea of pulling his brakes to stop the bike rolling backwards was an option while he was still standing in his pedals trying to head up. And then the collective ignominy of it all….we ended up off the bikes pushing the whole show up hill. David even took his slippery cycling shoes off and walked in his socks to get more traction. It was a vaguely comical sight and the only consolation was that no one else could stay in the pedals. What goes up must come down and the heat generated by David brakes exploded the inner tube in his front tyre during the descent. Luckily it was so steep that we were both travelling gingerly at the time so it was a drama not a crisis.
Only three more days to go and for the first time we seem to be getting a little stronger rather than weaker so we are (almost) looking forward to tomorrow.
We passed a large sign on the side of the road at about noon which said "Think Bike” and I was struck by the irony. At that stage my saddle was so uncomfortable that I thought my cycling shorts were just about to burst into flames. I was being advised to “Think Bike” and the truth was I could think of nothing else, however hard I tried.
The day started early with an 07.15 departure. We were keen to get going but had no idea of the challenge that we faced just a few miles into the ride. The route had been planned to take in the infamous Kirkstone Pass. This is the picture in this blog post although it gives little idea of how steep and how hard this road is to cycle up. It takes about 30 mins of gut wrenching, pedal standing effort to get from the bottom to the top. This would be a challenge on a good day but with 500 miles of cycling already in the legs it was a formidable challenge. I had scrambled eggs for breakfast about 30 mins before departure and I am proud to say that it did not make a return appearance but it was touch and go by the time we made the peak. This was hard cycling at the very limit of my ability and in impact was felt for the rest of the morning. We cycled on but with no energy left and no fight in our legs. By mid day we were fully depleted and decided that we would skip the usual organised pit stop and opted for an attractive looking pub at the 75 mile mark. We sat in the sun and recovered with the help of a fresh ham baguette and a large orange squash. After 45 mins we pressed on and felt a lot better. By 2.00pm we were back in the grove cycling at pace with a group of other lads. We arrived at the base camp just after 4.00pm in warm sunshine and ...perversely enjoyed the day. I would be keen to see the Kirkstone Pass again – but in a Porsche.
That was another 115 miles completed today and it means we are well over half way - whoopee.
