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.
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