Heading North

At approx 12.00 noon today we departed from Denham airport for Wick on the west coast of Scotland. Mark Farmer had flown up from Bristol in his Columbia 400 aircraft to collect us and take David Rick and I up to the start camp for the 2010 Deloitte Ride Across Britain. The flight was a brilliant event with improving weather conditions. As we flew over the Western Isles of Scotland we could see for 30 miles around us and as we headed east across the Caledonian canal we could see Loch Ness stretching out and on to the eastern coast of Scotland. By 3.45pm we were on the ground in a cold and windy Wick airport. The day continued to go to plan as we were met by Jason who is driving the support van for the whole event.

John O’Groats is much what you would expect. A gently shabby northern Scottish village with lots of heart and little charm. Today it had been transformed. The RAB base in the heart of JOG is home to 600 riders and at least 100 further support staff. It is an impressive operation, more of a mini village than a camp site. We had decided months ago to stay in hotels rather than camp – on the grounds of old age. This turns out to have been a smart decision as the weather deteriorated and by the early evening we were in the teeth of a full North Atlantic Storm with driving rain and a bitter NW wind. Camp sites have a charm of their own but in these conditions I would take the hotel option every time.

The start is at 07.00am tomorrow so it’s time for some sleep. I am still worried about my knees, they still ache and feel fragile but I won’t know the real prognosis until the day is over tomorrow. Fingers crossed. Oh..... and if you’re wondering why the photo is in black and white it is a consequence of incompetence not an outbreak of broody creativity.