LEJOG - Challenge 19 - GRAND TOTAL

I am delighted to announced that with late donations, cheques paid directly to Playskill and Gift Aid we reached a final total of:-

£12,188.79

Thank you so much to everyone that donated and everyone that participated in Challenge 19 this year. This is an incredible feat that will ensure Playskills future in the short term and make a huge difference to the lives of so many.

For once I am slightly lost for words and feel very very humble.

Thank you all for everything you have achieved with us as a team.

Chris

LEJOG - Deleted Scenes

It has now been over a month since our epic adventure of scaling the country ended and now I have had time to reflect the achievement of what we did gets greater with every day that passes. The bikes may be a little more rested, the body parts moving a little more freely and no task seems at all daunting any more but i wanted this entry to reflect some of things and happenings that I didnt capture during my daily blog writing during LEJOG but felt important not to forget even if they may be a little cryptic....

So I have compiled a short list of things that still make me smile or cringe:-

Dirty train talk from very old women
Carol the weather girl
Sky news Nas
Ground rules
The Haydock Wedding
A Guinness too far
Big mammas at Starbucks
The lost miles from Ludlow
Holey Bibs
Bath hottub
Roundabout gambling
The poor beer count competition
Granma hugs in Monmouth
The omelette effect
Eau de LEJOG
Broken shower
The sulks
‎Launch messages
Wick locals and falling over
Keys in doors
The coach home from JOG
Champagne in Wick
Pacman Dave
Little Jed
Johnny foxes
Synchronised

Things still keep coming back at very odd times so you may see an update to this entry from time to time

LEJOG - Stage 9

The morning after the big crash the night before...

We both woke in bits having had very little shut eye. However the lack of sleep was not through the excitement of getting up for the last day but just from not being able to rest in certain positions due to the pain and aching areas from the fall so there was no real chance of getting comfortable throughout the night.

Hobbling down to breakfast very early the mood was still low from the smash and the breakfast was not a good one, probably the worst of the trip. Most of the food was left on the plate as we went back to the man odur filled room to whack on the cream and kit up.

We were on the road by 8.30 pedalling with a determination and the thought process of let's just get this day done. The mood was surprisingly not one of excitement about reaching the climax but one of longing for it to be over. After 10 miles in to the last stage and another beautiful backdrop to soak in the realisation hit me that this was it and I started to feel very emotional about everything and nothing.

Our pace was good and we motored on over rolling hills for 25 miles when we decided to take a stop for a quick coffee and a scone with jam at Linda's cafe knowing that lunch would have to be late today due to the vastly uninhabited land in the next 50 miles.

It was just as well we did carb pack at this time as the miles between 35 and 50 produced some monsterous never ending climbs over Caithness, which I actually really enjoyed. Whilst knowing these would be my last climbs on route to JOG I reflected how much I had loved previous climbs at Cheddar, Shap and Rannoch Moor. All these have been my personal cycle highlights that I will never forget.

Coming out of Caithness there were more rolling hills and today was pretty relentless with climbing. At 60 miles on the clock my bike had another minor mechanical when the chain started rubbing on the spokes. Bat signal sent out my team Sky mechanic Andrew was quick to sort my minor out and we were back off and in the running again for a top two finish in the GC for the day.

A few gels and a shared brownie bar just about got us through to lunch at 71 miles and the hunger was really pounding at this stage. With only 17 miles to JOG we had to stop for refuelling. A quick toastie and scotch pie in the high street cafe in Wick saw me well for the final push. Our moods were back high again having not suffered too much in the saddle with our newly acquired bumps and bruises. I am sure it would have been different if we struggled more due to the crash. We both had the finish in our sights and minds and my constant message to Andy was "just leave everything out there today" and finish strong into JOG.

The last 17 miles were some of the hardest. Minor rolling hills were becoming a struggle due to 9 days of constant cycling and putting our bodies through more pain, pressure and stress than they had ever been through in our entire lives. As the miles counted down to the finish I could feel the pressure slowly lifting from my shoulders and the overwhelming sense of achievement rising up inside of me. One last hill at 2 miles to go really did see both of us leave everything out there. Andy led the way up storming it to the top with everything he had left in the tank with me pushing on hard right behind him. When we got over that bump it was done and we could roll down the last road to the finish. We stopped for this picture before reaching the end though.

Finally rolling in and seeing the polar opposite sign to what we saw in Lands End was incredible. I cycled right up to the sign and hugged it for a long time.

We dismounted and hugged each tightly for a long time. This was a very proud moment for me to achieve something of this magnitude. It is hard to find the right words for my feelings at this time and I am sure I need a lot more time to reflect on the whole ordeal.

We got back to our B&B for the night in Wick at a really decent time. I had a bottle of champagne ready back in the room and we toasted all the appropriate people and finally ourselves. The owner of the B&B was excellent and she really went out of her way for us dropping us in town at a restaurant and picking us up. We had an excellent celebratory meal in Wick at a restaurant that boasts it is situated in the smallest street in the world! And this is actually in the Guinness book of records This place was an excellent recommendation, absolutely spot on and really didn't disappoint

Here are today's stats:-

Total ride time = 5hrs 38mins

Distance = 140kms

Calories burnt = 3331

Elevation = 1206m

Reflecting a little on the experience I know for a fact that I could not have acheived this without Andrew. He was a warrior throughout and kept my going when I was low and boosted me to get back to the highs wheni needed it most. He physically and mentally helped me right through to the end and I cannot think of anyone else that I could have done this with. I love you Mr J for everything.

I will miss all the idiosyncrasies, habits and manorisms. "Launch messages", inability to open any type of lock, flip flops waving in the wind on the pack back, chamois creaming up and too much more to mention

Until the next time campers.....Chris Lee out

LEJOG - Stage 8

Another really hard day at the office. If your office is sitting on a very uncomfortable seat for 10 hours and climbing hills in awful weather. Exhaustion had also set in after yesterday's epic effort.

For the first time on the trip I had a full nights sleep, well 6 hours, which would serve me well for the day ahead as it was big. Again, more technical issues with an alarm this time but lucky I woke at 6.50 to find our only alarm had run out of battery. We could have really messed this day up if we hadn't have woken by chance.

We had a late breakfast as they wouldn't serve early but we felt we deserved this from the previous days work and desperately needed it to set us up for a huge 120 mile day ahead.

Our morning session was very fast paced and we made ground very quickly reaching town after town. Loch Ness was a major let down and the area of Drumnadrochit is not a place you would want to spend a lot of time.

We then had a lot of rolling hills that we had a bit of fun on when climbing. Andrew was trying to keep up and has a lot of determination but I think he needs a "little" more training before he starts playing with the big boys. I have tried to give him an intense climbing school on this epic challenge and I am not sure I can do anymore to coach him. He may be some that is just impossible to mentor in this area. A little bit of "fergie" style mind games on one hill, while he was hanging on, saw him dropped and gone.

We lunched at Inverness after 66 miles, leaving 54 miles remaining. We got on the road again at 2.45pm after some decent nosh at Bella Italia. It was hard to be in Inverness as I knew this was the place I was flying home from in a few days time after completing the challenge. Mentally it was hard to comprehend.

Climbing was top of the bill for the afternoon session as we headed for our place of sleep in Lairg. We had antihero  tough few hours of driving on to the end with lots of boring main roads to deal with. We the. We were then graced with something of sheer beauty when we reached Struie Hill viewpoint 10 miles before home. It was simply breathtaking at dusk

Due to the length of the ride today at 120 miles we were again out of light and it turned dark on getting to the bottom of this hill which was bad news for the rest of our roll in.

We pulled over with nine miles to go, in the dark and rain, as Andy needed to stop to readjust. I was reflecting on how lucky we had been on the trip so far and said the immortal words "I was surprised we hadn't had any real accidents by crashing in to each other" to which Andy ordered me to shut up. I didn't think he was the superstitious type...

...ten minutes down the road, which was pitch black and the rain still teeming down, we approached a train crossing. It was very very dark and very very wet. Going over the track lines that are lined with rubber I lost my front wheel at 25mph. I went down hard hurting myself and the bike. Andy was very closely tailing me at the time and as I buckled he went straight over me and also went down incredibly hard. The first reaction was to get out of the pitch black road that we were laying in as cars, trucks and lorries were still actively passing us. After that we regrouped and evaluated damage to us and the bikes. The bikes are not to bad but I think we will only find out about our own state in the morning after sleeping. A few ripped clothes, grazes and bruises are currently evident and with all this happening 1 mile from our hotel it has really deflated the end of our penultimate day.

Here are today's stats from Andy (my Garmin has died)

Total ride time = 7hrs 48mins

Distance = 189kms

Calories burnt = 3694

Elevation = 1522m

Lairg to John O'Groats tomorrow (pending injuries)

LEJOG - Stage 7

I am not sure where to start really. I guess to say firstly I am alive! Today has been the toughest day ever on a bike for me. There were so many reasons not to even attempt today's stage and on reflection it was very dangerous at many different times throughout the day.

The weather forecast at 6am when we checked was as follows:-

"Remaining rain over Dundee and Angus soon clearing east to leave a mixture of sunny spells and scattered heavy showers these possibly producing thunder and hail. The strong northeasterly winds will increase to gale force in and around the showers".

This was going to be a day I would not forget in a hurry.

We started the day when George cooked us a superb fry up at 6.45. Constant weather talk and the route to take were the main source of conversation around the breakfast table. Everyone had been kept awake in the night by howling winds and torrential rains, which we sheepishly spoke about over tea. Susan asked if we wanted to hear her thoughts on the day and after saying yes to her she proceeded to tell us that it was really not a good idea to even consider it and for our own safety we should not even try to travel in this hurricane weather. She and George know all the roads like the back of their hands in this area so why should we not listen to locals?!

I cannot give up without even trying as most of you will know and after dragging on my gear I could see that Andrew was thinking carefully about his aunties advice. We eventuallly left George and Susan in East Kilbride to hopefully find our way to Fort William.

Today's route was meant to take in the Glasgow suburbs to the East of the city, crossing the Campsie Fells, skirting the edge of the Trossachs and passing through Glen Ogle. Then, the route will cross Rannoch Moor and the famous Glen Coe Pass before finishing for the night at Fort William.

The ride started as predicted weather wise and conditions were tough. Exiting Glasgow Andy had a number of issues. The first one was presented by white van man who opened his door without looking whilst we were going around traffic on the inside. He was lucky not to eat the door as a second breakfast, just managing to avoid it in the nick of time. Then the wind really started to pick up and one huge gust came along and he wobbled all over the place but just about held on. This was a warning. The next time he was not so lucky. We reached the summit of a small hill after only 15 miles and I turned around To see he was splattered on the flloor due to the gale force wind driving him over. This was a bad indication for things to come or suggested how hard things would be today if we decided to even go on! At one stage a nice man in car pulled over in a lay by to stop and wait for us to see how we were doing and offered to help us if we needed anything.

After the fall we decided to come off the roads and find shelter with from the wind with some covered cycle paths. We battled down these NCN routes for a good few miles before coiming back to some more exposed roads again. We reached Loch Lomond in good time and it was still beautiful to look at even whilst being attacked by the elements. We actually followed another cycle path round the lock which worked out until we needed to stop for a banana break. At this time a slight miscommunication, lack of concentration and the bad weather contributed to a double wipe out. Luckily nobody was hurt but we were both certainly a little wetter as we both landed in large puddles after the fall.

Andy did some great work in the morning session by taking the lead and really drove us through to lunch at 60 miles. It was a really tough morning to get to Crianlarich and took a lot out of us both. This little dwelling was a very strange offering of a place to live as we found out when speaking to the waiter in, what seemed to be the only hotel in Crianlarich. He told us that the village only had 180 residents and then corrected himself saying that it was now 179 due to the old boy dying a few weeks back. His manor and tone were also very odd. The hotel had a roaring fire in the dining room with large stags heads on the wall and reminded me very much of the hotel from the film the shining.

There was a sense of feeling that both of us did not want to leave lunch at all and especially not to get back on our bikes as the afternoon session was all about climbing. Also, Susan had suggested if we did make it as far as Crianlarich then we should stay there the night due to the conditions and how much energy we would have zapped getting there. So this was a big challenge of the mindset to overcome.

We got on the road just after 3pm and this wasn't the best time to be tackling all these climbs due to the amount ahead of us and the amount of daylight left to boot. The climbs were tough to begin with but as we got higher and higher we became slower and slower as the wind started reaching up to 70 mph at times, with rain driving down on us and hail stones viciously attacking our faces leaving a stinging sensation at times. I am not sure how but even at times I had my own brief moments to really take in and appreciate the scenery on the moor. There are some big big rocks here. The back drop in this national park looked like the set of The Lord of the Rings. It was spectacular.

As we climbed and climbed it became more and more intolerable. We were both beginning to question if we would make to the end, why we were there and how far away is the closest B&B that could house us for the night. At times we were battling at 5 to 6 mph in gale force winds. Today was also incredibly cold at only 5 degrees and the wind chill took it down to zero. Everything was starting to hurt, ache and freeze whilst getting nowhere fast. It took hours to battle through the top of Rannoch Moor, which is very slow, and we were both tested physically and mentally not to mention questioning that only idiots would attempt this. The danger factor was also in play as the wind had tried to chuck us into traffic regularly and worryingly there were some big vehicles taking this road, as it is the only route through. This weather was the end of hurricane Gonzalo dont forget and it certainly lived up to its name and nearly finished us both. I would not do this again and it was in no way fun whatsoever. It took a very long time and many energy supplements to get us to Glencoe, which sadly for us was only a few miles on from the moor area we had been struggling on. To give you an idea how cold it is up the mountain we passed the entrance points for the ski lift that will open shortly...

The dark was about to set in and the wind was not giving up anytime soon. We were 85 miles in and finally we received some respite with a decent. This is the only thing that saved us for the day as we had just previously agreed not go any further as it was pointless and dangerous and that we would find the next available place to sleep.

Once we got down an incredibly huge decent things improved slightly and we battled on to Fort Williami the pitch black, which again really wasn't nice.

I felt emotional, tired, hungry and exhausted when I got in today and dont really want to experience anything like that again. I know a left a little piece of me out there on the mountain today that I will never get back. We later heard that a lot of the roads that we travelled on today had been close just after we had got to them. Today could have been a very different story.

Thank you for all your messages, text, call and donations. Whether it is a quote from Winston Churchill and a good luck text everything is great fully received and helps me along the way.

Here are the daily stats:-

Total ride time = 9hrs 14mins

Distance = 177kms

Calories burnt = 5143

Elevation = 2106m

Fort William to Lairg tomorrow

LEJOG - Stage 6

Weather watch has been a major part of this journey and waking up each morning with BBC weather woman Carol has become something of a familiar comfort. Today was not a great day with terrible conditions and the worst, sadly for us, was still yet to come.

Today's action would see us take the long journey from Penrith to East Kilbride. Splitting the ride in to mental segments we first needed to get through Carlisle and then roll in to our third country of the trip when we would enter Gretna and Scotland. We did this in reasonable time and managed to get under the "Scotland welcomes you" sign before noon.

Today was very stop start with having to stop a lot to put on and take off waterproofs to avoid a similar soaking to yesterday. We moved on from Gretna to Lockerbie which is a place that holds tragic memories for so many and will stick long in my memory. I was only 10 when I heard the news, just before Christmas time, that Pan Am Flight 103 had been destroyed by a terrorist bomb and all 243 passengers had been killed. Large sections of the aircraft killed 11 more people on the ground when it landed in Lockerbie. It was a very surreal feeling and emotion riding here.

As we entered Lockerbie we needed to eat as it was getting past lunch time. We stopped at the only real place available for miles. It was not the best at all. We stopped at the Lockerbie Lorry Park. We did what we needed to do and got out of there quick smart with our bellys full.

Onwards to the Annan Dale, which provided fantastic views of the Lother Hills before trying to navigate our way to East Kilbride in the dark without any GPS for either of us at the end of the day. Today's day was very hard and weather didn't favour us again. When we got to East Kilbride we were staying with Andy's auntie and uncle who made us feel very welcome indeed. A lovely homely dinner together around a table, a nice hot shower and a full wash of all our a gear. I felt like a king.

We both still have major concerns about tomorrow's stage and if we can even complete it as the winds from Hurricane Gonzalo are meant to be at 70mph, it is meant be very cold at 6oc and the rain is meant to be crippling. I am not sure I will sleep well tonight on that basis even after all that physical output of effort and energy today. I am really concerned.

Here are today's stats

Total ride time = 7hrs 53mins

Distance = 182kms

Calories burnt = 4017

Elevation = 1518m

East Kilbride to Fort William tomorrow (pending)

LEJOG - Stage 5

Not the best start to the day with no breakfast served at the hotel until 8 and that is when we needed to leave for the long journey to Penrith. All we could obtain at the time in the morning that feed needed a feed was a pre-made packed lunch. Given this was our only choice we went for it but it was mostly inappropriate food items for the time of day. We set off after digesting some flapjacks, ham and cheese sandwiches and a muffin.

It took a while once we set off to break in the soreness once again and find the right sitting / riding position. As we were just about to pick up one of our main roads that we would follow for the day at only 5 miles in Andy promoted himself to the top of table with a 2-1 after stacking it turning around at 3mph. As he gathered himself from the floor he was left in front of a big shiny mirror and hoarding opposite him that read - "future champion" oh the irony.

After passing Wigan and its overwhelming kebab stench in the city centre (this was early Sunday morning) we headed on towards Preston. I must say the scenery was pretty disappointing up to this point. Just as we were exiting Preston as fast as we entered I saw a large Evans cycles open and called time to stock up on tablets and recovery powders. The guys inside the shop seemed pretty decent people and we chatted a lot about our adventures to date, while one chap shared his experience of completing LEJOG last year.

As we left Evans cycles and Preston I had my first mechanical of the trip. Chain and derailer issues that took some time to inspect and then to rectify. We finally got everything back in to what seemed like full working order but once we got back on the road I could only use little cog. The heart dropping turn around from miles in the bag and trek back to Evans cycles had to happen. As Andy said the positive thing is that it has happened here and not the middle of nowhere, even though this meant a big delay to our schedule.

Back at the store I sheepishly rolled in my filthy Colnago for inspection by a man better than I. I caught the eye of the man I was previously speaking to about LEJOG in the hope he would take pity on me and help me as much as he would have wanted help on his trip. Ted didn't disappoint he was on it like shot. The bike was straight up on a stand and he had a few others over to take a more detailed inspection. He gave it a serious looking over made the magic happen and all was shiny and new. He actually sorted more than he should of for me by sorting the derailer, cleaning the chain from all the crap I collected over the last 5 days, lubing all parts all over, sorting my handle bars whilst giving me great advice on the setup of the bike and how to get the best put of it. Ted did LEJOG on a single speed in 10 days and camped on his journey. What a man! He also didn't charge me a bean.

On leaving Preston for a second time morale was low and riding became tough. We knew we lost time. The weather wasn't helping either and scenery around us was dreadful. We also probably lacked the food we needed to keep up any sort of tempo as well. We both put our heads down and pushed hard to get to Lancaster, which was 45 miles in, for our lunch. Not many options in Lancaster once we arrived for what we wanted so we ended up in a soup place called Soupanova! The food was ok but the highlight was the waitress who didn't seem happy in her job, friendly or knowledgable about anything. Poor Natalie. This was a sign in the shop....number 8 is my favourite.

After lunch the mood was a little better but a few wrong turns and Garmin using its own mind led to more frustrations and the mood being knocked back again. Once we finally found our bearings, after more lost time, we were eventually treated with more pleasurable views across the Fylde coast to Blackpool Tower and inland to the edge of the Pennines.

Prior to joining the A6 we traveled in a northerly direction towards Keswick and took in Kendall and a place I visited a few years ago in Beatrix Potter world, good times. However, this is when the weather really turned for the worst. It hadn't been great all day but we were in for a battering. Heavy rain, hail stones and high winds chucked everything they had at us. We were temporarily distracted by some nice climbing. Weird to say distracted but when you climb you have to get in your zone and mindset and nothing else matters...pain, weather or any other factors.

The best was yet to come though with the world famous Shap Climb from the steep side. This provided great views of the Lake District prior to our finish in to Penrith. The climb was great and I really enjoyed it but once at the top, waiting for the little guy yet again, I pulled up to wait and was hit by heavy hail stones and huge gales. Not the best place to stop on reflection as I was shivering down to my bones.

After the monster hill we tried our hardest to get home for the night as quick as possible by pedalling as fast as we could in the pouring rain only stopping for a quick snap on our arrival in Penrith.

Tonight we are staying at the Caledonian Guest House and immediately on arrival Ian, the owner, asked if we wanted our clothes washed and dried for the morning to which we bit his hands off. He was very hospitable and agreed to even cook our breakfast early so we can get away in good time. I know there is an inner cyclist in him by getting a quick peak at his bike in his shed. What a touch though.

Here are today's stats:-

Total ride time = 7hrs 47mins

Distance = 168kms

Calories burnt = 3253

Elevation = 1437m

Penrith to East Kilbride tomorrow

LEJOG - Stage 4

A pre ordered breakfast bap kicked off our day at 7am. Breakfast started at this hotel at 8 but some silver tongued action the night before saw me collecting a super sized all in one breakfast bap to go. This also saw my first black pudding of the trip...sheer delight and jubilation for me.

Today's ride from Ludlow to Haydock crossed the edge of the Stipperstones prior to entering the Shropshire and Cheshire Plains during the middle part of the day. Our stage today is the least amount of climbing of the whole ride. After an undulating start to the day it flattened out considerably before Knutsford. The approach to Haydock for the end of the stage was set in slightly more suburban surroundings as the route dissected the land between Manchester and Liverpool.

After 15 miles of climbing at the start of a gloomy day the only thing to note is my first fall of the trip. Standard Chris Lee fall happening in the stationary postion whilst stopping for a stretch and a gel. 1-1 now with Andy. Watch this space though to see the final result.

After blasting through the first 35 miles with the power we haven't seen all trip we decided we had earnt ourselves a decent coffee. We found it in Shrewsbury with the addition of a piece of cake, comfy chairs and some decent music on the terrace. After some good BATMAN chat over coffee (first time I have cried with laughter on this trip, actual tears - reference stage 1 blog) we were about to set off when we were hit with tune "it's time to go"....apt! A little bit of euphoric dancing, probably from all the sugar and caffine and we were back in the saddle.

Flat-ish = fast. We nailed 60 miles sharpish and decided to lunch in Nantwich at Harrisons Cafe Bar (Harris, Harris, Harris). Perched on the decking out the back of the place, trying not to offend locals with our smell, I fulfilled my week long craving of ordering a jacket potato. A garmin charge boost, black current and lemonade and a water refill on multiple bottles and we were back to work.

It was a very business like day and reminded me of a training session I would do in preparation for this epic challenge or a ride that I would do to try and complete a strava challenge.

Knutsford was a nice place to neR our finish we saw the local football club in action as we had got in early due to the good average and hard push all day. As it was the weekend we also saw the cycle community out in force and the varying level of bods in championship Lycra,  drop down crew and an old Doris on trike that AJ would struggle to beat in a sprint! Cav he is not....

The hotel tonight was the one on this whole trip that I was dreading the most as it was a chain. All our other places are either guest houses, B & B's, observatories etc however on check in it seems to be spot on and the local entertainment seems to be up to par!

Today was exceptionally great for the only reason we reached our place of rest in the 16 hundreds, meaning more time to rest for the next stage.

A bath with The Streets playing "Leave it out" sorted me for the night and left me in a good mood until I heard on the news that Hurricane Gonzalo is heading towards me on Stage 7 and Britain has been put on storm alert with dangerous driving conditions and flood risks. I guess I just have to man up, right?!

Today's Stats:-

Total ride time = 6hrs 20 mins

Distance = 165kms

Calories burnt = 3599

Elevation = 906m

Haydock to Penrith tomorrow.

LEJOG - Stage 3

A late breakfast and start today didn't give us the best chance of beating the darkness at the end of the day and we certainly didn't want to be left in the horrible situation of last night coming in to Bath in the pitch black.

The technology curse on this trip continued as my garmin would not upload today's route when we tried in June morning so it was left to Andy and his gps to guide us to Ludlow. After fiddling about a lot to try and find the start of gps course route from Bath we eventuall locked in our start point but were very aware we were well behind schedule. More worrying was that Andy then pulled up very early in to the ride with concerns about his already troublesome and regularly operated on knee. I certainly thought the worst at this stage.

However, we finally did get going and underway with some momentum until we climbed a big hill and right at the top we were immediately halted with a road block and a sign saying "pedestrians only". We negotiated an uncomfortable next 5 minutes on foot down some awful terrain to get around the problem.

The weather seemed good and on our side when we left Bath via the south west edge of the Cotswolds. We made good ground and pedalled hard towards the superb crossing of the Severn Bridge. As we crossed the sun was shinning and the views were spectacular. We stopped for photo on the bridge that was taken by an architect who was strolling the bridge to admire the structure.

After the bridge we rode on towards the beautiful Forest of Dean and Wales, stopping for the standard photo.

Riding into Wales we climbed, as you would being in this very hilly country, before an incredible long decent into Tintern Abbey which was an exceptional sight to behold. With the wind rushing pasty cheeks and beautiful landscape zooming by either side topped with an Abbey that was established in 1131 this was truly a breathtaking moment.

Gels, stretch stops and comfort breaks during the next 25 miles took us to lunch in Monmouth at the Punch Bowl. 45 minutes to refuel with a hearty soup and some good carbs (lesson learnt from previous days) gave us the boost we needed to get to the end of the day. 2 things of note though at the punch bowl. Firstly, I had a very interesting conversation with a elderly chap, whilst ordering our food, about LEJOG and i started telling him about our long trip which he related to some of his long hikes that he was passionate about. I then went on to say about the Russian lady that walked the length of the country and all the interest that it created at the time all those years ago and I knew her name was Dr Barbara but we both did not know her last name. We both went about our business after that until a few minutes later he jumped out on me and cries Moore...her name was Dr Barbara Moore (she passed away in 1977). The second thing of note was not as high brow as the previous. Whilst sitting outside eating our lunch and people watching Andy nudges me and says I know this bloke walking up the road and swore he was from Berko. The man looked a bit of a scruff and what I can only describe as an ailing Peter Stringfellow. As he walked off in to the distance we continued to debate the fact which I was contesting. 

There was a long steady climb up from the River Wye in Chepstow next up and this is when pain really started to hit home. Many things are about to blow me thinks. Legs heavy, feet strained, back pain from a big bag, thighs starting to burn and the all important bottom has almost been pierced. Big trouble is on the horizon.

On our next stint of spinning we "chewed the fat" a little on some quiet roads side by side and I was just finding out how much Andrew actually moans! Not just when riding......Our conversation then led back to his Berko mate from Monmouth and he then proceeded to tell me, astonishingly, that he wrote the popularly loved them tune from the children's TV show Rosie and JIm. I did tell Andrew I found it hard to believe that Peter Stringfellow wrote the them tune to Rosie and Jim!

At the top of the next hill we were provided with more entertainment, please bare in mind this is entertainment for people that had been sat down pedalling for 8 hours, when we entered the village of Phocle Green. Try saying it with a northern accent and not laughing. I won't even go on to tell about the village of "Here". 

On the last leg of this stage we finally entered Herefordshire on the more undulating run into Ludlow via Leominster where we would lay our heads for the evening. Our shared excitement about having a bath in the room was a little worrying but pain relief once bathed was immense. I booked us in a quirky little place called the Feathers Hotel, which is said to be haunted. The place has a lot of character and charm and I am only hopeful that Casper does not disturb me in the night as I am knackered.

Today's stats:-

Total ride time = 6hrs 31mins

Distance = 147kms

Calories burnt = 3695

Elevation = 1497m

Ludlow to Haydock tomorrow

LEJOG - Stage 2

A hearty breakfast served up by Mark at 6.50am (he told us to come at this time to avoid the resident builders who would mop up at 7) kicked of the day in fine form and I already felt like I was winning compared to yesterday's events. After breakfast we grabbed our now dry clothes from the airing cupboard where our hosts had allowed us to dry our saturated attire from yesterday's stage.

I forgot to mention in yesterday's update that we both had some major issues with technology. Andy's phone packed up and my garmin to record all my rides died. This lead to some sulking for most of yesterday evening. However, when we got back late last night Andy suggested putting the garmin on the radiator to which I replied in appropriate nature which I will not repeat on this PG13 blog. However, at my wits end and no other solution other than to run out first thing in the morning to buy a new one a first light I gave in...

....then BOOOOM! The garmin jingles started ringing out after about 5 mins of heat. My night was complete!

Under way on the road by 8 we set off for the Roman town of Bath not knowing really what was ahead. The day started again with rolling hills and some tasty climbs. The weather was reasonable though and made a real difference to the spinning. The climbs and miles passed quickly and with a full English as my fuel I felt good. We came to the village of Bickleigh and it was a beautifully quaint little place however two things to note happened here. Firstly, as we stopped for an energy gel I walked over to a picturesque river running through to gaze at it. At this time a doddery old couple in a car started reversing to allow another drive pass them on a very small road. Once they reversed though they caught the back tyre and you could hear the air being released. They pulled off quickly without me having the chance to let them know but AJ said "let's go quick" before we spend an hour fixing this. I wasn't sure this was the right thing to do but....hey-ho. The next extremely strange thing to happen was that Andy beat me to the top of massive hill that lead up to the castle in Bickleigh. I can only put his intense climbing down to the fact he really didn't want to fix the puncture on that car.

At the top of the castle we powered along more rolling hills and small sceneric roads that were filled with fog and mist that made for great photos and creative GoPro action.

Before we knew it we were approaching 50 miles and the hunger started to set in. From the 50 mile point we called next nice looking place for our tucker.it took 5 miles but we found a cracker of a place called the globe inn in Milverton. Eyes bigger than belly scenario took over again and we both ordered more food than we could manage. Once we were paid up the Nicole Kidman lookalike barmaid filled all 6 water bottles for us and we were ready to attack the second half of today's stage.

Straight back to hill action as if I thought it would be anything else! The only thing that was keeping me going was a hill I have wanted to tackle for a long time and my most eagerly anticipated section of the whole 9 days of LEJOG..........Cheddar Gorge.

It took a few stretch stops and energy gel stops to reach Cheddar Gorge. We finally came within range at 90 miles in to the ride. Not exactly how I had envisaged taking on a hill of my dreams after blasting 90 miles today and after finishing 108 yesterday but I was still up for this, even with 11kgs pounding on my back. I love Cheddar Gorge as a place and have fond memories of it from recent times and as a child so I think that is why I was looking forward to it so much. At the bottom of Cheddar Gorge Andy didn't feel great and needed a few minutes to pick up the energy levels and compose whilst I was chomping at the bit. Once we set off I got in to my spinning motion and enjoyed every single piece of road on the way to the top. Nice switchbacks, varying gradients, different road widths and grazing mountain goats made me all a little too excited. I reached the top of the 7k ascent (part of the 100 Greatest Climbs) in decent time considering all the factors and once there I had a huge adrenaline rush which helped for the last 20 miles home to Bath

We had a major problem once at the top. We were out of daylight! On a tough ride home with more hills we had to suffer darkness and didn't reach the hotel until 7.30pm. This tainted the day a little but lots of things to learn from this.

In summary it was a really long and tough day with far too many hills!

Here are the stats:-

Total ride time = 8hrs 28 mins

Distance = 185kms

Calories burnt = 4897

Elevation = 2384m

Bath to Ludlow tomorrow.

LEJOG - Stage 1

In bed before ten and the best nights sleep for a while set me up for the start of this monumental task ahead today of getting to the tip of Scotland from Cornish pasty central. Waking at 6am with howling winds, waves crashing against the rocks and rain rattling the windows didn't exactly make me want to whip on the Lycra.

With the hotel only starting breakfast at 8am and our rolling start time scheduled for 7.30 we needed fuel before we got going. We had been given a doggy bag that was left at reception to give us some form of nutrients for the big day ahead. However a muffin and yoghurt didn't really cut it.

Before leaving the hotel we both signed the all important end to end guest book at the Land End Hotel and in 9 days hopefully we will do the same in John o'goats. 

All kitted up, bikes at the ready and my 11kg bag stuffed and now firmly strapped tightly to my back we stepped outside the hotel and in to the dragons den with the elements out to finish us before we had started. Would you want it any other way though on a challenge like this!?

Our ride started immediately with tough hills, clothes soaking rain and driving winds that make your face burn. This didn't really let up for 5 hours. Food and nutrition will play a huge part on this challenge over the next 9 days and I learned my lesson early. With a small breakfast, a shared pack of two ginger nuts with Andy at 30 miles and no proper food until 50 miles I was really bonking (cycle term for feeling delirious from lack of food). More importantly I was out of water so hydration was also on the wane. We tried to find somewhere to eat for lunch but found this a real problem being in the middle of nowhere. When at my weakest a costcutter appeared from out of the blue giving the opportunity to recharge. A large bottle of water, a weird green antioxidant smoothie and a currie slice did not exactly mix well in my stomach or when I got back on my bike to start pedalling again. This will not be repeated. Andy had a chocolate boost! We agreed we need some proper food as soon as we could find somewhere selling hot food. We travelled another 20 miles without finding anything. Then the small town of Camelford crept up on us and if you didn't take your cleat out the pedal you would be out the other side before you knew it. This was now over 70 miles and 6 hours in and importantly no real food had been consumed by either of us and I was now starting to feel ill. There were two pubs in the town and Andy checked them both before making the call. So we sat out in the garden as the sun had just come out and we wanted to dry off. We took off all most wet stuff that we could dry and then went to see about food to be met with. We do t serve food! The long process of gearing up took place and the off to the other public house. The Darlington Arms. WOW! As we approached a girl on skateboard that looked "interesting" was heading up the hill. We dumped our bikes outside the boozer and asked the batman of they served food to which he was stumbling around for words and then in walked skater girl to which the batman grunted at her "can you cook".  He then offered us a chicken a mayo sandwich. So we took the offer and sat down in what can only be described as spit and sawdust place. Jeremy Kyle candidates frequented this place with a dirty dog also running riot in the kitchen and the main pub area. I couldn't wait for my food to come. Then I see the batman run out and 2 mins later he hot foots it back in with a fresh loaf of kingsmill. We left fairly sharpish. On exiting he said let say tenner. Paid up and off we popped.

With 40 miles left it was a tough finish to the day. Lots more hills, weather inconsistent and water running out fast. This was one of the toughest rides I have aver done and the worrying thing is that this is day1! We also arrived a lot later than anticipated at gone 6pm.

Arrival at the B&B was greeted with a hallelujah from but of us and that feeling of reaching the finish for the day was an amazing feeling. The guesthouse was excellent and Mark the owner made us feel incredibly welcome and really went the extra mile with a few things for us.

A pizza dinner in a restaurant we saw on the way in to Okehampton really hit the spot and the food was incredible but it would have had to try hard from the intake we had today.

Total ride time = 8hrs 6 mins

Distance = 174kms

Calories burnt = 4413

Elevation =1835m

Okehampton to Bath tomorrow for Stage 2

The calm before the storm - the prelude...

So........today it all starts...

An early rise was needed to rack my tiny mind to see if anything was missing from my incredibly heavy backpack that I would be carrying for the 9 day adventure ahead.

I shut the front door at 9am with that sense of relief of no turning back and that it was to late to do anything else. I rarely get that feeling but when I do I feel released and free. It like the feeling a lot.

A short pedal on my own to collect my partner in crime, Mr J, and then on to the station together to start our long travel day to Lands End. A laughable first mile for us both saw a lost bottle roadside and a near crash at the station. Only 999 miles to go!

An unbearable packed train to London standing in the aisle with bikes, cycle to Paddington, train and arrival at Penzance, taxi to the Lands End hotel and here we are 10 hours later!

The train journey from Paddington took over 5 hours and the woman sitting near us across the way that was earwiging finally gave in after Andrews chat

The weather was very diverse on the journey down but gazing out of the window was a real delight with a More beautiful English countryside to behold and enjoy.

Arrival at Lands End made things very "real" and the undulating and rolling hills on the way in gave us an insight in what we would start with tomorrow. The evening here though tonight was beautiful and sunset made for great pictures

I am sooo excited to hear that alarm tomorrow morning. Let's get this on!

LEJOG Training Complete

With only 4 days left until the big day and setting off from Lands End to complete over 1000 miles in 9 days I feel as prepared as I think I can be, well physically at least….

In recent weeks I have completed a two sportives back to back in a tough weekend and have ridden 6 times in the US whilst on a work a trip.

My sportive weekend firstly consisted of the Wiggle Yorkshire Tour and driving over 250 miles on a busy Friday night to get there. Early on a beautiful sunny morning I left the shambolic bed and breakfast to join other like minded cyclists looking for the piece of the tour. Once off and spinning the route explored the best cycling Yorkshire had to offer. I cycled parts of the Tour de France ‘Grand Depart’ route. The route had a real mix from quiet undulating roads to the high exposed moors with their perpetual views and stunning landscapes. I started out from Thirsk Racecourse heading north heading out for the first section of endless rolling roads diving back south through Leeming Bar. After I dropped down in to Leyburn on the first swoop of Wensleydale, I headed back north east, linking with the Tour de France route for the first time. I then began to climb back out of Wensleydale and peeled off cutting directly through Bellerby Ranges, with its epic views,before dropping down to Swaledale to cross the magical river swale for the first time. After passing through Reeth, I hopped back over the river Swale for a second time, before leaving the tour route. Next up was the challenging climb up on to Summer Lodge Moor, passing some of the Dales disused mines on the way. When I reached the top of the moor the landscape unfolds, before the technical decent in to Askrigg, to rejoin the Tour Route. Back in Wensleydale I followed the River Ure before crossing at the Stunning Aysgarth Falls, to then head East at Leyburn for the final quick stretch back to Thirsk. This ride was not for the faint hearted as the moor is tough but the views more than made up for sore legs! I took on and completed my first category 2 climb on this ride too!!! 

After completing my Yorkshire tour a drove immediately down to the peak district for the WIGGLE PEAK DISTRICT PUNISHER. The Wiggle Peak District Punisher is a mid-season belter of a ride! Starting from the picturesque town of Bakewell, nestled on the edge of the Dark Peaks, I left the Agricultural Centre in the middle of town and climbed gradually up to the historic village of Eyam and over into the Hope valley. A quiet loop through Edale Village lead me to the first main climb, the ascent of Mam Tor, a real leg burner with exceptional views at the top! After this I continued my adventure out to the west of the park with some tough climbs and blistering descents rewarded with stunning views, open countryside and quiet roads. This was a real tough ride and pushed me to the limits with huge amount of climbing for the miles achieved.

The final part of my training was completed in the US. First up was Phoenix and then Las Vegas. The purchase of a new bike bag for my LEJOG trip, for when flying back from Inverness, allowed for a dry run to the US with the bag and the bike. I have never been so worried about my luggage arriving at the other end. All the what-ifs and maybes…

I had 3 rides in Phoenix and riding in the US is nothing like I have experienced before with large mundane flat blocks and lots of traffic lights - a far country from the beautiful undulating countryside of Hertfordshire and the Chilterns. The stop start was a little frustrating to say the least but it could almost be compared to the frustration of central London riding. I did however on one day get an insider’s tip from a local and took a nice route leading out to the Beeline Highway, which I was very grateful for. Bike bagged packed and the short flight in to Vegas lead to my next 3 rides. An immediate short burst two hours after arrival in Sin City was fun, the second added miles to the bank but was in scorchio 30 degree heat and the last took in a 90k route out to Red Rock Canyon national park which was absolutely stunning.

The last jobs of packing selection, routes and donations support are still looming large. The emotional side of things is another story all together. Let’s just say I am not exactly Johnny horizontal at the moment.

LEJOG - The Route

After some crafting and serious planning, with a few big humps along the way, we have announced our route from South to North...

...Here is your stage by stage view and insight - http://challenge19.co.uk/lejog-route/

LEJOG in 9 days for what?

LEJOG is an acronym that has only entered my vocabulary in the last 12 months! LEJOG = Lands End to John O'Groats.

Playskill is a word I have known for slightly longer and is a charity that provides parent and child playgroups in Watford, Hemel Hempstead, Three Rivers, Dacorum, St. Albans and Bushey for pre-school children with physical difficulty or developmental delay.  An occupational therapist, speech and language therapist and paediatric physiotherapist work within the groups to ensure maximum progress for the children.  Support for parents and the family as a whole sits firmly at the centre of the structure and they desperately need financial support to continue their fantastic work. www.playskill.org

So what I am doing to help? Well, a year ago I committed to cycle LEJOG and there have been tough, physical, mental and life changing experiences for me to position myself in the best possible place to complete this in October 2014. Whether it has been regularly battling the elements in 100+ mile rides (over 8 hours in the saddle), conforming to lycra, joining a cycle club or reigning in my beloved alcohol in order to train for this monumental task I have always done what is needed.

One of my nearest and dearest friends Andrew (a real driver of this initiative) will be embarking upon this epic challenge with me.  Our hope is that through the money we raise, it enables Playskill to continue to help many young children in the future, like Andrew's son, William, who suffers from a rare chromosomal deletion of 19p, 13.2 and has been and will continue to be supported by the amazing charity.

·         Event date start - October 15th

·         Total duration of event - 9 days

·         Total miles covered - 1000+

·         Sponsorship target - £15,000

This challenge is only being undertaken by Andrew and me and there is no support from a company organising this event. We pay for everything ourselves and carry all of our belongings we need for 9 days on our bicycles or shoulders. This will be the biggest challenge of our lives and already I envisage pain, punishment, sweat and maybe tears on my behalf...

This is the important part, if you only read one thing in this long plea. I need your help and support to drive me to the end of this challenge. Donating is safe, quick and easy. Please visit this link and show your support - https://mydonate.bt.com/fundraisers/challenge19

I will be writing a daily update on my blog after completing the stage for the day and adding a map of the route covered so that all sponsors can be part of the journey and see our progress

I thank you all in advance for your generosity when donating.

Déjà vu but quicker

Last Sunday I participated in the London Bikeathon for the second time. This is an event I would like to ride every year from now on as it was my first event I entered on my cycling journey, it has a lot of emotional attachment and gives you a spectacular ride around the greatest city in the world.

More than 6,000 cyclists got on their bikes to help beat blood cancer and raised more than £830,000

After getting up very early on Sunday morning to take the first train into London I arrived at Euston and immediately followed the stream of Red shirted cyclists making their way to the start of the event.

It was a beautiful day with sun shining down, blue skies overhead, upbeat music pumping out of loud speakers and a real sense of intent at the start line. Riders were let out in manageable groups every minute or two. As it neared my turn to set off I was overcome with emotion and remembered why every other rider was here and taking part and everyone here had their own story to tell. I had my story and being caught off guard by a song that came on those big speakers i set off with a lot of feeling inside of me.

Pushing on with the ride around our capital I rode with a guy, for the first 20 miles, that lives close to my area and I convinced him to join my newly formed cycling club in Berkhamsted. It felt far more sociable this year mainly due to understanding I would be able to complete the distance and a year down the line i know my self a lot better from a cycle stand point. After a break mid way through for a drink a sugar top I rode the last half of the event in a good group. Bad sign-posting lead to a few hiccups but made for extra bonding and camaraderie.

The biggest pain about the event is that the roads are not closed off meaning the traffic and more importantly traffic lights are a huge problem when trying to get any sort of momentum.

The biggest high about the event is the incredible support that people show you when cycling the whole course but when you come in to the cross the line their are crowds that are really applauding and cheering the effort of all riders as the cross the line and get their medal. It is truly overwhelming.

The event is not a race and as I said it is hard to treat like that due to the lack of momentum you can gain. However, I tracked my own performance this year and I have improved my time as a cyclist by a considerable way and completed the course in 3 hours and 24 minutes knocking over an hour off last years time

Right on my doorstep - Hertfordshire 100

Having undertaken a lot of long rides and Sportives in the past few months that took a lot of planning, travel and commitment it was nice to finally get an event in my own back yard but more importantly an organiser that plans the best route and take me to areas of my county that I hadn't fully explored before.

Sportive UK ran the event for British cycling and I really enjoyed the gathering of over 500 cycling enthusiasts. It was a beautiful day for cycling at 18 degrees without a cloud in the sky. The route was very well thought out but did contain lots of nasty gravel, a river to cross if you dared and lovely quiet single track lanes to spin around. I had a few chain issues on the way round and annoyingly one puncture at 94 miles in...Grrrrrrr...

There were lots of amusing town / village or street names to admire and I even cycled through Little Berkhamsted, which I never knew existed (my cycle club is based in Berkhamsted).

I completed my 104 miles in a very respectable 6 hours and 36 minutes and this is me pictured below after passing the finishing line.

I am booked in for a Spin around London this Sunday to keep battling for the fight against blood cancer.

Big Cog 2.0 - Historic day

Today is a monumental day in my cycling journey...

I have become a member of British Cycling, who are the governing body for cycling in the UK. In addition to that i have also committed to join a Cycling Club. I am very excited to part of the inception of the Berkhamsted Cycling Club

Last but not least I have also received my provisional race licence...

...already dreaming about Big Cog 3.0!