Blimey didn’t realise we were going to be this tired….yep its 100 miles a day but come on…it can’t be that hard….(well it is…) so we like lists and tallies - we’ll try to keep them going on the way:
Top 10 things from Day 1:
1. Lands End - a bit of a tourist trap but the sign-post is the real draw - everyone queueing to have their photo taken - wait your turn young man…yes but we want to get on our way….
2. The closed shop that is photos at the sign-post…you can stand in one place if you don’t pay - we paid for ickle pickles on the sign-post but asked if we could take our own photos - no was the answer - officialdom at its very worst - oh and the ‘charity’ deal was 2 for 1….hmmmm
3. On the plus side, entry to the car-park was free for charities…
4. Complete disregard for the planned route - could we have gone more wrong
5. Cutting 4 miles off planned route - get in..
6. Locking up the back wheels down the hill into Newlyn…
7. Ham butties…best ever when about to start walking wobbly from exhaustion…oh and Morrisons Nougat and fondant bars…
8. Hills - we knew it would be hilly but come on…..this is ridiculous
9. Being applauded as we left Lands End - great feeling
10. Collecting first donations in the charity bucket…was only a few pound coins but good to get the first coins in there
A Tally or two:
Map-rage: none yet
Arguments: none but we came close
Punctures: 1
Chains off: 3
Oh and the Saddleometer..
Pretty good today…some soreness reported but basically staying on ok with a forecast of soreness over the next few days
Ok - so day 1 passed in a long trudge uphill - Cornwall is possibly one long descent to the sea…too tired to post much now…although the post at Lands End says 864 miles - it lies!!!!!!!!! As the crow with a rocket strapped to its back flies maybe but not on a bike into a headwind up and down dale….
Sleeeepppppppzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz
The ickle pickle LEJOG team - Fizzy, Harry, Marshy, Biagio & Paul…
All smiles before the pain….
Here’s the route so you can all pore over your maps and ask any inane, stupid questions…
The answers….
What have we let ourselves in for…
We’ll try to keep this brief but the pain may all be too much and I may have to provide a chaffing ‘n’ all account of our 1,000 miles from Lands End to John O ‘Groats
We’ll post photos and tweet about our progress and provide a bit more detail each evening on this blog. The 14 riders may even make it through the whole thing without falling out (but then again we may not…)
A big shout today to Mr.Bland who secured a minibus for the charity to use for the full two weeks at no cost - legend status continues…
Organising it has been a long and laborious process (you want to see the route map…if you ever want to cycle round Edinburgh without hitting a major road before 1 pm on a Saturday to avoid the Football Traffic then I’m your man…oh you don’t…ok then I’m not your man)
Hope you get some small pleasure from reading this, you may even learn something that I inevitable will have missed…
The Saddlometer: Currently all rosy for all riders - No chaffing reported
Miles so far: a Big fat zero - (but then we don’t start till Saturday)
Arguments: none (except some terse words via email…)
More to follow…