Thursday 11th June – 2 days before the big day!
I am sure that I am like the rest of the team when I say the anticipation and desire now to get the ride going is immense. Although work is taking priority this week there is still so much to sort cars, bikes, food, accommodation, raffle prizes for the after party and camping equipment!
Obviously our aim is to raise funds towards Lewis and to create awareness for his plight, hopefully this is now beginning to snowball ?....Our training this week has really been put on a side burner as we were told to try and have a rest before we go which I think most of us have been doing but I don’t think that included partaking in too many beers !!
Friday June 12th - 1 day to go
Its the day before we set off on our drive to Berwick, I managed to get to bed at 11 but was up at 4am, I couldn't sleep with a culmination of work that needs doing and stuff that needs sorting before our departure........
What a day, my list of jobs to do grows longer and longer by the hour and I thought I was ticking things off,!!! The girls have done shopping and the spares have now been collected from the bike shop, just time to go home now and pack ready for the off!
ON THE ROAD - Day 2
Slept like a log, apart from the snoring from our tent and the laughter from the Simpson tent. We all wake to have breakfast only for the midges to have breakfast on us……!!! Set off on day 2 and the first mile was literally vertical ……we have a good second day taking in the sights, sunshine, rain and sleet followed by flash floods…
Bites all over, nappy rash and a thick head…ready to ride then…the hills are alive with the sound of wheels…wet, wet, wet, need the loo but its like a needle in a hay stack!!! Andy is our leader….
La La La! He certainly is………Corin did try to take his crown but we got lost within 5 mins!!!! Never mind whats a few more miles!
Hadrian’s wall what a beautiful sight following the tops of the hills until we came to the top of that hill. Watching the team ride down the hill as if they were in the tour de France riding off into the distance on a route they were beginning to regret.
Proctor is our leader la la la la…. Proctor is our leader!!!
A nice easy day today……only 43 miles……of shear hills once again! The scenery is breathtaking and once again it’s a feeling of privilege to be rolling through the countryside. Our descent to the youth hostel was like a riding through a river and started to seem like we had entered a different world to the sunshine we’d been basking in earlier.
Unfortunately although the scenery was breathtaking I had noticed that some vandals had caused a few forest fires so I decided to pullover and drop a couple of my own logs off to compensate the loss. After fighting off a grizzly bear for my wet wipes I proceeded up the hill and joined the group with a newly found smile on my face!! The rest of the afternoon was a bit of a blur as the ice storm that hit me in the face at 100 mph gave me brain freeze like how I used to get with my Mr Frosty!
The support team arrived at the destination, an hour before the bikers, to find the campsite was on a scrap yard!!!! Thankfully the owners were not around so we did a quick u-turn to the local YHA where Ash worked his magic to get an amazing deal! Bikers arrived and so off to the pub again . . .
You couldn’t make a day up like today……….a double puncture in the kielder forest early doors from thunder thighs martin was as exciting as it got in the first couple of hours! The drama then unfolded……the hail came down and we were directed to the local YHA, and then, an abduction; Bonnie (Gav’s fridge magnet) went missing for a full three minutes! Gavin was in meltdown and threatened random strangers with violence unless they revealed her location. He had only left her to put a dark wash on but without prior permission she had chosen to use the ladies. Luckily she was discovered in time to cancel the Staffordshire search and rescue whose cost would have far out weighed the monies raised! We all slept well knowing that Bonnie was safe and sound but more importantly the dark wash was on.
Day 3
Beautiful weather, glorious scenery but what a test, boy did we need a team hug! Come to think of it I only nearly died twice as the very friendly farmers drove their very small tractors straight at us!! To be honest Sarah got upset but it was nothing to do with the terrain but because she had borrowed some of my cycling shorts but I forgot I had smothered the crutch with Deep heat!!.........Awwwww
What an amazing day……..don’t think we could have made so many wrong turns if we tried but the scenery definitly made up for it. Will never see as many sheep in my life again…..how ironic that we finally got to the restaurant and they had ran out of lamb!!!
Hot, hot, hot….get your vests out boys…and Sarah!...o.k. so time to chill out then, lets play some…piano, guitar, bongo’s, tambourine…o.k. cant do any and that was last night anyway…all rolling in to one!!!! I love HILLS! ANDY IS GOD!!!! xxxx
Totally knackered rolling into Dent……….why was the dent museum 5 miles before dent……?? Is this some sick tw..ts .idea of humour……anyway thank god bonnie was found…she gives a great massage!
Sun, wind and sun………and the effects were quite clearly seen on all the bodies. The journey was full of ups and downs, very reminiscent of the day and the emotions. The elation coming into Dent was nearly as high the smells coming from everyone’s armpits when we had a team hug half way through……today we travelled from Alston to Dent….. The evenings sleeping arrangements had to be drastically altered on site due to the to the total allergy to Dan the Oil man’s snoring, apparently the tremors are still being felt in Berwick!!!
What a day. With thighs becoming more and more reminiscent of Stuart Pearce’s by the hour the long accent out of Alston seemed to go on for days; reaching 1900 feet to be exact…the weather was perfect and everything was going well. After taking (another) wrong turn and then travelling up more hills the emotional strain exploded out of me climbing the longest, hottest hill. I’m not ashamed to say there were tears that I thought were never going to end, but the team was super and a group hug soon got me back on track. Now……where is the wine!
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