Back in January when Greg suggested I join him on a charity bike ride I jumped at the chance. The fact I didn't even own a bike didn't even enter my mind. How hard could it be?  500K? Across the Alps you say?

Until I started looking into bikes I had no idea how much of an all consuming activity this could be, and how much choice there was between gearsets and derailleurs (and I'm still not entirely sure I want to know what chamois cream is for). Once I had the bike and got on the road I thought it would be simple to train. Then I discovered accessories and gadgets...

Months later, I've ramped up the training to the point of doing a triathlon as practice, I've been formally introduced to clip in pedals by way of 1 or 2 bushes at the side of the road; and I've learned to appreciate the joys of downhill, and the burn of uphill - I think I might be swearing a lot on the way up in the mountains.

Oh and 100% of the money you give goes to charity, none of it will be going on spare bike parts :-)

1 Van
1 Driver
1 First aid kit
2 Navigators
5 Days
13 Cyclists
322 Miles

Bring it on!