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THE CHALLENGE
 
John O’Groats to Lands End 

Cycle ride for Cancer Research.
JUNE-JULY 09
Chris, Simon and Howard would firstly like to thank you for logging onto their site.  To get this far has involved many hours hard slog in the saddle and many hours nearly killing each other to get ahead.  All in the name of fitness and all for a worthwhile cause, a cause that has affected all of their family’s in one shape or another.  They know that the average 106 miles a day for nine days is not going to be easy, but for all the pain they are going to endure, this bears no significance for the pain and suffering that cancer patients endure on a day-to-day basis.  It is this that drives them on and it will be this that fuels them to the finish line in Lands Ends.
Cancer research is a worthy cause and it needs your support.  Please give generously and consider that one day, this battle shall be won.
The stage has been set for Saturday 27th June’09, where they will leave John O’Groats and arrive 9 days later in Lands End, some 928.5 miles.
 
 
The Route  each Stage represents a days riding)
 
Stage 1.  John O Groats-Inverness
Stage 2.  Inverness-Perth
Stage 3.  Perth-Hawick
Stage 4.  Hawick-BernardCastle
Stage 5.  Bernard Castle-Royston,Barnsley
Stage 6.  Royston-Rugby (via Carlton Bakery)
Stage 7.  Rugby-Avonmouth
Stage 8.  Avonmouth-Oakhampton (Via Lifton)
Stage 9.  Oakhampton-Lands End.
Thanks
We could not have done this without support.

Chris, Simon and Howard would like to thank:-

PREMIER FOODS

ARROW SELF DRIVE

TOTTY SIGNS

MOBILE HOSE SERVICES

INSTOCK LOGOS

SENTINEL DOORS

McQUILLAN’S BUTCHERS.

Chris, Simon and Howard.
                
 THE BIKES:-

SIMON HILL--------BOARDMAN PRO ROAD BIKE

CHRIS PIGGIN-----KINESIS RACE LIGHT TT

HOWARD RANDALL---GIANT OCR 2 (Yes, I know you can’t believe it, he did actually put his hands in his pockets)

SEE YOU AT THE END AND KEEP WATCHING!

 

DAY 1.   JOHN O’GROATS TO INVERNESS
MILEAGE: 119.
Average mileage: 17.7mph
Fastest speed:  44mph
Slowest: 6mph
Weather: Sunny with sea mist
After an unsettled night in the Sea View Hotel, John O’Groats, not because the accommodation was substandard or that the mattresses were like marshmallows, but because the stark reality of cycling 928.5 miles had just hit home. 
We eat a hearty breakfast and then vaselined up before slipping comfortably onto the razor blades for saddles and down to the start line.  Did the usual tourist thing.  Now the thing is, you are dealing with people from Barnsley, so there was no way we were going to pay the exorbitant price for the photographs.  We quickly stuck our large flag on the pole and got cracking with the cameras, before they chased us away.  We then got to the start line and off.  Trust Simon to be the first away, but we all know that won’t last.
The views along the coastal road A99 and then A9 at Latheron, were spectacular.  We struggled with he head cam, so there will be plenty of tarmac to watch on the DVD later.
The villages of Keiss, Helmsdale, Brora and Golspie were welcoming.
The drop down into Berriedale was scary, with memories of rollercoaster rides coming back to haunt us.  Just as we stirred around the penultimate bend, a group of Honda 90 boys followed and came to a crashing halt.  Dave, our driver support, offering assistance. 
We had Northern reputation to up hold, as we knew a group of London Bankers were on our tail, so were quickly put in a Lance Armstrong stile assent up the incline. 
We stopped at Golspie for lunch and ate it on the beautiful beach.  Unfortunately, we enjoyed the food that much, that the London boys caught up.  It was pointed out to them that we had to wait for them and we wondered what took them.  This was fatal, they threw down the gauntlet and rode off, never to be seen again.
The supporting honks from passing motorists was encouraging and people have stopped us to give us money for the charity.
We continued along the A9 into Inverness, taking in the staggering views.  Simon got us lost getting to the guest house, but it was certainly worth the wait.  We received beautiful Scottish hospitality at the Broadstone Lodge.  They cannot do enough for us.
Tomorrow is another day, lets hope someone’s changed my saddle for an armchair.

 

DAY 2.   INVERNESS TO PERTH
MILEAGE: 114.
Average mileage: 17.1mph
Fastest speed:  37.9mph
Slowest: 8mph
Weather: Sunny at first with blustery head winds on the summits

After an emotional farewell and a very large dose of Porridge, Full English with black pudding and lashings of Udderly Smooth around the nether regions, we got onto the A9. We were immediately met with the longest and steepest incline out of Inverness.  The weather was good, but the wind got more intense as we climbed further into the Cairngorm mountains.  I wish we could say that the wind was refreshing, but you can only take so much in a wind tunnel. We reached the top at Slochd summit, some 1328 feet above sea level and paused for photos and a wee.   Now the thing is, Simon wanted to protect his dignity and dropped down into a ditch.  Unfortunately, he fell knee deep into a bog and had to pedal on with sludgy smelly feet.  At least he stayed at the back so we couldn’t smell him.
Our chef, Dave, cooked up a wonderful culinary delight at Dalwhinnie, which spurred us on for the down hill ride towards Pitlochry.  The views either side of the A9 were breath taking but the traffic started to become heavier and we had to remain in single file formation.  Howard certainly held his own today, leading from the front and taking the wind with all the vigour and might of a fearless clan warrior.  Normally he is giving us wind which makes a change.
It became sole destroying climbing the Glen Garry and Tay hills and more so when a passenger in a car shouts to you “Do you want a lift, slow coach?”.  The problem is, every dog has his day and when the very same vehicle gets stuck in road works leading into Perth, Chris seized the moment to shout through the car window as he past at speed. “Who’s laughing now, ozone killer?”
We arrived at Perth and found out that we were being followed by Dearne FM our local radio station.  They want daily interviews and some guy called Lance Armstrong, who claims to know a bit about cycling has pledge some money on our site.
Happy days.

DAY 3.   PERTH to JEDBURGH
Fastest speed:  42.7mph
Slowest: 6.2mph
Weather: Rain at first with sunshine later
MILEAGE: 97.
Average mileage: 14.1mph

Began day 3 with a climb up to Newton of Balcanquhal for several miles. This led us to beautiful sweeping views across Loch Leven and St Serf,s Island. On dropping down into Kelty things began to rumble, and we are not talking about the weather. Chris had the early symptoms of the famous John O Groats to Lands End runs.
As we entered the Hills of Beath, Chris read the sign as the Hill of death, as this is the way he felt.
On approaching the Forth Road bridge we paused to take photo,s with Isambard Kingdom Brunel’s bridge as a backdrop. The crossing of the bridge could not come quick enough for Simon due to his fear of heights. Alternatively Howard wanted to climb the gantry to the top towers, but was instructed to get down by the workmen. On the bridge we were inundated with folk wanting to donate to Cancer Research, disappointingly we raised a grand total of £10.
Chris’ map reading skills became deceptively dodgy when we went down the slip road on to the A90 which, as we discovered, prohibits cycles from using the road resulting in 3 cyclists weaving between vehicles the wrong way up the slip road. Eventually we entered Edinburgh where Chris dashed into a Starbucks, not for coffee, but with a desperate need to use the toilets as the bottom literally fell out of his world. This slowed the team down throughout the day as we made continual stops for Chris to drop his pants in the hedgerows, with Howard closely behind him with the camera.