January 2014
There must have been a moment, at the
beginning, when we could have said –no. But somehow we missed it. (Tom Stoppard; Rosenkrantz and Guildenstern
are Dead)
It seemed
like a good idea at the time: ride from Land’s End to John O’Groats because a
marked cycle route goes past the end of my road. I pushed my lack of cycling
skills, fitness and a suitable bike to the back of my mind and instantly
planned my usual “ostrich” method of training: planned in detail but not
similarly executed. A friend, Rob, added
another element in September last year when, as we were chatting, I mentioned
that it was four years since my friend and colleague, Darren Gordon, had died,
aged 27, from malignant melanoma. He suggested that I make the ride a
fund-raiser for the Royal Marsden Cancer Charity who are doing research in to
the type of cancer which affected Darren.
So as it would be five years in 2014 I decided I’d raise £5000.
I posted on
Facebook asking if anyone wanted to join me and was pleased to get a good
response. Some would join me for the whole ride, others for just a day but I
was looking forward to meeting up with old friends, even if only briefly.
A month or
so later I realised that I needed help. People have been saying this about me
for years, but now I needed it on a basic, practical level. Trudi Johnson told
me over coffee and cake about the ride she’d done in the summer with six
others. The photos she’d posted on Facebook of the large pieces of cake had
been one of the attractions for me.
I met Andy
Howe, one of the organisers of the PROPS Bristol-Bordeaux cycle ride, for a chat and he
gave me lots of useful tips about ……….. well, about everything: training,
nutrition, organising a group, transport, possible sponsors, as well as
inviting us to join their training rides.
Andy had
suggested ways of getting a support vehicle and I made three applications. We’r
still waiting to hear back from all of them and my fingers are getting stiff
from being crossed for so long. It would make if much easier to ride if we didn’t
have to carry everything with us.
Ness, May
and I went on a couple of PROPS rides. We were made to feel very welcome and I
was encouraged along the road, despite my lack of speed. I was riding my solid
little fat-tyred hybrid bike, designed for trails and fine for shorter journeys.
It became obvious fairly quickly that it wasn’t going to be the best bike for
the ride and I started to look around for a suitable alternative. Cutting a long
story short (and avoiding quite a lot of swear words) it isn’t an easy task finding
a bike for a short, 64-year-old woman which can be fitted with mudguards and a
rack to hold panniers. In the end we ordered one from BW Cycling after I’d been checked on a bike
and all relevant angles measured so that I’d be comfortable and riding
efficiently. It should be here soon and I’m feeling increasingly like a small
child before Christmas. How many
sleeps?
So things are moving on. The new bike is on its way, I've opened a dedicated bank account for deposits, the fund-raising page is being developed, we're looking out for sponsorship for a support vehicle and I have a better idea of who will be riding which sections of the route.
Where does the route go? That's another work in progress. It will have to wait for next time.
Have fun!
