The Start

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!