945m total.

Well, are we glad that’s over!

The final run in today was awesome.

Everyone was up for it today, its amazing how knowing that its your last
day fires you up. We had a flat start but soon the hills returned.

Another road changed into a motorway leaving us to find an alternative
route and we also had a road closure going through a National park that we
decided to risk – it worked, luckily!

Friedberg was also interesting as there was a massive demonstration that we
had to navigate our way through, at this point in time we are not sure what
it was about but 500 riot police meant that it was particularly sensitive!

Our final lunch stop was with 70k to go. After 5k there was a puncture,
actually a ripped tyre. Using an energy bar wrapper as a temporary band aid
we were soon back on the road. 5 of the team were then left to chase back
the main group who had disappeared into the distance. Eventually we were
back as one unit and under normal circumstances they would have been
exhausted with the extra work but this was a special day!

5k outside Marburg we were met by representatives of the Twinning Committee
who guided us in to the Town Hall. This was a great honour but the route
took us up a ridiculously steep cobbled road right through the main town
center through all the narrow lanes full of shoppers and tourists. Our
shouting, cheering and singing certainly drew attention.

At the ‘Rathaus’ were greated by a crowd from the Marburg cycling club and
Twinning team and the Marburg Mayor. The local press took photos and then
we were whisked upstairs for speeches, drinks and food. This was a real
time for reflection on our achievements.

At this point we were still all in our cycling gear, special arrangements
had been made for us to use the local sports stadium changing rooms. 20
mins later, we were a lot more respectable. Instincts then directed us to a
bar where beer, Jagermeister and speeches were the order of the day.

As we scribe, we are currently on route to Gent, our overnight stop on
route for the UK where we have a welcome home reception at Collingtree’s
Wooden Walls, Sunday afternoon. Estimated TOA at Gent is midnight.

Rider of the day was a 3 way split between Dave Williams, Richard Sturt and Ironman Wayne, well done to all 3 of you.

Team member of the tour was won by Gary Haynes, well done Gary on keeping everybody amused on the rides, looking after everybody’s bikes and also for your strong ride’s each day.

The riders would also like to say a BIG thanks to Andy, Murph and Fred, what a fantastic job you did in looking after all of us and keeping us going through tough times.

 835m so far.

On the road for 7.30 and once again long sleeves and additional tops were
required. Bright and sunny but cold – 13 deg in the morning but luckily a
much better 22 deg later in the day. The first half of the day was the most
hilly so far. After 40 k we crossed into Germany, a non event really, no
border control, no passports required. After lunch (ham rolls and loads of
cake) the terrain was less hilly ( but still hilly! ). The map reading went
a little wrong at one point and we ended up on a Motorway! The team have
got faster and faster as the week progresses but we can’t keep up with the
Porsches, Mercs and Beemers! To avoid the Autobahn we had to dismount and
cross a sunflower field and a corn field, carrying our bikes for some of
the way and riding down the track for the remainder of the way until we
rejoined the road.The final run to the hotel was a 6k downhill and a
welcome end to our penultimate day. To be honest, we have all had a great
trip but we will be so glad when we reach our final destination tmrw. 200k
a day is taking it’s toll.

Rider of the day was dominated by Fred (AKA Fred’s House of Pain!!!) Well done Fred on your 1st big ride, especially having to climb the hills as well.

The Mercure hotel in Troyes was a class above the usual Ibis hotels this week, Fred’s house of pain was set-up and I guess residents on the first floor wondered what was going on what with frequent comings and goings of strange men in their underwear, cries of agony and shouts of ‘yeah baby’ echoing through the corridor.   We also got some strange looks this morning at the Mercure in Troyes, 13 cyclists in full gear doing stretches on the reception floor!  The bacon and eggs was a welcome change from the usual ‘continental’ breakfast though.

A bit colder this morning (especially for the Singapore contingent – Chris and Murli), but the fast and racy first 2hrs soon got the blood running again.  Before we had rubbed the sleep out of our eyes – 70k had been knocked off the total for the day.  The roads, however, were constructed from real heavy gravel, so heavy that the saddle sores were punished more than anticipated!  After a quick refuelling (well done support team) we pressed on towards the hills, lots and lots of them.

Lunch was taken on top of one of those huge hills, in amongst the numerous wind turbines that made such interesting scenery.  This time the boys had gone one further and purchased three roast chickens which when ‘ripped and mauled apart’ by Fred (that’s what he does to our aching limbs at the end of the day) and stuffed into fresh baguettes was devoured in seconds.

I’ll leave you to ask James how he managed to fall into a ditch while having a pee during one of our pit stops.

We finally arrived in Metz after 8hrs and 10mins in the saddle, clocking up 130miles / 208km.

Here’s a good one.  We have just found out that there is more than one Marburg in Germany!!  At this point, we don’t know if we are heading for the right one .  Pete D’Amery is in control and spoke to the official team in Marburg  (the real one) before we left – is that supposed to make us feel better, or not?  Not to worry though, we have a big black marker pen and if the Marburg we get to on Saturday isn’t the right one – it soon will be!

Tomorrow is probably our hardest day – not because of the distance (117 miles) but because of the gradient – just a couple of Pastis tonight then!

Well done Dave Everett, excellent hill climbing from all the TTC riders

TTC Riders start yet another climb!!!!

Just a small climb to start with after having a quick pit stop!!!!

Support Crew Staff hard at work again!!!!!

Day 5 – Comfortably Numb

135 Miles
Average speed 15mph
time on the road 11.5 hours

With apologies to Pepsi circa 1970

Earlyleavinggearcrunchinggoochrubbingderaillersderaillingsunburningtempersflaringhillsrisingdivas yingtyrespoppingbikesbrakingdeerschasingridersridingmurlifallingeveretttattooingfredpainingsleights stroppingmurpheatingditchdivingburgermunchinglatefinishingleadersleadinggaryfixingbiscuitsburning petedirectingrichardcorrectingmarshallmarshallingstuartsufferingtrollploddingstuartsupporting jamiecruisingbigsbystormingwayneshoutingandyservingdieselmelting                 AWESOME FINISHING

Rider of the day was Stuart, well done from everyone.

The Supprt Crew Doing an Excellent job with Dame Shirley Bassey!!!!

Yet another excellent Lunch stop by the Support Crew, what would we do without you!!!!

Quick water stop in hot conditions!!!!

 Day 4 The Drugs Don’t Work114 miles, avg speed 17mph.

Total so far 459 miles (4 days). 7.5hrs in the saddle

 We had an earlier start today to avoid clashing with 50 Aussie holiday makers that were scheduled to leave the hotel at the same time and having got this far without an international incident we thought we should try and keep it that way.

Our now normal routine of a team stretch, in the car park this time, took place at 7.20 and by 7.30, we were on our way.

The early part of the route was a bit hilly as we left Poitiers and crossed a few rivers, but then the gradient steadied out and as we were well disciplined in our riding and managed to get through to 36 miles before the first break. There were lots of iPods in evidence today but for those not wired in to the vibe there was always the SlightsPod who gave everyone a rendition of some of the tunes we asked him to.  The tour manager was on strict form today but that allowed us to keep to a good schedule and head off through the glorious countryside past fantastic chateaus and farms that were well worth a photo or 2.

Lunch at 75 miles was a BBQ kindly laid on by the sister and brother in law of Murph one of the support crew. Tahat was a welcome surprise – the standard just gets better everyday – keep it up boys. We made such good time that we forewent the last stop and headed off to Bourges our destination for the day. The additional Pastis and country cider was also much appreciated, although not strictly part of our ‘athletes’ diet!

Once back everyone has a visit to “Freds House of Pain” for a little light torture then it’s into a well proven schedule of washing the most comfortable shorts you have and other kit needed, maintaining cycles and rubbing in the various lotions and salves that make the next day manageable. Dave E is almost a lost cause in this department as his shorts are already tattooed with prints of his chain and gears in quite an embarrassing place)

We have seen the various comments on Facespace and Mybook or whatever they are called and we thank you all for the support.

The total sits at about £30,130 at the moment.

Tomorrow morning we head to Troyes (130m/210km) and will pass through the halfway mark early in the day.

Rider of the Day was Ironman Wayne, Well done Wayne from all the riders, especially as you sat on the back all afternoon giving orders!!!!!

BBQ courtesy of Roger & Jackie

BBQ courtesy of Roger & Jackie

Lunch – the sunflower adds the finishing touch!

Morning stretches – Poitiers Ibis carpark

Day 3 Le Mans to Poitiers completed.

115 miles, avg speed 16mph.  Total so far 345 miles (3 days). 8.15 hrs in the saddle The team stretches at 7.45 were a giggle and we were on the road by 8am. Shirt sleeves were the order of the day but it was chilly and Murli has yet to ride without extra layers! Three layers at one stage today!The first couple of hours whizzed by and a 2×2 peloton worked well for the first 2 hrs – that helped the average speed. As a stark contrast the terrain as we zipped through the Loire Valley was relatively flat. The Loire scenery was spectacular; the huge sunflower fields really add character. 2 hrs in and literally 200m after we were back in the saddle, the heavens opened and we were forced to call the support car, who were still cleaning the carnage from our previous pit stop just 5 mins before, for our wet weather gear. Murli was the slowest to change, so slow in fact that the support van pulled away with Murli still perched on the back changing into leggings!

It rained for a good 2hrs and with the temp at only 15 deg, it wasn’t much fun, but we persevered and our 2×2 peloton continued and the miles sped by. Lunch was taken by the roadside in a beautiful vineyard and luckily the weather was starting to clear. The temp started to rise; today’s max was 25 deg, not hot but 10 deg more than the morning temperature. After lunch we crossed the Loire river and through some tiny, tiny villages and more and more sunflower fields. We finally arrived in Poitiers at 5pm and after a quick photo in front of the Town Hall it was into our normal routine of cleaning bikes, bodies and cycling gear and then onto the bars and eventually a restaurant. Fellow rider Jon, the President of the Autistic charity gave a live UK radio interview whilst we were in the bar!Tomorrow is another 180k as we head towards Bourges (still in France).

Rider of the Day was Dame Shirley … The Diva, Well done from all the riders, especially with a chest infection!!!  

Reaching Poitiers Town Hall For Team Picture Day 3

Day 3 Picture From the Support Crew

Day 3 Team Picture

A Selection Of Joy Riders Tops

Riders Getting Ready For Start Of Day 3

Twin Towns Challenge – Day 2 009-07-26

Day one pictures now posted – apologies for the delay.

We boarded the ferry in Portsmouth close to 11pm on Saturday night, the objective, for us all, was to get to sleep as quick as possible – docking time in Caen was scheduled to be 6.30am and we were told that we would be woken 2hrs before docking!!  We all made mad scrambles for the best bunks – most of us were in shoe cupboard sized 4 bed rooms and as far as I know, most of us were asleep before our heads hit the pillows!  Of course there are always exceptions – especially when the bar is open!

Fortunately we weren’t woken 2hrs before arrival – actually, it was 30 mins before arrival, leaving us 30 mins to dress and breakfast and get off the ferry.  By 7.30 we were rolling but by 7.32, we were already lost – 3 laps of Caen later and after walking across a busy dual carriageway, carrying our bikes over the barriers in the central reservation, we were on our way to the famous Pegasus bridge, site of the famous WW2 Allied victory.

Although the sun was out, the temperature meant that jackets and arm warmers were order of the day.  Our route today took us through some beautiful villages including Falaise and Fresnay sur Sarthe.

On paper, today’s route didn’t look too difficult but unfortunately, paper doesn’t always present the reality – as was the case today, today was full of rolling hills! By 9.30am, the jackets were off and the sun did its best to grind us down. We don’t know the actual temp but estimates were high 20’s (28?).

The support crew did a stirling job and lunch was superb – great view, great baguettes but they did let the side down when they decided to leave us stranded, without water – as they were simply, dying for an ice-cream!!  They even took pictures of themselves gorging on the stuff so they could show us later in the evening!

We rolled into Le Mans, famous for its 24hr motor race after 7hrs and 30mins of actual riding, covering 174km/108miles.  Special mention to Jaime, riding his longest ever distance, he was also in the bar until 2.30am!!!

Everyone tucked into their Rego (post ride recovery drink) and then quickly swapped drinks for cool Kronenbourg whilst watching our hero Mark Cavendish win his sixth and the final stage of the Tour De France.  Fred did his usual job of beating us up, sorry, massaging our tired limbs in a conference room by the hotel reception – the screams could be heard over the Tour commentary!

The hotel couldn’t cope with preparing our team meal so it was a short walk to a great local restaurant where huge salads, steak and chips and crème brule or profiteroles were the order of the day washed down with medicinal beer and wine.

Breakfast is scheduled for 7am tmrw and departure is 8am.  (177km/110miles tmrw as we head to Poitier.

Come Saturday evening I was starting to wish I had not entered the Forestman course (12th July) as from around 4pm the rain did not stop until about 4am the following day. I decided to take my 2 boys round the bike course on the Saturday evening to see how the 3 lap course planned out. This resulted in a 1 hour and 10 min drive.  I had heard that it was quite hilly and technical. The course was infact very technical and hilly, which made it even worse cycling in wet conditions especially having to contend with about 7 cattle grids each loop, not to mention the horses and cows as well.

I decided not to tell Camilla how difficult the course would be once I got back from doing a reccie of the course. I just put the boys down to bed, decided to double check my kit bags, have a glass of red wine for luck and went to bed at about 10pm.

With the rain coming down so hard it was difficult to sleep, the alarm went of at 3:20am, still the rain kept coming down. Was not sure whether to go back to bed or put the kettle on, decided on the latter with a bowl of meatballs and spaghetti for breakfast. The time was 3:55am and it was time to leave and catch the bus to take me of to the lake!!!.  It was still dark as I left, but at least the rain had decided enough was enough. Anyway, I boarded the packed out coach at Sandy Balls with virtually everyone else competing.

We arrived at the lake about 75 minutes before the swim start which was 5.30am, this seemed to go really quickly and before you knew it, it was time to head down to the lake for our briefing. The water temperature was good, which made it easier getting into the water. We all lined up and then the hooter went of for the start of long day. During the swim I felt really good had plenty of space between me and the other competitors so I could just concentrate on my own swimming, which took me to a time of 1hr and 19 mins not bad for a novice swimmer.

I probably spent about 4 mins from getting out of the water before I turned my 1st pedal, as the transition was quite long from changing to getting on the main road (400m). The roads were still wet through from the rain, but I started of very well overtaking a good 40 people on lap 1. Lap 2 and 3 were a bit lonely not seeing many competitors as there was only a handful in front of me at this time. It was difficult cycling in the wet conditions made worse by having to contend with about 7 cattle grids each loop, not to mention the horses and cows as well, plus the wind.

But to my surprise I had completed 112 miles in less than 6 hours and was feeling quite fresh. I saw my wife and 2 boys for the 1st time as I came into T2, which was a nice boost.

T2 took about 4 1/2 mins and then I was off to run my first ever marathon and what a marathon it was!!!. The 1^st part of the run was all up hill, until we turned of to go into the New Forest. I decided to stop at the food and drink station and take on some more fluids and gels, which I was glad of because then the real hard work started. For the next 23 miles there were no flats, just rolling terrain and steep hills and I mean hills!.

I decided that I should just walk the hills and run everything else, to make matters worse the ground conditions were not the best, we were running on stones for 23 miles!. Anyway, I can say that I completed the marathon in 4hours and 35 mins, which turned out to be quite a good time, as only 20 people went under 4 1/2 hours.

My wife and two boys were waiting for me at the finish. I have to say what made the day for me was running across the finish line with  Louis and Jenson.

Now I have 2 weeks recovery before setting of for the TTC only 1000 miles in 8 days!!!

Just had another busy weekend cycling and running, with doing 87 miles on the Saturday, with a hard 40 mile section on the way back, again strong winds with lots of climbs. On Sunday I did the 15 mile charity Kelmarsh run, which is a very hilly course, not what you need on a SUNNY day. Did the run with my sister to help her get round in a PB, but after going up the 1st hill, she knew this would not be on. I ran the 12 1st 12 miles with my sister and then decided to go for a blast, clocking just over 19 minutes for the last 3 miles (6.39, 6.25 and 6.14 for the last mile). Training for the TTC and Ironman is all starting to come together now.