Well day 2 started with a feeling of hope and eagerness to get on; we'd had a hard day but the sights of the night sky, the good food, and excellent company meant that we rested well and were ready to face anything.
We started with what we thought would be a half hour cycle to the ferry...it took us less than 5 minutes to cover the distance that took us close to twenty/thirty minutes the night before. It was cold as it was so early but the day promised to heat up as there wasn't a cloud in the sky.
The ferry took us back to the mainland about 10:00am and then we started north. Today though we faced a further challenge of having to get 4 ferries between headlands or we would have to cycle over 100miles!
We made excellent progress despite the numerous stops forced by ferries and eventually at lunch time we stopped at a fantastic seafood restaurant at a marina in Fiskebäckskil where we helped ourselves to a copious buffet and then some soup with mussels and assorted fish (I'm not a massive fan of fish, but you really have to sample local foods when you are in foreign countries as you may find something you actually quite like).
After a huge lunch and some sugary drinks we made our way up hill to the ferry which would take us to Lysekil. This would be the last ferry of the day and almost proved to be my downfall. The combination of large lunch followed by a half hour sit down for the ferry ride meant that my legs didn't want to carry on any more.
I'd made up my mind to get in the van at the next stop in Brastad, however before we got there we had to negotiate a stretch of 90kph limit road which meant we had to pedal fast for a while.
Eventually after a long internal monologue about how it wouldn't be quitting if I got in the van we got to Brastad, where I decided against all sanity that I was going to carry on to the next stop. If I still felt bad I'd then get in the van. The next rendezvous with the van never came though as we had changed course and were no longer due to go to the town where we would meet the van. That ensured that I HAD to continue the cycle. I am glad I did, we saw some fantastic scenery; trees 40 metres tall and straight as an arrow growing on the sides of a steep valley, it was breathtaking cycling through it with the sun piercing through the branches and boughs.
We made it to Fjallbacka around 7:30-8:00pm where we had to REALLY quickly load the van with food and drink as the small fishing boat was going to pick us up shortly. A few of the guys did a trolley dash round the local coop for food, drink and snacks and then ran out again...we almost loaded the van on the trot and finally made it to the pier to get our boat.
As the boat was being loaded, the food was on board, the bikes were beginning to be loaded as were the bags we realised something horrible...we'd lost Douglas. Try as we might we couldn't figure out where he was. Eventually we got through to his mobile phone to find out that we'd left him behind at the coop in the rush to get to the van. This would become a running joke through the holiday.
Finally we got Douglas, his bike, and cider loaded on to the small fishing boat. The boat was so small that Douglas and John had to hold on for their lives at the back. We couldn't go too fast as the boat was close to being overloaded so we took a leisurely speed and course to the island. We moored up shortly before 9pm and started unloading the bikes. The good thing about having a small island to yourselves is that you don't have to lock your bikes (there wasn't really anywhere to chain them apart from the trees and rocks).
Bob, thanks to his culinary skills, made another fantastic dinner and then we got stuck in about the beers and crisps. Too soon came the time where we all felt too tired to stay up, so we went to bed comfortable in the knowledge tomorrow would be a rest day.
Our legs were tired, our backsides painful from two days in the saddle but our spirits were high and our mood was elated. Nothing could stop us from completing the cycle.
Showing posts with label charity. Show all posts
Showing posts with label charity. Show all posts
Monday, September 01, 2008
Sunday, August 31, 2008
The Cycle - Day 1
We had spent the night in the Gothenburg Hostel in a similar fashion to sardines. The room 5 of us stayed in was tiny, and very intimate but we were in high spirits specially after a feast the night before in the main street in the city. I make no apologies guys, this is going to be a long one.
We got up early and had to meet reporters and photographers at the local park to feature in the Sfar Nytt, Stena's magazine. When we got to the park it was pretty cold, but we had to strip down to shorts and tshirts (the full road captain gear) for the sponsors photos. We'd all been talking about how daft we would look in it but later in the cycle we would be glad of the gear and our attitudes changed towards it.
We wanted to set off about 9.30am but due to some last minute issues with a wonky wheel on Shauns bike - any time he touched the brake his front wheel shifted drastically to the left, clearly this had to be fixed before we left. With a little ingenuity and a lot of swearing under our breaths we got it working suitably.
Right...ready now...oh wait...Douglas's chain began to rub badly as it was routed incorrectly through the tensioner at the rear mech. Out came the chain splitter to break the chain and rebuild it but the pin fell out so we had to remove two of the links instead, the chain was pretty stiff though when we rebuilt it and you could see that it was still sort of jumping so a quick prise apart with a screwdriver (marked "this is not a pry-bar") we managed to loosen the chain. A dash of oil was added to help lube it up. And there you have a recipe for a working chain.
We set off and made excellent time in the morning, despite the false starts and the wrong turns at the start that saw us having to absolutely hammer it along a 5km stretch of the E6 (a motorway). By the time we finished that sprint we were all ready for a rest, and thankfully found a chocolate biscuit factory which had a shop at it. We bought loads of biscuits to replenish energy reserves and had a short rest where we met with Peter who was driving our van with spares and our gear. We all unloaded the spare clothes here from our backpacks and left them in the van (except for the obviously required waterproof jackets).
We then proceeded to go over various hills and bridges, all the time thinking "it was meant to be a lot flatter than this, why isn't it flat? I'm going to die if this doesn't end soon". The hills never ended. The bridges thankfully did. We had trained in Scotland using the southern highlands as our routes however, the hills in scotland have downhills as long as the up, whereas in Sweden they seem to go up and up and up and up and then quickly down. So while in Scotland we'd be pedalling only 50% of the time of the hills, in sweden it was more like 80%.
About 1 and a half hours from the end of the days cycling to Freds parents holiday home we encountered a Norwegian on a bike who'se first question was "Are you scottish?" when we replied positively he asked Douglas "Are you Tom?" we pointed at Tom and then the penny dropped. It was Svein, a person Tom and I had contacted months ago for information about cycling Gothenburg to Oslo as he had made a site about it in the past. We'd invited him to join us for part of the cycle.
We cycled on till we met the ferry which would take us to the island we were staying on that night.
The cycle to the house was a killer, it was ALL uphill and seemed to take half an hour on its own. We were glad of the shower at the house, despite all the hot water being used up long before we had all showered. It was still great.
Bob and Fred made a spectacular dinner of pork, sausages, salads and pasta, perfect for refuelling after the days long cycle. We sat up until late. On an island with not a single street light the sky was amazing, I've seen skies like that before in Italy but I was too young to appreciate the sight.
It was a sublimely clear night, we could see everything in the sky, from the ghostly band of stars across the sky of the milky way to the satellites we could see tracking across the velvety blue backdrop. Mercury was visible low on the sky too, brighter than any of the stars around it. We were all so dumbstruck by the spectacle that we switched all the lights off, including mobile phones and just sat quietly watching the sky. Even the crickets seemed to quiet down for a short time. Douglas spotted a shooting star streak across the sky and pointed it out to us. Surely this was a good sign for the cycle!
Bob, ever thoughtful, produced a bottle of single malt from his bags and toasted us all and the cycle. Bob, your words of wisdom, your witt and banter throughout the cycle proved to be entertainment and valuable to us all. Thank you.
Thanks to Freds parents too for letting us stay at their holiday home that night. Hopefully we didn't make too much of a mess.
We got up early and had to meet reporters and photographers at the local park to feature in the Sfar Nytt, Stena's magazine. When we got to the park it was pretty cold, but we had to strip down to shorts and tshirts (the full road captain gear) for the sponsors photos. We'd all been talking about how daft we would look in it but later in the cycle we would be glad of the gear and our attitudes changed towards it.
We wanted to set off about 9.30am but due to some last minute issues with a wonky wheel on Shauns bike - any time he touched the brake his front wheel shifted drastically to the left, clearly this had to be fixed before we left. With a little ingenuity and a lot of swearing under our breaths we got it working suitably.
Right...ready now...oh wait...Douglas's chain began to rub badly as it was routed incorrectly through the tensioner at the rear mech. Out came the chain splitter to break the chain and rebuild it but the pin fell out so we had to remove two of the links instead, the chain was pretty stiff though when we rebuilt it and you could see that it was still sort of jumping so a quick prise apart with a screwdriver (marked "this is not a pry-bar") we managed to loosen the chain. A dash of oil was added to help lube it up. And there you have a recipe for a working chain.
We set off and made excellent time in the morning, despite the false starts and the wrong turns at the start that saw us having to absolutely hammer it along a 5km stretch of the E6 (a motorway). By the time we finished that sprint we were all ready for a rest, and thankfully found a chocolate biscuit factory which had a shop at it. We bought loads of biscuits to replenish energy reserves and had a short rest where we met with Peter who was driving our van with spares and our gear. We all unloaded the spare clothes here from our backpacks and left them in the van (except for the obviously required waterproof jackets).
We then proceeded to go over various hills and bridges, all the time thinking "it was meant to be a lot flatter than this, why isn't it flat? I'm going to die if this doesn't end soon". The hills never ended. The bridges thankfully did. We had trained in Scotland using the southern highlands as our routes however, the hills in scotland have downhills as long as the up, whereas in Sweden they seem to go up and up and up and up and then quickly down. So while in Scotland we'd be pedalling only 50% of the time of the hills, in sweden it was more like 80%.
About 1 and a half hours from the end of the days cycling to Freds parents holiday home we encountered a Norwegian on a bike who'se first question was "Are you scottish?" when we replied positively he asked Douglas "Are you Tom?" we pointed at Tom and then the penny dropped. It was Svein, a person Tom and I had contacted months ago for information about cycling Gothenburg to Oslo as he had made a site about it in the past. We'd invited him to join us for part of the cycle.
We cycled on till we met the ferry which would take us to the island we were staying on that night.
The cycle to the house was a killer, it was ALL uphill and seemed to take half an hour on its own. We were glad of the shower at the house, despite all the hot water being used up long before we had all showered. It was still great.
Bob and Fred made a spectacular dinner of pork, sausages, salads and pasta, perfect for refuelling after the days long cycle. We sat up until late. On an island with not a single street light the sky was amazing, I've seen skies like that before in Italy but I was too young to appreciate the sight.
It was a sublimely clear night, we could see everything in the sky, from the ghostly band of stars across the sky of the milky way to the satellites we could see tracking across the velvety blue backdrop. Mercury was visible low on the sky too, brighter than any of the stars around it. We were all so dumbstruck by the spectacle that we switched all the lights off, including mobile phones and just sat quietly watching the sky. Even the crickets seemed to quiet down for a short time. Douglas spotted a shooting star streak across the sky and pointed it out to us. Surely this was a good sign for the cycle!
Bob, ever thoughtful, produced a bottle of single malt from his bags and toasted us all and the cycle. Bob, your words of wisdom, your witt and banter throughout the cycle proved to be entertainment and valuable to us all. Thank you.
Thanks to Freds parents too for letting us stay at their holiday home that night. Hopefully we didn't make too much of a mess.
Monday, August 25, 2008
A quick update
Well it's day three of the cycle - today is a rest day - thankfully. Saturday was excellent, the weather was perfect for cycling - clear sunny skies but with a low temperature. We had a slight mishap on the start line when Douglas found that his chain was rubbing so we had to do some emergency surgery and remove two links so we could re-route the chain through the correct mechs. Once we got that fixed we found that Shaun's bike had a brake issue...Any time he applied the front brake the front wheel would skew dangerously to the left, clearly something was wrong but we were on a schedule and patched it as best we could.
Over the next few hours we had a few wrong turns, which took the first days mileage up to around 62 miles.
We eventually got to Lyr - and stayed at a friends holiday home, it was fantastic. We sat out till late, drinking low alcohol lager and eating barbecued pork, sausages, and pasta with salad. Once all was eaten, and dessert was finished, Bob produced a fantastic bottle of single malt whisky to toast everyone for taking part. I think with Bobs creative words and the scenery as well as possibly the best and clearest night sky I have ever seen made everyone sit back and contemplate just what we were doing.
The second day was hell on earth for me - I think the other guys were suffering too. I was amazed at how tired my legs were and nothing I was doing was helping. 20 miles in I felt like throwing in the towel - my legs were burning, my knees were in pain on every downstroke. I thought I was going to give up at fiskebaksil, I decided to press on to Brastad - I made it there 4 minutes after the rest of the guys - apart from Bob who I have to thank for keeping pace with me. At Brastad the short rest helped me regain some strength however a few short miles in and my legs were starting to burn again worse than ever. I could feel my knees want to buckle when I pressed down on the pedal and had to fight hard to stabilise them never mind pedal.
I've stopped suffering from the Crohns flare up which hit me last week and caused me to have to stop on the cycle but I am still feeling its effect. My bowels are still very active so I am being forced to eat less and drink less thank I should so that I can continue cycling without stomach pain and the requirement to run to the bathroom like you do the day after a bad prawn curry!
We were meant to meet at a small town 10 miles from Brastad but decided to change the route to go to Hamburgursund. I really felt like my legs were about to stop functioning. Strangely there was no lactic acid buildup, just no energy left in the lower thighs. I made a decision to not use my gears as I had been and instead to stand in the pedals and power up the hills. The tops of my thighs had hardly been used and were comparatively rested so that helped me power up the hills and actually catch up to the rest of the guys.
I don't know how the guys kept going but I am amazed at their pace and stamina. It's testament to the preparation we have done.
We arrived at our meeting point with the van on time where we gave him money and a shopping list and provided him with directions to the ferry to Fjallbacka.
We spent the day resting at Fjallbacka Valo where the weather couldn't have been better. Tomorrow will be a true test, another 120km (70miles) and the weather forecast says its going to be wet. It will be a tough test, but I am sure we will manage it.
Over the next few hours we had a few wrong turns, which took the first days mileage up to around 62 miles.
We eventually got to Lyr - and stayed at a friends holiday home, it was fantastic. We sat out till late, drinking low alcohol lager and eating barbecued pork, sausages, and pasta with salad. Once all was eaten, and dessert was finished, Bob produced a fantastic bottle of single malt whisky to toast everyone for taking part. I think with Bobs creative words and the scenery as well as possibly the best and clearest night sky I have ever seen made everyone sit back and contemplate just what we were doing.
The second day was hell on earth for me - I think the other guys were suffering too. I was amazed at how tired my legs were and nothing I was doing was helping. 20 miles in I felt like throwing in the towel - my legs were burning, my knees were in pain on every downstroke. I thought I was going to give up at fiskebaksil, I decided to press on to Brastad - I made it there 4 minutes after the rest of the guys - apart from Bob who I have to thank for keeping pace with me. At Brastad the short rest helped me regain some strength however a few short miles in and my legs were starting to burn again worse than ever. I could feel my knees want to buckle when I pressed down on the pedal and had to fight hard to stabilise them never mind pedal.
I've stopped suffering from the Crohns flare up which hit me last week and caused me to have to stop on the cycle but I am still feeling its effect. My bowels are still very active so I am being forced to eat less and drink less thank I should so that I can continue cycling without stomach pain and the requirement to run to the bathroom like you do the day after a bad prawn curry!
We were meant to meet at a small town 10 miles from Brastad but decided to change the route to go to Hamburgursund. I really felt like my legs were about to stop functioning. Strangely there was no lactic acid buildup, just no energy left in the lower thighs. I made a decision to not use my gears as I had been and instead to stand in the pedals and power up the hills. The tops of my thighs had hardly been used and were comparatively rested so that helped me power up the hills and actually catch up to the rest of the guys.
I don't know how the guys kept going but I am amazed at their pace and stamina. It's testament to the preparation we have done.
We arrived at our meeting point with the van on time where we gave him money and a shopping list and provided him with directions to the ferry to Fjallbacka.
We spent the day resting at Fjallbacka Valo where the weather couldn't have been better. Tomorrow will be a true test, another 120km (70miles) and the weather forecast says its going to be wet. It will be a tough test, but I am sure we will manage it.
Thursday, August 21, 2008
Excited? not me....
Hahahahaha, yeah right! I've been up since 4am thinking about tomorrow.
Well I wish it could be Christmas, every day
When the kids start singing and the band begins to play
Oh, I wish it could be Christmas, every day
Let the bells ring out for Christmas
Imagine that song - but with Sweden where christmas is...
Thats how I feel just now. Everything is prepared. All that we have to do is get to the airport and from then on in theres no turning back.
See you in a week - I'll have loads of pictures, maybe some movies and definitely some stories!
Well I wish it could be Christmas, every day
When the kids start singing and the band begins to play
Oh, I wish it could be Christmas, every day
Let the bells ring out for Christmas
Imagine that song - but with Sweden where christmas is...
Thats how I feel just now. Everything is prepared. All that we have to do is get to the airport and from then on in theres no turning back.
See you in a week - I'll have loads of pictures, maybe some movies and definitely some stories!
Wednesday, August 20, 2008
2 days to go...
Tonight is the penultimate night. Whats being done? I'm preparing the maps - each cyclist will receive maps for each day broken down into 15 mile sections. This means we will all be able to get to where we need to be and should we be separated - reduce the chances of getting lost.
Today we had some excellent news in the form of replies to emails about the cycle. First of all Rock Radio mentioned the cycle on the lunchtime show - unfortunately I didn't hear this but am hoping its helped raise a bit of awareness of the site!
Then around 4pm I spoke with a reporter from The Metro - a free paper on public transport in the UK asking for a little more information about the cycle, Jack and Melanie and why we were doing the cycle. I explained we were - most of us anyway - desk bound for work so the cycle itself was not an easy task!
I am hoping - as is the reporter - that the story will be in tomorrows edition of The Metro!
On that note, I'm off to make sure I've got enough t-shirts, socks and toothpaste for the week...at least these days I don't have to worry too much about shampoo!
Remember, whilst we are away, I'll still be posting here with updates, I may not be able to get you pictures until I get back but you'll be able to read about the thrills, spills, monotony, rain, shine...whatever happens you'll know about it! Well...as far as cycling is concerned anyway!
Today we had some excellent news in the form of replies to emails about the cycle. First of all Rock Radio mentioned the cycle on the lunchtime show - unfortunately I didn't hear this but am hoping its helped raise a bit of awareness of the site!
Then around 4pm I spoke with a reporter from The Metro - a free paper on public transport in the UK asking for a little more information about the cycle, Jack and Melanie and why we were doing the cycle. I explained we were - most of us anyway - desk bound for work so the cycle itself was not an easy task!
I am hoping - as is the reporter - that the story will be in tomorrows edition of The Metro!
On that note, I'm off to make sure I've got enough t-shirts, socks and toothpaste for the week...at least these days I don't have to worry too much about shampoo!
Remember, whilst we are away, I'll still be posting here with updates, I may not be able to get you pictures until I get back but you'll be able to read about the thrills, spills, monotony, rain, shine...whatever happens you'll know about it! Well...as far as cycling is concerned anyway!
Monday, August 18, 2008
Team Shirts
Well today the first of the team shirts were picked up. I have to admit, TeeShirt Nation in Glasgow did a spectacular job of the shirts. I think it will look fantastic when we all turn up wearing the same shirts and continue to wear sponsored shirts throughout the cycle.
So what are the shirts like? Simple white t-shirts...The CHAS Logo of course, the Nations flags and the sponsors name, and finally on the back... a massive number 08 with the words "Got. To Oslo".
Finally seeing them has brought it home, we're going in 4 days... I - like the rest of the guys - have done my fair share of travelling. I've stayed in some amazing hotels. Yet I don't think anything will compare with the feeling we will get on the day we roll in to Oslo, no matter the weather, no matter how tired we are.
Oslo..watch out...we're on our way and nothing is going to stop us!
So what are the shirts like? Simple white t-shirts...The CHAS Logo of course, the Nations flags and the sponsors name, and finally on the back... a massive number 08 with the words "Got. To Oslo".
Finally seeing them has brought it home, we're going in 4 days... I - like the rest of the guys - have done my fair share of travelling. I've stayed in some amazing hotels. Yet I don't think anything will compare with the feeling we will get on the day we roll in to Oslo, no matter the weather, no matter how tired we are.
Oslo..watch out...we're on our way and nothing is going to stop us!
Wednesday, August 06, 2008
A word from our sponsors...
This week saw the sponsorship go sky high with a flurry of activity in the past few days. We've since confirmed a few corporate sponsors which I would like to thank personally and on behalf of the team with a few words here. Yeah it's blatant advertising but you know what? They were nice enough to give us donations and equipment so the least I can do is drop a few names:
- Northern Marine Management (http://www.nmm-stena.com/): Thank you for your donation, shirts and help with getting the van sorted. It has helped ease both Tom and my nerves massively knowing that this has been sorted, Thanks also goes to Bob Hossack for ensuring this was done.
- Brantas (http://www.brantas.co.uk/): Thank you for your donation, and for your help with buying spares and extra shirts for the guys! With my luck with punctures and attempts at breaking the world record for self propelled flight we'll need those spares!
- Iceland (http://www.iceland.co.uk/): No, not the country. Thanks, and whilst we wont be able to shop in iceland, we will expect loads of superstrong bags as part of our deal to store the plentiful supplies we will be taking.
- Concordia Maritime (http://www.concordia-maritime.se/) Thank you for supplying safety equipment and clothing as well as (I believe) a donation to the charity. It will help cut down on the amount of gear we need to transport from Scotland.
Now, I know I have not yet included Stena Bulk (http://www.stenabulk.com/) in this list yet, but thats because I am not aware of the full details of their sponsorship and don't want to say anything thats not true.
Tuesday, July 22, 2008
Travelling without moving
Today I travelled from Gothenburg to Norway. It took me 7minutes. All in the comfort of my chair.
No I wasn't in a supersonic jet. I was following our route on the maps that were delivered. Unfortunately the maps don't show much in the way of the topography of the land. Nor do they make it easy to understand the scope of the journey ahead of us.
I always prefer to map a route out on paper instead of the pc. For a start you get a sense of accomplishment, also its a bit of a challenge finding the best route, and lastly...computer algorithms aren't always the best.
We will be taking a laptop with us to update the blog each day during the cycle, however its just not practical to cycle with a laptop on your handlebars. You'd get arrested in about 4 and 3/4 minutes.
So I'm going to try to mount a map on my bike somehow so we can see where we are going each day. The very worst case is tape it to my leg (a la home-made top gun fighters), wonder how that will go down in the land of the giant good looking blond people? a wee short skinny dark haired (well I used to be) scotalian with a map taped to his leg...I'll be arrested by the police for making their country untidy!
Ah well, I'll just have to add any embarrassing memories like being ejected from Disney World, Orlando.
No I wasn't in a supersonic jet. I was following our route on the maps that were delivered. Unfortunately the maps don't show much in the way of the topography of the land. Nor do they make it easy to understand the scope of the journey ahead of us.
I always prefer to map a route out on paper instead of the pc. For a start you get a sense of accomplishment, also its a bit of a challenge finding the best route, and lastly...computer algorithms aren't always the best.
We will be taking a laptop with us to update the blog each day during the cycle, however its just not practical to cycle with a laptop on your handlebars. You'd get arrested in about 4 and 3/4 minutes.
So I'm going to try to mount a map on my bike somehow so we can see where we are going each day. The very worst case is tape it to my leg (a la home-made top gun fighters), wonder how that will go down in the land of the giant good looking blond people? a wee short skinny dark haired (well I used to be) scotalian with a map taped to his leg...I'll be arrested by the police for making their country untidy!
Ah well, I'll just have to add any embarrassing memories like being ejected from Disney World, Orlando.
Saturday, July 19, 2008
Hardening our resolve..
This week I saw Jacks' life story on the front page of the Daily Record. Jack (the reason we are raising money for CHAS) affected us all in different ways. You can read the story here at the Daily Record site (the link and video are not for the faint of heart). Reading his story and watching that video on you tube brought it home just how important it is to complete the cycle.
I'm not as eloquent as Melanie so I'm not even going to attempt to describe Jack's effect on people.
No we are not going to change anything but Jack and his memory deserve something special.
I'm not as eloquent as Melanie so I'm not even going to attempt to describe Jack's effect on people.
No we are not going to change anything but Jack and his memory deserve something special.
Friday, July 18, 2008
And so it begins...
Last night was a really productive one. We managed to get a route almost sorted. Booked 4 of the 7 nights accomodation. And designed the tshirts - mostly.
The Tshirts are being very kindly paid for by the company Tom works for (Northern Marine Management Ltd.). I used to work for them too and have to admit that if it wasn't for working with them after university I would never have got where I am today, nor would we be doing this cycle for charity.
The Shirts (printed by http://www.streetshirts.co.uk/) are going to look like this - and no I am not showing you the front as its a surprise (and we dont have the high res images yet for them anyway).
We'll be staying in hostels most of the time; it's something I've never done but am looking forward to it. Specially since I emailed some last night about 10pm (UK) and got responses from them before I went to bed - despite them being hours in front of us! Now thats what I call service!
The Upshot of this is that so much stress has been relieved that I actually woke myself up from a dream because I was laughing so loud in it.
Honestly, despite knowing that we are going to be in pain most of the time we are cycling and that its a long long cycle, I am really looking forward to the trip. It's going to be an amazing journey of self discovery and time to figure out my real priorities in life.
Friday, July 04, 2008
Good Things come to those who wait..
This weekend sees us do our longest cycle yet...72 miles. Twenty two miles more than we have ever done in one day. The route will take us from Edinburgh Waverley Street station to Falkirk (past the Falkirk Wheel) to Glasgow. Thats 66 miles. Tom and I will also do an extra three miles each way to Glasgow, once in the morning to get the train to Edinburgh and then from Glasgow Centre to our respective flats at night after the 66 miles. And the thing is I am looking forward to it.
I feel like the guy from the guinness advert. Waiting. Poised to spring into action and get that 72 miles under my wheels and start to see the miles go by.
Tick. Follows Tock. Tick. Follows Tock...
Here's why I am getting excited about it. This week we burst through the £500 barrier for donations already. A company I used to work for and that Tom still does work for has kindly said they will provide shirts and give us a donation too. And to top it all off, a site I signed up for ages ago http://www.athletefocus.com/ has been talking to me to get a blog set up there to help motivate others and may also provide us with some sponsorship. All in all, much more positive than I thought things were going to be.
I've recently given myself a much more streamlined haircut (read as: shaved it all off with a number 1 clipper) and gained enough weight to tip the scales at 62kg last thing at night. I haven't ever done that since I became sick with Crohns Disease (a story for another time) apart from a long time ago during a period of heavy medication from my doctors. Ever since then I've been struggling to get my weight up to 59kg, never mind 62kg.
And that is where my philosophy in life comes in, EVERYTHING, no matter how hard it seems to deal with it at the time, has a positive aspect to it. Jack inspired Tom to decide to raise money for the charity that looked after him, but I reckon its made all the guys taking part better friends and made us learn a lot about ourselves. So yeah cycling for 5 hours is a real pain in the arse. Yeah, I am in pain the next day. But by doing this every week I learn more about my limits, what I can cope with and what I am willing to go through to ensure that we dont let anyone down in Sweden. At the same time I get fitter, a bit heavier and I get to see parts of Scotland I had only ever dreamed of...so whats a day of pain compared to all that?
I feel like the guy from the guinness advert. Waiting. Poised to spring into action and get that 72 miles under my wheels and start to see the miles go by.
Tick. Follows Tock. Tick. Follows Tock...
Here's why I am getting excited about it. This week we burst through the £500 barrier for donations already. A company I used to work for and that Tom still does work for has kindly said they will provide shirts and give us a donation too. And to top it all off, a site I signed up for ages ago http://www.athletefocus.com/ has been talking to me to get a blog set up there to help motivate others and may also provide us with some sponsorship. All in all, much more positive than I thought things were going to be.
I've recently given myself a much more streamlined haircut (read as: shaved it all off with a number 1 clipper) and gained enough weight to tip the scales at 62kg last thing at night. I haven't ever done that since I became sick with Crohns Disease (a story for another time) apart from a long time ago during a period of heavy medication from my doctors. Ever since then I've been struggling to get my weight up to 59kg, never mind 62kg.
And that is where my philosophy in life comes in, EVERYTHING, no matter how hard it seems to deal with it at the time, has a positive aspect to it. Jack inspired Tom to decide to raise money for the charity that looked after him, but I reckon its made all the guys taking part better friends and made us learn a lot about ourselves. So yeah cycling for 5 hours is a real pain in the arse. Yeah, I am in pain the next day. But by doing this every week I learn more about my limits, what I can cope with and what I am willing to go through to ensure that we dont let anyone down in Sweden. At the same time I get fitter, a bit heavier and I get to see parts of Scotland I had only ever dreamed of...so whats a day of pain compared to all that?
Sunday, May 18, 2008
decisions decisions
A friend told me today that he'd give me £1 a mile for cycling from Gothenburg to Oslo if i had streamers and a bell on my bike and rang the bell every time we came to a town. £205 is a lot of money for a fund raising cycle so I think I may have to go for it...oh dear!
I hate to admit it but the thought of making a fool of myself through two countries is just beyond my abilities - so in compromise I will do it for one day of the cycle which should land him a hefty enough sponsorship bill!
Cheers Jenny - your donation will be warmly received!
I hate to admit it but the thought of making a fool of myself through two countries is just beyond my abilities - so in compromise I will do it for one day of the cycle which should land him a hefty enough sponsorship bill!
Cheers Jenny - your donation will be warmly received!
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