Apologies...

Sorry it has taken me so long to update on here about my trip. I will begin now...but will backdate the posts so you know what's what. :-)

Paris!

We only had a few hours in Paris as we all had a bit of a lie in and then had to be ready to get the Eurostar home at 2pm. We spent the morning having a walk around the city (all amazed that our legs were still functioning) and took in some of the sights.

We got back to London at around 4.30pm and collected our bikes from Skyline and went our separate ways, all feeling a lot better off for what we had all just achieved, and all with ideas of the next challenge slowly forming in our minds.

4 days, 300 miles...We made it!

Le Tour Eiffel
After cycling down the Champs Elysees, we came around to the Eiffel Tower. We did a few victory laps of the roundabout before stopping and being greeted by the friends and family of cyclists who had traveled over to meet the group.

We were barely off our bikes before the tears started rolling. The emotional and physical strain of the past 4 days all poured out as soon as we had reached our destination. I'll be honest, I started crying as soon as people started cheering us on the Champs Elysees. I think the sense of achievement and the realisation that we had all really just cycled from London to Paris also hit people. People around the Eiffel Tower were coming over and asking 'Have you really done that?!' pointing to our t-shirts. Yes, I really have just cycled to Paris! The sense of pride was amazing. I have been fundraising for the last 9 months and training hard for the last 6 so it was amazing to have finally achieved the goal.

We all had a good old cry, a glass of champagne and a big pat on the back. It was a truly amazing experience and I feel so lucky to have shared it with so many amazing people. They made every day enjoyable and even the hard parts didn't seem that hard when we tackled them all together.

I managed to raise just over £2,500 for Link Community Development, which will make a huge difference to their projects in Africa. As a group, the London to Paris cyclists raised in excess of £140,000 for our chosen charities.

Celebration
After taking our pictures at the Eiffel Tower, we cycled to our hotels and packed our bikes into the van (to be taken back to London) before heading to the bar for a well earned celebratory beer!

 We then got changed into our glad rags - what a relief to finally put on clothes that were neither luminous nor made of lycra - and headed to the restaurant for the celebration meal. It was a great opportunity to get to socialise with everyone that had been on the ride. Because everyone was riding at a different pace, there were some people that I hadn't seen throughout the whole ride as they were either behind or so far in front that I never even got a glimpse of their back tyre!

It was great to be able to toast our achievement as a group, given that we had all achieved the goal together. It's also nice to be a part of a group of people who have all shared a unique experience. It was definitely one of the best things I have ever done and I don;t think I'll forget the feeling of being cheered riding into Paris for a very long time.

Day 4 - Beauvais to Paris

8am start

Today we had the choice of when to start. There were less miles to ride but again we were riding to a deadline as we all had to be a the lunch spot (just outside Paris) by 1pm. We decided to get out fairly early so that we weren't rushing and had time to stop and enjoy the scenery.

Water stop! 268 miles done!

Today was the hardest day. The route was physically perhaps not as tough as the other days but 3 days of constant cycling had definitely started to take it's toll on my body. The first few miles were a definite struggle but I seemed to get into the swing of it for about an hour and made it to the water stop in good time and with the rest of the group.

After we left the water stop, I seemed to totally hit the wall. I slowed down quite a lot as I just didn't seem to have any energy. I seemed to keep losing most of my group so there were large parts of the morning where I couldn't even see any other riders. This was the toughest day mentally too as I was determined to get there with my group but my body just didn't seem to want to co-operate with me. Towards the water stop, there were some roads that on the first day would have seemed to barely incline but by the last day seemed like mountains to my weary legs.

Photo ops and Cafe stops

As I said before, we had a lot more time today to take it easy and take in some of the scenery so we took a few impromptu stops. Coming to one of these stops, in a cafe, Tracy and I were a bit further behind the others and got stuck behind a bus until it stopped and we could overtake. Coming up to the cafe, a police car stopped and an officer waved at us so I waved back and shouted bonjour, commenting how friendly the police were in France. She then got out of the car and crossed the road before starting to tell us off (I assume she was telling us off, she looked mad but I can't speak French well enough to be sure). We said that we were English and she just threw her hands up and walked back to the car. So, we may or may not have committed a crime/traffic violation but we can't be sure ;-)

Lunch!

What a relief to make it to the lunch stop today and re-unite with my group! I think if it had been any further away that I might not have made it...I was definitely running on empty for the last few miles. When I got there, there were bikes and bodies scattered all over the grass - reassuring me that I was not the only one finding the last day tough! I had a nice hearty, carb-loaded lunch and felt almost instantly better. Plus, knowing we were only a few miles away from the end destination made it so much better.

Entering Paris

After lunch, we cycled a few miles alongside the river Seine to a park on the outskirts of Central Paris where we all re-assembled as a group. We were given our blue 'I cycled London to Paris' t-shirts to change into so that we all looked the same. 

We then cycled in convoy, all 122 of us, behind the Skyline van. As we were cycling up towards the Arc De Triomphe, one of the vans pulled alongside and started to belt out 'The eye of the tiger'. It was quite a surreal experience. Once we got to the top of the road, we all managed to survive the dreaded roundabout and get a fantastic view. 

We then cycled all together down the Champs Elysees. There had been a rugby game on that finished around the same time with Toulouse winning so all the fans were in high spirits. Paris is busy anyway, but with the added rugby supporters, there were hundreds of people there as we cycled past. A lot of people had lined the streets to see what all the commotion was (I'd imagine that 100+ people cycling down the Champs Elysees is not something you see every day) and they all started to cheer and applause as we went past. The feeling is so hard to describe unless you were there, but it was one of the most amazing things I have ever experienced. The rugby fans were running into the street and patting people on the back and throwing high fives. We hadn't known what to expect when we arrived in Paris but I don't think anyone was expecting the welcome that we got. 

Day 3 - Abbeville to Beauvais

8.30am - Briefing and set off!
Another amazing breakfast to get us ready for our day. I slept very poorly the night before, only getting a few hours, so was feeling pretty wiped out before we started. Everyone on the ride was so much fun and so enthusiastic that I didn't really think too much about feeling tired or achey.

The route

Today's route was one of the most scenic of the whole trip, lovely winding roads and picturesque churches everywhere. I suffered my first physcial injury of the trip when some twigs grabbed hold of my ankle and had a good old claw. Luckily, 2 days of cycling had turned me into quite the athlete, so I struggled on regardless of the pain ;-) In keeping with the previous days, there were a lot of hills but we had all started to become pretty pro at them by this time and (even though we stopped a few times) no one actually got off and pushed.

Lunch stop
Between the water stop and lunch, we had become separated again - with the faster group members speeding off into the distance so myself, Tracy and Matt all cycled together for the second leg of the day, keeping to pretty much the same pace. We took a lot more stops today, as again there was less distance to cover and was far more relaxed. There was also more of an opportunity to take pictures as the scenery was a lot better. We stopped for lunch but also made a fair few unscheduled stops.

One of the stops towards the end, a few miles before the hotel was instigated by the blue team. A group of rugby players who had stopped at a pub and called out to everypne passing to make them stop too. There were around 45 people there when we arrived, all rehydrating with a pint. The pub owner looked like he had never seen so many people in his pub before (and probably hadn't). He was so excited that he came out and took videos of everyone.  

The Campanile Hotel

When we got to the hotel, everyone was in really high spirits and not showing any effects of having cycled for 3 days. The trip was such good fun and everyone was laughing so much that any pain or tiredness was secondary to everything else.

Day 2 - Calais to Abbeville

8.30am - Briefing
We set off a little bit later today as we had less distance to cover. The lie in was truly amazing! As was the continental breakfast...crepes and pastries, possibly a little bit of fruit thrown in there, are a great way to fuel for a long day's riding. At the briefing we were given the low down for the day and took time to take a few group photos before setting off.

11am(ish) - First water stop

The terrain was quite hilly - with one huge hill leading up to the first water stop. We learned very quickly on Day 1 that an 'undulation' (in skyline terms) actually means 'the biggest hills you've ever seen, let alone ridden up). There were a fair few of these on day 2, like day 1. The riding was a lot more scenic and a lot more chilled out than day 1 as we weren't on a deadline so it meant that we could take it easy and all have a chat as we cycled which made a huge difference.

Lunch!
Between the water stop and lunch, the group of 10 that we had started out with had all got separated so I rode most of the morning with Tracy. Towards the lunch stop there were a few hills so we managed to catch everyone up and re-unite as a group. The lunch stop was at a lakeside picnic area which was very nice. We stopped for around 30 minutes or so to re-fuel before heading off again in a group. The weather, like the previous day, was dry and sunny. We were lucky as I think rain definitely would have made it a completely different (miserable) experience.

Abbeville!
At the hotel, we all had our evening meal together of "chicken" (I swear the bones were too long to have come from a chicken - the subject of much debate) and chips before having a a few well earned drinks at the bar.

Day 1 - London to Dover

5.30am - Breakfast!
I woke up early, looking forward to a nice heartly athlete's breakfast...So I, along with everyone else, was a little bit disappointed with the luke-warm lumpy porridge and runny scrambled eggs on offer. Disappointed, but not suprised, given the standard of the hotel.

Breakfast was a good opportunity to see everyone together for the first time and make introductions. I found that I was not the only one riding alone so that made me feel a lot better. After breakfast, we headed off to briefing in the near by carpark.

6am - Briefing
The first casualty of the trip occured around 6am and was a poor bike that was runover in the car park. There were 122 cyclists and bikes, plus support vans and crew dotted around but even despite all this...some idiot still decided to race through the middle of everyone and smash a bike! Luckily, the crew managed to change the saddle (which was bent and completely unuseable) so the guy could carry on with the ride.

After the briefing, we were given tags for our bikes and sett off on our merry way out of Crystal Palace.

12pm - Lunch stop - somewhere in Kent

We made quite good progress to the lunch stop, at around 55 miles, so I was suprised when we got there that we only had around 30 miles to go. I cycled most of the way with Graham, Lizzy and Sarah as we seemed to keep the same pace. At the start everyone was together but it only took around 30 minutes for the whole group so be so widely spaced that we didn't see some people until lunch.

4.46pm - Dover!! (Only 1 minute late!)

When we arrived in Dover, we met in a carpark and waited for the whole group to re-assemble before cycling in convoy around to the ferry port. We were at around 86 miles by the time we arrived and the stopping to wait was when I think the tiredness hit everyone. When we got onto the ferry, we had dinner and then everyone just found a place to sit/lie down to rest their legs.

9.30pm (ish) - Calais!

We landed in Calais and then had a few miles left to cycle to our hotels. Everyone was incredibley tired but we all made it. We stayed in the Holiday in at Coquelles which was world's apart from The Lodge. It was probably the comfiest bed I have ever slept in! My head barely hit the pillow before I was fast asleep! The day was hard but getting to the hotel felt like such an amazing achievement for everyone that the pain was definitely worth it!

Arriving in London

To avoid the hassle, and added stress, of navigating my way across London with my bike and a week's worth of kit in tow, my friend Anna picked me up at Reading station and dropped me off at Crystal Palace.

One of my big worries for the trip was that I would not be able to navigate the route if I needed to do so (my map reading skills are terrible!). Obviously not realising this, Anna asked me to direct the way to the hotel. So, a good hour and a half later we actually arrived!

When we got to the Ho(s)tel, I have to admit that first impressions were not great. It was called 'The Lodge' and was decked out in wooden pannelling (what would have perhaps been a nice effect, had it not been on a tower block). My room was small and not particularly clean (the mould in the wardrobe and kettle was also a nice touch) but on the plus side, it was all mine - no sharing a bunk bed as I had imagined!

Another big worry was that everyone would have come with people and that I would be on my own. I didn't meet many people on the first night so this worry stuck with me until the next morning when everyone introduced themselves to everyone else.

Bags packed...I'm ready to go!

It's Saturday...and no bike ride, very strange!

Last weekend was my last training ride as the schedule says you should rest for a week. It was very strange getting up (at almost 10am!!) this morning and not having to do anything. Well, I say anything, I had tons of stuff to do but no cycling...which is a very odd feeling indeed.

I went to my last spinning class yesterday before the big ride and everyone was full of well wishes, which was very nice.

I'm almost packed, and I'm sure I have waaaaay more stuff than I am supposed to (that'll be fun carrying it across London!) and feel really ready to go. I'm still not particulary nervous, just really excited to finally get started after 9 months of getting ready!

96 miles!!!

Today I finally managed my 100 miles! (Well, 96 but it's close enough so I'm counting it!)

I did the same route as the last few weeks but went out a little bit further this time, ending up in Exmouth. I've never been there before so didn't realise how hilly it was from Exeter! I feel that I have truly experienced an "undulating" stretch of road now.

This week was obviously difficult as it was a massive ride but it was nowhere near as hard as last week. Having heard how much I struggled, 2 of my friends had offered to meet me for 20 miles or so in the middle of the ride which was a great boost to know I'd have people to ride with. However, they proved unreliable and dropped out at the last minute.

I woke up so determined to do the 100 that even going on my own didn't bother me. I woke up (for some crazy reason) at around 5.30am and so snoozed for a bit and then had my breakfast and got everything ready and was out of the house by 7am.

I stopped once at 25 miles for about 5 minutes for an energy gel, again at 56 for a nice pot of tea by the canal and again at 75 for another gel (yum yum) so with stops it took me around 7 1/2 hours to do 96 miles - which is more than enough time to make it to the ferry (hurray!) on day 1 so I'm not worrying about that anymore.(It is worth noting that I had a good 5-10 stops of about 30 seconds or so to remove flies from my eyes - yuk! Note to self - definitely need to start wearing my glasses!)

It is also worth noting that I really enjoyed today's ride. Even though it was difficult, it wasn't the struggle I was expecting and I don't feel completely wrecked after it now (although my legs are sorer than they have been after any of the other rides). It has definitely done a lot to boost my confidence, especially after last week's disaster ride.

I feel physically and mentally prepared now for Paris - and perhaps best of all, I am so excited to get going!

67 miserable miles

I managed 67 miles today and I can honestly say it was my worst ride so far! It was ridiculously windy the whole way there and back (how is that even possible) which made every single mile so much harder. The hills seemed to be bigger, and longer and I didn't have any motivation at all!

I would obviously rather ride with people, but training on my own hasn't really bothered me that much before. Today was different though. I started to feel it from about mile 20 and just didn't feel like I could go on. I started to think about how hard training alone was and how it was so difficult to motivate myself. I almost turned back at 23, 27 and 29 but decided to carry on, hoping that I would get a second wind.  I started to at around 30 miles, struggling up a hill, thinking about how good the training will doin preparing me for the actual ride.

Then at mile 33, I had just been speeding down a hill and stopped for traffic at the bottom (luckily) when my pedal fell off! The whole arm came away and fell into the road...giving me quite a fright! I don't think you need to refer to any previous posts to understand how far outside of my technically ability a broken pedal falls. I phoned Ads who (luckily) lives about 5 minutes away from where I had stopped but there was no answer so I left a desperate message and then phoned my brother. He would have happily got me but luckily for me, Ads was home and came to collect me.

Her boyfriend, Pete, was able to fix the pedal for me. They have been building a project bike and so happened to have the right spares and tools to help me out. I sat and had a cup of a tea and a good whinge and tried to re-motivate myself (not that I was particularly motivated to begin with). However, I decided to call it a day, as the gods just seemed to be against me having a good cycling day. I then spent a further half an hour deciding if I was going to ride home or get the train. I really wanted to get the train as I didn't feel like I had the energy to make it home, with the first 33 miles being such an almighty struggle. However, I know that I would have been so mad at myself for days if I hadn't even tried so I got back on my bike.

The way home was even harder than the way out as I was tired, had no motivation and was half expecting to lose my pedal again on the way back. I made it home but it seemed to take forever and I was really disappointed that I hadn't been able to make my mileage (AGAIN!). However, now that I'm home and I've had a long soak and a cup of tea, I've realised that some days are going to be really hard and just because today was, it doesn't mean I won't be able to make Paris, or that I'm not fit enough...it was just an off day and next weekend I am going to smash the 100!

16 miles...just stretching my legs

I did a little 16 mile ride today with my friend April, who has just signed up to do a week long cycling trip in Brittany with school. She, like me prior to my training, has only ridden a bike twice in the last 2 years and both were on school trips. We did a 2 (or maybe even less) mile mountain bike ride on the Moors last summer with a group of 11/12 year olds on school camps and we were both absolutely ruined afterwards. Out of breath all the way round and sore bums for a week afterwards!

She has decided that she had better do a little bit of training (if only to save face in front of her students) so after months of me pestering, finally gave in and came out for a ride with me.  It was nice to go at a steady (okay, pretty slow) pace and actually have a leisurely ride, rather than worrying about distance/speed/time etc like normal.

We did a route that I started off on early in my training and am proud to say that while it was horrendously hard a few months ago, was actually very easy today. It was a hilly route but didn't seem anywhere near as bad this time around. The sun was shining too, which always makes everything seem a lot better.

Although we only did a short distance today, my legs felt fine and the bike was still comfortable despite riding 2 consecutive days. I feel like I'm really starting to get into good stead for Paris

Stok Gabriel - Tea stop at the River Shack

87 miles...

I was, again, determined today that I absolutely was going to make the 100 mile mark today...but alas, I did not. :-(

I am quite disappointed as now I still can't 100% say that I am ready for the trip or that every day is achievable for me, as I have so far been unable to achieve the 100 miles.

I cycled from home to the double lock in Exeter and then back again, which is no mean feat and is definitely still an impressive ride. I think last week, I took a few wrong turns and managed to clock up a bit of extra mileage without realising I has done so. Therefore, this week I got closer to Exeter in less miles than last week (something which massively confused me until I just realised how I had managed it) so by the time I got to the double lock I was on 42 miles (as opposed to the 50 something I had expected).

I considered continuing to Exmouth but I don't really know the way and didn't want to get lost and have to call someone to come and get me. So, I stopped for a brief rest and a cup of tea and then headed home. I did think that I would be able to get the extra 16 miles in somewhere on the way home, and although I did put a few loops in on my way back, I only managed to add an extra 3 miles (although it seemed waaaaay further at the time)

I'm still disappointed that I didn't make the 100...but on the plus side, I absolutely owned the hill up to Longdown (got up in one go as opposed to three last weekend!)

My legs are sore after the distance but not as bad as I had expected and hopefully they will be okay tomorrow...

50 miles...

I manged 50 miles yesterday...the sun and hills did not make it very easy though! It's also less miles than last weekend, but I thought Dartmoor was actually a lot further away from my house than it actually is.

Everyone on the facebook group (especially those who made the meeting last weekend) has been writing about hills and thought I'd better get some hills specific training in. Obviosuly, living in Devon, my rides are usually pretty hilly anyway but today was extreme.

I got dropped at Trago Mills and cycled to Bovey Tracey and then went up on to Dartmoor. As many millions times as I have been up on the Moors, I still  somehow managed to forget that the initial climb up on to the moors was more of a cliff face than a hill (only mild exaggeration here - it was ridiculous!) and it went on for 5 long, miserable miles!

When I eventually made it (after several stops and two shameful stints of pushing the bike) I cycled towards Wuidecombe, down to Manaton and Becky Falls (where I was going to stop for a while but didn't realise it's actually £7.25 to look at the falls so that idea was shortlived!). I did a 25 or so mile circuit on the Moors and then headed home. I had a great time flying down the 5 mile hill on the way home, making teh struggle up it totally worth it. 

One thing that did put a slightly negative tinge on the day was almost getting knocked over by some idiot teenage boys. I don't know what it is about sunny weather that makes most drivers seem to completely forget how to drive! I was charging along a main road and they were waiting to pull out of the side road. They clocked me and pulled out right as I got to their road. If I hadn't braked in time I definitely would have gone into/over them. They were all laughing so had obviously done it on purpose.

Luckily, I was able to write down their number plate and reported it to the police as dangerous driving. They got hold of me today and said they had tracked down the driver and given him some advice on his driving and a warning that any future incidents would be dealt with more seriously. I was fuming at the time it happened but am glad that the police took it seriously and the driver got a talking to.

I have read a few articles lately about supposed "Lycra Louts" and the idea seems completely obsurd to me. To me, the definition of a "Lout" would be the kind of person who pulls out in front of an oncoming cyclist. While the "loutish" behaviour of cyclist is often taking up too much space in the road, or making you wait a few minutes until you can pass. A useful tip for drivers who feel this way is that we are probably in the middle of the road so that you do not try and overtake us on blind corners or at traffic islands or any other place in the road where there is definitely not enough room for a car to pass us without knocking us over.

Anyway, rant over. The majority of the time I am out on my bike, I co-exist with drivers very peacefully. One good thing that has come to me recently, perhaps brought with the good weather, is that I now see cycling as much more of an enjoyable activity rather than a chore. I now WANT to gt up at 6am on a Saturday morning and get out for a day's ride as opposed to HAVE to (well, I definitely still have to, but you know what I mean). I feel I may be fast becoming a cyclist, as opposed to someone who just rides a bike.

65 miles...

I managed 65 miles today and am extra pleased with myself as the training goal for today was 50 miles.

I went out with a friend from work and it made such a huge difference to ride with someone rather than by myself. He set the pace and I was happy to keep up. He rides a lot faster than I do but I think that's good as I was pushing myself, whereas normally I would dawdle.

It was also nice to take in a completely different route than I have been used to. I've found that to be one of the most difficult things about training so far. I will pick a place to ride to that I think is pretty far away but when I get there I'll realise it's not that far and I still have mileage to make up. I also find that I have been doing the same routes, or slight variations of, for the past few weeks which is getting a bit tired. 

I did fairly well timewise, doing it in about 6 hours with 3 stops (one fairly long one towards the end to re-fuel physically and mentally). Towards the end of the ride I definitely lost the will a little bit which is where I think riding in a group will definitely come in handy on the actual ride.

Having got a fairly big ride under my belt now, I feel a lot more confident about achieving the 95.

26 miles...

I have had a lot more time this week as it is the school holiday's and I am working half days so decided to make use of a bit of extra time by getting out on my bike more.

Typical of my luck, I managed to pick the only wet day of this week for a ride. It looked like it was going to be okay and that the rain might hold off...until the very second that I got out of my car and the heavens seemed to open!

I knew it was going to rain but the timing of the downpour still seemed a little unfortunate. I did sit in the car for a good 10 minutes debating whether or not to go out in the rain but ultimately decided that I will be cycling to Paris in June, rain or shine, so might as well make the most of training time.

I was planning (somewhat optimistically) to ride the cycle path from Exeter to Dawlish and back (13 miles each way) twice, but by the time I got back to my car after the first 26 miles, I decided I was too cold and wet and miserable to carry on. I don't think I have every been so thoroughly soaked before! I did have the foresight to bring a change of clothes - ie, Jumper and joggers...but no spare pants, socks, or trainers so had to put dry trousers over soaking wet pants and sock-less feet into squelchy horrible trainers!

Oddly though, it always feels like you've worked harder when you've been out in the rain. Something about being that miserable makes me feel like I've really worked hard. :-)

Sun shine = Generous shoppers

I had another bag packing today with a local guide group. They are fund raising for a trip to the World Guide Centre in India so we agreed to split the money raised.

The last bag pack made £316, but it was at a much bigger store and was on a Saturday so I was expecting to make a lot less this time. However, the very generous shoppers at Sainsbury's proved me wrong on that one! We made £592 in total! I counted the money, and then counted it again, and then once more to be sure. I could not, and still cannot, believe how amazingly generous people are!

Adding the £296 to my total brought me over the £2,000 mark, which is very very exciting.

Yesterday's hard training sessions left me on a bit of a downer but this has definitely cheered me up!

50 Miles...

I did 50 miles this weekend and it seemed like a long hard slog compared to the previous 40. I got to 30 and didn't think that I was going to be able to make it another mile, let alone another 20! I did finish the full 50 but it was slow and gruelling and seemed to take forever.

I think that perhaps having the weekend off last weekend (due to Mother's Day and other commitments) did me a lot more harm than good. I'm not sure why I was so tired, perhaps a virus or a touch of cold coming but it definitely made me a bit worried about what is to come if 50 was a struggle...

40 miles...

I woke up this morning full of energy so managed to get out an about on my bike by just after 6.30am.

I did 40 miles and was home by 10.30am. I seem to be averaging about 10mph at a comfortable and sustainable pace. Thinking in terms of 40 miles being almost half way through the first day, I think my pace is about right. Also, thinkling about that makes a 95 mile day seem much (well, slightly) less terrifying!

My chain feel off a few times which was a bit annoying as I kept having to stop but other than that it was a really good ride. i feel a lot more confident about road riding now, as a lot of this was through town.

A few things I have learnt over the past few weeks:
Sneaky hills: Even if it seems flat in the car, it can still be a horrible hill when cycling.
Distance: Places seem to be a whole lot closer when you have got a high mileage count to reach (I arrived at a destination, via the long route, very disappointed to find I'd only done 12 miles!)

Would you like a hand with your bags, Sir?

We managed to raise a total of £316 from the very generous shoppers at Tesco on yesterday.

A group of Young Volunteers from the Lighthouse Music Hub very kindly gave up their sunny Saturday to help out with some fund raising.

The Lighthouse is the Bay’s (and the South West’s) only young people’s music hub, run by the Devon Music Collective - a not-for-profit community organisation, set up in 2009 to provide opportunities for local people to make and experience music in all its forms.

The backbone of the project is their Rock School; from 4pm to 6pm on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays they run an after school drop-in for 14 to 18 year olds to learn new instruments, jam with friends and try their hand’s at song writing.

The Lighthouse is currently looking to expand what they offer to the rest of the community. If you need a place to hold musical events, or an idea for a project involving local people in music and the arts, they would love to hear from you. They would also like to get more people with different skills and backgrounds involved in the project, whether as a volunteer or by joining the Board of Trustees.

Ready for the assault on Tesco next weekend...

35 miles...

I've had a mega busy week at work so have not made it to spinning/swimming/the gym or even out for a run this week. I thought I'd better step up my ride at the weekend to make up for it.

I went to a gig on Friday night and got home at about 2am, so despite my best intentions to get up and out on my bike at 8am...it was closer to 11.30 by the time I actually made it out.

The weather was cold (so cold) but sunny so I was happy. The 35 took me 4 1/2 hours which is twice the time 26 took and not a huge increase in miles. However, the 26 was flat all the way...the 35 was not! Living in Devon, I am used to hills but until I started cycling I hadn't realised just how many hills there are!

I am proud to say that I only got off and pushed my bike up a hill once (well, technically twice but once was by order of a sign so I'm choosing not to count it) and it was an ALMIGHTY hill that seemed to go on forever...I think I was climbing for about 45 minutes so I am not even ashamed that it defeated me.

This was the first big run on the new bike and it was amazing! So happy with it!

The (not so) long road home

I work about 4 miles away from home and have been saying for the last 6 months that I was going to start cycling the journey rather than driving. However, the excuses have been vast as to why I haven't up to now. I say excuses, they were all genuine reasons at the time ;-)

"I'll start when I get a new bike" - Good enough, but when I got the new mountain bike it was still freezing cold and raining.
"I'll go on days when I finish early so it's not dark out"  - If I've finished work early, I usually have 500 things to do so a car comes in handy
"I'll go on dry days" - Dry days are usually cold days!

You get the picture. Since I now have a shiney new road bike at my disposal, the excuses are not really cutting it. Since I didn't get out at the weekend I a) felt guilty and b) had yet to road test the bike!

If I new on Sunday what I know now I'd have been out like a shot. Road bikes are amazing! The ride home was not far at all (although it still took me 40 minutes as I took the wrong cycle path and ended up waaaay out) so wasn't too taxing but I felt like I floated all the way home. Minimal effort for better speed, time and ease than the mountain bike.

I can't wait to get out on it for a big run at the weekend - not even weather permitting this time!

Rain rain, go away!

I am a little bit ashamed to say that I did not get out on my bike this weekend. 7am was not happening at all when my alarm went off. When I woke up the second time, the rain did a fairly swift job of removing my last remaining dreg of motivation.

 

I did, however, get a little bit of shopping done at the weekend. I now have a very comfy gel seat, some very bright jerseys and, probably best of all, a new shiney bike computer! Well, okay it's not shiney but it is new and very very cool. No longer will I have to resort to mapping my routes online when I return from a ride. 

Training schedule

When I signed up for the bike ride, I downloaded all the forms and filed them in my 'London to Paris' folder. The training schedule went along with these forms and that's pretty much where it stayed until February 6th. I knew that training would have to start on the 7th as it's a 17 week programme.

The basic layout is 3-4 sessions a week, with one being a big cycle. The sessions increase in time/intensity/distance as the weeks go on.

I am now coming to the end of week 3 and it is all going well so far. The workout schedule is pretty easy going as it's designed to gently introduce you to regular exercise. Since I've been getting out on my bike and going to the gym for the last 6 months, the tasks are still fairly simple.

I was well aware of the physical demands of the schedule before I started and so they haven't caused me any particular distress (except maybe week 13 onwards 60/75 mile cycles) but the one thing I hadn't really factored in is time. I'm generally a fairly busy person but with work, fundraising and training I think I am going to struggle to have time to do it all. I've started to have to schedule in my sessions a week or more in advance so that I can allocate enough time for them.

I knew when I signed up for this that it was going to take up a lot of time but I think I have now had to resign myself to the fact that 'London to Paris' is my life until June 5th.

Mixing it up

Up until this week, my training has pretty much consisted of going to the gym in the week and big cycling at the weekends. Although I am only in week 3, that has started to get pretty boring so I decided to try a few new things to keep it interesting.

Zumba.
For those of you that don't know, Zumba is " an exhilarating, effective, easy-to-follow, Latin-inspired, calorie-burning dance fitness-party" (according to google anyway). I would say it's a bit like aerobics and salsa combined. I went along to the session with a few ladies from work on Tuesday night. It was definitely interesting! I was worried initially that the fact that I have absolutely no rhythm or coordination might hinder me but was told that this wouldn't be a problem. And it wasn't, to an extent, in that no one laughed at me getting the steps wrong, moving the wrong way (and several beats out of time) or flailing my arms around wildy. However, I think it created overall problems in what I was able to get from the workout. I spent a lot of time concentrating on trying to get the steps right and so subsequently did not end up working as hard as everyone else. At the end of the workout I didn't feel like I had done much at all so thing that perhaps Zumba is not for me.

Spinning
Spinning is "a type of aerobic exercise, done by cycling indoors on a stationary "spinning" bicycle". It differs from using the normal bikes in the gym because it is a much more intense workout. I know quite a lot of people who swear by spinning so have been meaning to check it out. Again, I was nervous about how hard it would be, would I be slower/less fit than everyone else there. Everything I knew about spinning prior to attending the class was learned from American TV programmes (which, I think you'll agree, is usually an accurate description of real life) so I was expecting a class of stick thin middle aged women. There was a mix of ages, gender, fitness levels in the class so I was happy. I was also happy that it was really really hard! Which may sound a bit sadistic but I definitely like know that something's working properly. I usually gauge how hard I've worked by how sore I am the next day and I think it's pretty safe to say I worked incredibly hard! So, time permitting, I am planning to sub spinning in as one of my weekly sessions.

26 miles...but faster this time!

This week I did the same route as last weekend but in reverse (Dawlish to Exeter and back). I went with my friend Dan, who teaches PE and coaches football, and does not know the word 'slack' or 'rest'  - which proved a very good motvational tool.

As I was doing the same route as before, I decided it would be a good idea to time it so that I can get a good idea of my average mph and get an idea of what pace I will need to be setting for myself on the actual cycle to Paris.

Not including a break for some lunch, it took 2 hours and 20 minutes, which I think is more than reasonable. I did it on the mountain bike too as I don't have the equipment for spares/repairs on the road bike and didn't want to risk getting a puncture/flat tyre and not being able to fix it (26 miles is a long way to cycle but even longer to walk while pushing/carrying a bike!). With that in mind, I can safely assume that I will be able to go further/faster on a road bike with the same level of effort.

One of the great things about doing this is how good it has been at motivating other people. A lot of my friends and family have been keen to get out their old bikes and dust them off ready to come out for the day with me.

The Evolution of Bike

As I may have mentioned once or twice before, I am in no way a keen cyclist and know next to nothing (if not actual nothing) about it. Prior to taking on this challenge, it had probably been about 10 years since the last time I have owned a bike. For this reason, I definitely underestimated how difficult this challenge would be. Not just in terms of the physical but also in terms of having to learn so much about bikes and cycling.

The main and most important aspect of the whole ride is having the right bike. However, a few months ago 'a bike' was pretty much that category covered as far as I was concerned. I realised that the bike I started with would not be suitable for the ride but I didn't really have any idea what would be.

Bad....

Luckily for me, I know a lot of people who know what's what about bikes who have been amazing at giving me advice and tips. Now, when asked about tyre leavers, schrader valves, cassettes etc I can actually answer rather than just stare blankly (in a mild panic that I've never even heard these words before). I am now able to repair punctures and change an inner tube by myself - I realise that this doesn't sound like the most impressive thing ever done but it is still a great feeling to know that you can fix your own bike (please see 'a cautionary tale' if you still fail to see the relevance).

Better...

A friend at work saw a picture of my new mountain bike and quickly realised how hard it would be to complete this challenge on it. Worrying about my choice of bike, he custom built me a hybrid road bike from an old frame and parts he had lying around in the attic. (I will make clear that he is a keen cyclist/enthusiast and owns several bikes - one friend commented that she was imagining a bike built out of old rocking chairs and other things you might find in the attic!)

Best...

So, I now have another new bike (although only on loan) to train and complete the ride on. I also have an expert on hand to advise me on kit lists, clothing, bike repairs etc. I feel like everything is coming together now to make this a really enjoyable experience.

Sugar and spice, and all things nice...

I spent a good 4-5 hours baking and decorating cakes when I got back from cycling yesterday. My lovely friend Tara and her mum also donated a vast portion of their weekend to baking for me. See below the finished result...Cake, anyone?

Fingers crossed people will be wanting a nice sugary kick start to their week tomorrow...

UPDATE: In total, the cake sales managed to raise £80.88!!n :-)

26 miles...

I went out with Adelaide and Pete this weekend and we managed 26 miles. We took the cycle path along the canal from Exeter to Dawlish and back again. I don't know if it was having a new bike, or the ride being flat or just being generally a bit fitter (or probably a combination of all three) but 26 miles this weekend seemed a lot easier than 19 two weeks ago.

I've started to really panic a bit about what this cycle actually means. I think before it was just something that I was saying I was doing, without really thinking too much about it. Now training's started it's all very real and I've realised just what a mission it's going to be.

However, I am very lucky that I have a lot of good people who are happy to come out on rides with me, give me pep talks, assist with fundraising etc...and probably most importantly - educate me about bikes and cycling!

A cautionary tale...

I took the new bike out for a test run yesterday...

All went well for the first mile or so until I noticed that the back wheel was catching. When I got off to investigate I thought that the brakes were rubbing. On closer inspection, I realised that the wheel had actually come loose and was resting on the frame! I'm guessing that Halfords, who supplied the bike, are not as thorough in their bike builds as their adverts might suggest! Luckily, I was staionary and not flying down a hill when the wheel decided to shift.

A very nice man was cycling past and obviously noticed my damsel in distress routine and stopped to help. He, being a sensible biker unlike myself, had a tool kit handy and was able to tighten up the nuts and bolts and send me off on my merry way - but not before bestowing some cycling wisdom on me. 1. High vis vests are not trendy but definitely necessary. 2. You're own tool kit is a must (the shame of looking like an idiot girl who cannot fix her own bike pretty much made this a given anyway). 3. Changing both sets of gears at once stops your legs from spinning around like crazy. 4. If you buy a bike from Halfords, make sure you get it checked over by someone who is not a cowboy!

With a safely bolted together bike, with two wheels firmly attached, I managed to do 19 miles. The difference between the new bike to the old one is amazing! I honestly cannot express how much easier it is having a bike with fully working gears. I don't think I could really appreciate how rough the old bike was until I'd been out on the new one. Simple things like being able to peddle when I'm going fast, and keep up with the momentum of the bike, made life so much easier.

I still realise that it is not going to be an easy task and that training is going to get tougher as the week's go on  but with my new bike I know it is definitely an achievable task and much less of an uphill struggle.

With a little help from my friends...

This week has been amazing! On Sunday night I received two messages, within an hour of one another, offering me the loan of a bike for my training and eventual cycle to Paris. My friend Lucy's boyfriend Rob offered me the use of his road bike as it is currently unused and gathering dust in a garage. About 30 minutes later, my friend Marissa let me know that her bike is currently surplus to requirement as she is deep into her marathon training.

Then, when I thought it couldn't get any better, my lovely friend Olly donated me a brand new mountain bike!

So, my ride is now sponsored by, and thanks to, OJ Carpentry.  Having a new bike will make things so much easier - not least because it weighs about a stone less than the old one, and is not made up of 85% mud and rust!

I'm very lucky to have such awesome friends who have been going above and beyond to help me out with this cause!

Read all about it!

This week I made the front page of my local newspaper. I knew that I would be featured somewhere in the paper but did not know I would be front page news - Imagine my suprise when I went in to the shop to pick one up!

 I am very excited as it means that more people will get to know about what I am doing, as well as raising the profile of LCD locally. Karen Perrow, who wrote the article, was kind enough to put in a bit of a shameless plea for support with a new bike so fingers crossed some sponsorship might come out of this... 

January 2011...5 months to go!

Happy New Year! I hope that you had a fantastic Christmas and New Year.

I had asked Santa for a shiney new (or less shiney second hand) bicycle this Christmas but I guess I must not have been a good enough girl! "Santa" informed me that days of bike buying were over, I am now old enough to buy my own bike...Charming!


While I did have a lovely time over Christmas and New Year, there was an unfortunate victim in all the overindulgence...my motivation! I had, somewhat foolishly, thought that I would be able to have a choccie here and a glass of wine there over Christmas and it not really make a difference. I was wrong!

I am a little bit ashamed to say that  training sort of fell by the wayside all over the festive period. It is so hard to get motivated once you have been out of it for even a couple of days, let alone weeks! However, while my training schedule has been relatively non-existent, I have been putting my time to good use by using every social event as an opportunity to let more people know about what I am doing.

As suggested in my fundraising guide, I asked that if people were planning on buying me a present that I would want nothing more than a small donation to my cause. Feeling very festive, lots of people dug deep and brought my total up to £503 (37% of my total goal...but almost 50% of the amount I need by February). I am very excited that I am getting closer and closer with each generous donation!