tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8706828629405691832024-02-07T12:29:35.882+00:00Anthony Gotts Wheelchair AthleteAnonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15454059332314431888noreply@blogger.comBlogger38125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-870682862940569183.post-47762093435496822392017-07-03T15:21:00.000+01:002017-07-03T15:21:50.028+01:00Lands End to John O'Groats, Day 20 - I Told You So!<b><u>Day 20 Morning</u></b><br />
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This was it, the day I'd become a world record holder! I woke up excited for the day. I knew I'd get to John O'Groats today even if I broke an arm I'd have just pushed one handed to the finish line. There was no way, with only 41 miles to go, I wasn't going to finish today!<br />
The morning routine felt strange, almost like there wasn't a need to do it. Of course there was, we needed to store all the equipment, luggage and spares on the beds so we cold eat at the table to fuel the day's push. I needed to download all of the footage and gps data from Day 19 to make sure I had evidence for the world record. My gloves needed repairing. My £1600 carbon rear wheels had been very badly damaged so we used gaffer tape to hold them together too. I think I had it in my head that the challenge was already over. Obviously it wasn't; I still had a marathon, a half marathon and almost a park run to complete. <br />
The weather was a bit drizzly so we decided to get on our way early to give me more pushing time. As we left the campsite, Ed smiled and waved at the owner whilst calling her a stingey bitch, ventriloquist style. All the way we'd had free sites and met some lovely campsite owners, this was the first one we'd paid for and it was the worst one we stayed at largely because the owner was an arrogant old mare. I may have worn my shoes past the no shoes sign, oops.<br />
The start point for the day wasn't the most practical one, as soon as I had finished the hill from hell on day 19 I wanted to get out of my chair so we hadn't looked for a layby or side street like normal. I'd chosen a spot probably used for a home owner to park their car in front of their garden. Whilst setting up the chair and bikes I'd spotted a patch of wild orchids and made dad go and photograph them for me. Ed seemed quite interested in them too, maybe he was just humouring me but it was nice to see it wasn't only Devon and Cornwall that had fancy plants growing. We'd also been passing huge swathes of wild lupins in the Scottish Highlands. Ed collected me some seeds from them so I could grow them to remember the trip by. Oddly enough they flowered this year on the first day I started writing this blog.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiZ3UAZbphWwBf7O5EX8gMBbNxtCioojX1BMh1qAxEi6lXGAD2XK8SnJ9WZCWoVZyRwwrGdKPw_errfhRKArdEUoHj2LzE2YWoABfqisJaEmBc2MCXIkDwtSbXTLSWpLb5FP2NS8MzMqiR_/s1600/Day+20+lupins.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1440" data-original-width="1080" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiZ3UAZbphWwBf7O5EX8gMBbNxtCioojX1BMh1qAxEi6lXGAD2XK8SnJ9WZCWoVZyRwwrGdKPw_errfhRKArdEUoHj2LzE2YWoABfqisJaEmBc2MCXIkDwtSbXTLSWpLb5FP2NS8MzMqiR_/s400/Day+20+lupins.jpg" width="300" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">My Scottish lupins</td></tr>
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There were two quite steep hills early on the morning push, both of them passing little fishing villages. Thankfully both Dunbeath and Lybster had bridges across the valley that lead down to the sea, I still had to descend down a couple of hundred feet and climb back out again but we could see the old road passing under the modern bridges. I am glad I didn't have to use the old road; that would have been almost as bad as Helmsdale and Berriedale on day 19.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhMQad-oP9TOE4D8VCNcDHXXaZb9SHs4BQdmaK1k5yHto3AX5FjezYINSNbv1rOhQbTouBIbk7kRVcbsEljWK_WYxCm-vb4Pkfvdw_mJCbyEy8J-l3OiiTdvf91h68hagEDZ-wifX_91t-U/s1600/Day+20+Dunbeath.PNG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="408" data-original-width="639" height="255" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhMQad-oP9TOE4D8VCNcDHXXaZb9SHs4BQdmaK1k5yHto3AX5FjezYINSNbv1rOhQbTouBIbk7kRVcbsEljWK_WYxCm-vb4Pkfvdw_mJCbyEy8J-l3OiiTdvf91h68hagEDZ-wifX_91t-U/s400/Day+20+Dunbeath.PNG" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Dunbeath from the modern bridge.</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The picturesque Lybster Harbour</td></tr>
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After Lybster the road was undulating but it was decent pushing, I was clicking off the miles quite well when a middle age German couple caught up to us on bikes. I could here them talking to Ed behind me but I hadn't yet seen them. They had told Ed they were heading for John O'Groats too but they hadn't set off from Lands End, they had begun their journey in Scotland. After a quick chat with Ed they overtook us like many cyclists had done over the challenge. Only this pair were on those motor assisted pedal bikes. As soon as I spotted them it REALLY offended me! haha! I'm not sure why it offended me so much but I thought "You cheeky bastards! That's cheating!" I'd pushed all the way from Lands End using nothing but my own strength, I didn't even have gears and this pair of clowns were not even having to pedal! <br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Thrumster; my battle ground with the cheating Germans.</td></tr>
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That was it! I was in race mode, I pushed hard to keep them in sight whilst on a slight climb. Then over the brow of a hill I belted my damaged wheels with my damaged fists in my damaged gloves as hard as I could. I got myself as low as I could, tucked my head down and went flying past them at 46mph, my fastest speed of the entire push. Once I'd overtook them I continued to push in race mode telling myself I wasn't going to be overtaken by cheats! Even when it started sleeting and then a deluge of hailstones came down I just kept going hell for leather. All the way to Wick. <br />
I think Ed had cottoned on to my disgust in being overtaken by two Germans on electric bikes, I'm not sure he understood it though! Ant commented that I was flying today although he hadn't noticed the couple had it easy on their electric bikes so he didn't know what was going on. As we got to Wick I spotted a Pets At Home on a retail park so we pulled in to the car park to have lunch there and to get a tick remover for Bonnie. I felt so bad that we hadn't been able to get it removed yet but we just couldn't find a vets that was open anywhere near where we was. After reading the instructions I had a go with the tick remover. I panicked at first thinking I'd left its head inside Bonnie but dads magnifying glass came in in handy and I could see I'd got all of the little fucker out. I drowned it in vinegar, then mashed it up just to make double sure it was dead. Horrible little things!<br />
We ate our lunch and studied the map as we weren't far from leaving the A9 so we needed to make sure my dad knew where he was going and how we would work the finish so we had photos and video of the final few yards.<br />
I made sure dad knew to get to the outskirts of John O'Groats before us so he could get a photo of us passing the welcome to John O'Groats sign. Then he was to drive on to the hotel at the junction where End to Enders leave the main road and travel about half a mile down to the famous signpost at the harbour. In the hotel carpark I needed to change into a 53 Foundation vest as I knew the photos would be in the press. I was going to get Bonnie ready to run the last stretch with me. Whilst Ant, Bonnie and I waited at the hotel Dad and Ed would drive down to the finish so they were in place to video and take photos of me finishing the 900 mile journey. When I explained to dad the plans he said<br />
"Well I'll see"<br />
"No dad, it's really important we get this bit right."<br />
"Ok, I'll try my best then"<br />
I wasn't sure what he was thinking and why he seemed reluctant. I thought maybe there was some sort of surprise for me at the end and my plans didn't fit in with that. It seemed a bit odd to me but I just explained that I really wanted Bonnie to run the last bit with me and I had to have the charity vest on show for the photos that would be in the media.<br />
We did a little work on the gloves and the wheels when the weather eased slightly and let the dream team know that we were about to set off for John O'Groats so they could post of our facebook page. Then we got ready to leave on the last push of the challenge<br />
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<b><u>Day 20 Morning Stats</u></b><br />
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Miles: 24.02<br />
Time: 2:01:36<br />
Average Moving Speed: 11.9mph<br />
Top Speed: 46.0mph (fastest of the trip)<br />
Slowest Mile Split: Mile 6 - 7:47<br />
Fastest Mile Split: Mile 20 - 2:52<br />
Total Ascent: 768ft<br />
Average Heart Rate: 140bpm<br />
Max Heart Rate: 160bpm<br />
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<b><u>Day 20 Morning Progress Maps</u></b><br />
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<b><u>Day 20 Afternoon</u></b><br />
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We set off on the afternoon push passing through the Scottish countryside. There were very few trees about which looked unusual. Throughout the rest of Scotland we had passed lots of pine plantations and a good few natural woodlands, up here there was nothing. We passed dozens of crofts, some derelict, some traditional thatched and some that had been modernised. I'd love a croft one day, just enough land to provide for myself. I think I'd enjoy that sort of life.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A Scottish croft.</td></tr>
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The weather had begun to improve as we made our way towards John O'Groats. I'd been looking forward to this bit of the push, we'd been told this bit was easy by lots of people. People who had described other parts of the route perfectly had said that the last few miles are relatively flat. Its not! As I struggled up one hill there was a lady in her garden, dad had told her what we were doing and she told us we were on the last hill. That gave me a bit of confidence but she was lying too haha! There was a 300ft climb to do just before John O'Groats, I did ok climbing up it. I knew I wasn't far away now.<br />
Not long after the climb I started the downhill to the famous signpost. Dad got a photo of me passing the town sign but that wasn't the important one so we didn't stop to pose we carried on towards the hotel. Dad shot off ahead. I started to get butterflies in my belly with the excitement I was about to finish. I couldn't wait to let Bonnie have a run with me. She used to run with me quite a lot but as she is getting old and I am faster now she doesn't train anymore.<br />
When I spotted the Hotel and the motorhome was nowhere to be seen my heart sank, as we pulled up outside and checked the carpark and the side street I knew dad had ignored me from him saying he'd 'try' to meet us at the hotel when I was giving him directions at lunch. Ed phoned him to see where he was, in the time it took him to answer my blood had boiled. Ed passed me the phone and dad tried telling me there was nowhere to park at the hotel when he passed, there were only three cars in the carpark and not one on the side street and we couldn't have been more than 10 minutes behind him. That little fib tipped me over the edge and 899.5 miles worth of emotion ended up being yelled down the phone at my dad. I still have no idea why he chose to try and change my plans for finishing with Bonnie, I'd spoken about the plan since the start of the challenge. He knew I needed the charity vest and that I needed him and Ed at the finish line so I could get photos and a video of the finish. I eventually managed to get him to fetch the dog and the vest up for me. He decided to walk up rather than drive so it took quite a while. We had a massive row in the street over it, I was pretty nasty to him but I was so pissed off that he had put a huge downer on what should have been the best half hour of my life. I don't think I've ever been more angry.<br />
I let Bonnie off the lead so she could trot along behind me like the old days, changed my vest and set off for the finish line. My dad didn't get to see me finish which really upset him but I was so angry with him I didn't care. When I arrived at the car park I wasn't sure of the way but I could see a big group of people so I headed for them. When I spotted the sign I also spotted the little off-roading section I would need to do to get to it. I looked around the big group of people thinking that maybe I knew people there and that's why dad had decided to change my plans for me. A few people had said they might go to the finish to see me but there was only Ed, Ant and Bonnie there that I knew.<br />
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I had just broken a world record but it felt crap. I'd fallen out with my dad and that had ruined it for me. I spoke to a few of the cyclists that were around the Signpost asking them about their journeys and the stories behind them. Unlike Lands End there wasn't a charge for photos so people were gathering around and taking lots of photos then just chilling out on the grass. Some of the people who had done it before told me to go to the café and sign the End to Enders book and I would get a medal. I did that whilst Ed went to find my dad. <br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">With Ant and Bonnie at the signpost</td></tr>
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I spoke to my mum once I was back in the motorhome, she was excited for me but I just couldn't enjoy it. 20 days of massive effort seemed completely ruined. My mum phoned my dad then phoned me back telling me he was refusing to come to the motorhome. I was up for leaving him there but Ed wouldn't drive off. It took Ed about an hour and a half to get him in the motorhome which made me even more angry at him - I wanted a bath and a pint! <br />
Ed let me know that Amanda, the legend that had organised the cyclist to escort me over the border had shelled out for a night in a hotel for us in a nearby town. What an absolute star! That cheered me up no end! We headed straight for the hotel so I could get the pint I'd been waiting for whilst dad sulked. Once at the hotel dad refused to come inside, I'd had enough of fannying around him so we just left him in the motorhome and went to check in. We phoned Amanda and thanked her for the hotel, it was lovely to talk to someone who was actually in a good mood, that phone call and the gift of a night in a hotel broke my bad mood. I sent a message to dad to ask him if he wanted dinner but he refused to come inside so I made a decision to leave him to sulk and to enjoy my night. It actually took him over a week to say anything other than the word 'no' to me.<br />
Ed went to buy me a pint and when he returned to the room with it I posted a photo of the pint and my medal with a status taunting those that had treated me like an fool for believing I could complete the challenge to my personal facebook page. They had told me it couldn't be organised in time for August, we finished on the 3rd of July. They told me I needed a year or more to train, I did one training push. They told me I couldn't climb Shap, I climbed it in a morning and did another push that afternoon. They told me 33 miles a day was too much and I wouldn't finish in 28 days, I averaged 45miles per day and finished in 20 days. I was 8 days ahead of my own target, the first person to complete it and I beat the record set in an electric wheelchair by 10 days using arm power alone.<br />
I'm not normally a cocky person but I was so tempted to phone that group of people who had been so nasty to me and just laugh at them, say 'I told you so' and then put the phone down. I didn't, I had a meal with Ed and Ant, laughed and joked, had a few pints and went for a walk along the sea front to see the Lifeboat - I'm a little obsessed with Lifeboats which is a bit strange for someone who lives in the Pennines! Lots of well done comments kept coming all night, so many that I am still seeing messages that I missed at the time a year later!<br />
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<b><u>Day 20 Afternoon Stats</u></b><br />
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Miles: 17.44<br />
Time: 1:52:12<br />
Average Moving Speed: 9.3mph<br />
Top Speed: 25.8<br />
Slowest Mile Split: Mile 15 - 13:45<br />
Fastest Mile Split: Mile 17 - 3:02 (The last full mile of the trip)<br />
Total Ascent: 754ft<br />
Average Heart Rate: 143bpm<br />
Max Heart Rate:164bpm<br />
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<b><u>Day 20 Afternoon Progress Maps</u></b><br />
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<b><span style="color: red;">Total Daily Mileage: 41.46</span></b>Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15454059332314431888noreply@blogger.com0John o' Groats, UK58.6373368 -3.068899699999974558.6042798 -3.1495806999999747 58.6703938 -2.9882186999999742tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-870682862940569183.post-3804439069585502492017-07-02T18:15:00.001+01:002017-07-02T22:52:47.917+01:00Lands End to John O'Groats, Day 19 - A Big Fat Black One.<b><u>Day 19 </u></b><b><u>Morning</u></b><br />
<br />
After 61 miles you would have thought I would sleep like a baby. I very nearly did sleep like an actual baby, waking up every few hours balling my eyes out! I didn't cry but bloody hell my ribs were letting me know that 61 miles wasn't their favourite thing to do. My legs were protesting too. I still have almost normal feeling and some use of my legs which puts me at a disadvantage in wheelchair athletics. My legs weigh more than other athlete's legs and they hurt after a while in the chair - they are tucked up in an aerodynamic position, not a position designed for comfort.<br />
After the alarms went off and everyone got their morning jobs done Ed and I sat down with the maps, we knew with a 61 mile push on day 18 I had a chance of finishing on day 20. The problem was throughout the challenge each time I had pushed a tough or a long push I had then struggled the next day to get much further than my 33 mile target. I was still 90 miles from John O'Groats. We'd been tipped off by a few different people that there were two very steep hills climbing out of gorges at Berriedale and Helmsdale which were around 40 miles from John O'Groats. We both felt like I would need to get them out of the way on Day 19 because starting on two very steep hills on day 20 would make it very tough for me to finish that day. <br />
Getting these two climbs completed would need me to push past the 50 mile marker on Day 19, a tough ask after completing 61 miles the day before. I knew those final climbs were going to be tough after 50 miles of pushing. <br />
I did have a carrot dangled in front of me to get off to a good start, I'd been offered a free lunch at the Royal Marine Hotel in Brora.... 30 miles away from my start point! The carrot of free food couldn't have come at a better time. I set off with the firm target of getting to Brora for lunch.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhdLEPGe42Q8-iWd-Fya3Toxws11PPNhAuk5X3ogY5qwNPhd-fozqH2SZ7Jt0w9rnjAZkOdQK1Sa4ju6RPpoE6glCYUclJ0YtOHkcuCoR7NXNyDI9YrwXUSUrGOILrRdRrvbEwjuIO4RzIh/s1600/Day+19+pose.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="540" data-original-width="960" height="225" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhdLEPGe42Q8-iWd-Fya3Toxws11PPNhAuk5X3ogY5qwNPhd-fozqH2SZ7Jt0w9rnjAZkOdQK1Sa4ju6RPpoE6glCYUclJ0YtOHkcuCoR7NXNyDI9YrwXUSUrGOILrRdRrvbEwjuIO4RzIh/s400/Day+19+pose.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A traditional before picture</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg-8OEjgmp-uQOk6_DctRuCdsGu-rAgdicg9gCRi4SXehq3oQkPnY7I2FPUJaHYClFjEOFCf23y9E9ElM2rUrI3987zzZObWsBTPoPCZvyXZIUHdxL36a7HR9simjsDwJbGEPqbMbrwObAL/s1600/Day+19+start.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="945" data-original-width="960" height="393" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg-8OEjgmp-uQOk6_DctRuCdsGu-rAgdicg9gCRi4SXehq3oQkPnY7I2FPUJaHYClFjEOFCf23y9E9ElM2rUrI3987zzZObWsBTPoPCZvyXZIUHdxL36a7HR9simjsDwJbGEPqbMbrwObAL/s400/Day+19+start.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Ready to go!</td></tr>
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The first 5 miles of the day's push were undulating but nothing to worry about, I made pretty good progress. I even delt with the first hill at 5 miles pretty well, much better than I had coped the morning after a big day so far in the challenge. Towards the top of the Hill we passed a village called Tain, I asked dad to drive through to see if there was a vets that could remove Bonnie's tick. Ant, Ed and I stayed on the A9 and dropped down the steep hill towards Dornoch Firth Bridge, again I dropped the lads on the downhill. On the way over the Bridge I just couldn't believe the beauty of the place. It's so stunning it has its own facebook fan page! Unfortunately I didn't have anybody with me to get any photos of me crossing the bridge. We'd been passing signposts for Bonar Bridge, Ed seemed very interested in the place - I did wonder if he'd took Ant on a detour just to get a comedy photo for facebook. As with the journey the whole way I didn't want to set up a photo of me on the bridge, all the action shots were as it happened so I just kept pushing. <br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Dornoch Firth</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Stunning!</td></tr>
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There were a big group of cyclists on a layby on the bridge getting ready to set off and I got a big cheer as I passed by. There was a big old climb as I came off the bridge and headed for loch fleet. On this stretch of the journey I somehow found myself in the centre of a vintage tractor rally! There were lots of photographers out and every now and then a 50 year old plus tractor came trundling past. Pretty odd, but I guess they thought the same about me!<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj0d2CBxWiuJa-zyWqYmWJne8PApM4dvIHA5JFEfRFsTHTh_IHELBONXp4o1fQoMaZ11jYn18Nb5z1TEevSj8Hxv_05PYqhQ8GMreF8pYuoo0f8Kq6slisiieyNG40Yvt7J5ZRZ3_4LOXiP/s1600/Day+19+traffic.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="640" data-original-width="1288" height="198" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj0d2CBxWiuJa-zyWqYmWJne8PApM4dvIHA5JFEfRFsTHTh_IHELBONXp4o1fQoMaZ11jYn18Nb5z1TEevSj8Hxv_05PYqhQ8GMreF8pYuoo0f8Kq6slisiieyNG40Yvt7J5ZRZ3_4LOXiP/s400/Day+19+traffic.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Holding up some traffic on the way to Brora</td></tr>
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After 20 miles we pulled over for a brew in a Layby. The group of cyclists I passed earlier pulled in just a few moments later. They were also on a Lands End John O'Groats record bid. One of their group was in his 70's and aiming for and age group record. They said they had followed my progress all the way from Bristol and had hoped to pass me somewhere. That's why I had got such a big cheer from them on the bridge. It was nice to know people involved in a completely different sport to me were following what I was doing and were impressed by it. We wished each other luck and they got on their way.<br />
I was starting to feel the previous days Mileage when I got back on the coast road at Golspie there were two short but nasty hills between there and Brora but the call of a free pint and free food kept me going. In true Lancashire style I love 'owt fer nowt'! We made our way to the Royal Marine Hotel, I think we all felt a bit out of place in a swanky hotel in our sweaty kit! It took us a while to find our way through the hotel to the restaurant but once there the manager came across and offered us anything from the menu. I fancied a pint, steak and followed it with apple crumble and custard - the best custard I have ever tasted. I was made up with my free lunch!<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A tad under dressed lads?</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiIdMAsb2hfcdaDd7HZ2nYs01QAp84amOUL3xdFf1J9s8kW1qk5jcloyGBwI6KcAMZOi_oWentoUJ0bV5zjCWQ0R2ADBuRyDgVaW_zc7a7rJliIbMN-Xr0ILrfYOaDVE9z6Q23H4uyT7Qjv/s1600/Day+19+here+I+am.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="960" data-original-width="720" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiIdMAsb2hfcdaDd7HZ2nYs01QAp84amOUL3xdFf1J9s8kW1qk5jcloyGBwI6KcAMZOi_oWentoUJ0bV5zjCWQ0R2ADBuRyDgVaW_zc7a7rJliIbMN-Xr0ILrfYOaDVE9z6Q23H4uyT7Qjv/s400/Day+19+here+I+am.jpg" width="300" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Being a fool in the hotel.</td></tr>
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<b><u>Day 19 </u></b><b><u>Morning Stats</u></b><br />
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Miles: 28.90<br />
Time: 2:44:05<br />
Average Moving Speed: 10.6mph<br />
Top Speed: 31.4mph<br />
Slowest Mile Split: Mile 24 - 10:31<br />
Fastest Mile Split: Mile 18 - 2:37<br />
Total Ascent: 1167ft<br />
Average Heart Rate: 137bpm<br />
Max Heart Rate: 157bpm<br />
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<b><u>Day 19 </u></b><b><u>Morning Progress Maps</u></b><br />
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<b><u>Day 19 </u></b><b><u>Afternoon</u></b><br />
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After lunch we posed for photos with the manager and then got on our way again. <br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiLZzFAw4pHlUDSOPaeRyulfH1mWS5H3N39KNofWb2wn1ZjOxG3jI8Doqz98cP-qyy9oM-P80uYybvxCHuSBWaldSCaw7AnNjsNVRZLpwMMLXMCJ1nd-LugEn-_KoaEqLrZoEirh3-YMRTL/s1600/Day+19+royal+marine+hotel.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="786" data-original-width="960" height="327" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiLZzFAw4pHlUDSOPaeRyulfH1mWS5H3N39KNofWb2wn1ZjOxG3jI8Doqz98cP-qyy9oM-P80uYybvxCHuSBWaldSCaw7AnNjsNVRZLpwMMLXMCJ1nd-LugEn-_KoaEqLrZoEirh3-YMRTL/s400/Day+19+royal+marine+hotel.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The top custard man in the UK.</td></tr>
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At the first hill just after 3 miles I was already struggling, I'd eaten too much and had a cheeky pint, my stomach wasn't best pleased with me. From mile 3 to 11 I managed to keep it ticking over, I didn't feel great though and just as we got to Helmsdale we had rain so it was time for a brew.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Some flat!</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi9hcoo1ksh1eCPqk86Y_NlZqQag_R-2C_b0O4xsefCFyDaq4GX1Hu4DTIcPTIdCzOYgfMa3cBymvzW3uVouKDT4dqZTmjeRbxryG77nOLoXWUQSL_vDJ3pM47mtVBQhV1qghgxOsqaAkc_/s1600/Day+19+Bannockburn+inn.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="540" data-original-width="960" height="225" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi9hcoo1ksh1eCPqk86Y_NlZqQag_R-2C_b0O4xsefCFyDaq4GX1Hu4DTIcPTIdCzOYgfMa3cBymvzW3uVouKDT4dqZTmjeRbxryG77nOLoXWUQSL_vDJ3pM47mtVBQhV1qghgxOsqaAkc_/s400/Day+19+Bannockburn+inn.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Helmsdale.</td></tr>
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I was hoping that the rain would blow over but it didn't so after half an hour or so I had to get back out in the rain before I started to cease up. In the first few hundred metres the main rubber pad on my gloves came off. I tried a set of soft gloves instead but my hands were too battered to put any useful effort through them in soft gloves so another few hundred meters down the road I had to put my damaged hard gloves back on and Ed Gaffer taped them together. Yet another few hundred meters down the road we had to stop again, the tape was too tight so we needed to loosen them. <br />
The 5km climbing out of Helmsdale was awful, it took me over an hour, my PB is just under 12 minutes.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg_O3OUiN3UCtA42gvLkTCMpBEJQt-ceYs6N_J6DMvypRetMaUnecEdSC9ouc31vQ5PebQ6CfYceqL5HjPHQzo2Whsf_lewr0mpUq-sdQk2zArBlPfSgVWMevq1DRZ3Ggy_ta7JNcz2E_Fa/s1600/Day+19+-+yet+more+climbing.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="720" data-original-width="960" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg_O3OUiN3UCtA42gvLkTCMpBEJQt-ceYs6N_J6DMvypRetMaUnecEdSC9ouc31vQ5PebQ6CfYceqL5HjPHQzo2Whsf_lewr0mpUq-sdQk2zArBlPfSgVWMevq1DRZ3Ggy_ta7JNcz2E_Fa/s400/Day+19+-+yet+more+climbing.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A Hill</td></tr>
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<br />
This hill was a nightmare, luckily there was plenty to look at as I climbed it. Including a memorial for the Highland Clearance victims. I found myself a bit choked by it, statues of a family being forced from their home. Ant and Ed hadn't heard of the clearance so giving them a geek fest history lesson passed some time. When we finally got to the top we celebrated big hill number one being conquered by having a brew. Dad was already in a layby with a family who had stopped to have a chat as they had seen me a number of times last few days. The dad of the family warned me about the second climb, he said it was very steep and had some bad bends on it. <br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEioCVV5pbs9ZpTJYdMy-LLY4xrVFbz3d6qpqzR7yCvG5KW4Tv-I_VuFu21dI-KBWiPyLn5rPjRrkIXG4LdInozQRt4CqTRLOTLMV42mxc1jMBkVDvnmrtRZTnwahLd3iFg0Yct586k-sFqj/s1600/clearanc.PNG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="570" data-original-width="514" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEioCVV5pbs9ZpTJYdMy-LLY4xrVFbz3d6qpqzR7yCvG5KW4Tv-I_VuFu21dI-KBWiPyLn5rPjRrkIXG4LdInozQRt4CqTRLOTLMV42mxc1jMBkVDvnmrtRZTnwahLd3iFg0Yct586k-sFqj/s400/clearanc.PNG" width="360" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Memorial</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiBr9nijvVx5HjZpx6BN-926aC1UC_u3a3XPuUxcr1k-3ApnrU7T-fr2nRTTvlcFNXcWw0p0e3pc4RkAtfxfJraArevwRH9NqrW1vQmk0nwtPQ1lXcogZJ5EeM6G30_h5clnGe_bcKEPOMi/s1600/Day+19+-+fans.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="668" data-original-width="960" height="277" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiBr9nijvVx5HjZpx6BN-926aC1UC_u3a3XPuUxcr1k-3ApnrU7T-fr2nRTTvlcFNXcWw0p0e3pc4RkAtfxfJraArevwRH9NqrW1vQmk0nwtPQ1lXcogZJ5EeM6G30_h5clnGe_bcKEPOMi/s400/Day+19+-+fans.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The family that stopped to chat.</td></tr>
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I decided to set off before long as it was getting quite late. There was a smaller hill between Helmsdale and Berriedale and that was hard enough. We decided to phone the campsite to check if there was a time we needed to be there by but we were told not to worry. So on we went, down to just a few feet above sea level before tackling a bitch of a hill.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgXdGLTpR14Mxlxx12LhPKZJpSuBci5cfiTUJnD4qaFx7W1QkIeAFv_WzwGJMY1HHTod-CQvBlWGGernDQyBHLrPVsOoR6HpuW-AC9JYdLnr9Cf8PCw2XzDCYy6R9yErDrBTcQcMzvmHR4Z/s1600/Day+19+-+sea+shower.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="720" data-original-width="960" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgXdGLTpR14Mxlxx12LhPKZJpSuBci5cfiTUJnD4qaFx7W1QkIeAFv_WzwGJMY1HHTod-CQvBlWGGernDQyBHLrPVsOoR6HpuW-AC9JYdLnr9Cf8PCw2XzDCYy6R9yErDrBTcQcMzvmHR4Z/s400/Day+19+-+sea+shower.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">More rain on its way!</td></tr>
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On many parts of the hill I struggled to keep moving forward, Ed had to keep catching me from rolling back down the hill. Ant was fantastic at keeping me motivated. Dad shouted me on from wherever he could. I'd tried edging my way forward just using the tyres on not the push rims to give me more leverage but with the gaffer tape on the gloves it wasn't as effective as it was in Cornwall. I resorted to zigzagging across the road and back again. It was such a slow way to move forward but it was the best thing I could think of so Ant and Ed were checking for traffic and when it was safe I was cutting across the road and back again, inching my way forward.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjEIenkFAioobsbjLCVaNfpHVqXcgf1jJ_wpItr3V7pL7rC0qDLCnrLG1xw02wmSvIlvtvsgrzec5E-JXA3W6dBajfvF5QaQENbj5EqUlbYbHDZKNego6RhS24NBqqtNPjMlpTouza5IUDr/s1600/Day+19+horrible+climb.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="634" data-original-width="960" height="263" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjEIenkFAioobsbjLCVaNfpHVqXcgf1jJ_wpItr3V7pL7rC0qDLCnrLG1xw02wmSvIlvtvsgrzec5E-JXA3W6dBajfvF5QaQENbj5EqUlbYbHDZKNego6RhS24NBqqtNPjMlpTouza5IUDr/s400/Day+19+horrible+climb.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Hated this hill.</td></tr>
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I was knackered, the closest to tears I had been on the trip. I was falling asleep and absolutely goosed. It was starting to get towards twilight and there was an invasion of slugs onto the road. It was a strange sight hundreds of slugs crossing the road. Ed then came out with one of those lines where you really had to be there for. I still giggle about it now. My best gay mate suddenly said<br />
"do you know, its been years since I've seen a big fat black one!"<br />
Just to clarify, he was talking about the slugs. There was a moment of silence after he said it, almost as if all three of us were waiting to see who'd be the child first. Then all three of us were in hysterics, I was crying so much I couldn't see where I was going, I even bloody dribbled! Ed was performing his ridiculously loud laugh at the top of his voice, Ant was struggling for breath, we were all like a group of high teenagers! We eventually calmed down and carried on climbing but every few minutes one of us started giggling and we'd all end up in hysterics again. It made it even more difficult to climb, crying with laugher at the end of 110 miles in two days whilst having two broken ribs hurts like hell! That mile climbing out of Berriedale took me 42 minutes, probably the slowest mile of my life.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi64xGvhCwY6eC5Jc1TB4C-trFFBoe8DYV0jEryS54XlWCqcP82jwIaqLNR-H624enuWj_XLcsBukIrRMOtdtsjOjvHnOvt_dHvOiynZbEBmX6bxJnDOYKlhmxa_GTDy9hft7oDlcymwK8u/s1600/Day+19+climb.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="744" data-original-width="960" height="308" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi64xGvhCwY6eC5Jc1TB4C-trFFBoe8DYV0jEryS54XlWCqcP82jwIaqLNR-H624enuWj_XLcsBukIrRMOtdtsjOjvHnOvt_dHvOiynZbEBmX6bxJnDOYKlhmxa_GTDy9hft7oDlcymwK8u/s400/Day+19+climb.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Knackered.</td></tr>
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When I finally got to the top of the hill I Wanted to get out of my chair as fast as possible so at the first semi safe place I could get in the motorhome I did. I'd done what I needed to do, I still had 40 miles to do on Day 20 but barring anything going wrong I should get to John O'Groats.<br />
The campsite for the last night was a bit shit, it was the back garden on a house on the main road. It was the first campsite that charged us on the whole challenge and it was the worst site too. The owner was rude to Ed, she'd also left snotty notes around the shower block. "Remove shoes, I don't clean for fun" and "This door is here for a reason: Close It!". <br />
I'd got quite used to doing my short video interviews by now but it took so many attempts to get this one out. I kept forgetting where I had been and I kept giggling about black slugs. Myself and Ed were stood outside filming it and we were getting eaten alive by the famous Scottish Midge! I was in that much pain with my ribs I couldn't even sit in my day chair to film it!<br />
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<b><u>Day 19 A</u></b><b><u>fternoon Stats</u></b><br />
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Miles: 21.84<br />
Time: 3:19:41<br />
Average Moving Speed: 6.6mph<br />
Top Speed: 36.4mph<br />
Slowest Mile Split: Mile 21 - 41:53 (By far the slowest of the challenge)<br />
Fastest Mile Split: Mile 10 - 2:21<br />
Total Ascent: 1905ft (OOOOOOOOuch!!!)<br />
Average Heart Rate: 135bpm<br />
Max Heart Rate: 157bpm<br />
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<b><u>Day 19 </u></b><b><u>Afternoon Progress Maps</u></b><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj2n1FS_ZDfdqF-cwdfswhjtGsjL1xoHdT_ucTRZn4CDxXFzW32aHJVNv0rw-5yjNOoEC8UF9hjLP9mK89zSRdjQM0r-jLu7q5n4EOZjK_lNGnudK9q0OQJsef7fBHn5bW2uR4TaZq_yRtc/s1600/Day+19+aft+long.PNG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="382" data-original-width="820" height="149" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj2n1FS_ZDfdqF-cwdfswhjtGsjL1xoHdT_ucTRZn4CDxXFzW32aHJVNv0rw-5yjNOoEC8UF9hjLP9mK89zSRdjQM0r-jLu7q5n4EOZjK_lNGnudK9q0OQJsef7fBHn5bW2uR4TaZq_yRtc/s320/Day+19+aft+long.PNG" width="320" /></a></div>
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<b><span style="color: red;">Total Daily Mileage: 50.74</span></b><br />
<b></b><i></i><u></u><sub></sub><sup></sup><strike></strike><br />Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15454059332314431888noreply@blogger.com0Helmsdale KW8, UK58.117260999999992 -3.653533000000038632.595226499999995 -44.962127000000038 83.639295499999989 37.655060999999961tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-870682862940569183.post-33047594495181503302017-07-01T14:07:00.000+01:002017-07-01T14:07:28.993+01:00Lands End to John O'Groats, Day 18 - Pelted by Drawing Pins.<b><u>Day 18 Morning</u></b><br />
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I'd slept much better on the night of Day 17, which meant I woke up on Day 18 in a better mood. I was still tired, I'd woken up a few times during the night with rib pain but waking up a few times is far better than being awake all night! My target for the day was to get to Inverness or just beyond as that would leave me a good chance of finishing after another three days pushing which would be 21 days and a whole week ahead of schedule. Looking at the map over breakfast to check the route and where we thought might be a good place for lunch and where we might need to book a campsite. Whilst looking at the map it suddenly clicked why Inverness had its name, I like to think that I'd fairly bright and pick things up quite quickly. I have to admit that I didn't even know that Inverness was near Loch Ness until I was looking at the map that morning! I'd been noticing places with the 'Inver' and 'Firth' prefix anytime we got close to the coast in Scotland. The penny finally dropped that an Inver was an estuary or river mouth and a Firth was a narrow area of sea between two bits of land. So Inverness was where the River Ness which runs through Loch Ness meets the sea. I'm not sure if Ed already knew that but he humoured me as I told him my discovery anyway.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Getting underway on day 18!</td></tr>
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We were going to be on the A9 all day again which made us all a little nervous especially getting closer to Inverness. The A9 was a really busy road. We were pretty sure all the traffic must have been heading to Inverness as there is nothing much north of the city in terms of built up areas. When we got going on our push I was actually surprised how quiet it was. <br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Quiet A9 climb during the morning push.</td></tr>
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I had a nice start to the day with a one and a half mile downhill, the Scottish tarmac was vibrating the chair like mad so instead of pushing to try and get a fast speed I decided to put weight on my handlebars which helps keep the front wheel on the ground and allows the chair to work properly. I didn't want to be fighting for speed in the first mile of the push. Despite not even pushing my wheels the descent had gotten me over 30mph which is always a nice figure to see on the speedo.<br />
After that initial drop I was then climbing for 15 tough miles. Ant seemed to have a new confidence in shouting me on. He was brilliant all morning, I'm not sure what had made the change, maybe it was just learning from Ed but I think maybe he was just feeling more confident we would both get to the finish line. If we did make the finish Ant would have cycled around 350 miles which is not easy from someone who really isn't sporty. <br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">On another climb</td></tr>
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The long climb was followed by a nice 5 mile long downhill section that was broken by only one short flat and one half mile climb. The long downhill took me past the tiny village of Tomatin which is home to a famous distillery of the same name. Its an odd little place, surrounded by beautiful but rugged hills and mountains but Tomatin sits in a picturesque green valley, it looks like the grasslands of the south of England not the Scottish Highlands! Two bridges cross the valley, an old railway bridge and a modern road bridge. The views were great from the road bridge.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjc-hJyTdRj-DtKfJvVmAKi8bVaBQlNHECvsGl-BXdw5I96Ux48caPkhpxg_wL56MSV1nxTzr-1gCko4luD8ly1VqCRQS5iDjf-Qm2jZ_dnmHsu2ZDSdwE-_3EKpxYynrYXFgSTKWVr43HF/s1600/Day+18+tomatin+bridge.PNG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="599" data-original-width="899" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjc-hJyTdRj-DtKfJvVmAKi8bVaBQlNHECvsGl-BXdw5I96Ux48caPkhpxg_wL56MSV1nxTzr-1gCko4luD8ly1VqCRQS5iDjf-Qm2jZ_dnmHsu2ZDSdwE-_3EKpxYynrYXFgSTKWVr43HF/s400/Day+18+tomatin+bridge.PNG" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The green valley at Tomatin</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<br />
I wanted to have a geek fest over the views with Ed and Ant but unfortunately I'd just dropped them both on the long descent and they didn't catch me up until I was working my way through the undulating climbs over the next mile or so. We were soon back in rugged countryside and passing pine plantations near Loch Moy.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjnFjIzruye2Oru_TiwMux8_m19waebSOu5LszRxvjFESo8ugEtdE2_teASUxQEF_Iy0thHeQ87hjc2wZRbkC5md-YDrIXtE6qSoFiwetShqWQRcHGerTc4l3N1ErKSFDH7hvllBWvhyIbg/s1600/Day+18+close+up.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="580" data-original-width="960" height="241" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjnFjIzruye2Oru_TiwMux8_m19waebSOu5LszRxvjFESo8ugEtdE2_teASUxQEF_Iy0thHeQ87hjc2wZRbkC5md-YDrIXtE6qSoFiwetShqWQRcHGerTc4l3N1ErKSFDH7hvllBWvhyIbg/s400/Day+18+close+up.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Just keep pushing.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhY0vNeOXBNCfpEzgI91L0MrxtRVnFY4u7LqBdO3Gd2UoGuB-Zkyc1Vxb1DbhPtcFVUsTgPnlpzMIV4dL31Qkku7BY1KCG-mBpRfg-cJ6tpQmfzQ242iMo0l_OohtJaoB5R2HJ50S-yMwtP/s1600/Day+17+scottish+tarmac.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="552" data-original-width="960" height="230" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhY0vNeOXBNCfpEzgI91L0MrxtRVnFY4u7LqBdO3Gd2UoGuB-Zkyc1Vxb1DbhPtcFVUsTgPnlpzMIV4dL31Qkku7BY1KCG-mBpRfg-cJ6tpQmfzQ242iMo0l_OohtJaoB5R2HJ50S-yMwtP/s400/Day+17+scottish+tarmac.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Ed being special.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
I decided to stop for lunch at almost 26 miles so 3 miles over my target for the morning, I was happy with that in the Highlands as I thought going too far over target up there would be a bit difficult with all of the hills. I was 10 miles from Inverness so I might be able to get myself 5 miles past my target by evening time. As we didn't have anything other than beans on toast on the lunch front I opted for cereal instead. There was no way I was going to be able to stomach more beans!<br />
My dad got chatting to some old guy in the layby about his antique bike that Ed was riding, he kept coming back and knocking on the motorhome window to start yet another conversation with dad. Ant, Ed and I were in stiches laughing at my dad being stalked by the most boring man on earth, he was a right Norris Cole wannabe. I didn't rescue my dad though, it'll teach him not to talk to strangers in laybys! haha!<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhny7ud5N15LvnIx1DK7zrvENlsf3mSjqSjBParbSj11fe2G1VMlrkoAgGsovkDOYuKqhp5usyNNgNqIL5X1z2B3oOOwsG0H5o5NcWH1n_aG6PTiXhND55J-WTfk2vgjuJ7YJR48VjkFE1v/s1600/day+18+break.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="622" data-original-width="960" height="258" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhny7ud5N15LvnIx1DK7zrvENlsf3mSjqSjBParbSj11fe2G1VMlrkoAgGsovkDOYuKqhp5usyNNgNqIL5X1z2B3oOOwsG0H5o5NcWH1n_aG6PTiXhND55J-WTfk2vgjuJ7YJR48VjkFE1v/s400/day+18+break.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Lunch Break.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<br />
<b><u>Day 18 Morning Stats</u></b><br />
<br />
Miles: 25.9<br />
Time: 2:27:39<br />
Average Moving Speed: 10.5mph<br />
Top Speed: 35.7mph<br />
Slowest Mile Split: Mile 14 - 9:28<br />
Fastest Mile Split: Mile 20 - 2:29<br />
Total Ascent: 1026ft<br />
Average Heart Rate: 143bpm<br />
Max Heart Rate: 160bpm<br />
<b><u><br /></u></b>
<b><u>Day 18 Morning Progress Maps</u></b><br />
<b><u><br /></u></b>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgn_kLBMtkT5mXA2GfDjg6FSlnLosb4DdWHW6tEm97HKtVVCZE05vy2he8EuOPNkb6l1xBTKktNv3NPyrPXZETsT3iE3b5d9qpX8pfc211YsDk5PfEs-chHRpf8pQkd65nLVfLi2iqJYhB0/s1600/Day+18+morn+long.PNG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="342" data-original-width="851" height="160" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgn_kLBMtkT5mXA2GfDjg6FSlnLosb4DdWHW6tEm97HKtVVCZE05vy2he8EuOPNkb6l1xBTKktNv3NPyrPXZETsT3iE3b5d9qpX8pfc211YsDk5PfEs-chHRpf8pQkd65nLVfLi2iqJYhB0/s400/Day+18+morn+long.PNG" width="400" /></a></div>
<b><u><br /></u></b>
<b><u>Day 18 Afternoon</u></b><br />
<b><u><br /></u></b>
I had made sure dad had the shopping list before we set off on the afternoon push in the sunshine. We had looked on the map for the closest retail park and given dad instructions to head to it as early as possible so he would be back with us before too long. Ed and Ant put extra supplies in their bags so we could perform minor repairs without the motorhome if we needed to. We then got on our way to Inverness. <br />
The afternoon push started with a cracking downhill on normal tarmac for a change! I hit 44.7mph which is my fastest ever speed in my wheelchair. I left Ant and Ed trailing behind me. Ed had a go at sticking with me for maybe a quarter mile, Ant didn't bother trying, he already knew his legs wouldn't go fast enough. There was a big climb after 2.5 miles so Ed was soon back on my tail. It took Ant a good 3 or 4 minutes to catch us but we could see him in the distance gaining on us. I may have worked a little bit harder on the climb to keep Ant chasing us, I'm cruel like that! I think it's the coach in me that likes making people put effort in!<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi3RBkMf2TKdSEyDn5_Udrr7_oC6KH2VLxUQF_hkUj4DbdD09ZwP2wbWUM8sa80AE8X-pm0H-II5XNkVu2St6aux48r9rxe2vG5jepYBJVW95owa-nimEnSGnesjW9rurU4ysJB3RnBwsY7/s1600/Day+18+tanker.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="530" data-original-width="960" height="220" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi3RBkMf2TKdSEyDn5_Udrr7_oC6KH2VLxUQF_hkUj4DbdD09ZwP2wbWUM8sa80AE8X-pm0H-II5XNkVu2St6aux48r9rxe2vG5jepYBJVW95owa-nimEnSGnesjW9rurU4ysJB3RnBwsY7/s400/Day+18+tanker.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A nice wide berth from a tanker!</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
It didn't take long to conquer the climb and get my self going down the amazing hill that leads in to Inverness, again I dropped the lads pretty quickly. My speed was building up well, I was tucked down low to make me nice and aero dynamic. I crept up to 42mph and had lots more hill left to gain more speed, I was easily on for 50mph before the bottom, I was loving it. Then a tosser in one of those Hymer motorhomes from the 70's that look like a giant VW camper but with tiny wheels pulled out in front of me. The most annoying part of it was that he pulled up to the edge of the layby, stopped, looked straight at me and then decided to pull out on me. If he hadn't stopped and just carried on driving there wouldn't have been a problem, he would have accelerated and got away from me. His acceleration from a stationary position was nowhere near fast enough to pull out when he did. I managed to slow enough not to hit him but I got close enough to tell him what I thought of his driving skills. Slowing down so quickly had torn a big chunk of rubber out of my gloves. A 50mph opportunity well and truly ruined.<br />
Not long after it was the junction that dad needed to take to go shopping. I was now pushing on the hard shoulder so I didn't need shielding by the motorhome anymore. I pointed at the road sign and the exit and tried waving him off the dual carriageway but he was having none of it and carried on driving with me. I managed to get the message to him that he had to leave at the next junction or we would not have any food for dinner. At this junction he did leave but I was worried now because he would have to find his own way to a retail park and not follow the directions we had given him for the previous junction. The A9 was almost gridlocked at Inverness, it's basically a motorway but it didn't feel too dangerous because we were on the hard shoulder and the cars were only moving about 10mph.<br />
We crossed over the Moray Firth on a bridge with some serious views and then the hard shoulder disappeared on the Black Isle. Some of the drivers shouted abuse out of their car windows at us here. I think they were frustrated with being sat in the road works traffic for so long. <br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjAkF7AHW7gPU7nPQMppL9CFU86aRB8eCtkwDFURSDuYUxsske2-Q9nRs7LaMaqPc9DOPw-AYNrj5hWcEftHetBeSLLqb21qL55EiUH0hcq_Zfdp9LgT4AzXLsPL_lu1l44w53FYrMmffsy/s1600/Day+18+moray+firth.PNG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="581" data-original-width="1025" height="226" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjAkF7AHW7gPU7nPQMppL9CFU86aRB8eCtkwDFURSDuYUxsske2-Q9nRs7LaMaqPc9DOPw-AYNrj5hWcEftHetBeSLLqb21qL55EiUH0hcq_Zfdp9LgT4AzXLsPL_lu1l44w53FYrMmffsy/s400/Day+18+moray+firth.PNG" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The bridge over Moray Firth</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
Whilst climbing over the Black Isle it got really cold and started to rain. I could have done with stopping here but dad wasn't back yet so I just kept going. I had another belting downhill to tackle to get onto the bridge to leave the Black Isle by crossing the Cromarty Firth. This downhill wasn't fun, the rain was hurting my face as I was descending at 40mph again. It felt like I was being pelted with drawing pins, My hands and forearms were so cold they were hurting. I was also worried about Ed and Ant and how they were feeling. You could never have guessed it was the first day of July, it felt like November. Ed Caught me up when I was just leaving the bridge but Ant wasn't even in sight now. It took a long time for him to get back to us.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjmdpPKzNhkHLWorEX0L4XFCN5pFmkD29tNNnIrlbTBK2fsAPuD0lgol6Baa_uEUIE0TCxXw9dLUZeBE_I_l-PeIiK1DWAhN4oNb_IAGG-OcnguJV3mtlKTmH4GU4SgmPkHJZaCxSWFtpGP/s1600/day+18+cromarty+firth.PNG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="409" data-original-width="639" height="255" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjmdpPKzNhkHLWorEX0L4XFCN5pFmkD29tNNnIrlbTBK2fsAPuD0lgol6Baa_uEUIE0TCxXw9dLUZeBE_I_l-PeIiK1DWAhN4oNb_IAGG-OcnguJV3mtlKTmH4GU4SgmPkHJZaCxSWFtpGP/s400/day+18+cromarty+firth.PNG" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The Cromarty Firth Bridge</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEioVycQs_m7HN1xp7EFdagJ1WLp_I7-nCwW8hbeXhuQRYyGlvIDisrgDJ3eoFnqketD2Rb8Vx-grquzZ6X_-4OCEvVn62h6JroYBM_Z5pLozNvWk_-ttKPPORrnZ7cHUGWhA3Klr5umRJmD/s1600/Day+18+damp.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="645" data-original-width="960" height="268" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEioVycQs_m7HN1xp7EFdagJ1WLp_I7-nCwW8hbeXhuQRYyGlvIDisrgDJ3eoFnqketD2Rb8Vx-grquzZ6X_-4OCEvVn62h6JroYBM_Z5pLozNvWk_-ttKPPORrnZ7cHUGWhA3Klr5umRJmD/s400/Day+18+damp.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The busy, wet A9.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
I really wanted to stop so when we crossed the bridge Ed phoned my dad to see where he had got to. He was stuck in traffic. I was struggling because of the cold so sitting and waiting in wet clothes wasn't really an option. I'd already done 21 miles when I left the Black Isle. That was 48 for the day. The A9 was hugging the coast now we were back on the mainland do it was much flatter, another 40 minutes later it had dried up so I warmed up slightly and managed to work my was back to a respectable speed. After clocking 32 miles for the afternoon push I was ready to find a layby to wait for my dad but we were in a huge area of road works and we didn't find anywhere suitable to stop until over 35 miles.<br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi3jFplxkehsB4VfOMVuIoKFiEY4mHKOnp61Z7VB4HIIGGiX4JLkGxc9BgvaI1-s9YoA8YaFvLisEE6rzSqTJZDmlVVjvFl_jWNcXc9IPU84BzYEpEXqSsr0NTBHUtegTir4h5ZJdAHZ6ms/s1600/day+18+start.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="752" data-original-width="960" height="312" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi3jFplxkehsB4VfOMVuIoKFiEY4mHKOnp61Z7VB4HIIGGiX4JLkGxc9BgvaI1-s9YoA8YaFvLisEE6rzSqTJZDmlVVjvFl_jWNcXc9IPU84BzYEpEXqSsr0NTBHUtegTir4h5ZJdAHZ6ms/s400/day+18+start.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Not looking too bad to say we'd pushed and cycled 61 miles.</td></tr>
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<br />
Ed phoned my dad again to find out where he was and direct him to where we had stopped. It took him another 20 minutes to finally get to our finish line I'd done 61 miles! I couldn't quite believe it. Part of me wanted to phone all those trustees at 'that' meeting where they had spoken to me like I was an idiot for thinking I could push 33 miles in a day. I wanted them to know just how wrong they were! I hadn't gone out that day with the idea of pushing anywhere near that far but circumstances had almost forced me into it. I was just happy my body was capable of doing that even with two broken ribs! If I had a good day on day 19 It might be possible I could finish on day 20, just a few hours earlier I had been hoping I could manage to get it done in 21 days.<br />
There was fruit and veg in the motorhome!!! At last something healthy to eat. We had pasta with a tomato and herb sauce with mince beef, peppers, onions and mushrooms thrown in to bulk it up a bit. I was so happy to eat!<br />
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<iframe width="320" height="266" class="YOUTUBE-iframe-video" data-thumbnail-src="https://i.ytimg.com/vi/Korw2dTBvfw/0.jpg" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/Korw2dTBvfw?feature=player_embedded" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe></div>
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<b><u>Day 18 Afternoon Stats</u></b><br />
<br />
Miles: 35.62<br />
Time: 3:01:17<br />
Average Moving Speed: 11.8mph<br />
Top Speed: 44.7mph (Fastest yet)<br />
Slowest Mile Split: Mile 16 - 11:07<br />
Fastest Mile Split: Mile 7 - 1:24<br />
Total Ascent: 1175ft<br />
Average Heart Rate: 141bpm<br />
Max Heart Rate: 161bpm<br />
<b><u><br /></u></b>
<b><u>Day 18 Afternoon Progress Maps</u></b><br />
<b><u><br /></u></b>
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<b><span style="color: red;">Total Daily Mileage: 61.52</span></b><br />
<b></b><i></i><u></u><sub></sub><sup></sup><strike></strike><br />Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15454059332314431888noreply@blogger.com0Inverness, UK57.477773 -4.22472100000004557.4094605 -4.386082500000045 57.5460855 -4.0633595000000451tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-870682862940569183.post-63576598305657728212017-06-30T08:48:00.001+01:002017-06-30T09:01:13.110+01:00Lands End to John O'Groats, Day 17 - More Bloody Beans.<b><u>Day 17 Morning</u></b><br />
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Thankfully I had had a much better sleep and although I struggled to get myself sat up in bed when the alarms went off because my ribs were so sore, I felt better prepared to take on the day's push. We had got our morning routine done as usual but on day 17 we'd been waved off from the campsite by a few of the other campers who had spoken with dad the night before. We passed two castles on the short drive to Killiecrankie to start my push. We weren't far at all from the Cairngorms National Park, the castles made the craggy hills look like a setting from a blockbuster film.<br />
Dad had said Ed could cycle today and he would drive, Ed was excited to get on the bike, he'd been there from the start but had always been stuck in the motorhome because Ant and Nick don't drive and dad wasn't confident on the directions. I was looking forward to pushing with Ed, I knew he would have me laughing before too long. Day 17 was A9 all the way so dad couldn't get lost! I was dreading the climb into the Cairngorms but I knew I could do it if I'd managed to climb the day before despite the rib pain then I could climb today. <br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjHqinYdWMn4TutDpxSSRKUgfNdkyv9j7Z9P_UnOkXG39OqcSaNpIRRrahxKjEGVsU-1OHg6w5IFyLTRR66NI8Qf63dIoCXdSoAeueqdoCvBzU7c1oA-3b0zZsV1wOfB1RBOnZ3k9ulDjL9/s1600/Day+17+happy+ed.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="720" data-original-width="960" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjHqinYdWMn4TutDpxSSRKUgfNdkyv9j7Z9P_UnOkXG39OqcSaNpIRRrahxKjEGVsU-1OHg6w5IFyLTRR66NI8Qf63dIoCXdSoAeueqdoCvBzU7c1oA-3b0zZsV1wOfB1RBOnZ3k9ulDjL9/s400/Day+17+happy+ed.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Ed happy to start cycling today.</td></tr>
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Seconds after setting off on my push I knew something wasn't right, not with me but with the chair. I quickly noticed my wheels had been put on the wrong sides of the chair. I shouted to Ed to stop my dad from pulling out of the layby, luckily dad got the message in time so time was saved on him having to find somewhere to turn around and get back to us. I made my way back to the layby and my pit crew had my wheels swapped over in a couple of minutes. I set off again but something still wasn't right, it took me a bit longer to work out what it was but dad was busy packing tools and chairs away so he hadn't set off yet. I found the problem was a missing washer from one of the wheels. Different models of wheels sit on the chair slightly differently and some need washers to hold them away from the frame of the chair or the tyres rub. so we headed back to the layby to look for the missing washer. Four grown men crawling around in a layby at 9:00am must have been a strange sight for passing drivers. Eventually we found it and put it back on. Take three of morning 17 was more successful and we were finally on our way.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiJu7HqPdFez2SRqZX41mVXlj_tJHQVwKeqij_2_7GUmahquz9qhp_OqpZWUOXg7R7wT5Y8C-Mc7dH8WadqfUCWl676eKL8JrvgpytOmuMHGlz4l5K9Bqq8eKtgCAG9mrsuGjYIbdteJyLi/s1600/Day+17+ed+the+new+nick.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="657" data-original-width="960" height="273" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiJu7HqPdFez2SRqZX41mVXlj_tJHQVwKeqij_2_7GUmahquz9qhp_OqpZWUOXg7R7wT5Y8C-Mc7dH8WadqfUCWl676eKL8JrvgpytOmuMHGlz4l5K9Bqq8eKtgCAG9mrsuGjYIbdteJyLi/s400/Day+17+ed+the+new+nick.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Ed the new Nick</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Ed thanking drivers for giving me a wide berth.</td></tr>
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Exactly as I feared the journey into the Cairngorms was very tough, the scenery was amazing so that was a little compensation for the dragging climbs. Being a proud Rossendalian I am used to heather covered hills - I see them every day but the Cairngorms were something else. My humble little valley just doesn't compare to the desolate, rugged beauty of this National Park. During the first few miles we passed over the official border for the Scottish Highlands, I was only travelling at 6mph at the time but what a buzz that gave me. I'm not Scottish but I do have Scottish blood and I think it was that coupled with a signpost that made it plainly obvious I was now very high up on the map of the UK that gave me such a big boost. Whatever it was that caused it, I was happy with the adrenaline rush whilst climbing what seemed like an endless climb.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Climbing in to the Cairngorms National Park</td></tr>
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Well endless was a bit of an exaggeration, early on in the climb I had a short downhill but the dreaded Scottish tarmac made it quite a slow downhill, it certainly didn't give me much of a break from climbing. I stopped three times on the climb, I needed to keep my body fuelled. I was using a mixture of MyProtein products and tea & cake. I tried my best to keep going for as long as possible, Ed was an absolute star, cheering me on, keeping me motivated, making me laugh and taking my mind off pushing by asking about bits of history or wild flowers. Ed's enthusiasm seemed to rub off on to Ant and he was much better at keeping me entertained. I think I would of stopped for lunch much earlier if it wasn't for their support. Dad was doing great from the roadside too, stopping in every layby to cheer me on and take photos as I passed by.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi5PNvN7cybMDZ_Cx26uLlLCTntTiF7O3uwQpb00p9bVm7gRtlceUgurAau3UrmQ093e4k-h_bDbXAsKCxy323WS28h0dug7-cIFIJNyURbqS1QCLwLib3TR4f1ue6YRl4c36rjvapM0FKV/s1600/Day+17+climb.PNG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="261" data-original-width="782" height="132" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi5PNvN7cybMDZ_Cx26uLlLCTntTiF7O3uwQpb00p9bVm7gRtlceUgurAau3UrmQ093e4k-h_bDbXAsKCxy323WS28h0dug7-cIFIJNyURbqS1QCLwLib3TR4f1ue6YRl4c36rjvapM0FKV/s400/Day+17+climb.PNG" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The grey area shows the climb and the blue line shows my speed.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhajqRojz7iFi8ovJh5MW5jEr_5EiR7Pmnqit-gsRtVheqOaJve17KWCXEOTXUsuWdk-BQ1CD7eRtNc-lqkb5QhsBIGJ3DmU76R4N84RE3oQT7c4rQcmfN9o2BkXYKZjUGscE7DMBMLsAR6/s1600/Day+17+still+climbing.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="585" data-original-width="1575" height="147" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhajqRojz7iFi8ovJh5MW5jEr_5EiR7Pmnqit-gsRtVheqOaJve17KWCXEOTXUsuWdk-BQ1CD7eRtNc-lqkb5QhsBIGJ3DmU76R4N84RE3oQT7c4rQcmfN9o2BkXYKZjUGscE7DMBMLsAR6/s400/Day+17+still+climbing.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">High up in the hills</td></tr>
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I was running low on steam after 2 hours, I squeezed out an extra half an hour but that was all I could manage. I hadn't reached my morning target of 23 miles which was a bit disappointing but stopping early for food and a rest might mean I could pull back a few more miles that afternoon. If I'd carried on flogging myself that morning then it risked ruining my afternoon push. 20 miles boxed off, almost all of it uphill wasn't a disaster.<br />
Dad had been so engrossed in cheering me on he'd either forgotten about or decided against going to get some food for lunch so the choice was beans on toast or beans on toast. On the first 10 days or so beans on toast, especially with cheese, was my favoured lunch but I'd struggled to get it down for a few days now. I knew I had to eat it, I needed to fuel my body but I found it difficult. After craving cake and stodgy food for two weeks I was now craving something healthy.<br />
After lunch we gave the chair the once over as I was worried the horrible Scottish tarmac could have vibrated bolts and screws loose. With everything tightened up we spent the rest of the break chatting in the motorhome. We checked the maps to see where dad could nip to the shop for food during the afternoon push. He didn't seem keen on leaving us and wanted to go after the push but that would mean extra driving around before going to the campsite, longer time before I could get a shower or use a toilet and a longer gap between pushing and eating which isn't good for recovery. Ed nipping to the shops whilst I was pushing had worked well so far so I wanted to keep things running the same.<br />
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<b><u>Day 17 Morning Stats</u></b><br />
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Miles: 20.15<br />
Time: 2:29:25<br />
Average Moving Speed: 8.1mph<br />
Top Speed: 29.5mph<br />
Slowest Mile Split: Mile 20 - 10:21<br />
Fastest Mile Split: Mile 4 - 3:54<br />
Total Ascent: 1211ft<br />
Average Heart Rate: 142bpm<br />
Max Heart Rate: 160bpm<br />
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<b><u>Day 17 Morning Progress Maps</u></b><br />
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<b><u>Day 17 Afternoon</u></b><br />
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The afternoon started as the morning push had ended. We were climbing. We were now so high up that almost all the hills and mountains had snow on them, I couldn't believe that there was snow on the last day of June. The snow was another one of the things that hammered home just how far we had got ourselves. Whilst on the climb we saw both an Osprey and a Golden Eagle, I'd not seen either of these birds in the wild before. Ed and Ant were amazed I could tell what they were from a distance so I had to go full geek mode on them and explain about size, wing shape, tail shape and flying patterns. I was in love with the Cairngorms National Park.<br />
After a few miles climbing I got what I had been hoping for all day, a downhill! At last! We were still on the crappy Scottish tarmac with it's big stone chippings but the long downhill sections made the small climbs and the flat sections much easier to deal with. At 15 miles I thought I was on for something special on this push. My support crew were doing great again at the support. Ant was struggling keeping with me on some of the descents but when he was with me he was cheering me on. Ed was with me most of the time, he was telling me how fast I was going and how well I was doing. Dad was still stopping at every opportunity to encourage me, it was great for him to see me moving at speed for a long period. I had to remind him twice to go and get food for tea. I think he was excited and wanted to be involved, he was scared of missing something but we needed food desperately. He eventually gave in and went shopping for us.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Rough Scottish tarmac</td></tr>
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By 21 miles my maths had me on course to beat my marathon race PB. Yes the route was largely downhill but I had also pushed over 700 miles in the lead up to this and I was knackered from all the climbing over the last 48 hours so I did not expect to be moving this fast. <br />
Dad was back in next to no time, he was with us when we passed the marathon point in a time of 1:51:09 which is almost 4 minutes faster than my PB, obviously it doesn't count as a new PB but it put a smile on my face. Ed told dad the time for my marathon through the motorhome window and told him I was ready to stop. Dad went ahead to find a layby for me to stop in but there were road-works on the stretch of road we were on so it was another 3.5 miles before we stopped. Dad had set up the deckchairs, made brews, got some cake out and had the tools ready to strip the race chair and rack the bikes. I was more than happy to have a brew waiting for me at the finish after a massive afternoon push of almost 30 miles.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhQekbLJFps91qYic3P51CjRqcnkPddr1x8jYnGs9tJUEl9Cobr5JVwpSSKu6uzlQe6wbxox1BSWPJZhH9vXrnlSEacDdeMFrBRQTLptcSTZDQDw3RtRW-kLbVmU9iAAJyZaTrLnUIwX5ak/s1600/Day+17.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="585" data-original-width="960" height="243" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhQekbLJFps91qYic3P51CjRqcnkPddr1x8jYnGs9tJUEl9Cobr5JVwpSSKu6uzlQe6wbxox1BSWPJZhH9vXrnlSEacDdeMFrBRQTLptcSTZDQDw3RtRW-kLbVmU9iAAJyZaTrLnUIwX5ak/s400/Day+17.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Passing dad in another layby.</td></tr>
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Yet another free campsite was waiting for us at the <a href="http://www.alvie-estate.co.uk/" target="_blank">Dalraddy Estate</a>, it was an unusual campsite in a woodland setting, the buildings were all log cabins and the whole site was really well kept. I was so hungry and looking forward to something healthy for dinner, my heart sank when dad revealed his shopping; there was hardly anything in the bag. For dinner we were on oven chips, fried egg, bacon and baked bastard beans! I'd been struggling with food for days now but I'd managed to force it down my neck. I really tried but I only managed about half of the meal. I could visualise my dad being so scared of missing something on the push that he dumped the motorhome, legged it into the shop and did his own Dale Winton style supermarket sweep just grabbing whatever was close to hand.<br />
For the first time on the trip I was the last one up. Whilst writing my diary I had found a tick on Bonnie's neck so I had been googling how to remove one and if there was anything I could do without a tick remover. I also wrote a shopping list for when dad went shopping the next day so I could have something I had a chance of eating.<br />
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<b><u>Day 17 Afternoon Stats</u></b><br />
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Miles: 29.88<br />
Time: 2:07:43<br />
Average Moving Speed: 14.0mph (The fastest of the challenge so far)<br />
Top Speed: 28.4mph<br />
Slowest Mile Split: Mile 2 - 8:21<br />
Fastest Mile Split: Mile 6 - 2:37<br />
Total Ascent: 574ft<br />
Average Heart Rate: 143bpm<br />
Max Heart Rate: 177bpm<br />
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<b><u>Day 17 Afternoon Progress Maps</u></b><br />
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<b><span style="color: red;">Total Daily Mileage:50.03</span></b><br />
<b></b><i></i><u></u><sub></sub><sup></sup><strike></strike><br />Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15454059332314431888noreply@blogger.com0Cairngorms National Park, United Kingdom57.051012 -3.556946799999991531.5289775 -44.865540799999991 82.5730465 37.751647200000008tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-870682862940569183.post-48626254221213559352017-06-29T10:55:00.000+01:002017-06-29T10:55:28.358+01:00Lands End to John O'Groats, Day 16 - Dad's New Positive Vibes.<b><u>Day 16 Morning</u></b><br />
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The alarms went off on the morning of Day 16, I felt like I'd not been to sleep at all. I had really struggled with my ribs all night, I couldn't get comfortable. Even lying on my good side was hurting the ribs. Moving my arms hurt my ribs. Bloody breathing hurt my ribs. It was not a pleasant night. On my way to the shower block I passed-by a cyclist who we had bunny hopped the day before, he overtook me on the road but somehow we had finished ahead of him and got to the campsite before him. I was going to go and have a chat with him but he was stood in the middle of the campsite naked. Everything hanging out! After the night I'd had I wasn't in the mood to stand talking to some bloke with his todger out in the middle of a field. Maybe the granddad had tried charging him to wear clothes!<br />
Having seen all the mountains surrounding the campsite I was convinced I was going to need to climb lots during Day 16. I didn't have much confidence that I would be able to climb that day but we made our way to the start to give it a crack. Dad was in his cycling gear again, I didn't try and talk him out of it, he seemed ok so maybe the cycling was doing him some good. I did say he would need to let Ed have a go cycling soon as he hadn't had chance yet. Ant was starting to feel a bit sore but he wanted to be cycling with me which was really cool of him. He could have been sat in the motorhome, in the warm with Ed but he was out with me.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhwGwUrgVcowMY_guoz4Nb2M_nkFJptIjipRjGP9AUqRjfE3i77kPjoGJvR3ovkSAmqTvMmabh8Lf5hf8TE_uiv3VcaGPWZVTJ017wt0MtGpq9zZ7hA_MOf381SBV8-R6X82AZSiriDW7wp/s1600/Day+16+start.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="720" data-original-width="960" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhwGwUrgVcowMY_guoz4Nb2M_nkFJptIjipRjGP9AUqRjfE3i77kPjoGJvR3ovkSAmqTvMmabh8Lf5hf8TE_uiv3VcaGPWZVTJ017wt0MtGpq9zZ7hA_MOf381SBV8-R6X82AZSiriDW7wp/s400/Day+16+start.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">At the start of Day 16 and already in pain.</td></tr>
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The start of the day's push was better than I thought, it took me a good few miles before I reached my first real hill so I was nicely warmed up when I needed to climb. I was still in pain but I did ok on the climb. <br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjyMMwk_HM8NB-1JO3jLSLM6lQpqmTqqr90Cx-NzF2AIqEK7m7GbWbmsR4xZ2p4Eio8DVZ_LLYmIdyCc9ImxLj0kuWP13-3cbuvevMqRkxR5kGWS8hpODyJx2_fsbEEaAxP-iWlhikRtZUn/s1600/Day+16+.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="640" data-original-width="1301" height="196" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjyMMwk_HM8NB-1JO3jLSLM6lQpqmTqqr90Cx-NzF2AIqEK7m7GbWbmsR4xZ2p4Eio8DVZ_LLYmIdyCc9ImxLj0kuWP13-3cbuvevMqRkxR5kGWS8hpODyJx2_fsbEEaAxP-iWlhikRtZUn/s400/Day+16+.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">On the first downhill </td></tr>
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We passed through a steep sided wooded valley whilst following the path of the River Farg. I loved it, I felt like we were miles from anywhere It was one of the few areas we travelled through that had a natural woodland and not a pine plantation.<br />
Shortly after the valley I started to suffer from boredom again, Ant was saying well done every 15 minutes or so but I needed a bit more. Dad had gotten in the habit of telling me how big and steep the hills I was about to go up were. Then as I was climbing them he'd be pointing out how hard work they were and how they were slowing us right down. I was trying to distract myself from the pain and how much I was struggling on the hills today but my dad was reminding me every few minutes. I know looking back that he was actually trying to point out I was doing well climbing these hills with my broken ribs but that's not how it was coming across at the time. <br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjr9By02VggXwBFoGkXvRPB1Fb2mGIDpTToKvhmgP9nstLCxfl9JHc9vfIu-1Aj-iocdbLvtE72sCB3NTFsD3xLkcajzsP6YRNsLsHSU9wGv9tVBLP9maZaq7sDxwt99VZMWYEWF3ZHW7KI/s1600/Day+16+mountains+and+motorhome.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="720" data-original-width="960" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjr9By02VggXwBFoGkXvRPB1Fb2mGIDpTToKvhmgP9nstLCxfl9JHc9vfIu-1Aj-iocdbLvtE72sCB3NTFsD3xLkcajzsP6YRNsLsHSU9wGv9tVBLP9maZaq7sDxwt99VZMWYEWF3ZHW7KI/s400/Day+16+mountains+and+motorhome.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">I really wanted to stop at the motorhome!</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh1oc7QF5wkXwVLTNtnyytLEYyly7GKjQxJLoKhODr8jk5m_lyzMBKtceaHfBSU0-4WtZyNVi7BhEXUO6y5JmCQFEVoLYDpI_3Y7YMR_6Yz0pev-9sftrT03u7KRun4l_kMpzN4Gbx4OucS/s1600/day+16+perth.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="633" data-original-width="960" height="263" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh1oc7QF5wkXwVLTNtnyytLEYyly7GKjQxJLoKhODr8jk5m_lyzMBKtceaHfBSU0-4WtZyNVi7BhEXUO6y5JmCQFEVoLYDpI_3Y7YMR_6Yz0pev-9sftrT03u7KRun4l_kMpzN4Gbx4OucS/s400/day+16+perth.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Approaching Perth</td></tr>
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We passed through Perth centre, it was the first built up area in Scotland that I thought looked nice, some of the buildings were amazing looking. We passed a church that had had a stone crown on top of its tower and we travelled along side the River Tay for a while. Although it was beautiful to look at it was a busy place and it was the first large built up area we had passed through without a single donation. On the outskirts of Perth we picked up the A9 which was a busy road and one we would be spending the afternoon on.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgAVGgLUELxcVrmC6B3kTuxzFCV5pl2Rc7RlO4A1Z2rVhV4wQnD9WGGYBMImCWPjUscEGNXaDRN34mQHTPf7QOcibZ9jFjxtpd5KsW-YQP3cCgSiFmM1Sj0eneex7WMTLVTc7XmU8TMq5vg/s1600/Day+16+fancy+church.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1199" data-original-width="1600" height="298" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgAVGgLUELxcVrmC6B3kTuxzFCV5pl2Rc7RlO4A1Z2rVhV4wQnD9WGGYBMImCWPjUscEGNXaDRN34mQHTPf7QOcibZ9jFjxtpd5KsW-YQP3cCgSiFmM1Sj0eneex7WMTLVTc7XmU8TMq5vg/s400/Day+16+fancy+church.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The beautiful church in Perth - I was really captivated by it.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh7UpsetuSZgQx9Eklu4YBh_W6ELZN-ZXLZPxOYfT1uI86F4myBgiLd2ASU7wrbbU1s6cRWtEu_kS6_X9r8Kt-b_f9yG8ioNTZGgjdr-FQDH_gD6Gcsa-W8A7uxIFB_w0HNOwDaQdeBVUPJ/s1600/Day+16+town+centre.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="606" data-original-width="960" height="252" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh7UpsetuSZgQx9Eklu4YBh_W6ELZN-ZXLZPxOYfT1uI86F4myBgiLd2ASU7wrbbU1s6cRWtEu_kS6_X9r8Kt-b_f9yG8ioNTZGgjdr-FQDH_gD6Gcsa-W8A7uxIFB_w0HNOwDaQdeBVUPJ/s400/Day+16+town+centre.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Passing through Perth.</td></tr>
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It wasn't long before the ribs and the boredom had me looking for somewhere to stop for lunch, it was another layby. I'd only managed 22.7 miles more than 10 miles less than yesterdays morning mileage tally. We were low on supplies so we had to have beans and cheese on toast again followed by us trying to eat our way through the mountain of cake that had been bought for us on Day 13. I was starting to struggle getting food down, probably due to exhaustion, I wanted something light and healthy but we didn't have anything so I forced the beans on toast down so I had some fuel for the afternoon push. Over lunch I asked Ant and dad to give me more encouragement on the climbs and to have a chat with each other whilst riding. I couldn't hold a conversation when pushing but hearing them chatting and me joining in with the odd word or two would help pass the time. I also asked dad to stop pointing out how big and steep the hills are and how slow we were going, I already knew all that! haha! I didn't want to upset either of them but I needed them to distract me from the push, the pain and the slow speed.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiUTYtZWavBBN5vHdVrGaMMwPcU2ZeIvsVyRUCf_OHaHGRZ4MpFEbPMZuEISgKluHR6r6HMWlw8NoQKX3w44GJUviKQQWvouMyI7XDtBgIw1lvNk0-DSJZxCNNi0Ht7MkonnKGOL6tV2spN/s1600/day+16+arty.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="720" data-original-width="960" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiUTYtZWavBBN5vHdVrGaMMwPcU2ZeIvsVyRUCf_OHaHGRZ4MpFEbPMZuEISgKluHR6r6HMWlw8NoQKX3w44GJUviKQQWvouMyI7XDtBgIw1lvNk0-DSJZxCNNi0Ht7MkonnKGOL6tV2spN/s400/day+16+arty.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Ed getting arty on the A9</td></tr>
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Looking at my stats for the morning push I wasn't actually that slow, it's strange what a bit of pain and negative thinking can do to the way you perceive what you are doing.<br />
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<b><u>Day 16 Morning Stats</u></b><br />
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Miles: 22.67<br />
Time: 2:05:24<br />
Average Moving Speed: 10.8mph<br />
Top Speed: 28.4mph<br />
Slowest Mile Split: Mile 12 - 8:51<br />
Fastest Mile Split: Mile 5 - 3:03<br />
Total Ascent: 807ft<br />
Average Heart Rate: 135bpm<br />
Max Heart Rate: 156bpm<br />
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<b><u>Day 16 Morning Progress Maps</u></b><br />
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<b><u>Day 16 Afternoon</u></b><br />
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The afternoon push was all on the A9 which is an extremely busy and fast road, it is the main route to Inverness which is the biggest city up in the highlands. The road has many HGV's using it to supply Inverness with all the goods it needs. It seems like a lot of dickheads also drive on this road. We had dozens of cars get way, way too close to us whilst travelling at 80 or 90mph. Lots of people beeping at us but not in the cheery way we had been beeped at in the rest of the UK. It was only car drivers acting like this, every artic lorry that passed us did so with a really wide birth and many drivers mates gave a thumbs up out of the window. We were all thanking the none dickheads as they overtook us with a wave. There was never any point where traffic couldn't get by, people seemed to be angry at me for some other reason.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhRQgI4ekskmbWD-arhAlAMzuXZKAWrNMjLWxE5r-FMe95kMCWyyTVhKTMfu9xdcYJSMOc2SvpmH-cisI0ZrV-w6N1w4gEKCMLP1wkfj5Ct-WYwzxds81UrJCFHMZE6pjdql_kDj8Gvg0ru/s1600/Day+16+signs.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="741" data-original-width="960" height="308" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhRQgI4ekskmbWD-arhAlAMzuXZKAWrNMjLWxE5r-FMe95kMCWyyTVhKTMfu9xdcYJSMOc2SvpmH-cisI0ZrV-w6N1w4gEKCMLP1wkfj5Ct-WYwzxds81UrJCFHMZE6pjdql_kDj8Gvg0ru/s400/Day+16+signs.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Heading for Inverness on the A9</td></tr>
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Dad and Ant were making a real effort to keep me entertained during this push. Dad must have been cursing inside at the drivers coming too close and beeping. Even with me at 32 years of age he was still over protective and he loves a good rant with lots of swearing thrown in. He definitely listned to me asking him to be positive because he didn't shout fuck off at a single driver! Anybody who knows my dad will know that was a miracle. Dad's new positive vibes and Ant's now more frequent 'well done ant' helped me to 18 miles which was a good effort for an afternoon push considering how tired and sore I was! I'd got myself to a place called Killiecrankie, another place name that made me giggle. The place name and exhaustion had got me imagining Janette Krankie being killed in all sorts of comedy ways. Giggling at my own internal jokes was not good for my ribs, I was on the verge of crying due to the rib pain but I was laughing like mad about the Krankies being twatted in the face with a plank of wood on a builders shoulder as he turned around. It's not even funny, I'm not much of a fan of slapstick comedy so exhaustion must have played a part! I should probably talk to Dave the sports psychologist about why I found the place name and the thought of an old woman dressed as a school boy being killed so hilarious.<br />
We weren't very far from our campsite <a href="http://www.fonab.co.uk/" target="_blank">Milton of Fonab</a>, yet another freebie. I was a bit down about the day as a whole; I was in a lot of pain and I wasn't happy with the 40.5 miles total for the day. It was 7.5 more than my daily target but I felt like I should be able to do more.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhvIgNlqsJ8sEd3NYubdWy3NFL7p96VTbTMT-ar8WZ-BYMo0PcO9xxvFaWH3LB7I_5yxypmgDXRG6Xi0V1fh5wQBFKm7R2iYLu9ya3eRx1E74a3_zhnX0pZAYYdz3oA0ASvFh66ohA3Yb3j/s1600/day+16+mountains.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="720" data-original-width="960" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhvIgNlqsJ8sEd3NYubdWy3NFL7p96VTbTMT-ar8WZ-BYMo0PcO9xxvFaWH3LB7I_5yxypmgDXRG6Xi0V1fh5wQBFKm7R2iYLu9ya3eRx1E74a3_zhnX0pZAYYdz3oA0ASvFh66ohA3Yb3j/s400/day+16+mountains.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Beautiful but tough.</td></tr>
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We had three lots of campers come up to us in the campsite to chat to us about the challenge and they all donated to the charity which cheered be up a bit. It was the first day that we hadn't had a single penny donated on the road so it was nice to get something in the bucket for all my effort. It meant I could stop grumbling about the tight arse Scots! Dad was in his element talking to the people who donated. He loves chatting to new folk when he isn't upsetting them.<br />
Dad had spotted that there were baths in some of the wash rooms so he helped me over the deep gravel roads and I went for a very long soak to ease some of my pain. I was in bed by 7pm that night hoping for some better rest.<br />
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<b><u>Day 16 Afternoon Stats</u></b><br />
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Miles: 17.97<br />
Time: 1:38:30<br />
Average Moving Speed: 10.9mph<br />
Top Speed: 30.0mph<br />
Slowest Mile Split: Mile 17 - 7:06 (fast as a slowest mile)<br />
Fastest Mile Split: Mile 3 - 3:09<br />
Total Ascent: 531ft<br />
Average Heart Rate: 138bpm<br />
Max Heart Rate: 154bpm<br />
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<b><u>Day 16 Afternoon Progress Maps</u></b><br />
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<b><span style="color: red;">Total Daily Mileage:40.64</span></b><br />
<b></b><i></i><u></u><sub></sub><sup></sup><strike></strike><br />Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15454059332314431888noreply@blogger.com0Killiecrankie, Pitlochry PH16, UK56.742149 -3.778931999999940731.220114499999998 -45.08752599999994 82.2641835 37.529662000000059tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-870682862940569183.post-54470352125098242452017-06-28T11:48:00.000+01:002017-06-28T11:48:07.151+01:00Lands End to John O'Groats, Day 15 - Two Pounds Mhairi, Two Pounds!<b><u>Day 15 Morning</u></b><br />
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I had a cracking sleep at Helen and Ru's house, it felt good to be in a proper bed and my ribs hadn't hurt half as much that night, maybe because I'd managed to get in a position that didn't involved being wedged against the motorhome bathroom wall! Helen made us all Bacon rolls for breakfast! what a star! After a cracking brew we posed for photos and then left for the start.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjWIJ4OIDCD7uAC_S3b565iGkTrfSCEACcoT_RBHJqj-ZxTXVkyKXx4kD9BAiXA_Tgw1izWm98T9J5qO_x6LIY1rHsrWMXnTL_vfxfte7Q9Uhc6iVp8OSZ5EbGj5Pet2hSm5O3ctrSR_ICH/s1600/day+15+with+helen.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="720" data-original-width="960" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjWIJ4OIDCD7uAC_S3b565iGkTrfSCEACcoT_RBHJqj-ZxTXVkyKXx4kD9BAiXA_Tgw1izWm98T9J5qO_x6LIY1rHsrWMXnTL_vfxfte7Q9Uhc6iVp8OSZ5EbGj5Pet2hSm5O3ctrSR_ICH/s400/day+15+with+helen.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Ant, Myself with Bonnie, Helen, Ru and dad after our bacon rolls.</td></tr>
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Yet again dad was sporting his fetching 1990's black Ron Hill traksters - slightly better than his blue ones, he was wanting to cycle with me again. I didn't bother arguing this time, there's no point once he has an idea in his head. We started our day just south of a village called Forth - I'm not sure if its named after the River Forth or not but we were heading towards the Firth of Forth and I was really looking forward to crossing it. Crossing the Firth of Forth would put me further north than I had ever been in Scotland. I'd wrote in my diary that the village of Forth was quite ugly but that the scenery was lovely. I think that was probably a bit harsh, there were lots of building covered in a really drab looking grey pebbledash covering. There were also lots of grey council houses - that was something I had noticed right the way through Scotland so far. The houses weren't scruffy, the village centre and other surrounding villages weren't dirty. They weren't ugly they were just different to the chocolate box cottages of Devon and Cornwall. The rugged countryside was some of the best we had seen up until this point.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">We started at one of the few painted houses around.</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A lively scene</td></tr>
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I loved the first few miles of this push, I was losing the altitude I had gained during day 14's big climb. We'd driven along the route on the way to the start line from Helen and Ru's house. I knew that every single one of the steep descents was followed by a climb. This meant I could finally let rip on some steep drops. I dropped Ant on the very first one, dad used to be a good club level cyclist so he managed to get back to me on two or three of the climbs after the fast descents but I managed to drop him too after the biggest one. Dropping cyclists is one of my favourite things to do, it shouldn't happen when they have gears and we don't. When you do drop a cyclist you feel good and anyone with a sporty dad knows beating them is a real buzz, however old and crocked they are! I was having great fun, especially when I hit 40.9mph.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Tucked in nice and low ready for a descent.</td></tr>
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When we got to the bit where on the advice of Helen and Ru we needing to go straight ahead to avoid a gorge on the route we planned there was a sign up saying the bridge was closed. So we had no option other than heading to the gorge we'd been warned was too steep. The positive spin on this detour was that it took us right past Helen and Ru's house. It took us a while to get there but when I did Helen and Ru had gathered some neighbours and brought them out to cheer me on. Ed must have phoned them to let them know we were coming past. It seemed a nice way to thank them; to let them see me in action - even if it wasn't actually our decision to do a fly past.<br />
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The next thing on my mind was this gorge we were heading for. I'd been told it was very steep and winding both down to the bottom and then climbing up the other side. It didn't take long before we spotted the signposts saying Avon Gorge, it wasn't the Avon Gorge near Bristol (thought I'd let Nick know for when he reads this). On my way in to the Gorge I had to keep the brakes on to stop me building up speed and missing the nasty bends. Even with the brakes on I struggled to keep my speed down. Just as I reached the bottom and turned the final downward corner, Bang! My back right tyre popped. 140psi escaping from the tyre makes quite a loud noise. Ed came past in the motorhome, He must have known something was wrong, he slowed down and wound the window down. We told him and he said he would find a place to stop asap. The road through the gorge was narrow so there was nowhere for him to stop until he got out of the other side. I sent dad ahead to ride to Ed and help him get my spare wheels ready and of course to put the kettle on. Ant stayed with me as I crawled out of the Gorge with the flat. I held traffic up quite badly, it was busier than usual with everyone following the same diversion as us. Two artic trucks struggled to get past. I was going as fast as I could with that flat tyre. Eventually I reached the top, one of the truck drivers had spotted the motorhome and all the spares scattered around. He'd parked up to go and make a donation and wish me luck. I'd been panicking thinking I was pissing everyone off by holding them up. That was proof of me over thinking things. That said, the work Dave from The Academy Of The Sporting Mind had got me through this little mishap. I'd expected to get a lot of damaged tyres on the trip but this was my first one at way over 500 miles, not bad going. It did happen in the worst place possible but I handled it without having a massive meltdown!<br />
I finished the morning by crossing the Firth of Forth on the Clackmannanshire Bridge. It was stunning! There were cracking views up and down the firth and straight ahead of us the Ben Cleuch mountain, still with snow on top. Seeing a tiny bit of snow on the mountain with made it hit home just how far I'd travelled. Two weeks earlier I'd been looking at peoples gardens being extremely jealous of all the exotic plants in the gardens which would have just died if I'd been silly enough to put them in my garden at home.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Clackmannanshire Bridge, not my photo but you get the idea!</td></tr>
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I'd now got myself further north than ever before in Scotland. I'd covered 33 miles, a whole day's worth of miles in just the morning session. I was made up with myself. It was day 15 and rather than being the wrecked shell of a human that Brian had suggested I would be if I attempted 33 miles a day I had just done 33 miles in one push. I was obviously tired and my ribs were sore but I certainly wasn't embarrassing anybody with how useless I was like the scenario that had been talked about at <i>that </i>meeting.<br />
We stopped for lunch just after the bridge in what has to be one of the most scenic laybys in the country - We'd visited quite a few of them by this stage so I feel well qualified to say that! We weren't far from Stirling or Bannockburn and as a massive history geek I could feel my Scots blood stirring. It would have been great to go and visit some of the places so pivotal in Scottish history but I had a world record to break so we had lunch instead. Again, it's another area I want to go back to.<br />
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<b><u>Day 15 Morning Stats</u></b><br />
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Miles: 33.56<br />
Time: 2:50:55<br />
Average Moving Speed: 11.8mph<br />
Top Speed: 40.9mph (fastest yet)<br />
Slowest Mile Split: Mile 21 - 11:12<br />
Fastest Mile Split: Mile 8 - 1:57 (fastest ever)<br />
Total Ascent: 1219ft<br />
Average Heart Rate: 138bpm<br />
Max Heart Rate: 158bpm<br />
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<b><u>Day 15 Morning Progress Maps</u></b><br />
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<b><u>Day 15 Afternoon</u></b><br />
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Ed and I checked the map during lunch, mainly to reassure me that we weren't heading for the bloody great lump of rock the road was aiming straight at! Luckily we didn't have to break out the ice axe just yet. We were keeping to a road that passed between the mountains and the Firth of Forth heading for somewhere called The Crook of Devon, this was another one of those times I missed Nick, I wanted to hear his views on passing through The Crook of Devon and the Avon Gorge.... in Scotland - I imagined him saying something like "Can they not think of their own names up here?".<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Thankfully we were heading around the mountains not over them!</td></tr>
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The afternoon was another damp one, I was struggling to with getting my gloves to stick on my wet push rims. I still had my spare wheels on the chair as we hadn't changed the popped tyre at lunchtime. We hadn't modified the spare wheel's push rims with tape for extra grip in the wet like we had done with my best wheels. After 10 miles I'd lost a lot of speed due to the slipping but also the bearings in my spare wheels were old and stiff. I decided to stop and change the tyre on my best wheels so I could use them to squeeze an extra few miles from the day. With leaving in a hurry at the start of the challenge my spare tyres only got delivered the day before we left for Cornwall. Normally I would blow a new tyre up to stretch it so it would be easier to put on, I hadn't had time to do that this time. Getting a tub tyre on a carbon disk wheel is a nightmare. Ed and Ant hadn't even seen it done before let alone tried to do it. Dad and I both have a hereditary condition with our hands that stops our grip being quite as strong as it should be and alters the way our fingers moved. There wasn't enough room for all four of us to wrestle the tyre in to place so Ant resumed his role of tea maid, He was very skilled at it after all! Ed, Dad and I worked up a proper sweat trying to get the tub on, I don't think Ed believed how hard it was to change them up until that point! You end up with blisters on your thumbs, bruises on your fingers and hands and pouring in sweat. I'd already told Ed about getting a puncture in a race, you have to change the tyre yourself and without taking the wheel off the chair. Many wheelchair athletes choose to push home slowly instead of trying to change the tyre. Quite often your arms are too tired to get a tyre on by yourself, especially if you are new and inexperienced. You also have to deal with the spectators trying to help you. They mean well and they have no idea that if you accept help you will be disqualified from the race. People just don't listen when you ask them not to help you, especially when you are struggling and you need help. The frustration of not being able to accept the help you need, the panic that chairs are going to come streaming past and the fact you are pissed off that all your training has gone to waste as there is now no chance of breaking a PB all adds up to wheelchair athletes looking like arseholes telling people trying to help to go away. After beating the tub tyre in to submission and finally getting it on my wheel I think Ed had a much better understanding of how frustrating punctures in races are.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">We started to pass lots of tree plantations.</td></tr>
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Tyre changed I managed to get my good wheels back on my chair with the push rims taped up, after our brew we got back out on the road. My speed was now much better, we pushed through The Crook of Devon and headed for Loch Leven. I think the damp had got to Dad and Ant, they were both pretty quiet again. <br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiyLC548Xk4D9wp2SCNruGeQ_jXGYl-ukEoNfhOr_CGe2U2tZKadXcZv7s_l_rJUH-dEbcb3mXaS8RRPtMDzp8RGji61AOnI3bRvC4QNAoafSetHVdpSeri3LrCt5TSduvQ-3q2eUo2aatP/s1600/Day+15+stampede.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="720" data-original-width="960" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiyLC548Xk4D9wp2SCNruGeQ_jXGYl-ukEoNfhOr_CGe2U2tZKadXcZv7s_l_rJUH-dEbcb3mXaS8RRPtMDzp8RGji61AOnI3bRvC4QNAoafSetHVdpSeri3LrCt5TSduvQ-3q2eUo2aatP/s400/Day+15+stampede.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Causing a mini stampede was fun, I could feel the vibrations they caused! Beautiful Cooos!</td></tr>
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<br />
To try and stop myself switching off I was doing sums in my head, I do this in races to take my mind off how much things are hurting or how far I have left to go. I try and work out my finishing time or what speed I need to push at to get a certain finishing time. Paula Radcliffe used to count to 100 when running to take her mind off the running itself. I'd spoken to Dave my sports psychologist about this and he said if it was a tool I found worked for me to go ahead and use it. On this push I couldn't predict finishing times as I didn't have a set finishing point so I started working out how far I thought I could go and what distance would give me some nice numbers for the day. I settled on going for 20 miles in this push, that would mean 53 miles for the day which seemed to sit right as I was pushing for The 53 Foundation. It would also mean a total of 100 miles over the last two days. That's what I aimed for and that's what I achieved, maybe it wasn't just the rain that had quietened Ant and dad down again maybe they were just knackered!<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjYVS7VD7phl9qyF-6URuV_8snnJOtKLoHKFFN-6rtGttOohVnM38KBl1zfWdPRHRSQV0oSUFBtLuC1VTSUP6_mmcchvsWJyZE7jQzZiJwo0c9h9XQD3AbTLxoCl02X1cMn1k5pdC9kkQ3v/s1600/Day+15+ant+looking+proud+me+tired.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="789" data-original-width="960" height="328" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjYVS7VD7phl9qyF-6URuV_8snnJOtKLoHKFFN-6rtGttOohVnM38KBl1zfWdPRHRSQV0oSUFBtLuC1VTSUP6_mmcchvsWJyZE7jQzZiJwo0c9h9XQD3AbTLxoCl02X1cMn1k5pdC9kkQ3v/s400/Day+15+ant+looking+proud+me+tired.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Ant looking proud of his 100 miles in 2 days, me looking knackered!</td></tr>
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We headed for yet another free campsite, <a href="https://www.visitscotland.com/info/accommodation/gallowhill-caravan-and-camping-park-p213961" target="_blank">Gallowhill Campsite</a> was in the fields around a very old farmhouse. It had breath taking views in every direction, views that worried me for the next day as it seemed like there were mountains in every direction. We weren't much above sea level at this campsite so I knew we'd be climbing on Day 16. Ed went inside the farmhouse which doubled up as reception to ask them where to hook up for the night (the motorhome you mucky lot). He came out crying laughing. Apparently Grandma of the family was sat at her antique desk working the reception, Ed had told her who we were and she had called one of her grandsons to come and take us to the pitch. Granddad had overheard Ed thanking her for the free pitch and jumped right in to the stereotypical Scottish tight arse role. In a thick Scottish accent he'd shouted through from the other room<br />
<br />
"Two pounds Mhairi, two pounds. They can have a free spot but get two pounds off them for the electric!"<br />
<br />
Obviously Ed wasn't going to argue over two quid so he paid it and then the grandson arrived to take us to the pitch. Ed told us the story on the way, him and dad had some sort of competition in thick Scottish accents over who could ask Mhairi to charge people for the most ridiculous things.<br />
<br />
"fifty pence Mhairi, fifty pence. They can have a free pitch but get fifty pence for the air they will breath! see you jimmy!"<br />
<br />
More and more ridiculous! The grandson made sure we were ok with the pitch and pointed us in the direction of the showers and other facilities and then shot off on his quad bike. We were still giggling like school kids over granddads Scottishness when the grandson reappeared with the two pounds, clearly he'd been back to the farm and heard from granddad that he'd got a couple of quid out of the cheeky English buggers wanting a free pitch. He was really embarrassed by it bless him, we said we didn't mind and we'd had a joke about it. He threw a bit of change in the collection bucket, wished me good luck for the rest of the journey, apologised again and shot off on his quad.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhEhGxsNB5mRb6zGaJPac59Loh37oSG1WOd5_j3sh-hzgzo6MIasN2TI4ywBl5pIr-ABn5PFV8E7cM_lmKsDZnmRO_5K-3UVKb_z7WtwOTseVSEQ2NQeAXVZtS0XwIFZ3ie4YtFg_M2vR31/s1600/day+15+camp.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="480" data-original-width="640" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhEhGxsNB5mRb6zGaJPac59Loh37oSG1WOd5_j3sh-hzgzo6MIasN2TI4ywBl5pIr-ABn5PFV8E7cM_lmKsDZnmRO_5K-3UVKb_z7WtwOTseVSEQ2NQeAXVZtS0XwIFZ3ie4YtFg_M2vR31/s400/day+15+camp.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Gallowhills Campsite.</td></tr>
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<br />
I went for a shower, entered the cubical, stripped off, then couldn't work out how it switched on until I spotted a notice that said coin operated, place coins in correct slot near the door. The door in question wasn't the cubicle door it was the door of the male changing rooms, I had to bloody crawl past the showers, past the changing areas, past the sinks and past the toilets to put 50p in the slot. I had to make the journey twice more during my shower! You can imagine the comments when I got back to the motorhome and told everyone the shower had cost £1.50! We were all in stiches laughing at how Granddad had found a way to get a bit more money out of his campers. The site was lovely though and I'd have no second thoughts about going back and paying full, even with all the extras it would be a cheap place to stay.<br />
<br />
For the rest of the evening dad and Ed would randomly shout out 'two pounds Mhairi, two pounds'<br />
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<b><u>Day 15 Afternoon Stats</u></b><br />
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Miles: 19.85<br />
Time: 2:03:39<br />
Average Moving Speed: 9.5mph<br />
Top Speed: 25.7mph<br />
Slowest Mile Split: Mile 8 - 8:54<br />
Fastest Mile Split: Mile 14 - 4:00<br />
Total Ascent: 949ft<br />
Average Heart Rate: 140bpm<br />
Max Heart Rate: 157bpm <br />
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<b><u>Day 15 Afternoon Progress Maps</u></b><br />
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<b><span style="color: red;">Total Daily Mileage: 53.41</span></b><br />
<b></b><i></i><u></u><sub></sub><sup></sup><strike></strike><br />Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15454059332314431888noreply@blogger.com0Station Rd, Crook of Devon, Kinross KY13 0PG, UK56.1844609 -3.5519569000000530.662426399999998 -44.86055090000005 81.7064954 37.756637099999949tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-870682862940569183.post-42008667487849284532017-06-27T12:25:00.001+01:002017-06-27T15:39:39.322+01:00Lands End to John O'Groats, Day 14 - Hearts of Gold.<b><u>Day 14 Morning</u></b><br />
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Day 14 morning was very different to the others, Dad was up before the alarms went off, he walked Bonnie and had the kettle on before the alarms woke Ed, Ant and I. We got through the morning routine quite quickly and made our way to the start. At the start line we were quick off the mark, dad has had my wheelchair in bit dozens of times so he was quick to get it set up and ready to go. Ant packed a rucksack with the <a href="https://www.myprotein.com/our-range/protein.list?affil=mpppc&kwds=43700021615331230&thgid=GDataMedium&utm_source=bing&utm_medium=cpc&utm_campaign=UK%20%7C%7C%20EN%20%7C%7C%20SEA%20%7C%7C%20Brand%20%7C%7C%20CORE%20%7C%7C%20EM&utm_term=myprotein&utm_content=N1%20%7C%7C%20*Brand%20-%20CORE%20%7C%7C%20EM&gclid=COGR9oLx3dQCFUXGGQodyqwNfA&gclsrc=ds" target="_blank">Myprotein</a> products to keep me fuelled up during the day. I left the motorhome to see my dad in kit ready to ride. I wasn't comfortable with him riding with his back in the state it was. I didn't want him to be in pain, if he couldn't carry on we'd be a man down for the rest of the journey. I told him I wasn't happy with him pushing himself and damaging his back even more. I also told him if his back went we wouldn't have time to take him to hospital so he'd need to pay for his own taxi. We'd pick him up on the way back from John O'Groats. A bit of tough love. He was still adamant he was joining in. <br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgI3y5rVxHirX6DNeIMdwaOCBUskvYkiRYZslNEpbdia__Ny3R2rCcggvtzhm47BvJLFAAfSwul6itCsCRBcv6DYkoiXsed0zs7K7fOQkBcRwBN7WaCtC8nOSgv8yUG0J7pRVHfN9OzSEah/s1600/day+14+new+cyclist.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="720" data-original-width="960" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgI3y5rVxHirX6DNeIMdwaOCBUskvYkiRYZslNEpbdia__Ny3R2rCcggvtzhm47BvJLFAAfSwul6itCsCRBcv6DYkoiXsed0zs7K7fOQkBcRwBN7WaCtC8nOSgv8yUG0J7pRVHfN9OzSEah/s400/day+14+new+cyclist.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">My new cyclist Ant</td></tr>
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Ant was looking very nervous, he isn't sporty at all so I guess he had no idea what to expect from the day. He was going to take Nick's roll of filming me from behind to prove I wasn't getting any help. Elouise had lent him her bike, whilst adjusting the seat dad broke a flimsy little clip. We did replace it when we got home but with nothing on us that could replace or repair it we had to use lots of gaffer tape to hold the seat up. It didn't add much time to the morning routine, we started fairly early. The morning push was really tough. I climbed for over 18 miles, it was so much harder than Shap. I had a nasty headwind so I was forced to try and keep my head as low as possible to make me more aerodynamic. The horrible Scottish tarmac was shaking me all over and making my back hurt as I fought to keep my chair in a straight line.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjOhr02JLK_oV5b0QDqXAzXCSNszY0ZzFSxzM_WUlUK62ORifOMsdIdOzDIAVo08R4FY_gRBdFakNzZ6TSaHTuamw5eVVEj98g3GQJst08iQy0WUhLcE9ecG10UJ7KAEvRFgkatPZdKJ7l9/s1600/Day+14+roberston.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="527" data-original-width="960" height="218" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjOhr02JLK_oV5b0QDqXAzXCSNszY0ZzFSxzM_WUlUK62ORifOMsdIdOzDIAVo08R4FY_gRBdFakNzZ6TSaHTuamw5eVVEj98g3GQJst08iQy0WUhLcE9ecG10UJ7KAEvRFgkatPZdKJ7l9/s400/Day+14+roberston.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The road looks smooth but it wasn't!</td></tr>
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<br />
I found the morning push really hard, I was missing Nick, dad and Ant were very quiet. With them having to cycle behind me I couldn't see them, after such a lively day on day 13 this was a bit of a comedown. The hill that I was on was a long dragging one but as soon as I saw mountains in the distance I was pretty sure we were heading straight at them! They looked stunning but I didn't want to have a closer look.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg-lOKAl21jfBl7DxbWq2tgTehxG8mlhT_iGZBhFtcZa1a9mpTRXKvyyQ3WSTe6s8N9VBFrfN5ZJHRyp_ydf-ptGwvKhUMhHLuZciKxzhbGc9TOs6IDCKp2Jp9bcJIhdTTor_mnXPW6V2MH/s1600/day+14+big+hill.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="537" data-original-width="960" height="223" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg-lOKAl21jfBl7DxbWq2tgTehxG8mlhT_iGZBhFtcZa1a9mpTRXKvyyQ3WSTe6s8N9VBFrfN5ZJHRyp_ydf-ptGwvKhUMhHLuZciKxzhbGc9TOs6IDCKp2Jp9bcJIhdTTor_mnXPW6V2MH/s400/day+14+big+hill.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Heading for the hills!</td></tr>
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<br />
The Scottish tarmac, the hill and the headwind were killing my speed, my average speed was way down on day 13 and the same conditions were robbing me of a break from pushing on the downhills and flats. It turned one down hill what would have been 35mph without pushing into a crappy headwind in to a 20mph downhill where I was needing to push to keep the chair moving. I even got out of the chair at one point to check if my wheels were rubbing on the side of the chair or maybe my wheel bearings had gone, I thought there must have been a reason other than the hill, the tarmac and the wind that was making me so slow. The chair was fine so I just had to get on with the push and grind out what mileage I could that morning. I managed 23.07 before boredom and the conditions finished me off.. We stopped for lunch in another layby, whilst Dad and Ant sorted out the bikes and chair, Ed asked how the morning had been with the new cyclists. I was really honest and said that for large parts of the push it felt like I was on my own, with them being behind me I couldn't see them and as they weren't talking I couldn't hear them. I had really missed Nick wittering on like he'd lost his marbles and the way he would take the piss out of me whilst trying to motivate me on the steeper hills. Ed said he'd have a word with them, I told him to do it gently as I didn't want to sound ungrateful for the help. I just needed to hear that there were people with me.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgx-1QqwU3MaGKqzWacU_48dwRK_HFamLm6TwrUvyvZba6aFeUV8jrkii3ejonliIrBMb29_a9ooXgvUjaFQGN8cQo0UQPjmttzB-cu8gbYmunV5VREhlehltlI7zi7hDAZoXtqHdF_qj0B/s1600/Day+14+morning+climb.PNG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="346" data-original-width="1061" height="130" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgx-1QqwU3MaGKqzWacU_48dwRK_HFamLm6TwrUvyvZba6aFeUV8jrkii3ejonliIrBMb29_a9ooXgvUjaFQGN8cQo0UQPjmttzB-cu8gbYmunV5VREhlehltlI7zi7hDAZoXtqHdF_qj0B/s400/Day+14+morning+climb.PNG" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The grey shows the morning hill, the blue line represents my speed</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhh4XpifkFhySV8XM7yZaux6ZQhJMZ6dUq7gqn3RmLNBNWMBpTecUVgL3KjkxPNRXpfZZgx8hhbfQzATL_AR4l3gm1tvFu44VSkoPOsOe0XD3GRweqeDrD4w6CuD__G-M2XL-ruunXKIsLd/s1600/Day+14+knackered.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="724" data-original-width="960" height="301" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhh4XpifkFhySV8XM7yZaux6ZQhJMZ6dUq7gqn3RmLNBNWMBpTecUVgL3KjkxPNRXpfZZgx8hhbfQzATL_AR4l3gm1tvFu44VSkoPOsOe0XD3GRweqeDrD4w6CuD__G-M2XL-ruunXKIsLd/s400/Day+14+knackered.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Knackered and bored after the morning push.</td></tr>
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<br />
<b><u>Day 14 Morning Stats</u></b><br />
<br />
Miles: 23.07<br />
Time: 2:43:26<br />
Average Moving Speed: 8.5mph (slowest for a while)<br />
Top Speed: 20.0mph (slowest of the trip)<br />
Slowest Mile Split: Mile 17 - 12:31<br />
Fastest Mile Split: Mile 7 - 5:15<br />
Total Ascent: 1033ft<br />
Average Heart Rate: 138bmp<br />
Max Heart Rate: 157bpm<br />
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<b><u>Day 14 Morning Progress Maps</u></b><br />
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<b><u>Day 14 Afternoon</u></b><br />
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After lunch I again tried to get dad to stay in the motorhome but he wasn't having any of it. During the afternoon push we reached the mountains I'd been looking at all morning. The route through them wasn't flat at all but it was better than I had been expecting. We met the River Clyde and followed its path through the hills. Even on a grey day when I was missing my best pal and the gaggle of cyclists I'd had the previous day the area was beautiful all be it in a rugged way. <br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Heading north.</td></tr>
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Dad and Ant did a little bit better at keeping talking to me and getting me motivated on all the hills. We had a conversation about the place names we were passing and how they sounded like something from Lord Of The Rings or Game Of Thrones. We passed by Elvanfoot, Quothquan, Biggar Bridge, Eastshield, Ravenstruther and Crookedboat. Each time we passed a road sign we were looking for the oddest place name and having a giggle, I was trying to imagine what Nick would make of the place names. Probably something like 'someone was taking the piss when they made up these names'!<br />
The hills and mountains seemed to be sheltering me from the worst of the wind that had made the morning so difficult, I did keep getting the odd gust which meant my lower back having to work quite hard to keep the chair straight. I managed to grind out almost 24 miles which was the first time my afternoon push was further than my morning push.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A bit of sun.</td></tr>
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We then made our way to Helen and Ru's house, we'd been offered home cooked food, a bath and a bed for the night. Helen was my boss's sister in law but I had never met her or even spoken to her but I knew she would be lovely as Liz, my boss's with and the whole family that I had met so far were really kind and caring people. The house was maybe a 5 mile drive from where we had finished I made sure dad knew not to talk politics or anything else he could start an argument over, he promised to behave. When we got to the house Ed went and knocked on the door to ask where to park and Helen said to bring the motorhome on to the driveway. The gate was pretty narrow for such a large motorhome, I was worried Ed was going to hit a gatepost, What a great start that would have been! He managed to get the motorhome on the drive without any damage, I should have more faith!<br />
Inside Helen got the solid fuel fire roaring and brought a tea tray through for us, I was in my element! A brew and a fire in a lovely house! Helen had organised for her sister in law also called Helen to come and give me a massage. It wasn't long before massage Helen had arrived, she set up her massage table and began working on my back, we spoke about the challenge and how I'd only had one massage up until this point, one massage in over 500 miles! I was so glad to be getting a second massage done, especially with my lower back having to do so much work in the wind that day. We spoke about our experiences of working in massage and running our own little businesses. Helen's company <a href="https://www.facebook.com/massagetherapybyhelen/" target="_blank">Massage Therapy By Helen</a> was quite similar to my own. Whilst 'massage' Helen was working on all of my niggles 'home owner' Helen was in the kitchen cooking our dinner. What total luxury this was! I'd got used to making do in the motorhome not being pampered! After the massage I even had time for a long hot soak in the bath before dinner was served. <br />
For dinner we had homemade cottage pie and home grown veg including chard which I love. For pudding we had home grown and homemade rhubarb pie, my favourite, rhubarb is the greatest. I loved chatting with Helen and Ru, we spoke about all sorts of things. They had even had a look at my route onwards and thought I was going to find a gorge the next day difficult and said that I should head for a bridge instead. As local knowledge had served me so well up until now we decided to take their advice, out came the map! We spoke about classic and vintage cars, Helen and Ru had one and my dad used to drive classics. We spoke about gardening and growing your own, travelling, work, global warming - all sorts of things! We got on the subject of the broken clip on the bike Elouise had lent to Ant; Ru thought he might have something in the garage that might fit so him and dad went to look at the car and find a jubilee clip in the garage. Ru didn't have a spare jubilee clip that would fit but remembered there was one on the car that would do the job. He took it off the car and put it on the bike. These people had let us into their home, made us brews, got me a massage, let me have a soak in their bath, fed us and now taken parts off their beloved old car to give to me! Hearts of gold!<br />
As the company was so good and the conversation flowing I think this was probably the night I was up the latest on the whole trip but I did have a big cosy bed to sleep in! Dad took the other spare bed and Ed and Ant stayed in the motorhome with Bonnie. Helen even volunteered to get up early in the morning to make us breakfast. What an absolute star!<br />
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<b><u>Day 14 Afternoon Stats</u></b><br />
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Miles: 23.82<br />
Time: 2:23:17<br />
Average Moving Speed: 10.0mph<br />
Top Speed: 24.4mph<br />
Slowest Mile Split: Mile 23 - 8:22<br />
Fastest Mile Split: Mile 5 - 4:09<br />
Total Ascent: 1100ft<br />
Average Heart Rate: 139bpm<br />
Max Heart Rate: 161bpm<br />
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<b><u>Day 14 Afternoon Progress Maps</u></b><br />
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<b><span style="color: red;">Total Daily Mileage: 46.89</span></b><br />
<b></b><i></i><u></u><sub></sub><sup></sup><strike></strike><br />Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15454059332314431888noreply@blogger.com0Biggar ML12, UK55.623396 -3.523963999999978155.6054645 -3.5643044999999782 55.6413275 -3.483623499999978tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-870682862940569183.post-49148268031809058172017-06-26T15:01:00.000+01:002017-06-26T20:15:58.554+01:00Lands End to John O'Groats, Day 13 - Goodbye Nick<b><u>Day 13 Morning</u></b><br />
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We were up nice and early on Day 13 as we knew we would take a bit longer to get ready as we were expecting Danny and his fella Ben to drop Ant off with us. I was looking forward to having Ant back with us, I really enjoy chatting to him and he makes a good brew! It was good to see Danny when they arrived, I'd not seen him for a while. He tried his best to congratulate me but Danny suffers from an extreme form of lack of enthusiasm and is just as blunt as me. It was nice to get a "you're doing well." out of him! I have a lot of time for Danny, I like people who's faces can't hide what their minds are thinking! I'd not met Ben before, he seemed nice but I was a bit embarrassed shuffling about in my lycra the first time I met someone!<br />
It wasn't long after they arrived that my dad and Elouise arrived at the campsite. Elouise was just here with us for the day, she was going to cycle the full day with me and then get a lift back to her car with Nick when his dad was taking him home. Dad was staying until the end of the challenge to share the driving with Ed so that Ed could do some cycling. When Dad and Elouise started unpacking the car I noticed there were two bikes not one. I asked dad who the other bike belonged to<br />
"It's mine, do you like it?"<br />
My dad has a serious damage to his back that has resulted in him having two operations on it. Some days he can't get out of bed, quite often he can't stand up straight and walks like he's crapped his pants. Here he was with his bike telling me he was going to cycle. My dad won't be told when he has an idea in his head. Luckily, with Elouise cycling I needed someone helping coordinate the other people coming to see me that day. Nick's dad was coming to pick him up, my mum was coming to see me after the push and an old running friend Vicky Breeze was also coming along to see me at the end of the day. Dad agreed to help Ed coordinate and to take some photos too. I was worried that he would hurt his cack and then not be able to drive which would hinder my progress plus I just didn't want the bloody minded old git hurting himself.<br />
We needed to set off to the start as I was getting an escort to Scotland by some cyclists from Carlisle Reivers Cycling Club, this was what I'd hoped every day would be like but with everything that had gone on that resulted in the date change I hadn't had time to contact cycling clubs and ask for help. This had resulted in one big advantage, I hadn't needed to stick to a time table, I could stop for a rest when I needed to and push miles further each day when I felt like it. I now know that Amanda for Carlisle Reivers had been messaging the dream team quite regularly trying to pin down when I was going to be in the area, thankfully it landed on a day she wasn't working and she was able to gather a little team to ride with me. At the start point I met the Reivers and introduced them to Bonnie and the gang. We posed for photos and then got ready to leave.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">My little crew at the start.</td></tr>
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I let every one know all the do's and don'ts of riding near me. Don't get too close to my hands, don't stop suddenly if I am behind because I can't stop quickly and more things like that. I also warned them all that I am very slow on climbs but quite fast on downhill sections. I told them I wouldn't wait for them on the descents because they would catch me easily as soon as the downhill ended. With that we set off. I quickly learnt that I was actually further from Carlisle than I thought. I needed to push almost 10 miles to get to Carlisle. The road was an undulating one so I soon demonstrated how slow I was on the ups and how I could drop my little pack of cyclists on the downs. <br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Amanda waiting for me as I struggle up a hill with Nick and Elouise</td></tr>
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We spent the morning getting to know each other. I really liked all of the cyclists from Reivers, Amanda was nuts but in a good way and she had me laughing quite a few times. There was a lad called Dan who had a stutter or another similar speech impediment, I had plenty of time to let him get his words out so that didn't matter to me. I enjoyed chatting to him. Then there were two more lads who were really interested in how the chair worked and the technical side of pushing and racing in general.<br />
As we started to get into a busier area I gave Amanda one of the collection tubs and she was brilliant at collecting, waving it at cars and stopping at bus stops and asking folk in a really happy, bubbly way. When we got in to Carlisle itself there were large numbers of people doing the Sunday morning walk of shame. Amanda was straight on to them and in their still drunk, bewildered state she managed to get them donating. In the busier areas of the city I had three cyclists collecting donations and another three keeping me company. <br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Carlisle with my crew.</td></tr>
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Carlisle looked like a lovely place, somewhere I'd never been before but somewhere I do want to explore again in the future. Not long after Carlisle I was pushing really well on some super smooth roads. I was really enjoying my day and showing off a little bit. I upped the pace slightly on a relatively flat road. At one stage I was flying along at almost race pace, I was at the front of the group and I missed a turn off I should have taken. I had no idea and I was pushing hard. Dan appeared at the side of me trying to talk to me, he was struggling slightly so I just carried on pushing whilst he found his words, I didn't want to put pressure on him. Eventually he said<br />
"Wrong way"<br />
I looked behind and it was just us two the others were at the turning waiting for us to go back. Fancy sending the lad with the speech trouble to hunt me down and stop me! It's like asking me to teach someone the Argentine Tango! What a cracking lad for actually doing it and stopping me. I could have gone miles out of my way if Dan hadn't stopped me.<br />
With that little drama over, the local cyclists told us we were very close to the border so Ed, Ant and Dad left us to drive over the border and get ready to take photos as I crossed the border. I was really excited, I'm not sure why. I knew nothing would change over the border. It was just another big step forward and another landmark ticked off. Maybe I was excited for Nick to reach his target in memory of his son Charlie. I was really happy for Nick, cycling the whole of England with no experience and no training wasn't easy. I was relieved that I'd got him to the border but a bit upset that I knew he'd be going home in just a few hours time. We spent 10 minutes or so at the border taking photos with the various landmarks, we were a bit longer than I wanted to be as when Nick and I were posing for a photo with the way marker signpost that matched the one in Lands End and the one in John O'Groats some dizzy mare wondered into the back of shot just as My dad was about to take the photo. She was reading an information board but kept stopping to gawp at my in my wheelchair. After a few minutes I was getting bored of waiting for her to bugger off and dropped a few hints, she still didn't bloody move so after another few minutes I asked her if she was waiting to be in our photo. She tutted a walked off. There was a queue of traffic on the England-bound side of the road so just before we left Amanda ran down the traffic jam with the collection bucket, I think she got plenty of change but she did get a telling off from one guy, you always get one miserable sod.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Me and Nick at the way marker signpost.</td></tr>
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Photo's taken, photo bombers and tight arses upset we got back on our way, passing through Gretna Green and seeing the famous buildings of the town. Nick hadn't heard of it but when we explained the history of English couples popping over the border to get married without all the English red tape he seemed to be taping note, maybe he was planning his own hasty wedding! We crossed over the motorway bridge and joined the old road that ran parallel to the motorway, it was here, not yet 2 miles inside Scotland that I was introduced to Scottish tarmac! Who knew it would be so different to the English stuff?!?! It had lots of stones in it which made the surface really rough, at the time I didn't know that most of Scotland is covered in the stuff, I thought it was just a stretch of shoddy workmanship. The stones were vibrating the whole chair and making the push uncomfortable. My bust ribs and my shins were hurting due to the vibrations and my speed dropped too.<br />
After 4 or 5 miles of being shook about whilst trying to climb I decided it was time to have lunch. Nick spoke to Ed, Ant and Dad as they overtook us and asked them to stop at the next available spot. When we caught them up they were in a layby busily brewing up and preparing cheese sandwiches. They were being eyeballed by some cows and half the team were straight over to the fence to pet the cows! Not me, I was gagging for a brew. With Ant being back I was handed recovery drinks, a recovery bar and a brew within seconds of finishing. Top notch service! Dad was trying to work out how many sandwiches were needed but Amanda and her team were turning back at this point. I wish they could have done more cycling with us because I'd had such a good morning with them. We said our goodbyes and waved them off back to England. Elouise, Ant, Ed, Nick, Dad and I sat down for lunch.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Amanda, Elouise and Dan petting the cows.</td></tr>
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<b><u>Day 13 Morning Stats</u></b><br />
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Miles: 23.35<br />
Time: 2:12:30<br />
Average Moving Speed: 10.6mph<br />
Top Speed: 38.9mph<br />
Slowest Mile Split: Mile 4 - 7:52<br />
Fastest Mile Split: Mile 3 - 2:44<br />
Total Ascent: 978ft<br />
Average Heart Rate: 140bpm<br />
Max Heart Rate: 161bpm<br />
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<b><u>Day 13 Morning Progress Maps</u></b><br />
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<b><u>Day 13 Afternoon</u></b><br />
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It had started to rain during lunch so we waited a while longer hoping it would dry up but it didn't. It'd been a really sunny morning so I don't think any of us expected rain. We finally plucked up the courage to go out and start the afternoon session. It felt much quieter without Amanda and gang at first, it was just Elouise, Nick and I now. They soon got chatting away and we were laughing about the conditions, it was meant to be summer! <br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Wet through!</td></tr>
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5 or 6 miles in ant the end of a dragging climb I could see a group of people stood watching me, I assumed it was just people from a layby that Ed had got out of their cars to cheer me on. I put my head down and gritted my teeth up the hill and as I got closer I could hear that it was Mother Hubbard screaming like a woman possessed. When I looked up she was waving her McLeod tartan scarf around. I pulled over for a quick chat with her and Ste my step dad. I posed for photos with mother hubbard and of course the tartan scarf. She said she didn't think we'd stop so I think that cheered her up. I didn't know she was coming to watch me push I thought that she was just coming to the campsite after I'd finished.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Me, Mother Hubbard and the Mcleod Tartan scarf.</td></tr>
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After a quick chat the three of us got on the road again but now with Mother Hubbard and Ste joining the motorhome bunny hopping us. Mother hubbard was screaming out of the window every time Ste drove her past us. It had Elouise and Nick in stitches.<br />
"Your mum's nuts"<br />
"yep I know!"<br />
After around 10 miles the rain became very very heavy. We were soaked and cold but we had another boost to morale when at the side of the in the pouring rain my bosses wife Liz, her sister Fran and some of their friends were cheering and beeping as I passed. They were on their way back to Lancashire after a night out, I had no idea we would pass them! I would have liked to stop and chat but we were going downhill at the time and there is just no way my brakes would have stopped me in that weather so I just tried to wave whilst also trying to keep control of the chair.<br />
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We carried on until almost 17 miles and then called it a day. Ant had a brew and my recovery stuff waiting for me, we all tried to get a little dryer before setting off. I was cold, wet, tired and hungry so I just wanted to get to the campsite. We had another free pitch this time it was at <a href="http://www.richmondwight.com/parks/moffat-manor/" target="_blank">Moffat Manor Country Park</a> which was a huge campsite, a lot of the caravans had gardens so they must have been owned and used by one family. The touring pitches were all in the centre of the park which was on a bit of a hill. When we arrived Mike, Nick's brother was stood waiting for us near reception, his dragon must have let him out for a few hours. The thing is, I think she must have dressed him too. He was wearing one of those extra long T-Shirt things. I wound the window down and asked him why he was wearing a dress. I don't think he found it funny but Nick did! Nick's dad Pete had already found out where our pitch was so Mike told us to follow him round. We parked up and Pete parked behind us followed by Ste and Vicky who had just arrived. It took a few minutes to work out what the next step was but Nick started to collect his things (and some things that weren't his the little tea-leaf took some cycling shorts and so 51 foundation kit that left us short) he packed them into his dad's car. I gave him a hug to say thanks for everything and he told me off! haha! Elouise decided to stay a bit longer and come to the bar with the rest of us... So it was time to say goodbye to Nick, he'd kept me entertained the whole way so far, saved me from rolling back down hills in Dartmoor, saved me from rolling off the edge on the old railway path, followed me around the ring roads of Gloucester and Shrewsbury, he'd kept my gloves in working order and just been a good mate. We waved them off and I went for a shower whilst the others sorted themselves out. The shower room was absolutely freezing and the shower didn't let much more than a dribble out so even after my shower I was no warmer.<br />
When I got back to the motorhome I was met with Ed, dad and mum all trying to pack away the cakes biscuits and sweets everyone had brought with them. I'd mentioned that I had a craving for sweet things so all my visitors had brought bags of sugary, cakey, goodness with them! The only trouble was we didn't have enough cupboards to fit it all in! Elouise didn't have a change of clothes with her so she was in borrowed trackies and a T-shirt way too big for her. I ushered us all along to get to the restaurant, I was starving!<br />
Elouise, Vicky, Dad, Ste, Mum, Ant, Ed and I found ourselves a table in what was the nicest campsite bar and restaurant we'd visited. We had a really good evening, lots of laughing and story telling. I had another pint to celebrate getting in to Scotland. People were making bets on the day I would reach John O'Groats. It was nice that it had gone from 'if' to 'when' now. Before too long it was time for Elouise, Vicky, Ste and mum to head off home. I tried to talk dad through the morning routine and then got in bed. It had been a long day and the weather had made it hard work but it had been a good day because of the people involved. I ended my diary for the day with:<br />
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<b><u><i>Great Day!</i></u></b></div>
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<b><u>Day 13 Afternoon Stats</u></b><br />
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Miles: 16.87<br />
Time: 1:38:01<br />
Average Moving Speed: 10.7mph<br />
Top Speed: 28.0mph<br />
Slowest Mile Split: Mile 5 - 8:34<br />
Fastest Mile Split: Mile 8 - 3:05<br />
Total Ascent: 697ft<br />
Average Heart Rate: 147bpm<br />
Max Heart Rate: 170bpm<br />
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<b><u>Day 13 Afternoon Progress Maps</u></b><br />
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<b><span style="color: red;">Total Daily Mileage: 40.22</span></b><br />
<b></b><i></i><u></u><sub></sub><sup></sup><strike></strike><br />Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15454059332314431888noreply@blogger.com0Gretna Green, Gretna DG16, UK55.0050199 -3.062607100000036655.0004669 -3.0726921000000367 55.0095729 -3.0525221000000364tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-870682862940569183.post-26068538343072419882017-06-25T17:51:00.000+01:002017-06-25T17:53:27.711+01:00Lands End to John O'Groats, Day 12, Shap - For Jean and Tom.<b><u>Day 12 Morning</u></b><br />
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It felt strange not having Ant with us, I'd had to wait for my brew after we finished on day 11. I think he would have really enjoyed where we had camped, he appreciates a good view more than most his age. He was missed in the morning too, everything just seemed to take longer with only three of us. We'd had to get up earlier to get ourselves down to Kendal to the start point. <br />
This was it. Shap summit, the climb I had been dreading for 18 months, the climb at least six people had told me wasn't doable in a wheelchair. Because of all the horror stories I'd heard when planning my trip I had only aimed to do 16 miles on day 12. I had planned on climbing up to Shap Summit having lunch and then rolling back down the other side and not doing much else! <br />
I'd woke up to lots of good luck messages and bits of advice for the climb. I'd hoped to have a lot of support on this section of the challenge, with the date change and then the bigger daily mileage totals meaning I was ahead of schedule, I only had Nick and Ed with me. Making our way to the start my stomach was doing summersaults, Would I have pushed 450+ miles to mess up here and not make it to John O'Groats?<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Some of the good luck messages.</td></tr>
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Ed and Nick asked me what I wanted them to do for me as I climbed, I told them to keep talking to me, not to take any abuse I gave them to heart and if I started to fall asleep to mark the point on the road I'd got to then take me to the motorhome for some food. We also planned to stop every half hour for something to eat and drink. I was worried that running myself in to the ground on this climb might affect the following few days pushing.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Very quick photo before we set off.</td></tr>
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As soon as we got to the start I got in my chair and set off. I was nervous enough so didn't want to be faffing about at the start. There was no route to learn it was just a case of pushing up the bloody hill. Nick was excellent, just chatting away. Mainly talking to himself because I was too busy breathing to chat back to him. Ed was parking up at every opportunity, running back down to me and running or walking along side of me whilst shouting at me to keep pushing. I wasn't about to stop pushing or I'd find myself back down in Kendal town centre! <br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjuQTATxJRQVPIKzUWlUOhEDCxo0HxDFb21JwC7f0ZuFTenzUGUr7S3FChEEi3HrWktrLXK7M0P3TXuqlzDtoKAYKphW-ndsQVupXdWqn3JR3gP6AopJBGXoVzo_hPfO20-rcgTBUlxGfih/s1600/Day+12+starting+to+climb.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="590" data-original-width="1560" height="151" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjuQTATxJRQVPIKzUWlUOhEDCxo0HxDFb21JwC7f0ZuFTenzUGUr7S3FChEEi3HrWktrLXK7M0P3TXuqlzDtoKAYKphW-ndsQVupXdWqn3JR3gP6AopJBGXoVzo_hPfO20-rcgTBUlxGfih/s400/Day+12+starting+to+climb.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Just leaving Kendal.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgh59yz8ANCr-UZMYlfrKqjWQBN1l9IWqzp_tB7Nfo5TMy4U_YmnaCdlNsgGaC-J8RXqxmkYf3zCdk4DQZRyF0iLJNpU8HCZEBQ0JLlBIlTEndIHo6ZYRp4JPoELubMMX_KrExYR_iPQk5a/s1600/Day+12.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="676" data-original-width="960" height="281" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgh59yz8ANCr-UZMYlfrKqjWQBN1l9IWqzp_tB7Nfo5TMy4U_YmnaCdlNsgGaC-J8RXqxmkYf3zCdk4DQZRyF0iLJNpU8HCZEBQ0JLlBIlTEndIHo6ZYRp4JPoELubMMX_KrExYR_iPQk5a/s400/Day+12.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Climbing.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<br />
My climbing had improved during the challenge, I'm never going to be as quick as some wheelchair athletes on climbs in races, my legs are still way bigger than most athletes and they weigh me down. There are plenty of wheelchair athletes who are also amputees so they have no added weight to carry. On these big climbs, the more extreme hills that you wouldn't get in races, I think I'm as good as anybody else on them. For the first couple of miles on this climb I was doing great. I was actually enjoying it. Nick stopped me after 30min as I told him to do. I was feeling perfectly ok but I ate half an energy bar and had a drink then carted on with this hill. Again we had people pulling over to cheer and donate. The higher we got the better the views were. The views gave me something else to think about other then my arms falling off at any moment. <br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg2p5AuDnXVgGn2aeNXQXVaNo42iY5F9vFldeYbK2-keVdfqhkv9-xrc0m3KF250bRPwF1q0NRvAN6b6Oi91YdJvUik7zRCOm28hQIH4-3_yapvIIcELtHRbHbacY5OiJ2zzJreYL1oDjUl/s1600/day+12+still+climbing.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="640" data-original-width="1363" height="187" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg2p5AuDnXVgGn2aeNXQXVaNo42iY5F9vFldeYbK2-keVdfqhkv9-xrc0m3KF250bRPwF1q0NRvAN6b6Oi91YdJvUik7zRCOm28hQIH4-3_yapvIIcELtHRbHbacY5OiJ2zzJreYL1oDjUl/s400/day+12+still+climbing.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Pretty hills.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
On the climb to Shap Summit there are two or three small streams that run under the road and at these points there was a short sharp downhill which gave my arms a few seconds to recover before starting to climb again. Those few moments of rest helped me keep going at a decent speed for climbing a hill like Shap. After my second half hour stop I was starting to feel confident I would make the top. Ed had been for a drive ahead and said I was more than two thirds of the way to the top. It did get steeper but we could see the top now so I knew where I had to get to. There was nowhere for Ed to stop with the motorhome between where we made our second stop and the very top of the hill. He let us get on our way before driving past us pipping away and cheering out of the window.<br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgoE5MXSxykzQLfxDPx6MWiffqTPdzegvk_2trbhhXJrIY_kKhFAiPes_chHY9KLAe5katt3C59Dh_TMozronnCuXfaPqwRSmy_B6T4OTAXPQvjO35U2-OZz4bMSgUXAqK9UfWl0VbAw7zn/s1600/Day+12+a+let+up+in+the+climb.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="585" data-original-width="960" height="243" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgoE5MXSxykzQLfxDPx6MWiffqTPdzegvk_2trbhhXJrIY_kKhFAiPes_chHY9KLAe5katt3C59Dh_TMozronnCuXfaPqwRSmy_B6T4OTAXPQvjO35U2-OZz4bMSgUXAqK9UfWl0VbAw7zn/s400/Day+12+a+let+up+in+the+climb.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">One of the few rests during the climb!</td></tr>
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<br />
This last part of the hill was steeper so I was going pretty slow, we were overtook by a couple of cyclists out training. They said hello and well done but flew past us - I'd have loved to have their gears at that point! A few minutes later we were caught by another cyclist. He stopped with us for a while, he was cycling from his home in London down to Lands End then to John O'Groats before cycling home again to London. That's some journey! I think I was as impressed with him as he was with me. It was nice to chat with him, it passed another 10 minutes of the climb for me but he was soon on his way. <br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj2TeXx1zrihcBgYTWSVL9kMtTHEBbXzxF0hBWue6h-IxUIcGVtdoLU9HbtszhTp9lF2dP62PREGMA_rsXVgOk4tWYMK-g2hViG197IwZlWld4z5_VpiMDvdWMS3-xD7xtaX51ztUXlz0yU/s1600/Day+12+shap+climb.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="720" data-original-width="960" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj2TeXx1zrihcBgYTWSVL9kMtTHEBbXzxF0hBWue6h-IxUIcGVtdoLU9HbtszhTp9lF2dP62PREGMA_rsXVgOk4tWYMK-g2hViG197IwZlWld4z5_VpiMDvdWMS3-xD7xtaX51ztUXlz0yU/s400/Day+12+shap+climb.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Getting near to the top.</td></tr>
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<br />
The hill had a nasty sting in the tail with the last 100m or so being much steeper. Nick hadn't had to catch me rolling backwards yet and I wanted to keep it that way until the top. So I put my head down and just tried to keep the chair moving forward. After a good few minutes of the final effort to get to the top I sat up to check how much further I had to go. As soon as I looked up I was greeted with Ed crouched in front of me in the road taking photos like the paparazzi. The photos are good ones, you can tell how hard I'm trying but it was a strange thing to see. I had no idea he was close by! That was it I was at the top. Again, I missed Ant being there because there wasn't a brew waiting for me at the motorhome. We did a quick video at the top and I posted a photo on my facebook to let everyone know I had got up Shap before lunch. I'd expected it to take hours! 8.45 miles of climbing boxed off, the bit that I'd been told I couldn't do was done.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgnGySEMkRu6iHP13gTDXnFpSZBoG6kBVYDivTRCgnXhhKBkMa3pPjypdTDoUVwtw7ibzqTYrpr7yTxmsQN1uETwXU_ZS_-By6ClgCnq0UfrkNC8rBZcKSzkVp5fzTzg3YIYRHMNBIeq6Pk/s1600/Day+12+climbing+shap.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="720" data-original-width="960" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgnGySEMkRu6iHP13gTDXnFpSZBoG6kBVYDivTRCgnXhhKBkMa3pPjypdTDoUVwtw7ibzqTYrpr7yTxmsQN1uETwXU_ZS_-By6ClgCnq0UfrkNC8rBZcKSzkVp5fzTzg3YIYRHMNBIeq6Pk/s400/Day+12+climbing+shap.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Ed's paparazzi shot!</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
Ed told us that when the cyclist doing his own challenge had got to him at the top of the hill he had stopped for a chat and the pair of them had got quite emotional over the whole thing. This lad had emptied all of the change he had on him into my collection buckets and said to Ed that seeing me taking Shap on had given him a boost on a day he'd been feeling sorry for himself. That was really touching to hear because he'd got to me just as I was starting to fade on the hill and chatting to him helped me out.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhcBEFoOXQVU9KHaHahLhtLrezccIp8roNgf6PwEtnNvJfN9TZa1xDolxwbwiNQKsF47GctVbw49EsQBEkLIcFQBHUHmfYex6hCF2TmEjh1QPCSWtMcrV51AeJlAEdxYt6qX-Khz5TBE0Sv/s1600/Day+12+message+from+the+cyclist.PNG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="500" data-original-width="1357" height="146" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhcBEFoOXQVU9KHaHahLhtLrezccIp8roNgf6PwEtnNvJfN9TZa1xDolxwbwiNQKsF47GctVbw49EsQBEkLIcFQBHUHmfYex6hCF2TmEjh1QPCSWtMcrV51AeJlAEdxYt6qX-Khz5TBE0Sv/s400/Day+12+message+from+the+cyclist.PNG" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">He had even messaged my page to say well done.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<br />
After a brew, a snack and a quick stretch I decided I wasn't ready for lunch and I'd push a bit further. I did an extra 12.5 miles, almost all of it was downhill so It wasn't really working. Nick was having a hard time keeping up with me which I always enjoy. I'd already smashed my mileage target for that day so we stopped for lunch on a motorway bridge over the M6. We had beans on toast for lunch again - fast becoming my favourite!<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhits34Qdk57bRImpRSszfpHBJZsJ0BvHYjGRrQRKAwdkt9MDtv77ODHvWN5kJ2yWYe-qDhwfcPGaRhSyeIIJvaBGhVcbSOIhG0Psi2LTDyhqk_7dHgPrJxhG74UnhpiYsEOQp3rxw3MxGF/s1600/Day+12+shap.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="960" data-original-width="528" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhits34Qdk57bRImpRSszfpHBJZsJ0BvHYjGRrQRKAwdkt9MDtv77ODHvWN5kJ2yWYe-qDhwfcPGaRhSyeIIJvaBGhVcbSOIhG0Psi2LTDyhqk_7dHgPrJxhG74UnhpiYsEOQp3rxw3MxGF/s400/Day+12+shap.jpg" width="220" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The photo I put on Facebook showing I'd made it up the hill!</td></tr>
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<iframe allowfullscreen="" class="YOUTUBE-iframe-video" data-thumbnail-src="https://i.ytimg.com/vi/XmQqmfCLUvk/0.jpg" frameborder="0" height="266" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/XmQqmfCLUvk?feature=player_embedded" width="320"></iframe></div>
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<br />
<b><u>Day 12 Morning Stats</u></b><br />
<b><u><br /></u></b>
<b><u>Shap Climb</u></b><br />
Miles: 8.45<br />
Time: 1:41:47<br />
Average Moving Speed: 5mph<br />
Top Speed: 37.5mph <br />
Slowest Mile Split: Mile 8 - 23:53<br />
Fastest Mile Split: Mile 5 - 5:22<br />
Total Ascent: 1358ft<br />
Average Heart Rate: 150bpm<br />
Max Heart Rate: 171bpm<br />
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<b><u>Remainder of Morning Push</u></b><br />
Miles: 12.53<br />
Time: 1:00:57<br />
Average Moving Speed: 12.3mph<br />
Top Speed: 31.0mph<br />
Slowest Mile Split: Mile 7 - 7:03<br />
Fastest Mile Split: mile 2 - 2:31<br />
Total Ascent: 285ft<br />
Average Heart Rate: 139bpm<br />
Max Heart Rate: 160bpm<br />
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<b><u>Day 12 Morning Progress Maps</u></b><br />
<b><u><br /></u></b>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgcEFbHhqrNCr5uTSYpHk0MdCsBdZPT-CQ2hOArsLPJ6uGzSig73OBk446nD5XodmJZOfhEiacGOIgNxW49KXla2ag011WVLIWEvxq7ovXWUeZ_r98sSOhXMfXV7iMVdvomeTr7gyxzAbeH/s1600/day+12+morn+close.PNG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="442" data-original-width="841" height="210" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgcEFbHhqrNCr5uTSYpHk0MdCsBdZPT-CQ2hOArsLPJ6uGzSig73OBk446nD5XodmJZOfhEiacGOIgNxW49KXla2ag011WVLIWEvxq7ovXWUeZ_r98sSOhXMfXV7iMVdvomeTr7gyxzAbeH/s400/day+12+morn+close.PNG" width="400" /></a></div>
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<b><u>Day 12 Afternoon</u></b><br />
<b><u><br /></u></b>
It absolutely pissed down during lunch so we gave it a bit longer before starting the afternoon session, we hoped the rain would pass. All three of us fell asleep whilst waiting for the rain to pass. Sleeping at lunch time was part of the original plan but it had made me feel really groggy on the first few days so I'd avoiding sleeping at lunch ever since. When I woke up the rain had eased although it hadn't dried up completely. I hadn't expected to be this far down the road today so I hadn't looked at the map. I opened it up checking what direction I would be going in and I saw a village called Plumpton on the route. It was only a mater of months since my Grandma's cousin and husband had both passed away. Jean and Tom Plumpton. It seemed right to try and push to that village and dedicate the day with my toughest climb to them. I wasn't close to Jean and Tom but I had enjoyed chatting to them whenever I met them and my Great Aunt Coleen who I love to bits was very very close to Jean. I told the lads that's where we were aiming for and asked Ed to try his best to get a photo of me next to the village signpost if there was one. I didn't want to stop and pose for a photo, like the other action shots I wanted it to be as natural as possible.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEinfkGBJVXFsJTTgCRm1r8KdFBt9KeeBgcHNXY1wJbL5uu5DGNcEAJCRxlonK9PtyV-S8gfH7MYkp-dwlsoo7GebLEMzKbmfHSW_S6lVXTiMDGXaffe-aaRd2lTQC0iECHNgE_xl5sDqm4O/s1600/day+12+plumpton.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="616" data-original-width="960" height="256" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEinfkGBJVXFsJTTgCRm1r8KdFBt9KeeBgcHNXY1wJbL5uu5DGNcEAJCRxlonK9PtyV-S8gfH7MYkp-dwlsoo7GebLEMzKbmfHSW_S6lVXTiMDGXaffe-aaRd2lTQC0iECHNgE_xl5sDqm4O/s400/day+12+plumpton.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">For Jean and Tom.</td></tr>
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I was slow to get going after the break, I'm pretty sure it was the sleep that did it. The terrain had returned to rolling hills which were pretty difficult after climbing Shap. Also I was back to pushing in damp gloves again so slipping away. Nick had been whinging for a couple of miles about his new waterproof jacket not being waterproof. On and on he went. I'm taking this back to Halfords, it's false advertising... I turned around to tell him to stop moaning because we were both wet through. Then I realised this was the latest Nickism. We hadn't had one for a few days.<br />
<br />
"Nick! Your fucking jacket is unzipped you absolute numpty, it can't keep you dry if you don't zip it up!"<br />
<br />
"Oh Yeah!"<br />
<br />
He'd forgot to zip it up and not even noticed when he was soaking wet that his jacket was flapping around his armpits. I told him he should take it back to the Halfords at Styves but to watch out for the bears in the area!<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgW-MomnwxApm_dAkt1aF7Likno_qEqT1YvS7j66h1K2W4Q7GFFDQd-_YHQWN3MvmaKloC-_e_-zCeKQHz-zxNkNncWI02RR1LhuHHKUNbXjeaDWr6VqddHdG-QK_f0FzdhYjxU829SRHF7/s1600/day+12+after+shap.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="659" data-original-width="960" height="273" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgW-MomnwxApm_dAkt1aF7Likno_qEqT1YvS7j66h1K2W4Q7GFFDQd-_YHQWN3MvmaKloC-_e_-zCeKQHz-zxNkNncWI02RR1LhuHHKUNbXjeaDWr6VqddHdG-QK_f0FzdhYjxU829SRHF7/s400/day+12+after+shap.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Day 12</td></tr>
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<br />
We ended the day about 6 miles away from Carlisle, Almost 20 miles over my target distance which meant we would definitely cross the border the next day and I would get my favourite southern goon to Scotland. We stopped at <a href="http://www.dalstonhallholidaypark.co.uk/" target="_blank">Dalston Hall Holiday Park</a> our 12th free site in a row. it was in the grounds of an old mansion house and had its own golf course. I think it would have been a very posh place at one time. The family that ran it were really friendly, they told us that there was a restaurant in the old social club and we decided to have food there as it was Nicks last night with us. The other campers in the restaurant were really friendly, we collected some sponsorship off them. The food was Nicks dream, not the best. Things like bangers and mash, chicken nuggets and chips, fish and chips - it was edible and Nick enjoyed it, I guess that was the main thing as it was his treat. We all had a pint as we chatted about Shap, about crossing over into Scotland the next day and how it would be hard to see Nick go. Who would keep us entertained? <b><u><br /></u></b>
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<b><u>Day 12 Afternoon Stats</u></b><br />
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Miles: 14.63<br />
Time: 1:35:29<br />
Average Moving Speed: 9.2mph<br />
Top Speed: 33.2mph<br />
Slowest Mile Split: Mile 14 - !3:02<br />
Fastest Mile Split: Mile 2 - 4:22<br />
Total Ascent: 762ft<br />
Average Heart Rate: 139bpm<br />
Max Heart Rate: 159bpm<br />
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<b><u>Day 12 Afternoon Progress Maps</u></b><br />
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<b><span style="color: red;">Total Daily Mileage: 35.61</span></b><br />
<b></b><i></i><u></u><sub></sub><sup></sup><strike></strike><br />Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15454059332314431888noreply@blogger.com0Lake District National Park, United Kingdom54.4608702 -3.0886253999999553-21.378270799999996 -168.32300039999996 90 162.14574960000004tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-870682862940569183.post-64793019162646152402017-06-24T16:31:00.001+01:002017-06-24T16:31:26.994+01:00Lands End to John O'Groats, Day 11 - A Helpful Farmer.<b><u>Day 11 Morning</u></b><br />
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<b><u>Politics Bit (scroll past if you're not interested)</u></b><br />
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After a hot and sticky night I woke up on the morning of the 24th and checked my phone like normal. Only I had to do a double take, the votes had been counted and we were coming out of the European Union. This isn't a political blog, I struggled deciding if I should write about the referendum but it was something extremely important that happened during my challenge and I think it's important to show that best mates can have opposing views.... I wasn't sure how to feel about it, it was the first time I'd ever not voted. Both Ed and I had decided that as we would have voted the opposite way to each other we wouldn't bother driving all the way home to vote. It still didn't sit right with either of us, I feel pretty strongly about voting. I would rather somebody vote for the polar opposite to what I want to vote for than have them not vote at all. Me and Ed were the first two up like normal and my first question was had he seen the news, he had and I could see he was upset about it. Ed loves to travel, he likes meeting new people, he speaks Spanish and has plenty of other reasons to vote remain. I'd sat on the fence for much of the referendum campaign but eventually fell on the leave side. Not because of the silly bus that everyone seems to think is the only reason other than racism that people voted leave, the first thing that started to sway me was Cameron telling us all that ISIS wants us to vote leave, really? Threatening us with terrorism if we don't vote remain? After that stupid comment I started to open up to the leave arguments and thought it was ridiculous that a career criminal with no qualifications from Europe could move to the UK far easier than a consultant brain surgeon from Canada, Australia or India could. I resented being called racist for wanting some sort of control on immigration from Europe, even though the vast majority of Europe is actually the same race as myself. I didn't want a stop on immigration, I just wanted us to have some sort of control on it. I'd encourage more immigration for highly skilled job posts that need filling and I don't care what colour or nationality these people are. When it came to the trade arguments I also thought that trading on better terms with American, China, India and other enormous and growing markets seemed a better idea than solely focusing on a block of countries that had shot themselves in the foot by setting up a single currency for countries with very different economies. I just couldn't find an argument for remain that I was happy with, when I vote for my MP I am voting for someone to represent me, I want that person and their colleagues to run the country, that way my vote really counts and if I don't like how they work I can vote against them next time. That's not quite how the EU works, the elected representatives represent huge numbers of people so they are too far detached from your average voter. Worse than that for me is the large number of unelected officials that run the EU.<br />
Whatever the rights and wrongs of the vote to leave I was really conscious that I didn't want to gloat, I knew there would be a lot of people feeling scared for their futures - there had been a lot of horror stories of what could happen if leave won. I didn't want to celebrate when Ed was so pissed by the result. Ant and Nick got up as myself and Ed were still talking about the vote. Ant was fuming, I'm not sure if Ed understood my thinking or not but Ant really didn't, I think it's harder to see both sides of an argument when you are younger. The older I get the less I agree with any side of any political argument, it's all about finding what closest fits your views and experiences. Nick wasn't interested at all. He came out with some sort of bullshit about voting not making a difference, that is one of my biggest triggers. I don't care who you are, voting matters and by not voting you are shitting on the graves of all those who lost their lives fighting for your right to get the vote and keep the vote. If you can't find a person, party or answer to vote for then spoil your paper but get of your arse and go to the polling station. There are still people around the world dying whilst trying to secure the vote for the citizens of their country.<br />
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<b><u>Back to the challenge</u></b><br />
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We'd avoided any arguing over the referendum and talked about the plans for the day. Ant was getting the train home so he could collect some more clothes for him and Ed due to them now staying for the whole trip, He also had some other bits to sort out at home before he rejoined us. Ed also needed to take the motorhome back to the suppliers in Preston so they could check what was wrong with the fridge and the air-conditioning. This would mean Nick and I would have no support vehicle for most of the morning. We packed Nick's rucksack with extra spares that we had normally kept in the motorhome, spare tyres, first aid kit, lots more energy bars, double the drinks and lots of tools. It must have been quite a weight on his back! He was like a little pack horse but he didn't complain at all, like always he was happy to help.We were less than half a mile from the A6, I learnt the way we needed to go from the maps and once on the A6 I knew it was just a case of getting as far along it as I could. <br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Ready to leave on Day 11</td></tr>
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Elouise and I had done a training session over by the A6 earlier in the year. I knew that although it is a very busy road it was a wide road so there would be plenty of room for people to overtake. There are cycle lanes for large parts of the A6 too so we wouldn't need Ed to shelter us from traffic. I was a little nervous about not having access to my full tool kit and all of my spares but it was a case of either go it alone or miss the morning push whilst the motorhome was being repaired.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">On our way to the Lakes</td></tr>
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When we set off we immediately hit traffic, maybe I should have pushed out to Fulwood roundabout the previous day. It was road works on the roundabout that had caused all the traffic. Luckily it made crossing the roundabout much safer as the traffic was only crawling along. As soon as we'd crossed the roundabout and joined the A6 the traffic died down on our side of the road but those heading towards Preston were queuing. We were again getting lots of support, Nick was stopping to get donations from queuing cars. A few people who had over took us pulled in further down the road to encourage me as I went past and give Nick a donation. The A6 is a cracking road to push along, a good road surface, few bends and plenty of space for cars to get around you. I was batting along nicely, Nick was having to work this morning each time he stopped to accept a donation he was telling people who I was, where I had come from and where I was going to, that I had got much further than other people who had attempted it in the past and what the 53 Foundation was all about. I have to admit that every time he pulled over I was putting in a little effort, Nick was having to chase me down with added weight on his back today. He didn't have much longer on the challenge before he was leaving us so I was having a bit of fun pushing him a bit harder.<br />
Whilst on the A6 we passed the halfway mark for the challenge, somewhere near Gisburn. That was a bit of an anti-climax. There is no big fanfare or anything to mark the spot because there is no set route for Lands End to John O'Groats so each person's half way is different. Ed wasn't back with us yet so we couldn't even have a halfway brew! Around Gisburn we had an increase in cars giving encouragement; Ed had been using his time at the motorhome place to phone radio stations in the area and they had been talking about me on the airwaves!<br />
We got all the way to Lancaster and Ed still hadn't got back to us, Nick phoned him from a traffic island in Lancaster's one way system. We had lost the road signs for the A6 and I knew the road we were on was heading for the coast and Morecombe. Ed managed to direct us around the one way system, over the River Lune and back to the A6. Ed was already on his way back to us but he didn't catch us until Carnforth, we decided to stop for lunch not long afterwards. There was a truck stop so we pulled in there for beans on toast.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Starting to get hilly</td></tr>
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<b><u>Day 11 Morning Stats</u></b><br />
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Miles: 28.30<br />
Time: 2:29:27<br />
Average Moving Speed: 11.4mph<br />
Top Speed: 26.5mph<br />
Slowest Mile Split: Mile 24 - 7:23 (by far my fastest 'slowest mile' so far)<br />
Fastest Mile Split: Mile 25 - 3:48<br />
Total Ascent: 826ft<br />
Average Heart Rate: 144bpm<br />
Max Heart Rate: 163bpm<br />
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<b><u>Day 11 Morning Progress Maps</u></b><br />
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<b><u>Day 11 Afternoon</u></b><br />
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Since I first decided to do Lands End to John O'Groats I had been crapping my pants about the route I should take through the Lake District.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">After lunch and we are still undecided how to get through The Lakes</td></tr>
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I'd been told over and over again by doubters that I would struggle on the climb from Kendal to Shap. I'd been up to The Lakes with Nick earlier in the year to try and find my way through the Cumbrian mountains without going over any of them. We were unsuccessful, The route we mapped was very hilly. The dream team had tried looking for a flatter route. My club at the time had also tried looking for a way through, it looked like heading for Windermere would be the best bet and even during our lunch break and start of the afternoon push the plan was head for Windermere. <br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">County 13 Cumbria</td></tr>
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The afternoon push was starting to get a bit more hilly but I was better at dealing with them now so I kept good pace. At the 12 mile mark Ed had parked up and was waving at us like a mad man. We stopped to see what he wanted, one of the campsites he had tried to get us booked in to had been really interested in what I was doing, the owner was a farmer and also a life long cyclist. He had promised Ed that LEJOGers build Shap up in their minds as some sort of make or break hill. He had said it is tough and it is long but it is also the best route to take and any other route would be much longer and contain several steep hills. He was adamant we should head for Shap. The same campsite owner had found us a pitch on a chalet park where a chalet was about to be built. He had no space to put us up that night at his own campsite but his friend that owned the chalet park let us use the building plot. We found a different campsite who would let us use their showers before we headed to the chalet park. As the farmer had helped us out with the plot at the chalet park and he had excellent local knowledge I took his advice and at mile 13 I ignored the turn off for Windermere. I have to admit I kind of winced as I didn't turn, thinking what am I doing? I push to Kendal and out of the other side to the NFU building. That was it I was at the bottom of the climb that had been worrying me for 18 months. <br />
It was time to get packed up, have my shower and then do my interview. We then headed to the farm with the chalet building plot we were stopping at. It was absolutely beautiful, each of the chalets had a view out over one of three tarns. It was a cracking setting! The farmer and his wife were really friendly too and made us feel really welcome.<br />
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<b><u>Day 11 Afternoon Stats</u></b><br />
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Miles: 16.42<br />
Time: 1:37:12<br />
Average Moving Speed: 10.1mph<br />
Top Speed: 29.3mph<br />
Slowest Mile Split: Mile 10 - 9:19<br />
Fastest Mile Split: Mile 9 - 4:04<br />
Total Ascent: 790ft<br />
Average Heart Rate: 145bpm<br />
Max Heart Rate: 163bpm<br />
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<b><u>Day 11 Afternoon Progress Maps</u></b><br />
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<b><span style="color: red;">Total Daily Mileage: 44.72</span></b><br />
<b></b><i></i><u></u><sub></sub><sup></sup><strike></strike><br />Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15454059332314431888noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-870682862940569183.post-13789224454886963462017-06-23T11:23:00.000+01:002017-06-23T15:07:05.020+01:00Lands End to John O'Groats, Day 10 - Thank God There Were No Turds.<b><u>Day 10 Morning</u></b><br />
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We were up nice and early on the 10th morning and everybody got on with the morning jobs, we had almost finished everything we could get done at the campsite when Amy and Dave from The 53 Foundation arrived. I'd spoken to Dave on the phone quite a few times, even before I decided to ditch the other charity he had contacted me to ask if there was anything he could do to help. His offer of help without wanting anything in return is why, when I ditched the other lot, there wasn't a second thought about who I was going to raise money for. The 53 Foundation fits right in with what I wanted my sponsorship to go towards - getting disabled people out of the house and using the abilities they do have rather than dwelling on what they can't do. Amy had set up the foundation with an epic 53 marathon challenge so both her and Dave had expert advise to give during the planning stage of my challenge, only each time Dave phoned me I was being messed about and waiting for something from the original charity. How he never gave up trying to help I will never know! Day 10 was the first time I had met either Dave of Amy face to face. It was lovely meeting them, just having smiley happy people around in the morning was nice enough. They had brought some vests, training tops, wristbands, stickers and collection buckets and tubs so Nick thought it was Christmas day. We had a little chat at the campsite but then we drove down to the start point.<br />
At the start point Ant, Ed and Nick sprung into action like the finely tuned pit crew that they were. Chair and bike un-racked, wheels put on, drinks mixed, bag packed with snacks, fluids, tools etc, cameras fitted, gps unit fitted. I'm not sure what Dave and Amy thought but I was pretty impressed. <br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhOjO2SA0iyOLF69AqPu_36dqBE5eAtcArrb6EpvZaR-0YlJ_e3OaWW82tsB-L_n8l_LNJzIzykVYSj-yaIzHamfb9Q6xGEuSSoCSLliz3oIUJQOQ-RRMltNfViqN-Xlgci6kwVibIeoNLh/s1600/day+10+getting+ready.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="960" data-original-width="720" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhOjO2SA0iyOLF69AqPu_36dqBE5eAtcArrb6EpvZaR-0YlJ_e3OaWW82tsB-L_n8l_LNJzIzykVYSj-yaIzHamfb9Q6xGEuSSoCSLliz3oIUJQOQ-RRMltNfViqN-Xlgci6kwVibIeoNLh/s400/day+10+getting+ready.jpg" width="300" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Getting ready for the off!</td></tr>
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Whilst all this was going on I was busy plastering my ribs in painkilling cream and changing in to our new 53 Foundation kit whilst talking to Dave and Amy about everything that had happened so far. Amy was made up that Shropshire had been so kind to us, it's her home county. Both Nick and I told her about the man with the water and the ladies giving us money on the dual carriageway, you could tell she was as touched as we were because she has done her own mad challenges. To anybody that hasn't done something similar it must seem odd that a man buying you a bottle of water makes you well up but if you know, you know. We posed for some pictures with Dave and Amy, Dave took the first picture of all of my little team and I together - the first one of the trip! Then it was time to set off. It would have been nice if Dave or Amy could have cycled with me for a while but Amy had run 49 miles the day before and the logistics of getting them back to their car after cycling were not easy. They bunny hopped us for a few miles, pipping and cheering as they passed.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhco5FmlZ6rnaJ7hxNeU3pnOMnGas3hlmlsYNuyhhfVUnnj_OnohVHVM6mtdvJ3rUGX2Abdn74rg3CKmX4w-gI8h9O0IN4s08q8porItPP8aIpjldPoRL8DWgwYfHTqmCtVfYO9jLq5CdYQ/s1600/day+10+full+team.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="960" data-original-width="720" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhco5FmlZ6rnaJ7hxNeU3pnOMnGas3hlmlsYNuyhhfVUnnj_OnohVHVM6mtdvJ3rUGX2Abdn74rg3CKmX4w-gI8h9O0IN4s08q8porItPP8aIpjldPoRL8DWgwYfHTqmCtVfYO9jLq5CdYQ/s400/day+10+full+team.jpg" width="300" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Me and my crew!</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Dave, Amy, Ant, Nick and me</td></tr>
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Nick was cycling in a 53 Foundation top and carrying the donation box on his handle bars but we didn't get a single donation in Cheshire - the rich don't get rich by giving their money away!<br />
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It wasn't long before we were in County number 11 Merseyside, we crossed the River Mersey at the Runcorn/Widnes Bridge which had major road works going on. We slightly held up the traffic here just as I climbed on to the bridge. This was the first time in the entire trip so far where we didn't let drivers pass. It wasn't far, probably only 300m or so but I did feel guilty. It wouldn't have been safe to let drivers try to squeeze alongside me. The road cones made it impossible to get out of the road. Straight after the bridge the road became two lanes again. Ed stayed behind me with his hazards on and the traffic streamed past us. We had lots of encouragement and even people handing cash to Nick for his collection box, whilst moving. All of Nicks practice of riding hands free for the photos came in handy as car passengers were handing him money out of the car windows whilst still driving along the dual carriageway. We even had a police car come past us, I was convinced it was gonna pull us over and ask us to leave the road but as they passed the lady copper in the passenger seat was clapping away at us and the driver gave us the thumbs up. Like on other fast busy roads that I had used I pushed as hard and as fast as I could just to get out of danger as soon as possible.<br />
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That fast pace to get off the duel carriageway set the tempo for the morning, my pace was quick, almost race pace. I was enjoying the most comfortable day with my ribs since Bristol. The sun was out and I was already in the old county of Lancashire and not far from crossing the border in to the modern county of Lancashire. I'm a proud Lancastrian and I felt like I wanted to be in my home county as soon as possible. <br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Coming home.</td></tr>
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Nothing actually changed when I crossed the border, I felt great to be home but it felt odd I wasn't actually going to see my house or even my hometown. At about 24 miles I started to feel like I was going to bonk again. We had a quick break for me to take on something other than energy gels. Of course a brew was needed, a couple of energy bars, a handful of jelly sweets and an electrolyte drink seemed to work together to perk me up. If I'd have been thinking straight I would have stopped there for lunch but I didn't think 24 miles was enough so I got back on the road. At about 25.5 miles we left the main road on to a country lane. It looked a normal lane at first but it soon turned into a tiny one track lane. I was trying to push myself to keep the traffic moving but I was what's technically known as fucked. Nick dropped back to tell the lads in the motorhome that I needed to stop ASAP and for them to overtake us so they could find a layby and also the other people stuck behind us could start to filter past us. This single track lane went on and on and on. I was starting to get into real trouble when the lane gave us something else to tackle; three humpback bridges. I swore my way up each of them. <br />
It was over 30 miles before we got to Ed and Ant in the motorhome. They'd started making lunch and already had a brew waiting for me! I needed help to get out of the race chair again. Ed and Nick lifted me whilst Ant pulled the chair away from me and replaced it with a deckchair. I was numb from the effort I put in. I didn't even have the energy to make much conversation but I was happy and content that I was in Lancashire.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjJE30psrvUlnRyHxEXsA47lA-u-9bPOUsiMYnZrTZEvkRgBwCpXNSpCktmpGzgGO858pjRnm-KTz6QHOMsJHLXebvNswvvIbZ0DdsejVUqsPxGsOxBC_klYuapyi6u-a-9_irMVUiWyuLM/s1600/Day+10+southport.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="693" data-original-width="960" height="288" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjJE30psrvUlnRyHxEXsA47lA-u-9bPOUsiMYnZrTZEvkRgBwCpXNSpCktmpGzgGO858pjRnm-KTz6QHOMsJHLXebvNswvvIbZ0DdsejVUqsPxGsOxBC_klYuapyi6u-a-9_irMVUiWyuLM/s400/Day+10+southport.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">On the way towards Southport</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Dinner stop</td></tr>
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<b><u>Day 10 Morning Stats</u></b><br />
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Miles: 30.28<br />
Time: 2:31:26<br />
Average Moving Speed: 12.0mph<br />
Top Speed: 32.2mph<br />
Slowest Mile Split: Mile 4 - 8:51<br />
Fastest Mile Split: Mile 6 - 3:01<br />
Total Ascent: 964ft<br />
Average Heart Rate: 143bpm<br />
Max Heart Rate: 170bpm<br />
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<b><u>Day 10 Morning Progress Maps</u></b><br />
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<b><u>Day 10 Afternoon</u></b><br />
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In the afternoon I was a bit slow to get going, if you bonk as a runner in a race you would take a minimum of two days off - most would take longer. Without doubt you would never go out for a run an hour and a half after you'd bonked. I had to get back out there to get Nick to Scotland. I started off slow not because I was trying to be sensible and not cause myself anymore damage.<br />
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It was a roasting hot day, there were lots of people out on the streets and many of them were stopping us to make donations. I stopped for the first few to say thanks and talk to them about the challenge. Each time I stopped I found it hard to get going again. With that in mind Nick and I decided I would just shout thanks or cheers from now on but he would stop to tell them about the 53 Foundation and what I was doing to raise money for them. I think Nick enjoyed chatting to people donating, especially one little lad of about 5 who put all of his pocket money in the box. When Nick caught me up after that I could tell it had made his day meeting and chatting to this little lad. <br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Nick being Nick</td></tr>
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When we travelled through Much Hoole Ed had been to a pub to ask some witnesses to sign to say they have seen me pushing. The people in the beer garden all shouted me on as I passed. I felt like a rock star. The people in the pub had made some large donations too.<br />
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On the approach to Preston a woman shouted out of her car <br />
"I follow you on Facebook"<br />
I loved that, it felt like I was starting to get somewhere with letting people know what I was doing. Also on the approach to Preston I had a little race with a couple of school lads on bikes, they stuck with me or a couple of hundred meters but then started to fade. The shouted to me that I was quick and then asked how far I'd been, I told them it was around 400 miles. They were pretty shocked and started cheering me on, calling me a legend. I probably shouldn't have got into that race with them, I do it all the time when I see a cyclist travelling at a similar speed to me I like to hunt them down. Overtaking people using their legs to power a vehicle that has gears shouldn't really be possible in a wheelchair without gears powered by arms on the flat so it feels great when you do it. Myself and Nick decided the next time Ed was taking a photo we would do a superman pose just for a laugh, it became one of the most shared photos of the challenge.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiVN1OQHiniKfLg9HV3hH4tNO91aShFU8eMbLDMxgwxOMQp5Q_S2pO4vNbF3BPMSngK887Q8ftd7EhUBS1sDVQ4HkPNL47SiGbBKCuNTQwd3pjiHRxv-qfIEJfEvJCV4RDhNPm0TeWACjCu/s1600/Day+10+super+men.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="718" data-original-width="960" height="298" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiVN1OQHiniKfLg9HV3hH4tNO91aShFU8eMbLDMxgwxOMQp5Q_S2pO4vNbF3BPMSngK887Q8ftd7EhUBS1sDVQ4HkPNL47SiGbBKCuNTQwd3pjiHRxv-qfIEJfEvJCV4RDhNPm0TeWACjCu/s400/Day+10+super+men.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Supermen</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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As we got to Preston I started to feel a bit crappy again, I'd been pushing hard all day. The hot weather and hundreds of people supporting me had got me all fired up but now I was feeling it. I had a pain in my wrist and I was just generally shattered.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjNnH2UD-EoZPS7VS6OjFHzGlLJQGNCjCSDUNPnUH0Ou0iaK2jlKNaF2s49F68UvPu8SLGZq6d7589FDCYgWdWXuV2DReoGQ4rM6OrsNcR0zsxOlWHraayN_-MMizKfWOL9wJwnwFnY2Q9O/s1600/Day+10+UCLAN.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="720" data-original-width="960" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjNnH2UD-EoZPS7VS6OjFHzGlLJQGNCjCSDUNPnUH0Ou0iaK2jlKNaF2s49F68UvPu8SLGZq6d7589FDCYgWdWXuV2DReoGQ4rM6OrsNcR0zsxOlWHraayN_-MMizKfWOL9wJwnwFnY2Q9O/s400/Day+10+UCLAN.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">In Preston</td></tr>
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I crossed the River Ribble in Preston, I think that was the point I was closest to home during the push. Ant and Ed did a brilliant job of directing Nick and I through the centre, Ant was jumping out of the motorhome at points Ed couldn't park and he'd then point us in the right direction before running back to the motorhome. In Preston I met my first hills of the day. They weren't anything spectacular but it was enough to finish me off for the day. I did make my way through Preston before stopping, I didn't fancy pushing through the centre during the morning rush the next day. I quit for the day at a pub just on the north side of the city centre and we made our way to the camp for the night.<br />
Ed had found a campsite with a Preston postcode, unfortunately it was bloody miles from Preston. It was actually quite close to Blackpool Zoo. It took a while to get there but it was a cracking little site once we arrived the receptionist called the owner who drove down to the site to meet me and have a few photos taken. I had to get back in my chair and do my interview with Ed, which was slightly easier today, I knew where I had been because we were in places I had been to before. Video boxed off we made our way to our pitch which was close to a Lynx helicopter! How cool! You could spend a night in a Lynx helicopter instead of a caravan at this site. The site was a lovely one, really well kept and with great facilities. The staff were really friendly, even opening the laundry room up late so we had time to wash and dry our kit. <a href="http://www.reamhills.co.uk/" target="_blank">Ream Hills Holiday Park</a> is definitely worth considering if you are looking for a site near Blackpool.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjHdOJPgAYFF-1Jbh0gkstQMrjLvS5aY5yoyMmjvBduUVlxvvPgUetsRgBg6tRQxO4IBsEOpF3i9rlcvxR1IwsCp2U_18uQRQdS2LujnfMljx6QV9MZVkSqsiDMAzARrZkn8_kdkN-mQGhy/s1600/Day+10+campsite+.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="720" data-original-width="960" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjHdOJPgAYFF-1Jbh0gkstQMrjLvS5aY5yoyMmjvBduUVlxvvPgUetsRgBg6tRQxO4IBsEOpF3i9rlcvxR1IwsCp2U_18uQRQdS2LujnfMljx6QV9MZVkSqsiDMAzARrZkn8_kdkN-mQGhy/s400/Day+10+campsite+.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Campsite owner.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEilJSyCfjnMnbpBThUGrnUA1KDfgYl7c-mEnDciXUs9EcIY9bR4EWSmjrEYyJpljaRfLC4YP7ZANNc6zLw2wOfaJ7OcNwzNLRDYw65n7dBlq1kHXONYs7-yZsbeYtKg1rUEAHuA0wyc1uTx/s1600/Day+10+camp.PNG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="247" data-original-width="1066" height="91" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEilJSyCfjnMnbpBThUGrnUA1KDfgYl7c-mEnDciXUs9EcIY9bR4EWSmjrEYyJpljaRfLC4YP7ZANNc6zLw2wOfaJ7OcNwzNLRDYw65n7dBlq1kHXONYs7-yZsbeYtKg1rUEAHuA0wyc1uTx/s400/Day+10+camp.PNG" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Fancy a night in a Lynx anyone?</td></tr>
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When hooked up we started to clean the bathroom which had started to smell really bad. We'd not really used the bathroom because we'd been using the facilities at the campsites. We'd mainly used the bathroom for storage, cleaning our teeth and a quick pee when we weren't on site. We cleaned the bathroom but it still smelt like a lift in a multi-storey carpark. Who is it that pisses in those lifts? - I've always wondered that! Anyway Ed and Nick went to investigate and opened the hatch that was used to get to the piss collection box. When the fella at the motorhome place had showed us how to empty it he hadn't reattached it and our piss had been leaking everywhere! 10 days worth of piss. It stunk! Ed bit the bullet and cleaned it all up, what a star! I don't think my stomach would have been strong enough to be cleaning up my mates stale piss! Thank god there were no turds!<br />
Nick's mum and dad came to visit us at the campsite, they stayed for a while and chatted with us sat out in the sun outside the motorhome. You could see how proud they were of Nick for cycling most of England already and even better to see was that Nick was proud of himself. He reverted back to a little kid telling them all about his journey so far. I was dead chuffed for the lad, going from never cycling more than 15 miles before to cycling over 400miles is impressive stuff. We had a laugh with his parents before they left and then got on with the evening jobs. Food, wheel and glove repairs, laundry and the like. We had carbonara for tea, made by Ed, I was a little worried about what Nick would eat, his dad had told me to keep nagging him to eat properly, I even had parental permission to give him a slap if he didn't eat what the rest of us were eating. Nick shocked me by saying he would try it! We were definitely making progress with his eating.... but then again carbonara and spaghetti are both beige so they fitted in to his colourless diet haha!<br />
After tea, all three lads went to walk Bonnie whilst I got on with transferring some of the GPS and heart rate data onto my external hard drive so I had copies in case anything went wrong. When they got back they sat down with me and said they'd been a bit worried that after day 14 all of them were due to leave me and that would have just left me pushing with no cyclist and my dad joining me to drive the motorhome. Nick had to go back to work or risk losing his job. Ed and Ant had decided they were staying with me for the full trip. I was fighting the tears! Two lads giving a months wages up just to keep me safe and get me to John O'Groats. I was worried about their finances and if they would both keep their jobs but they assured me they would be fine and that they wanted to stay. Nick also wanted to stay and was a bit upset that he couldn't. Ant would need to go back home the next day and spend the night there to sort a few things out and bring some more clothes etc for himself and Ed, he would get a lift back with our other mate Danny.<br />
The night wasn't the most comfortable of the trip as both the fridge and the air-conditioning had stopped working. The motorhome was very warm that night making sleeping difficult.<br />
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<b><u>Day 10 Afternoon Stats</u></b><br />
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Miles: 14.77<br />
Time: 1:22:12<br />
Average Moving Speed: 10.8mph<br />
Top Speed: 25.4mph<br />
Slowest Mile Split: Mile 13 - 8:04<br />
Fastest Mile Split: Mile 2 - 4:40<br />
Total Ascent: 397ft<br />
Average Heart Rate: 142bpm<br />
Max Heart Rate: 157bpm<br />
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<b><u>Day 10 Afternoon Progress Maps</u></b><br />
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<b><span style="color: red;">Total Daily Mileage: 45.05</span></b><br />
<b></b><i></i><u></u><sub></sub><sup></sup><strike></strike><br />Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15454059332314431888noreply@blogger.com0Preston, UK53.763201 -2.703089999999974753.6881235 -2.8644514999999746 53.8382785 -2.5417284999999747tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-870682862940569183.post-69141851482936679812017-06-22T09:34:00.001+01:002017-06-22T09:34:15.832+01:00Lands End to John O'Groats Day 9 - The History Lesson<b><u>Day 9 Morning</u></b><br />
Both Ant and Nick were slow to get out of their pits again on Day 9 and with me next to useless because of my rib pain I couldn't help Ed get things ready. I was struggling getting the footage downloaded from the cameras because the table was still full of spares, luggage and racing kit. The tables couldn't be cleared because the stuff was put on the beds during the day and Ant and Nick were still in the bloody beds. Ed and myself kept making a lot of noise and throwing hints to get them up but they took their time. When they eventually got up I told Nick he'd have to set his alarm 25 min earlier than the rest of us in the morning and Ant would have to get up when Ed got up and not 20 minutes after. Nick had a strop about me asking him to get up earlier when Ant was late up too. The difference was that Ant was running round shifting the kit where as Nick's getting up was him leaving his bed, to sit on my bed whilst he rolled a fag, then go out and smoke his fag whilst the rest of us got on with the work, he'd then come back in to his breakfast on the table waiting for him. It was our first bit of agro. The younger two were shattered so struggling to get up, I was sleep deprived, in pain and suffering from my med withdrawal like every morning. I was being a grumpy sod but I've been brought up to make sure the work is done before I sort myself out and I've never thought that smokers should be treated differently. I've always thought its a strange habit anyway, let's get some dead leaves. wrap them in paper, set fire to it and then suck it. Who thought of that? <br />
I'm not very tactful at the best of times, you might have noticed whilst reading my blog, but when I'm in pain I can be a bit of an arsehole. That said, I'd say the same again. We didn't get to the start on the A49 in Shrewsbury until gone 10:00AM, The day I pushed my biggest total I was in my chair and pushing before 8:30AM so we'd all let things slip.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg_sYeuFSvAcTyUi9WxnhtEL5upGrnr28KYlie8cmoYhq-RR-zu9hhZl7kJihosbqxKOE2qt0Wajk1YaqfNB0QQTTWpRXv466PIQc-dg0mLVLP9SSuABL-erpkCSCBDWZc_bMr6F8xOzZFL/s1600/Day+9+Looking+tired.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="960" data-original-width="720" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg_sYeuFSvAcTyUi9WxnhtEL5upGrnr28KYlie8cmoYhq-RR-zu9hhZl7kJihosbqxKOE2qt0Wajk1YaqfNB0QQTTWpRXv466PIQc-dg0mLVLP9SSuABL-erpkCSCBDWZc_bMr6F8xOzZFL/s400/Day+9+Looking+tired.jpg" width="300" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">I'm looking really tired in the pre push pic.</td></tr>
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Once on our way we were back chatting normally again, I get on really well with Nick so we can be pretty honest with each other and it just blows over. We passed through an place called Battlefield just after setting off which was pretty apt with my morning rant. I was battling pain again on this push it was pretty bad and the same as the previous day I had to pull over for more pain relief at the 6 mile point. The pain killers I am on are very strong, they give you the good ones when you have a tumour made of bone playing havoc with your pelvis. The downside to having very strong painkillers is I had to stop pushing, get out the chair and eat something whenever I took one. So we had a brew and some toast, popped a pill, and got on our way again. <br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi4RgHb0Ge6lj5Hk8sGXM57uHgdjtRNyDMNJiOe0imllD72REH7M0oGSrbU66MRybZf4ic3iGKv-5fpFaQ4MnPl2ac3wVLjXrIoa85Hgufi5FXpOV3lBk3OoyhGYYMSqFCjyPsBFaFNoLuk/s1600/Day+9+a49.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="673" data-original-width="960" height="280" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi4RgHb0Ge6lj5Hk8sGXM57uHgdjtRNyDMNJiOe0imllD72REH7M0oGSrbU66MRybZf4ic3iGKv-5fpFaQ4MnPl2ac3wVLjXrIoa85Hgufi5FXpOV3lBk3OoyhGYYMSqFCjyPsBFaFNoLuk/s400/Day+9+a49.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A59 times.</td></tr>
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We were travelling through some lovely countryside, there were hills but they weren't steep or too high, it was good pushing. I didn't know it at the time but we came within 1 mile of the Welsh border. If I'd have known I would most definitely popped over the border just to say I'd visited all three countries on our little island. ... I say little, it felt like a bloody big island so far on the challenge and I wasn't even half way yet! Not long after our close encounter with the Welsh I needed to stop again. We were near a place called Whitchurch. This time I thought if we put some more foam under my knees to raise them up it might cause another part of my rib cage to bang on my knees rather than my broken ribs. Anything was worth a go at this point. I guess it did work to some extent but I'd also eased back on the effort and was enjoying the views and chatting to Nick rather than stressing about my speed.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjJaH57yzJ5g8mz9A_vgs7ZdaW-Scr693ujmgRQe-GdMapdM-90VAH5MducqIq0ZFaFp98E1fGK-4XijNTB7LxDCy8fdgvBB9OQNB-pYf_Rgv8nGioWRIZXvaT-g4Yk0nstNNYIR0zoPu2q/s1600/day+9+me+and+Nick.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="745" data-original-width="960" height="310" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjJaH57yzJ5g8mz9A_vgs7ZdaW-Scr693ujmgRQe-GdMapdM-90VAH5MducqIq0ZFaFp98E1fGK-4XijNTB7LxDCy8fdgvBB9OQNB-pYf_Rgv8nGioWRIZXvaT-g4Yk0nstNNYIR0zoPu2q/s400/day+9+me+and+Nick.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Me and my shadow!</td></tr>
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Once I'd passed the Marathon mark in 2:25 I decided we would stop in the next suitable place so Nick spoke to Ant and Ed and asked them to pull in at the next layby they found. The layby was only half a mile away but they already had the deckchairs out and the kettle on when Nick and I got there. Although a marathon is a lot further than I had originally planned to do in the mornings it was less than I had been doing for a good few days. I still had the thought that I needed to catch a couple of days back to make sure Nick made it to Scotland for the reasons I explained in an earlier blog. I knew I couldn't push myself much harder at the moment because if the ribs got worse it risked me not finishing. I felt like I was on a tightrope walk, too many miles and I'd fall off on the injury side and too few miles and I fall off on the no haggis for Nick side.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjsXE61aAdfLhQjCHvkiBu56slMDGqozIaiSLJ6gm5W3CbPjKWt2H2Q2Uf6ax0TsBefByrPGyRUm-6rtGKxSgK0_DBULANjNiBVz_T2ERdStdVG5pwxXKr_Ro9hGShIPDbQqnS_DU0lef2z/s1600/Day+9+Nick+being+nick.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="670" data-original-width="960" height="278" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjsXE61aAdfLhQjCHvkiBu56slMDGqozIaiSLJ6gm5W3CbPjKWt2H2Q2Uf6ax0TsBefByrPGyRUm-6rtGKxSgK0_DBULANjNiBVz_T2ERdStdVG5pwxXKr_Ro9hGShIPDbQqnS_DU0lef2z/s400/Day+9+Nick+being+nick.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Nick attempting to take off!</td></tr>
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<b><u>Day 9 Morning Stats</u></b><br />
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Miles: 26.74<br />
Time: 2:28:06<br />
Average Moving Speed: 10.8mph<br />
Top Speed: 31.2mph<br />
Slowest Mile Split: Mile 6 - 9:17<br />
Fastest Mile Split: Mile 22 - 3:29<br />
Total Ascent: 986ft<br />
Average Heart Rate: 137bpm<br />
Max Heart Rate: 160bpm<br />
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<b><u>Day 9 Morning Progress Maps</u></b><br />
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<b><u>Day 9 Afternoon</u></b><br />
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Shortly after lunch we passed over the border into Cheshire, I was very close to home now. It felt strange to be in a county that I hear about on my local news reports. It seemed a bit surreal. The west country had taken what seemed like an age but just a few days after leaving Bristol I was making great progress up the country. <br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiNfvS4zUKFkH_GYkWKIqfu5xPCM8xlSBIzW7p56TXyr5c-d7yWVg74QLC3NRVt4il2LEshPicvj9aex4nDG4kugtpHZRUsxtRA55_fnhHE9eF6fO9oMgtoMaCbgs9YyWnbVujqPYklnnsE/s1600/day+9.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="669" data-original-width="960" height="278" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiNfvS4zUKFkH_GYkWKIqfu5xPCM8xlSBIzW7p56TXyr5c-d7yWVg74QLC3NRVt4il2LEshPicvj9aex4nDG4kugtpHZRUsxtRA55_fnhHE9eF6fO9oMgtoMaCbgs9YyWnbVujqPYklnnsE/s400/day+9.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Nice gaff like.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhN7yUvB24L_SvwkcnGu0au2aradU9RiXXNcOEl-2Ni1tMYTkNyg84wf4nwysAp8bHT-kImGqDTKu2yQTILviBsjlrzv8YWety2opf-1InXJs7F00dQpKVc3TBHk-A4JVDIJeM6fNxEYFx1/s1600/Day+9+cottage+superman.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="570" data-original-width="960" height="237" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhN7yUvB24L_SvwkcnGu0au2aradU9RiXXNcOEl-2Ni1tMYTkNyg84wf4nwysAp8bHT-kImGqDTKu2yQTILviBsjlrzv8YWety2opf-1InXJs7F00dQpKVc3TBHk-A4JVDIJeM6fNxEYFx1/s400/Day+9+cottage+superman.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Me being a tit outside a pretty little cottage.</td></tr>
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Whilst still on the A49 we passed a town called Tiverton, Nick recognised the name from the Tiverton we had passed in Devon. He asked me why people would call two separate towns the same name. History geek Gotts came out and told him it was pretty unlikely the people that settled in both areas had ever visited the other area when the towns were founded and that the name probably means something in a language older than English. I told him that the 'ton' bit meant town so whatever the start of the word meant probably described something that was in both locations. I could tell from the look on his face that I'd just completely confused him. I was waiting for it, I knew without doubt the response was going to be ridiculous.<br />
"A language older than English, in England? So they didn't speak English here?"<br />
"Oh god! Nick you do know it hasn't actually been called England for that long don't you?"<br />
"What!!!!!!??????"<br />
I tried to explain that we weren't really a country until Alfred the Great and before then England was broken up into smaller kingdoms but before the Romans a lot of the counties we have now were little kingdoms that were really just big clans. Nick was just smiling and nodding, much like I do when Ed talks about space to me. I find it interesting but I don't take it in because I don't understand it. Anyhow, I gave up trying to teach Nick history because whilst confusing him more and more we'd been directed by Ed and Ant onto the B5152 a tiny country lane. It cut across country towards Frodsham. It would save us a lot of time compared to sticking to the main roads.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Ant Pointing us in the right direction</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Cross roads in Cheshire</td></tr>
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We were getting the odd glimpse of Warrington in the distance. Warrington is only a 40min drive from home so it gave me even more of the surreal 'home' feeling. Almost like I had nearly finished but as I said earlier I wasn't even half way yet. Unfortunately Cheshire lived up to its reputation for attracting people who think they are a cut above the rest. We hadn't had a single donation and very few people had waved or cheered us on. What Cheshire had provided us with is tons of arsehole drivers in ridiculously big and expensive cars driving in an aggressive way. I think Nick's middle finger was probably getting sore from all the use it was getting. We weren't in a different position on the road than we had been on the previous 8 days, the road was no narrower than any we'd already passed, we were acting in exactly the same way we had for the hundreds of miles so far. The only thing that was different was the drivers, we were being blasted with horns and we had people driving way too close to try and scare us. It was such a huge contrast to the day before and the people of Shropshire. <br />
Ed had found us a campsite for the night, another freebie, that's 9 free pitches in a row. This one was in The Delamere Forest. Right on the same road I was pushing along. When we got to the campsite I spoke to the lads and said I was feeling good, my ribs had eased slightly so I wanted to do a few more miles as I didn't know how I would feel in the morning. The lads agreed to make an effort in the morning to get up on time so we could accommodate the extra time we would need to travel from the campsite to the start. I ended up pushing another 6.5 miles, I thought any further would make the drive in the morning too far. Plus at that point we had reached a pub called The Traveller's Rest, it seemed the right place to end the day. I was reasonably happy with 43.5 miles for the day. 10 more miles than the original plan that my ex club thought was too far for me to manage.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Seemed an appropriate place to stop.</td></tr>
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Dave from The 53 Foundation had asked Ed to get a short video interview of me each day for facebook. This was our first day doing the video and I'm really not good with being filmed, I even struggle with being photographed. It took about five attempts for me to stop laughing. On the take before the one we used Ed had asked me where I'd been that day and I answered with <br />
"absolutely no idea mate"<br />
My brain wasn't switched on, I had genuinely forgotten where I had been so Ed had to remind me of the towns and then start recording asking me where I had been before I forgot again! I stumbled through the interview and then we made our way to the campsite.<br />
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<a href="http://www.campingandcaravanningclub.co.uk/campsites/uk/cheshire/northwich/delamereforest" target="_blank">Delamere Forest Camping and Caravan site</a> was one of the very few with disabled facilities and I was really glad of them. It was nice to have a proper shower seat and not have to sit on the floor. After my shower I rang Mother Hubbard to tell her how far north we'd got, she wasn't best pleased because she had booked a day off to come and support me through Lancashire but I was likely to be in Cumbria on that day now. I reminded her that I was trying to set a world record - I wasn't just on a jolly and told her just to come and see me after work instead. Showered, fed and told off I got in bed very early again, I was hoping for a better sleep so I would wake up in a better mood the next day. I couldn't sit up because of my ribs anyway so I didn't really have any option other than going to bed.<br />
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<b><u>Day 9 Afternoon Stats</u></b><br />
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Miles: 16.79<br />
Time: 1:37:17<br />
Average Moving Speed: 10.4mph<br />
Top Speed: 36.2mph<br />
Slowest Mile Split: Mile 8 - 12:08<br />
Fastest Mile Split: Mile 9 - 2:29<br />
Total Ascent: 854ft<br />
Average Heart Rate: 143bpm<br />
Max Heart Rate: 163bpm<br />
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<b><u>Day 9 Afternoon Progress Maps</u></b><br />
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<b><span style="color: red;">Total Daily Mileage: 43.53</span></b></div>
<b></b><i></i><u></u><sub></sub><sup></sup><strike></strike><br />Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15454059332314431888noreply@blogger.com0Frodsham WA6, UK53.2967045 -2.724564299999997353.258736999999996 -2.8052452999999975 53.334672 -2.643883299999997tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-870682862940569183.post-77640242188577274642017-06-21T10:55:00.001+01:002017-06-21T10:55:05.146+01:00Lands End to John O'Groats, Day 8 - near, far, wherever you are.<b><u>Day 8 Morning</u></b><br />
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I woke up after an awful nights sleep due to my ribs. I move around a hell of a lot in my sleep because my bone tumour makes my legs hurt if I am in the same position for too long. Once my ribs were bust each and every movement in bed woke me up in heaps of pain. We'd decided against the full English breakfast that the farmer's wife made for the campers. It was a little on the expensive side and I wasn't convinced I would keep it down once I set off. I still regret not having it, I have a feeling it would have been a huge breakfast cooked really well. <br />
We left the campsite and headed for our start point near Leominster but today I didn't get the same relief from the rib pain when I sat in the race chair. In fact it was worse, a lot worse. Along with the bust ribs I had a small tear in my left pec and my chest was really tight so I was struggling for breath. Only a few hundred meters after setting off I said to Nick we needed to pull in at the next layby as I was in a bit of trouble. I'm quite good with pain, my legs hurt 24/7 so normally a bit more pain doesn't bother me but the ribs, pec and asthma symptoms were a bit too much for me. Before we got to the next layby we saw a guy who was walking in the opposite direction - John O'Groats to Lands End. He was doing it unsupported so everything he needed for the trip was in his kit bag on his back. We both clapped each other and although we didn't stop it was really nice to acknowledge each others efforts. I got a buzz off someone doing something similar to me, it gave me a boost to see someone almost as nuts as I am.<br />
Around 5 minutes after passing the JOGLE walker I spotted two ladies parked up on the grass verge on the opposite side of the road. They were making lots of noise, clapping and cheering whilst trying to cross the busy main road. They managed to cross just as I got level with them. They shouted good luck and told me I was amazing. They handed Nick a couple of quid sponsorship and he stopped to talk to them and explain what I was doing and who I was doing it for. Their kind words and donation to the charity gave me a real boost. They already seemed to have a rough idea what I was doing, maybe they had seen the motorhome decals or some of the press reports thanks to Elouise, Natalie and Lance's hard work back at home. I managed to limp on to the 6 mile mark thanks to the motivation I received from both the JOGLE walker and the two ladies enthusiasm. Nick had already spoken to Ed and Ant through the motorhome window to tell them I needed to sort myself out ASAP. Ed found the closest layby and when I pulled in the deckchairs were out, my meds were waiting for me and Ant was making a brew - maybe my magic medicine might help! I took some painkillers and myself and Ed put some padding in the chair to slightly change my seating position and hopefully relieve some of my pain. I also took my inhaler to ease my chest, I very rarely use my inhaler these days because my asthma doesn't bother me often. It's normally only when I am ill I struggle for breath.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">On our way towards Shrewsbury</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Passing by Ludlow Castle, just a glimpse of it in the distance</td></tr>
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When the pain meds had kicked in we set off again, heading for our 9th county of the challenge - Shropshire. The flattest part of the entire push so far was when we came past The Shropshire Hills Centre. It tickled both Nick and me that there wasn't a hill in sight! To say I wasn't able to push properly I was batting along very well. It was frustrating that I was having to hold back, I'd have loved to see how fast I could have pushed on this route uninjured. My heart rate was only 136bpm which is lower than when I warm up before a training session on the track. In the end I managed to grind out just over 24 miles.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A car proving these signpost shots aren't staged! Shropshire.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjfog8W9BDrg2ADJwIDuejqRLJOkB-O_-zU0bOL_Zgg6vZqFMWTqqq1giDw4m1yCfgZ2j8u5i2FUplViECdslA6V2QLhW_ZtSierEf28dipIGDMIEUgpamD0z7iXfQp2roMhkXW1nFIac4R/s1600/Day+8+level+crossing.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="495" data-original-width="960" height="206" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjfog8W9BDrg2ADJwIDuejqRLJOkB-O_-zU0bOL_Zgg6vZqFMWTqqq1giDw4m1yCfgZ2j8u5i2FUplViECdslA6V2QLhW_ZtSierEf28dipIGDMIEUgpamD0z7iXfQp2roMhkXW1nFIac4R/s400/Day+8+level+crossing.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Another level crossing.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
Nick had to virtually lift me in to the motorhome which was parked in a pub carpark, I couldn't lift my arm high enough to grab the handrail to pull myself in. When I did make it inside the motorhome I just couldn't get comfortable so I ended up laying down again. I hate seeing people work when I can't join in. I buttered some bread in my bed for the sandwiches but I couldn't make myself useful in any other way. Dave from The 53 Foundation had got a radio station to interview me<br />
over the phone. I absolutely hate talking on the phone. If Mother Hubbard gets 30 seconds of conversation over the phone she has done well. I have no idea where this phone call stress has come from but I've had it a while and try to text wherever possible. So I was totally bricking it, I made the lads take Bonnie for a walk so they weren't listening in and laughing at me. I managed to get through the interview without stuttering or swearing and I was pretty pleased with it in the end. The interview was to be played out a few times whilst I was in the area.<br />
<br />
<b><u>Day 8 Morning Stats</u></b><br />
<br />
Miles: 24.34<br />
Time: 2:16:29<br />
Average Moving Speed: 10.7mph<br />
Top Speed: 31.4mph<br />
Slowest Mile Split: Mile 13 - 8:00<br />
Fastest Mile Split: Mile 9 - 3:22<br />
Total Ascent: 916ft<br />
Average Heart Rate: 136bpm<br />
Max Heart Rate: 154bpm<br />
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<b><u>Day 8 Morning Progress Maps</u></b><br />
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<b><u><br /></u></b>
<b><u>Day 8 Afternoon</u></b><br />
<br />
I took another strong pain killer at lunch to make getting back in my chair more bearable. The support I was getting on the A49 was incredible, lots of people were pipping, waving, clapping and cheering. I loved it! It really helped to pass the time and the miles whilst I was suffering. This part of the route was largely downhill so my average speed was the fastest of any push so far in the challenge.<br />
The day had started to get really hot, both Nick and I were melting on one of the few climbs of Day 8. A car came past with the driver beeping out a tune with his horn. We both smiled and waved at him and didn't think much of it until in the next village the car looked like it had been dumped by joy riders. It had been parked in a hurry that's for sure - half on a grass verge at a wonky angle. The driver was stood on the pavement waiting for us to get to him. He had dumped the car and legged it to the village shop to buy us an ice cold bottle of water each. We stopped to accept the bottles from him and to thank him, he had seen us the day before as well as on today's morning push and he'd guessed what I was doing. He gave us £20 sponsorship when he heard about the work The 53 Foundation do, he was really interested in the charity do but told us to get on our way so we could get some more miles in. A few moments later he came past us again beeping his horn like a mad man - he had well and truly got in the spirit of things! I don't know the guy's name but on the off chance he reads this blog - thanks very much for your kindness!<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi320WWpUdAq2x5sti8QbmnSmw5kLyJKtyUxUj66VeHWGBR-VSmAzB8Uy9LniXmUnO8DAZJtcLdoGMmDd8ZVa5fVTxCgwaQLXkQ4azJpfRiW_sHPOex7Ldd8oBhOF_Swz8Si6j97LLI3VeF/s1600/Day+8+hills.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="548" data-original-width="960" height="227" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi320WWpUdAq2x5sti8QbmnSmw5kLyJKtyUxUj66VeHWGBR-VSmAzB8Uy9LniXmUnO8DAZJtcLdoGMmDd8ZVa5fVTxCgwaQLXkQ4azJpfRiW_sHPOex7Ldd8oBhOF_Swz8Si6j97LLI3VeF/s400/Day+8+hills.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Some hills in Shropshire but nowhere near the hill centre!</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhfR7MXDmyzzIjwM5F-kQYmTCjXZnXfrtKxgQ8H2CrKRuDXfuumOphOVaMZmtXvOjzB4f8K-__md2EH6V6kLBaeW8R0wjOSSESwBQdAdChtSmtjbJfrApjEeM2wLCjYsDwHFa20P4nRC5fi/s1600/Day+8+thumbs+up.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="657" data-original-width="960" height="273" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhfR7MXDmyzzIjwM5F-kQYmTCjXZnXfrtKxgQ8H2CrKRuDXfuumOphOVaMZmtXvOjzB4f8K-__md2EH6V6kLBaeW8R0wjOSSESwBQdAdChtSmtjbJfrApjEeM2wLCjYsDwHFa20P4nRC5fi/s400/Day+8+thumbs+up.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Nick giving the thumbs up.</td></tr>
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<br />
It's really odd how much better a random act of kindness can make your day. A wave from the car would have kept my spirits up but what he did changed my mind set from 'lots of people want me to fail and I'm in pain' to 'Lots of random people who don't know me, friends and family believe in me'<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEixtO5sEND9iqTppv4mEUUtDRnbPHx7s9FwkGHuYRGAbVDz6hYoJLWiz0B451YEd4UTEsp-KflVN8isfmOHrxUaJpPGw33MSo7qpgR471lql8gbApR2Y2IE4Zdjy0u8UU8Juh4od8UnZtEj/s1600/Day+8+me+and+nick.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="711" data-original-width="960" height="296" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEixtO5sEND9iqTppv4mEUUtDRnbPHx7s9FwkGHuYRGAbVDz6hYoJLWiz0B451YEd4UTEsp-KflVN8isfmOHrxUaJpPGw33MSo7qpgR471lql8gbApR2Y2IE4Zdjy0u8UU8Juh4od8UnZtEj/s400/Day+8+me+and+nick.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Getting ready to pull in for a brew.</td></tr>
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<br />
We were heading for Shrewsbury that day as I was being given a free massage and treatment from a physio at Shrewsbury Town FC. My higher speed got me there faster than expected so I chose to use the extra time before my massage to take on Shrewsbury's ring road instead of leaving it until the morning. I had Ed and Ant driving behind me to protect me from cars driving into me so I felt a lot safer than a day earlier at Gloucester. For most of the dual carriageway I was loving the smooth tarmac. A good road surface can make a massive difference to the speed of a wheelchair, with our wheels not being in line like a bikes wheels it makes it much harder to avoid pot holes or even rough patches of worn tarmac. The only hairy part of this section of road was each time we reached a junction with people trying to enter or leave the ring road, again this is somewhere the second vehicle would have helped. I'd have felt a lot safer sandwiched between two vehicles. I had visions of a car bunny hopping the motorhome, cutting across the front of it to make an exit and taking Nick and I out in the process. Whilst on the ring road Nick spotted a sign for Preston<br />
"Wow! Mate, We're nearly at Preston, I was meant to tell mum and dad when I was near Preston so they could come and visit us."<br />
" Nick you dick! That is not the Preston you are thinking of!"<br />
"Well how do you know that? It says Preston!"<br />
"It says Preston 3 miles."<br />
"so!?"<br />
"So, bloody Preston is more than 3 miles from Shrewsbury you fecking tit!" <br />
You really do have to love Nick, he's not thick at all, he just doesn't think before he opens his mouth. It's like his eyes bypass his brain and sends the message to speak straight to his mouth. He see's something and makes a daft comment straightaway without thinking about it. I love it.<br />
Once we found our exit off the ring road we went through our now slick routine, Ed and Nick stripping the chair down and attaching the bike to the back of the motorhome whilst Ant got me my recovery drinks and bars.... along with a cup of tea. I'd say we had it down to less than 5 minutes now everyone knew their rolls. We headed for New Meadow stadium which is the home of Shrewsbury Town Football Club, one of their physios had stayed behind to treat me. The receptionist called the physio, Richie, down to see me and I followed him through the stadium in a mini behind the scenes tour to get to the treatment room. We had a quick chat about the challenge, the action of pushing a chair and the niggles I'd been feeling. Obviously there was nothing he could do for my ribs but he gave a really thorough massage of my full back, neck, shoulders, biceps and triceps then did what he could with my pecs. We got on pretty well, I'm a qualified massage therapist so we had a bit in common. We chatted all about sports and how bad some people are at sports massage, I struggle like mad at home to find somebody who can massage properly. A lot of therapists are scared to go deep enough so all they are doing is stroking you better which I find a bit creepy. A good sports massage is pretty uncomfortable as they put a lot of pressure on. That is exactly what Richie was doing, it was sore but I knew it would be worth it. He then used ultrasound on my pec to aid the healing process. He spent a lot of time working on me and I was really grateful. <br />
After Richie had treated me he led me through the changing rooms to the contrast baths. Two very big baths one which he ran hot water in to, the other he filled with cold water and four buckets of ice. I then spent 20 minutes switching between the baths every 2 minutes. Unlike footballers who can get away with sitting in a shallow bath just icing their legs, most of my niggles were upper body niggles; I had to lay down in the ice. The contrast between hot and cold made the hot feel burning hot and the cold feel like Kate Winslet was going to push me off her plank of wood to my certain death before saving herself. It really wasn't pleasant. After 20 minutes of the torture of Celine Dion belting out 'My Heart Will Go On' on loop in my head I towelled off and instantly felt better. Yes my ribs felt sore but my other niggles were a thousand times better.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjBTHxm2Uyg7x-u6enYcUxsROufckx-20sir-WQxZaTzC9WpxZY3F-O8ptV8fV9aj1z6ceYOb2-0yoxo3Cs330Qh_IZqlwdhorjoKcV43obgSxV3aY5Q_f8VBqOnal6StUReoiC-EpYq3m8/s1600/Day+8+shrews.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="720" data-original-width="960" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjBTHxm2Uyg7x-u6enYcUxsROufckx-20sir-WQxZaTzC9WpxZY3F-O8ptV8fV9aj1z6ceYOb2-0yoxo3Cs330Qh_IZqlwdhorjoKcV43obgSxV3aY5Q_f8VBqOnal6StUReoiC-EpYq3m8/s400/Day+8+shrews.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Richie Higgs and myself post massage.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi-FX3Gi7I6qqOAn9LY4qG9YWhMoJrqUO8BfCst6t1ZyFEuooXwmNij71mzkkXVKkQL1WVT689OJ-3xIRPK-IDYg4hNZ4rycsBK6rHrcsP9yTuq-_SwKyOlCNDteVJZAWOn-R-r0o4gCF2m/s1600/Day+8.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="720" data-original-width="960" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi-FX3Gi7I6qqOAn9LY4qG9YWhMoJrqUO8BfCst6t1ZyFEuooXwmNij71mzkkXVKkQL1WVT689OJ-3xIRPK-IDYg4hNZ4rycsBK6rHrcsP9yTuq-_SwKyOlCNDteVJZAWOn-R-r0o4gCF2m/s400/Day+8.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Luckily I hadn't drowned in the ice bath.</td></tr>
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<br />
I called the lads to let them know I would be ready shortly, they had been to find the campsite. It was <a href="https://www.morris-leisure.co.uk/caravan-parks/oxon-hall-shrewsbury.htm" target="_blank">Oxon Hall Touring Park</a> and they were Our 8th free site. It wasn't far from the Stadium so it didn't take long for them to get back for me. I introduced Richie to the lads and Bonnie and asked him for some photos for facebook. Then it was time for goodbyes, what a top lad for staying behind after work to help me out for free. He didn't rush the job either. The people of Shropshire had been by far the friendliest on the trip so far. I'd had so much support that day it was humbling.<br />
During the drive to the campsite, after Ed's double entendre fest around the subject of getting a massage from a lad, the three of them were telling me how beautiful this new campsite was and how we had an amazing pitch right next to a very large pond. They weren't wrong, the campsite was very posh, the pitch was a lovely one too. If Mother Hubbard went caravanning then its the type of site that she would love. When I saw the list of rules and regulations I couldn't help wishing we were back at the Nicholson's farm with the one rule of not damaging his precious grass! No swearing!? What is that bollocks about? We broke that rule a few hundred times that's for sure. We had to keep reminding each other that we had the windows open!<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgaUue6HllkIxCvLMsWAoBVkpVVaJ2Wk6PmdfN96FOWsA_d3EXDDYz-5LMKGmVyBMSSZ-p8LONXU9ZesUrU2YRd_j9Zhkv6l_AyYHJw4j_GYjJOYJ_87RcoZGjO-JWFY7vbC5ny_jMHjhcH/s1600/Day+8+camp.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="447" data-original-width="1600" height="111" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgaUue6HllkIxCvLMsWAoBVkpVVaJ2Wk6PmdfN96FOWsA_d3EXDDYz-5LMKGmVyBMSSZ-p8LONXU9ZesUrU2YRd_j9Zhkv6l_AyYHJw4j_GYjJOYJ_87RcoZGjO-JWFY7vbC5ny_jMHjhcH/s400/Day+8+camp.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Our motorhome right next to the pond.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjadBOOYellkjD7EjWzdgFNgYs3p9-8MLBxeGLmTKsMzKDZvSWn7XlECyAT9KRiEX07vOs7GszvyJMxtbFRP3_Kw8RpAP0tfLo0NpGnAsU-0ueYoY6WesWk71AV9_568ibH78JgYs6lim7k/s1600/Day+8+campsite.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="598" data-original-width="1539" height="155" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjadBOOYellkjD7EjWzdgFNgYs3p9-8MLBxeGLmTKsMzKDZvSWn7XlECyAT9KRiEX07vOs7GszvyJMxtbFRP3_Kw8RpAP0tfLo0NpGnAsU-0ueYoY6WesWk71AV9_568ibH78JgYs6lim7k/s400/Day+8+campsite.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A lovely spot.</td></tr>
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<br />
That night Ed made a cracking Thai Green Curry. One of my favourite meals and in a minor miracle Nick actually tried some. I think the beige colour helped him get his head around eating something that wasn't chips, noodles, chicken or fish in bread crumbs, bread, toast, plain rice...<br />
I was absolutely knackered so I went to bed at 7:30PM I tied a scarf around the slats on Nicks bed above mine to pull myself up with as doing a sit up was extremely painful because of the ribs. I also hung a towel over another slat to section off what was meant to be the foot end of the bed. The foot end was very narrow as the bathroom cut into the bed at this point. I had decided to use that end for my head as I could make it darker with the towel but also by having a pillow next to me there was zero space to roll over and wake myself up in pain during the night. Nick was up late again working on my gloves with his sewing needle, Ed and Ant stayed up to keep him company and they took bonnie for a long walk too. I was happy with my 45 miles for the day and glad to be moving north now!<br />
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<b><u>Day 8 Afternoon Stats</u></b><br />
<br />
Miles: 20.64<br />
Time: 1:38:04<br />
Average Moving Speed: 12.6mph<br />
Top Speed: 29.9mph<br />
Slowest Mile Split: Mile 4 - 6:46<br />
Fastest Mile Split: Mile 8 - 3:07<br />
Total Ascent: 427ft<br />
Average Heart Rate: 141bpm<br />
Max Heart Rate:163bpm<br />
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<b><u>Day 8 Afternoon Progress Maps</u></b><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEifbC3olG1efLzErN0JIJ_JfSJay7mouzF3QHp95TK3KxLZSfKTQZTnacbjYU9aq3tFjUia8e3__0E2-iw47Y2a2PwFbDT-LroJdCKsJG7hBIgjNls2_y37efNcgGTzXOyebzD0dlYQzy6j/s1600/Day+8+aft+long.PNG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="381" data-original-width="819" height="185" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEifbC3olG1efLzErN0JIJ_JfSJay7mouzF3QHp95TK3KxLZSfKTQZTnacbjYU9aq3tFjUia8e3__0E2-iw47Y2a2PwFbDT-LroJdCKsJG7hBIgjNls2_y37efNcgGTzXOyebzD0dlYQzy6j/s400/Day+8+aft+long.PNG" width="400" /></a></div>
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<b><span style="color: red;">Total Daily Mileage 44.98</span></b><br />
<b></b><i></i><u></u><sub></sub><sup></sup><strike></strike><br />Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15454059332314431888noreply@blogger.com0Shrewsbury, UK52.707302899999988 -2.755326800000034452.63035039999999 -2.9166883000000343 52.784255399999985 -2.5939653000000344tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-870682862940569183.post-4213234794815965792017-06-20T13:11:00.000+01:002017-06-20T22:22:31.294+01:00Lands End To John O'Groats Day 7 - The Flying Cripple Situation.<b><u>Day 7 Morning</u></b><br />
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After the excitement of going public on Day 6 of the challenge I had been adding up the figures for how far I had travelled in total and how high I had climbed too. Before Day 6's total was added it was somewhere around 225 miles and 18,000ft of climbing. I was happy with that but I now had two bust ribs to deal with. Whilst adding up the mileage something had dawned on me and it had me worried all night. Nick was only supposed to be cycling for two weeks as that is all the time he could take off work with such short notice. The original plan was to have Nick show his brother Mike the routines when he joined us on day 14, Nick would then carry on with us until the Scottish border around day 16 or 17. A combination of Mike's work and his dragon, sorry I mean wife, meant that he couldn't take part due to the date change but that wasn't what was worrying me. Nick had set his heart on cycling the entire length of England but we now had two or three less days than planned, there was no way around it, Nick had to leave on day 14 or he would risk losing his job.<br />
Nick wasn't only cycling to help me out, he was doing the challenge in memory of his son, Charlie. Charlie had come in to the world too early and despite putting up a big fight he sadly passed away. Without going in to too much detail I think it is fair to say that Nick had struggled to cope with the loss of his little man after just a few precious days. Nick wasn't much more than a kid himself when it happened so it must have been absolute hell for him. He had been trying really hard to sort his life out and had made big changes to his lifestyle, not least moving from London to Rossendale to be closer to his brother. I knew how important it was to Nick to get to the border, I knew I needed to do whatever I could to get him there in 14 days!<br />
It was another wet morning but at least we'd left the hilly west country behind us. It felt nice to be heading north instead of heading east like I had been doing for the first 6 days. I had totally underestimated just how long the west country is. I was in front of schedule but I didn't feel much closer to Scotland as I was still down the bottom end of England. We got on with the morning routine and set off to Berkeley Heath where I would be starting my push. Ledbury was 30 miles away so I thought on a wet day and in pain with my ribs that would be a good target or maybe 5 miles further down the road.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Damp Day 7</td></tr>
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Oddly, after being in heaps of pain all night and not even being able to sit at the breakfast table without being in tons of pain, once in my race chair I felt much more comfortable. Myself and Nick got on our way and once Ed was happy that I was ok pushing and not going to need him or Ant they shot off to get some shopping and fuel. I got myself settled into a nice rhythm, pushing along at a speed not too far behind my race pace. The roads were flat so despite the rain I was doing well. It wasn't long before we crossed the River Severn (which I excepted to be more impressive) and we could see Gloucester Cathedral in the distance. When checking the route the previous night Ed and I had been unsure if we should head through the city streets or use the ring road which would be shorter and faster but more dangerous. Ed was going to scout the start of the ring road out on his shopping trip and let me know what he thought when he got back. Unfortunately Nick and I had been following the road numbers we needed and completely missed the junction where we'd have to choose between ring road and city centre. We found ourselves already on a busy ring road. We pulled in to the first layby to phone Ed and Ant to see where they were, they were on the road further down towards Bristol looking for us. They told Nick not to use the ring road as it was too busy but it was too late we were on it! They turned around and headed back towards us but we made the decision not to wait for them as we were getting very wet and cold. I was pushing hell for leather, faster than my race pace, trying to get us off this bloody dual carriageway. There wasn't a hard shoulder, just a 2ft wide bit of tarmac beyond the white line. Nick could get his bike into that thin strip but I could only get one wheel in the space. I was trying to keep my front wheel in the tiny gap between the rumble strip and the cats-eyes but this was really hard work at speed and in the wet. Each time my front wheel hit a cats-eye it squirted water all over me. After 5 or 6 times of getting a face full of filthy water I tried getting my front wheel the other side of the rumble strip but that meant every so often my back wheel hitting a cats-eye and squirting Nick. Each time I heard him shout I giggled to myself, partly nervous laughter as I thought I was about to be run over but mainly just the thought of Nick getting a face full of dirty road juice.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Nick being Nick</td></tr>
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Once off the ring road we found a layby for Nick to phone the lads, we had 8 missed calls from them but there had been nowhere for us to stop safely on the ring road. Apparently they had been up and down the ring road 3 times looking for us and had thought we'd got lost or taken a different route as they hadn't spotted us. They weren't far away so it only took them a couple of minutes to find us in the layby. Ant put the kettle on, you know me, any excuse for a cup of tea! A near death experience was definitely a good opportunity for a brew. Nick and I told Ed and Ant all about the ring road like a pair of school boys telling their mates what they'd been up to on the summer holidays. Brews drunk and stories told we were on our way again.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Back out on the country roads</td></tr>
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There was quite a climb away from Gloucester, my arms were tired from racing to get off the ring road, my ribs were sore and it was wet so maybe it seemed a little tougher than it should have done. The climb was followed by a steep descent which I was really enjoying until I saw brake lights in front. I tried hard to stop but wet gloves and brakes did nothing to slow me. I was headed straight for the back of a car when I spotted a left turn onto a residential road running almost parallel to the main road a bit like a layby with houses on it. I took the turn to give me more time to stop. A split second after I turned I hit a speedbump and took off, all three wheels in the air. "fuuuuuuuuuuuuck!" Obviously when you have no wheels on the ground braking is impossible. I landed with a thud. just metres away from the next speedbump where I got air time again "shiiiiiiiiiiiiit!". Luckily I just about managed to get control as the road met the main road again and the row of cars that were sat waiting at the lights. I wonder what they were thinking seeing a lad in his wheelchair flying through the air, twice. Then Nick caught up, came to a stop with a skid and gave me a right bollocking! He sounded just like my dad! The lights changed and I set off tentatively, not sure if I had damaged the chair, the wheels or even myself. Everything seemed ok and it wasn't long before Nick was laughing at the flying cripple situation. Threatening to get me a cape and playing the song One Call Away on his phone singing "superman's got nothing on you" at the top of his voice.<br />
Before we knew it we were in the Malvern Hills and just a few miles from Ledbury, I didn't feel tired at all so I pushed to Ledbury where we stopped for lunch. Almost 31 miles! When I got out of the chair my ribs started hurting like mad again. I found sitting at the table for lunch too painful so I ended up eating whilst laid on my bed. During lunch we had to cancel the campsite we'd found near Ledbury as it was going to be too far away from the finish point now.<br />
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<b><u>Day 7 Morning Stats</u></b><br />
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Miles: 30.87<br />
Time: 2:50:43<br />
Average Moving Speed: 10.8mph<br />
Top Speed: 33.7mph<br />
Slowest Mile Split: Mile 28 - 9:21<br />
Fastest Mile Split: Mile 4 - 3:42<br />
Total Ascent: 1358ft<br />
Average Heart Rate: 144bpm<br />
Max Heart Rate: 169bpm<br />
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<b><u>Day 7 Morning Progress Maps</u></b><br />
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<b><u>Day 7 Afternoon</u></b><br />
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Back in my chair after lunch I felt comfortable again I found it really odd how being in the position that had bust my ribs was the only position I was comfortable in! We were now in our next county, Herefordshire, the weather had brightened up and the scenery was the stereotypical English countryside, lots of green fields, ancient hedgerows and rolling hills. The houses we passed were amazing too. This was a posh neighbourhood. Lovely place.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">English countryside.</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Still damp</td></tr>
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We started to see signs for Hampton Court Castle which confused me for a while as Hampton Court is in London not far from where my now ex club trains. Eventually my tired brain clicked that Henry VIII's gaff was Hampton Court Palace not Hampton Court Castle that we were about to pass. As we got to the gate house I could see Ed and Ant poised on the opposite side of the road, ready to take photos of us with the gatehouse in the background. It took everything I had to fight the history geek inside me. The history geek wanted to turn and look at the castle but there was no chance I was going to stop and pose for a picture or go back and do a rerun for a staged picture. I kept looking forward and didn't get to see the castle at all. I am so glad I made that choice because Ed captured my favourite photo of the entire trip, Nick and I going fairly fast, the gatehouse and through the gate up to the castle. This is another of the places I want to go back to - if only to see it with my own eyes!<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj0xUXAUIeMjmjTQY7qFhKIwXBBZWpAE1bGB1qn9oIeN2-9lrdTl-37oAvCp8j6CCgIzAQo9yH7r8zUl71SPVK-QJjfWH_vXvQWHvtGmS9BJMKLyhu2mespPjy9NCJXhyEDBmoc08pXB0Py/s1600/Hampton+court+castle+day+7.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="734" data-original-width="960" height="305" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj0xUXAUIeMjmjTQY7qFhKIwXBBZWpAE1bGB1qn9oIeN2-9lrdTl-37oAvCp8j6CCgIzAQo9yH7r8zUl71SPVK-QJjfWH_vXvQWHvtGmS9BJMKLyhu2mespPjy9NCJXhyEDBmoc08pXB0Py/s400/Hampton+court+castle+day+7.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Hampton Court Castle, my favourite photo of the challenge.</td></tr>
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I kept a fairly steady pace through all the rolling hills and I managed an enormous total of 50.2 miles for the day. Partly this was because of my growing confidence that I was going to get to John O'Groats but mainly this was the start of me trying to get a head of schedule to get Nick to Scotland in memory of Charlie.<br />
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Our new campsite for day 7, another freebie, was called <a href="http://nicholsonfarm.co.uk/wp/" target="_blank">Nicholson Farm</a> and it was a fully working farm. As soon as we headed down the lane and into the farmyard I was excited about the stay. Ed went in to find out where to hook up and the farmer had given him a firm warning not to damage his grass. I love farms and I love country people. The place was absolutely stunning, there were cows everywhere and the farm dogs just wondering around. They came to say hello to Bonnie and they all had a run around the field together. I was desperate for a shower, they were housed in an old outhouse for the farm, possibly an old pig pen. They weren't the cleanest but I didn't care, I loved the place. The showers were full of spiders and I was grinning to myself thinking that Nick and Ant were going to struggle as they are both soft arses when it comes to spiders. Right as I was lent against the wall showering and dodging spiders the bloody light went out and as there were no windows it was pitch black. There I was, naked, fumbling about looking for the door lock so I could go out and turn the light back on. I secretly hoped the same would happen to Ant and Nick!<br />
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Back at the motorhome Ed was talking to the owner of the only other caravan on the site. An old man from Oldham, he had come on holiday with his wife and two dogs but sadly one had taken ill and needed to be put down. He had been due to go home a few days earlier but he wouldn't leave without his dog's ashes. It was such a sad thing to hear, I don't know where I would be without Bonnie! <br />
After we ate the lads went exploring the paths around the farm and down to a lake, they come back thinking they'd been to the wild west because the cows had followed them. Ed found it highly amusing that he'd found another animal that Ant was petrified of!<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The Nicholson's cows!</td></tr>
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In the evening we were treated to the loudest bird song I've heard for years; Ed managed to get a short video:<br />
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<b><u>Day 7 Afternoon Stats</u></b><br />
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Miles: 19.34<br />
Time: 1:57:59<br />
Average Moving Speed: 9.9mph<br />
Top Speed: 23.9mph<br />
Slowest Mile Split: Mile 3 - 8:46<br />
Fastest Mile Split: Mile 7 - 3:26<br />
Total Ascent: 856ft<br />
Average Heart Rate: 143bpm<br />
Max Heart Rate: 163bpm<br />
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<b><u>Day 7 Afternoon Progress Maps</u></b><br />
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<b><span style="color: red;">Total Daily Mileage: 50.21 (17 miles beyond the target)</span></b><br />
<b></b><i></i><u></u><sub></sub><sup></sup><strike></strike><br />Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15454059332314431888noreply@blogger.com0Gloucester, UK51.8642449 -2.238156000000003651.7857884 -2.3995175000000035 51.942701400000004 -2.0767945000000037tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-870682862940569183.post-86119212203466200542017-06-19T10:01:00.002+01:002017-06-19T14:04:00.389+01:00Lands End to John O'Groats Day 6 - The Cat Is Out 'The Bag!<b><u>Day 6 Morning</u></b><br />
The alarms went off and nobody was hungover although I was a bit tired as Nick in the bunk above me had been having a full blown conversation with himself at about 3am. I think cooking tea on day 5 had made him dream about work as the conversation was something about beef. Lots of it was just mumbling but the bits I could make out was all food related - Nick worked in a Carvery. I'd let it go on for about 15 minutes before I flashed his bunk light on and off a few times. It seemed to work, he went quiet again but I couldn't get back to sleep. I was really excited about finally announcing to the world that I was doing the challenge. As always when you can't sleep, I nodded off not long before the alarms sounded. After days of moaning at him to get up faster Nick was up and being useful which made a big difference. All four of us working together got us ready with enough time to use Kinesiology tape on Nicks dodgy knees and take a couple of photos before we left The Hideout campsite that we'd all enjoyed staying at. We'd put the decals on the motorhome and as we would no longer be trying to keep it quiet after Bristol we wanted a few pics for Facebook.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj5q33KpRXea3Nq5VvyUbAsJ_XeYUndx1f8-az9nOOUCWccTuCLf3iLKpAlU5Wqm8RqOrpQkYJUv1AC_MqYo_rmGbQHSlJutit8QOJi0e6C4HgkrAJ_3wXGY6rQg5YAJfl3_V-uPMathChi/s1600/Day+6+Leaving+the+hideout+with+decals+on.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="720" data-original-width="960" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj5q33KpRXea3Nq5VvyUbAsJ_XeYUndx1f8-az9nOOUCWccTuCLf3iLKpAlU5Wqm8RqOrpQkYJUv1AC_MqYo_rmGbQHSlJutit8QOJi0e6C4HgkrAJ_3wXGY6rQg5YAJfl3_V-uPMathChi/s400/Day+6+Leaving+the+hideout+with+decals+on.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Myself, Ant and Nick posing at The Hideout campsite.</td></tr>
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We had a fair distance to drive before we got to the start at Burnham-on-Sea where you could see across Cardiff Bay/The Bristol Channel to Cardiff. On the way to the start Ant asked the Dream Team if they could find us a pitch near Bristol for that night. We thought Camp sites may be rare in the city so also asked for hotels.</div>
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We'd spoken with the Landlord, Clive and his regulars in the pub the night before about my route to Bristol. The original plan was to head straight through The Mendip Hills, a famous Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty and home of The Cheddar Gorge and The Wokey Hole Caves. I'd visited the area as a kid and remembered how hilly it was so Ed and I had been looking at a bit of a detour via Weston-Super-Mare to avoid The Mendips. Clive and his regulars told us we should revert back to heading through the Mendips. They told us that if we took the coast road then it would be flat until we passed Weston but then it would become extremely hilly. They showed us a route through The Mendips using a gorge that ran parallel to the Cheddar Gorge which would be a steady climb with three fairly steep but short climbs. They promised there was nothing as bad as Dartmoor so we took their word and once in my chair we headed for The Mendips.</div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">On the road to Bristol.</td></tr>
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The start of the push wasn't too bad at all, the steady climb didn't start to kick in until we left Somerset and entered the county of North Somerset. It was exactly how Clive and Co and explained but in the distance I could see The Mendips, Nick and I were trying to spot a gap in the hills where the gorge I was heading for would be, looking back now I was just being a bit thick, that's not how a gorge works!<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Leaving Somerset for North Somerset.</td></tr>
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The climb did get a little steeper but it was a dry day so I tackled them with a bit more confidence than I had done previously. There were three steeper parts of the climb just like we'd been told but none were too bad compared to what I'd been up already. Plus The Mendips' status as an official Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty was well deserved and the views back over the Somerset Levels helped ease the climbs. <br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Climbing in to The Mendips with the Somerset Levels in the background.</td></tr>
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We had a bit of a downhill coming out of The Mendips but not as much as I was expecting and it wasn't long before we were starting to climb again as we made our way towards Bristol Airport. The roads were now the busiest we had been on and Ed was starting to drop behind me quite often, about halfway up the climb we stopped in a layby to change batteries in the cameras, refill drinks and check the map. It was only a 5 minute pit stop before finishing the climb and passing right by Bristol Airport.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhqra5Y3x-z4zn8nxVKpX6c8TjGx-MOsSjyL6GSh6rYXNZjCLi7o5ewxypl6-B7zzOT_Fp6M4XhhpdtXecOUR1XMJiBXfQvhHjongs7xceqUjcFSta6qKAUHeGhi4RAKzLaYeGAArMIRI7-/s1600/Day+6+Bristol+airport.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="720" data-original-width="960" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhqra5Y3x-z4zn8nxVKpX6c8TjGx-MOsSjyL6GSh6rYXNZjCLi7o5ewxypl6-B7zzOT_Fp6M4XhhpdtXecOUR1XMJiBXfQvhHjongs7xceqUjcFSta6qKAUHeGhi4RAKzLaYeGAArMIRI7-/s400/Day+6+Bristol+airport.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Passing by Bristol Airport.</td></tr>
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Ed and Ant were soon caught up in the airport traffic again and with my speed on most of the next 7 miles being well over 20mph and hitting 40mph at one point, they didn't have much chance of catching us. We had found our way to the outskirts of the city itself but the traffic was horrendous and the road signs were confusing so Nick and I stopped at the first pub to wait for Ed and Ant to catch us up in the Motorhome. It took them a good 25 minutes to get to us in which time the drizzle had started.<br />
Once Ed was parked up we went inside the pub and they gave us free brews and lots of food. As we were stuffing our faces we gave Elouise and the Dream the signal. It was Go! Go! Go! Elouise had already redesigned all the social media stuff, changed the charity details and the dates of the challenge, there had been a charity giving page set up and press releases written up but none of this could be put online before this moment without alerting people that not only was I still doing the challenge but I had brought it forward 10 weeks and had already conquered the west country. Elouise quickly got all of this new material online and Lance, Natalie, Camilla, Sam, David, Michael, Dave & Amy plus My family and the other dream team members started sharing the hell out of it online.<br />
It took a matter of seconds before a couple of members of the club/charity that had tried to fuck me over commented asking if the money I would raise would be going to them or not. I found it quite telling that the very first comment from them was about the destination of the sponsor money. I wanted to us one of my dad's favourite sayings to answer the question about if they would receive the sponsorship. <br />
"there's more chance of the hole in your arse healing up!"<br />
I didn't want to start a war though so I just ignored them. A few friends and family were a bit shocked too, I did feel a bit guilty about not letting them know what was happening but I was determined to keep it secret until Bristol and that meant keeping my team very small. <br />
We were all sat in the pub glued to our phones watching the reaction and seeing the views and shares build really quickly. Although I was doing this challenge for myself more than anything else it wasn't quite as special as it should have been over those first 5 and a half days as there was no praise at all coming from outside of the family and the Dream Team. It was nice to start getting good luck messages coming in.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiVfq9Ln09cl9itKK1V6Fq6lovGDkOWqx3ywQTMZ-6W5Q2IUJ5ZHfdgwxyIYYjBcqqC4hiBU7bhyphenhyphendygxs-OGWtKHJgQQEHFRens9WfMEc0yFsVEDWzvqtN0CteuDLkdAUQGL6q4d7qnqpLj/s1600/Day+6+anounced.PNG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="110" data-original-width="426" height="102" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiVfq9Ln09cl9itKK1V6Fq6lovGDkOWqx3ywQTMZ-6W5Q2IUJ5ZHfdgwxyIYYjBcqqC4hiBU7bhyphenhyphendygxs-OGWtKHJgQQEHFRens9WfMEc0yFsVEDWzvqtN0CteuDLkdAUQGL6q4d7qnqpLj/s400/Day+6+anounced.PNG" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Letting the cat out of the bag.</td></tr>
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<b><u>Day 6 Morning Stats</u></b><br />
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Miles: 22.07<br />
Time: 2:19:32<br />
Average Moving Speed: 9.5mph<br />
Top Speed: 39.5mph<br />
Slowest Mile Split: Mile 15 - 23:55 (snail)<br />
Fastest Mile Split: Mile 19 - 2:14 (Flying!!)<br />
Total Ascent: 1363ft<br />
Average Heart Rate: 143bpm<br />
Max Heart Rate: 166bpm<br />
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<b><u>Day 6 Morning Progress Maps</u></b><br />
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<b><u>Day 6 Afternoon</u></b><br />
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We'd miscalculated where we were going to finish on day 6 as I'd forgotten I was ahead of schedule. I blame the 3 pints! On the original itinerary I was due to end day 6 in Bristol. Another message went to the Dream Team asking for camp sites further north. Once we'd done what we could on social media for the launch of the challenge we thanked the staff at the Miners Arms for the food and drinks and went to the motorhome to study the maps again as we knew the city centre would be tricky.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">About to leave the pub that had provided lunch for us.</td></tr>
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I took in as much of Ed's briefing on the directions as possible, I have memory problems so I have to work to remember things. I asked Nick to try and remember it too but like most none drivers he's next to useless with directions. The traffic was quite bad so it looked like Nick and I would drop Ed and Ant almost instantly and that is exactly what happened. We were storming down the steep hill towards the city centre. I'd of been going much faster if the roads weren't gridlocked and if they had been repaired in the last 20 years. The roads were by far the worst we'd had to deal with. Not far from the bottom of the hill I dropped a bollock, lost concentration for a split second and hit what was either the crater left by the meteor that wiped out the dinosaurs or the biggest pothole I've ever seen. Big enough for all three of my wheels to be in at the same time. On my way out the other side of the crater my front wheel shot up in the air and because I was still unbalanced from falling in to the Mariana Trench, Somehow I smashed my chest into my knee. At the time I thought I was just winded but I now know that I broke two ribs. It really bloody hurt!<br />
If we had been with the Motorhome or if we had a support vehicle then this might have been another occasion the journey ended. How bad would that have been? 20 Minutes after the challenged is announced to the world and I am out. I decided to push on to find somewhere to wait for Ed and Ant but When we did get to the bottom of the hill the reason for the traffic chaos became obvious, there was a skyride event going on. The whole city centre was closed to traffic to allow cyclists to ride round and round the course. That meant to route plan was out of the window and it also meant I would have to get to the other side of the city centre to meet Ed. The diversion looked a bit steep so I got Nick to open the barriers and we gate crashed the Skyride. We made decent progress on the closed roads despite the bust ribs, we were going faster than most of the cyclists. We saw a road sign for where we were meant to be going so we snuck back through the barriers and headed up a main road. After a mile or so we had to pull over to phone Ed who was still stuck in traffic at the start. We described where we were and he managed to direct us on to the road we needed to be on for the rest of the day. We then started the climb out of the city centre, this was the most pain I had been in I managed 3 miles of climbing but then stopped to phone Ed again to see if he was any closer and he wasn't. I didn't think sitting and waiting was a good idea in the cool weather so I kept on pushing, I left the city and county of Bristol for the county of South Gloucestershire and then South Gloucestershire for Gloucestershire itself. Still no motorhome!<br />
Finally after an almost 22 mile afternoon Ed caught us, he'd had to use the motorway to gain ground on us which mad me feel like a beast! They had used their time in traffic well and found us a campsite free of charge again for the night. We'd pushed through five counties in one day and covered 43.8 miles, more than 10 over target for the day.<br />
The Campsite we were staying at was called <a href="http://www.tudorcaravanpark.com/" target="_blank">Tudor Caravan Park</a>, we all cracked jokes about it being Tudor themed with Henry VIII working reception and Jousting for entertainment. When we arrived we found that it was named after the local pub rather than a Tudor theme park. The site was really modern and had cracking facilities, it was a huge site so the shower blocks were giants. There was washing and drying facilities which was a relief, we were running low on kit.<br />
Ed did a fry up for tea! Love a fry up!<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Another free pitch blagged!</td></tr>
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<b><u>Day 6 Afternoon Stats</u></b><br />
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Miles: 21.73<br />
Time: 1:57:59<br />
Average Moving Speed: 11.1mph<br />
Top Speed: 36.1mph<br />
Slowest Mile Split: Mile 2 - 9:26<br />
Fastest Mile Split: Mile 16 - 2:08<br />
Total Ascent: 976ft<br />
Average Heart Rate: 144bpm<br />
Max Heart Rate: 170bpm<br />
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<b><u>Day 6 Afternoon Progress Maps</u></b><br />
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<b><span style="color: red;">Total Daily Mileage: 43.8</span></b><br />
<b></b><i></i><u></u><sub></sub><sup></sup><strike></strike><br />Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15454059332314431888noreply@blogger.com0Bristol, UK51.454513 -2.587909999999965351.296248 -2.9106334999999652 51.612778 -2.2651864999999654tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-870682862940569183.post-22402360155751486932017-06-18T18:16:00.000+01:002017-06-18T18:17:09.564+01:00Lands End to John O'Groats Day 5 - The much needed pint!<b><u>Day 5 Morning</u></b><br />
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Day 4 had given me a bit of confidence back, I'd smashed the target mileage even though it was still hilly and it had been wet most of the day. I felt good that the two things I struggle with the most, rain and hills, hadn't stopped me. Waking up on day 5 I was tiered and sore but looking forward to pushing that day. The weather forecast was only occasional showers and I knew the route wouldn't be quite so hilly. Nick had been up late sewing my gloves, I saw them on the table when I got up and I was genuinely shocked at what a brilliant job he had done with them. They are made from leather and thick tough rubber pads, I've had professionals tell me they couldn't mend them but my favourite southern goon had done a top notch job. Having Ant in the motorhome made the morning routine much faster, he played wheelchair jenga moving all the chairs, spares, wheels and luggage onto the beds so we could use the table for breakfast which Ed was preparing. I was downloading all of the Gopro footage from day 4 and Nick was doing his 20min get out of bed routine! To be fair he'd had the least sleep with staying up sewing.<br />
As soon as I set off on the push I could feel a big difference in the gloves, they were much firmer and putting less pressure on my knuckles and they had no holes in them so they weren't as drafty! I got to Tiverton in no time and felt really good. I was dealing with the hills much better, granted they weren't as big as in previous days but I still felt much better. <br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Nick needing to crouch down Froome style to keep with me on a downhill.</td></tr>
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I felt like I was in a rhythm and that I actually was a wheelchair athlete and not just the bloke who turned up in Cornwall thinking he'd have a go at pushing 900 miles without training. Now the initial panic of getting ready in just a few days and getting found out before I had a decent head start was over I felt much better in myself. I could start to put in to practice some of the things I had been speaking to David Brown from <a href="http://www.academysportmind.com/" target="_blank">The Academy Of The Sporting Mind</a> about. We'd spoken about what made my heroes good at what they did and thinking about how they would react to certain situations. I probably should have put that in to action sooner rather than screaming at my wheels before punching them on day 2!<br />
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Patriotic Pic.</div>
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During the first half of the morning run I left Devon behind and entered Somerset. I thought Devon was incredibly beautiful although I was more than happy to see the back of it and there is absolutely no chance of me ever going on a training holiday to Devon. It is a god awful place to push a race chair in. Even worse when you have pushed the entire length of both Devon and Cornwall and not even had a sniff of a scone dripping in clotted cream and piled high with jam.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Ant posing as no hands Nick and I pass.</td></tr>
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I got to Taunton in a very quick time compared to the speed I had been pushing in previous days. Taunton was where we had planned to stop for lunch but with me feeling good, the route being gently undulating rather than hilly and it being too early to have lunch I decided to keep going. I ended up pushing a marathon, 26.2 miles and I felt great. I'd done it in a time that was only 12 minutes down on my best race time for marathon. I'd improved my average speed by around 3mph. I'd made Nick work hard to keep up with me for the first time. He was starting to get a sore knee so was quite firing on all cylinders but every runner or cyclist knows the little buzz you get on a training run when you open a little gap up on one of your mates who, on paper, is faster than you. On the gentle climbs he was right there behind me, often cycling with no hands but on the flats, the gentle and steep descents I think I was making him regret being a smoker. It was funny watching his little matchstick legs going ten to the dozen.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Entering Taunton, Somerset.</td></tr>
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Having Ant on board made a big difference to how we communicated with the Dream Team, for the first 4 days Ed could only message them when he was parked up if he wasn't waiting on me hand and foot. Ant would relay information back to the dream team so they could sort things out for us whilst we were on the move. On day 5 he let them know a rough idea of where we would be finishing the day and the dream team sprung in to action. On Day 5 it was dad who found a campsite relatively close to the estimated finish. The campsite was called <a href="http://www.thehideoutsomerset.co.uk/gallery.html" target="_blank">The Hideout</a> and dad said it had great reviews, it wasn't far from Glastonbury so I was looking forward to seeing The Tor.<br />
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During lunch I read through the conversations my team had been having that morning in our secret Facebook group. I felt really humbled seeing how excited people were that I had pushed a marathon in a relatively quick time. As I was reading the comments Nick posted one whilst he was sat next to me. I was really choked by it. He was saying how well I was doing and how proud he was of me. The thing was I was really proud of him, non sporty and a smoker - he was doing great. We did like each other really even if we had been crying laughing at each other the day before.<br />
We'd stuck with cheese sandwiches for lunch as I seemed to be ok on my guts. We'd also stuck with not sleeping at lunch because the first few days had been a right struggle after the sleep.<br />
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<b><u>Day 5 Morning Stats</u></b><br />
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Miles: 26.26<br />
Time: 2:17:03<br />
Average Moving Speed: 11.3mph<br />
Top Speed: 36.8mph<br />
Slowest Mile Split: Mile 10 - 9:42<br />
Fastest Mile Split: Mile 13 - 2:55<br />
Total Ascent: 1339ft<br />
Average Heart Rate: 148bpm<br />
Max Heart Rate: 169bpm<br />
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<b><u>Day 5 Morning Progress Maps</u></b><br />
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<b><u>Day 5 Afternoon</u></b><br />
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When I set off in the afternoon I only needed to do 6.8 miles to reach my target. In fact I could have chosen not to do an afternoon push and still been ahead of schedule. I felt good and I wanted to push, I had an idea of doing 10 miles as I expected to tire quickly due to me pushing a marathon just a couple of hours earlier. I was a little slow heading towards North Petherton as there was quite a climb, after that there wasn't any climbs that bothered me and I clicked off the miles without having to fight my way up a hill. At the 10 mile mark I decided to carry on to Half Marathon distance thinking that a marathon in the morning plus a half marathon in the afternoon would be a brilliant achievement By the time I got to 13.1 I had worked out the daily total would have been 39.3 miles so I carried on yet again to tip the odometer over 40 miles for the day. I ended at 41.5 because there was nowhere safe for Ed to park the motorhome until that point!<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg3v3xWYnJE6riKhh5IeelmKA8lAisY8z3F0g_5zhuHswieCYMhIlyMcsCuFl8sERVuqWMd2QTs3BwNaEe3UKswFqAJUxgoFIlIEBv3FmJUDGSr3K71pIYAjMW2BCl0yanR8A6i1bN4G0vu/s1600/Day+5+Nick+being+Nick.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="720" data-original-width="960" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg3v3xWYnJE6riKhh5IeelmKA8lAisY8z3F0g_5zhuHswieCYMhIlyMcsCuFl8sERVuqWMd2QTs3BwNaEe3UKswFqAJUxgoFIlIEBv3FmJUDGSr3K71pIYAjMW2BCl0yanR8A6i1bN4G0vu/s400/Day+5+Nick+being+Nick.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Nick being Nick as we pass through posh villages.</td></tr>
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We were quickly into the motorhome, Ed and Nick stripped the chair down and fastened the bike up to the rack whilst Ant made me a brew, a protein drink and an electrolyte drink. We then made our way to <a href="http://www.thehideoutsomerset.co.uk/gallery.html" target="_blank">The Hideout</a> but the satnav didn't seem to know where it was! We left the main road and drove along narrow winding roads through a tiny village with at least six or seven houses I would have described as my dream home. It must have been a very wealthy village back in the day, there didn't seem to be any normal size houses just lots of very large and very old stone built houses with amazing gardens and incredible views. The village church looked extremely old and was actually smaller than a lot of the houses. I think a combination of the Satnav not being accurate and Ed and I fantasising about having enough money to live in the village had led to us doing a few laps looking for the campsite.<br />
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We were struggling for signal on our phones so we were just about to go back to the main road and phone the owners for directions when a girl who had been flying up and down the road in a pickup pulled over and asked if we were looking for The Hideout, we told her we were so she shouted to follow her. She was a typical farmer on country lanes and shot off like Lewis Hamilton, poor Ed was having a hard time keeping with her in a motorhome that only just fitted down the lanes. When we got to the campsite it was just a field behind somebodies house, Ed went to find someone to check where we should set up for the night. The owner was busy building an extension on the back of his house and told Ed to pitch up anywhere we liked, we drove through the gravel carpark area passing two large shed like buildings which we spotted were the bathrooms and laundry. They looked brand new but I wasn't sure what to expect inside them. We hooked the motorhome up to the power and I headed to the shed for a shower, I was pleasantly surprised the bathroom inside <br />
was by far the cleanest on the trip so far, it was just like a family bathroom in a home. The power shower was amazing too.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhMBKr10M1aHWwLjchlUhEX5QFJErr3DkSo8HhL7jpw0CK9S5zT70zI8N8dXAd2WIiNlqdOgM_ICZ0Ug24MAiWV2sLSuHCFqiKl7-sHB4MGGdr0pCVVp8A6BRd-OotLkviqrMLDacpnK_Da/s1600/the+hideout.PNG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="508" data-original-width="673" height="301" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhMBKr10M1aHWwLjchlUhEX5QFJErr3DkSo8HhL7jpw0CK9S5zT70zI8N8dXAd2WIiNlqdOgM_ICZ0Ug24MAiWV2sLSuHCFqiKl7-sHB4MGGdr0pCVVp8A6BRd-OotLkviqrMLDacpnK_Da/s400/the+hideout.PNG" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">This was my favourite campsite so far.</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The Shed Showers</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Odd from the outside but spotless inside!</td></tr>
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Returning to the motorhome, the owner's wife had come to speak with us about the challenge, she was lovely and she was really interested in what we were doing. It was nice to speak to somebody who I didn't know who was so keen to learn all about the ins and outs of the push. We'd decided to have a BBQ that night as it was Saturday and we fancied a bit of a celebration of leaving Devon and Cornwall behind - something the other wheelchair athletes to attempt Lands End to John O'Groats had failed to do. Nick was in charge of the BBQ, I could see a change in him even though it had only been 5 days he seemed to be more relaxed and growing in confidence. Whilst Nick was being chief chef Ed and I put the decal's on the motorhome. They hadn't been printed in time to be put on before we left so my dad had got the to Ant who had brought them down on the bus with him. I was actually quite glad we hadn't had them stuck on for the 8 hour drive to the start and the 5 days pushing as I think the risk of photos and comments being put online would have been pretty high and my cover would have been blown. We had a visit from the site owner who seemed just as interested as his wife, we asked him about the area and he told us all about using his tractor to free people from the mud at Glastonbury Festival the year before. He also told us about the local pub, sunshine, BBQ, good mates... all it needed to make it a perfect Saturday was a couple of pints. Nick wasn't the only one growing in confidence, I was now quite a way ahead of schedule, I wasn't half as injured as I thought I would be so I thought a trip to the pub would be fine.<br />
After the BBQ which Nick had done a mighty fine job with, we put our glad rags on and set off to the pub. When the owner had said Local pub I think he meant closest pub! It wasn't very local, we'd driven quite a way along tiny single track lanes to find another little village. Once we'd parked the massive motorhome in the tiny carpark, the lads, Bonnie and I went for a well deserved pint in <a href="http://www.ringobellsmoorlinch.co.uk/" target="_blank">The Ring O'Bells</a>.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Bonnie in the pub!</td></tr>
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What a cracking little pub. I was pissed off one pint, maybe it was the effort from pushing over 40 miles that day or maybe I was dehydrated I don't know. It did make playing pool interesting, I stand up to play pool and just lean on the table. The thing is I wobble like a weeble at the best of times add a couple of pints in to the mix and sore legs from being in the race chair for extra long periods of time and you get someone looking like an extremely pissed person doing a slow motion hula dance with no hoop. I could see people doing the trying not to stare look which always makes me laugh, they must of thought I was steaming! I got talking to the Landlords son, Lee, and told him about the challenge. He soon had us talking to all the locals who were offering us drinks and asking how they could sponsor us. I'd gone from the strange northern piss head to pub hero within half an hour. Unfortunately we had to be sensible and not drink the pub dry, I had a world record to beat! I am glad we went to the pub, I really enjoyed myself and it gave me another boost to my confidence, shocking these strangers at how far I'd come in just 5 days. I was getting back to the athlete I was before Sue had started playing her games. <br />
We headed back to the hideout to get some kip for the next day where the hope was to reach the city of Bristol. The plan was to go public with the challenge once I'd got to Bristol and it would be too late to be caught.<br />
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<b><u>Day 5 Afternoon Stats</u></b><br />
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Miles: 15.3<br />
Time: 1:23:36<br />
Average Moving Speed: 11.0mph<br />
Top Speed: 31.4mph<br />
Slowest Mile Split: Mile 1 - 9:11<br />
Fastest Mile Split: Mile 3 - 3:53<br />
Total Ascent: 419ft<br />
Average Heart Rate: 150bpm<br />
Max Heart Rate: 172bpm<br />
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<b><u>Day Afternoon Progress Maps</u></b><br />
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<b><span style="color: red;">Total Daily Mileage: 41.56</span></b><br />
<b></b><i></i><u></u><sub></sub><sup></sup><strike></strike><br />Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15454059332314431888noreply@blogger.com0Glastonbury, UK51.147427 -2.718454000000065251.0677365 -2.8798155000000651 51.2271175 -2.5570925000000653tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-870682862940569183.post-48186002899932314612017-06-17T09:54:00.000+01:002017-06-18T08:31:16.655+01:00Lands End to John O'Groats Day 4 - Bonking in Bear Country.<b><u>Day 4 Morning</u></b><br />
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With the news that the day was going to be another wet one and the fact that Dartmoor wasn't going to be flat we had set the alarms even earlier to give me more time during the day to meet my mileage target of 33 miles. The Alarms were set for 6:45AM but I was up and wide awake by 6:30AM, the herbal sleeping tablets had done the business, I'd slept well for the first time since Tania had dropped the Justin Bomb during my date and told me I couldn't do my challenge. The workload and stress of getting ready to leave 10 weeks early, the anger when you realise you've been mugged off for a year or more by people you thought of as friends and the pain of pushing long distances without training had ruined my sleep. That one good night's kip had worked wonders for me. Yes, it was wet outside and I knew I would have climbs to make but I already had 100 miles behind me and got further than most of the wheelchairs that had attempted Lands End to John O'Groats in the past so I had a bit of confidence growing. I was first out of bed, beating Ed for the first time, I started the morning routine and felt good that I wasn't being waited on by Ed. It wasn't long before he was up playing mother though, I was playing father and shouting at Nick to stop being a lazy little oik and get out of his pit and lend us a hand. Lazy? haha! This lad who had only cycled 15 miles before had just cycled over 100 miles in 3 days for me, he wasn't lazy just tired... but we did need all hands on deck in the mornings as there was less of us than we had planned for. The mornings were taken up with the obvious making and eating breakfast, moving kit/wheelchairs/luggage etc from the seating area on to the beds, pumping tyres, checking brakes, replacing batteries in the tech, downloading footage from the previous day to my external hard drive, mixing several different sports drinks, learning bits of the route, letting the dream team at home know roughly where we would need accommodation that night and lots more!<br />
We only had a short drive to the start of the day's push and my first 10 minutes of pushing was heading back towards the campsite so I could get on the former railway line that the site owners had tipped us off about. It was a bit tight getting through the gate and on to the track and I was worried that we would get a few miles down the track and there would be a bridge or stile I couldn't pass. The other worry was that there was no way for the motorhome to follow us down the track. Nick had to carry extra supplies in his rucksack in case we had a problem. He had extra food and energy gels, drinks, tools, tyres and gas canisters in case I had a puncture and dry gloves. The track wasn't completely flat and the gloves did slip quite a lot but I kept the wheels turning and the first time we saw Ed on an old level crossing we told him everything was going well. It wasn't long before we saw him again and everything was still great. We swapped our empty drinks bottles for ones filled up in the morning and left in the fridge in the camper and set out on the longest stretch of the path, we wouldn't see Ed again until we got to the end of the ex railway line at Oakhampton. Not long after we left Ed we hit an untarmacked stretch of the path. We weren't expecting any off roading in the entire trip and we'd been told the path was fully tarmacked, race chairs and carbon fibre wheels are not meant for off roading! The path was made out of the stones they lay railway lines on top of so I was being shook about like a chubby middle aged housewife sat on a washing machine, all of my jiggly bits were being well and truly jiggled. The back wheels on a race chair are set at an angle so quite often if you hit a small stone whilst training they either shoot out the side of the chair or fire across and hit the opposite wheel, they make a loud noise when they hit the opposite wheel - the carbon acts like a drum. This part of the path was overgrown and the grass flower and seed heads had bowed down over the path with the weight of the rain. They'd bowed down to the exact height of a wheelchair athlete's eyes. A wheelchair athlete with hay fever. I must've looked a right sight trundling along with £5000 worth of kit, being shaken all over, sounding like I was shooting a gun, getting twatted in the face by bunches of pollen wielding kryptonite and cursing like hell. Nick was concerned and caring to start with but soon couldn't contain himself and started laughing to the point he was crying and struggling for breath.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">On the old railway line.</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">At the ex level crossing on the railway with Bonnie looking on.</td></tr>
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Back on the tarmac we started to head down towards Oakhampton, I'd have loved to let go fully and fly down the hill but the path was narrow, my brakes don't work well in the wet and my eyes were streaming after being abused with grass pollen so I had to hold back. We were trying to get in a routine when we spotted a gate Nick would cycle ahead, open the gate, let me through and then catch me up. I was struggling to stop before the early gates with having wet gloves and useless brakes. I bumped a couple of gates and ended up in the long grass next to another that we didn't spot in time but nothing serious until close to the end of the path it left the old railway line to pass through a long tunnel underneath some sort of goods yard or train depot. Nick let me through the gate and I started pushing but then quickly realised there was a right angle turn at the end of the tunnel and a very big drop if I didn't make the turn. There was no way I was going to make the corner, the path wasn't wide enough. I slammed on my brake but it did cock all to slow the chair, I gripped the back wheels but then I couldn't steer. So I started yelling at Nick who raced down behind me and grabbed hold of me, we did hit the wire fence at the bottom of the downhill tunnel but he had slowed me enough that I just grazed my elbow rather than broke my neck! Little Nick was a hero, without him there at that point I think the challenge would have ended.<br />
No more than 5 minutes later we were off the path and with Ed at the top of a steep hill on the outskirts of Oakhampton. It had stopped raining so we popped the deckchairs up and had a brew whilst we added more tape to the push rims and my very damaged gloves. Just like when you've done something difficult like climb the tarmac cliff, when you've just nearly died every northerner needs a cup of tea. Whilst sat out in deckchairs, with bits of wheelchair and tools strewn everywhere on a nice residential street the guy who lived in the house we were outside pulled up. I thought he might have been annoyed at three untidy lads camping in his street but he asked if I was ok as I was bandaging some blisters and he asked about the challenge. I told him I had been struggling with the wet days. He grinned and said that the locals called it Soakhampton so it wouldn't be right passing through without getting wet. He brought out his biscuit barrel for us to tuck in to with our brews and made a donation to the charity. He spoke to Ed about the route through the town and warned me about the descents having junctions at the bottom so I needed to be careful.<br />
After brew time the push was undulating but with a fair amount on downhill, I was frustrated that the road and weather conditions didn't allow me to go as fast as I wanted on the downhill sections. Nevertheless I managed to push 23 miles that morning, which was a minor miracle in the wet. The campsite owners had done us a great service by telling us about the railway line which cut out some huge hills. We stopped for lunch at a place called Copplestone, cheesy beans on toast! Poor Nick was going to be cycling behind me after I had eaten a full tin of beans! Over lunch we were trying to mend my gloves again with canvas tape, there were no new gloves in my size in Great Britain or the USA - Camilla had been trying to hunt me some down. I was telling Nick and Ed how I needed the gloves to hold together until Scotland where my dad was joining the trip. Dad sews my gloves and pushrims quite often so he would be able to patch them up. Nick suddenly chirped up that he could sew, I wasn't sure if I believed him or not but he gave Ed a shopping list of exact type of threads and a certain needle to get. He seemed to know what he was talking about so once we got going again Ed was going to stop at a haberdashery in one of the next villages and see if they had what Nick wanted.<br />
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<b><u>Day 4 Morning Stats</u></b><br />
<b><u><br /></u></b>
Miles: 23.05<br />
Time: 3:05:06<br />
Average Moving Speed: 8.4mph<br />
Top Speed: 39.3mph<br />
Slowest Mile Split: Mile 20; 17:54<br />
Fastest Mile Split: Mile 12: 3:02<br />
Total Ascent: 1168ft<br />
Average Heart Rate: 150bmp<br />
Max Heart Rate: 171bmp<br />
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<b><u>Day 4 Morning Progress Maps</u></b><br />
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<b><u>Day 4 Afternoon</u></b><br />
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During the afternoon push we passed through Crediton where we picked Ant, Ed's fella, up. Ant is notorious for being terrible with directions and getting on the wrong tram at home in Manchester but somehow he had travelled all the way from Manchester to Devon by bus! I was so happy to see a fresh face and felt really honoured that he had travelled all that way to be part of the challenge. He came in useful straight away shouting directions out of the passenger side of the motorhome and handing Nick drinks bottles. <br />
Once we were on the road I would be spending the rest of the day on Ed and Ant went to get food and granny Nick's sewing wish list. That left me and Granny to fend for ourselves for a while. This area of Devon was lovely. We passed so many chocolate box thatched cottages, little villages that would make a jigsaw my mother hubbard would love to do.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgHf_hKnOH2CNIM8gFM0EyQ14cSnI-Lg16w2L8jeyHye9giYobbWZ9sJbmQbXvrkRdSkK8QBVfpuI0dv2t1HwY4Q09QzV9wVleF6LZx4iK85j6BRpMk_EFiVoPEfQqniRUVF8o-qVHAQZV8/s1600/day+4+morning.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="720" data-original-width="960" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgHf_hKnOH2CNIM8gFM0EyQ14cSnI-Lg16w2L8jeyHye9giYobbWZ9sJbmQbXvrkRdSkK8QBVfpuI0dv2t1HwY4Q09QzV9wVleF6LZx4iK85j6BRpMk_EFiVoPEfQqniRUVF8o-qVHAQZV8/s400/day+4+morning.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">One of the many beautiful houses we passed on Day 4.</td></tr>
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Whilst passing through a heavily wooded area that felt quite remote Nick chirped up <br />
"do you think this is a place bears live?"<br />
I asked if he was taking the piss and he said<br />
"They live in forests, I've seen it loads of times on TV"<br />
"Nick, we are in Devon, not fucking Canada or Russia!"<br />
Haha! Whilst I was still laughing my head off and trying to explain we've not had bears in Britain for thousands of years he asked if there were honey badgers<br />
"coz they are hard as fuck, they fight lions and everything!"<br />
"yes Nick! They fight fucking lions in fucking Africa"<br />
It was my turn to be crying with laughter at him, he's the only person I know that can ask a question so stupid they rival my sisters questions. She once asked me if a squirrel eats ham does that make it a cannibal? No Debra, a squirrel would have to eat a squirrel for it to be a cannibal. I love daft questions! They make me giggle so much!<br />
Anyway back to the pushing, at around 8.5 miles I bonked on a long dragging fairly steep hill. For all you none runners out there giggling like school girls bonking is a term runners use for what happens when your body runs out of fuel. You feel terrible, dizzy, sick, confused, uncoordinated and generally like you are about to faint. When you see people staggering all over the place at the end of a marathon on TV, they have bonked. It makes you look drunk but it's awful when it happens. Ed and Ant hadn't caught us back up yet after shopping so Nick phoned them. Luckily they were only a few minutes away so I pushed to the next layby at just over 9 miles and met the motorhome there. For some reason I felt a bit embarrassed about Ant seeing me in a mess, maybe because it was his first day or maybe because the hills weren't quite as bad as the first 3 days, I'm not sure.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The hill that made me bonk.</td></tr>
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Anyhow, Ed and Ant were like a formula 1 pit crew within a minute of pulling in to the layby I was lifted out of the chair and in to the deckchair, handed that magic medicine - a cup of tea, given an energy bar and wrapped in a foil blanket. I was just under my daily mileage target by less than a mile so I could have stopped there but once I was warmed up and had a bit of sugar in my blood I perked up a bit. so I decided to push on a bit more. I managed another 6 miles to take me to 38 for the day, a day that could have been a disaster turned out to be a good day mileage wise but I'd had to work for it. I really had run myself into the ground on this one.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Considering phoning for help.</td></tr>
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The Dream Team had pulled another free campsite out of the bag <a href="http://www.forest-glade.co.uk/" target="_blank">The Forrest Glade</a> campsite near Tiverton. I went for a shower whilst Ed made us a curry, well most of us, Nick wouldn't eat curry because it wasn't beige. He just had grilled chicken with nothing at all on it, no herbs or sauces and plain boiled white rice. I think me and Ed both felt guilty, like we weren't feeding him properly but all our nagging wasn't working. I think maybe Ant got through a bit more by telling Nick he had been a fussy eater too but now he will try things to see if he likes them and not just decide he doesn't like them without even tasting them. Ant and Nick are similar ages and to say they had never met before they seemed to be getting on well.<br />
I was in bed by 7:30PM, Again feeling guilty that the lads were up sorting things, especially Nick who was up very late stitching my gloves with his new needle and fancy thread. I used another herbal sleeping tablet hoping for another good nights sleep.<br />
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<b><u>Day 4 Afternoon Stats</u></b><br />
<b><u><br /></u></b>
Miles: 15.40<br />
Time: 2:01:11<br />
Average Moving Speed: 8.8mph<br />
Top Speed: 35.7mph<br />
Slowest Mile Split: Mile 9 - 23:30<br />
Fastest Mile Split: Mile 3 - 2:54<br />
Total Ascent: 1480ft<br />
Average Heart Rate: 148<br />
Max Heart Rate: 170<br />
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<b><u>Day 4 Afternoon Progress Maps</u></b><br />
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<b><span style="color: red;">Total Daily Mileage: 38.45</span></b><br />
<b></b><i></i><u></u><sub></sub><sup></sup><strike></strike><br />Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15454059332314431888noreply@blogger.com0Tiverton EX16, UK50.902049 -3.491207000000031350.861996 -3.5718880000000315 50.942102 -3.410526000000031tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-870682862940569183.post-80207037432111570402017-06-16T11:04:00.001+01:002017-06-16T11:04:18.095+01:00Lands End to John O'Groats Day 3 - The Tarmac Cliff<b><u>Day 3 Morning</u></b><br />
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I woke up on day 3 after a really crappy sleep, I'd been tossing and turning all night because I was aching all over from the physical effort on the previous day and I had struggled to switch off from the thoughts of failure. Day 2 had scared me, was I just making an idiot of myself thinking I could push the length of the country without training for it? Was I going to let everyone down who had put in a lot of effort to get me to that start line? I was happy to see the weather had improved when I opened the curtains, I needed a little bit of a boost.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEglrvS3I5m3k01q6U-D8IizksojMMOWr4IGX1Kk9Nzqe-UsOPkmZDYJlo_LeOz7If7C6Ec8GLS87dzXquk-WXogt0M6mlYI6EzP6WL-3sNf857-5oXb0jKBnGhobybPxnn983OGIgWqwtMa/s1600/Day+3+action.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="" border="0" data-original-height="720" data-original-width="960" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEglrvS3I5m3k01q6U-D8IizksojMMOWr4IGX1Kk9Nzqe-UsOPkmZDYJlo_LeOz7If7C6Ec8GLS87dzXquk-WXogt0M6mlYI6EzP6WL-3sNf857-5oXb0jKBnGhobybPxnn983OGIgWqwtMa/s400/Day+3+action.jpg" title="LEJOG day 3 sunshine shot" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Happy to be pushing in the sun. Click for larger image.</td></tr>
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I'd finished day 2 early because I was struggling on another big hill and as I hadn't reached the target we'd had to drive along the route to get to the campsite, that meant I had seen just how big the first hill was. It was another beast so I'd decided to get up earlier to give me more time to get to the start and get up this hill, Nick wasn't best pleased and it took us a few attempts to get him out of bed. I think he was feeling it as much as me, he isn't sporty and at that point he wasn't interested in looking after his body. It meant a lot that he was putting himself through pain to help me out. Once we got through the morning routine we were on our way back along the course to my start position, so I got two chances to check the hill out.<br />
The bright sunshine, dry clothes and a full belly put me in a better frame of mind for this first hill. After dreading it all night I smashed it. A hill that would have taken well over an hour if I'd tackled it in the rain at the end of day 2 was conquered in less than 15 minutes. I made real progress after that and enjoyed clicking off the undulating miles.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjedSNQyeRGMsg1-RI6NDu0_jtKd9omkM2QB165bNtctL6U5MHEzbdlKiSxZM1JKhDo4l9tCGrO0TfCFiogibOmrzXvY4AgPM0O2XkEarF4LHt1BuoSGRef0KcAlu6n0xSIBISGOpgVOrql/s1600/Day+3+another+hill.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="" border="0" data-original-height="640" data-original-width="1295" height="197" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjedSNQyeRGMsg1-RI6NDu0_jtKd9omkM2QB165bNtctL6U5MHEzbdlKiSxZM1JKhDo4l9tCGrO0TfCFiogibOmrzXvY4AgPM0O2XkEarF4LHt1BuoSGRef0KcAlu6n0xSIBISGOpgVOrql/s400/Day+3+another+hill.jpg" title="Lands End to John O'groats. Day three" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Another hill heading towards Dartmoor. Click for larger image.</td></tr>
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At around 7.5 miles Ed went ahead to check out a duel carriageway we had seen on the map the day before which would lead us to a town called Liskeard. When he returned we had a quick chat and decided to go around it as it looked busy and there wasn't a hard shoulder. Ed said to follow a road that ran parallel to the duel carriageway and turn left when I saw Jewsons. The parallel road drops a long way below the duel carriageway. I loved the long, fast downhill for the first minute or so. It felt great to be moving fast again but then I started to worry thinking that all this altitude I was losing meant I would have to climb again soon. Once Nick spotted Jewsons we took the left turn which was going uphill, it went through a tunnel under the dual carriageway so we couldn't see far ahead. Once through the tunnel we could see two lanes one steep one to the left and one to the right that was so steep it looked like a bloody tarmac cliff. I looked at Nick, Nick looked at me, I said "surely its the one to the left" Nick replied with "I think it might be the one on the right fella" Ed had parked up the motorhome and ran back to us to tell us it was the tarmac cliff I was going to have to tackle. I wasn't even sure if I could push up a hill this steep without the chair tipping up. I did consider pushing back to the dual carriageway instead of trying to get up this wall of tarmac. In the end I went for it, I grabbed my wheels and turned them quarter turns again, saying the quotes from Brian at the trustees meeting I wrote about in an earlier blog. I would do one quarter turn for each of the words in his quotes "if you fail it could damage DW and JA good names." I wanted to use the anger those nasty lines of his created to get up that hill. I followed each of his quotes with a push for each of the words "I can and I will" <br />
Nick was great with me, he gave me tons of encouragement each time I inched forward. He was there to catch me each time I rolled backwards. He took the strain and held the chair still when I needed to let go and stretch my arms out. On the second half of the tarmac version of Big Ben I also had Ed at my side shouting at me and keeping me motivated, he'd parked the motorhome at the top and walked back down to help. <br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhHNpHK4ruMvxq6uCcdoasLTQRK9uCv1ZG_r5QK3wutgVJkGbE1OWWMk8enI_ssPP4oG8BIfpmdgO56XJxBZL1-2TUq85Fr5HlH5mqiSrBusByOwrWJuSnn2ZBRKtwQjVZEpHNSVL3emO-S/s1600/Day+3+the+hill+from+hell%2521.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="" border="0" data-original-height="720" data-original-width="960" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhHNpHK4ruMvxq6uCcdoasLTQRK9uCv1ZG_r5QK3wutgVJkGbE1OWWMk8enI_ssPP4oG8BIfpmdgO56XJxBZL1-2TUq85Fr5HlH5mqiSrBusByOwrWJuSnn2ZBRKtwQjVZEpHNSVL3emO-S/s400/Day+3+the+hill+from+hell%2521.jpg" title="Steep Hill Wheelchair Lands End to John O'Groats" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The Tarmac Cliff! Click to Enlarge.</td></tr>
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We were passed by a handful of cars, they looked at me like I was mad. Ed explained to a few of them what I was doing and got some to sign as witnesses to say they had seen me on route moving under my own steam. Later that day one of the people that passed me had posted on a Liskeard local facebook page. There were lots of comments from people saying they don't even walk up the lane its so steep and just being impressed and bemused as to how and why I was going up this lane. Unfortunately I had to ask an admin for the page to take the post down as I was still pushing in secret although it was nice to read all of the comments on the post. At the top of the hill I was gagging for a brew - like every true northerner after they do something difficult! We all sat in deckchairs in the sun drinking brews and having a snack whilst discussing how bloody steep the detour had been.<br />
we set off again and Nick tried his best to cheer me up by singing and chatting at me. I was knackered so I had my head down a lot of the time and I didn't really talk much. I knew that I needed to get to 18 miles during this push to stand a chance of getting my mileage target so it was a case of getting my head down and grinding this out, just keep pushing. Nick's constant talking was entertaining me, at one point he said "you're doing great pal, you're nearly at Styves" I wasn't sure what he meant so I carried on pushing and at the next junction he said "Styves is down that road" I asked him why he was going on about this Styves place and he told me that it must be a big place because it is in big letters on the road signs. I'd never heard of it..... Until the next road sign when I spotted St. Ives! HAHA! He had me in stiches the bloody idiot! I asked him if he thought they sold £13.60 fish and chips in Styves? <br />
At 20 miles done we found a layby to stop in for lunch, cheese sandwiches dipped in tomato soup, so wrong but so right!<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Me and My Shadow!</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<br />
<b><u>Day 3 Morning Stats</u></b><br />
<br />
Miles: 19.95<br />
Time: 3:13:12<br />
Average Moving Speed: 8.2mph<br />
Top Speed: 39.7mph<br />
Slowest Mile Split: Mile 10; 33:29<br />
Fastest Mile Split: Mile 9; 2:19<br />
Total Ascent: 2,103ft (oooooooooouch)<br />
Average Heart Rate: 149bpm<br />
Max Heart Rate: 178bpm<br />
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<b><u>Day 3 Morning Progress Maps</u></b><br />
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<b><u>Day 3 Afternoon</u></b><br />
<br />
During the afternoon push I went through the absolutely stunning Tavistock, I'm so glad that Ed got some photos of me in the town centre and by the college. The college is an ex boarding school and is a beautiful building but somehow I had completely missed it. When Ed showed me photos for the day he couldn't believe I hadn't seen it!<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiuVbwheGi3ZpT19xATbXs_nyOzl_bQZHDdyia0lch6WLgkJQh1iE1BqZM5gHEYZKERkp8FRgDWkLUSIIcWjo49n-86AwuWsJiiqumH1LOny2abyDlK8hnnOa3woOVhsHb5xn3oOs-qrE6N/s1600/Tavistock+Centre+Day+3.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="615" data-original-width="960" height="256" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiuVbwheGi3ZpT19xATbXs_nyOzl_bQZHDdyia0lch6WLgkJQh1iE1BqZM5gHEYZKERkp8FRgDWkLUSIIcWjo49n-86AwuWsJiiqumH1LOny2abyDlK8hnnOa3woOVhsHb5xn3oOs-qrE6N/s400/Tavistock+Centre+Day+3.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Tavistock Town Centre</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjxpsrf0JoTJEhQirQCcLmOjxTqMlTEaiv9ZUu8O1s8pDGEYKsz7SY4yuKn6E-6EuBslYE8_oyyMvk-ce8mpSuf9pAPTy3xatCWmvtPJj4WTUogdrzOpmCGuJhmOaKAbL4fHLGIkZq03AAe/s1600/Day+3+Tavistock+college.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="720" data-original-width="960" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjxpsrf0JoTJEhQirQCcLmOjxTqMlTEaiv9ZUu8O1s8pDGEYKsz7SY4yuKn6E-6EuBslYE8_oyyMvk-ce8mpSuf9pAPTy3xatCWmvtPJj4WTUogdrzOpmCGuJhmOaKAbL4fHLGIkZq03AAe/s400/Day+3+Tavistock+college.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Tavistock College that I completely missed seeing!</td></tr>
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After Tavistock we began to make the climb in to Dartmoor national park. It was a bright and sunny day, such a contrast to the day before. The views were breath taking. In the park itself the road snaked its way up a hillside, Ed needed to drive quite a way ahead to find somewhere to park. When we reached him both Nick and myself were out of drinks and energy gels, I had sweated a lot in the sun so I also needed an electrolyte drink. I decided to carry on pushing whilst the lads were mixing the drinks and sorting out snacks. I was on a hill so it was slow progress but it wasn't steep enough that I would roll backwards. About 10 minutes after I left the lads an elderly lady pulled over just ahead of me and ran back towards me to ask if I wanted to be towed to the top of the hill! I really did want to be towed but I declined the offer and explained what I was doing and that I was raising money for The 53 Foundation so she pulled out a £20 note and put it in my bag tied to the back of the chair! She wished me luck and then got on her way. Only a few seconds after that a wheel appeared at the side of me I thought it was Nick so I said hello without looking up at him but when he spoke back I realised it was someone else. He said he was a professional cyclist and that I was mad to be tackling this hill without gears and only using my arms. I told him it was nothing compared to where I had been that morning and I described the tarmac cliff to him, he knew exactly where it was and couldn't give me enough praise for getting up it. He cycled along side me chatting away until Nick returned, then he wished us luck and shot off on his fancy bike.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgVKv6VxuNx7Ic3OeKns6hXRqSJHT0tqx7lUyGhXjK_TAxlcUEsxiL_Fz_QBW-km36_PXrOMaT4F-01dxcVMKmURiadoDmxtkOHG-CN0AwUImLN68oP1fXqNkY1T_Io6m2NY4NHt3BbZB1c/s1600/Day+3+Dartmoor.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="533" data-original-width="960" height="221" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgVKv6VxuNx7Ic3OeKns6hXRqSJHT0tqx7lUyGhXjK_TAxlcUEsxiL_Fz_QBW-km36_PXrOMaT4F-01dxcVMKmURiadoDmxtkOHG-CN0AwUImLN68oP1fXqNkY1T_Io6m2NY4NHt3BbZB1c/s400/Day+3+Dartmoor.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Dartmoor. Beautiful but Painful! Click to Enlarge.</td></tr>
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I made it up a couple more hills and then called it a day at 15 miles in the afternoon session and 35 in total for the day. That put me ahead of schedule again, I was out of Cornwall and in to Devon. Cornwall had been utterly beautiful, somewhere I want to go and explore more but I definitely wasn't sorry to see the back of it on my challenge. Hello Devon!<br />
Elouise had found some campsites near our estimated finish position during her lunch break at work and my dad had phoned around them and managed to get us another free pitch for the night at <a href="http://www.lydfordsite.co.uk/" target="_blank">Lydford Caravan and Camping Park</a>. This campsite was set in a lovely little village and it had great views up into Dartmoor. When we arrived the owners came to say hello and to have a chat about the challenge, I mentioned how difficult I was finding the hills - especially in the rain. She asked Our route for tomorrow and told us it would be very hilly and rain was forecast. She told us that we would be better taking the ex railway line that had just been tarmacked as it was relatively flat and would take us straight to Oakhampton which is where we were heading. Whilst I went for a shower Ed went to the office to speak with the owner and have a look on maps where exactly this ex railway was. After we ate our amazing spagbol dinner cheffed up by Ed in the pans he'd managed to find time to buy during the day we walked Bonnie down to the old railway line do see if it was suitable to use. It was just about wide enough for a race chair, we might get problems if we met people on bikes coming in the opposite direction but we decided to risk it.<br />
Ed had also picked up some herbal sleeping tablets for me on his shopping trip, I was in desperate need of a decent sleep. For one reason or another it was now 10 days since I'd had a decent sleep! I got in bed at 7:30PM feeling really guilty at leaving Ed and Nick working on taping my wheels and my gloves up, washing up, washing and drying clothes and more. They needed sleep too but I was shattered after 35 miles pushing and climbing over 3,500ft - a mountain is any hill over 2000ft!<br />
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<b><u>Day 3 Afternoon Stats</u></b><br />
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Miles: 15.27<br />
Time: 2:32:19<br />
Average Moving Speed: 6.6mph<br />
Top Speed: 34.8mph<br />
Slowest Mile Split: Mile 5; 21:37<br />
Fastest Mile Split: Mile 3; 2:48<br />
Total Ascent: 1472ft<br />
Average Heart Rate: 152bpm<br />
Max Heart Rate: 172bpm<br />
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<b><u>Day 3 Afternoon Progress Maps</u></b><br />
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<b><span style="color: red;">Total Daily Mileage: 35.25</span></b><br />
<b></b><i></i><u></u><sub></sub><sup></sup><strike></strike><br />Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15454059332314431888noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-870682862940569183.post-57354800287501652012017-06-15T22:04:00.000+01:002017-06-15T22:04:31.920+01:00Lands End to John O'Groats Day 2<b><u>Day 2 Morning</u></b><br />
The alarms went off at 07:30 on day two, I hadn't had a good sleep at all as the aches of pushing 38.5 miles on day 1 had kept me up all night. I moved the curtain to see it was a wet day which made me extremely nervous. I have never been good at pushing in the wet, I'm still learning technique and getting my gloves to stick to the push rims whilst wet is something I struggle with. The morning routine on day 2 was a little faster as we all knew our roles from the day before, Nick was slow to get up (I think he was as tired as I was bless him) but we were ready earlier than on day 1. It helped that we decided to push from the campsite, it was only 1km from the point I finished day one at and it would be faster to get ready at the campsite. We said our goodbyes to the staff, thanked them for our free pitch and the weather had brightened up slightly so I got on my way. I'd woken up with a slight pain on the inside of my elbow but that soon eased. A downhill start ended with the climb in to Truro, what a beautiful place it is, somewhere I would like to go back and visit! The rain started whilst I was in Truro and that made the going really tough, once through Truro there was no flat ground. I was slipping on long dragging climbs and struggling on the steep descents which aren't easy in a wheelchair with a brake so useless at stopping the chair most athletes just grab the wheels to slow it down.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjcFaZFpM1q6t75efcTtWhyphenhyphennTxZ19vKYTOO7ybP7SF2IBJNDGRhGSHrwoiTMEvZGF1aZyMbWtsdElVpmsud7My_E2A3zxNl1X-4kt7pWEOs-0y3v8XxHB5hRoQW-gPYtENYFsMfFVp8o78i/s1600/day+2+climb.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" border="0" data-original-height="571" data-original-width="960" height="190" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjcFaZFpM1q6t75efcTtWhyphenhyphennTxZ19vKYTOO7ybP7SF2IBJNDGRhGSHrwoiTMEvZGF1aZyMbWtsdElVpmsud7My_E2A3zxNl1X-4kt7pWEOs-0y3v8XxHB5hRoQW-gPYtENYFsMfFVp8o78i/s320/day+2+climb.jpg" title="Climbing Close to Truro" width="320" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjMIjtxqq3Oqq05diqBXChfC-figrh-aUB4OMODRCxeuavcjKoHoNgY5nHcBN3I24UaFmA7fEwCS347m6ADKK1xP-piCzgveEhGE2O_qyc2fqood01TCK1gFXngDm9bKseyHjIEYx_udjEF/s1600/Day+2+wet.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" border="0" data-original-height="578" data-original-width="960" height="192" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjMIjtxqq3Oqq05diqBXChfC-figrh-aUB4OMODRCxeuavcjKoHoNgY5nHcBN3I24UaFmA7fEwCS347m6ADKK1xP-piCzgveEhGE2O_qyc2fqood01TCK1gFXngDm9bKseyHjIEYx_udjEF/s320/Day+2+wet.jpg" title="a damp day 2 on Lands End to John O'Groats" width="320" /></a></div>
The weather and aches and pains were eased slightly by truck drivers encouraging me by beeping and stopping to clap, a bus driver opening his doors as he overtook me to shout me on and lots and lots of car passengers cheering for me. I was getting so much support I was starting to worry my cover would be blown by people posting on social media. I must have looked like I needed help as people were really enthusiastic with their encouragement!<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj4W4GuYF24hwy00RyNbe9gUR1rzyMsB3RnoLRmxWMbDDnzdffxEs2Iuju2svGiLWvSZatwceN0Ag2BdwEXm54vr0Wq-LwKsG7ckkJNQvmiM8udebC4W7kvj1eOndjEGY3wsjlkcQhv2RVd/s1600/day+2+elevation.PNG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="" border="0" data-original-height="114" data-original-width="831" height="43" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj4W4GuYF24hwy00RyNbe9gUR1rzyMsB3RnoLRmxWMbDDnzdffxEs2Iuju2svGiLWvSZatwceN0Ag2BdwEXm54vr0Wq-LwKsG7ckkJNQvmiM8udebC4W7kvj1eOndjEGY3wsjlkcQhv2RVd/s320/day+2+elevation.PNG" title="LEJOG Day2 Morning Elevation Chart" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Day 2 Elevation Chart. No Flat!</td></tr>
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I needed a few stops on the hills to try and dry my gloves and get some grip but after 22miles I was spent for the morning, there was a serious rain shower going on and I could see I had a mammoth climb to come so I pulled in to a layby for lunch. I don't think Nick was going to complain about stopping, he was as cold, wet and tired as I was. I got in the van and got stripped off and into some dry clothes as fast as possible trying to get warm again. Ed had made us cheese sandwiches whilst I had been climbing up the last drag at a snails pace.<br />
Whilst eating lunch I facebooked the dream team at home and asked them to search for a freebie campsite for the night as we still had nowhere to stay. Natalie, Elouise and Michael were on the case during their lunch breaks at work and it was Elouise that came up with the goods on day 2; <a href="https://www.southwestlakes.co.uk/camping/siblyback-lake/" target="_blank">Siblyback Watersports Centre</a> offered us a free pitch.<br />
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<b><u>Day 2 Morning Stats</u></b><br />
Miles: 22.38<br />
Time: 2:54:06<br />
Average Moving Speed: 8.2mph<br />
Top Speed: 38.9mph<br />
Slowest Mile Split: Mile twenty one; 15:00<br />
Fastest Mile Split: Mile two; 2:29<br />
Total Ascent: 1487ft<br />
Average Heart Rate: 152bpm<br />
Max Heart Rate: 182bpm<br />
<b><u>Day 2 Morning Progress Maps</u></b><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiNOzHCLbqPc5hQFoEuWQHnARXM2jnrVEMPc72VDLiK6schG6LA4wvz4iiHqvNbgtmRf9sp4ilXlAChfDkzARCArFh9QooBXvAdf4EinmnzDZKdRB1hlY6BG41pVZ3Lgg7LNsN2tmjgqt_f/s1600/Day+2+Morning+long.PNG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="361" data-original-width="827" height="139" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiNOzHCLbqPc5hQFoEuWQHnARXM2jnrVEMPc72VDLiK6schG6LA4wvz4iiHqvNbgtmRf9sp4ilXlAChfDkzARCArFh9QooBXvAdf4EinmnzDZKdRB1hlY6BG41pVZ3Lgg7LNsN2tmjgqt_f/s320/Day+2+Morning+long.PNG" width="320" /></a></div>
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<b><u>Day 2 Afternoon</u></b><br />
It had rained right through our lunch break, I'd been sat looking out of the motorhome window at the hill I would be starting the afternoon push on. There was no way I could've got up it at the end of the morning push and I wasn't confident that just over an hours rest and a couple of cheese butties would get me up what I could see ahead of me. Thank god that I couldn't see the full extent of the hill that I was about to tackle, if I'd of checked google maps I think I might have hidden under the bed and refused to come out! I summed whatever positivity I could find and tried to gee Nick up to get ready, that lasted all of 15 seconds. For some stupid reason I talked myself into putting my wet clothes back on as I would be wet again within a few minutes anyway. That silly choice meant that I was already cold before I'd even got sat in the chair and ready to go.<br />
The push started with a 100m roll back down the hill as Nick had pushed me to the motorhome just before lunch and that is obviously against the rules. Nobody would have known if I didn't redo that short bit of the course but as much as I knew I was going to struggle on the climb I wanted to do it under my own steam, that was the entire point of the challenge. Straight away my gloves were slipping on the push rims, it took a good 6 or 7 minutes to get the 100m back to the Motorhome still parked in the layby where we had had lunch. The hill was a complete bastard, I tried three sets of gloves but they were sodden within 5 minutes of changing them. At one point I got the lads to swap my disk wheels for my quads. Quad wheels are carbon fibre the same as the solid disk wheels but they have four wide, blade-like, spokes with open space between them. I thought if I put them on then I could grip one of the spokes and use that to turn the wheel rather than the push rims. I didn't get very far at all before I realised the quads were dangerous. My grip kept slipping and my hand was going through the gap between the spokes and as the chair rolled backwards my hand and wrist was getting trapped between the wheel and the chair frame. It hurt a lot! So the lads quickly changed the wheels back to disks.<br />
Nick was walking behind as I inched forwards, he was wearing a camera on his helmet to give a view of me in my chair and to prove I wasn't getting any help. All he could do was stop me rolling too far back down this arsehole of a hill. I was literally turning my wheel a quarter of a turn and then rolling back almost as far as I'd gone forward before nick would ram his bike's front wheel into the back of the chair to stop me rolling off. It must have been so frustrating for him watching me and not being able to actually help me move forward. I wasn't being good company either, I was rhyming off every swear word I knew in every combination I could think of. At one point I got so angry after running over my own hand I started leathering my wheels with my fists and doing a half growl, half shout thing at the top of my voice! I was furious that I wasn't moving anywhere near walking speed. The first mile of the afternoon push took me over one and a half hours to complete, that's more that 15 minutes slower than the world record for a marathon in a wheelchair! I was cold, wet, tired, angry, frustrated and not in a good frame of mind. This was only day 2 and I was struggling big time. In that first mile I had climbed 450ft, in my running days I had done plenty of fell races that weren't that steep!<br />
Both of the lads were great with me on that hill, they kept me going by being positive whilst I was having a melt down. Over one and a half hours climbing had taken a lot out of me both mentally and physically. I was running on empty I managed another two small hills and then a decent downhill but when I met the next hill I'd had enough. I climbed it for 15 minutes but I was so exhausted I was falling asleep in my chair, I had nothing left at all. I called it a day after just 5 miles on the afternoon push. Those 5 miles took almost two and a half hours and they most certainly were not fun!<br />
I hadn't met my daily target mileage and even though the total for the two days together was still on target I felt like I'd failed that day. I thought that if I felt that bad on day 2 there was very little chance of making it to John O'Groats. Was day 2 the beginning of the end? Ed made a phone call to our mate Danny during the drive to the campsite, I can't remember what it was about but I remember Danny asking how I was doing and Ed answering with "he's had a tough day but he's keeping his spirits up." I thought to myself I'm in a foul mood and have been most of the day, I wonder if that is a pre arranged code for "he's doing shite, I think we will be driving home soon". Haha!<br />
When we got to Siblyback Watersports Centre all three of us were blown away by the beauty of the place. The campsite was completely empty so we chose a pitch right next to the lake. The only problem was I didn't have the energy to get up the campsite to the shower block, Nick had to push me! I was meant to be pushing the length of the country and I couldn't manage the length of the campsite! After my shower Nick helped me back to the motorhome and we were met with the news that we had forgotten to pack the pans in our rush to get on the road two days earlier so our only choice of food from what we had with us was toast, microwaved beans and grilled bacon. Not the most nutritious food but needs must! Nick was happy though, he'd heard of toast, beans and bacon so he was confident we weren't trying to poison him unlike day 1's Couscous-gate!<br />
I was in bed and snoozing by 8pm, before the lads went to bed Ed did some more route planning and Nick added lots of small bits of tape to my push rims to try and give me more grip. At least the campsite was silent that night with it being so remote.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg2UliKo9hmLD1_wRCJKJaN5P3BQLxFGBi5CfyGjoiaOyebhhyIywsJ4-HquwqD20hN0s3zYO-Vancu1L9PhALWJIYLWvbass3NPoAOStzKwt0s55PVKqARBIVcyKGl8uFGOtGFSBR3Gwso/s1600/Day+2+Campsite.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="388" data-original-width="1600" height="95" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg2UliKo9hmLD1_wRCJKJaN5P3BQLxFGBi5CfyGjoiaOyebhhyIywsJ4-HquwqD20hN0s3zYO-Vancu1L9PhALWJIYLWvbass3NPoAOStzKwt0s55PVKqARBIVcyKGl8uFGOtGFSBR3Gwso/s400/Day+2+Campsite.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Our motorhome at the beautiful Siblyback lake. Click for larger image.</td></tr>
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<b><u><br /></u></b>
<b><u>Day 2 Afternoon Stats</u></b><br />
Miles: 4.98<br />
Time: 2:23:47<br />
Average Moving Speed: 6.1mph<br />
Top Speed: 35.2mph<br />
Slowest Mile Split: Mile one; 1:36:34 (yes over an hour and a half for one mile!)<br />
Fastest Mile Split: Mile four; 6:54<br />
Total Ascent: 722ft<br />
Average Heart Rate: 139bpm<br />
Max Heart Rate: 166bpm<br />
<b><span style="background-color: red;"><br /></span></b>
<i></i><u></u><sub></sub><sup></sup><b><span style="background-color: white; color: red;">Total Daily Mileage: 27.36</span></b><br />
<b><span style="background-color: white; color: black;"><u><br /></u></span></b>
<b><span style="background-color: white; color: black;"><u>Day 2 Afternoon Progress Maps</u></span></b><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhkLYQ07f3P9SkrOknLWHwPB7qE-rqgmDFCeoX-H2lnmxqx9l1-hR_1OU2YxCPdlDByB8PKSvrB6VMf55nfqaDVCeOaXQMFIgw3xc8tYt2YBypYSmZxc4TowhaKKNHret__51e9rkVKhHs9/s1600/day+2+aft+long.PNG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="433" data-original-width="824" height="168" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhkLYQ07f3P9SkrOknLWHwPB7qE-rqgmDFCeoX-H2lnmxqx9l1-hR_1OU2YxCPdlDByB8PKSvrB6VMf55nfqaDVCeOaXQMFIgw3xc8tYt2YBypYSmZxc4TowhaKKNHret__51e9rkVKhHs9/s320/day+2+aft+long.PNG" width="320" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgMBP0cmbyUFm3eL-nQsRnDbT7k8Gcue7wxvqNNnGGMAlbBKWP2uPI6us6_Ud4Z0IzOQecZapsDPOw-ScEHG4UK0rYTC6rh9bznIPFHq2SlhshSVYiA52SvgR2Lq6HIH2fl0Zo9Yf-Xua3_/s1600/Day+2+Aft+close.PNG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" border="0" data-original-height="362" data-original-width="828" height="139" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgMBP0cmbyUFm3eL-nQsRnDbT7k8Gcue7wxvqNNnGGMAlbBKWP2uPI6us6_Ud4Z0IzOQecZapsDPOw-ScEHG4UK0rYTC6rh9bznIPFHq2SlhshSVYiA52SvgR2Lq6HIH2fl0Zo9Yf-Xua3_/s320/Day+2+Aft+close.PNG" title="Day 2 LEJOG progress map" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="background-color: white;"><br /></span>Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15454059332314431888noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-870682862940569183.post-67732345430483964572017-06-14T10:08:00.003+01:002017-06-14T10:08:36.778+01:00Lands End to John O'Groats Day 1<b><u>Day 1 Morning.</u></b><br />
This was it, the day had arrived, 10 weeks earlier than expected. No long distance training that would be any use to the challenge, no support vehicle with flashing lights to keep me safe, no horde of cyclists to keep me company, no send off party. Just the motorhome, two of my best mates, Bonnie the dog and some good luck messages from the handful of people that got me to the start line to give me any chance of pulling this off.<br />
We woke up at about 08:00 to start getting ready. It was a bit of a struggle on that first morning to try and work out who was doing each job. We hadn't had a dry run with having the date change and we were one person short of my ideal plan of having 2 drivers one for the motorhome and one for the support vehicle which I'd planned to have drive behind me wherever possible. That was an extra pair of hands missing, a pair of hands which would have been very handy for all the small tasks in the mornings. Making breakfast, taping my hands, mixing supplements and hydration powders, sorting out GoPro cameras, learning route prompts, lots of little jobs.<br />
On day 1 I had a chocolate protein porridge for breakfast, again something else I would have liked to trial before the challenge itself, I love porridge (I have Scottish blood - loving porridge is part of the DNA) but this stuff was foul. I shovelled it down anyway as I knew I would be needing every last drop of energy. Nick isn't a fan of breakfast, well Nick isn't a fan of food full stop, but to be fair to him he had been listening to my nagging him on the drive down that he would need to force himself to eat breakfast. He hadn't cycled more than 15 miles before and he was about to cycle 33miles a day each day until we crossed the Scottish border. I was worried he wouldn't make it and I desperately needed him to as he was my only support rider - I had no other options.<br />
Once we'd finished all the prep we could at the campsite we made our way to Lands End. We arrived to find 20 or so cyclists nervously getting ready to start their own journey. A few said hello but nothing more than that, I think they were all shitting themselves. I felt oddly at ease with the whole thing, there was a little bit of stress whilst trying to show Ed and Nick how my race chair was put together but once that was done I was fine. Lands End is a bit commercial, it has a huge carpark and gift shops, cafes, the last house, the last hotel, etc etc. It took us a few moments to find the famous sign post and when we did find it I was shocked to see a fence around it, a kiosk and a charge of £10 to pose for your photo next to the sign! Nick stumped up the cash and we all posed for the photos, Bonnie included!<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhBHEaYCiHJQrlI0OBx3OfQbc9WRp73h2dM7_k42W6mE89DH-dQ74fEllM8h2IQ7MTWnvUjNQcNKRyouPfg9N_L657gVJwlMo2NwoQ5zuUhdQB2iIYRpr542Qff9-9krReYNSREvmXhD_FN/s1600/13434825_139122116507628_1440888228735184287_n.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhBHEaYCiHJQrlI0OBx3OfQbc9WRp73h2dM7_k42W6mE89DH-dQ74fEllM8h2IQ7MTWnvUjNQcNKRyouPfg9N_L657gVJwlMo2NwoQ5zuUhdQB2iIYRpr542Qff9-9krReYNSREvmXhD_FN/s320/13434825_139122116507628_1440888228735184287_n.jpg" title="Lands End Sign Post" width="320" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjn63yvpL_9iWal13UlGwl_W7cknSydTVyCTb_xYYtEmGRAAIih0XTHtw5Pe9N4PaJRMJAFwiGhHIkku1lXd_DlwWzCHdyOU8XQlEyjfW38LqNX5YrNqDVgz6Daxy8Ollk4ys0wLZ_gH8lS/s1600/13415563_139122206507619_1935717314752966672_o.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" border="0" height="102" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjn63yvpL_9iWal13UlGwl_W7cknSydTVyCTb_xYYtEmGRAAIih0XTHtw5Pe9N4PaJRMJAFwiGhHIkku1lXd_DlwWzCHdyOU8XQlEyjfW38LqNX5YrNqDVgz6Daxy8Ollk4ys0wLZ_gH8lS/s320/13415563_139122206507619_1935717314752966672_o.jpg" title="Lands End Car Park and Cycle drop off point!" width="320" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhp4zl1sprIKQ8FJzb2I1Y711fDgYwZ5JWV36xfGPiC089-Y-fqve44a83kAL90tYA1mcXvZ6UtP9OO0EPy7utGiPXCF1z0jTm2X8y7CsO4pHaJpvmwPWFcnmdGgrg-W3NHIpD7kp6FsGHJ/s1600/13418770_139122086507631_3662921110258927361_n.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhp4zl1sprIKQ8FJzb2I1Y711fDgYwZ5JWV36xfGPiC089-Y-fqve44a83kAL90tYA1mcXvZ6UtP9OO0EPy7utGiPXCF1z0jTm2X8y7CsO4pHaJpvmwPWFcnmdGgrg-W3NHIpD7kp6FsGHJ/s320/13418770_139122086507631_3662921110258927361_n.jpg" title="The First and Last House in England" width="320" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhIoBoIKYLUdsZbKD85fHwkRh_pLSUFWxIoikdF_fcF4fz_gkZvYeAQm-hqTpJioIF3kcqEM0d0skCXg2Gv_q9274kzS_twuFAPQ1BBUszfQYi3zjOzWtXNpZaU8ZhNavIKBlRHHhKuRfku/s1600/13432148_139121996507640_5461380831275629137_n.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhIoBoIKYLUdsZbKD85fHwkRh_pLSUFWxIoikdF_fcF4fz_gkZvYeAQm-hqTpJioIF3kcqEM0d0skCXg2Gv_q9274kzS_twuFAPQ1BBUszfQYi3zjOzWtXNpZaU8ZhNavIKBlRHHhKuRfku/s320/13432148_139121996507640_5461380831275629137_n.jpg" title="Lands End Complex" width="320" /></a></div>
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Photos done, final check of the two video cameras and away we went at 10:05AM. It was a bright sunny day but not too hot, pretty much perfect for pushing in. The plan to reach my 33 miles per day was split into 20 to 23 miles each morning and 10 to 13 miles in the afternoon to finish off the daily mileage quota. The first 5 miles were relatively flat, a few small inclines and declines but nothing to worry about. Me and Nick hadn't practiced pushing and cycling together before and there were a few teething problems, mainly Nick not being able to cycle in a straight line and getting too close to my hands or trying to fit into spaces that weren't there. Also at 5 miles in I needed to stop to remove the camera from my helmet as the added weight was giving me neck ache, I mounted it on the chair instead as I didn't want a slight ache to turn into an injury in a few hundred miles time. No major problems, just things that could have been sorted before setting off if we had been able to stick to the time frame we wanted to. <br />
We headed straight to Penzance as planned but at 8.7 miles myself and Ed decided that the A30 was a no-go. There were heavy road works the night before during our journey down, there is no hard shoulder on what is in essence a motorway and there were no cycling signs up. We'd quickly plotted another route through the west country and asked Natalie, one of the chosen few volunteers at home, to check if she could find a flatter route than we had. Whilst we waited for news on alternative routes I carried on pushing, making great progress as the route had become mainly downhill at this point. Penzance was beautiful but the traffic was a nightmare. It didn't really hold me up but the Motorhome got stuck in it. At 12.7 miles in I decided to stop to refuel with an energy bar and refill our drinks, we were making really great progress so a quick break was well deserved. We stopped on the coast road and I posed for photos with Saint Michael's Mount in the background before we headed off again.<br />
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From Saint Michael's we had 5 miles almost continuous uphill to Ashton, followed by a couple of very fast downhill miles, including a mile I covered in 2:00min, to finish the morning a one mile uphill section which got me to the outskirts of Helston where we parked up for lunch having ticked off 22.5miles.<br />
As soon as I finished my push I ate a MyProtein protein flapjack and had a recovery drink. Ed cheffed up some couscous for lunch, it tasted great and was filling so I was happy. Nick looked at us like we were trying to poison him! Bless him, he tried his best to eat it. He was really excited about what we had done that morning, he'd already gone further than ever before. He kept telling Ed how fast I was going downhill and how he was struggling to keep up with me. It was great to see him excited but we needed to save energy so as soon as we had eaten we had a nap.<br />
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<b><u>Day 1 Morning Stats</u></b><br />
Miles: 22.5<br />
Time: 2:09:41<br />
Average Moving Speed: 10.9mph<br />
Top Speed: 39.5mph<br />
Slowest Mile Split: 22nd mile; 11:54<br />
Fastest Mile Split: 21st mile; 2:00<br />
Total Ascent: 1566ft<br />
Average Heart Rate: 161bpm<br />
Max Heart Rate: 187bpm<br />
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<b><u>Day 1 Morning Progress Maps</u></b><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgZZ30Zdxk2vGSkXANO-9amfGmDzXNndwJrnvMabj7EcXRzPYHLx01kRcLBO3srg5fK-1mVWyzD4pY_UelWn7bsW0maX7r9GYkunwPzjh2DwZpAhYWMVjtkJ1PzfFex1Ocl_XzakWQzyXBP/s1600/Screenshot+%25282%2529.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" border="0" data-original-height="353" data-original-width="814" height="171" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgZZ30Zdxk2vGSkXANO-9amfGmDzXNndwJrnvMabj7EcXRzPYHLx01kRcLBO3srg5fK-1mVWyzD4pY_UelWn7bsW0maX7r9GYkunwPzjh2DwZpAhYWMVjtkJ1PzfFex1Ocl_XzakWQzyXBP/s400/Screenshot+%25282%2529.png" title="Lands End to John O'Groats Day 1 Country View" width="400" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgcjXvlD2d8Gwe0jBRJoXO2tw8sUlj5ayTbs2fjnTo304hrUFgEs_BIp1akYRkj9YcB6C1CHeTaSNWTij_DMHe0xrqP3Ols755U2DgtJz6jFhAqn-PY1SdEKfdUIwb4oweHG5Q8p8dBEJhU/s1600/Screenshot+%25281%2529.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" border="0" data-original-height="357" data-original-width="821" height="172" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgcjXvlD2d8Gwe0jBRJoXO2tw8sUlj5ayTbs2fjnTo304hrUFgEs_BIp1akYRkj9YcB6C1CHeTaSNWTij_DMHe0xrqP3Ols755U2DgtJz6jFhAqn-PY1SdEKfdUIwb4oweHG5Q8p8dBEJhU/s400/Screenshot+%25281%2529.png" title="Lands End to John O'Groats Day 1 Morning Close Up" width="400" /></a></div>
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<b><u>Day 1 Afternoon</u></b><br />
The afternoon push didn't go quite as well as the morning push. I felt really groggy after my nap and mustn't have listened to Ed's route description properly, I got slightly in front of the motorhome and took a wrong turn inside the first mile. It took me down a steep hill and I then had to climb back out of the valley I had gotten myself into. Ouch! Instead of roughly 400m on the flat I did almost a mile, half of it climbing a hill steeper than I'd ever climbed in my chair before that point. The next 7 miles were mainly uphill with some really steep parts, even steeper than the detour I had accidentally taken. It was very slow going but Nick kept my spirits up my constantly chunnering on, singing and well, just being Nick. Ed was bunny hopping us in the motorhome beeping as he passed then pulling in down the road, getting witnesses to sign that they had seen me and cheering as we passed him. I kept my mind off the climbing by looking in peoples gardens - I'm a massive garden geek and I was jealous of all the plants the southern softies can grow in their gardens. I felt like a wildling south of the wall! I was so slow in places that I had to let go of my push rims and just grab the tyres an do quarter turns, it gave me more leverage so it kept me going but only just!<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiH4IWaqsCmcpkhEzrUWuhxiLD2UIvIv6nnp3QXtRFpzdIiHUoWArltW0FHHjeZ1Cer-la_EJHbMlYA3-_-KyIl66nsAR1w-4SyDBJ-1rOXmegL7pOiy5E8ldDynqBQmSl9OMBZR3Br7Khb/s1600/day+one+near+helston.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" border="0" data-original-height="720" data-original-width="960" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiH4IWaqsCmcpkhEzrUWuhxiLD2UIvIv6nnp3QXtRFpzdIiHUoWArltW0FHHjeZ1Cer-la_EJHbMlYA3-_-KyIl66nsAR1w-4SyDBJ-1rOXmegL7pOiy5E8ldDynqBQmSl9OMBZR3Br7Khb/s320/day+one+near+helston.jpg" title="Day 1 afternoon Run LEJOG" width="320" /></a></div>
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At 8.5 miles I finally got a long down hill which took me to Penryn and my daily milage total but as there was just a small uphill before another long descent I decided to carry on pushing. Ed decided to shoot off to a campsite he had spotted on the route to ask if they would put us up for free. At mile 14 I'd had enough and wanted to stop, I'd got to a big hill and had nothing left. Ed hadn't yet got back from the campsite so I got Nick to phone him and tell him I was goosed whilst I used the time to grind out a few more metres. This is when the extra support vehicle would have come into its own, I was shattered, all of a sudden I got cold and I started to shiver even though it was still a fairly warm day. I had already pushed 36miles that day so I was over target, it was further than I had been in one day before but I just wanted to stop. Another mile and a half later, not far from Truro, we got to a descent but I was so shattered I decided it was dangerous. I couldn't concentrate enough to go down a fast decent so I turned off the road and into a park.. down a very steep narrow lane where I struggled to stop and ended up in the long grass! It was a tree lined lane so there was no sun and I started to get seriously cold. I got Nick to wrap me in a foil blanket and run back up to the road to direct Ed in. It honestly felt like an hour waiting, feeling like utter shite, it was probably no more than 5min. I was saying something like "Come on Ed, Come on Ed, Come on Ed" over and over again whilst waiting for him. Its a good job nobody came down the lane - I'd of been off to the local psychiatric unit if anybody had heard!<br />
When Ed did arrive him and Nick had to almost lift me into the motorhome, Ed sorted out my chair whilst Nick got me the recovery drinks that I needed and then we were on our way to the campsite. To say they hadn't practiced the end of push routine they were really slick, I think it helped being in an 8 birth motorhome blocking a single track lane. Added urgency! The owners of <a href="http://carnon-downs-caravanpark.co.uk/ourpark.html" target="_blank">Carnon Downs Caravan Park</a> had given us a pitch for free, as we pulled in to the site the owner let us know that there would be a fish and chip van on site within the hour that was top quality. We were all shattered so decided to go for the chippy tea rather than start cooking. We parked up and the lads hooked the motorhome up and I headed off to the disabled shower, except I spotted a mahoooosive bath in the room next door so I crawled into that room dragged my chair in behind me and had a long well earned soak. When I got back to the motorhome Ed and I had a good look at the next days new route and we sent Nick to the Chip Van for tea. 15min later I got a call from Nick telling me the fish were £13.60 each, he thought we should have sausage instead. I did say I thought he had got it wrong but he was adamant he hadn't. Ed went to check he had enough money on him and it turned out somehow Nick had read '£' as '1' haha the bloody numpty, I can just imagine everyone else in the queue giggling at this young lad was telling everyone how expensive the fish was. A bloody £ looks nothing like a 1! Haha! It really tickled me. Our £3.60 fish and chips were every bit as good as the campsite owner had said!<br />
fish and chips shovelled down and then I went to bed. I don't think the lads were far behind me that first night. 38.5 miles in the bank 5 ahead of schedule at the end of day one! Good Work! The only thing that would have made the day better would have been being able to share it with people other than the very small group I'd put together to organise the last minute changes in just five days. The team sent lots of messages of encouragement but it wasn't the same as sharing it far and wide.<br />
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<b><u>Day 1 Afternoon Stats</u></b><br />
Miles: 16<br />
Time: 2:11:00<br />
Average Moving Speed: 7.7mph<br />
Top Speed: 34.6mph<br />
Slowest Mile Split: 16th mile; 17:37 (Ouch!!!!!)<br />
Fastest Mile Split: 12th mile; 2:48<br />
Total Ascent: 1,373ft<br />
Average Heart Rate: 149bpm<br />
Max Heart Rate: 173bpm<br />
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<span style="color: red;"><b>Total Daily Mileage: 38.5</b></span><br />
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<i></i><sub></sub><sup></sup><b><u>Day 1 Afternoon Progress Maps</u></b><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiW0g-yTtPp6FaaEKPYYhOMOrZNHkShMEn2mYNa4N_HCvzKkybJAfn7Skqv_QWOesRSDrktBktYIGRccg-zuEYRsb70L1IKuIAGJzk3Ir44kt-tqp-ecgRiO4mEKim_16rDLNGDpJFobg_-/s1600/day+1+aft+long.PNG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" border="0" data-original-height="363" data-original-width="828" height="140" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiW0g-yTtPp6FaaEKPYYhOMOrZNHkShMEn2mYNa4N_HCvzKkybJAfn7Skqv_QWOesRSDrktBktYIGRccg-zuEYRsb70L1IKuIAGJzk3Ir44kt-tqp-ecgRiO4mEKim_16rDLNGDpJFobg_-/s320/day+1+aft+long.PNG" title="Day 1 Afternoon map Lejog Country View" width="320" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiF_7HrH-9za2Ze8R3azkGwyznrUi6c7or0oHZmBR_65XwxVpZFz9XxnGKsE4ogkymHhUUM9vsiihxid1jJgudxdeEb8AsLIuSfC-mlHlpsiSyKF7eEfy8oZ7TpfMn9M_eUmYGXqEBUWAFX/s1600/Day+1+aft+detail.PNG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" border="0" data-original-height="362" data-original-width="825" height="140" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiF_7HrH-9za2Ze8R3azkGwyznrUi6c7or0oHZmBR_65XwxVpZFz9XxnGKsE4ogkymHhUUM9vsiihxid1jJgudxdeEb8AsLIuSfC-mlHlpsiSyKF7eEfy8oZ7TpfMn9M_eUmYGXqEBUWAFX/s320/Day+1+aft+detail.PNG" title="Day 1 Afternoon Lands End John O'Groats Close View Map" width="320" /></a></div>
<b><br /></b>Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15454059332314431888noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-870682862940569183.post-7686228652279457152016-09-28T18:06:00.000+01:002017-06-13T10:53:29.780+01:00Well That Wasn't The Plan!<br />
<div style="margin: 0cm 0cm 8pt;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri";">It's now a year since my world record attempt and
things have started to settle down again so it seems a good time to write about
the experience, the build-up and the aftermath! Today I am going to blog about
the build-up to the challenge and the reasons around the sudden date change and
over the next 20 days I will type up my diary from the challenge itself a day at a time.</span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0cm 0cm 8pt;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri";">Originally the plan had been to set off in early August and
finish on the 7th September - the day of the Rio Paralympic Opening Ceremony. This
had been the plan for well over a year and I'd made as much progress as
possible with organising the challenge but I'd been hindered in that by my
former club. My former coach, JA, had told me in early 2015, that the club
would give me their full backing and provide all the spares I would need for
the challenge. I was told the same thing by the club president, DW, who added I
should "Do what you need to do to make your dream happen". I asked if
I could have Camilla, a former club committee member as my project manager and
again was told to do what I needed to do to make it happen. There had been a
bit of a fall out at the club over the previous weeks but I wasn't sure what
the details were as I wasn't part of the 'in crowd' so I never really got given
any updates of the day to day things at the club. I had spoken to DW at the
2015 Great Manchester Run and offered to travel to London to act as a mediator
in a meeting to try and sort things out between the warring parties. I was told everything was ok and not
to worry so I left it at that. Anyway, two weeks after I had been given the go
ahead to have Camilla involved I received a phone call from DW telling me it
had been decided that I now couldn't have her involved and it was down to me to
tell her. I really didn't appreciate that, I'd asked permission, was given the permission
but then had it removed and been told I was the one that had to deliver the bad
news. Camilla is an absolute powerhouse when it comes to organising things, she’d
planned to drive for the full trip and do all the cooking so it was a big blow
being told I now couldn't have her on board.</span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0cm 0cm 8pt;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri";">I was then summoned down
to London to one of the Charity's Trustee's meetings so "we can discuss
how the charity and trustees can help you". Great, we seemed to be getting
somewhere - or so I thought! The first meeting was cancelled because JA and DW
couldn't make it. Two months later I was asked to attend the next meeting, JA
and DW weren't present again so it made the point of cancelling the first
meeting a tad questionable. I went into the meeting expecting it to be about
how they could help me so I was in a great mood and really excited about making
this challenge a success and raising lots of money for the charity which was
set up to support the club. As we entered the building where the meeting was to
take place the owner of the building, charity Trustee and one of the biggest
sponsors of the club Paul Clark gave me a funny look and pulled the chairman of
the trustees out of the room to "have a quick word". It was obvious
at the time the quick word was about me but I later learned he was checking if
I was safe to talk to or if I was on "Team Camilla". This is a man
who runs a multi-million pound business not a 13 year old girl in the
playground.</span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0cm 0cm 8pt;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri";">Once everyone arrived
we sat through the most boring hour imaginable listening to an insurance expert
chatting about all the ins and outs of the club’s cover. When the insurance man
left the room Paul stood up and announced he would have to go too as he didn't
want to miss a football match on the TV. I'm not easily offended but I did
think what a cheeky bastard, giving me a summons to go down and talk through my
plans with them, a round trip of 11 hours driving and he didn't even have the
decency to listen to what I had to say. When I did get to speak to the
remaining Trustees I was really shocked by their attitude towards me. I was
planning on pushing my wheelchair 900 miles to raise money for their charity
but from the response I got you'd have thought I was planning on shitting on
their car bonnets. They started by having a go at me about inviting Camilla to
be involved, when I pointed out that I’d been told this was ok by both JA and
DW they seemed a bit shocked. I even offered to show them all the exact text
conversation if they wanted to see it. They then moaned about the lack of time left to
organise things - they would have had absolutely nothing to organise if they
left me alone with the team I had put together. It was their choice to make me
sack Camilla, it was their choice to make me wait to go and see them and I had
been putting plans in place for 18months. After we passed that discussion I was
then attacked by one trustee in particular, Brian he was nasty and aggressive:</span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0cm 0cm 8pt;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri";">"We'd like a doctor's note to say you are fit enough to
take this on" </span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0cm 0cm 8pt;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri";">"What if you fail and people want their money
back"</span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0cm 0cm 8pt;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri";">"Is it legal?"</span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0cm 0cm 8pt;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri";">"What if you fail? It'll make the club look bad"</span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0cm 0cm 8pt;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri";">"If you get ill and injured it'll look bad on us"</span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0cm 0cm 8pt;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri";">"If you don't finish it could harm JA and DW's
reputation."</span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0cm 0cm 8pt;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri";">"What if you spend more than you make in
donations."</span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0cm 0cm 8pt;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri";">“How flexible is the 28 days? Can you keep going if you fall
behind?”</span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0cm 0cm 8pt;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri";">“Is your body and your health up to this?”</span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0cm 0cm 8pt;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri";">“What makes you think you can do this when you haven’t done
anything like it before?”</span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0cm 0cm 8pt;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri";">On and on and on he went basically telling me I was shit and
wouldn't make the finish line in 28 days. It was awful, I knew I had a couple
of allies in the room but both were too timid to stick up for me so I took a
massive bashing! I think they had misunderstood the situation. I wasn't there
to ask their permission to follow my dreams - who are they to tell me which
challenges I can and can't do? I was there to tell them that I was doing it, I
was doing it at the time I had been planning on for 18 months and I was going
to complete it in the time I wanted to. The things I was there to ask from the
charity was if they wanted the sponsorship I raised or not? and if they did
were they going to help organise the event? The meeting ended with me on the
verge of tears and with one of the trustees, Tania, saying she would think
about helping to organise it and she would give me a call in a couple of days
once she had decided if she could help or not. Myself and one of the junior athlete's mums who was also there to talk about fundraising were asked to leave the room whilst the trustees spoke about something confidential and she could not believe how they had spoken to me and how rude they had been.</span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0cm 0cm 8pt;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri";">The next day I drove
home from London, tired and angry. Angry at the fact I was trying to do
something positive to help the charity out but I'd been left in no uncertain
terms that they didn't think I was capable and they were less than interested
in helping make the journey any easier for me. Obviously they didn't have any
problem with taking the sponsorship money. Once home I put together a group of
people to help organise things for me, thinking that when Tania got in touch I
could impress her with what had already been done. I had completely the
opposite reaction from these people, I asked a few people if they would help -
they all agreed but more impressively I had a lot of people come to me asking
me if they could help. I gave out jobs to people and we cracked on with it. I
started getting radio interviews where, despite the way the trustees treated
me, I sang the praises of the charity. Tania who was supposed to phone in a few
days took a few weeks to get back to me but she did say she wanted to be
involved with the challenge.</span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0cm 0cm 8pt;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri";">The next few months
consisted of what I am now 99% sure was a two-pronged attempt to get me not to
start my challenge. On one front I had Tania stalling at every opportunity, I
lost count of the number of times a phone call finished with "I'll call
you on Thursday at 6PM with an answer.". When she actually meant
"I'll call you a week on Thursday at 10PM without an answer.". The
rest of the team that we assembled were waiting on information that only
somebody from the club or charity could give us. Marketing and media people
couldn't do what they needed to do without links for sponsorship, kit couldn't
be ordered without the logos, text giving numbers were needed, lots and lots of
5 minute jobs needed to be done by Tania or someone at the club/charity to
allow the rest of the team to get on with the real work.</span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0cm 0cm 8pt;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri";"> At the same time, I
had JA's friend Sue constantly sniping at everything I did and taking every opportunity she could find to knock my confidence. I ran the club's
Facebook page and had taken the likes from 700 when I took over to 1900 in just a few months but
nothing I did was good enough for her. I was constantly getting snotty texts,
phone calls and emails asking why this or that hadn't been posted, the reason
was always the same either I was not told about it or I was at work and
couldn't just drop everything and put a post on Facebook right at that second.
She would also be constantly mentioning how unfit I was and how far I was
behind where I should be. All of the ‘In-crowd’ completely stopped supporting
the Facebook page around the same time, obviously on team orders. One of the
worst times was during a family meal I’d been sent four texts, three emails and had
three phone calls telling me to post something on the club's Facebook immediately. Even after
I’d explained I was in a restaurant for an important family anniversary they wouldn’t
wait for an hour and I ended up sat in my car in the car park composing a post not
about the club but about an athlete who has a paid PR person running his own Facebook athlete page dedicated to his achievements;
which is never updated. I’m sure this was all aimed at making me feel unwanted
and to knock my confidence for the challenge. </span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0cm 0cm 8pt;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri";">In March I wasn't
invited to the Lisbon Half Marathon, a race JA has close ties with and a race I
had been invited to 7 times in a row. It became obvious that it was no
coincidence that I wasn't invited when slower athletes from my club appeared on
photos at the race and then they, the coaches, some volunteer cyclists and Sue travelled south after the race for
warm weather training. Warm weather training after the Lisbon race had actually been something I suggested the previous year as a good pre track season boost for the club. I’d spoken to Sue on four occasions the week before she
went to Portugal, I had spoken to several of the athletes involved too and not
one of them mentioned the fact they were going. Who doesn't mention the fact they are going abroad to do a race and then go warm weather training in the next few days when you are talking to somebody about racing and training? Definitely team orders again. I
was upset and hurt by it, JA was supposed to be my coach – I hadn’t had any
training programme from her since she found her new favourites 18 months earlier but she was
still supposed to be looking out for me. The athletes involved were supposed to
be my team mates, more than that, they were supposed to be my friends.</span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0cm 0cm 8pt;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri";">Even after all of
this I was still aiming to do my challenge and raise money for this charity,
looking back I should have taken the hint and jumped ship but I didn’t. Like a
goofy Labrador I just kept trying harder and harder to please them. </span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0cm 0cm 8pt;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri";">Eventually Tania decided to travel north to meet with myself
and Carly, the lady I had coordinating the volunteers up here. I paid for
afternoon tea at a nice local country café for everyone and the meeting started
ok but ended with Carly and Tania having a slanging match over the table. It
was both highly embarrassing and extremely entertaining. The snobbish,
southern, rich tory girl versus the common as muck, northern, skint, Jeremy Corbyn
groupie. One with a disabled daughter, the other with an incurable lung disease.
Both trying to play ‘Top Trumps’ with how difficult their lives were. I didn’t know
if I should laugh or cry. This was my dream and I had two gobshites going at it
in a fancy café with everyone looking. Even my dad, who is the master at saying
the wrong thing at the wrong time in the wrong place was sat there shocked into
silence. The meeting/verbal MMA match resulted in Carly pulling out of the
organising group, which caused more delays whilst I got everything back from
her and replied to emails she’d been ignoring. Thankfully my dad and a good
friend Elouise stepped up and took on more work organising.</span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0cm 0cm 8pt;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri";">All of this fannying around had got us to June. 11 weeks to
go and not much sorted for the trip, I’d been inspired by some friends who had
run an ultramarathon the day before to try a long push. I did 30 hilly miles in
Rossendale, in very hot conditions with no food or water with me. Doing this
training session was key to giving me the confidence to deal with what was to
happen next. I had never pushed more than a marathon before that day and I had
never pushed more than 22 miles in Rossendale with it being so hilly. I seemed
to cope with the mileage really well, so well that I felt fine to go out that night on a
date. It wasn’t our first date but I was still on best behaviour – I’d been
single for nine years at that point and although it was early days I was smitten. Whilst on
the date my phone rang in my pocket, I felt bad that I hadn’t switched it off
like I normally would on a date. I went to take my phone out of my pocket and
switch it off but I accidentally answered the call. I noticed it was Tania and
as calls from her were like hens’ teeth I decided to excuse myself and take a
quick call. </span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0cm 0cm 8pt;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri";">Tania had phoned to
tell me the three sponsors she had managed to find so far were pulling out
because somebody else was going to do the challenge before me. That somebody
else happened to be Justin, a lad I considered to be my best friend at the
club. Oddly he is the chairman of the club and he had planned on stealing my challenge to raise money
for his own charity – not the one connected to the club he was chairman of! Tania
went on to accuse me of stealing Justin’s idea and trying to do it in secret!
What a ridiculous thing to say when I’d been asking the charity and the club
for help for well over 18months. She then suggested I did a different challenge
at a different time. I honestly wanted to stick my fist through a door but I
was sat in front of my date trying to be all respectable. I didn't even swear - bloody miracle! I ended the
conversation by saying I was very disappointed in Justin, JA, DW and the club
in general and that the phone call had confirmed that they had been undermining
everything I had been planning. I told her I would have to consider my future
at the club but in reality I had already decided enough was enough. I just
about managed to hold it together for the rest of the date but my mind was
working overtime.</span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0cm 0cm 8pt;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri";">Everybody at the club
knew what I was planning and they had all known for well over a year so there
is no chance people hadn’t mentioned it to the chairman! Also, I suspect Tania
was helping Justin by giving him my route and logistics – I don’t believe he
had suddenly organised this challenge at this time just out of the blue. He was
aiming to scupper my plans.</span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0cm 0cm 8pt;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri";">I got home at just
gone midnight after the date and there was no way I was going to sleep, I
started planning my next move. I was awake all night doing sums to see what
options I had the funds for. I text my good friend Ed the next morning once I
had a skeleton of a plan. Ed is very switched on and knows me well enough to
tell me to shut the fuck up if I am talking bollocks. He was angry about what
the club had done to me but he was working. I went to see him that evening and
we discussed everything I had planned, he agreed with me and came up with some
cracking ideas to help make it happen. That’s it we were off, I was going to
Lands End in 6 days time. I could have cried when he said he was going to drive
the first two weeks of the trip with me. He was telling his bosses that he was
taking the time off work. I didn’t yet have a vehicle to drive but I planned on
getting a tow bar fitted to my car and buying a caravan if I needed to. There was so much to organise
and not enough time to do it. I hadn’t done the training I had planned and
there was no time to do it. I didn’t have the spares I needed, no volunteers, nowhere to stay each night, no food or supplements …. etc etc.</span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0cm 0cm 8pt;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri";">The next day I let a very small group of people know what
was happening and that it needed to be kept secret. I wanted to set off and do
the first 5 days in secret in case Justin decided to try and chase me down. I
knew I could trust these people 100% all of them helped to get things ready. I
chose a new charity to support, The 53 Foundation, who help disabled people get
active. Dave and Amy from The 53 Foundation were really keen on the challenge
and gave off such positive vibes – a welcome change from months and months of negativity
from the original charity/club. I phoned Camilla and apologised for the way I
had treated her, I asked her to be involved and she jumped at the chance and
her advice was going to be valuable to me. Elouise took joint control of
organising the group with myself, she was to take the reins fully when I was on
my way and I have no idea if the challenge would have happened without her. My dad and sister worked hard helping me with the route, ordering
spares, trying to get sponsors and logistics. Other friends worked on gathering
PR and media contacts ready to go, campsite details and lots of other things
that needed to be done. With 4 days to go my dad turned up at my house to say
he’d been offered a motorhome as sponsorship, I could have kissed him. Then I
realised he hadn’t told them we now needed it in 4 days not in 10 weeks and he
hadn’t told them we needed a six berth to get the right number of beds. I’m not
brilliant at asking for things but I phoned the motorhome company and explained
what had happened and they seemed to like the idea of backing the underdog. We
had a nervous wait whilst they tried to move things around to give me what I
needed but in the end Marquis Leisure did us proud. We also got MyProtein on
board, bags of supplements and kit for myself and my support riders. Talking of
support riders my friend Nick had decided to take unpaid leave from work also
for the first two weeks which was a massive boost for me.</span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0cm 0cm 8pt;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri";">With a couple of sleeps to go my house looked like a
bombsite, there was spares, kit, food, medical supplies, clothes and more
stored in my tiny bungalow but the team had done it. We were ready to go and
collect the motorhome. The morning before I was due to start the challenge Ed,
Nick, Dad and I drove to Preston to pick up the Motorhome. The guys at Marquis
showed us all how everything worked but there was a lot to take in! It was nice
to see Ed and Nick seemed to click, they hadn’t met before and are very
different people. Once we drove back to my house we packed the camper full of
the supplies. It took a long time to get everything in, the original plan was
to take a car too but with the time change some of our support drivers could no
longer make it. Cramming a month’s worth of supplies, spares and kit plus 3
wheelchairs and a bike into a motorhome was tough but we managed it in the end!
</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Calibri;"><br /></span>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEihzhG7TJkE1EGL6j_8_clZBd-Y5_SNJZRr6CWxMmkWZ9q-txby0YybazkSIYSjZuBu7owRnr8NJo7SNyJz3IuatWY02Eb8IDn6BxEtWDJG8w9ZwffzPeJvVGN8HM7SaQMZJLsBMvPcC-Gy/s1600/lejog+camper.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEihzhG7TJkE1EGL6j_8_clZBd-Y5_SNJZRr6CWxMmkWZ9q-txby0YybazkSIYSjZuBu7owRnr8NJo7SNyJz3IuatWY02Eb8IDn6BxEtWDJG8w9ZwffzPeJvVGN8HM7SaQMZJLsBMvPcC-Gy/s320/lejog+camper.jpg" title="Bonnie the Dog ready to leave for Cornwall" width="240" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: Calibri;"><br /></span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0cm 0cm 8pt;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri";">As Ed, Nick, my dog Bonnie and I set off on the journey
south the nerves really kicked in. I was about to set off and push a wheelchair
the length of the UK, without the training or the preparation I needed or the volunteers, cyclists, massage therapists, meals and campsites I planned to have along the route. I was
in a Motorhome with two of the best mates a bloke could ask for who had both
took unpaid leave to help me chase my dream. I was so nervous that I would let
down Ed, Nick and the other people who had helped get me on my way. I just kept
reading a quote over and over again on my phone “It’s better to try and fail
than fail to try and wonder what if”. I didn’t tell the lads how nervous I was,
we just kept chatting and driving and driving and driving... When we got to Summerset I assumed we were
nearly there! How wrong was I? The West Country goes on and on and on, I was
starting to realise just how far this challenge was going to be. It took around
8 hours to get there. We arrived at the campsite after it had closed so we just
parked up in the dark and got some kip ready for the big day in the morning.</span></div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15454059332314431888noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-870682862940569183.post-87967812045479107612016-01-31T10:17:00.000+00:002016-01-31T12:20:00.936+00:002016 - The Challenge of a LifetimeSo after my injury late in 2015 I have been put back by quite a chunk, I missed out on a trip to Dubai for the marathon there and I am now up against it to get fit for the <a class="g-profile" href="https://plus.google.com/114059906351388605453" target="_blank">+Virgin Money London Marathon</a>. Hopefully I can get myself in shape for London, it is usually the biggest challenge of the year for me. All that will change this year when London is going to be a total walk in the park compared to the challenge I have set for myself later in the year..<br />
Starting on 11th August I'm going to attempt to be the first person in history to push from Lands End to John O'Groats in a manual wheelchair. I am also aiming to do this faster than it has been done in an electric wheelchair. The current record for an electric wheelchair is 30 days. My target is to knock two days off that record using arm power alone. Well, I say my target, it is actually <a class="g-profile" href="https://plus.google.com/109769780621707919948" target="_blank">+Guinness World Records</a> target, even though this challenge hasn't been done before they have said they will only award me the world record if I do it in under 29 days. I seems a bit harsh when the Electric Wheelchair world record is 30 days but hey ho! 28 days it is! To do that I will need to push around 33 miles per day without a rest day for four weeks. To put that into perspective I have only completed two marathons in my life and even if you include my pre marathon warm up that would only be around 27 to 28 miles on marathon day..... and then I have 4 or 5 days off after the race. What have I gotten myself in to here?? haha!<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgtiS62FqHEYm_ZJyiBN-J22CQwsvCsULTr8v3i2dxi40Sq5_r2DSPQoyMHAQtM4HQ303OIk-InRMeCYP3Nmavg1HXq3kgqKL4yySVrsuBBvQsADMrGlqvXVYNkbaEZxATApN-kpLkDXXYb/s1600/Screen+Shot+2016-01-31+at+10.04.50.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgtiS62FqHEYm_ZJyiBN-J22CQwsvCsULTr8v3i2dxi40Sq5_r2DSPQoyMHAQtM4HQ303OIk-InRMeCYP3Nmavg1HXq3kgqKL4yySVrsuBBvQsADMrGlqvXVYNkbaEZxATApN-kpLkDXXYb/s400/Screen+Shot+2016-01-31+at+10.04.50.png" width="330" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Lands End to John O'Groats in a Wheelchair, I must be mad!</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<br />
Why?<br />
Well there are several reasons why I want to do something out of the ordinary. The first is a personal one. I sustained my injury in 2007 whilst competing in Finland in the World Ultra Multi Events Championships. I had been entered in the Double Decathlon, 20 events over two days, every Olympic athletics event plus the 200m hurdles. I had been looking forward to taking part and I was in the shape of my life, my main two events the 400m hurdles and 400m had been going great. I had been smashing PB's all season and the rest of the club had been performing well too. At the time I competed for Blackburn Harriers, we had some amazing juniors coming through in the field events and that meant I was getting some top class tips on my weak events. Particularly from Sophie Hitchon on the throws (she was about to become British record holder in the hammer) and Holly Bleasdale's first coach for Pole Vault (a few years later she was to smash the British record). Everything was going great on the prep for Finland. Everything except peoples faith in my ability to complete the double decathlon, I was literally getting people telling me not to do it on a daily bases. I had absolutely no doubt that I could do 20 events in 2 days. I just wanted to get on with it and prove everybody wrong!<br />
It didn't quite happen how I had planned! My first event was the 100m where I broke my personal best, I hadn't run a PB in the 100m for over 8 years so this just confirmed to me that I was going to smash the next 19 events. The second event was the Long Jump, my first jump was poor so I adjusted my run up and my second jump equalled my PB, again it was an old PB so I was over the moon to equal it. Now this is where I went wrong, my plan for the jumps and throws was to retire early if I had an early attempt I was happy with and conserve energy for later in the competition. I made a choice that changed my life by deciding to stray from the battle plan and take my third jump to try and break my PB outright. When I took off for the third time my right foot was in slightly the wrong position and I left my leg behind. I suffered numerous injuries - I broke my pelvis, snapped muscles, damaged major blood vessels, damaged nerves and tore muscles. The pain was horrendous, nobody helped me up, I had do some stange manoeuvres to get onto my feet. Once on my feet in had to shuffle off into the stand, using steps of about 1 inch whilst in massive pain. In a way I am glad it happened in the second event, to me that means it wasn't the double decathlon that caused the injury - I would do 4 or 5 events at league meets for my club so 100m and long jump were not excessive.<br />
When I got home I had a lot of people saying "I told you so" sometimes it was masked but mainly it was delivered in a blunt way. Since that time I have never been in a position in which I can prove to the doubters and to myself that my body is capable of doing extraordinary things. That might sound arrogant but it's not that I believe I am one of a special few that are capable of doing extraordinary things. I believe everyone on the planet can do extraordinary things - if they work hard and it means enough to them they can do something amazing. I turn 33 in July, I feel now is the time to do my 'Amazing thing'. I want something to be proud of, something to prove I wasn't being silly when I travelled to Finland to take on those 20 events and lets be honest, a double decathlon is child's play in comparison to pushing a wheelchair 900 miles.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgfUDKlAzgePNcjBsPXj24FOA5P_Npd8sg6aj_3u8dl2V-qcrsFYsNeE7jvxOdV5GM9fSytZFilIJC5MEZP7EGmsrvdQKDVpXAh6rZgaXqbTsY9f5wjvx4QxaFZ3-lH0hrmam03xPutAz-f/s1600/Screen+Shot+2016-01-31+at+10.00.55.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="265" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgfUDKlAzgePNcjBsPXj24FOA5P_Npd8sg6aj_3u8dl2V-qcrsFYsNeE7jvxOdV5GM9fSytZFilIJC5MEZP7EGmsrvdQKDVpXAh6rZgaXqbTsY9f5wjvx4QxaFZ3-lH0hrmam03xPutAz-f/s400/Screen+Shot+2016-01-31+at+10.00.55.png" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">At an event shortly before the World Ultra Multi Events Championships in Finland.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
The second and more important reason for taking on this challenge is to raise money for charity. I have been overwhelmed since taking up wheelchair athletics by the kindness most people show towards me. Right at the start of my venture into wheelchair athletics a local journalist introduced me to Candice Heys and Garry Wilkinson who had been part of a team of runners that took part in the Everest Marathon to raise money to help disabled people take part in sport. They helped me a great deal at the start by providing me with training kit and paying my gym fees. At the time I was struggling with the benefits system as I had never claimed before my injury and none of my family had ever claimed before either. It took 10months to get my benefits sorted so without the support of the Everest gang I would not have been able to start training.<br />
The village that my dad lived in a few years ago raised the money to buy my first custom built wheelchair. The village of East Runton in Norfolk did so much to help me and I only knew a handful of the residents. They had cake sales, a village bizarre, sponsored walks and lots more. Without the generosity of complete strangers I would have had to struggle on with a second hand, worn out old chair that kept breaking, it was so badly fitted it was slicing into my love handles during every training session - attractive!<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhBJPj4LOS0LymbK6lDI5bjnmMuzI1pUWNcLkJUczDkY1xuBmhykKp2vKf-SVanM8a5VPEwgvG2HOp2iSpc3f6Pp2_JIBzhhT690DgsylLPsmK-ysH61mvs2BgXcjJvAVOzVWei6wb7VqeN/s1600/Screen+Shot+2016-01-31+at+10.10.06.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="258" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhBJPj4LOS0LymbK6lDI5bjnmMuzI1pUWNcLkJUczDkY1xuBmhykKp2vKf-SVanM8a5VPEwgvG2HOp2iSpc3f6Pp2_JIBzhhT690DgsylLPsmK-ysH61mvs2BgXcjJvAVOzVWei6wb7VqeN/s400/Screen+Shot+2016-01-31+at+10.10.06.png" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">My first custom built race chair, largely paid for by the villagers of East Runton</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
More recently I have been having lots of help and support from the Weir Archer Academy, an athletics club and charity that was set up by David Weir and his long term coach Jenny Archer as part of their effort towards the 2012 legacy that we heard about in every news bulletin during 2012. They wanted to help people of all levels of ability get involved with wheelchair athletics. Jenny is my coach now too and David is always there if I need any help and advice. To have two sporting legends in my corner is a real confidence boost. WAA has helped me out so much since I joined, I've managed to compete all over Europe, I'm sure the number of race invites I get has increased because I am part of WAA.<br />
I have been brought up to believe if you accept help when you need it you should be prepared to give help when you are in a position to do so. Although I am not rich by any stretch of the imagination I am physically and mentally strong enough to take LEJOG on and raise lots of money. It is important to me to raise money for a charity that will go towards disabled people taking part in sport and leading a healthy lifestyle. I'm not sure where I would be without doing sport but I am sure it wouldn't be as good a place as I am in now which brings me on to the third reason for taking on this challenge.<br />
This reason is the hardest one for me to talk about. I have struggled with depression from being a teenager, 90% of the time it was kept under control with my running and social life. It wasn't something I recognised as depression until after my injury, looking back it definitely was. I want to raise awareness of depression in sportsmen and to encourage people to talk openly about mental health issues. If you have flu you talk about it with everyone from family to complete strangers. Wouldn't it be great if people opened up and spoke about depression before they got to the stage when they are leaning over the edge of a bridge contemplating jumping?<br />
After my injury I went on a huge downward spiral. At the same time my only real relationship ended and I struggled to cope - in fact I didn't really cope, I was a mess and I messed up. I started hanging around with a group of..... erm.... cockwombles. Complete and utter oxygen thieves. I was going out Thursdays, Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays with this group of idiots. They were all drug users - mainly bubble which was popular at the time. I ended up nearly 3 stone overweight, I had never had a weight problem before but the drinking and sitting in a wheelchair all day everyday soon took its toll. This bunch of halfwits were pretending to be my mates when in reality, each time we went out, they were taking money out of my bank account without me knowing and using my bank card to buy drugs online. In a way and yes, I know this sounds odd; I have a lot to thank them for. Without them stealing over £1500 off me I would probably still be going out with them. I may even be an addict myself by now if they hadn't stolen from me. I may have even continued on the downward spiral of depression until it was me hanging over the bridge contemplating jumping.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhpn5n_r4mANsYJ16Kx7WKVu4WwzE-2wTYuvGHBI_1ePqzzTY5lStt_UD_cm239S6qzt0EtIp6l0sMvD50Cr46y1qx-BhIP-Y77_BahK3IW_xEtSxb3jIKjYwSJrieowFzFhXGAeiuYp7OA/s1600/Screen+Shot+2016-01-31+at+09.51.10.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="286" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhpn5n_r4mANsYJ16Kx7WKVu4WwzE-2wTYuvGHBI_1ePqzzTY5lStt_UD_cm239S6qzt0EtIp6l0sMvD50Cr46y1qx-BhIP-Y77_BahK3IW_xEtSxb3jIKjYwSJrieowFzFhXGAeiuYp7OA/s400/Screen+Shot+2016-01-31+at+09.51.10.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Me looking awful with some of my 'friends'.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
Luckily the experience of being a cash cow for down and outs gave me the kick up the backside that I needed to try and sort my life out. I looked awful but I had been ignoring my fat body and bad skin. I decided to go to the track and do a few laps in my NHS wheelchair. It took me over 3 minutes to do a lap which really upset me but I went back each week. I fell out of my chair lots of times but I kept getting back in, kept going back for more and kept improving physically. Interestingly my depression eased too. I've now got to a point at which when I am training and racing my depression is in its box and causes me no problems whatsoever, the problem occurs when I am injured or ill and I can't take part in exercise. I think it is important for sportsmen to talk about depression to help make people more aware of what is going on. Great strides have been taken in the last few years to remove the stigma from mental illness but we still have a long way to go. From time to time on the build up to my LEJOG attempt I will mention my depression on this blog - not for sympathy but because I want people, especially sportsmen, to understand suffering with depression doesn't make you weak it's just part of life and it can be treated. You can't attempt to push a wheelchair 900miles and be weak!<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEijAdqtBL3OHIRE8ZiZUfQ77mKMZ3qW3M_-3D8jRKa-OJdOpXfZ3pyqRQXZx_bwTWiKWRFoyY2QXQc_3Da6XYN8exyQfcfJBRxxCzIJUDviq97-Jmt5s2j-kvF7Ya0p_7512FYqH060wOIg/s1600/Screen+Shot+2016-01-31+at+09.52.07.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="262" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEijAdqtBL3OHIRE8ZiZUfQ77mKMZ3qW3M_-3D8jRKa-OJdOpXfZ3pyqRQXZx_bwTWiKWRFoyY2QXQc_3Da6XYN8exyQfcfJBRxxCzIJUDviq97-Jmt5s2j-kvF7Ya0p_7512FYqH060wOIg/s400/Screen+Shot+2016-01-31+at+09.52.07.png" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">This is me 9 months after I decided a change was needed. Still overweight but much happier.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
Another reason for me attempting LEJOG is just simply that I love Great Britain and I want to see as much of it as possible!<br />
<br />
Planning this epic challenge is going to take lots of organising and I am looking for people to help with that, I already have a small team on board but if you can help out with admin please get in touch ASAP using this email address <a href="mailto:Ant400mh@Hotmail.co.uk">Ant400mh@Hotmail.co.uk</a> . There is a lot of admin to do from now until the start, if you can donate one afternoon's worth of work between now and August or a couple of hours a week between now and August it will be massively appreciated.<br />
<br />
<br />
Please visit the '<a href="http://anthonygottswheelchairathlete.blogspot.co.uk/p/sponsors-and.html" target="_blank">Pledge Help for LEJOG</a>' page to see the other help I need and for a list of equipment I need to source. This page will evolve soon to include a 'rota' for people to see which days during the challenge I will be closest to where you live and what help I need everyday of the challenge.<br />
<br />
We also have a 'Meet the Team' page on it's way and each and every person that helps will get a mention there. Companies that want to sponsor the challenge or offer help in anyway will get coverage and a link to their company website on the 'Sponsors' page which will be launched soon.<br />
<br />
Please keep checking back for all the latest news on my training and preparation for my challenge. Please spread the word too, the more people that know about the challenge the bigger the success it will be!<br />
<br />
Thanks<br />
Ant<br />
<br />
Let's do this!!Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15454059332314431888noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-870682862940569183.post-13908611789820416972016-01-22T01:05:00.001+00:002016-01-22T01:17:32.735+00:00Review of 2015 - Massive Highs and Bottomless Lows.Well 2015 was a funny old year!<br />
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I started out well with that 5min PB in the London Marathon and then went on to prepare for the Great Manchester 10K. It's a race I love because it is the closest to home that I have ever raced and I've always found it a shame that it doesn't attract a bigger field. 2015 was different a few coincidences made it the biggest wheelchair field the race had ever had, there were new athletes involved, people who would normally be at the Swiss champs were there and a couple of racers came out of retirement. All that meant that there was no way I was going to defend my 3rd place from 2014 so it was all about the time for me.<br />
As soon as the gun went there was the mad charge that seems to happen in every race although it is heightened at Manchester as there are two start lines that are on opposite sides of the road and the athletes cannot see each other. We set off harder because we don't want to be left behind by the athletes on the other side of the road. After about 80m the two groups come together on a gentle bend, there was a clash of chairs at this point in 2014 and with the extra athletes involved in 2015 it was no different. I took a big hit from Mark Telford (the guy I argued with mid race during the London Marathon) I think I swore at him but didn't think much of it at the time and just got on with my race. The first 1km or so is downhill so we get some decent speed going, the lead two were off and gone in the distance but they were David Weir and Simon Lawson who are a cut above the rest of the athletes in the UK. I would have expected the likes of Patrick Monahan, John Smith, Nathan Maguire and Stuart Bloor to be ahead of the likes of myself and Callum Hall but they weren't! When the mad dash at the start had settled we had got involved in a huge group with a few of the other athletes that don't normally race at Manchester, the group was a bit ragged at first but myself and Callum soon got them in order and working together. We were both laughing to ourselves, both knowing that really we weren't the most experienced or the fastest in that group - we were just the gobby ones that took control. We didn't half shift, most people doing their bit at the front of the field, John was a bit lazy and did virtually nothing but in the end he was out sprinted by somebody we could have dropped earlier in the race if he'd of helped us out - swift justice!<br />
Whilst heading towards Old Trafford we could still see Dave and Simon ahead so we knew we were going well. Just after Old Trafford there are some corners on the course and I realised that without putting any effort in I was hitting the front of the pack just because my cornering was better. I decided that when we got to the worst corner on the race I would hit it hard and try and break up the pack as I knew most of them could outsprint me and that would leave me outside the top ten. So, I sprinted into the corner, didn't break and then worked out of the corner. I had a quick look over my shoulder and I had dropped the whole pack by 20m or more, everybody in that pack had a faster 10km PB than me so I fully expected most if not all of them to catch me. I was just over halfway in the race, I knew I couldn't keep a group of faster athletes behind me whilst they were working together. I didn't make a break for home, I simply kept myself moving at a decent speed so the pack would need to work to get back to me. I hoped that as they were chasing me down the weaker members of the pack would drop off the back and once the leaders in the pack caught me I would be fresh enough to up the pace again and open up the gap between us and the weaker athletes. It worked! Exactly what I wanted to happen did so! I was a bit gutted that one of the athletes dropped was Callum who I get on great with, he was having a great push none the less. Another was Stuart who I had only ever beaten at Half and Marathon up until that point. Unfortunately, with about 2km or less to go, as the course started to climb a small gap opened up in the group of six I was racing in and it was me getting dropped. I kept working hard hoping that somebody else may be dropped and that I may get to pick them off but the five remaining lads kept strong and finished well. When I crossed the line I couldn't believe the time I had produced 24:04! Well over 2min Knocked off my 10km PB! Yes, it wasn't the 3rd place I got in 2014 but 8th in a fast time feels better to me. The post race analysis consisted mainly of people asking what had happened at the start between me and Mark Telford, apparently it looked like we were both going to come out of our chairs. Two people asked if it was round 2 of the London Marathon ranting. It wasn't, Mark had been rammed into me by an inexperienced athlete when the two starts merged. There was no malice in it at all and we had a good chat about the accident and about London. He is actually a sound guy. We both apologised for shouting in London and shook hands.<br />
After manchester I set my sights fully on the Swiss Marathon Champs, My club the Weir Archer Academy sponsored myself, Martyna Snopek and Justin Levene's travel and board. It felt great to be representing the club abroad I wanted to produce something that people would be proud of. I trained really hard for the event and felt in the best shape I have ever been in. The trip started with a long drive down to London to sleep on Martyna's sofa the night before we flew from Luton airport. On the morning we were flying we headed over to the airport and parked up, I didn't have a disabled parking bay so had to park miles from the airport and push my race chair in its flight box, two wheel bags and a suitcase across a gravel carpark and then catch the bus to the airport. I didn't half get some funny looks! Once inside the airport we tried to check in and because we were flying with EasyJet the inevitable happened - we were dealt with by idiots! When booking the tickets we had let them know we were flying with wheelchairs and sports chairs, they were given the dimensions and weights of the chairs and my travel box. I had over estimated the weight of my box and told them 36kg, on the day it weighed 32kg but they wouldn't let me check it in as it was over 30kg! They let me book tickets stating I would be travelling with a 36kg box telling me there would be no problem and they would put a note on the system... but a box 4kg lighter was "too heavy"! I explained that there should be a note on their system from when we booked and the manager who had been called over said she could see the note but the box was still over 30kg so it didn't matter. Well over an hour of arguing ended with somebody else higher up the hierarchy letting me check in. It did sour the start of the trip, being made to wait at the side of the queue whilst passengers stared at us and EasyJet staff pointed at, talked about us and asked ridiculous questions like "does it have an engine?". Once checked in we literally had minutes to get to the gate and sort ourselves out. The flight was ok, I had Martyna hanging off my arm as she is petrified of flying! I don't like flying either so I couldn't do anything other than completely blank her! We must of looked like a really odd pair, her clamped onto my arm and me with head phones on watching a film an not even looking at her. What makes it even stranger is that Martyna is doing a masters in Avionics! She knows how safe planes are and knows exactly how they work yet she is petrified, haha!<br />
Once landed in Switzerland the problems continued, EasyJet had left Justin's race chair behind so whilst he was sorting out what was going on we stacked all 6 wheels, Martyna's race chair and all 3 suitcases on my travel box and I wheeled it through the airport whilst Martyna went to find the race organisers who were supposed to be picking us up. There was no sign of them. They eventually got there an hour and a half after we had made it through arrivals. Once checked into the hotel that was lovely we headed down into the town to try and find some cheaper food, the food in the hotel was very expensive but even the Aldi store in the town was a bit pricey. Whilst going through the town Martyna noticed my wheelchair looked odd, we stopped to look and it had been completely battered during the EasyJet flight all the wheels were buckled and the frame twisted. On our way back to the hotel up a very steep hill both of my castors broke so I had to pull a wheelie whilst carrying my shopping. Justin and Martyna just abandoned me, it must have taken me a good half hour to get up the hill. When I was about 1 minute away from the top Martyna wheeled back to me to offer to take my shopping bag, it took everything I had not to blow up at them both - there is noway on earth I would ever leave a friend to struggle like that.... actually I wouldn't even leave a stranger to struggle. Never mind, they live in the south so I guess thats normal!<br />
On race day we were bussed down to the start in the next town, it was raining heavily and very cold so we got ready in a large marquee, when we went out to warm up they were already lining us up in speed order with all the cyclists taking part in the various races. I managed to get about 400m warm up done then I had to take my place in the startling line up. We were sat getting cold for quite a while although the rain had stopped. Once it was time for us to start I was flying, I was drafting both the Great Marcel Hug who is a multiple World Champion and a Dutch Paralympian. I felt fine, my heart rate was within my target zone, I even climbed a small hill with the pair. Then at about the 7mile mark I couldn't exhale properly my chest went very tight and my breathing was very shallow, it came from nowhere. Justin was about 200m behind me at this point and I was in 3rd place which came with prize money which was much needed at the time. As soon as it happened I lost touch with my illustrious company but I hoped I could hide it from Justin and not give him the boost of seeing I was struggling. I carried on pushing, with the prettiest technique I could manage, whilst gasping for air. It wasn't working though, Justin soon caught me and passed me - I couldn't even hang on to him on a downhill section where normally I could hang on to anyone. I kept working for another 7 miles or so but by this point I was starting to fall asleep, it must have been lack of oxygen getting to my brain, whatever was causing it - I was scared to death. I had been struggling to breath and getting pains in my chest for 40min or so, I was starting to be lapped by the cyclists in their various races and as they were coming past at incredible speeds it started to get dangerous. If it was a case of just me limping on and finishing in a jogger's time I probably would have attempted it and who knows what would have happened. I was putting other people at risk by wandering all over the road so I pulled out, the first time I have ever pulled out of a race like that and I was devastated. I felt like I had let Jenny, Dave and everybody else at the academy down. I had wasted their money in getting me there.<br />
It turned out I had had an asthma attack in the race, probably brought on by the lack of warm up and the cold mountain air. I had childhood asthma but hadn't had an attack since the age of 15, I had't used an inhaler since 17 and didn't even own one. I thought I had grown out of it, I had a severe cat allergy as a child too but I have two pet cats now and they have never caused a problem in the 9 years I have had them. My dad developed asthma in his late 20's so I guess thats where it has come from. It didn't take long once home to get the diagnosis, get an inhaler and try pushing again. The inhaler helped with the asthma but there was a bigger problem for me - the feeling of letting everybody down and the wasting of months of training brought my depression back with a huge bang. It completely bitch slapped me and I really struggled to motivate myself to do anything at all for weeks on end. I shied away from friends and family, I didn't get much training done, neglected my garden (which means a lot to me) and didn't look after myself properly. I've suffered from depression for a long time but normally it is kept under control and only rears its head in winter. To get hit in the summer so hard was really nasty.<br />
It was a few months before I plucked up the courage to race again, I avoided the track at all costs over the summer, I came back on the Tyne Tunnel 2K - the fastest wheelchair race in the world. Haha! Only I could have months off then decide the fastest race in the world followed by the Great North Run less than 48 hours later was a good idea! I think the Tyne Tunnel 2k race is amazing and didn't want to miss it. I drove up to Newcastle and checked in to The Hilton and found out I was sharing with Mark Telford - luckily we had chatted after the Great Manchester Run and sorted things out. The Tyne Tunnel 2k takes place on the Friday evening and runs 1 kilometre downhill into the tunnel where we reach speeds of 45mph then we have a gruelling push uphill kilometre to climb out of the tunnel. I got to the hotel early and the nerves started to build as I was waiting for the time to pass before heading to the tunnel. For some silly reason I decided to swap my push rims for some newly covered ones I had with me. Newly covered rims have nice tread on them but them haven't built up a sticky layer of cluster to help with grip. As soon as the gun went I was stuck behind a slow starter but when he got going I couldn't keep with him because my gloves wouldn't stick to the rims. It took me a long time to get up to speed but as you can see in the video I was flying by the time I got to the bottom and overtook lots of faster athletes. Climbing wasn't good, my gloves slipped, you can hear them slipping in the video and I lost a lot of places. Getting beaten by my mate Jamie Carter was hard to take but he pushed really well and I didn't so he deserved it! I'll get him back next time I race it!<br />
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I always knew the Great North Run was going to be difficult for me with no real training for it, it's not my favourite course on the best of years. I had swapped back to my old rims, I had a decent warm up and waited on the start line for the gun to go. I had a storming start, next to Callum Hall and just off the lead pack. The first 2 and a bit miles are mainly downhill but even on the slight climbs I was holding my own. Then when we got to the long dragging climb that takes you past Gateshead Stadium I lost the big group I was in. I am just too heavy with my legs to stick with the other lads. I tried and tried to close the gap but they were working in a group and I was in no-man's land. I had patches working with each of the three lead women but all three of them were stronger than me on the climbs and I was faster on the decent so it was more like bunny hopping than actually pushing together! I finished fairly strongly to say I pushed most of the race alone and for the first time ever I enjoyed the GNR. My time was less than a minute behind where I had been in 2014 and with about half the training I was happy with that. The best thing about the GNR is that after the race they ship us back to the hotel and we all get a meal in the Hilton laid on for us. Myself and Martyna made full use of it, She had what looked like half a cow as a stake and I had swordfish. All with lots of post race analysis.<br />
The next target on my radar was the October edition of the Lisbon Half Marathon, a race that I love to support as I consider the organisers friends now. I trained really hard for this race after the confidence boost that the GNR had give me. My friend John Lloyd who owns a race organising company called Cannonball Events was due to travel with me and take part in the running event. I was looking forward to this so much, John's been really good to me and put on a few races that I could take part in when other local organisers don't want the hassle of a wheelchair athlete. I had lots to do in the lead up to the race and hadn't had time to pack until the night before the flight. It was my own fault, I should have said no to people asking me to do things for them but I didn't , I just kept saying yes. I packed my kit, broke down my race chair and stored it safely in its travel box. Then went to get my passport from the safe place it has been kept in for years... it wasn't there. I spent a few hours looking for it and couldn't find it. I phoned my mum for help at about 11PM, I was due to set off at 6:30AM to the airport. We spent another 5 hours looking, we looked everywhere, we emptied each room then put everything back. We even checked in each dvd case. Nothing. I think my cleaner might have binned it with some junk mail. So, at 6:30AM after about 40min sleep I drove John to the airport on his own. I had the same feelings that I had let people down again and it took a good few weeks to get over it.<br />
The year ended with me just getting back on track when another disaster happened. I had been trying to decide if I was in shape to do the Dubai Marathon in January, at first it was a no but two key sessions had swayed my mind. During my 3rd good session in a row I decided I was going to go for it in Dubai, I knew I would finish in the prize money and I have always wanted to visit Dubai. My school mate lives out there and I had received an invite from the organisers so it seemed perfect. My session went so well I decided to add an extra rep, whilst on the 3rd lap of my extra rep I was took out by a runner. He had been running in lane 2 for the previous hour and as I had been at the track for over an hour and a half he had seen me using lane 1 plenty of times. Going down the home straight, just as my front wheel drew level with him he changed lanes as if to run on to the infield. As my front wheel was already along side him when he changed directions there was nowhere for me to go and no time to do anything to avoid hitting him. My back right wheel ran over him, this sent me up on two wheels. I was tipping sideways, I put my left hand out to save myself but my arm ended up twisted behind my back. My shoulder had bee dislocated. Luckily there were a group of runners near the incident and they helped me up, it was also lucky they witnessed the accident as the runner involved wasn't a very nice person. He didn't apologise or even ask if I was ok, instead he just said "I didn't hear you!". What type of excuse is that? You wouldn't cross a road using sound alone, so why cross a track without looking? Since the accident I have had a bit of a lynching from his club mates, abuse on Facebook, letters to my sponsors, the sports centre I train at and to my club. All from people that didn't actually see it happen. This is the club that I used to represent, I have seen them turn on people before and it isn't pretty. It would have upset me if the other runners that helped me up hadn't witnessed it and said it was his fault, I even had strangers contact me after to see if I was ok.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhlk_loN7vcfB-1uFSH5uj_G428i4rBsGuMBkVxfKuNapQ1IChnk5KDLhEJJ_AXdFU_QKpLyBIH8qh01iSeZGYV83DF7IV0bqMVDR-O_kEZkHEWrHfHilByeFuRcgf1rKDSBkLfhZAmvERO/s1600/Screen+Shot+2016-01-22+at+00.02.11.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhlk_loN7vcfB-1uFSH5uj_G428i4rBsGuMBkVxfKuNapQ1IChnk5KDLhEJJ_AXdFU_QKpLyBIH8qh01iSeZGYV83DF7IV0bqMVDR-O_kEZkHEWrHfHilByeFuRcgf1rKDSBkLfhZAmvERO/s320/Screen+Shot+2016-01-22+at+00.02.11.png" width="218" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">My poorly shoulder :(</td></tr>
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When you have a serious injury to your shoulder as a wheelchair user you are basically a prisoner on your sofa, you can't use a wheelchair to get around, crawling is much harder and even with some use of the legs like me you can't use crutches. Being immobile over xmas and pissed off that you can't race in a race you've had your eye on for over a year isn't good. Comfort eating and copious amounts of alcohol ensued! Read the next blog to find out the result.<br />
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Phew! Glad 2015 is over. It sounds odd to wish away a year where you produced huge PB's but I can say 100% 2016 will be better for me!<br />
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Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15454059332314431888noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-870682862940569183.post-50318737456936603362016-01-19T10:49:00.002+00:002016-01-20T09:47:33.602+00:00Resurrecting The Blog With A Report On London Marathon 2015So... there are many reasons that I did not keep the blog up to speed last year but, as you will see in a a few posts time, I have a huge challenge in 2016 and I will make a big effort to blog at least once a week from now onwards! 2016 is going to be an exciting but tough year for me and it will be nice to share that journey with you all on this blog.<br />
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Back to 2015, I stopped posting on the day of the London Marathon and I can't remember why as I had a great race. I think a bit of a run down on the race would be a good place to start so here goes:<br />
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London Marathon is a great event but it is the people of London that make it the best race in the world not the organisers, as I said back in April we had a hard time of it at the race briefing with officials being over zealous with the gaffer tape and over protective of the race numbers. If only they were so efficient on race day morning, for the second year running all staff disappeared when it came to getting all the athletes on the bus. It's standard practice at other races, like the Great Run series, for the staff to help us on the bus one at a time and then wheel the day chair off to put in a van. At London as soon as this job needs doing the staff disappear and there is no van for the day chairs so we have to wheel onto the bus and then transfer onto a seat and then my dad carries all the chairs to the back of the bus. My dad has two fractured vertebrae so the fact that the paid staff all vanish really angers me. Anyhow, my sister, Ugly and her boyfriend arrived just in time to catch the bus to the start with the athletes - it was great to see her there as she had never seen me in a proper race before.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Myself and the old man, Nigel Gotts, just before I start my warm up. </td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Myself with Ugly and her boyfriend.</td></tr>
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Once at the start and unloaded we are finally reunited with our race chairs that had been took off us at the race brief. We spend time pumping tyres and checking all the bolts etc are tight and then we have to say goodbye to family and get out on the road to warm up. The warm up area is a stretch of road around 300m long. This year the race was doubling up as the World Championship Marathon so the field was much bigger than normal with 77 wheelchair athletes and quite a few amputee runners and blind runners. I'm not sure having everyone warm up on the same stretch of road was the wisest plan but fortunately there were no crashes.<br />
On the start line you could see there were some really nervous faces, including mine! I will probably never get to compete in a world championship race again and although I knew full well that I wouldn't be anywhere near the leaders I still wanted to do something that I could be proud of. The organisers weren't helping the nerves by playing the sound of a heartbeat as we sat on the start line! I quite like to be nervous before a race as it seems to help my performance so I quite liked it! Once the gun went there was an epic sprint, I found myself just a fraction behind the leading group but I couldn't quite get on the back and draft them so I soon tired and got overtook by a few friends including Callum Hall who tried to let me draft him but he soon dropped me. About a mile in to the race I was starting to feel better and caught a nice group which included my club mates Justin Levene and John Smith. I drafted them for a short while to allow my arms to recover before I did my stint at the front of the group. Only that didn't happen - we got to a corner and Justin slowed right down to 4mph to take it! Haha! I rammed him good'n'proper! not on purpose but because I had no idea anyone would break for such an easy corner. The group splintered into individuals and pairs at this point which is a real shame. Somewhere in the next 3 miles I passed Callum again but I completely missed him, I only found out I had beaten him when I finished. I felt bad because he had let me draft - I would always do the same for him but this time I didn't offer because I just didn't see him.<br />
My dad, our Ugly and her fella were at the 10km mark and seeing them gave me a real boost, I love that part of the course because there are lots of bands playing and large crowds around the Cutty Sark. I got in a bit of a battle with Mark Telford at this point and after a few miles of him drafting me I let my frustration overflow and told him to "Do some bloody Work". Each time I told him to do some work I felt that he was going to the front and slowing the pace so I would take over again. We ended up having a bit of a barney mid race. oops. I pushed with Shelly Woods for quite a while but she crashed at the point we have to mount the curb and not long after she ended up with a puncture and pulled out. I Saw my family again at around this point which was another huge boost as I was starting to hurt.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A great photo taken by Shane Delport during the London Marathon, check out his other work on Facebook using the link on the links page. </td></tr>
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The rest of the race was a solo push which was incredibly tough mentally but I kept on giving it everything I could. I was trying to do sums in my head about my finishing time but the fatigue made it difficult. I really hate the last 2 miles at London, even though the crowds are huge I just can't seem to lift my game along the embankment. I missed my family at this point but they saw me, I did hear the Weir Archer crew all shout me on as I turned on to Birdcage Walk. it was only at this point I realised I was on for a huge PB. I went from 1:59:51 to 1:54:59 so very nearly 5 min faster! I was pretty chuffed to finish inside the top 30 in a World Championship event, even more chuffed when I got a bit of prize money for finishing high up in the British rankings. It wasn't much but it's nice to get a bit of recognition.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjzwMdRqRMXPXs9P2xj5-TiQt5CYkzvfVkR4Qn3sCU4JeDjAKyP03Tf8mUE_gAt3gcNvRvsZ7Bpsi-GZW6xuAMPcVPPHQGBwcn2HedX7PhG74HSafmMuGoKxT2jZt4GE4lkShYV5bknN_lR/s1600/11157487_10155567123715713_3655516274114000826_o.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="133" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjzwMdRqRMXPXs9P2xj5-TiQt5CYkzvfVkR4Qn3sCU4JeDjAKyP03Tf8mUE_gAt3gcNvRvsZ7Bpsi-GZW6xuAMPcVPPHQGBwcn2HedX7PhG74HSafmMuGoKxT2jZt4GE4lkShYV5bknN_lR/s320/11157487_10155567123715713_3655516274114000826_o.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">My race stats for London Marathon 2015.</td></tr>
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After the post race analysis with all the athletes, friends and family we were bussed back to the hotel, myself and my dad got showered and changed and headed out to get a pint and a giant pancake! I'd earned it! I really enjoyed the pint and giant pancake but started to feel rough very quickly so we headed back to the hotel.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEheZ36SWC6Qgqc3tYqtMbPidh93TP8DIFq3j5nzS9XUbJSpIG2gaOw7xtBCzAYYKcIFyrlDeDE07tDIS7t0KeqS8X5GKroLDYUWiTYlgg6yjpv7ERRmSzlVUUUEvBO06N8KX5N7oVIz6N-i/s1600/11161360_10155567409150713_4071561325279805418_n.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="180" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEheZ36SWC6Qgqc3tYqtMbPidh93TP8DIFq3j5nzS9XUbJSpIG2gaOw7xtBCzAYYKcIFyrlDeDE07tDIS7t0KeqS8X5GKroLDYUWiTYlgg6yjpv7ERRmSzlVUUUEvBO06N8KX5N7oVIz6N-i/s320/11161360_10155567409150713_4071561325279805418_n.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Post race pint and pancake!</td></tr>
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I had a nap at the hotel and woke up to find my arms had stuck to the bedsheets, I had taken a very thin layer of skin off my bicep area on both arms and thought nothing of it. It's fairly normal to lose a bit of skin on the arms in wheelchair athletics and these wounds hadn't even bled. When I woke up after my nap just a few hours after the race there was a thick green puss coming from the wounds, it turns out it was a nasty infection i had picked up from my tyres rubbing on the wounds during the race. I had to spend two weeks on antibiotics and have my dressings changed everyday for 10 days at my local Health Centre. This is probably why I felt so rough after just one pint. That said, I wouldn't mind feeling like that after every marathon as long as I whacked out a 5 min PB each time!<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">My smelly wound!</td></tr>
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<br />Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15454059332314431888noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-870682862940569183.post-37813331158517631802015-05-05T14:46:00.001+01:002016-01-20T09:49:52.853+00:00London Marathon Build Up 2015<div dir="ltr">
When I returned from Lisbon I was met with the welcome news my new chair had arrived from Japan, not a minute too soon as I have been struggling with my old chair. My old chair had been braking in most races and was costing me a bomb in welding services! My new chair was ordered and measured up by the British company Draft, they built my old chairs but have started to get a reputation for delaying chairs heavily. The lads at draft are great and I like their chairs but I needed a new chair as fast as posible so I decided to get them to order me one from OX in Japan.<br />
As soon as I went to draft to pick my chair up I knew I was going to like it. It looks brilliant and when I tested it out in the car park it felt amazing! I had just 15 days to get used to my new chair before the London. My first few pushes were promising, I was slower climbing but I was much faster on the flats and downhills. I needed to find the right positing for me to sit in to get the most power out of each push. My new chair is a solid kneeler which means I kneel on a solid metal plate, my old chair was a soft kneeler where you kneel in a sling. The solid kneelers are much more efficient because they flex less each time you push, more of the force is transfered through the wheels and into the ground producing faster speeds. The problem I have is that I can still feel my legs, I had been told by coaches, that pretend they know more than they do, that I would never be able to kneel at all let alone in a solid kneeler. After being told that I had always thought I was pushing my luck by getting a soft kneeler. Now I have a solid kneeler I know those coaches were talking out of their backsides! The solid kneeler is much more comfortable and I'm glad I picked it.<br />
The last 9 days before London wasn't great as I had three punctures to deal with. I ended up going out pushing on the dodgy front tyre I'd had to change before the Lisbon Half, it was fine on the first push but the second time I used it I had to slam on the brakes to avoid hitting a learner bus driver who had thrown the anchor out when he saw a car on the opposite side of the road. Where do they find these people? Anyway, within 3 miles my tyre had punctured. Miles from home, with no spare and no phone. I saw two women stood chatting whilst having their cars cleaned so I went and asked to borrow their phone the only problem was I could remember my mum's home number and no others, she wasn't in. Bloody great. So I started pushing home but the roads in Rossendale are awful and I was scared I was going to do some real damage to my wheel. Front wheels cost around £700 so you can see why I was worried! After 4 miles I decided to pop in to the local cycle shop Ride On, these lads are always really helpful when I pop in for bits and pieces. They were soon crowded round my chair debating if they could fix it and how to attempt it. The tyre had completely had it, there was a patch without any rubber left on it and this is where it had blown so when the lads tried forcing the anti puncture solution into the tyre it ran straight back out. They tried a couple more ways to repair it but it was having none of it so the situation called for drastic measures. Out came the gaffer tape, they wrapped it round tight and put some more solution in to the tyre. They then managed to get about 40 psi in the tyre which was enough to protect the wheel from Rossendale's nasty road surface. I headed home gently trying not to rip the tape. I got to about 200m from home and had to use my brake which ripped the tape off and gave me a face full of gunk! I returned to ride on the next day with a box of chocolates for the lads as a thank you. <br />
The next few days were an anxious wait for the delivery of my new tyres, I didn't have any spares so I had to train on my handcycle instead of in my chair. They turned up the day before I travelled down to London for the marathon. Talk about a close shave! That day was spent changing tyres, packing my bag and getting a massage on my back. The mother came to get Bonnie my dog as she was dog sitting for me. Then I tried to sleep but I was too excited/nervous so I barely slept at all. Me and dad set off for London early on the Friday, I wanted to get checked in and then travel across London to the Marathon exhibition.<br />
The runners have to attend the exhibition to collect their race numbers but the wheelchairs do not need to go, I just like to as it reminds me of when I used t o go and watch dad race. It gets me in the mind frame to race in one of the biggest events in the world. At the exhibition you get plenty of freebies and good deals on new kit and nutritional supplements, you also get info on other races around the world. I got a few good ideas for events, watch this space! We ended up going for a Singaporean meal then crashed out early, knackered from travelling and shopping at the exhibition.<br />
On Saturday we went to the Victoria and Albert museum, true to form as soon as we entered the building I had a drama. My bloody caster flew off my chair, I think I must have damaged it on my way to the museum. I was lucky not to have been thrown out of my chair into some priceless sculpture but I was unlucky in the fact I couldn't see the bolt that holds the wheel on anywhere. I got out of my chair and started to look, dad was on his hands and knees and soon he was joined by several other, middle aged folk crawling along the floor looking for my missing bolt. I must have been a lovely shade of red, talk about embarrassing! Eventually the museum staff radioed the maintenance man and he found some spare bolts and washers to temporarily fix my chair. We then got on with our museum visit. My sister, ugly to you and me, and her boyfriend arrived in London and met up with us at the museum. There are some brilliant sights in the <u>V&A</u> it's a shame we wasted an hour and a half sorting my caster out! </div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Me sat in the V&A whilst everyone looked for my bolt!</td></tr>
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<br />
That evening we had the technical meeting, I hate the London Marathon technical meetings, we are split up from the best guys. Our hotel is a complete shit hole and we are charged £150 a night which doesn't even include breakfast or wifi. As well as getting an awful hotel we get officials that don't have a clue. This year's antics at the technical meeting included some poison dwarf threatening to disqualify me for folding the number which was to be taped to the side of the main shaft of my chair. For some ridiculous reason they give us numbers the same size as the ones the runners wear on their vests, they have grown to around 9 inches high nowadays as they have become advertising boards for the race sponsors logo. The main shaft of my chair is 3 inches high. How the fuck did the poison dwarf expect me to tape a 9 inch high number to a 3 inch high part of my chair without folding it? Any sensible race organisers would provide an extra, small sticky number like the ones we use on our helmet so we can stick that on the chair, simple, problem solved! <br />
When I told the poison dwarf that we never have these problems at races like the Lisbon Half marathon she anounced that was because "They didn't know what they were doing!" She then proudly introduced some doddering old git as a member of the international paralympic committee technical delegation. I couldn't be arsed arguing with them so I just got on with what I was doing, about 5 min later my dad asked "is that safe?" and pointed at the poison dwarf and the doddering old git who were covering John Smith's front wheel in gaffer tape. They were trying to cover the wheel manufacturer's name and logo up. I pointed out that the technical delegate and the woman who thinks the Lisbon organisers 'don't know what they are doing' should really know better about sticking gaffer tape around the front wheel. They didn't have a clue what I was talking about until I pointed out that if John pressed his break the tape was going to get wrapped around it and cause a crash. The poison dwarf then protested that he'd not be allowed to race with the wheel unless the advertising was covered with tape. "Do you have shares in gaffer tape? Why can't he just peel the manufacturer's sticker off like the rest of us do?" Was my answer to her. Absolutely unbelievable, this is supposed to be our country's premier road race and they can't even find officials who could run a successful school sports day. After the usual battles with the officials they did their little safety speech which was identical to last year. We found out the buses left at 6:30 am for the start and with that Ugly left for her hotel as her and her boyfriend would have to leave their hotel at 5:30 am to reach me in time to travel to the start with me. <br />
The rest of us were fed and I was amazed that the food was much better than last year, it was only lasagne but it was good. Pudding was a really rich chocolate tart, John didn't like it, Martyna wasn't keen but if they had have offered I would have eaten theirs as well as my own. We had a good laugh around the table particularly when I'd been asking if anybody had a spare washer for my dodgy caster and Martyna, who's English is normally better than mine, asked "what's a washer? Do you mean a sponge?" Haha! I can't really take the piss because I can't speak a word of Polish. We all arranged to wake each other up if we didn't arrive for breakfast in the morning and then headed off to bed.</div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15454059332314431888noreply@blogger.com0