Into the wilderness

Day 9: Drumnadrochit to Tongue
Mileage: 98
Cycling time: 6hr 38m
Total mileage: 881
Total cycling time: 59hr 43m

Another awesome day in both the saddle and in terms of scenery as we headed right up to the north coast before our final assault east to John O'Groats tomorrow. Saying that, to be honest we don't even feel we are really in Britain at all such is the stunning solitude and scenery in this part of the world. With moorland and great forests surrounded by towering peaks and giant tarns it reminds me more of a Canadian skyscape than anything closer to home. One wonders how many people in Britain have actually ever ventured this far north!
The day didn't begin well with Graham puncturing within two miles and having major problems with his tyre, but thankfully our back-up van was still behind us and we were able to sort the problem without too much delay. Graham now heads the puncture count league table with four!

After nearly getting mown down by a bus on the A9 we were relieved to leave the main road and branch off for our coffee stop where we found a treasure at the Cornerstone cafe in Evanton where we were treated to some fantastic carrot cake while the staff also gave us another £35 towards our charity. However when Richard asked if the road was flat to Tongue they just laughed at us!
In such a remote part of the world sorting eating stops required serious pre-planning so we lunched a little earlier than usual in Bonar Bridge, before attacking the serious climb into the northern highlands. As the "A" road turned into a single track with passing places it wasn't just the hills that were against us but the midges which came out in force and, believe you me, made cycling very uncomfortable!
Late afternoon we took refuge with a pint in the extraordinary Crask Inn, which must be one of the most remote pubs in Britain, where we were joined by two-gear Kate and no-cleat Janine who had cycled up the valley to join us (see today's video clip along with a clip of the boys taken by Lance, who was obviously finding the cycling far too easy and decided to video on his iPhone!). The only problem was that afterwards we had to face a brutal final 20 miles as we passed through Altanarra, officially the coldest place in the UK, and then a final never-ending climb before we dropped into Tongue.
A tired team finally made it to the village just before 7pm, but were cheered up by the thoughts of a seafood pie which will hopefully fuel us sufficiently for our final few miles tomorrow.

Monster action

Day 8: Oban to Drumnadrochit
Mileage: 95
Cycling time: 6hr 6min
Total mileage: 783
Total cycling time: 53hr 5min

A very gloomy, wet and windy start in Oban didn't augur well for the day ahead and our route up the Great Glen towards Inverness. But as we took the weaving coastal route towards Fort William the skies started to clear and the after-effects of our curry the night before also thankfully started to wear off...
On good, fast roads and with the wind behind us we made good progress, and a couple of hours later it was time for a very pleasant coffee stop in Onich where Nigel and Captain Lance partook in the most enormous slice of coffee cake. Conscious of his calorie count Richard decided not to join them but as a result was rather sulky in the corner.
Onwards up the Great Glen and some fantastic scenery as we criss-crossed the stunning Caledonian Canal, interspersed with long stretches beside famous Loch Lochie (original name or what?) and Loch Ness. The girls were able to enjoy a great 10-mile run from Corpach along the canal, so along with us were well ready for our lunch stop in Invergarry where Graham stocked up on some haggis and I had a much-needed pasta boost after my energy stores went into a serious dip!

Reinvigorated we all considerably sped up after lunch as we soared pass old Nessie to our right. No sign of the monster but there was some monster big ring action on the road as we sped down to our evening stop in Drumnadrochit, so much so that we even arrived before our support crew.

Looking forward now to tomorrow and our push over the remote Northern highlands as we near in on our final destination. Suddenly after 8 days on the road the end is fast approaching but the team is holding together well and spirits remain high - although they couldn't fail to be amid such stunning scenery.

Into the land of lochs

Day 7: Brodick, Arran to Oban
Mileage: 77
Cycling time: 5hr 45m
Total mileage: 688
Total cycling time: 46hr 59m

Another action packed day which began with a brief pre-breakfast Wilmslow Running club morning team jog (me, Janine and Kate) alongside the beach at Blackwaterfoot next to our hotel, before we jumped back on the bus to rejoin our route at Brodick. We then took a beautiful route up the east coast of Arran following the shoreline, before a rather stiff climb under the shadow of the great bulk of Goat Fell brought us to Lochranza and our ferry over to Kintrye.

The day was memorable for stunning scenery throughout as we passed beside beautiful lochs, glorious countryside and the odd red deer. Thankfully the weather held up virtually all day with only a sprinkling of rain on the moor tops, although yet again we had to face a bracing wind although not as bad as yesterday.

Waiting for the ferry at Lochranza we met the first of quite a few cyclists today in the shape of iron-man Alex from Munich who was spending three weeks on the road, also on his way to John O'Groats, complete with his 25kg bike load.

On the road to Tarbert we also bumped in to Emma and Zoe from Cambridge University who were in training for a 1,000 mile race around Britain called the Varsity Triple Crown Challenge (www.varsitytriplecrownchallenge.com). Emma actually lived nearby and was simply on her way to Tarbert for a can of cat food!

After lunch in Lochgilphead with Alex and girls, it was heads down for the afternoon on the way to Oban where Richard demonstrated an astonishing change of pace thanks to a bottle of strawberry milk and even left Captain Lance trailing in his wake!

Finally we descended into Oban where seeing cars and shops again came as quite a shock, and checked into the harbour-front Caledonian. The end now feels in sight although we are all now feeling decidedly weary, but I'm sure our curry tonight will perk us up.

A windy affair

Day 6: Dumfries to Arran
Mileage: 78
Cycling time: 5hr 43m
Total mileage: 611
Total cycling time: 41hr 14m

Come back rain, all is forgiven...After mistakenly thinking that today might just be an easier day we were sorely mistaken as a north westerly gale buffeted us virtually all day, bringing us at times almost to a standstill and certainly testing team spirits. Although our mileage was down on previous days we all felt there had been no less effort involved.
The sun was actually shining when we left Dumfries but that was about all we saw of it. It was almost all we saw of Richard too after he took a wrong turning at the very first roundabout....but have no fear, we just sent Captain Lance to track him down and do a few extra miles in the vain attempt that we might be able to slow him down (no such luck even though he did have four croissants for breakfast...).
After two hours in a wind tunnel we were well and truly ready for a coffee, although finding a cafe open on a Sunday was easier said than done. But we came up trumps in sleepy Sanquhar where we were memorably sent on our way by a group of old ladies going into church who were rather flustered by our lycra.
The afternoon was all about counting down the hours to Kilmarnock on the never-ending A76 (not something I would recommend) where for some reason I was particularly inspired by a Twix bar and found my climbing legs on the interminable straight roads. Sadly Kilmarnock wasn't quite as inspiring and after a brief stop we pressed on for our final destination, the port of Ardassan, from where we could catch the ferry to Arran.

A grateful hour spent reading the Sunday papers and getting warm on the ferry and we had arrived in Brodick, where we were greeted by no-cleat Janine and two-gear Kate who had been out cycling for the day themselves around the south of the island (although a cream tea was also involved).
Finally, it was onward in the team bus for our night in Blackwaterfoot and a super spot overlooking Kintyre - a view that made the A76 worthwhile after all. Tomorrow it is on to Oban for the boys, and some whisky drinking for the girls so whether the van arrives is another matter....

Day 5: The longest day

Preston to Dumfries

Mileage: 124

Cycling time: 8hr 8min

Total Mileage: 533

Total cycling time: 35hr 31min

An epic day on the bike today – 12 hours on the road, raging hailstorms and a 1,400ft climb in the Lake District thrown in for fun. Can someone please remind us why we are doing this?

The reason for the long ride was that we wanted to get well into Scotland so that we can make the ferry to Arran tomorrow night (I know, it’s complicated), so aware of the daunting day ahead we set off from Nigel’s house in Preston at 7am and were soon joined by his pals Greg, Phil, David and Colin who had offered to pace us well into Cumbria – you were all a great help lads! Greg and Phil even joined us far as the summit of Shap fell which was absolutely fantastic!

Back in Lancashire we were soaked within 10 minutes of leaving Preston, but the thought of meeting family and friends in Kendal for a coffee stop (hello kids) was a great incentive and the cakes from Endmoor village bakery were absolutely awesome (as were mother-in-law’s sausage sandwiches!).

We certainly needed them to fuel us up Shap fell, but with the pass overcome we were soon speeding down towards Penrith (until I punctured…) ahead of our lunch stop where yet again we had several anonymous charity donations. After lunch, as we took an excellent detour along a Roman road towards Carlisle, we were soon joined by our support crew in the shape of Mrs Ellis and Doctor Kate in our spanking 16-seater minibus which is going to carry our gear throughout Scotland and also get us back to Manchester from John O’Groats.

We met up with the girls again as we crossed over into Scotland at Gretna before our final 20-mile push to Dumfries. At this point spirits were definitely running a little low as we rode head first into a ridiculous stormcloud and were willing ourselves to the finish, but the bedraggled quartet finally rode in to the Premier Inn at 7pm. At this point the girls really came into their own, having already checked us in and deposited our bags in our rooms – you’ve no idea how welcome this was after 12 hours on the road!

So tomorrow it’s an easy day (as captain Lance would say) to catch the last ferry over to Arran – can’t wait. And apparently our hotel the other end even has a pool – fantastic!!         

Day 4 report!

Day 4: Hadnall to Preston
Mileage: 92
Cycling time: 6hr 1min
Total mileage: 409
Total cycling time: 27hr 23min

A rather surreal day on the road as we passed through the familiar cycle routes of Cheshire and the North West, met family and friends for lunch near Knutsford, and rounded off the day with a welcome night at Nigel's house in Preston.
Thankfully the forecast rain held off almost all day which meant we eat up the miles on the Cheshire plain, and after stopping for a coffee in Nantwich  we soon found ourselves very close to home and a stop for lunch at The Windmill pub off the M6. Thanks to everyone who made the effort to join us, it really gave us a boost!

We needed it too for after lunch Richard's pal big Mike (a top track cyclist) joined us to head the peloton for a while, which allowed us all to take it a little bit easier!
However once Mike headed back home it was tough going through the built up roads around Wigan and Chorley, and we were glad to arrive in Preston just as the heavens opened. Nigel's local knowledge was a great help over the last few miles as we picked up an off-road cycle track which avoided the city centre traffic.

After the bikes had had a good clean we were able to sit back and enjoy our take out curry, although also worry about our big day tomorrow as we head into Scotland over the Cumbrian fells.

Still, we pass halfway tomorrow and we also have plenty more support on the road - should be another fun day!

Day 3 report

Day 3 Avonmouth to Hadnall, Shropshire
Mileage: 106
Cycling time: 7hr 2min
Total mileage: 317
Total cycling time: 21hr 22m

 To avoid another late evening on the road we were up and away before 8 this morning and soon traversing the Severn Bridge into Wales where we were greeted by sunshine and a fantastic ride on quiet roads along the Wye valley towards Monmouth.
Perhaps the highlight of the day was dropping down through the woods and suddenly coming across the majestic Tintern Abbey which certainly merited a team photocall.

Coffee and great cakes in Monmouth (and a £10 donation from Mary whose husband had prostrate cancer) and then on to the rolling hills of beautiful Herefordshire and Shropshire, although progress was slightly thwarted by a hatrick of punctures - first Graham and then both Richard and I. But with chief mechanic Richard in tow we were soon on the go again.

On the final road in to Shrewsbury there were some tired legs but the peloton just about kept its shape as we rode in to the super Saracens hotel in Hadnall (thanks to lejog secretary Janine for booking!).
A great find and really accommodating for hungry cyclists - they even knocked up some pasta for us especially, which went down a treat with the Three Tuns local brew!
Preston here we come on day 4 (past Cheshire, of course!)

Day 2: Two Bridges to Avonmouth
Mileage: 109
Cycling time: 7hr 10min (again!)

A real day of contrasts on tour today which began in fantastic sunshine over Dartmoor with not a soul about, and finished in a downpour dodging Bristol's rush hour traffic!
Infact dodging the sheep was our biggest challenge on Dartmoor, especially given that "big ring" Nigel broke the 50mph speed limit, although he later lost evidence of his exploits when he accidentally erased his on-board timer.
Once past Exeter (and emergency repairs at a bike shop) the rolling Devon hills gradually faded, and headed by Captain Lance Taylor the peloton soon picked up good speed as we headed into the Somerset flats. However our pace was later brought to a shuddering halt by the biggest traffic jam you have ever seen in Taunton where we rather unfortunately got stuck behind a cattle truck.
As the rain set in conversation became somewhat muted as we tried to avoid getting mown down on the A38, but soon picked up again as we argued about exactly where the Mendip Hills were. Such banter was however rudely interrupted by "the great roundabout crash" between Big Ring and Lance, though thankfully no serious damage was done...
Finally the Avon bridge came into view and after crossing the river it was time to think about digs - easier said than done although we eventually found somewhere just as it was getting dark.
We're off to Shrewsbury tomorrow (hopefully) where Nigel is keen to read a paper and see some civilisation again amid further discussion about the Mendips.

Day 1 report!

Day 1: Land's End to Two Bridges, Dartmoor
Mileage: 102
Time cycling: 7hrs 10mins
Total climbing: 9,200ft

As expected it was a tough first day through the Cornish hills with a punishing final climb up to Dartmoor, but thankfully the rain held off all day which was a great help.
Passing through Tavistock at the foot of Dartmoor it was tempting to call it a day but we pressed on to our first night's stop, the Cherrybrook. Our hospitable host Dave has already ploughed us with plenty of jail ale, named after the local prison, while we're about to tuck in to some chocolate cake.
It was an eventful day out on the road. We didn't set off quite as early as planned after our promised early breakfast didn't materialise (we started worrying when the chef was locked out), but the delay was soon forgotten as we reached Lands End to start.
We were soon greeted by plenty of cheers from passers-by on leaving the coast. Stopping for coffee was eventful after a local stopped to tell us about his treatment for prostrate cancer -after seeing our shirts and telling us what a good cause it was. Cyril and Joan from Stafford were also impressed with our cause and gave us £10!
The highlight - or maybe lowlight - was when big ring Nigel's chain snapped just as we crossed the Taymer river into Devon. But have no fear for ace technician Richard came to the rescue and impressed us all with his sprocket knowledge! He fixed it in 10 minutes and left us all in awe! However we all blamed Lance Taylor for taking us up the steepest hill in Devon.
Tomorrow should be a slightly flatter day although our original plan of making it to Wales looks unlikely judging by how exhausted we all feel!

Only 900 miles to go - Cornwall hills here we come!

Diet with Dickie!

Richard is keeping a food diary to see if you can lose weight on LE2JOG!

So here goes:

Pre ride weight 83.5kg in birthday suit

Race Day -1 Monday - Evening meal

2 slices cheesy garlic Bread

Beef madras

3 pints Guinness

Sticky toffee pudding & custard


Race Day 1 - Tuesday

Breakfast:

Alpen with full fat milk

2 slices of bacon, 1 fried egg, grilled tomato

1 pot low fat yogurt

Mid morning snack:

2 cappuccino

3 chocolate digestives 250 cals

Lunch:

Cottage pie and beans

Cranberry flapjack 

Full fat coke 500mls

Pre-Dinner:

2 pints beer and 1 bag of crisps in bar

Dinner: 

1 bread roll

Steak and chipped potatoes & veg

Chocolate munch cake with clotted cream

CALORIE BURN TODAY 7,300.


Race Day 2 - Wednesday - "Eating for Victory"

Breakfast:

Alpen with milk

Yogurt pot

Scrambled egg, 2 slices bacon, mushrooms

Mid morning:

White americano

Cereal bar 

Lunch:

Macaroni cheese and garlic bread

Dinner:

Fish & chips, mushy peas

4 pints Guinness

CALORIE BURN TODAY 7,100.

Race Day 3 - Thursday - "

An empty sack won't stand up

"

Breakfast: 

Fruit & fibre with milk

Beans on toast (1 slice)

Orange juice

Flapjack

Cereal bar

Lunch

Strawberry milkshake

1/4lb cheeseburger & chips

Dinner

Mushroom and spinach spaghetti

2 bread buns

3 blobs ice cream

3 pints of pale ale 

CALORIE BURN TODAY 7,400.

Friday 26 August

Crunchy nut cornflakes

Cooked breakfast

Steak & kidney suet pudding & chips

2 pints orange & soda

Cafe Latte

Rocky road

3 poppadoms

Curry & rice (takeaway)

3 cans guinness

Total calorie burn 5,600

Saturday

Muesli with milk

1 crumpet

1 English breakfast muffin & jam

2 sausage sandwiches

1 cream horn

Pasta with chicken & bacon

Huge coffee late

Caramel shortcake

Elevenses bar

Shared platter

Burger and chips

4 pints Guinness

Total calorie burn 7,400

Sunday 28/8

Breakfast:

Muesli

Orange juice

Yogurt

Croissant & marmalade

Pork pie

Marathon

Bag of crisps

Bottle of lucozade

Chicken burger (McD's)

Chicken Caesar salad

Fish & chips

3 pints Guinness

TOTAL CALORIE BURN 5,500 (ignores extreme headwind)


Monday 29 August

Cornflakes with milk

Yogurt

Full English

1 croissant

Soup & chicken & sweetcorn baguette

Mars bar

Snickers bar

Poppadoms

Curry, boiled rice, peshwari nan

2 pints San Miguel

3 pints Guinness

Total calorie burn 5,800

Tuesday 30 August

Frosties & milk

2 yogurts

Full English

Currant slice

Cereal bar

Twix

Cornation chicken Baguette

Mars

Marathon

Banana

lentil soup & bread

Pasta arrabbiata

Creme brûlée

1 pint bitter

1 pint stout

Single whiskey

Orange& soda

Total calorie burn 6,300

Wednesday 31 August

Cereal and milk

Yoghurt

Cooked breakfast

Carrot cake

Latte

Red pepper soup

Cheese & ham toastie

1 pint lager

1 pint Guinness

Nachos with sour cream & cheese

Caithness steak pie with potatoes and veg

3 pints Guinness

Various chocolate bars and cereal bars while riding

Thursday 1 September

Cereal & milk

Yogurt

Full English

Cafe latte

Scone with jam and cream

Macaroni cheese & chips

Numerous chocolate bars and cereal bars to keep me going on the bike.

Whiskey & champagne

Latte and banana flapjack

1 pint guinness

Vegetable soup

Chicken in a whisky cream sauce with potatoes and chips and veg Champagne

2 whiskeys

4 pints Guinness

Ready to go!

Well we've made it to beautiful Sennon Cove just a mile or so from Land's End and are enjoying a very pleasant pint in the Old Success Inn!
Richard and Nigel have had a bath after their 80s festival weekend in Henley so at least we're all nice and clean before we start! Graham and I nearly missed our train connections as we headed down from Wilmslow but four trains later we somehow made it, though we all agree that Cornwall desperately needs a faster rail connection!
Thoughts now turn to breakfast and negotiations are ongoing with the landlord as to whether we can bring forward the start time of 8.30 as Graham "lance" Taylor is keen to get pedalling. Watch this space for the cheesy photo at Land's end in the morning.
Meanwhile thanks for all the donations that are flooding in - no pressure!

Final weekend LEJOG training camp (aka 80s revival festival in Henley)

News reaches us that one half of the intrepid quartet, Richard Ellis and Nigel Britton (that's Britton, not Britain, although he might want to change his name after all this) are putting the final touches to their preparations this weekend attending a pre-tour training camp just outside the English Football Team's superb coaching  facility at Bispham.
Sports nutritionist Janine Ellis explained: "To perform at the highest level it's vital that the boys get their nutrition just right so that they don't bonk (Ed: excuse me, there'll be none of that) on Wednesday.  Ideally Richard and Nigel would be eating balanced meals consisting of 25% protein, 60% complex carbohydrate, and 8% vitamins, but it's not always easy to eat optimally when you're training away from home. I'm worried that Richard might be tempted to sneak off to the pie man for a quick fix.  A cheese and onion nasty and a bag of chips is ok once in a while, but at this stage in his training it could spell disaster."
Of course the biggest worry is the heat. Dehydration is a risk for all top level athletes and staying properly hydrated can be a challenge.  Doctor Kate Sutton says that a reduction in hydration levels of just 2% can reduce performance by as much as 15%.  This startling statistic so surprised experienced Land Ender Nigel that spilled his pint and nearly ruined his smart new drinking trousers.
At least both boys recognise the importance of a good night's rest and are determined to make sure they're both safely tucked up in their sleeping beds the right side of 10:30.  "What's that awful music? We're trying to get some sleep here. Got a bike ride to do!"

Richard is ready!

The fretting is over.....we are pleased to report that Richard is back on track having overcome serious overpacking issues. As he tells me today: "Mudguards on, saddle bag on, lights on, nosebag on. Ready to go. Weighs a bloody ton! This is going to be quite different to a quick blast round the Cheshire lanes."
Quite.

Final warm-up

With just nine days to go our intrepid quartet set out for a final warm-up over the Cheshire plains today - well at least that was the original plan, however Graham 'Lance' Taylor decided to get in some last minute hillwork so he took his wife on a tour of the Goyt Valley instead. There's just no pleasing some people.
The remaining boys racked up a swift 50 miles which incorporated a very pleasant coffee stop at Nigel's sister's house in Knutsford, followed by an equally pleasant BBQ at Richard's house where we compared the size of our saddle bags and made some last minute packing adjustments. At this point Richard realised he had made some serious overpacking errors and will now spend the entire week trying to reach his fight weight.
The day was also marked by the arresting sight of doctor Kate Sutton successfully changing a back tyre after Jim punctured on the home straight today. Kate will be joining us for the Scottish leg of the journey with Richard's wife Janine (driving ahead in the team van but doing the odd touch of cycling) but decided she needed some much-needed wheel-changing experience in case she is abandoned on some remote Scottish moor.
Watch this space for more action-packed updates on Richard's packing this week.