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 Bike ride: John O'Groats to Lands EndThe BIG cycle ride from John O Groats to Land End, 13th April – 2nd May. Almost 1000 miles in 19 days, with £20.000 raised for The Foundation!! Annie did the whole ride with Dan (riding for Brain Tumour Research Campaign), Ben, Jordan and Ros. Apart from these intrepid five cyclists, an additional 55 cyclists joined in for various parts of the journey .Rob, Alex, Chris and Paul Gray made great efforts and all did 7 days for The Foundation. Sarah took over from Mike and drove the camper van for the last week, as well as being the 2nd in command catering manager... There were in total 12 punctures, one before we left John O Groats (!), one in Telford ( Annie) and the rest in Devon. Alex “scorched” his front tyre by coming to a very fast stop in a lay-by rushing to get to his mid morning break.. There were 6 falls / collisions , although I am not sure what constitutes a collision! Alex almost floored Paul Gray at a roundabout in Penzance, but I don’t think that this counted! The fastest speed by an individual was by one of the visiting cyclists Geoff, who managed 46 mph on a downhill stretch in Avon, just past Bristol Airport. Interesting as there are speed cameras down there and the speed limit is 40mph... Lots of fun, and we were so lucky with the weather, only 4 days drizzle/ rain out of 19 days. Lots and lots of hills, but the gradients seem much more sudden and steep in Devon and Cornwall. Hills and passes in Scotland and The Lakes were high and long but much more of a gradual climb and therefore often seemed more manageable. The “toughie” combination is hills, headwind and poor road surface all at the same time. However this has been a journey that I had to do for Emily, well worth it and lots of money for The Foundation, but lots of times I could hear her say “ seriously, why are you doing this”....I am glad that I did. Some photos for you to enjoy ....
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