Finally sorted through all the photos!

I've whittled them down to about 80 (from absolutely hundreds!) so many good ones but obviously just picked the ones that stood out to put on't web:


CLICK HERE FOR ALBUM

The boys are back in town!

Finally home after the hardest day of the entire trip - coming home from JOG! Set off at around 8am yesterday and I finally walked through my door just after 10:30pm... groan. As you can see from the post time I'm still in 'get up at 6:30 mode' but I've got a day off and going to catch up on lots of missed Formula 1 :)

Do check back again after the 21st September because we should have all the photos together by then and I'll put a link in here.

All in all the trip went very well. Much easier than last time, mostly because I was just a lot better prepared and I had Tom there with me for support.  The weather wasn't on our side most of the time but it certainly didn't seem to hinder our progress, and we did have gorgeous weather on the last day which I think made up for it all.

The times for each day were as follows:

Day 1: Gretna -> Kilmarnock

84 miles in 7h 40

Day 2: Kilmarnock -> Inveraray

80 miles in 7h

Day 3: Inveraray -> Fort William

72 miles in 7h 10

Day 4: Fort William -> Tain

97 miles in 8h

Day 5: Tain -> John O' Groats

85 miles in 8h

That's a total of 418 miles in 37h 50. Not quite a Tour De France worthy performance but what the hell!

Most of the days include around 1h 30 of stops for comfort breaks, food, ferries, traffic lights, roadworks, getting lost, getting stopped by police (eh Tom?) etc etc.

Tom and I usually set off together after breakfast but on the last couple of days I wanted to get off a little earlier so Tom met up with me en-route. On Day 4 leaving Fort William I decided to set off at 7:30 for an early start in some of the worst weather of the whole trip. Tom caught up with me later in the morning 26 miles in, and by 12:00 I'd already covered 60 miles. I think that'll go down in my books as quite an achievement!

The hardest day without any shadow of a doubt was the last - there were hills I haven't seen since we left Cornwall - quite bizarre that the biggest hills are at both extreme ends of the country. Anyway, didn't walk up any of them so can't really complain. The wind was also incredibly strong by the coast, sometimes acting as a helpful tailwind but others (and always at the worst times!) as a headwind slowing you right down to 7 or 8mph on flats.

Saw absolutely loads of people attempting a LEJOG (or JOGLE) can't believe there are so many crazy people around!

Thanks for everyone's messages and support, they were very much appreciated and I can't wait to see all the pictures of the trip when we finally pool them from the 6 cameras Tom and I had between us!

Friday 12th September

He made it there, yippee!!!

No post for yesterday as me and Rick just couldnt get a signal together on ours phones last night. However, he sent me many texts during his last day in Scotland on Thursday and the scenery looked fantastic although a little remote i.e. just hills and coast!!! Rick arrived at John O'Groats mid-late afternoon and was well and truely shattered. Rick and Tom then went out for a slap up meal in order to celebrate Ricks achievement. 

Today has been the long journey back from JOG, think he said about 8hours driving and then two hours on the train.......anyway gonna go get him so im sure he can fill us all in on the true extent of his adventure over the next few days x

Wednesday 10th September

Just thought i'd give a quick catch up on how Rick is getting on. No post for yesterday as when i got back home about 830pm Rick couldnt get any signal in the remote sticks of Scotland- I believe Rick had already gone to bed, this city boy aint used to all that fresh air and physical work!!!!

All is going very well indeed, Rick is managing to do the miles and has been arriving at his accommodation around 3pm so he gets a long evening to relax. Rick informs me that Scotland looks pretty damn beautiful and Tom is managing to take lets of photos of it too. Ricks spirits have been a little dampened today by the news he wont be able to get the beloved tegi (thats Integra to you and me!) on his way home Friday. Apparently theres some sort of bumper scratch that needs looking at first??? Anyway, will be ready for him in a week so not much longer til the white beauty arrives at no.36! 

So tommorrow is actually Ricks last cycling day and the arrival at John O'Groats and the completion of the 18 month mental challenge that has been the LEJOG! Lets hope he feels very proud of himself when he gets there cos I sure know he's worked very hard and deserves the achievement x

Tuesday 9th September

Thought I'd post this myself since we have internet access here in Fort William. What a day! Really getting tiring now, I've got a semi limp already and getting in a out of Tom's car is a real effort! The route today was very scenic but very hilly - the road out of Inverary started with a 7+ mile hill which took me about 50 minutes to negotiate! That pretty much set the pace for the whole day and it was a pretty arduous 72 miles getting here. The weather didn't help much, for the second day in a row I'm drying my gear on the heated towel rail in the bathroom!

Its awesome getting to the accommodation early each night, certainly the way forward. Yesterday in Inverary we arrived at 2:50 and today at 3:30, gives us plenty of time to chillax and prepare for the next day, and I'm getting a decent 9+ hours sleep each night which is just fantastic!

I'm sooooooo glad I bought a couple of medicinal gels with me. One's a cool gel which saves me having to find ice every day, and the other is a Neurofen gel which I can apply exactly where I need to (my knees). Its an anti inflammatory as well and so far its really keeping everything in check. What it CAN'T do though is give me new thighs which I could definitely do with right now, particularly as we've got 100 miles to cover tomorrow past Inverness and onto Tain. I'm aiming to set off at 7:30 ish tomorrow and all being well I should be arriving in Tain around 6pm.

Past half way now, definitely feeling positive today.

Monday 8th Spetember

Just got off the phone to Rick and he sounds very proud of himself since he cycled 80 miles today and was at the hotel for 3pm! The roads were pretty hilly but the new gears are helping Rick bomb up them without too much trouble. Somehow this morning Tom (in the car, with the map and the sat nav) managed to get lost off the route and Rick had to direct him until they eventually crossed paths again. It looks like they've gone into the highlands now, Rick sent me some pictures of the views he's beens cycling through today, looks very beautiful, the kind of photos the Scottish tourist board would want you to see! To finish a pretty successful day Rick ordered two main courses down the pub and went to bed early podged on a calorie overload.

Sunday 7th September

Rick and Tom reached Killmarnock at about 5pm tonight after a pretty successful first day. The weather managaed to stay on Rick's side which made the 80 miles relatively hassle free, although he can already feel the twinge of a dodgy knee! On route he passed three cyclists who were all doing the full LEJOG route, making Rick feel grateful this time he's only gotta do Scotland. Just informed me he's had a takeaway and having an early night as he's up at 6am tomorrow to catch a ferry?

Saturday 6th September

Rick and Tom have driven up to Greta on the Scottish border today in preparation for the first day of cycling tomorrow. Spirits are good and it looks as though the weather may stop raining soon (not holding my breath on that though). Rick is fed and watered and having a chilled evening in anticiaption of what lyes ahead tommorrow.......

The calm before the storm...

Well this'll be my last update, we're heading up to Scotland in the morning and hopefully by better half Sophie and my dear mother will be taking over blog editing duties on my behalf.

Took the bike out for a quick spin last night to give it the once over after all the maintenance and it's running beautifully. It's super smooth and the new gears are an absolute joy to use. The new tyre pressure will take a little getting used to as the bike now jarrs over every single imperfection on the road, but they should offer a little less resistance than they did at 40psi.

Just got off the phone to Tom who's buying up half the stock of his local Tesco, I don't think we'll go hungry on this trip! Tonight I'll be mostly packing (groan) and ticking off my ridiculously long list of essentials I absolutely musn't forget, ready for the trip up to Gretna in the morning.

I fear the weather may not be on our side on this trip. Its absolutely peeing it down at the moment and the weather forecast doesn't inspire me. What's more, I can't seem to find my waterproof jacket and I only have 1 pair of (non waterproof) cycling trousers. Well, the ride wouldn't be as much fun if I had every eventuality covered would it!

The actual 'ride' will start proper on Sunday going on for 5 days until Thursday. I'm already looking forward to Friday.

See you guys soon, over and out.

The bike's finally ready!

Another night of DIY on the bike last night and I think its finally ready. The new gears arrived on Tuesday and with lots of help from Barry (cheers mate!) they went on without a problem. However Barry couldn't help himself and in the process decided to strip the rear axle and fit new bearings and grease. He also tweaked my front forks which had some play in them, and pointed out my tires were only at 40psi rather than the recommended 100+!

Last night I finally took the panniers off (less weight!), fitted some (poor) night lights, a map holder, new brake pads... I think it might be finally ready.

Taking it out for a steady 30 miles tonight just to make sure the gears are absolutely spot on, then tomorrow I'll be packing up ready for the drive up to Tom's Saturday morning.

What a difference a week makes!

I've just got back from a 90 mile ride and I have to say I feel really good, which is saying something since its been raining ALL day. Knees feel fine, and although I took it really easy I still got back in 8:15 which is brilliant (well, for me anyway).

Didn't do the Audax today, the new gears didn't arrive in time so I arranged another route with less hills. I suspect my knees are probably just not used to doing 70+ miles really fast, if I take it easy and don't try and storm up hills then I might even enjoy doing this Scotland ride.

I think I'll do a couple more rides this week, leaving plenty of time to recover completely before the first leg in Scotland. I'll hopefully get all my stuff fitted tomorrow night (if it all arrives) then a couple of rides to check out the new gears and I'll be ready!

More new kit!

Following my weekend's riding I've decided something needs to be done about my gears to give myself the best possible chance of doing this. After some research I've found my rear cassette is a 12-23 which apparently is very long, so I've invested in a 13-28 which should basically give me 2 or 3 LOWER gears with which to battle the hills! I was going to grin and bear it but its clearly not doing my knees any good so I decided to take the plunge. If all goes well I'll be able to get them fitted for this Sunday's 150km Audax.

I've also bought a 2L saddle bag, which should give me enough room to carry essentials and I can take my panniers off to save a little extra weight. Also bought various medical supplies to help me in case the going gets tough. Training this week should be Wednesday and Friday, and the new kit should be going on Saturday for Sunday's ride.

Update Mon 25/08/08

Done 100 miles this weekend, 30 on Saturday and 70 on Sunday. All went well and on Sunday I felt I could have quite happily done another 20 miles. However, it seems my ITBS has come back. Its basically pain on the outside of my left knee. Haven't felt it at all this year, but doing 100 miles in 2 days I really noticed it. Its not too bad at the moment, but I need to try and fix the problem before I get to Scotland.

I'm particularly concerned because this is what stopped play for Mike and I last year. I've been doing special stretches which has probably helped but obviously not cleared it up altogether. After reading up on several forums I've opted to move my seat down and forward a few mm, we'll see if that makes it better.

To give myself the best chance of recovery I'm also going to skip some of my training this week. I've planned to do a 150Km Audax over the peaks on Sun 31st so I need to be in good shape for that and not nursing an injury.

Update Thu 21/08/08

42 miles after a day at work, there's no danger of that becoming a habit! Was dreading it but actually went very well. It'd been raining all afternoon but it soon cleared up. 3h15, not too bad for me that.

Route and Accommodation

All the accommodation is finally BOOKED! It's been a real effort trying to find available places as close to the route as possible but looks like I've finally got there.

Here is a Google Map of the route, the stops aren't marked out on there but the route is as follows:

Day 1
Gretna -> Kilmarnock
81.7 miles

Day 2
Kilmarnock -> Inveraray
80 miles

Day 3
Inveraray -> Fort William
71.7 miles

Day 4
Fort William -> Tain
99.3 miles

Day 5
Tain -> John O Groats
85.7 miles

Whether or not those distances are accurate remains to be seen. If last year's route planning was anything to go by, it could be +/- 15 miles! Hopefully Google Maps is more reliable than Google Earth...

Weird night

Did my usual 30 mile route last night. As I was leaving my estate I remember thinking "something doesn't look right here" , then as I went a bit further I realised... I'd forgotten my helmet and cycling glasses!

Can't stop, no time, I'll just be careful. Other than 2 foiled suicide attempts by pedestrians crossing the road without looking, the ride went rather well. All the hills I was going up at least a gear higher than usual and I finished the route in a shade over 2 hours, my best yet.

However on the last hill I realised my handlebars had moved... every time I moved from the top to the drops the bar turned a few inches! Then as I got home I went to pick the bike up and the rear wheel fell off, no idea how long I'd been riding without it being properly attached but clearly a bad sign.

So onto Wiggle again to order a new bike stem to keep my handlebars in place, and tighten up the back wheel good and proper. No more surprises please.

Also, it got dark about 8:45 last night. Not good for training, Thursday I'm doing my first 42 mile route after work...

Training is coming along

Well I did my farthest solo ride yesterday. 74 miles, in 6h 40. That also includes about 1h 30 of stops (I like to take a relaxed approach to long rides, but I am trying to cut down on my stops) That's also the first time I've done better than a 10mph average for a ride over 40 miles. I decided to give my new energy drink a go and it certainly seemed a big improvement, I just seemed to have energy all the way round. Very impressed.

I was absolutely exhausted last night and had a lot of general aches and pains, but I feel pretty good today, much better than expected. Given myself 2 days off (luxury!) Next week I'm picking up the pace again and doing 30, 40, 30 and 74 miles. Not long to go now.

Kit

I still have my trusty Esperia 5100 road bike, purchased off ebay in Feb 2007 for £200. A bit battered and bruised but still seems to do the job.


A new addition to my cycling arsenal this year will be some SIS PSP22 Energy drink:
Its a carbohydrate drink which is basically has a similar effect to me tucking into a rice and jacket potato meal. Yum!

Introduction

Hi and welcome to my blog on my LEJOG attempt. My first attempt was last year, when Mike and I set off from Land's End in a bid to reach John O'Groats in 10 days. That turned out to be massively optimistic and our trip came to an abrupt end due to injury a few miles into Scotland on the 6th day (read all about that trip here).

I've decided to attempt to finish the route this year and will be cycling Scotland, from Gretna to John O'Groats in 5 days, starting Sept 7th. That's some 430 miles, and I will cover between 70 and 100 miles each day.

I will be cycling alone but luckily I'll be supported by Tom who'll be with me every step of the way, carrying all my kit and plenty of food and drink! Top man!

For the last few months I've been slowly increasing my training and I now have 3 weeks before we set off for the Scottish border.

Thank you for taking an interest in my LEJOG attempt, this blog will be updated throughout my trip so please do check back here regularly.