Days Stats: 94.3 miles, 7 hours 53 in the saddle, calories 5587, ave speed 11.79mph, climbing 7488 feet (!) and a knew one for today, max speed 49.88 mph!
As 2 became 3 yesterday so 3 became 5 today! With Michael Timmins joining us from the start today in Penrith and Frankie O'Brien one of my best friends (and Dec's brother!) joining us at Oxenholme mid morning it was looking good for Mark who would have at least some chance at a breather today after his massive effort yesterday! After the usual excellent standard breakfast from the Eden gate B&B (guess what I had?!) it was out to meet Michael and his lovely wife Susan who turned up dead on 8am (unlike most of his signage deliveries! Only joking Michael!) and you would not believe this but WE WERE READY TO GO! I blame this entirely on Mark who had his bag packed and was down for breakfast for 7.15. It's a good job it was his last day today as he was getting kicked of the tour anyway as we cannot have this sort of professional organised behaviour on this trip
As ruminated yesterday I had struggled with the notion of putting the bags in the car for the day for a number of reasons. Having thought about it again I decided that I would keep them on. Discussing it with Dec last night he was also thinking of keeping them on as I had called him out over it on the blog. He thought about it long and hard again this morning. The conversation went something like "hello Michael, I'm Declan. We're in the car do you want me to put my panniers?"
After day 2, today was to be the hardest apart from Day 10 still to come and I was a little concerned that my moral supremacy and general self righteous smugness at keeping the bags on may not do me any favours as we climbed over 4 very high a steep climbs, but seeing the size of Michaels thighs as he climbed out the car allayed my fears, now here was someone I could tuck in behind! Despite working with Michael for over 7 years I'd never been our cycling with him although I knew he was a keen cyclist. He is also, I'm sure he won't mind me mentioning it, 58 years old. I want to be as fit and strong as Michael when I grow up!
Setting the pace on the A6 up to Shap Michael and Mark soon had the train going well up the gently sloping but long gradient up to Shap. Climbing to 1400 feet the weather started to close in and it was on with the lights as it started to rain and we went up into the clouds. Despite the bags the legs felt good today so as usual after Michael and Mark did the grunt work up to the summit it was time for me and Declan to mess about, sprinting past them with the summit in site. Like 2 bald men fighting over a comb it was wheel to wheel over the top with me just half a wheel length in front. Fighting for breath we not agreed to call a truce today as this was getting silly, and we were precisley 10 miles into a 95 mile day.....
Stopping for a photo in the mist at the top, it was straight down the other side to Kendal with the only thing limiting my pace being I'd lost my cycling glasses a couple of days before and the rain was making my eyeballs hurt over 35 mph! As we descended down through the clouds, the rain stopped a bit and we were able to enjoy the really fast decent into Kendal. Throughout the day the support/broom wagon driven by Susan would be pearched in a lay by to check we were ok and for Michael to check that Susan knew the way!
Charging through Kendal we made it to Oxenholme train station precisley on time to meet Frankie of the 10.30 train. There was a problem however. There were now 2 O'Brien's to cock about! Slinging 1 pannier in the car, Frankie tried to fit the one left to his rack. Just as Susan pulled off the retaining clip came away. Cue tools out as we reattached it only to realise we had it on the wrong way! Tools back of as we slackened it off and reattached it.........
Finally setting off 30 mins after the train had arrived, The Noble express was back up and running for flat run into Lancaster, giving Frankie a bit of a baptism of fire as we spun down the road at 20mph for around 8 miles into the outskirts of Lancaster. Frankie coped manfully, but a catching foot on the panniers meant the remaining one went into the back of the car at the next stop.
Just before Lancaster I felt something solid and warm hit me in several areas as I was in slippers, pipe and mini bar position at the back of the mini peloton. Looking down a bird had done the most enormous dump all down the front of my shirt, shorts and legs! Unlucky Alf strikes again! Much merriment and Mickey taking and a mini pack of wet wipes later I was sufficiently cleaned up for the Noble express to lead us into Lancaster where we diced with the inner ring road to find the B road out to the shop and the road over the trough of Bolland. The morning had gone really quickly and before we knew it the 51 miles to Lancaster store was completed.
It was good to see Stuart again, although I was worried slightly about the reception I'd get after having to cancel his refit AGAIN for the 5 th year running! He and the staff were fantastic, made us all a cup of tea and handed over the sponsorship money they had raised and the all important goodie supply bag Caroline W had dropped off last week.
A quick(!) sandwich and some fantastic pis taken by Susan and we were off and up at 1.30 for the 26 miles to Clitheroe. We were under some time pressure today as we had to be at HO for around 5pm as a photographer had been booked and the office closes at 5.30. Ample time to get to Clitheroe for 4pm then. As it turned out it was nowhere near enough time!
Straight out of the store car park and you are straight out onto Castle Hill the first of the three Bowland climbs. And it was horrible. Ramping up to 17% almost immediately the devil came back for a brief time congratulating me in my moral high ground and the fact that this was going to mean I wasn't going to make the day and how smart would that be? As I watched Michael, Mark, Frankie and Declan disappear into the distance I calmed down stuck it in granny and decided that although 3.5mph wasn't particularly fast it would eventually get me there!
I must also apologise to all the motorist coming the other way this afternoon as the weather had changed completely, being really warm and muggy as such there was no option but to unzip the jersey fully exposing these poor people to a vision of sweaty man with his bib shorts and flapping Jersey and that's all! Soon I was joined by a chap out on a hybrid bike pulling up next to me asking me if it was hard with all the weight on the back! Resisting the temptation to spell out the bleeding obvious and through gasped breaths it turned out he'd done LEJOG 3 years ago. Is it me, or has everyone I now ever speak to done this!? After the usual end to end discussion about routes, how long, unsupported or not etc, etc we were nearly at the top and he was off with his mate down the other side.
Waiting at the top we had a photo at the castle at the top of the hill and it was time for some excellent defending with Michael before the next slog up the Trough Of Bowland. As one by one everyone came back past me, the little voices started again. Taking heed from Bradley Wigins who thinks of his family when times are tough (he has his kids initials tattooed on his thumbs so he can focus on them when time trialing) I thought about Andi, Mizz and Ev a lot up the second climb as it was now a week since I'd seen them, the longest time we've ever been apart. It did help a lot, then as if from nowhere came Oh Jean by the Proclaimers! I love them and I love this song as I kind of builds and builds in a very repetative way. It was just the job, and a few shut up legs and singing to myself brought me round just as Declan had pulled in and got his phone out to video the sorry site and give me some abuse/encouragement as I passed. Sorry dad but I may have given him a rude gesture as I passed.....
With me and Dec respecting the truce he cruised up to me and we over the top and down into the trough of Bowland. Can I just say that this 26 miles although hilly is a magnificent part of the country and the view from the top also helped the spirits. Cruising down the other side it was jam your breaks on as the Shepard had his sheepdog out and was herding the sheep up the trough towards us! It's not the usual traffic jam I experience and we were suddenly encased completely in sheep! A few whistles and commands and the dog had done its thing and the sheep were on their way and we started the 3rd and final climb out of the trough to Waddington. The same process as before with family and Jean helped me up the very very steep slopes to the top with Declan stooping to get yet more footage of my suffering and then it was helmet on and down the 2 1/2 miles 13% hill into Waddington. I knew this stretch really well and I was secretly hoping to break my top speed on the bike so a hard pull to start and then tuck right in and with the extra weight on the back I reckon I could crack 55mph. I got to 49mph then the bike started to weave a bit. Keeping on a massive hay lorry then started coming up towards me knocking branches off and onto the road ahead. Time to call it a day and brakes were applied to cruise through Waddington and one to Clitheroe.
The issue now however was that it was 4.30 and we still had to get to Great Harwood and Padiham before HO. This wasn't going to happen so reluctantly I asked Clitheroe to phone Gt Harwood to say we couldn't get. It made it even harder when the staff at Clitheroe had said they'd raised £190! Top job and thank you. With just enough time for a photo thank them for the money they'd raised and admire the fancy dress costumes it was time for Michael to climb into the car with Susan, the guys to strap there bags back on and get behind the Noble fast train to Padiham and onto HO. The 9 or so miles was probably the hardest of the trip so far as we had a massive day already and we know had real time pressure for the first time on the whole trip. Doing a virtual drive by photo of Padiham it was up the hill and into the car park at Burnley with minutes to spare. Being met by Tracy P and Caroline D it was fantastic to see them and both got a big sweaty hug, lucky girls, not! Having saved some cake from the cake sale, it was tea all round as I admired the slightly odd sensation of my ugly mug everywhere in reception! Thank you to all in the property office for all the help in the organisation of this jaunt I couldn't have done it without you!
Refreshed and now led out in a scooter escort by Darren T we only had the 8 miles up to Rawtenstall to complete the day. With KOM completely dominated by Michael and everyone out on there feet it was a very slow journey for Darren! Finally after another 3 miles if climbing it was all down hill and with Dec way off in the distance I asked Mark if he fancied catching him up. Let's give it 200 yards he said so it was off and past him at 20mph! Looking back I told Mark he was cooked and he could sit up. However as he later confirmed to me he had to get back as it would be in the bloody blog and he wasn't having that so with a monumental effort he was up and past us to take the stage. I was properly cooked so sitting behind Frankie we cruised into the B&B (also excellent) another day done!
Just to finish the day off, my boss James and Paul one of my colleagues came out for tea in a great pub sorted by Tracy P where Frankie, Mark and Dec probably shared a little too much info on my adolescent past that maybe did not make it onto the CV so hopefully I'll still have a job in the morning! To top it off James stood for the meal, top man! Just as we were leaving More reinforcements arrived with another friend if mine Stu Grainger arriving for lead out duties tomorrow now Mark and Michael are done!
It is now way past bed time but only 469 miles to go......
Who's the saddo on the scooter???/
ReplyDeleteDid he have a playmobile haircut????