Coast
to Coast (via a few pubs)
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As part of
the year long challenge I decided to take on the Coast to
Coast cycle ride which is 140 miles from Whithaven in the West to
Tynemouth in the East. (There is a slightly shorter route, but that
ends in Sunderland - always going to go the long way). To make
the logistics easier I decided to do it by joining a group of other
cyclists, this should have been a really sensible option,
however in hindsight choosing your riding partners carefully
is time well spent, i didn't spend this time. I chose the “Plods and
Bombs” annual trip (no I don’t know what it means either),
organised by one of my staff; John Geoghegan and his
sidekick Steven Morrison.
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So, at
shortly after 5am on Thursday myself and 35 other “keen” cyclist
left on a bus from Consett to the start, closely followed by an 18t
rigid full of bikes and a support van full of luggage laden with
excessive amounts of lycra. It was about this time the rules sheet
was handed out, 11 rules which had to be obeyed throughout the
trip. They included, only drinking with your left hand, only
pointing with your elbows, addressing Mr Morrison as “Your Honour”
for the duration and always carrying your rules at all times.
Pretty much a stag doo with bikes then.
After breakfast
in Whitehaven the Peloton headed out for the first day of riding,
crossing through the Lakes to Penrith. This involved just over 50
miles of riding with almost 4000ft of ascent including climbing
over Whinlatter before dropping into Keswick for lunch then on to
Penrith. The day went pretty well, although I did get a puncture at
10 miles, and showed my complete inexperience in changing them to
the watching crowd. All hills were conquered without the urge to
get off and walk, however I had apparently broke one of the
unwritten rules and had weaved while climbing a hill! This resulted
in a summons to a court session over dinner. “Your Honour” turned
up with the full judge’s wig (see above), with Mr Geoghegan as
prosecutor. As you will probably expect the court session was
pretty much “you are guilty, until you are proved guiltier”, so
then the sentence was passed, a lovely ½ pint of chilli sauce, made
with the finest Scotch Bonnet Chilli’s topped with a raw egg. Let’s
just say it didn’t last long. On a positive note, I am sure John
will love the 10-year-old Hino he will be getting to replace his
brand new 17 plate Mercedes Actros (Trucks for those who don’t
know).
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Day 2 was a
little shorter at just under 35 miles, but still with almost 4000ft
of climbing including Hartside Pass. The views from the top are
spectacular, except when we got there it was shrouded in mist.
After passing through Alston and into Nenthead there
is another nasty climb out of the village before a long ride
down to our overnight in Allenheads. Accommodation this night was
in a dorm with 4 bunk beds and 6 other riders, most of which had
eaten spicy food for the previous 48 hours and drank their own body
weight in beer. This was not conjusive with getting any well
needed sleep. On a positive note I did narrowly avoid a
second Court Session. I committed the crime of forgetting my
rules, so when the rules check was called I managed to steal the fixture
list for the Allendale Darts League from the notice board in the
pub and hold it up, no one noticed. Sorry to any Allendale
Darts players who have no idea who they are now playing this week
in the league.
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Day 3 was the
final push from Allenheads to the coast, but not without more
hills. The start of the days was straight into a climb out of
Allenheads before dropping down to Stanhope and the hardest climb
of the trip, Crawleyside Bank, just over 2 miles and near 1000ft of
climbing to the café at Parkhead. The first mile averaged 10%
gradient, which doesn’t sound much, but I suggest you try cycling
it with a hangover and little sleep. After Parkhead there is a
steady run down back to Consett, so near to my home, but still 30
miles to go before the coast. All the riders regrouped and we
annoyed all the motorists of my home town by driving through in one
large group before heading off to Newcastle. The pace to the
Quayside was as quick as I have ever done it, joining 4 other
riders we averaged over 17 mph, which for a large amateur on a
heavy bike, is pretty good going.
After rehydrating on the Quayside at Weatherspoons we all
headed for the last push to the coast, 140 miles, 10000ft of
climbing, one puncture, ½ pint of chilli, several beers and very
little sleep. At the end as is tradition having dipped the back
wheel in the Irish Sea at the start, the front wheel was dipped in
the North Sea. We didn’t all make it, 3 of the 36 starters ended up
in hospital after falls, fortunately nothing major, a couple of
broken ribs, a dislocated shoulder and some severe grazing
- it is dangerous sport cycling.
Having heard about my fundraising the other lads generously clubbed
together and donated £300 towards my fundraising, which is a great
effort. Big thanks to John and Stephen (Your Honour), for putting
on a great trip. They managed to put on a bus to the start, 2
nights’ accommodation, dinner and breakfast twice, all for £110,
exceptional value. Hard work for 3 days but a good laugh and
another challenge completed.
Now for a summer of training and mountain climbing. Next race is
Copenhagen in September. Until then thanks to everyone for their
support so far, I will send the next update after my trip to
Denmark.
The link to the Just Giving page is below. Have a great summer.
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