Jason writes:
On Sunday June 8th I rode 142 miles from the East coast of England to the West. The route started in Whitby North Yorkshire and finished in Arnside Cumbria.
I have to say from the outset that although this ride was a big deal for me in that it was my furthest ride by about 20 miles, I was simply tagging along for the adventure. The reason why the ride took place was as part of my sister Amy and her boyfriend Ian’s preparation for a 3000 mile ride to Mount Etna in Sicily, a challenge that they are doing in September this year to raise money for Kitale School Uganda.
Ian and Amy along with their business partner Bob are the owners of Cycol Tours and although this coast to coast ride was not official business for the company the seven of us who rode, Ian, Amy, Rob (Lancaster CC), Tim (Lancaster CC), Leon (Lancaster CC), Claus (he rode part of the route) and myself did benefit from being supported by not one but two support vehicles. It was Audrey and Mark who gave up their weekend to support the ride so a massive thanks goes to them for all their efforts. It made for a good test run as it will be Audrey and Mark who will accompany Ian and Amy in a support camper van on their challenge in September.
The day before Sunday’s ride we drove over from the West coast to the East coast and stayed over in a hotel. Early Sunday morning we drove to our starting point in Whitby and by roughly 7.45am we were on our way, straight up and onto the North Yorkshire Moors.
We were so lucky with the weather, rainy days book ending either side of Sundays ride. We were treated to hot sunny weather for the entire day with the exception of a 45 minute downpour towards the end of the ride.
Once over the Moors the route led us towards the Dales via a couple of fairly longish stretches of A roads, although this could not be helped. The highlight of the day for me was the Dales. With the sun shining they looked simply stunning. I had never visited the Dales before but I will make sure I get back there again sometime soon. It was during this section of the ride that we rode the opposite direction of part of stage 1 of the Tour de France with a descent down Grinton Moor. Coming the other way, the way the Tour will come, was what seemed like an endless stream of riders on a sportive. I have never had to nod at so many cyclists in my life.
The final part of the ride took us away from the Dales and into Cumbria, still beautiful with big scenery. For many miles we rode past dozens of traditional Gypsy wagons and more Gypsies than I have ever seen. They were all there for the Appleby Horse Fair, certainly one of the biggest of its kind in Europe.
It was a delight to ride into the early evening and dusk with the quiet roads on a long summers day. It felt special to be able to enjoy the calmness of a Sunday evening in the Cumbrian countryside. Other than the early morning chill and a late downpour I was in short sleeve jersey the entire day. We finally arrived into Arnside with the light fading rapidly at around 9.45pm for a well deserved celebratory pint at the Albion. With the exception of Claus who had to finish early due to prior commitments we all made it coast to coast.
With Amy being relatively new to road cycling and Ian (although immensely experienced having ridden an entire Tour de France route in the past) nursing hamstring and neck injuries we had to take it easy on this ride. It forced the others including myself to ride at a slower pace. I enjoyed providing domestique duties to Amy and Ian for a couple of long sections of the ride. We also took plenty of breaks with a long stop for lunch. It gave me time to stretch out my back too as I am prone to lower back pain issues. Most importantly though it gave us all a chance to really soak up the beauty that the North of England has to offer. I for one have come away with memories that I hope will stay with me for a long time.
A special mention again goes to Audrey, not only did she and Mark drive the support vehicles but she kept us topped up with very tasty flapjack, banana cake and apple cake, so good! Also it was Mark who assisted Ian through the day by helping to relieve his painful hamstring problems with his healing techniques. Without these guys it would have been a much more difficult proposition.
Unfortunately my Garmin packed up at about kilometre 220 (I have it set metric) so cannot provide a 100% accurate measurement of my efforts but maybe it is better that way. The others tell me it was 142 miles and that is good enough for me.
As for Amy and Ian, well they will continue to train as hard as they can when they are not looking after clients on trips to the Pyrenees and Alps. Come September they will embark on their greatest challenge yet. You can keep up to date with their latest news by visiting the sites below:
http://cycol4kitale.wordpress.com/
https://www.facebook.com/Cycol4kitale
http://uk.virginmoneygiving.com/fundraiser-web/fundraiser/showFundraiserProfilePage.action?
userUrl=cycol4kitale&isTeam=true