I have had two rides since the last update.  Its not really good news.

ive made around 10 miles, which is an improvement over the last rides, however its still not pain free.  So its still a case of waiting around and resting.

A few weeks back i was organised to set off again, however this couldnt happen due to the injury, now i plan on organising the same, so will set a plan to get going during September.  Im going through with the planning knowing full well that i may not be able to leave again, however it gives me another target to reach and allows me to get going should the injury be repaired enough.

Currently i am looking at Fri 19th being my set off date, however this could change as the planning kicks in again and depending on work commitments.

This really is the last chance to make it this year as i dont want to be cycling through Scotland during October.  In fact i could well be pushing it leaving in September, who knows, its down to the weather!

as ever….watch this space!

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Right now while typing this, im laid on the bed of a b and b with a large
ice pack on my knee. I hate ice packs, in fact i just hate the cold!
Perhaps i was a reptile in a former life!

Hopefully making my leg completely and utterly numb will help for tomorrow,
if not perhaps i should take an ice pack with me on the bike and use it
like an anesthetic.

Another thing i find alien, is taking pills. Im on a ton or so ibuprofen
each day and ive noticed that on the larger bumps in the road ive started
to rattle slightly. I may need a child proof head fitting when i get
back.

Well, i’ll be back again tomorrow.

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My titles are sounding more and more like song names each day!

Day 4 mileage: 57.6
Overall mileage: 191

Im afraid my photography skills have somewhat dissapeared today. (yes i know they were never really there!) to be honest most of my riding today was tree lined roads with very little to look at.  A couple of photo opportunities came up, but i was travelling downhill at the time and when your in this part of the
world, on a bicycle, with one leg injured and the other exhausted from the extra duty…nothing stops you on a down hill run.  If an insect flying into my t-shirt and biting me repeatedly doesnt stop me on a hill, im sure yet another idylic countryside scenery wont either!  So today im afraid there is only one
picture to look at, but even worse than that, its of the M5,  it was nice to finally see a motorway though.  For me felt like a little civilisation.  (i know ive just insulted everyone in devon and cornwall, but to be honest next time i go back i’ll be driving a car or riding a motorbike so none of them will catch me anyway!

Well day 4 is over.  Its been a long one, the best part was finally reaching a main road, this being a dual carriageway. This allowed me to cover a lot more distance quickly.  It was quite a relief to start really motoring along.  I wonder how long it can continue though, as i can only use the main roads if
they are going the right way.  Main roads a re quicker for cars as they have higher speed limits and more lanes, but often much longer.  To a car this might not be a problem as the hugely increased speed can make up that extra distance quickly, but to a cyclist increased distance is the worst thing that could
happen as your speed is relatively constant on average.  With the odd slow climb and fast descent.

I will plan my route shortly to see how much im able to travel on the A roads.

This post continues above…

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Day 3 mileage: 41.1
Overall mileage: 133

The first half of the day really got me down (yes i know every update is
negative but to be honest i’ll whinge and moan to anyone who will listen,
its my character!)
I spent the whole morning climbing the hills of dartmoor national park, i
stopped for a break at lunchtime and discovered i’d only covered 7 miles.
The knee problem hit at the first pedal turn this morning so it was always
going to be a slow day, but 7 miles is ridiculous for a whole morning in
the saddle.

The afternoon was a lot more productive, i crossed the two highest peaks of
dartmoor, both over 1500ft and started to head downwards for the first
time. Of course this was immediately followed by another hill. But to get
over 30 miles done in the afternoon was good considering the injury.

My bike developed a squeak today, i hope its just the rear brake, i’ll
check this out tomorrow. (actually, just thinking back… It could be my
legs! As they were moving at the time)

I almost forgot to mention the ponies, these are wild ponies that live on
dartmoor a picture of them should be above. It was fascinating to see if
only for a few seconds. More entertaining though was the stubborn sheep
that laid in patches of shade in the middle of the road, they absolutely
refused to move for any car. Its refreshing to see nature taking control of
the roads instead of cars.

They moved for me though, perhaps they saw the unstable heavey load and ran
for safety.

Song of the day for me was a…wait for it…foo fighters track called
“stranger things have happened” i was pushing the bike at the time but it
really got me over the top of a hill. (i dont always listen to foo
fighters by the way, it was the right track at the right time)

Fingers crossed that a rest and a stretch will start to heal my leg.

Same time tomorrow?

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Day two is over and ive managed to get in to a campsite, so im roughing it
for the night!

Day 2 mileage: 38.1
Overall mileage: 92

A very dissapointing day in terms of distance. It was at 35 miles that i
decided i could no longer carry on and went on the hunt for a camp site.
Luckily i found one very quickly as even pushing the bike up hills was
causing a lot of pain.

Although my mileage was low today, i think i still worked a lot harder than
yesterday, the terrain was very challenging, repeatedly climbing to 600-700
feet then dropping straight back down to sea level. It really challenges
your sanity when you climb up hill for over an hour then the drop the other
side is over in 2 mins flat, before being greeted by yet another 500 foot
climb.

To give you an idea of sort of cycling ive done so far, my gps gives me a
figure for my total ascent, this just how much i have climbed. Currently
it is showing 6665 feet. How acurate this is i dont know, but it shouldnt
be too far out. The gps also gives a graphical reading of the altitude in
the form of a trace graph, after today this looks like the blueprints of an
alton towers rollercoaster!

My knee was the cause for me stopping short, i didnt think i could continue
without doing damage, im stopping and stretching every few miles to try to
keep on top of the problem but so far its not helping too much. Im just
hoping that it doesn’t turn into bursitis as that will imediately finish my
ride. Im now sat in the camp site resting and trying to remain positive.
Hopefully a good night’s rest will allow me to continue tomorrow. As ever,
watch this space.

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Day 1 is over, finally!

Today’s mileage: 54.4
Overall mileage: 54.4

After a delayed start, i finally left land’s end around 11:30. It took
only a few hundred metres for it to dawn on me that im on my own and ive
got to get back home then up to scotland all under my own steam. It was a
comfortable first 20 miles, soaking up the sun. After this though, it a
little harder as my left knee began to give me pain again. The next 10
miles seemed to take an age, at this point i thought 35 miles would be my
limit for the day. I had planned to get to st austell on the first day,
but this looked a long way from achievable. I kept resting and took it
slowly though and managed to keep going. I started looking for somewhere to
stay aroun 4pm. I was looking for a camp site ideally as it was such nice
weather. I passed only one sign for a camp site in the next couple of
hours, come on! this is cornwall, there should be campsites everywhere! I
also struggled for b and b’s as most were full or too expensive (£80 per
night for a single is ridiculous! Especially as i will most likely collapse
in an exhausted heap as soon as i see a bed!)

Anyway, i found a b and b, eventually got in my room for 7pm. After
showering, eating and getting some things ready for tomorrow, its now
9pm.
By the time ive sorted my routes for tomorrow and got my things together,
i’ll be ready for a well earned night’s rest!

Im not sure on my plan for tomorrow, i will plan a route, but my progress
will be determined by my knee issue.

Day low: getting to 20 miles on the first day then having to stop because
of my knee injury. This put serious doubts in my mind. I really hope that
my knee feels better by tomorrow.

Day high: watching a city link van driver force his 15ft van under a 14.5ft
bridge. What persistance and blind indifference to his vehicle he showed!

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Well ive made it down to Cornwall!
We had a night time drive down through the country. Arriving at 9am this
morning, we were greeted by glorious sunshine. Fingers crossed this will
keep up for a few days.

Im now about to plan my route for tomorrow after feeding myself up on
pasta.

Look out tomorrow for my first days report.

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Well the time has come to load up the car and head off down to Cornwall. I =
will drive through the night to get to penzance for sunday morning. A bed =
and breakfast has been booked for sunday night.

On Monday morning i will begin the ride from Lands End. It has amazed me =
how quick the ride has sprung up on me over the last few weeks, it seems =
like only yesterday when i was beginning the preparations. Well its here =
and its not going away!

Lets get on and do it then!

Watch this space for the next update.

(P.S - it appears that messages sent from my mobile phone, like this one, seem to get spurious = characters put in.  This is obviously the way that the site is interpreting the emails.  Unfortunately there’s not much i can do about it at this stage, so appologies if it gets annoying!)

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