Sometimes I feel strong, sometimes less so. Sometimes life
grinds me a bit, but usually I walk tall. I’ve never felt stronger or
stood taller than I did standing on the deck of this rusty little ferry,
leaving the cloudy Scottish Mainland behind and heading north to wild
Orkney!
I’d ridden up to John O’Groats with my dear friend Paul, and the ride had been both a physical challenge and a personal one. Setting off from Land’s End in Cornwall, I knew that I would either be joining my father and grandfather in being the third generation of my family to complete the ride or…. become the first to fail. It was a pilgrimage of sorts and the stakes felt high.
Paul had been suggesting for some time that I make the journey, telling me that I was fit enough since I’d taken up my daily 7mile commute, that it was achievable, encouraging me to give it a go. Paul had ridden the length of the country in 2008, and when I heard he was going to repeat this feat in the summer of 2013, I begged him to take me with him. He agreed, perhaps reluctantly… The thought of riding with such a close friend, who had done it before and knew his way around a bike, was a big draw and it felt like a now-or-never moment. Paul agreed to let me tag along and laughed when I told him “you’ll have to keep up”. Fighting talk.
In truth, I never in my wildest dreams believed We’d succeed together, and was fully expecting this to be “a try” rather than a victory. Perhaps I’d wave Paul on at Bristol (if I was lucky). But cycling into John O Groat’s after sixteen days and over 1000 miles in the saddle, down the same road my dad and grandad had ridden down, I shed a little tear. Maybe it was the wind… :’-)
I’m going to start this blog with a few memories of previous rides, some thoughts on riding in general, and then will hopefully be able to document my next joruney in a structured way as I ride it.
* Christopher McCandless is a hero of mine. If you don’t know much or anything about Chris (AKA Alexander Supertramp), I suggest you start here and follow the crumbs.
I’d ridden up to John O’Groats with my dear friend Paul, and the ride had been both a physical challenge and a personal one. Setting off from Land’s End in Cornwall, I knew that I would either be joining my father and grandfather in being the third generation of my family to complete the ride or…. become the first to fail. It was a pilgrimage of sorts and the stakes felt high.
Paul had been suggesting for some time that I make the journey, telling me that I was fit enough since I’d taken up my daily 7mile commute, that it was achievable, encouraging me to give it a go. Paul had ridden the length of the country in 2008, and when I heard he was going to repeat this feat in the summer of 2013, I begged him to take me with him. He agreed, perhaps reluctantly… The thought of riding with such a close friend, who had done it before and knew his way around a bike, was a big draw and it felt like a now-or-never moment. Paul agreed to let me tag along and laughed when I told him “you’ll have to keep up”. Fighting talk.
In truth, I never in my wildest dreams believed We’d succeed together, and was fully expecting this to be “a try” rather than a victory. Perhaps I’d wave Paul on at Bristol (if I was lucky). But cycling into John O Groat’s after sixteen days and over 1000 miles in the saddle, down the same road my dad and grandad had ridden down, I shed a little tear. Maybe it was the wind… :’-)
I’m going to start this blog with a few memories of previous rides, some thoughts on riding in general, and then will hopefully be able to document my next joruney in a structured way as I ride it.
* Christopher McCandless is a hero of mine. If you don’t know much or anything about Chris (AKA Alexander Supertramp), I suggest you start here and follow the crumbs.
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