Finding our way (and a few small detours) Part 1:
The route we have chosen for our Land’s End to John O’ Groats ride is 940 miles long. The route choice has been determined using the well- trodden route which many a brave cyclist before us has used for this challenge, whilst factoring in free places to stay with friends and family along the way. It takes us through 3 countries, 22 counties and in order to meet the world record for the time taken to do this ride on a 3 man bike, we have to do it in less than 8 days and 12 hours.
And somehow or other, it has come to pass that I am the one in charge of the map…
My first involvement with sorting out our route was to look at what we had anticipated for day 2 (around Bristol where I used to live), and use my local knowledge to shave 5 miles off the overall distance. Although this doesn’t seem like much, it will also ensure that we finish the day riding through the Somerset Levels rather than the undulating hills of The Mendips (which have destroyed my legs on numerous rides). With this marginal gain under my belt, route planning quickly became my role in the group and I was expected to make similar gains with each stage of the route. Sadly my local knowledge of Scotland and the north of England is not particularly hot and up until last week, it looked like we would be cycling through Glenshee ski resort in the heart of the Cairngorms.
What I hadn’t explained to my fellow riders, Hamish and Toby, is that even though I am a Geography graduate and have hundreds of maps at home, I can’t actually read any of them. Last time route planning was entrusted to me on a walking trip to Scafell Pike in the Lakes, I almost marched a group of ten of us off a cliff in the fog.
The first challenge for me as official team pathfinder, was mapping our training ride from London to Paris; unfamiliar territory entirely for this Wiltshire boy. Detailed route planning was extremely important because we wanted to complete the ride in less than 24 hours. If we were late, we would miss our Eurostar home and have to wander the streets of “gay Paris” in nothing but our sweaty lycra.
On the eve of our departure and after days of careful planning on my part, Hamish suggested that we should look over the route on Google satellite. It all looked like we would be cycling through glorious countryside, starting our route out of Dieppe on the Avenue Verte; 32 miles of gently inclining cycle path and then on to beautifully tarmacked French roads through the picturesque towns of Normandy the rest of the way into Paris…then we suddenly realised that I had managed to route us into the city via the ‘peripherique’, the hectic and frenzied motorway which forms a ring around Paris, jam-packed with angry, beeping Parisians and probably not too cycle friendly. Despite having noticed this the night before, we somehow failed to correct this on Hamish’s route plan on his bike computer, and watched in horror as we found ourselves wobbling down the slip road onto the motorway, yelling at our group leader Hamish, (deafened by the roar of traffic), to “TURN AROUND WE ARE HEADING ONTO THE MOTORWAY!.” After a swift U-turn and a ride the wrong way up a motorway slip road, we found a new route and made it to Paris in one piece. Despite this near disaster, we made it to the Eiffel Tower in our required time, even managing a glass of Rosé or two on the banks of the River Seine, a first navigational success, albeit with the odd hairy moment.
This experience in Paris has taught me how vitally important it is to carefully plot the route, particularly the segments through large towns where one small mistake could set you significantly off course. We will be using the Sustrans Cycle network to help us avoid any more motorways or major trunk roads, and choose routes which are a little more cycle friendly.
I will be returning with my second post on route planning to discuss the Land’s End to John O’ Groats route in detail. Here’s a sneak preview of our itinerary.
Day 1: Land’s End > Watergate
Day 2: Watergate > Bristol
Day 3: Bristol > Shrewsbury
Day 4: Shrewsbury> Egerton
Day 5: Egerton > Carlisle
Day 6: Carlisle > Kippen
Day 7: Kippen > Aviemore
Day 8: Aviemore > Crask
Day 9: Crask > John O’Groats
Finding our way (and a few small detours) Part 2
3 Men on a Bike 