Robin very kindly drove me up to Blackheath to the Clarendon Hotel what a star!! We arrived in very good time so I checked in and had a wander round which included a delicious pistachio milkshake!!! Went back to the hotel where I bumped into Ray, Kay & Val whom I had met on the information day so it was great to see some friendly faces! We then decided the hotel menu wasn't up to much so went off to the pub for a beer then onto a restaurant where we all fuelled up on pasta ready for the morning!!!!Met my room mate for the trip after supper a super lady from Bideford called Ailsa - during our initial get to know you conversation she asked my what my average speed was - so I said oh between 12 & 14 mph depending on the terrain - she then said oh mine is between 15 & 18 mph (so I soon realized I wouldn't be riding with my new roommate!!)
Wednesday 2nd July we were woken up at 5.30 am bounced out of bed (realistically crawled) and rushed down to breakfast as we only had an hour! 
Registration was opposite on the Heath where we had to sign on the dotted line our lives away and receive our tags with which hotels we were staying in over the trip and most importantly the map directing us the way to go!!
Registration was opposite on the Heath where we had to sign on the dotted line our lives away and receive our tags with which hotels we were staying in over the trip and most importantly the map directing us the way to go!!
Just about to start and guess what the rain started as well! Well it is England and it is July!!!
"Charlies Angels", Ailsa, Kay & Val - Cracking good company and me all ready for the off - only very slightly nervous!! It took us 11 miles to reach some fields on
the outskirts of London! At least I didn't get off and walk the first hill or even manage to get lost unlike quite a number of the earlier/faster group who apparently missed the first water stop altogether - which was most distressing as the rest of us had a horrible hill to get to the water!!!
We went out of London on the A207 to Crayford around Dartford then took the B260 out to Hartley, then onto the first water stop 20 miles down outside Harvel. Joe the Mechanic looking very bored as he had no bikes to fix - just you wait Joe we will soon keep you busy!!
"Charlies Angels", Ailsa, Kay & Val - Cracking good company and me all ready for the off - only very slightly nervous!! It took us 11 miles to reach some fields on
the outskirts of London! At least I didn't get off and walk the first hill or even manage to get lost unlike quite a number of the earlier/faster group who apparently missed the first water stop altogether - which was most distressing as the rest of us had a horrible hill to get to the water!!!
We went out of London on the A207 to Crayford around Dartford then took the B260 out to Hartley, then onto the first water stop 20 miles down outside Harvel. Joe the Mechanic looking very bored as he had no bikes to fix - just you wait Joe we will soon keep you busy!!Ray very happy to get to the water stop and we even had a cow on the trip - free milk anyone? 
It was after the water stop where things went horribly wrong for Kay & I - we were just coming up to a left turn when we saw a girl going straight over in the wrong direction so rather than concentrating on turning we were shouting to her to turn round - when I turned into the junction I didn't realize that Kay had stopped and crashed straight into her - knocking her off her bike where she unforunately hit her face on some cobbles and I landed on top of her bike with my bike on top of me. It wasn't until a very nice man called Paul came to the rescue and lifted us up and said "oh dear look at your leg!" that I realized the gear coggs had sliced my left leg up in 8 very decorative cuts! Then the shock set in and the pain!!!!! Kay had scraped her face and was going to have a great shiner in a few days and very sportingly accused me of ruining her modelling career! We walked for a bit to recover from the shock then managed to mount up and ride to the lunch stop in Doddington Village Hall another 20 miles away - including a very nasty hill worse than Mamhead! I went straight to Freya the "Doctor" who mentioned the words stitches & hospital - I said no and got bandaged up to carry on after lunch! Then the rain came down and down and down!!!! All the way to Dover! Don't ask me where we went as I just had my head down and looked for the orange arrows! But we did go via Canterbury, the next water stop was at Barham then we carried on the A260 to Dover.
It was after the water stop where things went horribly wrong for Kay & I - we were just coming up to a left turn when we saw a girl going straight over in the wrong direction so rather than concentrating on turning we were shouting to her to turn round - when I turned into the junction I didn't realize that Kay had stopped and crashed straight into her - knocking her off her bike where she unforunately hit her face on some cobbles and I landed on top of her bike with my bike on top of me. It wasn't until a very nice man called Paul came to the rescue and lifted us up and said "oh dear look at your leg!" that I realized the gear coggs had sliced my left leg up in 8 very decorative cuts! Then the shock set in and the pain!!!!! Kay had scraped her face and was going to have a great shiner in a few days and very sportingly accused me of ruining her modelling career! We walked for a bit to recover from the shock then managed to mount up and ride to the lunch stop in Doddington Village Hall another 20 miles away - including a very nasty hill worse than Mamhead! I went straight to Freya the "Doctor" who mentioned the words stitches & hospital - I said no and got bandaged up to carry on after lunch! Then the rain came down and down and down!!!! All the way to Dover! Don't ask me where we went as I just had my head down and looked for the orange arrows! But we did go via Canterbury, the next water stop was at Barham then we carried on the A260 to Dover.
This sign was the best sight in the whole world as we were very tired and very bedraggled by then after 83 miles down!!
Waiting for the ferry in the cold dismal English Summer!!!
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