The route

Action 100 cycle ride: The morning after

It's beginning to sink in that i did it - by a whisker, but I did it. I keep thinking I smell bananas - they're probably oozing out of my pores.

I am so grateful to the people who helped me out on the day, especially my husband and kids, without whom I would probably still be in a blubbing heap in the middle of Windsor Forest. Andrea and Paul who were all set to come and celebrate at lunchtime (but were stood down after the bike 'broke'. And to Huw, who not only sponsored me more than he should have, but rang regularly to check progress.

To grandpa John and the 'Old Bag on a Bike' who got me roadworthy and set me back on track.

And to Alan Arenstein (marshall) whose kindness and words of encouragement made me believe I could make those last few miles.

I've got around £500 in sponsorship promises, so big thanks to those who sponsored, on-line and off. It was the thought of the good that money will do that kept me pedalling at times.

Physically I'm in better shape than I expected. Worst injuries are the sunburnt knees - weather conditions were so lovely I didn't notice I was being roasted.

Highlights of ride: beautiful countryside, especially the bit on my back doorstep that I didn't know was there. Oh, and Avebury. Loved it, and glad I was riding slowly enough to take it in.

Lowlights: realising that the bike was about as fit and ready as I was! Oh, and finding out my nuts and raising were contaminated with Bombay mix!

Personal acheivement - just getting there was the goal, and I just got there.

(Photos will go up tomorrow)

Photo finish

Arriving at Chobham

Official finish


My fan club - waited for me and supported me all day. Thanks boys (and husband, Owen!)

Sent to me by my friend and colleague Jennifer Reid..

18.50 pm - gears break

I'm gritting my teeth - I can't change gear on the bike and the end is within a whisker. I am not going to be defeated so close to the end.

I have to push the bike for part of the way, but there's enough go left in her to get me into Chobham Rugby Club.

I cross the finish line as close to 7pm on the dot as is humanly possibly.

Everyone was cheering, the kids ran over to get me, they gave me a medal and I cried into organiser Jennifer's t-shirt (sorry Jen).

It may not have been Olympic time, but for me this was an Olympic sized challenge.

Had I practised a little more on hillier terrain, I might have known that the bike couldn't cope. I might have made better time. But then again, with a broken bike, I might never have made the start line.

18.45 Lost

With just 15 minutes to go, I've taken a wrong turn. Dowbn a vertigionous sloped to St Georges School.

Lovely houses around here. Call in for help and start the long climb back to the top.

Get back on track and let them know I'm on my way.

Marshall Alal Arenstein stops to check I'm OK. He is really encouraging about getting there in time, and reassures that he'll be passing back again in a moment. I am just a mile or two away and determined to get there.

18.30-ish: The Squirrels

Finally make it to The Squirrels.

Head for loo again. Am so relieved to be here. Cramp is dreadful - vary banana diet with a packet of crisps and set off as quick as I can. I have half an hour or so to get to the end. Am absolutely determined to go super fast fopr the last 9 miles.

The guy from Raynet seems to think otherwise. Would like me (and all other comers - there's about 20 riders still behind me) to give up.

Apparently the tandem - two blokes on a bike - has crashed and burned - their chain has also given up the ghost.

Windsor Forest

I haven't been down this way before, despite being relatively local.

See a sign saying that the Squirrels Drink stop is 6 miles away and am motivated to pedal harder.

Have lost track of time, and my family have turned back to find a lost cyclist.

I'm on my own for this stratch and feeling a bit lonely.

See sign saying stop is half mile and pedal hard.

Pass a place called Follyjon(?). Looks very grand - don't know what it is.

Can't find the Squirrels stop - have been at least 2 or 3 miles since the sign. Think I'm lost. Can't take any more.

Drop the bike and stop for a drink. Can't hold back the tears. This is too much. I'm in pain (wish I'd bough an isotonic drink) and cramping badly. And lost! I pull out the guide. The stop is at the end of the rod. This is the longets half mile of my life and if it's taking this long, I'll never reach the finish point.

Just at that moment, the boys come past in the car. Owen's really concerned. I blurt out that I'm lost and can't find the stop, he has, fortunately, see the stop and knows where the pub (the Squirrels) is. Having sobbed into his chest, he persuades me back onto the bike, and they wait for me in the pub.

Rescued

Gary (Old Bag on a Bike) and his daughter come and collect me and the bike and make the last few miles to the lunch stop at Theale. I've come 65 miles and I don't want to stop now.

I can't face a baked potato for lunch, my stomach is in knots. Another banana bites the dust!
Gary looks at the bike. John's repair was better than he thought.

To get me back on track he drops me at Arborfield, which is home territory for me (although he did get lost on the way!) I've cycled around here practising, and we are right opposite the stables where the boys are learning to ride.

Cycle past home and off into the wilderness.

Spot some of those funny looking goats with floppy ears. It's opposite a paintball place - my mind, looking for entertainmant, surmises that they have been splatted with brown paint. Sad!!

About a mile on down the road, see a place selling goat meat.

Not a pleasant thought.

2pm Newbury

Couple I saw earlier meet me just outside Newbury - they are unsure of route.

We got to roundabout in one piece - A34/A4 junction is hazardous - cars aiming at you from all angles.

Am still following John.

Get to traffic lights and disaster strikes. I am over half way and my bike chain has come off. John comes back for me and puts the chain back on, but I am now condemned to riding in a single gear. Call for bike support. They are very busy at Theale fixing bikes/making adjustments. Start riding - they know how to find me and I can make at least some progress.

Am petrified that I'll have to call off the ride.

Owen comes back for me with the kids - another unscheduled stop while he checks bike and concludes that this may hold until Theale. Time plays heavy on my mind. All I can think of is all the people who've sponsored me.

Nicci, my colleague from work, is volunteering at the pub clearing away the lunch stuff. She texts to find out how I'm doing. She's been told the bike's broken.

My parents and sister are at a family barbeque in Angmering (Sussex) They've been following my progress through my text messages. They're all on tenterhooks.

13.15 The stop that isn't

Even though the Kintbury stop isn't there, people are stopping for refreshments. I'm relieved. For me as a relativelty inexperienced rider, these stops are motivational.

Family is waiting for me.

Meet John, a great grandad whose daughter and grandaughter are also riding.

He's done the ride several times before - but drops in that one year he had to be taken in by van as he hadn't finished on time.

Speed of progress is worrying me.

12.30 - into Hungerford

Coming into Hungerford pass Pelican Pub - I always think of it as being a few minutes out, which it is in a car. Not so on a bike.

Once had venison and blueberries in there which stained my mouth so badly that i looked like I had no teeth when I smiles. The thought of food reminds me that I should be at the lunch stop by now, but I'm probably 2 hours away.

Bike clunking lots, legs hurting. Family pass me waving, ride on with smile.

Savernake

The Savernake Forest is very, very beautiful. The steep incline out of Marlborough has me beaten and I have to walk, but I'm not alone. Dad and daughter are doing the same.

She's on an older bike than me and needs a medal!

11.20 - Arrive Marlborough

Marlborough - toilets - aaaahhhh!!

Have done 35 miles - it's taken over four hours, which is worrying.

Have cup of tea, grab some water and yes, another banana.

Have stopped feeling sick now - riding on a bowl of luxury muesli and an orange juice wasn't smart!

Family has caught up.

Little one has a touch of the am drams and grabs my leg, shouting 'don't leave me mummy!'

The next watering hole no longer exists, so am looking forward to reaching Hungerford which is pretty and is where my parents live.

Meet young girl in loos - she is cycling with her dad and finding it as tough as I am.

Reassure her that Hungerford's just a short way, but have heard some of the veterans saying that the Savernake stretch is the toughest.

Have taken far too long at this stop and am v. concerned about time, but at least have family with me now.

Approx 11.15 Silbury Hill

Silbury Hill boasts a number of hill climbing sheep.

Make mental note.

Hilly terrain, more suited to goats than people on bikes.

Bike is making clunky noises.

Most of my rides have been on relatively flat terrain - not sure the bike is enjoying the hills - I'm not either, but it's worh it for the views. Feel very solitary and very peaceful. Sing to myself very loudly - belt it out - there's no-one here but me and the sheep.

This place feels really magical - must be the witch in me.

9.50 am White Horse

Amazing scenery. Tough riding, mainly up hill, but absolutely amazing. Dawdle a bit, taking photos - soaking up atmosphere.

A couple cycling together are doing the same thing.

Ten minutes out here, though - it's going to affect my ability to get in on time.

But wow! Just wow!

9 am Derry Hill

Still averaging 10 miles an hour and up with the bulk of the riders. No sign of family yet - miss and need them! Text to let people know how I'm doing.

Am given bananas and water which are just what I need.

Try and purchase some fruit and nuts from charity stand, but am also given these.

Only fly in ointment is the lady with the water, who insists on giveng all the men their water drinks before me.

Am told by fellow rider that I look glamorous, which I don't feel, but guess has something to do with the fact that I chose to ride in a cheesecloth top instead of a riding shirt as it's cool and light and also keeps the sun off.

Maybe the banana lady didn't think I was riding?

Around 8.30

At around 8.30, am in Calne. The route is beautiful. The views from Box Hill were stunning, and Calne is picture box pretty - I wonder what house prices are like.

8am

By 8 am, Top of Box Hill.

It's not true that this ride is flat - there are huge hills coming out of Bath and me and my bike are not up to hills.

Despite having had to dismount and walk once or twice, am currently doing 10 miles per hour- which is better than my anticipated 8, and given the hilly terrain, which I know flattens off later, am hopeful of reaching Chobham in time for the party!

07.03 Leave Bath

At 7 am, having registered slightly after 6.30, tagged the bike and taken photos, set off on my adventure.

Family still in hotel room.

Action100: the day before!

Day before the ride. Hadn't realised how nervous I am. Knowing I'm one big ride down isn't helping.

Checked the hotel voucher and realised that there was no mention of the children staying in the room - went into a bit of a panic. The room was booked in early June by my PA, who I know had asked for them to be included. Anyway, a couple of calls to the hotel and we were back in business, setting off via the bike shop, where I changed my gloves. My weight was being thrown onto my hands when cycling, so I was hoping they'd have something a bit thicker padded - and they did.

They also suggested that the handle bar was too low down, but having taken the bike in for a quick adjustment, it transiped that on these old bikes the brake 'cord' is in the wrong place for adjustments - not a quick adjustment, so decided to live with it - the thought of not making the start line was more than I could bear.

We were off!

The next challenge was the bike carrier. All my previous big rides have been out to a set place, coming back late at night (in the dark) or circular, so the bike carrier, although it had been tested, hadn't been tested to the max. One junction down the M4 we had to stop and get a new bungee spider. Even then the bike was lifting, so progress to Bath was slow - 60 mph all the way. The kids slept most of the way.

Despite the small set back, we arrived in Bath in one piece. Parking with bike on the back was a challenge, but the Hilton did us proud, taking the bike into the luggage room and smoothing the way.

They had also, despite being fully booked for a wedding (it felt very wrong wheeling in a bike following a bride in full regalia), managed to sort out the room booking, and our room was lovely (although my spoilt infants were saying -"isn't there another room, then?" - it was quite small, but this is the centre of Bath!)

We took the kids out to Pizza Hut (I was hoping for pasta, which is supposed to help with energy release), expecting it to be quick and be able to follow on into the Baths, which are open until 10. We were thwarted. Pizza Hut seemed to have no staff, there was something going as the police were in, and two hours later we came out - we might as well have gone somewhere nice!

Anyway, it was too late for the Baths, which would take 90 mins to tour, and our little monkeys misbehave if it gets past their bed time, but help was at hand in the form of a horse and cart taxi. It was a wonderfully touristy way to spend an evening, and we topped it off by letting the kids run around the riverside maze, which exhausted them to the point where we all got a good night's sleep.

But not until we'd replaced the slats in the sofa bed which had been left out when it was made up meaning you diappeared down a hole in the middle every time you sat on it: ah well, nobody's perfect!

Action 100: Three days to go

Have had some really generous sponsorship - nearly £300 on line and nearly £100 off line, but am getting it in the neck from my olds - simply not enough - they seem to feel that this is rather pathetic.

I can't believe how generous people have been - including an anoymous sponsor, no less. Thank you mystery person!

There have been a lot of wry "are you sure you can do this?" comments, and youngest son is trying to persuade me not to do it. Don't think he's lovin' the idea of being stuck in a car for most of the day to meet me at the various stops.

My great white hope was Simon Peevers at The Bristol Evening Post, who I thought would probably cycle from pub to pub with the lads, giving me a fighting chance of keeping up with him. Unfortunately all indications are that he's been training a very dedicated fashion meaning that I shall, almost certainly, be the last rider into Chobham Rugby Club.

Do I care? Not really - as long as there's a drink waiting at the bar for me. I've been sworn off the booze for the last week as a last minute health check.

So Simon, if you're reading this, I hope you're enjoying your holiday, and line one up for me!

Action 100: Sunday's forecast

After an unsettled and perhaps windy start on Saturday, the weather should turn drier from the west with more in the way of sunshine, but still some showers. These drier and sunnier conditions should last into Sunday for many with temperatures near average, but further rain is expected to spread to northern and some western areas on this day.

Thanks to the Met Office for the above, and for providing us with near perfect weather conditions for the ride - praise be!!

Action 100: Five days to go

With just five days to go, in the absence of anything to report on the bike front - other than that the bike is currently in the office taking up unecessary space - a thought to muse over:
When cycling up hills, the down side becomes the upside.

Action100: Six days and counting

With just six days to go, I'm trembling.

I've missed my last chance of a big ride - anything else now is too close to the day itself.
It's mind over matter from here on in!

Looking forward to it though.

I'm going to Bath with the family the day before and staying overnight so that I can get up and off, avoiding a two hour drive to the start line (I really hate early mornings)

At this stage, all I can do is watch my diet, keep up my activity levels and pester for sponsorship.
So if you're feeling generous, theres a link at the bottom right of this page!

Action100: The countdown

Just eight days and we're there. I'm on my bike and on my way. Hell, where did the time go?

We had some shannanigans this week as Chobham was under water, which made for an eventful trip home from a friends house last weekend - it was carnage. The water was feet deep - people were queueing to go through puddles of indeterminate depth so that they knew they had a clear run and wouldn't break down. The Bagshot Road was backed up on our side (heading towards the M3) and empty on the other, apart from one, broken down car in the outside lane. We turned round to help, pushing the car off the road. They told us they'd seen a car further down the road with water up to the windows.

There were stalled cars all over the place. The AA vans were out in force. Houses had plumbers and fire forces pumping out water. The drains were like fountains and seemed to be spilling water out rather than taking it away.

So I shouldn't have been suprised when we couldn't get in touch with the rugby club about getting our photo story out. But I was.

But things are moving forwards.

The Bristol Evening Post produced an amazing spread on some children who were born prematurely and lived to tell the tale. There were pictures of them tiny - they were hardly recognisable as babies some of them. Their tales are touching, and I think it's a really positive thing to publish.

Baby mags tend to shy away from the tragic stories of when things go wrong, so as a mum you're left feeling a bit like a pariah when your newborn baby doesn't look like an advert for a photographic studio or can't come home straight away. People don't know whether to send congratulations or flowers. These kinds of stories not only help making things going wrong a little more 'normal' (and I don't know many parents who haven't has some kind of concern in pregnancy, childbirth or with their newborns, however small they appear to the outside world), but they are also incredibly positive - all of those tiny babies are now colourful, loved little characters.

And of course, this years ride will help provide funds towards Action Medical Research's Touching Tiny Lives campaign, which aims to reduce premature birth and the effects of premature birth, a hugely underfunded area of medical research. (The charity is running a petition to increase government funding - see link, below right)

And Agrofair stepped forward with some Fair Trade banana donations.

I'm off for a long ride later today - hopefully to pursuade my sister in Newbury to put the kettle on - I am sworn off the alcohol between now and next Sunday (although if someone could hint loudly to my husband that a bottle of something cold and bubbly is called for at the other end..... don't know why I think this will make a difference: Mr Romantic forgot to buy a wedding anniversary card for Friday, despite us having taken the day off to take the kids out and celebrate.

This will be my last big ride before the real thing - here's hoping!!

Action 100: on track

481 riders registered for the Action 100 cycle ride so far - closing date this week, but apparently this always happens and we're still 100 up on where we normally are at this stage. It's nailbiting stuff. They had 500 registrations this year and they're coming in at around 25 a day, but had still hoped for more.

Riding's going well - have shaved another 3 pounds off my weight. My husband insists that counting pounds in terms of premature babies is sick, but since the aim is to raise money for a charity that focuses on premature birth, I can't see it that way. Another two premature babies worth peeled oiff my weight is good going... oops, gotta go - conference call (unexpected!)

Action100: On Cycling, Songs, and Bananas

So here we are. After the weekends cycle I no longer feel like I have a cattle prod up my back and my body seems to have settled back into (sub) normality.

I believe that - thanks to all this exercise - the saddlebags on my hips are shrinking, although this may, of course, be beer goggles (taken purely for curative reasons, of course)

Apropos of nothing much, while I was cycling through the cramp, I came up with a few songs for the situation:
Novocaine for the Soul
Give me Something for the Pain
The Drugs Don't Work

Suicide is Painless made a brief appearance too!

Anyway, you are hereby invited to contribute!

And last but not least, we put out a call for the charity regarding banana blight. It transpires that the shop that had refused us the bananas had actually run out of their charity budget and this was purely an excuse - how to kill a cracking summer PR story in one hit (although with today's events at airports with security checks thanks to terrorist threats, I doubt we'd have made the front page anyway)

So thanks to AgroFair we will now have bananas for riders - and thanks to the Bath Chronicle's call round, some Bath supermarkets have also come up wuth the goodies!

Action 100: Random thoughts from a weekend cycle

It's Tuesday and I feel like someone's put a board in my back. The pain in my lower back is intense and the palms of my hands are bruised.

No - I'm not still recovering from a wild weekend of festivals. I did a long run ride - and it was a mixture of Heaven and Hell.

A 45 mile round route from home to Sunningdale and back.

I learned a lot about riding and about myself.

If I have something to reach, a goal in sight, sheer bloody minded determination will get me there. A pointless trip to somewhere to turn around and come back again is far harder for me mentally. Tick in the box for the Action 100 ride as it goes from point A (Bath) to point B (Chobham) - and there will be a shower and a bar at the other end.

My boredom threshold is is incredibly low. On the way back, between Sandhurst and Bracknell, the road is absolutely beautiful - surrounded by trees - but monotonous and unchanging if you're cycling.

I found myself playing memory games in a kind of Brucie conveyor belt style as I cycled along: fast food carton; crisp wrapper; packet of condoms (didn't stop to check if empty); empty drink cans; McDonalds toys; half a teddy; plastic sheeting; finish line tape.... oh, and a banana skin that made me think that other cyclists had 'trod' this path before (evidently as downhearted as I was at this stage and reaching for the bananas).

It's also striking how much more aware we become of nature when close to it like that - the rustling in trees (a bit unnerving when you're on your own in the middle of nowhere); things running away and hiding (all you see is a white tail or grey blob vanishing into the hedges). And roadkill becomes much more personal. it's easy in a car to think 'squished hedgehog, rabbit or squirrel without a second thought. On a bike it's staring you in the face - very gory.

Cycle paths - they're another ineteresting phenomena. Blackwater boasts cycle paths with no dips in the pavement to get onto them, and there was one village I went through where the cycle path was so far down a bank that there was no way I could get down onto it, with or without bike.

Camberley's big roundabout is a nightmare on a cycle as you have to get into lane - and there's four or five of them depending upon which point you're at. Which means cycling across lanes to get into lane: as hundreds of boy racers use the route I shan't need to get my legs waxed for months - they did the job for me!

I also failed to take enough water with me - relying (mistakenly) on the fact that there would be garages along the way. Which resulted in the worst cramp along my left leg that I've ever experienced. Again, the Action 100 ride will be better as there are water stops along the way so I know that if I run out, help's not too far away.

The Heaven bits were some of the countryside; stopping for blackberries; hitting Wokingham (which I regard as almost home - which, indeed, it would be in a car) and sitting down afterwards with a map and realising that I'd cycled 45 miles rather that the 30 that I believed I was doing.

And our six year old made me laugh by telling me off when I told him my butt hurt - he ran off to tell everyone that mummy used a rude word, using the opportunity to repeat it as frequently as he could.

The ride now is just three weeks away. My fitness level is improving. I've seen more of the countryside this year than I would normally - my experience is normally limited to the view from a car or carefully created paths through nature reserves.

Despite the fact that I feel like someone removed my back and replaced it with a cattle prodder, bring it on!!

PS Would just like to make a public apology to the people in Easthampstead whose manicured green verge I sat under a tree and ate a banana on, but left the skin behind: there were no bins for miles and I learnt earlier in the ride not to leave banana skins in rucksacks.

Action 100: Premature babies bags and pounds

Jennifer and team are currently organising a photo shoot of some babies who were born prematurely linked with the ride - as this is what we're currently raining money for (Touching Tiny Lives appeal - more info bottom right)

And I lost a further three pounds this week (weighed last night, celebrated with wine and crisps: oops), taking the total over the last few weeks to seven, which is around three premature babies worth.

And, of course, means I have half a stone less pressure on my knees for the 100 mile ride. Which can't be bad!

(Sponsorship form also bottom right, if you're feeling generous)

Action100: Banana Blight and the Dreaded Bonk.

Someone once described the 'dreaded bonk' to me. I'm still not sure if this is a technical term - part of me wants to google the word, whilst the other half fears the horrors that may ensue.

Anyway, apparently the bonk is where your glycogen levels fall and you're so weary you can't go on. (And yes, we've heard all the jokes about a bonk every morning)

So, in an effort to prevent this phenomena, or at least make it go away when it hits, the Action 100 organisers usually provide bananas for cyclists along the way, but this year's looking painful. It appears a blight has affected banana supplies across the nation.

In my search for further information, I found the following, which may amuse.
(But before you navigate away from this site, don't forget to click the sponsorship button (bottom right) on this page!)

http://www.leekcyclistsclub.co.uk/ShropshireShuffler/bananas.htm

Enjoy!

Action 100: Update in numbers

Number of registrations to date: 362 as at yesterday

Total registrations hoped for by end August: 750

Longest ride I've undertaken to date: 36 miles

Days until next long ride: 4

Sponsorship to date: £150
(mental note to start getting sponsored)

Temperature forecast for day of ride: 28 (18)

Action 100: Slow but steady progress

I failed spectacularly to do my ride to Oxford on Saturday, having woken up with a migraine, meaning I'll really need to work hard to get my next big ride in (currently planned for Sunday)

We still went over to our Oxford friends, Mr and Mrs 'Still-have-Confetti-in-my Hair' Withers, but I went as a passenger instead of by pedal power.

Have also had proof that blogging is bad for your marriage - I made a chance comment about hubbie suggesting I had caught the train to hungerford the other week, rather than genuinely cycling 36 miles. He took some ribbing for it, I'm in the dog house!!

Also made the surprise discovery that horse riding and cycling use similar muscles - at least the rise and fall for trotting seems to put the same pressure on knees and front of legs.

No rude jokes about riding please!