So, why cycle from Land's End to John O'Groats?
Well, let me begin....
Having done a couple of London to Brighton cycle rides (in June 2003 and 2005), followed by the Oxford to Cambridge bike ride (in September 2005), I was looking for a new challenge.
The first London to Brighton bike ride back in 2003 was the first cycle event I had ever taken part in. My brother Dan, mate Andy and myself were rounded up as part of the Land Registry team in Tunbridge Wells that regularly entered this event. The 54 mile or so route was something that we didn't know what to expect but we all found it to be a thoroughly enjoyable day. We missed this event the following year (through our own laziness in entering) but were missing it so much that we made sure we entered the following year (with the exception of Dan). It was after we completed this event that I realised that a new challenge was needed as it felt considerably easier than the first time. Having looked around on the internet for organised bike rides the next progression seemed to be the Oxford to Cambridge bike ride - this was a little further at 85 or so miles. I managed to convince Andy that this was a good idea with a couple of the Land Registry boys (Foy and Daz) and so we entered a small team of just the four of us. Even though the distance was greater I did not find it particularly harder than the London to Brighton due to the flatness of the route. Andy and I finished in 4 hours and 59 minutes without a break which felt like a great achievement. It was then that I started to think... well, what is going to be the next challenge??
A few months down the line the Land's End to John O'Groats came up in conversation (this must have been at the beginning of this year). I was instantly attracted by the challenge of this and immediately set about trying to persuade my friends to do it (although I realised that Andy was the only one who was even likely to consider it). After Andy declined my offer, it eventually began to dawn on me that no one else was willing to take part and it was then that I had to consider if I could do it on my own. Over a number of weeks I managed to persuade myself that I could. A date was pencilled in for July (after the World Cup naturally).
With a challenge like this it would have been scandalous not to raise some money for a charity. Both London to Brighton bike rides and the Oxford to Cambridge events were organised through the British Heart Foundation, but I felt that this event needed to be done for something more personal to me. My son has been at a nursery over the last couple of years and is due to leave (when he eventually starts school in September), so I thought that it would be a good idea to raise money for this children's nursery, as a way of saying thank you for their great work in his development over the last few years.