Day One - DONE...!!!

It's 24th June 2009 - and at 0800 hrs we start our epic journey! From London to Paris, by cycle over four days.

After an hour of London Underground and National Rail travel, I finally reached Blackheath in South East London at 0800 hrs for an 0830 start to the adventure. There were 28 of us, and 27 of them looked really fit - and the 28th one (me!) looked very sleepy.

The instructors and the expedition leader were doing their bit to warm us all up for the ride ahead. The target for Day One was revealed to be 80 miles. I felt cheated - I was expecting 60 miles!

Well, a couple of bananas later and a couple trips to the nearby hotel's washroom later, it was time to set off - in single file - 28 bicycles - snaking their way out of London.

Over the next four hours we were all greeted by bumpy roads, polite car drivers, a noisy A2, a warm and sunny day, all culminating into a much needed lunch break. By now, my mind was telling me that we would have done at least 50 out of the 80 miles for the day. My instructor told me that we had another 50 to go for the day! My cycle was doing fine - but I was positively deflated.

The second half of the day was interesting - lovely hills, lush green British countryside on a clear sunny day! What I had not envisaged about the hills was the fact the roads could be uphill as much as downhill. Even as the uphill climbs were monstrous (and fatal!), Day One belonged to the enthusiasm of the journey.

So, Day One - DONE!