1000 Miles Challenge

Follow Your Heart

2011-10-07T20:49:00.004+01:00

Steve Jobs (1955 - 2011) - Visionary, Entrepreneur

Follow your heart, see an inspiring video here...

London - Brighton (yet again).... preparation for things to come

2011-04-27T10:06:00.004+01:00

WOW, its been a while since posting here. Well, my friend Deuan and myself have been eagerly discussing this year's 1000 Miles Challenge - and we found it. I can't speak about it yet but will be able to confirm soon. In preparation of this year's challenge we did a little LtB last Friday.

We left kind of early (10.20) at the Fat Boys Cafe near Croydon. It was already very hot and the sun was blasting as we set out. Without much use of maps/ GPS we had to remember the route we used to take last year. It almost worked 100% and we were able to follow the quiet route through Farthing Downs, Godstone, Ditchling (over the feared Bitchling Deacon). We motored on and it felt like we're on a roll. The 3.5h journey was very enjoyable and it felt great to be outdoors. Considering I now weigh around 90Kg!! the ride was almost effortless. It felt like this was nothing at all despite not having cycled long distances for a while. I guess the snowboarding week in March helped get those muscles fit.

We got to Brighton and went straight for the beach - OMG, what a spectacle. The beach was full. In some parts there were hardly 2m between people on their beach towels. We chilled in the sand for a short while, met up with one of Deuans friends and took the train back to London. Overall a very pleasant day (with only minor sunburns ;)

SKINS Challenge - Road Stage

2010-07-11T22:32:00.019+01:00

Hampton Court - Aylesbury - Balham (London)

Deuan and myself started out at Hampton Court (10.25)

via Heathrow, Uxbridge, Beaconsfield

High Wycombe

motoring along

got to Aylesbury at 13.05 and nice lunch (baked potato & tuna)

we got adventurous cycling along the canal towards Marsworth

I dare you to jump over that canal

piece of cake

when you're on a canal boat, take a strong magnet and try some fishing for lock keys....hmmm

what shall I say...

some A road back to London (near Chalfont/ Amersham)

and to London (Southall)

to our final resting point (The Bedford Pub, Balham)

Overview:
- we did 97 miles today with the detour via the canal (going East from Aylesbury....who needs mountain bikes again?
- the route was definitely more on the flat side than going from London to Brighton
- weather was pretty nice, even though we got into half a dozen small showers

Total time: 6.05h

Average speed: 15.9452 mph (25.6613 kmh)

Route:

Tw12 3hx @ 10.25
Uxbridge
Beackonsfield
High wycombe
Princess Risborough
Aylesbury @ 13.05

Aylesbury @ 2.20
Aston Clinton
Holton
Amersham
Chelfont
Uxbridge
Southall
Hammersmith
Putney
Balham @ 5.45

Final Points:
- forgot my heart rate monitor at home that day - so no stats...
-couldn't find my SKINS shirt so took LEJOG baselayer and cycle shirt (good choice as it prevented sunburn.
- the SKINS cycle short has performed excellently on this challenge and I felt pretty comfy all the way through
- a great day of cycling, with many memorable moments along the canal and racing through London at the end to get to Balham...

SKINS Challenge - Hill Stage

2010-07-11T22:31:00.023+01:00

Brixton to Brighton (detour)

This ride is part of 3 challenges to test SKINS C400 bib shorts, Cycle Pro Short Sleeve Jersey and C400 compression baselayer. Not that we wouldn't have done the rides anyway - we now had a perfect excuse to be doing rides every weekend ;)

...what a wonderful evening, Jorrin, Deuan and myself decided to go for a ride just after work. The weather couldn't have been more perfect and we were all excited to be doing this ride on a Friday evening rather than our usual early start Saturdays/ Sundays. I started my journey in Brixton after some nice pizza in the new pizzeria just in Brixton Village market, where I also fitted the heart rate monitor. A very unusual feeling to have this strap around the chest but also interesting seeing my heart rate go up and down. I also set my personal parameters to measure calorie burn.

A short while later, I met with Deuan, steady cycle companion and superb action film maker, at Fat Boys cafe in Croydon. We really wanted to go with Jorrin but after 20min waiting we decided to leave without him, knowing he's going to catch up little later. We got to Farthing Downs after battling through Friday's traffic, then came the call from Jorrin saying he is "3 minutes" away (thats Jorrin's way of saying I'll catch up with you in 15min or so). We used the opportunity to enjoy the view and take some pictures. At quarter to 6pm it was still really hot and the sun blasting. We continued our journey south...

We were met by Jorrin (15min after phone call), exchanged excuses for being late, marvelled at Jorrin's new wheels and pedalled through ever so stunning countryside, up and down the hills going to Brighton. We made a few stops at a petrol station and a pub to fill up on water, get some nuts 'n raisins and bananas. Luckily I had a few things in my backpack which were going to come in handy: extra pair of shorts/ shirt (from work), hair clippers, some cycle bottles, tools and unidentified stuff... things one takes on such trips...

The SKINS bib shorts amd cycle shirt are the most high-tech kit I've ever worn on and I was excited to see how it performs during the 75miles ride. I know that "good things aren't cheap and cheap things aren't good." For the LEJOG ride I invested in a good cycle short (Assos) and was already positively surprised with the enhanced riding comfort, compared to regular shorts (£50 or less...).

Zooming along the country lanes, overtaking one another, pushing it hard was fantastic. We really enjoyed being on our bikes. It was a very strange feeling to be riding into the evening rather than into the day. As it got darker we pedalled harder. Todays challenge was an extra 12 miles to take the total journey close to 75miles.

The SKINS C400 bib shorts surprised on the upside. Never did I have to adjust the shorts or padding (none of the usual pulling, lifting ;) The whole journey felt really pleasant being able to just sit in the saddle and ride, pushing ourselves harder than on last rides with fewer brakes.all solved with a pair of scissors though. My Assos bib shorts bought for the LEJOG ride were very good, especially at reduced price (from £120 to £75), but I still had to adjust the padding, and pulling them in place once ever so often. None of that stuff with the SKINS bib shorts. They stayed in place and were very comfortable throughout.

The Cycle Pro Short Sleeve Jersey already had a few trial runs in the city and it really felt great - it actually felt like it wasn't there at all, keeping me dry and comfortable whilst the shirt got soaked. I only noticed it after a while, stopping/ starting at traffic lights because a little plastic patch, at the bottom by the zip, stuck out and poked me...

We got to Brighton just after 9pm, went to the beach front, had a quick drink and got back to London by train. We all agreed that this has to be repeated and that its a much better use of everyone's time that being in the pub on Friday - which is nice but it just doesn't give the same feeling of having cycled from London to Brighton....

STATS:

Ride distance: 115Km (72miles)
Time (incl. stops): 4:45 h:min
Av. Speed: 24km/h
Max speed: 65km/h
Av. heart rate: 145 BPM
Max heart rate (MHR): 192 BPM
BPM% MHR: 76
KCAL: 3100

(london to brighton - yes its generally a bit hilly...)

Please check out the Blog from fellow cyclist Quentin - "Leading The Tour" in 2010, cycling all stages of the Tour de France - just a week early ;)

click here to get to his Blog (or click on his pic)!!!

He's on an amazing journey and I am kind of envious that he's out there battling the elements and being able to cycle through France's stunning scenery, taking on huge mountains, passing Lavender fields, and just being on the road....

SKINS Challenge - Time Trial

2010-07-11T22:30:00.008+01:00

Time Trial Sunday...

and here we go! got up fairly relaxed at 8pm (Sunday morning), had a coffee (or two?), a slice of bread and smoked salmon, nothing too heavy, partly because I was still full from the bbq the day before.

I left around 9am to drive to Jorrin and go with him to some location in Surrey where we hoped to find a suitable road without too many interruptions, traffic lights, roundabouts and so on to do our TT (15Km/ 10miles). We went along the M3, got off at Exit 3 and went to Lightwater.

Now, I've never done a TT and I was really excited to be racing against myself for this relatively short distance. We took Jorrin's racing bike rather than my 'cruiser' and in borrowed shoes I set off. My heart rate was already at close to 80BPM before getting on the bike which is partly due to the warm-up (stretches really) and partly because I was a little nervous. Should have really done a few miles before even getting on the bike for the actual TT - next time...

On the bike, fiddling with the clip-ins, setting the stop watch on the Shimano flight deck and on the heart rate monitor - 3 2 1 GO

I quickly got to speeds of over 40Km/h zooming along this pretty straight road, hit a few roundabouts but kept on pushing hard. My top speed went down to 35Km/h where I could sustain it... The first couple of kilometres went by pretty quickly and were it not for some stupid motorists I would have been even faster. At various roundabouts without a chance to overtake, those guys slowed down pretty heavily to then turn without indicating, I almost crashed into one as I was trying to overtake...

With 10Km done, I was feeling exhausted already because some of the smaller hills kicked in and got me to stand-up and push on. Another useless roundabout where I had to clip out of the pedal leaving me to struggle for another km to get back in (its just not the same if you're used to your own shoes/ pedals).

13.5, 14, 14,7 arrghhh 15Km. STOP the watch.

STATS:

Ride distance: 15.06Km (10miles)

Time (incl. stops): 00:26:28 h:min:sec

Av. Speed: 34.1 km/h

Max speed: 48.6km/h

Av. heart rate: 123 BPM

BPM% MHR: 64

KCAL: 160

Useful calculator (time, distance, speed)
http://www.machinehead-software.co.uk/bike/speed_distance_time_calc.html

The Numbers:

the above numbers don't really mean anything unless they're put in a context. I've checked a few websites and a few different courses and found the Richmond TT results. Provided that the course is different from the one we chose I would have ranked 15th out of 75 people. The fastest person was at 00:23:36 for the distance... Now, that means something!!!

First, do the Richmond TT 10.4 and check actual performance
Second, practice more and warm up before another run
Third, read the TT instructions before attempting another TT

Overall I felt more relaxed doing the 15Km and I knew that I was going to be comfortable in my SKINS shorts and shirt. Again, they performed excellently and I did sweat but felt comfortably dry and well comfy even on an unusually formed seat...

To be repeated and improved upon!!!!!

2010-06-09T13:59:00.005+01:00

Dear All - We did it!!!

We, Jorrin, Dirk, Ollie and Damian with Ian in support, cycled 1,148 miles started on Sunday 23rd May 2010, finishing in John O’Groats on Tuesday 1st of June at 4:30pm.

We travelled through... Cornwall (absolutely stunning but gruelling hills) to Tintagel, then to Street in Somerset, then (joined by Deuan for two days) to Llanthony in the Welsh Black Mountains, to Peckforton Castle in Cheshire, to Arnside in Cumbria, to Newton Stewart in the Dumfries & Galloway, over the Galloway Hills to Ardrossan, across to Aran to Lochranza, through the West Highlands, Lochgilphead, Connel, Fort William to Invergarry, the breakfast at the Caledonian Hotel in Fort Augustus with Chris, Johanna Stevenson and family (unbeatable!) up and down the south side of Loch Ness, through Inverness, over the Dark Isle to Carbisdale Castle, then north east over the mountains through Strathnaver to Betyhill for lunch before the final 55 miles to John O’Groats. We did it for Project Peru.

“Project Peru runs a children's refuge in the shanty towns near Lima, caring for over 30 children; entirely funded through voluntary effort, Project Peru is a small, lively, totally voluntary UK-based charity offering food, clothes, education, shelter and fun to those in need in a country where nearly half the population exists on less than one dollar a day! see http://www.projectperu.org.uk

For all of you who have already supported us – a huge big THANK YOU – there has been an enormous amount of preparation gone into the planning and funding of this ride. Thank you to Ian Homer for doing all the driving – So, now we have all done our bit and completed the challenge, please support (if you haven’t already) our chosen charity. We are still some way off our target of £15K – having collectively raised around £4K...

Many of you who I have spoken to have pledged to donate so if you still intend to here’s how you can do it.

Visit: http://www.justgiving.com/1000MilesChallengeLEJOG

Or you can send a cheque to Carole Hudson at Project Peru. Cheques made payable to "Project Peru" and send them to Carole Hudson, Project Peru, 1 St. Catherine's Hill, Guildford, Surrey GU2 4EF

Watch this place for the video DOCUMENTARY

Carbisdale Castle (Invershin) to John O'Groats - The Final Ride

2010-06-03T13:59:00.012+01:00

WOW – the final day of our 1000 Miles Challenge!!! I can’t believe we’re here. Breakfast was rushed this morning, as we needed to get going hoping to avoid the oncoming rain. I wasn’t a very happy camper this morning (nor were the other people in our room) because Damian decided to get EVERYONE up in our 12-bed dormitory at 6.30am!!!! This was another short night with only 5h of sleep. As I tried avoiding getting up, desperately putting my pillow over my ears, all I could feel was a swoosh – and my blanket was gone. With Damian shouting “get up, get up, its time, we’ve got to go” the words we heard ever so often, the next blanket was on the floor without much resistance from Jorrin… What choice did we have but to get up! I slowly crawled out of bed into the bathroom, then kitchen, ate yesterday’s vegetable stew followed by porridge and toast (great combination…) and got myself ready. The final 110miles today!!

...the road to JOG

The weather forecast predicted heavy rain and Damian's parents coming up from Gleneagles confirmed that. Nobody fancied getting wet so we all tried to get everything together as fast as possible. We left at 8.15 and took the footbridge to the other side of the river and onto the A836 going North. The A836 then turned into a single lane road with passing places - the most quiet A road we've been on so far. At Altnaharra we went onto B873 along Loch Naver, with just a short 'faff stop' after to eat, drink, waste some time talking about things. The weather had been kind to us with no rain, slightly cold and some tail wind. Damian gave me a pocket history lesson of the Scottish Highlands starting around 16th century. We had a really good ride so far and did 38miles in 1.40h going up and down the hills. Time seemed to fly as we were chatting and pedaling.

...faffstop near Altnaharra

Then, finally, we saw the Atlantic Ocean near Bettyhill where we stopped for lunch. Everyone had a strong sense of achievement being closer to our final destination. Damian had a puncture; Ian stopped and checked the tyre. The tyre got changed and Damian drafted the car to get back to the group. The landscape became less barren and the hills were lined with yellow flowering gorse and the smell of pina colada was in the air. As we changed direction from going North to go East, we encountered good headwind and we chainganged to Thurso where we waited for Damian. We had apple pie and tea sitting in the pedestrian zone watching the main road. All of a sudden we saw a flesh of lightning racing through traffic - Damian. He didn't look like stopping to pick up his train tickets (an excuse to make us wait for him whilst he sneaks to John O'Groats???). We also missed Ian who tried to find a parking space. There was no time to waste. We had to catch up with Damian now.

...apple pie & tea @ Thurso, waiting for Damian

Leaving Thurso, Oli got onto what can only be explained as an 'apple pie' rush and I had real difficulty staying behind him. At some point Jorrin turned left to go to Dunnet Head, the UK mainland's most Northern point looking at the Island of Hoy. Oli and I continued to John O'Groats by ourselves going at incredible speed to the finishing line. We overtook a couple of LEJOG'ers en route, speeding past these guys with their panniers, backpacks etc - stuff we transported in the car - lucky us....Close to JOG we were then overtaken by Ian in the car.

We got to our final destination at about 5.30, record time also for us doing 110miles in 8hours with 3 breaks faffing around for only 1.5h. At John O'Groats we had pictures taken, did another few shots for the documentary and then waited ... Damian was the next to arrive and we took more pictures, video and were invited to the local cafe/bar for celebratory drinks by Damian. His parents also joined us in the cafe/ bar and we reported on some of the highlights of the journey and, waiting for Jorrin coined a new phrase: "We are now at the place named after a dutchman, waiting for a dutchman." Damians parents had booked a table at the Seaview Hotel and we decided to find the youth hostel to shower and get changed for the evening - no Jorrin in sight at that time (6pm).

...in front of the cafe/bar at JOG where we had celebratory drinks

Entry in LEJOG Book:
Olli, Damian, Dirk (Not Jorrin) arrived at faffheim today and wont be coming back ever again

The youth hostel, West of JOG (2 1/2miles) was the least accommodating SYHA and the facilities were ok, but actually a bit sub-standards having just come from Carbsdale Castle, Lochranza, Arnside etc...we had a 6-bed room, there was ONE shower in the men's bathroom, and the place locked up at 11pm sharp - no entry/ exit thereafter...we all felt a bit like being on a school trip.
I quickly showered and dressed to take the car back to JOG to pick up Ian and hopefully also Jorrin who should have arrived by now. I got there, parked the car and walked to the new arrival being inteviewed by Ian. I rushed them to the car as we only had another 35min to get ready for dinner. Damian had called the cab company in the meantime to investigate prices - £44 for 5miles was a bit steep and we decided to get back onto our bikes for a last ride!!!! Ian sprinted off like a young deer, dressed in his complete cycle outfit. Everyone else wore comfortable clothing ;)

We were met at the Seaview Hotel by Damians parents who treated us to a superb dinner with all ‘bells and whistles’! That felt good. We stayed until it was time for us to go back to the hostel, got a few more celebratory drinks to go and made our way back. It must have been 10.30 and it was still pretty bright outside. Its really amazing that it stayed like that for almost another hour (nice in summer but in winter the tables turn with long hours of darkness). At the SYHA we met some of the other guests of the hostel: fellow cyclists, walkers, holiday makers. We had a few more drinks before the warden turned the light off. We sneaked into Damian's bedroom to continue our well-deserved celebration for a little while longer before going to bed too. We will have to get up early next day to go from JOG to London - a very looong drive.

Things cycling:

Oli: "We are now at the place named after a dutchman, waiting for a dutchman."

Unknown: "It does take a while before the peanut butter enters the blood stream."

Invergarry to Carbisdale Castle SYHA (close to Invershin)

2010-06-03T11:03:00.011+01:00

We stayed in an independent youth hostel, south of Loch Ness, near Invergarry. The rooms, facilities were ok and we even had access to free Wifi, something we struggled to get anywhere else. After a quick breakfast the riders got into their gear and decided to make a quick detour to see one of Damians school mates. Today was my rider/ cameraman support day driving the car – staying well clear of any bicycle. After only a 5mile mile ride we got to the CALEDONIAN HOTEL at Fort Augustus. Arriving at the Caledonian Hotel also known as "The Caley,” run by the MacLellan family, we were greeted by Chris and shown into the dining area where we got a superb cooked breakfast. It was also ‘fafftime’ carried out by the specialists - The Faffbrigade (Jorrin, Ian, Damian, Dirk) with some having their 2^nd and Oli his 3^rd breakfast. We had the chance to hear Damian on his back pipes, the MacLellan children accompanying him on flute and drum, after fixing Damian’s finger for him to play his instrument. This was very entertaining for the guests and us. We then said our good buys, went outside, talked about motorbikes, looked at our bicycles, some weighing and discussing technological advances in bike manufacturing, exchanging vital information about Scottish families Damian knows and so on, and so on – anything to prevent actual cycling….hours seemed to go by...

its fafftime...

We then left for FORT AUGUSTUS ABBEY, at some point a Benedictine School which Damian attended. There, Damian told us all about his school time there and all the naughty things he and his mates were up to. At some point they sneaked out of the school and the school called a huge rescue operation involving the coast guard, police, mountain rescue as they did not know what happened to the boys – only to find them the next day at mate’s house sitting comfortably outside eating their cooked. This netted them a good naming and shaming ceremony in front of the whole school and as a punishment they had to extend the schools' pier into Loch Ness (picture below). With the faffbrigade at work yet again, it seemed to take forever before they finally went onto the road to do some cycling.

The route then went alongside Loch Ness on the South side. We encountered a few steep hills and some very nice downhills, spectacular views and the most impatient caravan/ car drivers so far. They must have been locals who don’t really care about their surroundings and just want to get from A to B as fast as possible on the very narrow lanes which are equally shared with walkers, cyclists, and… horse drawn carriages… Ian took some good photographs and shot video whilst he instructed me to drive here and there to follow the riders. He then missed ‘the money shot’ going downhill in front of the drivers but actually only filming the grass, back of the car, rather than the riders speeding down…. Opposite Castle Urquhart (on the North side) we had lunch, shared stories of people drowning in Loch Ness (at a constant 2C very cold), discussed the use of heavy water for submarines with everyone sharing their half knowledge on chemistry before being enlightened by Ian that heavy water is known as deuterium oxide, D2O or ²H2O, or as deuterium protium oxide, HDO or ¹H²HO and used for submarines – thanks Ian, always wondered!

We then drove to Inverness, where the riders following the Garmin and Jorrin waited on the Bridge over the Moray Firth where the support car overtook him going onto the Black Isle. The cycle group met up little later. In Munlochy, Damian turned off into a side road to get money from the cashpoint, Oli and Jorrin waited, waited some more and then proceeded to Colbokie.We all went into the Highlands (via Evanten), avoiding the A9, where the riders had to cross an unguarded railroad opening the little gates to pass it. Then onto the B9176 towards Bonar Bridge (what would Beavis & Butthead have made out of this...). The lads were making an average speed of 16mph with the threat of rain behind them. All of a sudden, Damian started singing dirty songs and picking up the speed to 26mph facing strong headwinds and going uphill - nobody knew where the extra energy came from after having done 80 miles already, knowing its another 13miles to our luxurious SYHA. We passed the Struie peak (1218 feet), where Ian and myself met a group of fellow LEJOGers doing it for holiday (in 16 days). They were on a completely different challenge – the breakfast challenge! Each day one of the riders was in charge of breakfast and it had to be better than the day before – if that wasn’t the case the rider had to do it again the next day. Theirs front and rear panniers were not full of clothes but food stuff!!! Having chatted with them for about a hour and none of our group showing up we went down an amazing downhill to Westerfearn, with 10 miles to go to the Carbisdale Castle.

At the hostel, we marveled at the grandeur of the castle, took a few pictures, talked to some guests and started to make dinner: spicy vegetable stew, salad, celery & humus. The riders got there by 5 and got changed and came for dinner. We had the soup and drinks and then Damian went on to make Haggis. This was followed by the traditional Haggis toast by Damian, startling of the Slowenians and receiving a good round of applause from everyone...

We all slept in a 12-bed dormitory, I updated the blog and chatted to come other cyclists (on their bikes since 1948) discussing British bicycle manufacturers, Ian sorted cameras/ pictures and Jorrin, Damian and Oli went to the pub. Bedtime by 1.30 (unsure for the others)...

Tomorrow - last day of the 100 Miles Challenge - LEJOG 2010

Things cycling:

Faff (verb) - to waste time doing nothing. 2. to waste time doing stupid things 3. to delay, dilly-dally, especially before leaving the house to be on time somewhere.

Example 1: "I didn't do anything on Sunday; I just faffed around the house."

Example 2: "I can't decided between these 2 jackets to wear to the movies. Which one? Where is my black hat? Oh wait, let me get my phone. Do you know where I put it? Oh and did you feed the cat dinner? Maybe I can just check email really quick right now; we have time." ...faffing at its best

Oli - "Gentlemen, you are now in the faffzone! I've had 3 breakfasts, we played several instruments, took over 50 photographs, said our good buys and have done only 5 miles so far.

Damian - "Being lost is just another way to improve your geography"

Unknown: "..and I think this is Loch Faff"

Dirk to Oli: "Whats on radio Oli today? - Oli: "Interference..."

We've measured distances in Brightons (London to Brighton is about 60miles) and also in trips to work (Oli 34miles roundtrip, Damian 30miles, Dirk 3miles...)

Lochranza (Arran) to Invergarry (near Loch Ness)

2010-05-31T23:11:00.009+01:00

got up nice and early after getting to bed very late. The lads went to the pub that evening having a swell time with the locals but I stayed back and write bog, before its all lost along the route. We had to be swift to get the first ferry at 9.30 (the next one would leave at 10:45 which was too late). The boys had a hard time getting out of bed but luckily my phone alarm went off and I had difficulties silencing it... We got everything and everybody ready just in time, all of us ready? of course not, Jorrin, the uncrowned "King of Fuff", was just starting to hang his laundry on the rails, clean the bike, pump up the tyres...

I had to leave to get the ferry and gave Jorrin his ferry ticket and then sped of to catch the boat just down the road. I got there with 15min to spare and admired the rather small boat (car ferry) to cross over to mainland Scotland again. We met a fellow cyclist who's been doing the touring the British Islands for the past 3 weeks. We had a good chat and boarded the ferry - even Jorrin arrived 5min before departure. Not quite dressed but physically present...

Its amazing that its only been yesterday that we did this ride but its already faded into the background. The ride that day was another 130mile ride and faced with such a challenge one really only thinks of the next few pedal strokes, maybe lunch, maybe the next biggest town when on an A road. If you're in the middle of nowhere going up and down the hills, time seems to stand still. Battling with exhaustion and pretty much all the way on recovery drink, one loses focus with the surroundings, hardly noticing the changing landscapes, beautiful mountains, not to speak of birds and things nature generally. But this is what happens if 1000 miles are crammed into 10 days. Riding from A to B becomes a mission, going from town to town are the mini missions - more important than the actual journey itself. It still is a journey but with a different focus. We've met people who are taking 3 weeks to this distance and its probably the right thing to do.... not for us. We battle on!!!

That day I really had a hard time getting started. It took me until lunch time (55 miles) before I started enjoying anything. Before that everything was dreadful, cycling on the straight roads was because I also had to lead and I just didn't have much energy. Going up the hill was terrifying because as soon as I was up, there was only a short downhill before the hill went up even steeper. The road just followed along 'a' lake but went ever higher up. I just dind't want to be on the bike anymore. The scenery was nice, but I didn't really care. We had a spectacular downhill too and at about 40mph jumped the odd cattle grid here and there (2m lenght) - on our racing/ touring bikes - bringing back the days of riding BMX/ mountain biking... that was fun.

At lunch we met another fellow cyclist who stayed and chatted for a while. He had a pretty old racing bike, really old school. We had sandwiches, thanks to Ian, and then began our final 50 odd miles to get to our youth hostel near Loch Ness. This guy, on his old bike, set a pretty good pace and we all had trouble following. After about some 15miles, taking turns at the front, my strength came back and I felt great cycling. I was fully rejuvenated and enjoyed the pretty torn road. I am wondering whether I may have been overdressed with long cycling trousers, cycling jacket & long gloves. I dressed into short gear as I was just too hot! For some reason this felt much better. At some point, some 20miles down the road, Oli and myself split from Damian and also Jorrin fell behind. We set ourselves a good pace and drafted each other along. The road led past Ben Nevis (Fort Williams) and further into the Highlands. The road was always pretty bad and we got a free, yet involuntary massage. At some point Jorrin also caught up with us and the 3 of us plotted along. At some point we found a little cycle path going to Invergarry and we didn't stop anywhere, for anything. We were flying.

We reached the Invergarry Lodge by about 7.30 having done 134 miles that day. We were pretty tired, had a shower, dinner, and I wrote more blog until 1.45am. Tomorrow was another day off for me. My toes are not recovering and 2 are numb completely, knees and tendons are sore - and to make it really clear, I'm whimping out tomorrow joining Ian and do the driving whilst he focuses on the filming.

2 more days to go!!!!

Lochmaben to Arran (Lochranza)

2010-05-30T23:54:00.007+01:00

....we've covered some distance already...

WOW!!! we got up this morning at 6:13am, packed up our stuff, had breakfast, asked Ian to pack our things together, gave him detailed instructions on how to pack my tent, put on our cycling gear and off we went at 7.3o - a new record for us (Oli, Jorrin, myself).

We put on our wet gear as we expected showers throughout the day. I personally do mind cycling in the rain, to be precise - I dislike cycling in the rain, especially cold rain... Therefore I began chanting the age old German sun prayers ("Sonne, liebe Sonne, komm schein auf uns herab....") to make the sun appear, rather than focusing on rain not to come (Law of Attraction ;)

We had an amazing cycle ride along the river Ae, through the hills, through the peaceful forest. Oli was not having a 5 minute delay this morning and set off before Jorring and myself taking the A road to Cumnock. Whilst we took the spectacular shortcut through the mountains he was by himself on the busy and really badly maintained A road....As we pedaled along I remembered... The Toilet Key! it was still in my cycle jacket pocket. We stopped and I called Doug - or at least I thought I did. I woke up some guy at 7.30 in the morning telling him about the key and posting it back to him and so on. The guy on the phone had absolutely no idea what I was talking about and after me explaining the whole thing a few times he said that "I called the wrong number" and I did. I then called Dugal and explained the story again, promising to post his toilet key back to him.

A little later we caught up with him after our 3mile downhill and joined the A road to Cumnock, silently sneaking up behind him, putting my foot on his wheel and getting a terrified look from Oli who thought his rear wheel just died....

Together we cycled at top end speed to Cumnock, where we wanted to have lunch. By now we had several light showers and our clothes were either wet from the outside or from sweating on the inside. We decided to skip lunch as we heard the Ian wasn't going to join us. He packed the car in the morning, stried to start it but was greeted by a flat battery. Today was also the day the MOT of Oli's Saab ran out. Ian drove to Dumfries to get the MOT done. Upon arriving at the garage they told him he had to unpack the whole car for it to be checked for MOT. They found that the rear shock absorbers were gone and some other small stuff. Total bill of £395... hmmm, great!!! Ian footed the bill, being very lucky the garage could organise the parts quickly for the car and got it all fixed and MOT'ed in good time.

We cycled to Kilmanack where we stopped at Little Chef to dry our clothes. We stripped in the bathroom and used the hand dryers to blow-dry our shirts, jackets, whatever else needed drying.... We had some substantial lunch, deserts, coffee before setting off again to Ardrossan going to the Island of Arren. We got there pretty quickly, almost flying with a good tailwind supporting us. We got to Ardrossan Ferry just in time to get on board (£30, 3 people return).

On board we met fellow LEJO'er Damian Bell who was sitting down enjoying lunch. We exchanged routes and travel stories. Arriving in Arran we set off to get to the North of the island to our SYHA, Lochranza. The island of Arran, in the Firth of Clyde in Scotland, is frequently called "Scotland in miniature" - and rightly so! There is everything from beautiful beaches, hills, mountains etc - deal for walking, mountaineering, kayaking, and of course cycling. The climate however, is different from main land Scotland. More Mediterranean somehow, some palm trees, more flowers, warmer. We immediately felt the difference. Damian educated me about the island and its strong branding "Arran" and its golf courses, produce, etc. We cycled another 14 miles on top of our 60miles on the mainland (totaling 'only' 74miles today...). The island can be circumnavigated on the main road and its roughly 55 miles. However, going North to Lochranza is via a very steep mountain and we really struggled on this one. The downhill on the other side however was worth the climb - as usual...

photo courtesy of: http://www.hughspicer.fsnet.co.uk/arranpag.htm

The SYHA was a newly refurbished and kitted out house with modern rooms, superb bathrooms, kitchen/ dining facilities and very good clothes drying room/ washing machines - and a very small and dingy bike shed...The hostel was closed for about 18 months and has been completely refurbished at a cost of £500,000. We had to wait for Ian to arrive in the car with all our change of clothes and food.

Oli and I rested in the room whereas Damian and Jorrin went to check out local neighborhood (pub really). Ian arrive an hour later with his story of the day getting the car up and running, fixed, getting to the ferry, and just about managing the last one onto the island -phew. VERY WELL done Ian - this was quite a job for him today to get it all sorted!!!

We had some nice dinner: Salad Deluxe (leafs, pear, cheese, croutons) together with Couscous, pasta, sauce, drinks... Lovely jovely. carbs, protein, the whole shebang!!!!

Off to bed, now, 1.27am... tomorrow, back to Scotland going further North, slowly into the Highlands... over and... yawn... out...

Things cycling:

OLi: "my arse hurts, I just can't sit down anymore"

Jorrin: "are you pulling a 'Deuan' on me?" referring to me sucking his wheel whilst riding close behind him

Oli: "I was in the zone again. What did you say? I was just tuned into radio Oli, my all time favourites like The Beatles, Rolling Stones...BUT there are also other songs like 'the road to Kilmarnock, the road to hell' or 'You take the s**t road, I take the Garmin...' - Oli's mumbling as Jorrin and I passed him on his bike after him riding off in the morning...

Jorrin: "Its getting cold here! Can't we just turn back to Lands End and call it the LELE ride (Lands End - Lockerbie -Lands End)?

Ian: "I feel like I'm going to be sick" - after 120 miles, in the middle of nowhere, without any water or food left

Oli: "The only thing actually NOT hurting is.... my right nostril"

Dirk: "I'll have the backed potato with tuna, a coffee and a small blanket please" - to the staff at Little Chef (Service Station, Kilmarnock) - to which the waitress look slightly puzzled, in her head going over the menu, then saying: "We don't have blankets"

Arnside to Lochmaben (Dumfries)

2010-05-29T23:41:00.004+01:00

ahhh, my rest day. After yesterday's ride I really had to take a day off cycling. My mission for the day was to support the riders and also to film. We headed to Kirkstone Pass (Lake Disctrict, close to Windermere). This pass is apparently the longest incline in the whole of UK. Well, not for me today. We got up kind of early with the usual fuffing around, people looking for stuff, cleaning all the drink bottles etc.

We set off at 9.30 (later than planned - as usual) and headed for Windermere through some nice countryside where I managed to drive and film at the same time. Not advisable but how else were we going to get some footage for our documentary. I followed the bikes as much as I could sneaking through the tight corners, avoiding cars and staying close to the group.

We got to Kirkstone Pass where I headed up the mountain to wait for the riders struggling uphill. An my, oh my... this was a really steep uphill!!! The guys made really slow progress and I had time to film the stunning mountains, and general scenery. As I saw them coming up I quickly filmed them passing me and jumped back into the car to follow them on their descent downhill - the road was not too busy, just a few cars coming up. At the speed these guys were going I had trouble following them (and filming them at the same time - the footage will tell). They sped downhill at up to 45mph (72km/h) and I wished I was on my bike too.

We stopped in the valley and arranged for lunch break near Carlisle (Scotland). When I got to Armathwaite (?), which is in a valley, I realised there is no O2 reception which meant I had to drive back to the nearest hill (2miles back) to send a text that I got to the lunch stop. I also checked my emails, replied to one or two of the now over 100 emails in my inbox, spoke to Martin on the phone and said goodbye to Janine who is leaving Embrace to go back to Berlin - we will miss her very much!!!!

The guys came for lunchstop at around 2.30 pm, later than expected. I prepared sandwiches (toast, salad, mackerel filets in tomato sauce) and they ate whatever else was there - bread & jam/ peanut butter, had recovery drinks, bananas/ other fruit before setting out to get to our agreed final resting point this day - Lochmaben (8miles from Dumfries). It was my duty to go shopping for dinner (camping tonight) and also to find a suitable campsite and get everything ready.

I took the motor way to Dumfries, went to Aldi to get our evening supplies of:

BBQ chicken (chilled) - 6

Salmon Filets (frozen) - 8

bread - 2

milk - 1

cheese - 2

peanutbutter/ jam - 3

salads - 4

hop fruitjuice - 4

I checked my phone for campsites near Lochmaben, found one, called the warden, Dugald and checked for directions to get to the site. It was the Kirk Loch, Caravan Site, Lochmaben (left behind the Crown Hotel) where I met him shortly afterwards. In the meantime I was texting to Damian to possibly meet in Dumfries but I couldn't wait as Dug was only going to be there for a short period of time. Damian had passed Dumfries at 5pm and made his way further north. I got to the caravan/ campsite where I was greeted by Dugal, the very friendly warden who showed me where we can pitch. I explained to him that we are doing the LEJOG ride to raise money for Proejct Peru and upon hearing of our noble quest he decided to also sponsor us by giving us the night for free!!!! THANKS A LOT, we those random acts of kindness really make this journey so very pleasant. The one thing he said I must not forget is to drop off the toilet key next morning...

I started unpacking everything, organised the "stuff" in the car and began pitching the tents (2), put up the BBQ, made everyone's beds, put their things in their tents and then waited for their arrival. I thought it wouldn't be long before they arrive as Damian passed me at 5pm. I wrote some blog, checked the local neighborhood, rearranged my cycling clothes and started to clean and maintain my bike - this already took a good hour (tightening screws, cleaning the chain, wheels, hubs, adjusting the brakes and so on).

Finally, at around 7.30pm the dudes arrived - completely knackered. Oli was the first to arrive and he stumbled off the bike towards me with his story of why he's first: "sorry mate, I just couldn't do it anymore. I had to just get here, get a cuppa. I'm exhausted. The last pot hole really did it. Argh, my backside..." he got his cuppa, had a shower and then Jorrin and Ian also arrived. They did some 132miles that day passing by Hadrians Wall.

We had dinner, laughed, chatted to fellow campers, passers by as we were the only campers on this caravan site and even got another random donation from a truck driver! At around 11pm we went to be with the hard promise to get up at 6am and leave at 7am latest!!!!

Peckforton to Arnside (near Lancaster)

2010-05-28T23:20:00.002+01:00

...and here came another 110miles ride. We woke up around 6.45 to get our stuff ready in our luxurious rooms. Breakfast was from 7.30 and we aimed for a 9am start. It was really hard getting up as my quads (things around the knee) really hurt, one of my toes in the right leg was completely numb and my wrists only partially functional. Jorrin, who slept in the same room suffered in silence (making funny faces) as he tried to flex his right leg. He had to take some painkillers in order to ride today. the same went for Olli who had problems with his knee ever since we started. Damian was in overall good condition apart from his fingers which also went numb from time to time. Deuan, who only joined us for 2 days, kept complaining about pain in the royal behind. Something everyone had in common. The constant rubbing of the cycle shorts, the fixed position on the saddle, gripping the handlebars more or less tight combined with a forward leaning position, which puts pressure on the wrists is not ideal. "Why did I sign up for this" , "can't this be over soon", "I wish I had a better bike", together with "why didn't I do more training", are some of the thoughts that keep spinning around in my head as we cycle.

At some point the stunning scenery is hardly noticeable as all one wants is to get to the end of the day. Mile after mile of trees, road, cars, mountains becomes blurred as the focus shifts on being a more effective cyclist. I already mentioned the drafting game (cycling close to another cyclist to use them as wind shield). Then there is definitely the "aerodynamics" game where I try to use every and any hill to bite my handlebars, tuck my knees in, stick my bum out. All in the name of improving personal aerodynamics. It really makes a difference. I noticed that whilst other riders started pedaling much earlier, I was still going at the same speed as them without having to peddle. This can be further improved by riding behind someone who is sitting more upright. In their wind shadow, one can get away without pedaling at all whilst they are already working their **** off getting up the next hill. It all comes down to endurance. This is not a who can go fastest competition but rather a teamwork of using everyones strength to get from point A to point B without dying from exhaustion, dehydration, injury or accident. Over the course if this journey I had to keep a low profile, learning quickly how to draft, constantly improving aerodynamics, saving energy wherever possible. The more trained riders took the lead way more often than I did.

Anyways, where was I.... had breakfast buffet at the Peckforton Castle, took some pictures with one of the managers, got dressed and started pedaling again... The route overall was pretty straight forward for the first 50miles with regular ups and downs through suburban England passing by Northwhich, Warrington, Bolton and via Blackburn. This part of the tour was the most straight forward but also the most unnerving as the traffic was a constant hassle. Then came Bowland Forrest (Lancashire?). The the scenery changed dramatically. From nice shrubs, trees, undergrowth - to nothing at all apart from a few flowers, grassland and steep hills, and back again to gentle up and downs. We climbed a very long pass over the mountains into Lancaster with strong headwind all the way. Wherever we seemed to turn, the wind was always in our face. For every pedal stroke forward the wind pushed us back half a pedal stroke.

We finally made it into Lancaster with Arnside on our mind. The 15miles were agonising and we all wished that the YHA would appear magically after each turn... it didn't. We had to keep pedalling until 7.30pm when we finally reached the Arnside YHA. This was one of the best YHA's we've come across on our journey with professional kitchen, food menu and bar.... shower, dinner (leftover pasta from YHA school catering, spicy pasta sauce with tuna), and a cool drink ;)

After that we discussed prospects of having a rest day which meant calling ahead to all the YHA's... We couldn't reach any and decided to go on. Not for me though. I swapped places with Ian, our driver/ photographer. I wrote blog until 1am in the morning and then went to bed in our comfy 5-bed, 5-men room (did I already mention that the the protein drinks cause flatulence?)... over and out

Abergavenny (Pandy) to Peckforton

2010-05-28T00:18:00.005+01:00

We got up at 6.30, woken up kindly by Oli! Most of our things were prepared for a timely departure the evening before. All we now had to do was to have a quick wash, have breakfast,make sarnies, pack the BBQ, pack our tents, move everything in the car, fiddle with the bikes, last minute faffing around... All this took until about 9am before we finally managed to get ourselves on the road. As we rode out of the campgrounds, the owner kindly asked us for payment which wasn't sorted yet. £25 lighter we set off. Damian didn't camp with us as he had a hotel room booked not far from us, setting off by himself.

Our first couple of miles were done in spectacular countryside going up Gospel Pass, going to Hay-on-Wye. The road a long, windy uphill struggle which took us up into the mountains. The scenery changed from grassland, flowery bushes to rather sparsely scattered shrubs and small mountain flowers. And then there were the sheep, literally everywhere! On that morning we did not take any of the Action Camera, bullet cams - why did we do that? Well, we ran out of batteries (they drain so quickly) and couldn't be bothered to wait for the rechargeables being ready. En route, Jorrin had a puncture and it took him 35!!! minutes to repair it!!! Very well done - a new inner tube would have taken about 5 mins to be replaced?

We arrived on the mountain top half an hour later and stared at downhill pass from heaven! We got our selves ready, zipped up our jackets and sped down!! With top speed reaching 40mph (65km/h). It wasn't just the speed it was the risk we took to go at that speed whilst still being able to control the bike in the bends (sand, sharp turns etc) and always calculating with cars coming up the road. Deuan was absolutely mad!!!! We learned later that his handlebar wasn't even tightened properly. He raced down that hill, me following him with some distance, without any regard for cars coming up - his great wealth of experience, intuition kept him safe - this time.

We arrived in Hay-on-Wye were we met up with Ian, had some nice fruits from a local fruiterer, drank some teas and had the loveliest butterfly cakes at one of Deuans secret cafés. We charged our batteries and continued our ride. We finally got to Wem where we met up with Ian to sort us out with proper rain clothes. It started to rain properly a couple of miles back and we were all soaked and cold. We met Ian at a supermarket parking space, put on new clothes, wiped our glasses, filled up on drinks and carbs (nuts, banana). We still had some 30 miles to go to Peckforton, or final resting place for the day.

By this time we had left the mountains well behind ourselves and were on straight, yet very busy A and B roads. The rain was still heavy so we decided to chaingang (aka roadtrain). This was the first time that we all worked as a team making incredible speeds despite the rain and everyone being cold and absolutely drained. Deuan, with his iron horse stayed at the back and Oli, Jorrin and myself took our turns at the front of the chain. In the far distance I recognised another cyclist and drawing closer we realised that it was Damian struggling by himself through the rain. We slowed down to give him a chance to join the roadtrain - something that does safe energy, allow higher average and top speeds. Its cycling teamwork at its best. Damian couldn't keep up as he still had his panniers. We cycled mile after mile and before we knew it we did 20!!! miles in about 1h despite the odds. We branched off some A road to Peckforton. We so wanted to get there. Peckforton Castle was going to provide all desperately needed things for us: food, shower, bed! Jorring arranged this say at this really fantastic hotel. Great service, extremely friendly staff who helped us with all our requests (washing our clothes, extra this and that). We had a nice 2 course dinner and some drinks. A little later I called Pamela and then went straight to bed. I was knackered, but again, another 110miles done that day bringing the total to 450miles in 4 days (of which I did 350 as I had a rest day.) In the morning we had a nice buffet style breakfast...

NOTE: My iPhone came back to life fully after I dropped it into the great white telephone at St. Just. I was over the moon that this piece of equipment survived full submersion. It took a few days for it to dry and the screen was all blurry at first, then the Apple sign came on, and 2 days later it was fully operational again...

Cyclists Things:

- Lets make a chaingang (road train) - cyclists riding closely behind each other using the draft effect with people switching places at the front, the other can rest and stay warm in the chain.

- Why aren't you drafting? - Dirk (Oli) to Damian.

- Does anyone want some magic? - referring to the on-the-road energy drink (powerful carbohydrates, electrolytes)

- Call the ****** potholes!!! - Oli to Damian (as Oli was going through the potholes which he couldn't see riding at the back of the roadtrain)

- Pothole, car, sheep, bump (up, down) - Damian after having been asked by Oli to call for potholes

- Map (Jorrin) and Garmin (Damian) have finally conspired to bring us ever more detours.

- Is it still very far? How many more miles do we have to go? Are we there yet? - Dirk asking various members of the group

- Damian and Jorrin, together the kings of faffing around, lets join them for a bit (Oli & Dirk)

- Straight, no its a left turn here.... hold on... it is straight... The Great Garmin following crowd

- Is it still very far? How many more miles do we need to go? Are we THERE yet??? (Dirk asking everyone, almost all the time)

Street to Abergavenny (Pandy)

2010-05-25T23:39:00.003+01:00

The morning started with a wake up call from Damian at 6.45. We were all shattered but we had to move on. We were on a mission. I had already decided not to cycle today as my behind was giving me too much trouble. I didn't want to risk any more serious injury by doing another 120 miles today and possibly risking not completing the journey. Damian, Ian, Deuan wer ready to go by 8am. Jorrin was just about to be ready however Damian pushed for a timely departure and Ian and Deuan followed. Myself and Ian helped fill everyones bottles but didn't really get involved in the hassle in the morning knowing that we're going to go by car. When Jorrin realised that everyone left he was really annoyed and decided to stay too. Jorrin had arranged to go to Wookey Hole (a cave labyrinth near Wells). We got there by 10am, had some ice cream and went into the caves on our complimentary ticket. The caves were impressive and the whole history was brought alive by the friendly guide. The caves have been used ever since the beginning of mankind as hideout and religious place, later some witches are believed to have habited in there bothering the local neighborhood. The last witch was driven out by a monk after some fighting with the monk turning the witch (and unfortunately also his dog), into stone by sprinkling them with holy cave water.

Jorrin was really unhappy about being left behind this morning considering he was almost ready to go and today's journey being rather straight forward. There really was an air of unhappiness and anger in the car with various opinions being expressed about team members individual performance, time and money being spent on planning and arranging the trip and everything now going pear shaped. Ian and Jorrin had decided to leave the 1000 Mile Challenge and go home back to London. This is how fed up they were with the team being split into two groups. For Ian, there was no point continuing to drive as there was no documentary that was going to come out of it. Jorrin was extremely unhappy about Damian wanting to go whenever he is ready, not waiting for anyone but also not supporting the team with general duties such as packing the car etc. There are obviously many different stories that are coming into play here and there are always two sides to the argument. From what I understand, Damian just wants to get up early in the morning and start cycling. However, the challenge is to cycle as a team whilst doing a documentary out of the ride to increase visibility for the sponsored charities and sponsors. It even got to the point where Ian and Jorrin discussed the way hone, what they'll take with them and how they'll get their stuff home. It was hard for me to stay impartial as I am friends with both Damian and Jorrin, and I could see both sides. Ultimately with Ian and Jorring leaving it was me or someone else who would have to continue driving the car, not being able to cycle. This was a totally different set-up.

We called Oli after we left Wookey Hole to meet up in Chepstow with the cyclists. In the car we decided that leaving the challenge now is really the worst possible solution. Jorrin, Ian and myself decided that we should try and go camping in the evening as planned - Damian was going to stay in a 5* hotel near the Black Mountains. We finally made it to Chepstow where Jorrin and Damian had a good old go at each other bringing up the various arguments that this whole disaster circled around: Not being a team, not waiting for people to get ready, being late in the morning, not leaving on time, not sticking to the route and points of interest to be visited, not waiting for the filming, etc.

What we found out later in the evening was that the Garmin re-routed the cyclists in the morning in a nice big circle bringing them back to the YHA on a 5 mile tour. This was enough for Oli to decide to go by himself as he wasn't having another Garmin detour staying on the very busy A roads until Chepstow. With heated heads, the groups (cyclists and non-cyclists) went their separate ways to meet later in Abergavenny, South of the Black Mountains. We got there in the car after an hour drive where I got to write up more of the blog. We went shopping at TESCO for BBQ tonight picking up a portable grill and foodstuff. A little later Oli called that they arrived at the meeting point, the big parking space in Abergavenny (at the bikers cafe). Oli's leg was giving him trouble (after last week's big crash) and Deuans behind wasn't much better. They'd done some 90 miles and were looking forward to some food and rest. Ian checked his phoen and found a couple of farmers where we could put up tent for the night. We set-off to Pandy some 5 miles away. Here we put up tent at The Rising Sun Inn which had a very good sized caravan campsite. We pitched tents (3) in record time, built the BBQ, I made some food for everyone, people went for the showers and then we all eat together with everyone helping to prepare, clean/ fix bikes, wash up etc. This was a great group activity and it certainly brought everyone together. The 1000 Miles Challenge continues!!!!

Tintagel to Street

2010-05-25T23:38:00.003+01:00

this day was going to be a tough challenge. 130miles through Cornwall an Devon, heading towards Glastonbury. We left pretty much on time but again the group split into two and Damian, Oli, myself went with the Garmin whereas Jorrin went with Ian as he wasn't ready when everyone else was. Again, there are two sides this - one, getting up in time - the other, being a team and pulling together.

We made good but slow progress through the Cornish Countryside. We went Tentagel, Tiverton, then to Withereadge where we met with Tom Staniford (member of the GB paralympic cycling team) and were also joined by Jorrin and Ian. We did a couple of miles him and his girlfriend. The good news at this point was that we already clocked up 78 miles. The very bad news was that it was 5pm and we had to do another 50. This really was bad news. At the speed we went it was going to take us another 5 hours. The Garmin took us onto and off the b roads which mostly was a waste of time and we had to make about 5 or 6 u-turns before it adjusted itself. We ended up using the map and Garmin alike to get the best compromise between being off the main roads and seeing nice country side and being on the main roads to go at greater speed, doing more miles.

It got dark at about 9pm and we still had another 20 miles to do and they seemed to last forever. I n the dark it seemed like we did a lot of miles but we didn't . The street signs were especially confusing as they seemed to indicate a certain mileage only to reach another village which had the same mileage written on their signs. frustrating. We all put our lights on, stayed as a group, warned on impeding/ preceding cars and just kept on pedaling. I at about 10.30 I felt like dying. I had absolutely no energy left, my mouth was dry and my concentration level was at a low point. Not ideal conditions to ride in the dark, on unknown roads, after 11 hours on the road. The energy drink made my stomach really sick, I had heartburn and just wanted to fall over and lay wherever my head hit the road.

We saw Glastonbury Tor in the distance drawing ourselves closer bit by bit. We knew that our final destination, Street, was close by. After another agonising 5 miles we reached YHA Street at 11pm, Deuan coming out on the road to meet & greet us. I really didn't register much anymore. This went for everyone. All we wanted was to shower, eat, sleep. I stumbled into the room, undressed, showered and collapsed Deuan and Ian kindly made dinner, showered, crushed into the bed Deuan laid for me. My mind was absolutely blank, there was nothing happening. After about 10 minutes Deuan called me for some food downstairs. Ian and Deuan kindly made pasta, rice and sauce together with a nice cuppa. This was very welcome. I could hardly hold the fork and coordinating food intake also proved challenging. I managed a plate, said good night, stumbled upstairs and straight into bed. This day is to be remembered!!! 13 hours on the road, 11 hours on the bike covering 130 miles of amazing countryside - but nothing for the faint hearted.

Lands End - Tintagel

2010-05-25T23:36:00.001+01:00

The night at the YHA went by very quickly. I woke up at 5am, slept, woke up at 6 again, fell asleep, then finally got up at 7am. Oli was already out and about and so was Damian and his girlfriend Andrea. Jorrin and Ian were still snoozing having sorted out cameras etc in the eve. The plan was to leave between 8 and 9am. I had porridge with banana and honey (huge pot) and some nice chai tea. I made sandwiches for the road knowing they'll come in handy later. Packing and getting the bikes ready took a really long time and Damian was getting very impatient as 10.30 approached. Whilst he was ready at 9am waiting for everyone else to get ready Jorrin had to fix a new rear cassette and various other bits and pieces.

This was the first time Damian and Jorrin exchanged a few harsh words as Damian wanted to leave asap whereas we all still messed about. Things we could have done earlier probably. The plan for the day was to cycle 6 miles to Landsend and start our journey from there into Cornwall, past the Eden project where Jorrin had arranged a welcome reception, a look around and food. We were also going to do 100 miles today, through the toughest bit of countryside England has to offer. Steep and frequent declines of between 10 - 20%. We finally managed to get to Lands End after Ian did a little briefing on cycling etiquette (waiting for people after climbs, highlight potholes etc). He did make an effort of bringing the group together.

We met Andrea at Lands End where many other cyclists also started out from, or arrived. We met a couple of guys who just arrived from John O'Groats, unsupported, in 3 weeks. We were planning on doing it in 10 days with support and 2 days camping - NO rest days, 100 miles plus every day.

We did a couple of short of the group leaving at Lands End and again, this took time, tensions among team members gre as we still dind't do any serious cycling and we were approaching 1pm. Damian has a Garmin SatNav mounted to his bike whereas Jorrin was using his map. We set out of Lands End and whereas the original plan was to go to the Eden Project, Damian already programmed his SatNav for our YHA in St. Just (some 90 miles from where we were). Going via Eden Project was going to add some 20 miles to the journey. We all followed Damian but it became apparent he wasn't going via Eden Project, Jorrin decided to split from the group and go with Ian to Eden Project.

Oli, Damian, myself decided to go straight to YHA St. Just as we approached 1.30 and still had 85 miles ahead of us. The Cornish countryside is really spectacular, especially on the bike. Zooming through narrow roads, up and down the hills through some stunning scenery. Green, green wherever you look. We passed long, white beaches sidelined with palm trees and lots of exotic flora left and right. The day started with a blue sky and the sun blazing down. We must have had close to 30C and were sweating a lot. We took water and water with sports formula to keep us going. The sports formula had so much sweetner(Aspartame) that my throat began to hurt and my stomach got upset. Whoever invented sweetners should be punished and this stuff forbidden.

We made painstakingly slow progress up and down the hills of Cornwall - in and out of small valleys, through the fields and mainly on the B roads, whereby avoiding the busier A roads. We got a little lost here and there as the Garmin was slow to respond or re-routed us a few times too often. This was really annoying as the main B road would be perfectly fine but the Garmin re-routed us on and off it on some smaller country lanes. We must have added about 5 miles on that day because of this.

At about 5pm we were all exhausted but still had another 25miles to do, at our speed another 2.5 hours or so. We finally got to St. Just but I almost didn't make it due to sheer exhaustion. I've never done a 100 mile day ride, which seemed to turn into a 150 mile ride in Corwall as its just up and down. I was physically and mentally dead by the time Damian announced its the last 5miles. I am not sure what kept me going.

We finally arrived in St. Just at 7.30. The YHA was directly at the cliff, overlooking the Atlantic ocean. The sunset was really magnificent and the friendly volunteers greeted us warmly. But what were we to do now? No support car, no change of clothes, no food, nothing. I couldn't be bothered. I was cold, exhausted, tired, hungry. I just had to lay down on the bed for 5min before having a shower, using the pillow cover as towel. I got back into my cycling clothes, wrapped the duvet cover around me and snuggled into bed. The YHA volunteers sorted us out with some chocolate bars, tinned soup and pasta. Damian made pasta and sauce out of it and little later called me and Oli for dinner. It was about 11.30pm when Jorrin and Ian arrived. I did not register much else that evening and went straight to bed, no brushing teeth, short good night, into the land of nod....

London - Lands End

2010-05-25T23:33:00.002+01:00

And the journey begins...

after weeks and months of preparation the day has finally arrived. Yesterday night was still pretty busy with last minute preparations to get bike and provisions sorted and visiting an old friend who came over to London from Barcelona for a few days. Back at home by 10.30, thinking of last essentials like the spanner to tighten the nut on the car rack, taking out the butter from the freezer and so on.

This morning, early start at 6.45, quick breakfast (porridge oats, banana, tea), packing things in the car, saying byebye to Pam and my baby and off I went to pick up Deuans house to pick up one of our cameras. From there to Richmond to get Jorrin, drive to Oli, pack everything in his car and off we go... so I thought. As these things go, planning in one thing, execution another. I got to Jorrin's house - waking him up!!! We had a coffee and I got to observe Jorrin pack his things. Considering how much stuff he did over the last couple of days, taking on way too much work it was no wonder he had to catch up on some sleep. Well, well we got to Oli's house at 10.45. Meanwhile, Oli and Ian (our trusted driver, photographer, fellow cyclist) went to Evans Cycles to pcikup some pedals as Oli's weren't doing it anymore. This is where it all started to go wrong....

Oli's pedals arrived at his home (thanks to royal mail) whilst he went to get some elsewhere. As we got to his house he was back starting to fiddle with our luggage but not a serious attempt to really pack it into the car. Then it was my turn to pack things from my car into Oli's Saab Estate. I almost managed to get everything in - almost. We had to take half the stuff out and take apart everything that was still in boxes (spares, cameras, etc). With Tetris-style precision we managed to fit everything into the roof box, boot, under our legs, between ourselves and where ever we had space. THE CAR WAS FULL. A quick coffee later and we were ready to go. Only to realise that there was a strange sound coming from under the bonnet. One of the fuses made a really strange noise. We unplugged it, tried starting the car - but it didn't make a sound. The neighbour offered a jump lead whcih we kindly accepted. I drove my car in front, connected the cables and tried starting. Nothing. Someone came up with the idea to rev up the engine. This did the trick to start Oli's car. I took off the cables but really burnt my had as the uncoated metal must got really hot whilst starting the car. Oli did a quick round through the local neighbourhood to get some juice onto the battery, we all boarded and off we went! With the fuse having blown, we were left without electricity. Nobosy cared except Jorrin who still had to finish off a translation - well, that didn't happen now.

In Richmond we saw a pretty tragic bicycle car accident (driver pulling out of a side road without proper looking - BANG... didn't look too good for the cyclist who was on the floor with medics around him). We were on the road, finally. After a couple of miles we realised that there was a strange sound coming from the right rear axle. We thought it was just because the car was way too heavy now with drivers, bikes, gear, provisions and didn't pay too much attention. We went onto the motorway going to Bristol I got to cool my hands on a frozen can which helped get the swelling down. Near Bridgewater we stopped for petrol and also bought SD cards for the bullet cameras. At £35 per piece another expense added to the total bill for this journey. We stopped at another guy on the car park to ask for a wheel brace as we thought that the rear wheel may have come loose, it didn't fir. We drove around Bridgewater to find a mechanic but quickly saw Halfords. Friendly staff sorted us out with the right tool. All bolts were ok and we kept guessing what this sounds could be (too infrequent for wheel bearings) and shortly after concluded it could be the suspension bushing.... we couldn't care at this pint as it was almost 19.30 and another 2.5h to go.

We thought we got to the YHA, escaping death by a margin (thanks to Ian's quick reaction avoiding the ambulance coming head-on). We drove down a nice country lane, misguided by the SatNav, only to find ourselves looking into the most beautiful sunset we could imagine. No YHA in sight though. We turned back, got some shopping, asked for directions, and continued our journey. We got to Letchaven YHA (Lands End) at around 22.00. Damian greeted us with 4 cold beverages and I started making some food whilst (Couscous with Salmon/Veggi/Pasta sauce) whilst Oli made everyones beds (how very nice of him) and the other guys unpacking, sorting out technical stuff. We had a nice meal, sorted out cameras, video making, etc.

Off to bed at 1am, getting some 6h sleep to start refreshed onto our 1000 Miles Challenge - Lands End to John O'Groats. Tomorrow you'll hear how the first day went (guests of honour at the Eden Project and much more!!!)

over and out - d i r k

Getting Ready...as ready as can be

2010-05-18T23:03:00.014+01:00

...it probably goes without saying that journeys of such character need preparing. There are a thousand and one thing to be thought of. It goes from rough planning, then into detail here and there (i.e. route planning, daily route, accommodation) and it all kind of goes in circles. Most importantly - the People (who does what & when), and coming up with an overall plan. Breaking down all major themes (route, accommodation, kit, sponsors, support, PR etc) into manageable tasks, team working and networking all the time to get everything accomplished. A lot depends on individuals pulling their weight at certain times to GET THINGS DONE. Project management in its purest form (and really, what isn't these days...). Taking into consideration the different people and their ongoing work and private commitments its actually astounding that we actually got here - with 4 days to go!

In retrospect I think its about that overall plan being put up, starting in good time, being opportunistic here and there, thinking on one's feet, some coordination here and there, group emails/ updates. Its everyone to their abilities, some team members contributed with time, some financially, some with expertise, and all with a little bit of everything.

Today, Tuesday, was a good day as any to start getting out the camping stuff from the loft and checking that everything is still there - where else should it be really having packed it neatly after last years' 1000 miles challenge (1100 miles in Japan). Three major categories to classify things into I was going to pack today (Camping stuff, Clothing/Personal stuff, Food):

Camping
tent, ground sheet, air mattress, sleeping bag, pillow, camping cooker & pots/ pans/ cutlery, picknick blanket (extra comfort), washing line, torch, lighter, pocket knife - the basics...

...it all packs up nicely (always surprises me)

Clothing/ Personal stuff
3 padded cycle shorts (ranging from £15 - £70, long/ short), 3 cycle jackets (general, rain, cold), various cycle shirts (long/ short), 1 cycle fleece, 2 pairs of cycle gloves (short/ long), knee warmers, socks, shorts, trouser, 2 pairs of shoes (mountain bike shoes with cleats), personal hygiene (especially electric toothbrush - wouldn't want to go anywhere without...)

Food (largely my responsibility)
we planned for the first couple of days and then buy things as we go along. Everyone putting £200 in the kitty to have food & petrol costs covered before setting out. Damian told me he already bought the fish, tinned veg and 40!!! Mars bars... We are extremely grateful to my partner Pam for sponsoring Costco shopping (picture below being a small selection of it). Our general shopping list:

- Weetabix large 2x / Porridge oats (largest box) 2x / Muesli (largest box) 2x

- Soy milk 5x / Milk on the day

- Coffee (instant) 1 large / Tea (green/ black) 2 green/ 2 black

- Fruitjuice (100% different flavours) 1l or 1.5l – 10x

- Peanutbutter (3x) / Jam (3x) different kind / Honey (3x)

- BAGs OF mixed NUTS (10) / BAG OF RAISINS (2)

- Seasalt (1) / Pepper 1 / Olive Oil 1

- Butter (3)

- Wholemeal pasta (3KG) / Rice (1Kg) / Couscous (1Kg)

- Tinned Fish, different variety 20x

- Tissues, Ibuprofen, Muscle ache cream

- Magnesium, Multivits

- Reusable plates, bowls, cups

- Toilet paper

Technical equipment
There weren't half as many conversations about technical equipment as there were about the route, accommodation, bikes... However, we are extremely grateful to Action Cameras for the 4 bullet cams; Luttrell Productions (Three Feet High Productions) for the broadcast quality camera, mics, tapes, tripod; Embrace Cooperation for MacBook; Ian Homer for his photo equipment.

Bike/ Kit
everyone sorted their own bikes out but there was some collaboration as Jorrin had an extra set of wheels we are going to take plus his infamous toolbox. With Brixton Cycles support we got quite a few spares sorted out so everyone just had to bring personal puncture repair kits, pump, small bits & pieces.

Our last training ride..food for thought

2010-05-16T17:08:00.012+01:00

...our so very last training ride
Today was to be our last training ride. We (all) agreed to meet on Saturday rather than Sunday to do some miles to conclude our training for next week's challenge - 1100 miles - Lands End (Cornwall) to John O"Groats (Scotland).

Getting up at 7.30 on a Saturday continues to prove a difficulty for me as my sweet baby Amy (8 months) still wakes up in the night to be fed. Thankfully, I'm just waking up to see my partner Pam feeding/ attending her. With months of interrupted sleep sacrificing yet another Saturday to go biking is something I just did not get used to. But, what had to be done - got done.

On the road to Richmond I got a call from Damian that he's not going to make today's ride due to other work commitments and setting up the Garmin for next week. 10 minutes later, still in the car to Richmond, I got another call that Jorrin wasn't going to make it, excusing himself with 'pressing' work to be done... hmmm, what just happened to our training ride I though.

Well, well... I got to Richmond to have a quick coffee at Jorrins and to go over to Oli's place to check our box of goodies from Brixton cycles which were in the car. We had chains for the various different bikes (8,9,10 speed), some rear cassettes, inner tubes, socks, t-shirts, drinking bottles and much more. By this time it was 9.45 and Oli and I decided to go to Boxhill (Surrey) and back as we both had things to do in the afternoon. The ride itself was about 40 miles there and back along the River Thames, past Hampton Court, along the A244 and then into some spectacular countryside (South Downs). With Oli on his brand new bike I really had difficulty keeping up with what was probably half of Oli's daily average commuting speed. Oli's internal compass functioned excellent and got us close to Boxhill. On a pretty narrow country road, going up a steep hill Oli pointed to the 20% sign indicating this road was going to turn into a serious downhill. The challenge was the road, narrow, steep, sidelined with trees and shrubs. There were patches of dirt and old leaves which were to be avoided (I thought...).

We probably did between 35 - 40 Km/h (20 - 25mph) which was quite fast on that road. We overtook to Sunday cyclists probably doing half that speed - being very sensible. At maximum speed we turned into a right corner and all I could see was Oli drifting out onto the debris, then completely off track onto the curb (RED DOT on the picture above). At this speed he was faced with 2 decisions. Go straight into the undergrowth and into the trees lining the road or continue on the curb somehow making it back onto the road. He decided for the latter. With the curb increasing in height to about 1.20m (4 feet) the challenge was now to get off it. He kind of jumped (with his brand new racer) but didn't quite manage the landing. C R A S H!!!!! man and machine hit the ground at top speed. The bike flew onto the road again and into my line. I stood in the saddle and my only chance was to ride over his bike as I couldn't circumnavigate it. I kind of jumped going right over his bike and onto the road again, slamming on the brakes, turning around - and seeing Oli struggling to get off the ground. Pretty shattered and shaking he wobbled towards me, and towards his, well, not so brand new bike... whilst dusting him off, the 2 cyclists we passed earlier came by with that "I told you so" look. One stopped to check if we're ok - we said yes, asking for the nearest train station as this was going to be the only way we're gonna get home having had a quick look at Oli's wrecked bike.

This was probably the most spectacular fall/ stunt I've ever witnessed whilst being part of it a few seconds later. Oli's knee looked pretty bad but the man himself seemed indestructible. The bike on the other hand was reduced to a heap of carbon, spokes hanging out, brakes bent in all kinds of directions... Of course we forgot to take a phone and the quick lunch (banana & dates) Oli had turned into mash. We saved the dates and continued our walk (2 miles or so) into Boxhill village. Fellow cyclists rode past - we walked. Both my wheels were buckled riding over Oli's bike with the front wheel still functional but the rear wheel bent to such an extent that I had to dislocate my rear brake to be able to ride. At some point I stopped a small van to ask if the van man could take Oli to the train station. This kind person stopped saying he was just about to go mountain biking and agreed to take Oli and bike to Boxhill train station. As we arrived there we treated Oli's wounds and waited for the train. Changed at Clapham Junction to Richmond, picked up my car and taking man and machine back to his home. I took the bike back to Brixton Cycles who quickly assessed that it was worth coming back on Monday when the shop was less busy. This kind of concluded the day's training ride.

What did we learn?
- probably not much.... apart from don't go too fast downhill if you don't know where you're going....

....check out the blood on the front fork - now how did he do that?

daddy's bike

2010-05-13T18:28:00.006+01:00

And here it is. My new training bike...

This beauty (Diamant Mens Bicycle) was bought in the 1960's by my father for 1.50 DM (Deutsch Mark) from the local pawn broker. I picked it up from Germany knowing that it was no longer needed there. Upon seeing his bike being put to better use again my father reminisced how he got the bike: "one fine day I went to find a bike which would take me to work every day. I bought this bike from the pawnbroker for 1.50 DM. Not knowing where the bike came from I was very afraid that the previous owner may see me on his bike, possibly beating me up for having stolen it. To avoid such a predicament I made sure that whenever I went out on the bike I had the receipt from the pawnshop in my jacket. After a couple of months, the note being washed a few times, I threw it away knowing that nobody I've not encountered so far is going to make a claim."

He was obviously very unhappy that I took it apart completely for transport and throwing away the mudguards, lights, front tyre brakes etc. After taking "unnecessary" parts off I fixed new inner tubes and took the bike for a 20 Km ride around the country side. The bike rolled well but the saddle, missing a few springs, was very uncomfortable and I had some difficulty walking after the ride... However, I still overtook a couple of Sunday riders that day on their high-end mountain bikes...

Back in London I replaced the old saddle (with another old one), fixed a new rear sprocket and chain, Brixton Cycles replaced some spokes and fixed the rear wheel as good as possible. I still need to get used to the old breaking system - peddaling backwards - which stops the bike. Its very ineffective and it takes me about 3 car lengths to stop at 20 km/h. In a city like London a little risky but I'll probably get used to it. The steel frame makes the bike comfy to ride and for its age its pretty light-weight. With the rear sprocket replaced for a smaller one (to increase top speed) I really enjoy riding it anywhere! I can now go to town on my bike, locked up securely with 2 D locks. I didn't want to do this with my LEJOG bike having had my racer stolen in November '09.

So, just over 1 week to go!!!
We've had a little planning meeting this Monday with Oli and Jorrin to check what needs doing and organising. Jorrin updated us on sponsors - and we are extremely grateful for those companies and individuals supporting us! To do lists were prepared and our last training ride day was set. Our final training ride is on Saturday, where we will go from Richmond to Boxhill or just into Surrey doing some 50 miles or so. I feel extremely unprepared not having done all the training rides the rest of the team was able to do. Well, I've bought enough pain killers and will just try to do as much training in this last week as possible. I'll probably get fit on the ride... thats my hope at least...

over and out

2010-04-03T23:04:00.012+01:00

Training Ride
RICHMOND PARK

... the day started at 7.30am (Saturday...), peeling myself out of bed after a late night having enjoyed watching footi at The Den (Millwall),- now... looking outside the window - heavy rain showers... as predicted.

Undeterred and knowing that Damian will probably already be on the road coming down from Ruislip I got myself and bike ready. Todays' goal was to ride 50 Miles as a group (or 7 Richmond Park laps).

The bike was still in unrideable condition due to the little tyre explosion during this week. With new tyres ordered but not yet delivered I had to drive myself and bike to Richmond. Thankfully the traffic wasn't too bad at 9am. I got to Richmond Park by 9.30 where I met Deuan in the park cafe, near Roehampton Gate, Damian followed shortly after. We had tea, talked quickly about the weather forecast and practicalities for the looming 1000 Miles challenge - 22 times today's distance of 50 Miles through known terrain.

Jorrin arrived within 5 min too , holding my tyre and spare inner tube in his hands. I was looking forward to riding today as the new Mavic wheel set was now complete:
- Mavic CXP 33 (strong, durable, good weight),
- Shimano Ultegra hubs (should do the trick),
- Sapim Laser Spokes,
- Bontrager Race Lite tyres
- Veloplugs (instead of rim tape)
- cost incl. build: £300

Compared to the original set-up:
- Double wall Euroline (pretty tough, go through everything - but quite heavy)
- Shimano RM40 (they do their job well)
- regular 2mm spokes (black)
- Schwalbe Speed Cruiser (pretty puncture proof tourer)
- Rim tape

Its quite amazing how the ride changes from having upgraded the wheels. Acceleration is greater, rolling resistance is down (from touring wheels to racing wheels). Saving weight at the right places was very important. I wanted a wheel set that was durable whilst being light weight. Replacing the spokes with lighter ones, swapping veloplugs for rim tape and all other modifications made quite a difference in performace. I was able to keep up with Jorrin and we managed a steady and fast pace around Richmond park clock wise. I was less tired and had more energy on the up-hills.

The heavy duty touring bike, able to carry 25 Kg on the rear rack, myself, front pannier - transformed into a little butterfly - well, you know what I mean.

Today was also a good day to practice drafting: "Drafting is a technique with which bike racers can save energy at the expense of the riders in front of them. This phenomenon lies at the heart of bike race strategy." You can read more here:
http://bikeracing.suite101.com/article.cfm/the_importance_of_drafting_in_a_bicycle_race

Another important training exercise today was to improve pedalling cadence aiming for a smooth spin at between 85-100 rpm (pedal revolutions per minute) which is much more efficient - and easier on the legs, especially the knees. For more info see "Cycling Performace Tips @ http://www.cptips.com/tech.htm

Today was really a nice training ride and I can feel that with the right bike, motivation, and more training - the 1000 Miles Challenge will be met head-on 22nd May 2010.

stay tuned...

2010-03-22T15:11:00.002Z

Training Ride - London to Brighton

On a sunny and slightly chilly Saturday morning, Jorrin, Deuan, Damian, Oli and Dirk set out to ride to Brighton (65 miles). We met between 8 - 8.30am at various places in London to be at the Fat Boys Cafe in Croydon for a 9am start.

With some time left, Deuan and myself cycled to the cafe to have a quick top-up breakfast - beans and toast - yummy. Its great to take the most quiet roads to Brighton as it can be a little overwhelming to have to ride past cars in a group of 5 with narrow roads and frequent traffic lights. As soon as we hit Coulsdon we went onto the small road leading through Farthing Downs. From there we used small country lanes and B roads. There is some really nice country side along the route. Despite being a bit chilly, one could feel nature awakening slowly from the wintry grip.

We only had a few punctures but the whole journey was pretty enjoyable. I had to get myself a pair of long cycling trousers as it really was a bit chilly and the last thing I need is a cold. After about 35 miles Damian and Oli turned back as both had other commitments on the day. The rest continued to Brighton.

We arrived in Brighton at around 2pm which meant that it still took us 4hours to get there (including 45min pub stop). This was not bad but also not great considering we've done this trip in 3.5 hours previously.

Upon returning to London Jorrin and I went to East London to see some friends and I was surprised that the body can recover so quickly having cycled some 65 miles. Cycling from Clapham Junction to Hackney and back was another 20 miles which brings the total cycled on the day to 95 miles give or take a few. This is the kind of distance we'll be doing on a daily basis in May - for 10 days with maybe one or 2 rest days in between.

We are all pretty excited to welcome our van driver Janine who also works for Embrace Cooperation (as project manager). She will be looking after the cyclists to ensure they have a meal for their lunch break and know where they'll be staying for the night.

[s]tay tuned to more updates as we get ready for LEJOG 22nd May 2010.

over and out - dirk

1000 Miles Challenge - Lands End (Cornwall) to John O'Groats (Scotland)

2010-02-16T09:38:00.012Z

And here we go AGAIN - the 2nd 1000 Miles Challenge is under way. Damian, Dirk, Jorrin, Deuan and Ollie are setting off on 22nd May 2010 from Lands End to John O'Groates. We plan to get this done over a 12 day period allowing another 2 days to get to Cornwall and back to London from Scotland

The objective is to raise money for Project Peru. The charity is run by a lovely couple David and Carole and a band of other fantastic volunteers - who donate all their time and energy into the charity.

As it is a small charity - there are no big admin costs - so virtually all the money raised goes to Project Peru (www.projectperu.org.uk). Please visit their website to see their work.

We are searching for a reliable van driver who would volunteer to support us while on our cycle ride. All food and accommodation paid. Interested? Please go to http://www.gumtree.com/london/95/54003995.html.

Please support me by donating generously though a dedicated justgiving site: http://www.justgiving.com/1000MilesChallengeLEJOG

My Challenge: 1000 Miles through Japan

2009-06-25T17:46:00.000+01:00

What’s my challenge? My challenge is to ride 1000 miles on my bike and to discover the country and culture of Japan. On my journey, beginning 3rd May 2009 (until 15th June), I hope to get a glimpse of other people’s LifeDreams, their hopes, aspirations, and challenges in this life. After all, life is what people make of it and I expect to see that people in Japan have their own take on it. Whenever one is faced with the unfamiliar, our spirit awakes. This journey through Japan will definitely kick my comfort zone as I will get lost, be faced with decisions I never had to make, meet people I never met before, and encounter the unfamiliar culture and customs of the Japanese which will definitely challenge me to embrace the new and make the most of everything which comes my way.

All this will be done on a tight budget and I will be camping throughout the 6 weeks living off my camping stove and what the land and people provide… On the right you can see a calligraphy of the word 'warrior spirit' something to be attained through steady practice of a still, honest, and open heart. I am very much into practicing martial arts and have done so over many years. It has shown me that even though one experiences pain there is always a lesson to be learned. The path towards success/ liberation is not the one with roses on each side but the thorny and rocky path. This challenge will be such a journey where I will encounter many challenges but come out stronger and, hopefully, a little wiser ;)

With this challenge I wish to raise money for Embrace Cooperation, the not-for profit company I work for, in order to establish a fund for young entrepreneurs who wish to set-up their own businesses and projects. I am inviting you to sponsor me to support this cause. Embrace has over 150 young adults who come through our doors every year and especially those who are with us for longer-term placements are invited to prepare their LifeDreams with us. Many of them have business ideas (their own fashion shops, cafe's, IT companies, crafts businesses or sustainable farming) and projects which they are passionate about. Embrace supports young adults from the UK, Europe, and from Africa (pictures left: Milkyas Mesfin from Ethiopia and Michaela Ruhland from Germany who have great entrepreneurial spirit and business ideas).

Together with YOU we can help Embrace raise the money they need and can offer interest free loans for these young entrepreneurs, small test-trading grants and dedicated business support and mentoring. Please sponsor me in any way shape or form you wish. You can buy ONE mile for £10 or €10 and it is my aim to get sponsorship for 1000 bicycle miles which I WILL cycle - no matter what!

You can sponsor me by donating CASH or money in cheques (payable to 'Embrace Cooperation Ltd', ESMC 1000 Miles, Embrace Cooperation, 3 St. Cloud Road, SE27 9PN London, UK) or you can put the money into Embrace's bank account (reference: ESMC 1000 Miles):

Embrace Cooperation Ltd
Account Name: 02940748
Sort Code: 30-96-07
Lloyds TSB Bank Plc

PAYPAL is available too (just hit the DONATE button on the right).... thank YOU so much for YOUR contribution to making other's LifeDreams come true! you know what's gonna happen ...what goes around...cycles around...

1100 Miles Challenge - tick

2009-06-16T14:30:00.013+01:00

It has been accomplished! 6 weeks in Japan have come to an end, 1100 miles (1800 Km) are cycled. It has not just been a bicycle tour but also a spiritual journey through a land where a large proportion actively worships the myriads of gods and goddesses. The sheer amount of temples and shrines are good reminders to stop for a quick prayer, pick up some `holy` water or protective stickers for your car to enhance safe driving.

I somehow feel connected now to a land which is so full of contrasts, where ancient temples stand next to skyscrapers competing for height. The experiences and memories from this journey will stay with and nourish me for a long time to come.

Most astonishing customs and ingrained behaviour patterns have definitely left an unforgettable impression on my soul. The politeness, seriousness at work, customer service generally...make this land a role model for many `Western` countries where we had to invent words such as `service desert` and regularly get annoyed at things not working or being in a state of constant chaos and in deep disagreement with `how things ought to be.` Of course there were also things that I observed in Japan which really went on my nerves such as the absolute disrespect for cyclists displayed by some lorry drivers, people leaving their cars on whilst going shopping at kombini`s (corner shops), inadequate cycling paths on potentially dangerous sections of roads. However, nothing is perfect and considering all the up`s then these things really didn`t spoil the soup.

Overall, I was able to experience first hand how open hearted, hospitable, kind and generous the people are that I have met. In the blog I really only mentioned some of the things that happened to me and left out a multitude of experiences which have made this 1000 Miles Challenge a 1100 Miles Pleasure. Whilst being physically draining and needing urgent service (both, bike and me), I now have a very clear image and feeling of how I want to continue living my life. Of course, many things were set before I came to Japan because I have been intending them, but, new attention has been given to different aspects of my life ranging from perfect health to financial prosperity over to healthy and happy relationships. The one book I took with me, The Law of Attraction (The Secret behind the Secret), has been an inspiration throughout the journey. I actually read it twice, just to make sure the key lessons will stay with me.

Some of the most memorable events of my visit to Japan were:

Sitting in the bathtub together with some tattooed Yakuza (Asama Onsen in Matsumoto),
The unforgettable scent, atmosphere and uphill struggle of Route 360 (Takayama to Toyama),
Sitting by the river and having sushi with Minoru-san & my first crystal bowl concert with Ikuko-san (Kanazawa),
Campfire and grilling fresh fish with Yoshiaki and Nishiyama (Noto, Wajima),
Racing along the scenic coastline on the R8 (from Toyama to Joetsu),
Being in solitude and at peace, and of course intuitively finding a new camp spot every other day...

What`s next! Well, I am intending to write a book connecting the lifestyle and stories of Samurai, their Budo, during the Edo Period (1603 - 1868) whilst cycling through some of the important parts of Japan in the present.

I will also make a short film of the hours of video which I shot here using my small camera. This should be an entertaining `Cycling in Japan` home movie... so, watch this space! thanks again to all the supporters of this adventure! Together we have raised over £1000 which will be used to start the Seed Money Challenge Fund supporting young entrepreneurs. There will be another 1000 Miles Challenge in May 2010 from Landsend (Cornwall, UK) to John O'Groats (Scotland). If you are interested in joining let me know...

Kyotse kete and
domo arigato gozaimashita,

dirk

31st May - 3rd June, Going `Home` ... a final push

2009-06-11T16:39:00.007+01:00

This is my journey from Toyama, the coast of the Sea of Japan, back to Noda, near Tokyo. The whole journey was about 380 Km and took me 4 days going from the coast over the Northern Japanese Alps and back into flatland. Starting out from Toyama was a challenge as it rained hard throughout the night and drizzled in the morning when i got up at around 7am. I used the morning rain to check the Internet in Toyama eki (train station) for an hour and also to fill up on drinks here for free. I got back to the tent at 10am, packed up and got ready to leave. By now the drizzle had become rain again and I had to put on my `wet-suit` which is at least keeping me dry for a while. The road out from Toyama (R8) was pretty dense with traffic and it didn`t make it any better that it rained. I had to cycle on the road as the cycle paths were really challenging due to the many interruptions and unneccessary bents. These all sap of my energy so I prefer riding on the main road where there are less interruptions but one has to deal with cars who aim to overtake with as little distance as possible. The R8 then became more quiet and turned into a beautiful road along the coast (see picture).

After 30 Km the rain stopped and I really enjoyed the steep rises of the road and the curvy downhills through tunnels and past spectacular coastal scenery. I stopped many times to do video or to take pictures. By now I rode with the Kamikaze (holy wind) and on straights was able to do 40 Km/h - this was amazing and I set my target for doing as many Km today as possible. I got to Joetsu and was still on the coast where i put up my tent by the beach. I did 120 Km in 6h cycling and now needed a bath and food. The Hideki family (picture) let me have a bath in their home after they explained to me that the local public bath was closed for a few weeks and the one in the city was prohibitively expensive. They gave me also some packed lunch and we chatted a little while.

The next day I went onto R253 which lead me into the mountains and onto the R17 whiich I was going to follow almost all the way back to Tokyo. The R253 was not for the faint hearted as there were many steep climbs, quite a few lorries and no cycle path whatsoever. This road must have gone up to about 1000m above sea level and the last tunnel before going to Minamiounuma (phew...what a name) provided a really breathtaking view into the valley and the promise for a good and long downhill section (picture). Just what I needed now! With my adrenalin pumping through my venes I raced down at top speed, overtaking the occasional car, and into Minamiounuma where I had a nice bath, put up my tent near the river, washed my clothes in the river, had dinner and went to bed around 10pm pretty exhausted.

The next day was a hard day all along the R17 and through one of Japan`s winter sports resorts at over 2000m high (Naeda). The towns I cycled through seemd like ghost town with huge hotels, closed restaurants and sight of the lift stations and nice but green slopes. These towns only come alive in winter but in summer a few walkers and hikers make the climbs up the many mountains. This day`s ride took me through really narrow, slippery tunnels and I decided to put myself in the middle of my side of the road to stop lorries from overtaking me inside the tunnel if there was oncoming traffic. Inside the tunnels it seemed like cycling through streams of water running down and the dim light didn`t help either. Out of last tunnel, finally. Another really breathtaking view into the Numata valley signalled the end of the mountains (just small hills). The downhill into Numata was the longest of the whole journey and I did 20Km going down all the way into flatland. Making good progress I went onto the R354 to Isesaki. A small shrine was quickly found to put up my tent, have dinner, no bath and sleep. I got up feeling dirty from the last day`s ride but packed up being very excited as this was my final push to Noda. I followed the R354 to the R4 which would then take me to the R16 and to Noda. This was THE most annying cycling day ever. Some cars seemed to completely disregard me as a fellow traffic participant and it felt they aimed at overtaking with a max. distance of 25cm. At the traffic lights I would catch up with some and made wild gestures whilst cursing them in English. Whether it helped I am not sure but I made my point... The cycle paths were almost unusable for me due to their intelligent design ;) (see picture).

Today I did 80Km and got to Noda around 4pm. I was soo relieved, put up my tent in the temple again, found the local sento, a really huge one with different baths and saunas for only Yen 550. I bought some food and fell into a deep and long sleep having done almost 400 Km in the 4 days. The next days will be spent training here in Noda and recovering from the exciting but physically draining last 4 days. I am now at 71 Kg and need to eat my way back up again having nice fish and finding new ways of grilling and frying it. I am sooo happy that this whole journey passed without any accidents. My prayers at the different shrines and temples for a save and exciting journey must have worked. I feel really connected now also spiritually as I am kind of exhausted but in very high spirits and full of energy despite the `little` weight loss. I am looking forward to my last week here before returning home to loved ones, family and creating the life I have intended to have.

There will be one or two more posts concluding my adventure and before completing the 1000 Miles Challenge. In terms of distance I am now at 1630 Km (1012 miles - yeh) but will rake up a few more before the end of the week exploring the local neighbourhood.

25th May - 30th May, Noto Peninsula

2009-06-06T19:40:00.007+01:00

After seeing mountains now for at least two weeks it was time for a scenery change. The Noto Peninsula with Kanazawa at its feet, Wajima on the top and Tayama again in the South would be my journey for these five days where I did some 450 km along the coast. I started out in Kanazawa where I was woken up by Minorou again who would invite me to his home where I would have my last Miso soup and rice. I left Kanazawa with both sadness and joy at the same time, because I met really cool people here and because I began to really get used to this very cosmopolitan city. It has been the best four days here in a city so far and I have not seen everything the city has to offer. This will have to wait for next time. For now, I was also happy to have some road under my tyres. On this day I would, for the first time, see the Sea of Japan. I took the Toll Road (or better its nice cycle path) up north to get to Wajima. The Japanese cycle paths/ pedestrian walkways are excellent and going north was pretty straightforward. I tried to stay by the coast whenever possible, but this sometimes meant to get off the bike and walk through the sand dunes as these have shifted onto the cycle path.

The first very interesting thing on the first day was the Coast Highway - a Highway directly on the beach, no concrete, just sand. There is two-lane traffic, without any signs or hard shoulder of course. On one side water, on the other dunes and some small shops. I had to get on this road. For the next 2 km I cycled on sand, which was hardened by the cars going over it - spectacular. In the evening I put up camp by the cost with amazing views over Gammon (a rocky coast with many caves).

The next day I got to Wajima where I quickly needed to find an ofuro (public bath). With this accomplished I went to the supermarket and then back to the beach-side camp. There I met Yoshiaki and Nishiyama, fellow travellers on motor horses (moped/ motor bike). We had much fun in the evenings trying to communicate in English and Japanese. The next day I went to town to check the morning market. Wajima is a fishing town and the morning market reflected this. Wajima is also known for its durable and colourful lacquerware and there are many shops selling local crafts ware. I was not tempted by the fish and the laquerware was pretty expensive so I just strolled along. Thinking I found a post office I went into one shop but it turned out to be a liquor store with Post Office flags in the front. However, they did have free internet. In the evening Yoshiaki and I would make a campfire and as he offered me some of his grilled fish I could not say no. This decision was not easy considering I have not been eating fish for six years. However, the scale in the public bath told me to do something as I have so far lost 8 kg. This was not a good sign and my tofu and beans diet for protein wasn’t doing it. From this day onwards I would have fish for the next few days, eating at least 1.5 kg in 3 days and managing to keep my weight where it was. The fish must have also done something else for my now worn out body as my wrists stopped hurting and my muscles recovered quicker after a day riding, so it seemed.

From Wajima I went to the furthest part North-East to see the Lighthouse, the famous terrace rice fields and checked out the Onsen. This day was spectacular despite a challenging ride along the coast. The onsen made it all worth it again. After then 120 Km I was pretty tired and I just wanted to fall over by the roadside. I stayed by the beach and put up my tent just there. Friendly locals told me not to make fire but all I wanted was to eat (salad & 500g fresh fish) and sleep. The next day was another 80 Km along the coast with spectacular sight of the mountains which must be over 250 km away and over 3000 m high and seemed ever so fearful knowing I have to climb over them again. By the 30th I got to Toyama where I needed to urgently find an ofuro, photo shop, supermarket and camp spot. Overall I have now done 1180 Km but one of the most challenging parts was still to come, the Northern Alps and 500 km. My body is starting to get tired quicker but I am sure that with a better diet and simply eating more everything will be fine.

Here some stats:

Weight at start of the tour: 80 Kg

Weight at present: 72 Kg Total distance covered: 1180 Km

Average daily distance: 70 Km

Longest daily distance: 120 Km

Highest speed: 68 Km/h

Lowest speed: 2 Km/h (with eventual standstill walking up to the Noto Lighthouse)

Daily food intake: 6 slices of wheat toast, 2 eggs, 1 tomato, 1 Grapefruit, 3 Bananas, 100 g bean sprouts, 1 small cucumber, 300g tofu or 500g fish, 100 - 180g peanuts

Daily liquid intake: 3 - 4 L (tea, water, juice)

Bike repairs: 2 flat tyres, 1 rear tyre exchanged (worn out), 1 inner tube exchanged (dead), 1 brake block exchanged (worn out), rear rack fixed (welding gave up), front cog repaired (lost a screw and bent the cog)

Pages written in diary: 60 Din A 4

Kanazawa

2009-06-01T13:33:00.006+01:00

This is a long report as I stayed in Kanazawa for four actual days. Arriving in Kanazawa after a short (30 km) cycle seemed like coming into a city which I knew. I quickly found a nice tent spot near by the river, close to the town centre (10 minutes cycle ride). My tent was well hidden in high grass (picture right) and only locals walked their dogs in the evening or morning. I went on to explore the city for the first day to get some kind of orientation as it’s been by far the biggest city so far with almost 500,000 inhabitants, mostly Japanese, but also quite a few foreigners from pretty much everywhere. They do stand out here as there are really quite a few of them who stay here for short or long.

Kanazawa is right by the Sea of Japan and I was happy to see it for the first time now after about 700 km on the bike over mountains and ever more mountains. The city is known also one million Koku (bushels of rice) city and under the powerful Maeda clan became on of the richest cities in Edo-period Japan (Tokugawa period running from 1603 to 1868 and is the premodern era). Under the leadership of the Maeda’s culture, the arts and trade flourished and the city quickly became a hotspot for all kinds of traditional crafts such as lacquering, gold plating, but also theatre. The city is divided into different districts, Samurai Districts (old traditional houses and well preserved streets), Geisha Districts (with tea houses and ryokans), the Temple Districts (mainly Buddhist shrines and pagodas). Kanazawa is also home to the very famous Kenroku-en (pictures left), a garden of magnificent beauty and there are only three similar gardens in the whole of Japan. This garden had to be enjoyed early in the morning, I was there at 7am when it opened as the tour buses come by about 8/ 9pm. I had the whole garden to myself and it was an amazing experience. The garden’s name: Kenroku-en, is derived from the six (roku) attributes of a perfect landscape, spaciousness, seclusion, artifice, antiquity, waterways, and scenic views. There are different natural landscapes from rivers, plantations, woodland and mountains represented in the typical Japanese garden (park style). There are also many tea houses which can be visited. I went into one, early in the morning and had traditional green tea and some sweets (for 300 Yen) and was received by a woman dressed in a kimono, who invited me into the tea room. Then I was served tea and sweets and was invited to enjoy the enclosed tea house garden and the tea house itself with many Zen-style paintings and arranged flowers. After sitting there for about 15 minutes another lady in kimono came in, went to the veranda, looked at the garden and invited me to join her to admire the secluded garden (it was not possible to get into it from the main garden despite being in the middle of it). I went onto the veranda and took a spot on the floor. The lady kneeled a meter behind me and we both sat there and enjoyed the peace and quiet. I did not notice her leaving. After a while it dawned on me that this ceremony was a typical Japanese gesture. Rather than just being told to look at the garden, there was a shared appreciation by two people. This was some kind of "aha-moment" for me as it provided a deep insight into Japanese culture. I sat there for another 15 minutes understood now why the trees were kept to a small size. They are meant to represent nature, but in a smaller scale. The streams are rivers, and the rock formations really seemed like mountains after a while. I was really profoundly inspired by this understanding. It’s kinda hard to describe. After the garden I went to see Myoryuji Temple (also called Ninja Dera) which can only be visited with prior booking (thank you Tourist information at Kanazawa Train Station) and the tour in only in Japanese. The English handbook to this amazing temple is pretty good though. The temple has a variety of trapdoors, hidden staircases and despite being a Buddhist temple it was a building designed for defence and strategy should the city be under attack. It is in an area where many samurai used to live and there are many other temples which seemed to have similar functions due to their solid structures, strong gates and good position. Here the streets ended in T-junctions which made it hard for an invading army to get to the main castle too easily. Kanazawa boasts with markets (for example Omi-cho market, which has 100 stalls with fresh fish, vegetables and all sorts of locally produced foodstuffs). It was hard to resist not spending my entire daily budget there. Kanazawa`s nightlife on the weekend is also pretty cool and I can recommend "Pole, Pole Bar", a place where many gajin go and the Japanese people have very good command of English which made it enjoyable to hang out there, something I haven’t done for 2 weeks. In Kanazawa I also met Minorou-san (picture right), a local crafts person, who sells his products (Noh-Theater masks & instruments) and many a thing near where I had my tent. He took me into his home where I tried various, rather challenging, foods from fermented soybeans to pickled plums. He showed me some sword drawing techniques. There I also met Ikuko-san (bottom picture), a singer/ songwriter who I got to see perform at Kanazawa Train Station Festival Dome. She also kindly promoted my little undertaking (1000 Miles challenge) to the whole crowd which was very funny and I felt rather "hashgashi" (shy) as I was center of attention. She makes the most amazing music using crystal bowls and her voice which seemed to put many people in a meditative state despite being in a rather noisy environment at this event. Kanazawa really has won my heart as one of Japan`s coolest cities and I really have enjoyed my last day here today with Yayoi-san who showed me Kanazawa`s famous Oyamna shrine and gave me another look at the Samurai district and its very unique layout, house & street styles, feature I missed when I went through here alone on the bike. Thank you to all those wonderful people who have made this stay in Kanazawa my longest in any city so far and who have shown me their city’s hidden niceties (especially the sweet’s shops) and who have opened their hearts to welcome a stranger. Thanks also to all those who have supported me doing this adventure!

Wednesday, 20th May - Fresh Air

2009-05-27T17:37:00.006+01:00

This really was an amazing night. I slept right through and did not even wake up once, unlike in the youth hostel. My alarm sounded at 7am but I snoozed for a while until 7.30. They I made breakfast, egg sandwich & tea, to give me strength for the journey ahead. Despite getting up early I did not leave before 9am. It took me five minutes again to get onto the R41 from Takayama to Toyama, getting onto the R471 at some point which would take me onto the R360, apparently closed for traffic (as the photo shop proprietor and someone in a kombini told me). I stopped at a petrol station and a friendly lady gave me a hand drawn map of the local area which showed the road block and how to avoid it. I thought that this should be cool and continued onto the R360.

Little did I know that this was to be the most spectacular riding day, ever! The road took me through small villages and past farms where the cows and humans alike enjoyed classical music via loudspeakers while grazing on freshly cut grass. This was not a bad life for a cow I thought. The smell of the air in this area was amazing. I simply did not want to stop breathing this fresh and sweetly scented air in (and how could I have anyway). There were lots of white and purple flowering trees. R3 60 on the other hand would quickly show its true colours (pictures). A steep and narrow road over 3 mountains, all over 1000m high. I continued my journey uphill as I saw some cars parked on the road. I did not think much of it and continued. And there it was - the road block. A huge gate fenced off the whole road and must have done so for quite a while as the gate looked worn down and some plants started to creep up on it. Completely blocked off? What did I see there? A narrow opening on the left hand side between stone wall and gate seemed just big enough to squeeze through. And it was big enough. From here onwards there would be no cars, no people and just me, the mountains and the lovely air - I thought. The road was blocked off for good reason as I would discover, because during heavy rain or snow regular earth/ mud slides would occur destroying everything in its way. The road uphill was the steepest I have ever been on. In addition to the many slopes (serpentine) the road did, I had to go up in a slalom style just to be able to cycle upwards. After every 30/ 40 m I had to make a stop to catch my breath and enjoy the scenery which was really amazing. Old pine trees mixed with those white and purple flowering trees, partly jungle and many mountain streams paved the way uphill, far and further into the mountains. At some point I ran out of water and the blasting and unforgivable sun made my mouth so dry that I had to take water from the streams, knowing that it was ok to drink from some travellers I met on the road. I filled up my water bottle and continued. After 12 miles I thought to have reached the top. The hard shoulder was replaced by ropes and sometimes there were just bags of sand indicating not to go near the edges as the road was instable.

What did I see there, white, glistening in the sun? SNOW, it actually was snow (picture right). I had to get off the bike to take a few handfuls to rub over my hot face and put in my neck. This was unbelievable. There were at least 20 °C and the snow would still last. I was very happy and continued further uphill onto a big parking space with no cars and non-functional toilets... I knew this was the top at around 1400m and that it was time to attach the camera to my front bag and to rock n roll downhill. After the first corner where 3 men were laying on the road reading, what it seemed, newspapers and magazines. They worked on fixing the road and were on their lunch break. I had a quick chat and then raced down the R360 on the other side into Shirakawago. The road downhill was just as slopey and up and I could only get to high speeds of 40 mph as there were too many sharp bends and curves. I stopped to see what my breaks were doing and I could not touch the rim of my rear wheel as it was very, very hot. I was very happy to have changed the tyre because the road downhill was sometimes plastered with stones or only hart partially applied road surface. The old tyre would have definitely gone bust here. I made my descent into Shirakawago spotting the Gassho houses (wooded houses with stee, straw decked roofs) on my way down. Not long before the huge tourist busses would come up the village road. I stopped in Shirakawago on the R156 to get some food and drink. An excellent local restaurant would dish up lots of vegetarian food (root vegetables, mushroom, cold & hot tofu, miso soup and a good bowl of rice). I filled up my water bottle and continued my way to Kanazawa, I thought. The next 20 Km zoomed by and I made good headway. There were huge dams, large bridges and nice scenery with plenty of old villages. Then the R156 became R304 which did not look as bad on the map as it actually was. A steep road uphill into Nanto with a huge tunnel, at least 3km long. I was already very exhausted having done over 60 miles already and R360 really drained me. My muscles were hurting and I felt I had not enough energy to put up my tent.

In Johanna (Nanto-shi) I spotted my camp site in a Buddhist shrine but continued driving into town for a supermarket. Camp was next to a rice field with what seemed myriads of frogs. I had a huge pot of stew with veggies, beans and tofu plus the obligatory bag of peanuts before collapsing onto my sleeping bag after nine hours on the bike including one hour for lunch. I would dream about the exciting race down the hill on the R360 with the wind in my face, the sweet smell of the mountain air and frogs wanting to tell me stories...

Tuesday, 19th May - Takayama

2009-05-26T12:54:00.011+01:00

I woke up after my second night in over 2 weeks sleeping in an actual building on a mattress (tatami). I did not sleep too well as it was too quiet and comfortable... I guess...

After a light breakfast I went into the nearby Takayama Park to find the Takayama-jo ruins (Takayama-castle). The park was pretty big and left to its own devices harbouring many song birds and providing magnificent views onto the Japanese Alps (picture right). The ruins were pretty disappointing as they were only sketched onto the ground with wood.

After that I went into the old part of the town to stroll through the well preserved neighbourhoods of sake breweries, wood craft and pottery shops as well as stalls offering locally sourced food stuffs. I sampled here and there and especially the different types of sake got my head spinning in no time. Considering I had to cycle a little more I stopped sampling after the second sake brewery - honest. In the last brewery I met a few Chinese who worked in Takayama and we had a nice chat (picture below).

I went to a store to upload the pictures from my camera. The very kind proprietor saw my bicycle and we got talking. He explained to me that I can’t take the R360 to Kanazawa as it’s closed for traffic. He went through lengths explaining which way to go giving me some local maps, too. He also told me to go to Shirakawa-go, a UNESCO world heritage site with plenty of Gassho houses from a few centuries ago. This sounded interesting and I was on my way up north, anyway.

After that I went for lunch in a noodle bar, but what they tried to serve as noodle soup with vegetables was outrageous and I pulled faces and pointed at my half finished bowl that I was not going a pay the full price. Was it my fault that the only vegetable they had was frozen bamboo stripes? No.

I went back to the Temple Youth hostel and decided to do a couple of miles on the R41 until it was time to look for a camp spot. I found a derelict field and stopped there. I offloaded my luggage to see if I could find a supermarket with necessary foodstuffs. Unfortunately all I got was a flat tyre. This meant pushing the bike back to my provisional rest-spot and then to change the complete tyre and fix the inner tube. The old tyre was pretty worn down after just 2 weeks and was definitely a safety issue to continue with it. A local must have spotted me on the field and he came driving by with a pump for the tyre. It didn’t fit, but after asking him if I could stay on the field, he said no, saying that there is a nicer camp spot very close by. He drove me, my luggage and bike to a really nice spot in the middle of the forest where I had running water, a functioning toilet and the whole forest to myself. I was a little scared, I admit, as there were some huge man-made mounts (grave yards, sacred mounts) nearby and movies such as “The Blair Witch Project” and others came to mind as the sun was already setting and I was going to be alone in the wilderness. Japan still has bears and they are known to also come down the mountains into human habitation. With a circle of protection drawn around my tent and bike, my cooking knife always by my side I started to make some dinner, inside the tent. I told myself that I am going to have the best and most undisturbed sleep ever and would wake up fully restored and happy in the morning. It worked, phew.

Monday, 18th May - It's going up....

2009-05-24T14:27:00.006+01:00

I was woken up by a guy with his pocket radio who strolled past the tent. I quickly got up, dressed and started cleaning up the tent to get ready to leave. Within ten minutes the guy came back with someone else and I got out of the tent to explain myself saying where I came from, why I stayed there and where I would go today. This seemed to reassure them. One of them had an armband and seemed to look after the temple grounds as he cleared up some fallen down pieces of wood from the two days rain and storm. He came back to the tent to chat and he learned German in high school and could still remember parts of Theodor Storm's poems and some other interesting words... He said "Kyotsukete" which I did not know what it means but it sounded familiar. I packed my bags pretty quickly and was ready to go by 10 am. I would take the R158 to go to Takayama, exactly 60 miles away and again over the Japanese Alps into the next biggest valley, right through Chibusangaku National Park at 2000m high. Luckily it stopped raining in the night and I awoke to a fine and sunny day. I manoeuvred out of town pretty quickly using the local tourist map to get onto the R158 starting in Matsumoto. On my way out I met a fellow traveller, Matthias (picture right) from France who has travelled for over 13 years now of which he spent 3 years travelling in Japan. He was on foot with his luggage (on a rollable device) and wanted to hitch-hike into the mountains. We had a nice chat and he explained that "Kyotsukete" means "take care". We had some pictures taken from us with our luggage in front of a snow man and wished each other "Kyotsukete", “Bon voyage” and “See you in the mountains”. And we would. After an exhausting 40 Km uphill I met him by the roadside waiting for his next hike. We chatted a little more and he told me that he is a photographer and on his way into the mountains to see some remote villages. He would work and travel wherever he goes earning money selling his pictures and doing some other work as well. He was very pleasant to talk to and spoke very good Japanese and English. I may see him again in Takayama as I told him I was going there. He asked me if I would like to have lunch, but I said I need to do another hour to have done at least half of my way.

Another agonising nine miles before I had lunch outside a natural spa. I spotted some cherry trees in full bloom, a rarity now because everywhere else the flowers had already withered away. This really was an indication how high up in the mountains I was. I went through 18 tunnels and the longest one was over 4000 m long and no pavement. There was a toll station where I made a fool of myself getting through as I was trying to insert my YEN 1000 note into any of the provided machine slots. This didn’t work and some guy from behind me in his car already came out. I was rescued by a toll gate official who took me over to the side and explained that I didn’t need to pay. He helped me carry my bike up the steep pedestrian staircase so I could continue my travel. I was now in one of the skiing regions and surrounded by almost touchable, snow covered mountain tops (picture left). There were lifts and I could see the whole slope as well. Must be nice in winter. I asked the toll gate official how much higher it is and he explained another couple of pretty steep roads and then it’s done.

I went up the serpentine and there was a road construction side with only one lane traffic. These sites are always operated with two people on each side with red/ white flags and walky talkies. I passed one of them and it must have taken me ten minutes to pass the construction side as I had to make some stops to catch my breath. On the other side the guy smiled and I looked at the row of cars waiting for me to get off the road... Hihi...One more tunnel and it was done! 45 miles of uphill would come to an end.

I was at the other side of the National Park with its gateway city Takayama to the east another 19 miles away. The other gateway city was Matsumoto. All along the way were busses taking tourists into the park and people enjoying the many onsen and hot springs. At the mountain top I spoke to a couple who were picking herbs (udon, wasabi and some others) and enquired about the onsen in Takayama. From here it was all downhill and I set my new record with 43 mph - laying flat on my handle bar and pedalling like mad... The next 19 miles went by in a jiff, 45 minutes to be precise. This meant that it took me 6 hours for 43 miles uphill and only 45 minutes downhill. What a rewarding journey downhill it was. My heart jumped for joy and some passing motor cyclists sounded their horns and gave thumbs up...

I arrived in Takayama and stopped at a temple/ youth hostel to charge my battery equipment and to take a hot bath in the temple onsen. This youth hostel is very nice and has a very luxorious feel to it. As it is a temple strict closing times (gates are locked at 9.45 pm) and lights are out by 10 pm are being observed. In the morning is some drumming and chanting to be heard from the dormitories. I was only one of 3 guests and had a good nights sleep.

Sunday, 17th May - The Rain Goes On...

2009-05-24T00:06:00.005+01:00

The day started at 6.30 coinciding with the announcements made via speakerphone in the part of town where I stayed. There was an announcement at 6.30 am, 7 am, 7.30 am and again at 8 am - this on a Sunday morning. It was still raining so I decided that I would not relocate, rather just look for some new rain gear, as the old cover was completely torn, and explore the town. I went to the local supaa first to get some food supplies and a replacement propane gas container. Back at tent I made some brunch and then go into town again, still raining. I went to see the very famous Matsumoto castle (picture left), a Japanese National Treasure (there are only four in the whole of Japan). I got there pretty quickly with a copy of the local map from a kombini. At the castle I found a free guided tour and had one guide and two of his apprentices all to myself. The guide spoke pretty good English and I took some pictures with them, too. Wikipedia says the following...

“The castle's origins go back to the Sengoku period. At that time Shimadachi Sadanaga of the Ogasawara clan built a fort on this site in 1504 which was originally called Fukashi Castle. In 1550 it came under the rule of the Takeda clan and then Tokugawa Ieyasu.
When Toyotomi Hideyoshi transferred Ieyasu to the Kantō region, he placed Ishikawa Norimasa in charge of Matsumoto. Norimasa and his son Yasunaga built the tower and other parts of the castle, including the three towers: the keep and the small tower in the northwest, both begun in 1590, and the Watari Tower; the residence; the drum gate; the black gate, the Tsukimi Yagura, the moat, the innermost bailey, the second bailey, the third bailey, and the sub-floors in the castle, much as they are today. They were also instrumental in laying out the castle town and its infrastructure. It is believed much of the castle was completed by 1593–94.
During the Edo period, the Tokugawa shogunate established the Matsumoto Domain, of which the Matsudaira, Mizuno and others were the daimyo.
For the next 280 years until the abolition of the feudal system in the Meiji Restoration, the castle was ruled by the 23 lords of Matsumoto representing six different daimyo families. In this period the stronghold was also known as Crow Castle (烏城 ,Karasu-jo?) because its black walls and roofs looked like spreading wings.”

After the castle I went to explore Matsumoto and to find an internet cafe. Not an easy task as everyone seemed to have a different or no opinion about internet cafes. After 1h I agve up trying to find one and decided to have some Udon soup in a little noodle bar instead. This was done with lots of professionalism and style and the chef was happy to make a soup just with noodle and vegetables.. something unusual as the local specialty is raw horse meat and some other interesting culinary extravagancies. Back at the tent I wrote diary and made another pot of Miso soup with veggies and tofu. Bedtime by 10 pm.

Saturday, 16th May - Water

2009-05-22T16:04:00.001+01:00

I took the R142/ 254 which went uphill from outside Saku for the next 30 miles. There were again many tunnels and the longest one at 2500m. At some point it started raining and I decided to hang out in a small onsen off the main road.

This onsen was more like a small public bath with the receptionist sleeping comfortable at the entrance and people leaving their YEN 200 just in a wooden box. There were people in this bath and for the first time I could observe the intricate bathing rituals in an onsen. From the washing to how you hold your modesty towel and how you place it elegantly on your head when getting into the bath. I had a little chat with one of the locals who informed me that there would be two days rain ahead. My plan of getting out of the onsen and continuing further into the mountains in sunshine did not work out. I started to put on my rain gear (thank you Jorrin for these very, very useful feet protectors) and went further uphill.

Within a few minutes all the relaxation from the onsen was forgotten and I started sweating pretty good as the rain gear was not very breathable. Finally, the top of the mountain was reached and I started my descent. On the other side of the mountain were very strong and cold winds and I started to freeze going down at 30 mph. Near Matsumoto (with some 220,000 people) I spotted a 7/11 to get something to drink. At the crossing from the road into the 7/11 my rear wheel decided to slip on the metal gutter and the little lorry (me and the bike) would crash to the ground. Not a pretty sight but I got up quickly and unharmed. Pretty shaken I would stumble into the kombini to get some drink and then continue my journey looking out for a hot bath - onsen time. Matsumoto is very famous for its castle and its natural baths. I found the onsen area (near Asama Onsen) and chose one recommended by a local. I paid YEN 800 (ca. £5.30 and in retrospect was the best onsen I've been to so far. There were many people (well, men...) and this onsen featured a large indoors pool, a semi-outdoors wooden pool, a complete outdoor natural bath and a sauna. I stayed there for at least an hour to get warm and comfortable again. By that time it was already getting dark and I had to hurry to find a camp spot in the city. Knowing to look out for trees among the houses (an indication of a shrine/ temple) I found one not far from the city centre. I put up my tent at the furthest visible spot in the corner of the place, made some food (picture right) and went to bed. It was still raining but not as bad as on the road. I planned to get up at 6.30 to pack up my things and go somewhere else as I didn’t feel comfortable there.

Friday, 15th May - Man and Nature

2009-05-20T14:55:00.003+01:00

This morning, disaster struck at 7.15am - my electronic toothbrush finally ran out of battery. Oh nooo! What should I do? I tried charging it in different places but the charge indicator just flashes funnily and the thing doesn’t work. Worst case scenario has finally arrived. I am unwilling to start my day knowing that from now on I have to brush manually. Something I haven’t done for many years...What to do, what to do...

Well, well I got over this expected, yet dramatic situation quickly and got ready to find Tatsuoka Castle, only one of two built in the star-shape, inspired by European fortresses. Fortunately the castle was really just around the corner and I cycled there within ten minutes. The only things left of the castle are its moat and some ruins depicting where the kitchen was. I walked around it and the structure (pentagram) was still very visible as the outer walls remained. Very impressive and I could just imagine when the army of Samurai would plan out their invasion of the castle. It would come different as the local kind of got tired of their castle after some time and decided to burn it down. At its height the warlord controlled over 60,000 Goku (bushels of rice, 'Goku' is a unit of measuring rice; one Goku can feed a man for a year). There was a small tourist building with two guides and I met a Japanese couple there who spoke very good English, so they translated some of the info from the guides. We also talked about growing vegetables and the local's fight with monkeys, deer and raccoons that come and steel the vegetables in the night. After the castle I went to a really old Buddhist Shrine near Tetsuoka which had a treasure house pagoda from the 8th century (picture left). This temple was build along a steep mountain so I decided to climb up to see the other smaller nature shrines hidden in the forest and nearby streams. There seem to be Gods 'Kami' everywhere. I sat down for a while on a rock and enjoyed the sweet forest air and the sun.

Back at tent I decided to go to Saku, the next biggest city a couple of miles away. The 24h internet shop was closed... But I went again in the evening to check mail and write my diary entries. On my way back to the tent I stopped at very expensive Matsumo supaa to get Miso paste (a Japanese soup stock), grapefruit, pepper, and an extra bag for my rubbish. This was a very uncomfortable situation which I discovered back near the tent as I put my rubbish (one bag) where the locals put all theirs but upon my return my bag was emptied out into the street and the contents scattered. I felt kind of bad but there are no public bins ANYWHERE in the cities and only some recycling containers for bottles, cans and plastic. Upon my return to the tent I would pick up my rubbish from the street - and separate it into plastic and organic. Those things I left next day near a trainstation where there were some drinks automats. In the evening I would practice again with my Bamboo Bo (from Shimonita by the river), make some campfire and go to bed. Next day was a big day crossing over to Matsumoto, some 50 miles away.

Week Number Two - Hospitality

2009-05-17T13:11:00.007+01:00

For the last two days I stayed in Shimonita, close to the mountain Arafuyane (over 1000m high). There I put up my camp on a derelict field.

Within a few minutes a few locals "had to" walk their dogs... So they could inspect me. One of them was very excited as I told him I was a Doitsu-jin (German) and he told me that there is someone he knows who speaks Doitsu-go. Within 20 minutes he came back with this guy who lived in Germany for nine years and who was happy to speak some German. We chatted for a while and then he took off, only to return with his daughter who also spoke German and wanted to practice... Next morning I woke up to clear the tent from the rain in the night and what did I see next to my tent? Breakfast, homemade bread, jam, a huge apple and some filter coffee sachets. WOW - what a surprise! I had bought some small gifts in London and now was the time for one of them. Not remembering the guy's name I went to town to find him and give the gift to him. This brought me to a garage where the manager helped with all his might (and his wife) to figure out what I want. "Nihon-jin, Doitsu-go doko desu ka?" = "Where does the Japanese guy lives who speaks German?" He obviously didn't know but his wife brought me by car to the next church which was run by an American. She wasn't home, so we returned to the garage. I said 'sumimasen' and 'arrigato gozaimashita' (apologising for the trouble and thanking them) and went back to the camp. Within half an hour the manager's wife came with the happy news that they now know who it was I am looking for: Mr Ishizeki-san (picture above; together with his daughter). Well, well, in the evening he would drop by my tent so we can talk they told me. I decided to go to the nearby river to have a swim, cut some bamboo stick to train with and to enjoy the sunshine. When I got back to my tent I found another surprise - lunch! Again totally surprised, I ate the riceballs in noda (seaweed) and the bamboo roots or something like it (picture right). The little fish these roots were covered with had to go to the grasshoppers. For dessert I had strawberries - THANK YOU. In the evening Mr Ishizeki came and invited me to his home for some dinner and we talked little more in German. His wife made delicious salad, soup and rice (explaining that I was very happy with this as a vegetarian). Mr Ishizeki had to go to a town meeting and I left, too.

Back at tent I would have a good night's rest - so I thought. Another lady came by in her car to pick up some soil for her garden. We greeted and she asked where I come from and where I go, and I explained that I sleep in the tent. 20 minutes later she arrived with a pot of noodle soup which by now was a struggle to eat as I was altready full. But I managed. These are some very friendly and hospitable people in Shimonita!

The next morning I packed my things together and was just slightly excited at crossing this big mountain. I had a banana and coffee for breakfast as there was nothing else to eat since I didn't plan on staying on that field for 2 days. At the next Kombini I had some riceballs and 500 ml grapefruit juice to get me going for the ride ahead.

The mountain was steep and I crossed 16 bridges, went through five tunnels of which two were very scary and long. The last one (at 1000m) was without pavement so I put on all my lights (three), took a deep breath and cycled as fast as I could through it. The lorries behind me had to wait for oncoming traffic to overtake me and the oncoming traffic would carry noise and wind with it, so I had to grasp my handlebar tightly to keep control. SCARY.

At the other side of the mountain I cycled upwards on a small road hoping for an Onsen (natual bath/ mineral bath). But I misread the sign and it was just a path leading to the very top of the mountain. I made my descent from there with some luch in my stomach (toast & jam) to find the nearest Onsen. Halfway down the mountain I saw the sign and went onto a small road to the natural bath.

There I happily paid YEN 800 (£ 5.50) for a bath. I was the only visitor so I had it all to myself. I removed my clothes, washed and then submersed my aching body into the HOOOOT water, ouch - I felt pain from my legs over to my arms, neck, shoulders as I got a good sunburn from the climb up. I tried the less hot bath (picture left) and cold shower after. This repeated itself for another 40min until I had enough and my skin was all soft. I found a nice, free, high-tech massage chair (picture right) which did just the right thing for my aching muscles. Then I continued my journey into the valley at top speed of 40 mph with the much cooler wind in my face.

I looked for a nice camp spot and found one, or did it find me - in a Buddhist Shrine. Quick shopping for dinner at the supaa, looking for some firewood for my little campfire, and with peanuts & green tea into the evening after a long and exhausting but really good day. I will leave here in 1 day going to Matsumoto to see the castle and to find a way out of the Japanese Alps (going to over 3000 m high) to make my way to the sea. By now I have done 200miles and I have enjoyed every bit of it. Over and out. Dirkus Japanensus

My First Week in Japan

2009-05-09T13:27:00.028+01:00

I have arrived in Japan, without my bike at first, but then a day later I was reunited (picture right). I travelled from Tokyo\ Narita Airport to Noda, some 75 km away. On the first day of cycling it rained pretty bad and my so called "water-proof" clothing gave up after about 3 hours in the rain. I had printed my map using Google which would have been a good idea, if I was able to read Japanese or Japanese road signs. You can imagine what followed. I got lost pretty bad in some rice paddies (as seen from the aeroplane, picture left) which seemed to stretch from one part of the horizon to the next. I used my newly acquired compass to, at least, get the directions right. Considering that I have never had to use a compass, I did pretty well. In the rice paddies, I also managed to go through a big puddle which instantly deflated my rear tyre, already struggling to stay alive with the 30 Kg on top. I managed to push the bike to the nearest habitation where I spotted a woman with her son. I asked whether I could stay to fix my bike. She was very kind and also spoke some English. She immediately cleared their garage for me so I can get the bike fixed without getting wet... A nice gesture considering I was already soaked. The nice lady made me some Japanese tea and brought some cream buns. This was soo good and it definitely kept my spirit going. Back on the bike I managed to cycle another 2 hours to make camp in a forest near the route 16. It was getting pretty dark so I had to hurry. Good for me that I never tried out how to pitch the tent... Some 20 minutes later I was sitting inside the tent and got the camping stove going. The next day I cycled to Noda where I found a nice spot for the tent in a Buddhist temple park (picture above; see the temple in the picture below on the left). This is gonna be my home for this week as I am attending training classes here at the Bujinkan Hombu Dojo every day. See a statue for worship in the picture at the bottom and a Buddhist shrine on the right; both spotted in the area. My financial plan is to live off YEN 4000 (ca. £ 27) a day, considering that the training will cost me quite a bit, too. The upside of camping in the middle of town is that everywhere I need to go is not far. In the morning I get some water for my tea and do some stretches and exercise. This is followed by a 20 minutes meditation under the temple pagoda. Then I make proper breakfast before heading to training. I shave in the local library, making it look as the most normal thing for a gajin (foreigner). Any other washing is done at night in the temple - where they get the water for the plants... brrrr. All other bodily functions are being attended to in the local library oterai or well... wherever. I am very impressed that my tent in the park has not roused any suspicions. I feel so very safe here that I would leave all my belongings on display without really worring about them. I am not going to do it, but this is how safe Japan feels to me. All people are overly friendly and its pretty simple to get by using only the most basic Japanese. On Monday I will continue with my journey going to the West - with the Sea of Japan firmly in my sight... after about a week. I will have to stick to main roads as I really don't want to get lost too much. If you look on a map, it's all mountains. I will follow the Route 16, 17, 18 top get to the sea. All smaller routes are too tricky as I can't make out the road signs... over and out for now and all the best to you out there!

My Preperation and Arrival: (messages from twitter);

"the food is, well interesting, without the help of a young Japanese I would have probably not received a no-meat, no-fish noodle soup ;)"

"just checked in in a nearby hotel, went to the local temple - a supersized and beautiful Buddhist complex where I attended a procession"

"so, having arrived in Tokyo safely I was informed by a friendly Japanese BA staff that my bike will come shortly - tomorrow..."

"Is it gonna fit, is it not, no, arghh it doesn't. Bike box too big for supersized luggage check in....hmm, ok they'll carry it to the plane"

"Rider weight: 80Kg, bike: 15Kg, luggage: 33Kg, total tevelling weight: 128Kg before dinner..."

"Less than 24h to go! Just printing off my route from naria airport to noda, some 50 miles"

"so, after a long day getting bike equipment together and fixing it - it is done, all gear is together. ready steady go!"

"Ok, this is pretty cool, I can now update u through my mobile phone; thank you technology gods.

"I am currently getting ready to start my 1000 Miles challenge: 1000 Miles through Japan on my bike."

Who am I

2009-04-16T12:11:00.000+01:00

My name is Dirk Bischof. I have always dreamt of going to Japan since I first read about Samurais, Shoguns, Ninjas, Tea Ceremony and the culture of Japan itself at the age of 16. My general interests are cycling (you might have guessed), snowboarding, martial arts, chess and being around people who live inspiring lives whereby inspiring others to do the same.

I was born in Germany and I came to London to study and to work in another country. Through Embrace Cooperation I did a 3-months work placement project in 2001, which made me see the opportunities in the UK. In Germany I was unemployed after my apprenticeship in metal engineering and not sure really what to do with my life. I had the option of working in my fathers metal engineering company but I really did not want to do this as I had absolutely no interest in workin with machinery and metall (especially after 3 1/2 years of apprenticeship).

After the placement in London at Cricklewood Homeless Concern and having lived in the UK for 3 months I decided to move here. Since then I helped to organise placements for others coming through Embrace as project coordinator. In 2004, Embrace was set-up to be a not-for-profit, limited company and I was ‘made’ managing director, a big challenge but also a big opportunity. In the meantime I was able to do my degrees in Business Studies and Social Anthropology which I would not be able to do in Germany as the system there is too rigid and doesn’t allow for as much freedom to work and study at the same time.

Everything has evolved since then, Embrace now hosts and sends over 150 young adults per year for national/ international work placements and cultural exchanges and we do various projects within the Media, Environment and Social Enterprise. I am passionate to support others who, like me, were unemployed, face challenges in their life, don’t know what to do with it or who just need some inspiration and guidance to discover their LifeDreams – those dreams which will lead to long-term happiness and which will create a better world for the self and other people. Our current projects involve setting up our charitable arm in Ethiopia together with our colleagues and friends over there. Ethiopia really is a magical country and I have been fortunate to visit it in 2008 where we met with many local charitable organisations to plan our strategy with. Its also always a pleasure to meet our director Eskender Kassa (picture right) to have insightful debates about the meaning of life and how to make this life worth living for everyone we encounter.

Now, at 29 years old, one of my greatest LifeDreams will finally become reality. As a person who likes to make the best of every opportunity, I would like to connect this LifeDream with another one which is very close to my heart: Supporting young adults to plan and realise their professional LifeDreams. How does all this fit in with my journey to Japan you might ask? Well, with your financial support Embrace will start a fund, which supports young adults to realise their LifeDreams in a meaningful way. This is my other big LifeDream: to support young adults with their business ideas and projects. A lot of people that are with Embrace have great ideas and I would like to support them to plan and implement their business ideas as these are their LifeDreams.

Japan & My Route

2009-04-16T12:02:00.002+01:00

Japan (日本 Nihon or Nippon), is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, People's Republic of China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south. The characters which make up Japan's name mean "sun-origin", which is why Japan is sometimes identified as the "Land of the Rising Sun".

Japan comprises over 3,000 islands making it an archipelago. The four largest islands are Honshū, Hokkaidō, Kyūshū and Shikoku, together accounting for 97% of Japan's land area. Most of the islands are mountainous, many volcanic; for example, Japan’s highest peak, Mount Fuji, is a volcano. Japan has the world's tenth largest population, with about 128 million people. The Greater Tokyo Area, which includes the de facto capital city of Tokyo and several surrounding prefectures, is the largest metropolitan area in the world, with over 30 million residents. Japan's population is estimated at around 127.3 million. For the most part, Japanese society is linguistically and culturally homogeneous with small populations of foreign workers, Zainichi Koreans, Zainichi Chinese, Filipinos, Japanese Brazilians and others. The most dominant native ethnic group is the Yamato people; the primary minority groups include the indigenous Ainu and Ryukyuan, as well as social minority groups like the burakumin. Japan has one of the highest life expectancy rates in the world, at 81.25 years of age as of 2006. The Japanese population is rapidly aging, the effect of a post-war baby boom followed by a decrease in births in the latter part of the twentieth century. In 2004, about 19.5% of the population was over the age of 65.

Japanese culture has evolved greatly over the years, from the country's original Jōmon culture to its contemporary culture, which combines influences from Asia, Europe and North America. Traditional Japanese arts include crafts (ikebana, origami, ukiyo-e, dolls, lacquerware, pottery), performances (bunraku, dance, kabuki, noh, rakugo), traditions (games, tea ceremony, Budō, architecture, gardens, swords) and cuisine. The fusion of traditional woodblock printing and Western art led to the creation of manga, a typically Japanese comic book format that is now popular within and outside Japan.[109] Manga-influenced animation for television and film is called anime. Japanese-made video game consoles have prospered since the 1980s.

Route
I am planning on starting out in Narita Airport (A) and from there go to Noda (B) on the first day (some 50miles). I will stay for a few days to meet friends and do some martial arts training for a few days. From there I will continue my journey to The Sea of Japan (G). My journey will then lead me south along the coast and then inwards towards Gujo (H) and then back through the mountains towards Noda (B). This is the route as I envisage it and as I planned it. The total length of the route is between 800 – 1200 miles and it will depend on my map-reading skills and of course on where the journey will take me. I aim to stick to the route as it will lead me through the mountains of Japan, along its coasts and also through remote villages along the way. I try to avoid industrial areas such as the east coast or big cities where possible.

Biking & Camping

2009-04-16T12:02:00.001+01:00

Why biking? It's a green and enjoyable mode of transport, which allows for close encounters with the environment and people. It is also my favourite leisure time activity, which I enjoy alone and with friends going places and enjoying what the British countryside has to offer. So far I have never done such an extended bike trip and I have never camped for such an extended period of time. The longest outdoor experience was in 1999 when a friend and I went to Scotland to camp rough for 3 weeks. This was a tremendous experience and we had such great fun travelling independently, getting food from the fields, trees & bushes, supermarkets…But this was done using a car which was a very comfortable way to travel as we could take as much stuff we needed to be comfortable.

This journey is different. I need to be very specific and only take the most necessary items. It will require me to stay within me luggage restrictions on my bike, around 60 – 70 litres (30 – 40kg). Within these limits I need to take equipment to keep me safe from the sometimes hostile environments of the Japanese mountains (at around 3000m), functional clothing, bike equipment, foodstuffs, and gifts (small they may be but essential for travelling in Japan).

Training for the journey

2009-04-16T11:01:00.000+01:00

This journey has required me to prepare for it and to get fit. Overall I am doing a lot of sports (usually 3 times a week) plus some cycling. To prepare for the 6 weeks my bike buddies and I went to Brighton a couple of times (see the video) and we will go to Cambridge/ Oxford again on the 25th April This is important to get fit and to also test the bike and make final adjustments. Preparation is everything!

London - Brighton
Here is a little video of one of our last rips with my cycle buddies Jorrin & Martin. Its incredibly hard to actually hold the camera still whilst cycling....We've done these trips now a couple of times and the 60 miles do get easier...

Here is also another little video we did last year, more exciting as it was professionally edited and commented on by Deuan German (www.maroontown.co.uk), another good friend and cycle buddy! Check it out on YouTube:

The Bike

2009-04-16T10:49:00.001+01:00

Focus Arriba 2009

A lightweight road frame with fast wheels built for speed and stability, flat handlebars and a more upright geometry to give you excellent visibility in traffic, triple chainset to get you up and down hills and powerful v-brakes to stop. The Arriba is perfect for commuting, shopping or getting out and enjoying the country roads. This is going to be the touring machine which I will use to do and complete my challenge. It was fitted with a rear rack to hold my bags, a set of bar ends for more comfort, a different saddle, lights and mud guards.

Top Features of the Focus Arriba
* Aluminium 6061 speed trekking frame
* Shimano Sora Rear Mech
* Shimano V-Brakes
* Concept SL Saddle
* Schwalbe Speed Cruiser Tyres
* Weight: 11.1 kgs