Survived day one

One day and 77 miles down. Eleven days and 923 miles to go.

After all my flapping, things have gone very smoothly. Susie and the kids drove me down to Lands End and Mum and Peter came down to see me off too.

There were the obligatory photos by the sign post - but because we were there before 9, we didn't have to pay the usual £10 per pic!

A quick briefing and group shot then the 63 of us rolled off to clog up the lanes of Cornwall. It was all very relaxed and convivial with groups forming and dissolving.

There were stops morning and afternoon for water and snacks, and a hearty lunch with pasta and pasties laid on. As we ate the news came through that one rider had crashed into a telegraph pole and broken some ribs. Gutting for him and a reminder that it only takes a second to come off.

My closest shave came when the group I was with came round a corner and almost smashed into a very slow cyclist who I'd seen at the start. A middle-aged man in Lycra he was not. Baggy T-shirt, beard, old squash bottle for his water etc. 'God, I hope I'm not sharing a room with him,' I thought.

Fast forward to 7pm and guess who knocks on the door of room 41 at the Liskeard Premier Inn? Yup, the bearded one.

It turns out he is a fabulous fellow, by jolly and apparently undaunted by the fact that he is the back marker. In fact, he'd been accompanied since lunch by one of the organisers on a bike to shepherd him along.

This ride was always going to be about more than just the cycling, and my roommate for the next 11 days could well enrich the experience. Fingers crossed.

My ride went well, the knee seems to be holding up pretty well. I ate and drank a lot and took it easy, coming in at 5.30pm after a 10.15 start and long lunch break. Average speed 13mph. There were some very big hills and some very steep hills (see gradients in an earlier post), but I only thought of walking once.

I sat in a cold bath when I got in, had a protein shake and stretched, so hopefully won't be too stiff tomorrow.

Thanks again to the send-off team and for all the other messages of support in the run up to the off.