He makes a start from his chosen charity hub. It doesn’t go well..!
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In today’s other news… I survived the first day of the journey. Barely.
I was going to post a fetching picture of the bike under trees, hiding from one of today’s many rain showers, but it transpires the multi-way adapter I brought is USB-C and this tablet is only USB-3 so I can’t get any photos off the camera SD card until I get an adapter for the adapter.
Alzheimer’s Research UK turned out en masse to mark the start in Cambridge. They gave me a mug of tea and a hat, asked lots of questions, then assembled to cheer me on my way and were lovely.
Officially, my departure was at 1pm – the moment captured on video. Four times 🙂 Almost as soon as I was round the corner, it started to rain so I hid in an entrance until it passed so the real departure was totally unobserved, from a multi-storey carpark at 1:23pm
Somehow it took me 52 miles to ride a 40-mile journey. And I took 7 hours to do it, which is appallingly slow. At 30 miles my legs started to object, at 35 miles it hurt and I couldn’t ride up hills. Not even shallow ones. Serves me right for being cocky about the whole thing. Oddly, at 40 miles I got some of my mojo back and it got better. A bit. Still hurt. Back, shoulders and hands, too.
Honestly, I could write a whole book about just today but although I have only 17 miles to ride tomorrow, to the ferry, I MUST check-in before 8:15am so I’m going to have to get up at stupid o’clock in case I find I can only do slow.
Manana.
Day 1. No photo and no long bedtime story. But special mention for Tom and Helen who provided parking within 5 miles of AR UK when other plans fell through. We haven’t seen each other for decades and tonight I’m staying at Essex Uni, in Colchester, where Tom and I met, back in 1365.
Oh, and donations rose substantially today. £1,643 now. Momentum continues!
Oh look, I’ve made a picture. Me under me new titfer.
You can donate to John’s Charity Fund here…
Nick Hennegan's Bohemian Britain 