Last Day – Bettyhill to John O’Groats – July 19th, 2016

I’m actually writing this the day after we finished, ‘cos we were just so busy celebrating yesterday evening that I ran out time to write this blog – sorry!

I’m here in J O’ G waiting for Geoff to arrive, everyone has gone, I’m on my own – it’s a very strange feeling – I haven’t been on my own for 18 days. I can’t get on the internet and the mobile phone signal is poor, so I don’t know where Geoff is….

But enough of that, what about yesterday, I hear you cry.

We set off from Bettyhill in glorious sunshine – the sky was blue with the odd fluffy cloud in the sky. I didn’t have to wear my heavier rain jacket, my lighter gillet or plastic bags on my feet, underneath my overshoes, to keep out the rain for as long possible, marvellous! Such a treat that the last day should be brilliant sunshine - it will colour the memories and make every day a sunshine day!! Haha!

The first 15 miles however were a different story, HILLS- there is always a sting in the tail! Plus, I’ve worked out that it takes at least 15 miles for my legs to get going, so they simply were not working well at the beginning, they were painful actually; but once the 15 or so miles were up and the terrain levelled out a bit it was good cycling. We stopped in Thurso for lunch and then on again. A few more hills to climb and a couple of brilliant descents, lovely scenery all the way; we could see the Orkneys very clearly. The landscape changed to cattle and sheep farming with really flat fields and therefore roads!!

Then with 10 miles to go it started hitting me that I was nearly there – I kept praying that:

· the bike held out, with no punctures, plus I’ve been nursing my gears since the start really!! (I tried to get them sorted in Stirling, but failed)

· my legs and bottom held out!! (sudocrem and “fanny fondant” - as Sarah & I started calling chamois cream in the end – are fantastic for sore BTM’s)

·  the motorists behaved themselves – we’ve had a couple of near misses as a group, and I’ve had a couple of times where I felt cars/vans passed just a little too close for comfort really

I actually started to cry a little bit at one point when I began to realise how close I was to completing this challenge that I’d set myself; when I started to realise how “strong” I was in all sorts of sense of the word:

• strong base level of fitness, at nearly 60 years of age (September is the big-60-birthday)
• strong muscles in the legs
• strong enough to get up every day and pedal, even when my legs said “NO!!"
• strong enough to cope with cycling in the downpours with wet-through everything!! (I mean everything!)
• strong enough to climb every hill the 1030 miles of road through at us, 25% in places!
• strong enough to FINISH!!

I think it was the realisation that I’m not passed it, physically or mentally, that made me cry a bit. It was something that Alex, our fantastic 83 year cyclist, commented on the other night at dinner. He said it was marvellous to be accepted as an equal in the group, and not as some doddery old bloke. I think I understood what he meant with 10 miles to go.

So there it is, I’ve done it, I’ve achieved it. 

Harry (in his 70’s!!) worked out that we’d cycled 1030 miles altogether.

Many thanks to my fellow LEJOG-gers for getting me through it, especially to Sarah, my room-mate - such a lot of laughs - hysterical or otherwise!! And many thanks to Chris our tour leader, who sorted out the route, the hotels and other things besides (mainly to do with bike-shops and cake shops!!).

WONDERFUL!!

WELL DONE IT ALL TWELVE OF US!

BILL

HARRY

LIZ

SARAH

ROBIN

ROGER

ALAN

SIMON

ALEX

KEN

JOHN

JANETTE