Where do I begin with today’s update? The obvious place is to proudly announce that all 8 of us (Neill Shrimpton, Bernard McEvoy, Gerald Byrne, Kenny Dalby, Ercus Stewart, Matt Hoyle, Ben Williams and the driver, Michael O’Driscoll) completed the gruelling 1,039 mile journey and reached John O’Groats in one piece.
Our arrival at the finish point was a great; we cycled 7 abreast on a flat downhill section to the finish line just before sunset. Then, draped in our respective country’s flags and elated with the achievement we all looked forward to having our picture taken with the famous John O’Groats sign. We couldn’t believe it, then, when we saw that the famous sign had quite literally just been taken down and the photo-booth was being dragged away by a digger. Apparently we had missed out by 30 minutes. Having cycled for 10 solid days, however, and much to the annoyance of the onlooking workers, we took it upon ourselves to recover the sign and lift it above our heads to get the photo we all wanted. This actually made it better and more memorable because, as it turns out, we were the last ever people to have our photo taken with that iconic sign.
Today’s ride was, however, as much about the journey as the destination. In particular, we were treated to the “greatest flat cycling road in the world”, which, for 40-50 miles weaved through the relentless Scottish landscape. At one point we witnessed a herd of 50 wild red deer bounding up and over a nearby hill. Then, a few miles up the road we saw another herd. At first just a few and then – most brilliantly – 7 stags stood majestically on the hill top a watched us pass by. As we picked up a top speed of 45 miles per hour and with the hawks, eagles and military fighter jets circling above our heads, we were having the ride of our lives.
It was a fitting end as the route took us on the longest day, totalling 130 miles in 11.5 hours.
Performer of the Day: Gerald Byrne – Easy decision for two reasons: 1) Along one of the busy costal roads (with farms on one side and coastline on the other) a lone sheep had escaped and was roaming the busy highway. Due almost certain death if it stayed out on the road, Gerald threw his bike to the ground and, like a superhero, leapt to its safety, managing to pick it up, carry it across the road and – with the sheep held over his head – lift it over the fence and back into the field. We only hope he put it back in the right farm! 2) He was the only cyclist at John O’Groats that was mad enough to run, fully clothed, to the edge of the pier and jump into the north sea – it was freezing!
Other notable performees – Neill Shrimpton, Ben Williams, Kenny Dalby, Matt Hoyle and Ercus Stewart cycled for an additional 20 miles to reach the hotel in Wick.
Langer of the Day: Ordinarily it would be Ercus Stewart – As a team we decided we would take a 10 mile detour prior to John O’Groats so we could also visit the most northernly point of mainland Great Britain (John O’Groats is the most north-westerly). 5 of the team were content with a quick picture by the sign but Ercus and Ben decided they would go to inspect the lighthouse and peer over the sheer cliff-tops. As the rest of the team cycled off, Ercus and Ben took photos and admired the scenery. When they went to catch up with the team, however, Ercus realised he had misplaced his helmet. Panic ensued, as Ben and Ercus scrambled around the cliffs in search. Eventually, we found the helmet perched and teetering on the very edge of the cliff-top. You would think that Ercus should get the award for this schoolboy error, but as it was the last day, the award goes jointly to the other 5 members of the team for missing out on the absolutely amazing sight of 180 degree views of horizon and the powerful north sea smashing against the dizzyingly high cliff-tops.
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1039 Miles 