First Half Day to St Austell

We leave home preceded by my usual OCD checks round the house. On the way to pick up the Captain I am heartened by the fact I bump into local Rob Brasington hitching a lift into Winchcombe. Last time I did end to end 6 years back he was the first person I saw (some 10 miles away) in Cheltenham after exiting the Inverness Cheltenham over nighter at 8 in the morning. I see this as a psychological upper and feel more than gratified to be giving him a lift. The journey to Lands End is peppered with normal man and wife of 30 years bickering. This is normal practice in the Workman household and the way I like it. 

Sarah is accompanied by her lovely friend Lizzy as they are using the delivery of the cyclists as an excuse for a jolly in deepest Cornwall. The Captain and I are honoured to hear stories of days gone past when she Nannied for the famous Roger Daltrey. He indeed sounded just as nice a bloke as we had imagined it to be. 

As we passed by Camborne I am reminded of my good friend Roger Bridge    who studied the art of Tunneling there but sadly has recently suffered a stroke at a very premature age. He is recovering in fantastic fashion and we all root for this continuance. Get well soon Rog!

The weather is friendly, as we move south we are greeted with blue skies and the prospect of a long voyage becomes even more exciting.

Arrival in Lands End ( what a shithole) and I'm pleased that the 6 pound parking charge is wavered on the fact we are End 2 Enders. The tandem is already a celebrity and strange people take pictures of us-we should of course be pleased but they're pissing us off. The girls chaperone us as we insist on the obligatory start photo. Kisses and cuddles and bye-byes - 'Be safe' and all that stuff. I sense the captain is restless and keen to make the move. With the 123 off we go. I survey the Devon stone walling and consider whether like the Gloucestershire version it was built by Artisans or created by a stray bomb.

We have a favourable tailwind the sun is shining and the captain declares that the 'Gods are with us' Looking behind I see the flag of St George flying strongly. Buzzards rise on thermals, we can smell lavender in the hedgerows, we are happy to be on our way. We both inhale autumnal air and I sense the captain like me is  feeling that sense of freedom that only the tour brings.

'Somethings rubbing my arse'declares Capitano - I assure him it's not me and then noticed the brake that I have been offered to give me a sense of importance has moved during transit. As we press on through Devon I am reminded that climbing is unavoidable. We press on to Truro which was a supposed destination end for the day. However as always after a cup of hot chocolate and a study of accommodation we decide to push on to St Austell. 'Its only 15 miles we agree' . Punished for our greed arrival comes some 24 mile later thanks to the wisdom of Garmin mapping. The captain is less than happy with himself. Rolling into St Austell in The dark and unable to find our digs we are offered a welcome bonus as a plainclothes police man escorts us personally to our refuge. Both suffering from coughs and sniffles we sink a few pints and retire with haste to the pit. One problem-there is a karaoke downstairs and would be popstars are echoing unearthly sounds. If it continues for much longer there is a strong possibility that I will go down and pull the plug. 

We didn't crack on until 130 today and finished on 60 miles and around 5000 feet of climbing. Tomorrow we cross the moor and hope to be in Exeter by the evening.

Over and out Captain and Stoker x

The Week Before

 Once again its time for a tour. The usual Head Games are kicking off?  -

Will I escape the Autumn Lurgy  before the start? Will we make it? Will the bike hold out? If we do break down will we find a mechanic? As we pass  Glasgow will the SNP kidnap us and burn the flag of St George.  My mind knows this is paranoia at its highest level but it won't go away. 

Anticipation  not dissimilar to a child waiting for Father Christmas to arrive. This is the lure of the tour. It's escapism in every way, no phone, no speak, no answer -  Days of peddle turning - thinking of days gone by and silent meditation of days to come ( God Willing) it's bliss.

This year however has a different impetus - with the newly discovered tandem I am Stoking The Captain up to The Orkneys to what must be Winchcombe`s worst kept secret. The Captain being a man of War, a man who has kept  society's worst offenders behind bars and the county's worst fires at bay is to marry his long suffering partner Lorraine. The latter being his potentially most decorated challenge. Despite the bravado - The Captain is humbled!

Next Friday morning Sarah will be driving us down to Lands End to begin the adventure. Without accommodation booked and unaware of what may befall us over the next ten days we will chomping on the bit to begin. The tandem is serviced and the trailer is ready for packing. As natives of Southern Britain  fly the Red Cross to the top - The men from Englandshire will be on their way.

The donation pot is for Air Ambulance this year. The concept of suggesting we are 'doing it for charity' is nonsense because if someone gave us 10K not to go we would still be on our way. However lets all just view it as an opportunity to be reminded to give to a great cause.  This seamlessly run organisation survives on giving void of any government funding and none of us know when we may need it. I will be donating myself to the pot so think about a donation a different light  - you may need it one day and so may we. It wouldn't be good to lifted  to the sky one day perusing on the fact a chance to give had gone amiss  . Click on link below for details


Blog all the way up and looking forward to offering comfort to the Captain on his last few weeks of (alleged) freedom.

https://www.justgiving.com/fundraising/Russell-Parker6?utm_id=26