Firstly,apologies for the lateness of this post, it was a pretty full, exciting and eventful day. Rising at 6am for a 7am breakfast again, I was becoming accustomed to the routine by now. I knew exactly what I was going to eat and in what order, was I becoming an institutionalised L2P cyclist ? Water bottles filled and a final check of tyre pressures for the last hussar into Paris.
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| Just over 50 miles to go on the final day |
Leaving the Ibis here and setting off along the river my attempt to reach Paris was almost thwarted by "Rocket Ron" who beckoned my from behind as I reached a set of unseen bollards. Missing them by inches I decided to not do this again until at least tomorrow. The first 10 miles of this last 50 plus mile leg was nice and flat, but given More Adventure's thirst for a nice hill or two, it wasn't long before we were climbing again. The legs were pretty leaden by now and I slowly ground my way to the top for a brief rest with those ahead.
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| Love these French roads |
The weather was holding as there was a watery sun in the sky trying to break through here. Conditions were once again calm. This early climb seemed to kick start the weary body into action and before I knew it I was at the front with the "Elite Group" , well sort of. In our tight group we spun along at a hairy pace up and down the rolling silky tarmac roads of the French countryside, each mile closer to the goal. A stop for a very early lunch here near to a park was welcome indeed.
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| Brunch |
From here on in it was going to get busy. Despite it being a Sunday, Paris is Paris and I was truly excited at the thought of negotiating the Arc de Triomphe. The roads did get busier and the charming suburbs rolled by. Local like-minded children in the "interesting" Saint Denis came out on their own bikes to ride alongside us, performing stunts or just watching from the central reservation. After this we were then suddenly stopped by a Sunday flee market about a mile long which forced us off our bikes. Having no choice but to walk it in cleats. I couldn't have stopped a pig in a passage with the way my legs looked after this.
Once all through safely we rode on before grouping near to the Arc. In one big uniformed line of pairs we raced across this iconic landmark, an absolute thrill if I'm to be honest. I could have done this again and again , it was a real treat. Immediately onto the Champs-Elysees and down those famous cobbles to eventually arrive in the park opposite the Eiffel Tower...... We'd made it ! Such a feeling of achievement and we'd all got there in one piece.
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| The lead out through the streets of Paris |
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| Outside The George V ( Not a part of the Ibis chain ) |
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| The Team |
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| Made it ! |
With that we had a 5 mile ride to the hotel, so no chance of a sit down then ! Showered and changed we had a group meal and one or two small cream sherries to celebrate. A good night was had by all. A great group of people who shared a rather challenging adventure and raised some good money for all our fantastic charities along with www.moreadventure.co.uk
THANK YOU ALL.
