This video series follows my adventure in Sept-Oct 2023, along with 19 other cyclist friends, old and new, with Pedal Britain & Europe cycling from the English Channel at Saint Malo in France, across the entire country to the Mediterranean at Nice 14 days later, visiting the “Beast Of Provence” Mont Ventoux along the way.
A Spine injury has meant my preparation was almost non existent for the preceding 3 months and with Surgery booked for my return to the UK, I was at the start line full of Nerve Blocking medication and full of doubt as to the possibility of completing the full trip and certainly the ascent of Ventoux seemed a forlorn hope when we set off
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Considering how tired I felt last night it’s crazy to consider that the difficult cycling starts today with the right profile basically being up up up and up for 75 miles I’ve decided if I carried on just relying on one leg like yesterday my right calf muscle would end
Up looking like popey’s arm so feeling better today I decided to just ride a steady place without pushing too hard on the Hills Grand depart day five always a bit o when you sit on your saddle first thing and then you look around and everyone’s doing it so not
Feeling too bad after yesterday’s very difficult day the psychological Booth we had this morning is that when we get to obasa we’re split into two hotels and half of us including me are in a hotel which is 3 miles short of the route which were supposed to be
78 it felt like a psychological boost it just means we’re going to do an extra three the next day but we’ll deal with that tomorrow One well this looks like is the top of still uh I’ve managed to stay in contact with others so it’s a bit better than yesterday yeah good actually kept up with people today just eyeing up Clive’s new blue tires that he got to match his bike and I’m trying to convince him that
As they’re wearing slightly they’re turning the color of my bike they’re definitely Celeste they look better on mine the sun has got his hat on hip hip hip hoay the sun has got his head on and he’s coming up today absolutely beautiful sorry about the karaoke going down a really fastest
Descent here with lots of hair pin bends great front actually oh I said descent we gone over the river and it started to go up again spoke too soon that a steep little corner wow everything ni save get those insects in your head all right an insect
Issue insects in his helmet one of the drawbacks of going slow up a hill cant cant is or cant is where we’re having our boost up know the hardest bit of the climb coming up the last bit the Steep ramp Apparently Yes couple of friends going on somewhere else yeah I know exactly that that’s how I felt on the jog you’re almost like in a what do they call it a parallel universe where nothing else was happening other than this little thing ien P the TV on in the room that’s it
But we don’t have time cuz I yeah apart from getting your kit ready washing kit cycling sleeping and eating there’s no time to do anything else hi you mate well you know why are you pushing the head with DAR there you know don’t seriously don’t do it you
Nurse it around as slow as you want and I’ll I’ll ride with you cuz as you found out yesterday I’m in no hurry yeah my mate dar in therea struggling with a hopefully it’s just a muscular problem just above his knee it’s B troubling oh I can’t have a bianky power in past
Me you smell the Teese I can’t that’s what it is the cheese Ruing On your left hey George Let’s said we’re going to have to earn our coffee and cake with a climb up to the Bruce stop so this must be taken as down the bottom of that climb H how good was that oh that was brilliant there that was good Fun Beautiful oh God I thought we had about like a mile of this or something oh lovely what a great backdrop it’s been a good Day teas coffees he P Trees all right got the old castle up the hill now you can still see Clive eating his third piece of Cake right Richard Richard you got it it’s not here you’re right okay that’s somebody’s Farm well done Richard yeah we’re more or less on that golden ratio at moment thousand feet climbing for every 10 Miles the beauty of all the hill climbing is the thrill of long windy fast descents better than any roller Coaster wow that was good fun and as a bonus you get your bum off the saddle as well oh this is a bit that Chris said was okay to get through yeah we had a message saying it’s okay it’s okay for felines Are you a foline Another TI Off all right yeah I’m just giving yeah I’m yeah do it do it yeah we still got 8 Miles so so I know it’s not an easy 8 m so are you going up in these Hills in in in a your easiest gear cuz you really seriously that’s buying you that much
You really should and I know you think oh I’ll lose a group if you I will hang back with for a start you know I’m not in any any yeah you know that was my first thought when I was doing I’m just going to be on my own and thenone starts
Disappear and my legs bloody hurt and I’m thinking no I’ll just be on but no I’ll H back I don’t I don’t have clue what’s going on probably just maybe pushing too hard and um something’s just tweaked and then I just made over over the duration of the day just made it
Worse yes pushing too hard in the first few days I mean he have come across a million people that’s done that and then afterwards 6:30 this morning when the alarm went off my first thought was why would anybody want to go up and do a 80
M bik ride today but you get up you start faffing around you have your breakfast and suddenly it’s like well okay feel so bad yeah yeah and then you’re right it’s marvelous absolutely it’s just fab we haven’t caught you two having another Wei have we buy we some and something to
Eat that’s three in one Stu Got this for two miles I’m afraid buddy more what all right yeah the stripes yeah I’m in a group I don’t know to Do what you Squatted was that a picture of a tree I imagine that church up there is probably where lunch is and they down de say you would see it before you start climbing it but I think we’re probably going up there yeah Richard Richard there’s a River gge not a river gge this is a cracker actually oh yeah that little house halfway up yeah that it yeah the dog House they’re definitely not Yorkshire and Lancashire Hills that’s sure they’re actually they’re actually Doable oh God there’s the church we’re looking up from down below and here’s Lunch piece of Piss come on that’s goeve Steve Steve Steve Steve Steve don’t put your foot down Steve your glasses they’re yours I thought you were going to go what and put his foot down right on him I’m already regretting taking my arm things off now cing FES already cool is a hot one Dar as
Aner right it’s the opposite for me it’s it’s resting now and standing up there does me I’ve got perch on one foot Oh that tarmat was like velvet on a little tiny Country Lane That I was expecting like an oldfashioned Viaduct despite its modern looking design the buso viaduct was built in 1864 it stands 57 m above the river and is 320 M long the van provided much needed rest bite Shelter From the Sun as we refueled and got some fluids in before the final
Push walking back into the Sun that was a long that with sh this Spot Amazing difference isn’t it just going from Sun to shade to climb gapped by the group but then Steve kindly dropped back and waited for me Go long way to I think yeah it’s nice to go fast enough to get a breeze yeah yeah 7 ft pointed to the left thank God that’s down no definitely not disappointed um yeah I think yeah wrong way you just want to go up more Hills last climb of the day Steve last of the Day Last Mile coming up definitely had enough today climbing all day boing on look sore backside is really tore but so is everyone else’s apparently to discuss these things how beautiful is That whatever they’re in the PB after such a hot day on the bike and unable to have a beer due to my medication there was only one kind of refreshment on my mind God that sun is like an oven it interesting finish of the Day we were split into two hotels 3 m apart but still managed to toast our successful day via WhatsApp I definitely bounced back today in spite of the uphill profile and the scorching Sun I did blow a cylinder around 10 mi from home but Steve H stayed with me till a
Finish what a nice chap of the photos today this was my favorite it’s been a while since this farm vehicle was used watch the rest of this fantastic journey across France by clicking on this yellow icon to subscribe to the Channel and these two videos here can be clicked on
To give you a feel for what else is on the channel aoir from obol and see you in part six