1,000 km in 4 days for Hope & Heroes: Day 2 detail

Thank you for reading my rants and ramblings on here...

Well... Saturday was a day and half.

Cold, miserable & full of wind (and the weather was pretty crap too)

This yellow bike was at Wigan train station, it's Tour de Wigan !!

This ride felt twice as hard as the first 160 miler 2 weeks ago possibly because
a) I didn't have a mate like Ian Land on this one which was a complete joy from start to finish and
b) it poured down persistently all day !!! and
c) the wind changed direction after York so I had a headwind for the last 60 miles which was not good.
Oh and d) I had to put up with some crazy drivers of white vans.

This was Charlene swinging safely in her hammock !!

I set off from the best little B&B in Reads Ave, Blackpool at 5:30 AM ish and headed down to the Central Pier. It is so weird riding through a large buzzing place like Blackpool that is completely quiet and totally desolate. It was like a scene from "dawn of the dead". I was expecting to see a zombie coming out of a shop door after my flesh !! I wasn't disappointed as just around a corner I was met by 3 lads still revelling from the night before with kebabs in hand.....

I went to the starting point at Central Pier and tried the gate on the pier and it was open so I went for a ride to the end and but just around the corner was met by 2 burly security guards who looked like they were ready to claim their first kill of the day. But I must have looked a sad case as they let me go. It was only after I realised I had put a shower cap on my helmet so they were just glad I moved on !!!!

The Blackpool lights are green this year, later they go orange and red !!! haha

I set off at 6 AM... heading for Preston. Hometown of my wonderful mum. I had planned to go right past her childhood road in Holme Slack near the Preston North End football stadium.

Just outside the town I met the junction for the M55, it would have been a great road to go on at that time of day, traffic free! but I thought better of it as it was a bit dodgy on an M road even at stupid o clock but also illegal ! I got onto what I thought was the old Preston Road but could not see signs for Preston only Kirkham so I stopped by a traffic cop in his Jag and I asked him " Is this Kirkham road the Preston old road mate", he said " Yes but you weren't thinking of cycling there were you, it was a very long way, around 13 miles" !! I said, " I was going to Hull". He just stared at me and said "HULL !!!???" I said "Yes mate hull." His mouth just sort of dropped loosely open and I said see ya and shot off before he could arrest me for wasting police time or beating me to death for my own safety or something !!

First scare was on the road into Preston where a Highway Maintenance lorry flew past me on the inside so close and doing 70 mph it actually blew my contact lense out of my eye. So I had to stop to change the lense along with my pants (if I had been wearing any) Haha cycling joke !!

The attendant at the petrol station was a tad suspicious of this red faced flustered middle aged bloke in wet lycra and would not let me in at first but stood watching me as I went to the toilet to change my contacts. It's obviously the shower cap again.

Passing by mums home town and then her old school and where she grew up was emotional and heart warming at the same time. I hadn't been here for many years but recognised it instantly. It was really weird because I felt really happy and felt as if it was like coming home going through the neighbourhood around Blackpool Road near the old workhouse but as soon as I passed by the football ground away from the area I felt really emotional and sad for leaving. Loads of memories came flooding back and I said an emotional hello & goodbye to Preston & Blackpool Road.

I was so looking forward to meeting a great couple I met in Birmingham from near Gisburn which was on the route. Eric & Sharon. The night before I texted him to say I should be there around 8 in the morning but as my luck would have it I was over an hour late and missed them. Next time Eric for sure, see you again soon mate. By the way I was only joking when you asked if there was anything I needed and I said about a chamois cream top up to my nether region !! hee hee

Onwards and upwards, literally !! as the first big climb of the day was here, outside Skipton is the famous Blubberhouses. I tackled the west bit which is a gradual climb except for the 14% bit at the bottom near the river.

On 6 July 2014, Stage 2 of the 2014 Tour de France from York to Sheffield, passed through the village. It was also the location of the first climb of the stage, the Category 4 Côte de Blubberhouses, at the 47 kilometres (29 mi) point. It was 1.8 kilometres (1.1 mi) long at an average gradient of 6.1%. The 1 point for the King of the Mountain competition was claimed by Frenchman, Cyril Lemoine of Cofidis^[3]

I bet Bradley Wiggins could not do it with a shower cap on his head.

The ride down the other side was FANTASTIC.

I was now in need of a cafe stop, about 50 miles done. I spotted a roadside cafe that had a reassuring huge amount of trade, loads of people enjoying bacon butties and hot steaming coffees & teas from big mugs. Not fancy just honest grub. Perfect !!

I parked up and instantly got a friendly wink and "Ey up pal, just leave your bike there, I will keep eye on it mukka, if you want a pee just take key from counter" I love Yorkshire people, salt of the earth.

I got chatting to the 2 girls and the bloke who was busy cooking what seemed like about 30 pieces of bacon & 2 dozen eggs, skillfully flipping and sorting them on the huge stove whilst listening to my story so far. "Where did you say you are heading mukka? Hull, you bloody mental or what?" The big smile on his face was infectious and the place was full of laughter. Some people just have it I guess. He would be great on the telly, makes Marco or Jamie seem dull as ditchwater in comparison. "Charity is it pal, right you can have anything on the house" What a lovely guy. I just took 2 bottles of water and a coffee for £1, I owe the charity £1.80 and the best wishes of a lovely short order cook/cafe owner on the side of the road just outside Harrogate.

Harrogate came and went and then onto York.

York is stunning and home to the famous Sir Robert & Lady Louise of Riccall. My brother and sister in law. (I mentioned them before, no need to go there again and embarrass anyone) But just want to say...Rob, I have now brushed my teeth so pucker up big boy, I am coming to get you !!!

Also home to the strangest petrol service station I have ever seen, it was like a Co-op/BP petrol station combined with a theme park dedicated to Sci Fi films........

Inside there were Star Wars stormtroopers next to the sandwich counter and a 12 foot high transformer. Oh and Han Solo frozen in carbonite from The Empire Strikes Back next to the ATM !!!!

100 miles done and at this point so was I, the next 40 miles was the toughest. By the time I got to Hull I wanted to throw my bike off the Humber Bridge and never ride again. The road was flat but the headwind was coming right at my face and the potholes and surface was horrible. I also had some road rage, near death experiences when slipping on climbs and to cap it all I had a puncture too which was great fun.

Just when I turned the corner towards the last stretch of road along the river, the A1033. A friendly face drove past me and shouted, Hey Rich ! It was Sir Rob of Riccall on his trusty steed to save my ass !!!

I had been really looking forward to the end part as the terrain changes totally. East of Hull is like East Anglia, totally flat and huge fields of corn & grassess for miles. About 12 miles from Spurn Point the Greenwich Meridian line 0 degrees longtitude (the prime meridian) runs through.

Spurn Point was reached at 6:15 PM and much celebrations were made but I was like a drugged up spaced out lunatic, I cannot remember much about it and Rob was a bit concerned as I was not my usual self. An hour or two later with a hot shower and Indian meal I was feeling great and was up til midnight !!! It will no doubt hit me a few days later and I will be found sleeping at my desk. No change there then.....