Audlem cyclist's Coastal Tour of Britain

I consider this challenge – approximately 4,000 miles in length, unsupported and at a rate exceeding 90 miles per day – to be one of the toughest in the cycling curriculum.

At 66 years of age, I am a very experienced cyclist and have undertaken many challenge rides over the past two decades including events in the French Alps, Pyrenees, Dolomites, Swiss Alps, Spain and Italy, but nothing of this magnitude.

I did Lands End to John O'Groats some years ago, but to put this into perspective – this ride is equivalent to riding four Lands End to John O'Groats 'back to back' – so it was a genuine personal challenge.

Planning The Ride

This proved to be very time consuming, as it involved detailing the route – following the coastline as closely as possible, for every junction, roundabout for each day – 44 in total, together with booking 43 B&B's (appropriately located – between 85 and 95 miles apart, en-route) on consecutive days!

One particularly interesting feature, was the use of Ferries to cross major rivers, such as the Mersey, Clyde, Tyne, Harwich estuary and Thames – thus avoiding the complexity of negotiating cities. Additionally, ferries were used to cross to Isle of Wight, and after riding across the Island back onto the mainland.

Likewise in Scotland from Mallaig to the Isle of Sky, I then rode 'up' the Island to cross the 'new' bridge at the Kyle of Lockalsh back onto the mainland. In total 14 ferry crossings were used.

On a long, tough ride such as this, it is necessary to travel with as little as possible – to keep the weight down, hence, apart from the cycling kit I was riding in, I only took a casual top, shorts, socks and footwear (for evenings) together with limited toiletries and tools – total baggage for 6 weeks – 4.5kg.

I did, however, post off 4 packages (containing Protein recovery powder, vitamin tablets, massage & Sun creams) to B&B's strategically spaced at 8 day intervals.

"The Big Ride"

Starting from Chester heading to the Mersey Ferry and my first of 356 river crossings – the feeling was magical – embarking on a 44 day adventure 'on the road' (circulating the country clockwise).

On such events one inevitably experiences unusual situations and meet interesting people. Here, on day one, I found myself riding with a chap from Wrexham who had had both knees replaced within the last 8 months – hats off to him.

On the North coast of Scotland I met an 'old lady' from Holland touring Britain (by bike) towing a cart behind her, in which she had her dog! At Lands End I got chatting to a man who had come all the way from Australia to do exactly what I was doing – except he was taking 80 days and camping!

Near Aberdeen I met up with an old work colleague who I hadn't seen for 20 years and near Grimsby met our old next door neighbour for the first time in 30 years... to name a few occurrences.

Riding conditions in the North of Scotland were horrendous – a week in which the temperature never got above 7 deg C. accompanied by gale force winds and rain every day (with snow on occasions!)

Re-entering England and arriving at Sunderland – approximately halfway through the ride, conditions improved, but only the last 4 or 5 days could you say I experienced 'summer' weather!

Not going to plan

There were numerous days when things didn't go to plan for one reason or another, but one such occasion was on Day 27 (Destination Gravesend) – when after 40 miles I took a wrong turning near Clacton on Sea, adding 9 miles to the day, then later came across a police road block (due to a serious accident) and a further 10 mile diversion, on minor roads approaching Tilbury (where I planned to take the Ferry to Gravesend), reconstruction of a bridge diverted me into 'unknown territory' losing further time, as a consequence, I missed the last Ferry and had to ride up the north shore of the Thames to the first bridge crossing, eventually arriving at my B&B in Gravesend at 9.00pm with 127 miles behind me!

Understanding the Nutritional requirements on such an event is essential, in order to compensate for a high energy expenditure in the order of 5,000 kcalories per day whilst cycling (twice normal rates). Consequently, a large breakfast and evening meal – packed with protein and carbohydrates is required, together with adequate hydration.

I had an un-expectantly high number of mechanical issues – 8 punctures, 3 new tyres, replacement bottom bracket bearings, brake blocks, rear gear jockey wheels and cable, however, was fortunate to overcome these problems without any significant disruption to my schedule.

The terrain around the coastline of Dorset, Devon and Cornwall was particularly tough with several days where I failed to identify any flat road at all with numerous extreme climbs and descents (many of which were at 25%!).

Summary

• Total Distance travelled – 3,960 miles
• Distance Travelled per Day – 92.2 miles
• Significant Rivers Crossed – 356
• Average Daily Riding Time – 6 to 7 hrs per day
• Body Weight Loss – 10%
• General physical condition – Excellent – no ill effects at end of the ride

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