Day 12 – Barcelona, such a beautiful horizon!

Finally, we’d got to the border with Spain and a mere 112 miles down to Barcelona. The morning started in a very scummy border town (could have been third world) with some lengthy descents and some pretty easy riding down to Figueres and Girona. With not having any punctures until Day 11, it was always going to be a day of hissing, but three in the space of a few hundred metres was a little excessive! A detour after lunch meant that we had to take a slightly hillier route than planned out towards the coast, but with everyone focussed on the finish line it didn’t seem to affect us. Poor old Nick had managed to pick up a nasty cough and sore throat, which meant that sounded as though Barry White was cycling with us!

News of flight delays from the folks heading to Barcelona to meet us led to a Top Gear-esque race to Icaria beach. Inspired by the finish line, the final 30 miles were hammered hard with Dave & Simon even racing moped riders off of traffic lights as we headed through the streets of Barcelona. We made it to the beach to find Mummy Mould and Auntie Jack as well as Jen’s good friend Anni to greet us. Not long after we were swamped by some people who seemed to think that they’d had a tough journey to Barcelona!  It was great to see everyone and we'd certainly missed them loads. 

The day's ride was really tough, and went on for a long time (7 hrs 10 min of riding) but we realised as a team that we have become really strong riders.  Inspecting the climbing data we were surprised to see 5,400 ft of climbing, as it certainly didn't feel that much.  112 miles would have been daunting a fortnight ago (indeed, it was!) but this morning it was just another pleasant ride on the wrong side of the road!  It's amazing how an epic trip like this can change your perceptions. 

Some much appreciated beer & tapas on the beachfront, with some very relieved, tired, elated and proud cyclists heading off to our lovely casa for some well-earned sleep. As for the journey to get there… well that’s another story for another time! 

Route details can be found here: we recommend reading them whilst thinking about the patatas bravas that you have most definitely earnt…

https://www.strava.com/activities/308803874 (Sinéad)
https://www.strava.com/activities/308808027 (David)

Day 11 – Well, that was unpleasant!

If Day 10 had felt a little low key, then Day 11 definitely had the feel of the penultimate day (and our
last day of cycling in France). Motivation was a little hard to find as the clouds came in and we headed off from Agde. With a strong headwind and rain coming down, the morning’s coffee stop couldn’t come soon enough. And when it did come, we didn’t want to leave as the rain had a distinctly horizontal look to it!  So we didn't for quite some time.

Battling on through the conditions was made harder when Dave managed to get the 1st puncture of the trip, followed a few miles later by the 2nd! Excellent teamwork got him back cycling quickly and this enabled a change of scenery as we cycled through Perpignan. A quick stop in a lovely coffee shop to shelter from yet more rain gave us the energy we needed to make the final small climb up to the border with Spain. We were all delighted with the decision that we’d made the previous evening to do the extra 20 miles to help today's ride, as this had been 90 very tough miles today! 

We stayed in the beautiful town of Céret, where the only restaurant was a “poncy” one (according to Uncle Bazoit). Gladly, the service was wonderful, the wine fantastic and the food even better. Four tired cyclists went to bed to prepare themselves for the final assault… spurred on by a beautiful sangria made on our insistence.  We were all ready to finish this bad boy off now.

Route details can be found here; we recommend reading them whilst shivering after spending too long in a cold shower and then putting some wet clothes on afterwards…

https://www.strava.com/activities/308803778 (Sinéad)
https://www.strava.com/activities/308807915 (David)

Day 10

Day 10 – A bit of a cycling hangover!

Day 10 felt a little low key compared to the previous day; especially as we had the most delightful evening in Avingnon with the lovely Maryse and her freezing cold swimming pool! We like to think it was an attempt to be more like the pro cyclists and their post ride ice baths, but I doubt they spend as long getting in as the Mould brothers…

Anyway, back to the cycling. Day 10 had us heading to the seaside via some lovely cycling down country lanes a few cycle tracks. We got our first views of the Med at lunchtime, and we took full advantage with lunch in the sunshine by the yachts in La Grande Motte. We made a new friend as we headed out for the afternoon, Nick was no longer the senior statesman as we were taken down the coastal cycling tracks by a 60 year old who could put us all to shame. 

The afternoon was pretty difficult as we headed into a headwind coming off the sea, thankfully the minor incident with a metal plate being flicked at Simon from a police van wasn’t too serious and only a small amount of blood was spilt. The bogey coloured paintwork survived sadly.  We were all cheered up by some cycling-focused road signs encouraging us to bunnyhop the speed bumps as fast as possible.  By the time we arrived at Crossroads Hotel in Balurac we had decided to try and take a chunk out Day 11’s mileage and do the 20 miles to Agde that evening.  Might have been something to do with not wanting to hang around at that place. With Simon putting in a monstrous turn in the front and a rendition of Agadoo (with dance moves!), four tired cyclists were delighted to find Uncle Bazoit on the side of the road. Turns out that Uncle Bazoit was also pretty pleased to see us too, having already waved an earlier cyclist into the layby. Thankfully, we managed to get him away before the local police turned up and make it into town for a pizza.

Route details can be found here; we recommend reading them last thing at night, after an exhausting day with a large fan on full blast…

https://www.strava.com/activities/308803781 (Sinéad)
https://www.strava.com/activities/308807911 & https://www.strava.com/activities/308807868 (David)

Day 9 – The Big One!

We awoke bright and early on a sunny Sunday morning to set off up the ginormous mountain overshadowing the house. With it being a beautiful May morning, there were a few other cyclists out on the road doing the same thing. The team splintered off as we all developed our own rhythm to get ourselves up the hill. The awesome Uncle Bazoit (his new French name) was up and down, taking photos of us all gurning as we worked our way up the mountain. It was very hard work and just kept going – relentless as Filipe had warned us. 

We all made it up to the top to find an amazing view and smug sense of satisfaction. Things got even better as we headed down the mountain, flying past the other cyclists who hadn’t been quite so keen to get up early and get on the mountain!  That descent was ridiculous – hard earned and amazingly good fun.  Brakes were wearing out quickly, and we were knocking on the door of 50 mph. 

After some well-deserved lunch in Bedoin, we had a relatively short journey to the beautiful Avignon where a very cold swimming pool awaited some tired cyclists!

Route details can be found here; I’m really not sure how you can recreate the experience of immense pain, so maybe you could just bang your head against the wall for a bit and then jump out of a plane, followed by a bike ride along a big river.

https://www.strava.com/activities/306440150 (Sinéad)

https://www.strava.com/activities/306437981 (David)

Day 8 – 4 seasons in 1 day

We had learnt our lesson from the previous day and wrapped up in our thermal gear to head out into the mist and sleet. It was a chilly 3.5°C as we climbed nearly 1,000 ft in the 1^st 5 miles of the day. Things got better as we headed down a rather large hill, 1,000 m drop in 10 km… We all enjoyed it immensely! After a quick coffee at the bottom to warm ourselves up we headed down (not quite as steep, but yes, still down!) the valley towards Aubenas. Lunch was eaten outside in roughly 20°C sunshine and we headed out to do some of the hills, after a few of those with the temperature rising to 26°C it was decided that the thermals from the morning were no longer appropriate and a roadside costume change was in order. Summer gear on and local drivers traumatised, we continued on our merry way.

I think it’s fair to say that we benefited from a favourable tail wind, because as the roads flattened out we were still easily hitting speeds of 30 mph on the flat. This made our 113 mile trip seem a whole lot easier!  Speeds in excess of 40 mph were achievable on the flat with some effort. There were a fair number of cyclists coming off Mont Ventoux, heading in the opposite direction who didn’t seem quite so happy with the condition!  The shadow of Mont Ventoux and it’s legendary status in cycling history loomed large as we headed into Bedoin for the evening. We hit the pasta hard in preparation for the big day! 

Route details can be found here, we recommend viewing them initially in your winter thermals and then change into your summer shorts halfway through in public, whilst not giving a damn:

https://www.strava.com/activities/306439902 (Sinéad)

https://www.strava.com/activities/306436130 (David)

Day 7 - Il A Plu

The morning of Day 7 found us in a damp Issoire; we may have slightly underestimated just how chilly it was going to get as we climbed up to over 1,000 m! Fair to say that by the time we got to Siaugues-Saint-Romain we were tired, wet, cold and hungry. We piled into the only restaurant in town and had a quick change into dry clothes before tucking into an amazing lunch of chicken & lentils (a Le Puy delicacy)… Obviously, the plan was to power us the remaining hills in more than one way!

At the top of the hill, the rain was whipped into our faces so they stang, which was nice after a massive climb!  With the help a reasonably strong (mostly) tailwind we made it into our accommodation in Les Marconnes just before the rain came down to find the most wonderful hosts, Luc & Karen, who lit the fire and washed all our wet stuff for us before producing an incredible dinner of gratin and veal as well as some local fromage (mange tout, mange tout). We met up with the fifth member of our gang, Nick; whilst the wind and rain might have terrified him, the food and wine helped ease any worries!

The route details can be found here, we recommend sitting in a cold, windy shower, with someone slapping your legs whilst viewing to recreate the ride:

https://www.strava.com/activities/305033501 (Sinéad)

https://www.strava.com/activities/305035411 (David)

Day 6 – Brutal beast

Day 6 was always going to be a bit of a challenge, so we got ourselves out on the road nice and early. With it being a bank holiday in France, it meant that we didn’t see anyone else on the road until about 11.30… The day was just over 100 miles with over 2,000 m of climbing, thankfully we did get to do some downhills too, made even more fun by overtaking combine harvesters and people on tandems with small trailers behind them to give them extra momentum. The route might have been a bit shorter if we didn’t have gps units attempting to send us up dirt tracks only suitable for mountain bikes and goats.

The tough day meant that an afternoon stop in Nébouzat was perfect for fuelling us up with coffee and flapjacks for the last of the big ascents. Above all else, 2 things got us up the big hills:

1. The huge amount of money that you have all been donating (thank you!)
2.  The lovely text message that we got from Nick (who heads out here to join us tomorrow evening), half way up a beast of a hill, reminding us that what we’re doing is helping out people who really do need it

The song stuck in Nobby’s head for the entire day was, of course, The Climb by Miley Cyrus. Safe to say counselling is required for all concerned.

Route details can be found here, we advise sitting on a rock hard saddle for 7 hours before viewing to try and recreate the ride:

https://www.strava.com/activities/304420029 (Sinéad)

https://www.strava.com/activities/304418435 (David)

Day 5 - Scorchio

Following on from the perfect day on day 4, day 5 started with a lovely breakfast prepared by Debs at Molante Farm in St-Pierre-de-Maillé. The sun was shining down on us as we headed out to roll through the beautiful French countryside. The temperature continued to rise throughout the day, hitting 33°C after lunch and staying that hot until the end of the ride… This meant that when we were sent on a diversion around Guéret (where we could actually see our hotel, only to be sent in the opposite direction!) the tar on the road had actually melted, which made cycling somewhat interesting. Eventually we decided to suck it up and sneak around the road works, where they had kindly left us a small patch of road!

Route details can be found here, we advise looking at them in a sauna to try and recreate the ride.

https://www.strava.com/activities/303763795 (Sinéad)

https://www.strava.com/activities/303768593 (David)

Day 4 – quite frankly, it was (relatively) easy!

After a couple of monster days, we were looking forward to a gentle 70 miles with very few hills. A little morning fog meant that we didn't quite have the perfect conditions, but apart from that, pretty much everything else went our way. Flying along at an average speed of 20 mph following the River Vienne, the sun came out and the miles flew by. We arrived at our beautiful gîte to find a swimming pool, incredibly accommodating hosts and an amazing pizzeria for dinner. All in all, a great day!

Comedy moment for the day was provided outside the café by a chap nearly falling out of the car as his friend tried to start it in gear. I think we managed to stifle our giggles… Kudos to Dave and Uncle Bazo for removing a stone in the brakes of the car which was making the strangest of noises.  Bikes serviced too. 

Route details can be found here:

https://www.strava.com/activities/303016718 (Sinéad)

https://www.strava.com/activities/303041596 (David)

Day 1 and the Grand Depart seems so long ago now.  One third down, and building momentum.  Thanks for the kind messages.  And happy birthday Edward!

Day 3 – Simon giving us all heart attacks!

Thankfully, the previous day’s wind had died down significantly and we had a gorgeous sunny morning start. Day 3 was always planned to be a reasonably long one (105 miles) and a bit of a diversion around Mayenne, meant that we expected it to be even longer still. But it did come as quite a large surprise after 40 miles when Simon announced that there was 85 miles to go. So heads down and some epic team cycling meant that we got to lunch feeling that we had at least taken a reasonable amount out of the total. It was at this point that we discovered that Simon had no clue how to use his GPS unit and we did not have to do 125 miles! Another minor diversion meant we cycled 112 miles, with temperatures hitting 31°C we needed to take on lots of fluid… unfortunately the only bottled water available at the supermarket was a lightly gassed number; which, when loaded onto bikes and shaken vigorously gave our legs a refreshing wash at unexpected times, or exploding bottle lids into our faces!

The evening was brightened up by the news that we’d hit £5,000 in donations; thank you all, you wonderful lot! Accommodation in Les Loges was generously provided by the Hull family, thank you!

Route details can be found here:

https://www.strava.com/activities/302453124 (Sinéad)

https://www.strava.com/activities/302667514 (David)

I realise it may seem that most of our time is spent in cafés, but I promise we spent quite a lot of time on the bikes!

Day 2 – a bit a whoper!

After the previous day’s endeavours, it took us a little while to get going in the morning. Whilst it was reasonably sunny day, there was a beast of a headwind all day long. With nearly 100 miles to cover and 1,400 m of climbing (or 1,500 m if you’re Dave!); it was a long, hard day in the saddle.

Route details here:

https://www.strava.com/activities/302453131 (Sinéad)

https://www.strava.com/activities/302665281 (David)

Highlights of the day include:

• Uncle Bazo taking stalking to a whole new level by following us onto a cycle path, taking Simon so much by surprise that he wet himself.
• Nobby’s inability to spot a rather large kerb.
• Several sense of humour failures (what goes on tour stays on tour!)

Day 1 – Le Grand Depart

Given that it was rather early on a Saturday morning, there were a surprising number of people out in Cholsey to wave goodbye – or perhaps it was just to make sure that Dave was really leaving for a few weeks… I suspect that the excellent bacon butties provided by Claire, Sheila and Mark were also a strong contributing factor.  What a turnout!  Thanks for the great send off.

It didn't take long for the 1^st puncture and an even shorter time after that for puncture number 2, it was just a bit mean for them to happen to the same person! Despite a few minor setbacks, we made good time to the cake & lunch stops provided by Claire, Rachel & the team in good time. Our team of domestiques delivered us to Fareham on time and well protected from the wind, thank you!

For more details of part 1 of the route, our Strava profiles can be found here:

https://www.strava.com/activities/302453128 (Sinéad)

https://www.strava.com/activities/302662860 (David)

A slightly windy ferry ride got us into Cherbourg and it was straight back onto the bikes to get to our accommodation for the 1^st night. Thank you very much to the lovely Sarah Temple-Phillips, who has the pleasure of working with Dave at the Canal & River Trust, for letting us stay at her house in Le Vretot. And thanks to Brittany Ferries for getting us to France.

Part 2 of the ride can be found here:

https://www.strava.com/activities/302453096 (Sinéad)

https://www.strava.com/activities/302663831 (David)

(If anyone can explain why David always has more elevation than me when doing the same route, please do! And no, it’s not because he starts from a lower height…)

I think it’s fair to say that day 1 was a long day and 3 very tired cyclists quite happily crawled into bed after burger & chips (dinner of champions!)

Why is Rachel so interested in your giblets?

In previous blogs we've explained why we're raising money for Penny Brohn Cancer Care and WaterAid. We're also supporting another good cause, but we're not after your money for this one... We're asking people to give us their giblets and to explain why, I'm going to tell you a little more about my incredible little cousin Rachel.

In a slightly stereotypical way, on the Irish side of the family I have 18 cousins (sorry to the 2 cousins not in the photo, this was the most recent one I had). Amongst us we have those who look after others and those who uphold the law, we have theatre buffs and science geeks, teachers and engineers. There are some talented musicians and pretty impressive sporting achievements to boast about (but we’ll keep quiet about the idiot who fell over on the side of the hockey pitch and ruptured her ACL…) But most importantly, we can certainly occupy a dancefloor!

Sadly, the youngest of our number never quite got the chance to work out who she was going to be. Rachel was diagnosed with Cystic Fibrosis when she was 16 months old and spent the next 14 years struggling to deal with all that comes with having this disease. She spent a lot of time and energy fighting off infections and going in and out of hospital. However, this never got the better of her and she would always be seen with a cheeky smile on her face and mischievous plan being cooked up. A particular favourite of mine was getting her dad to put pink nail varnish on and then getting the nurses to hide all the nail varnish remover! By the time she was 15, Rachel’s lungs had deteriorated to the extent that her only hope was to be put on the lung transplant list. She was left hoping that someone she would never meet, and their grieving family, would give the most incredible gift during their time of tragedy. Unfortunately Rachel was not fortunate enough to find a match and she passed away at home. 

I’m not telling this story to make people sad, I’m trying to put into words what it’s like to cross your fingers so hard it hurts. There are so many other families whose stories are similar to ours; 10,000 people in UK require an organ transplant. There are success stories, 4,655 people received organ transplants last year from 2,466 donors. But 1,000 people each year will die because no donor has become available and they are removed from the list as they would not survive the transplant operation.  This is why we’re asking people to sign up to the organ donation register, so that when you no longer need your giblets, someone else in desperate need can be given a chance to work out who they are going to be.

 http://www.organdonation.nhs.uk/

The main thing to note about organ donation is that it will be up to your next of kin to pass on your instructions. So we recommend that, in addition to signing up to the register, you let your next of kin know exactly what your wishes are.

£3,000 and counting!

We've now reached £3,000 in donations! Thank you so much to everyone who has donated, I can assure you that every single penny will help motivate us as we pedal through 3 countries.

For anyone who hasn't donated yet, you can do so here: http://uk.virginmoneygiving.com/team/Cholsey-Barcelona

Thank you!
David, Simon & Sinéad

Who are we? An introduction to the Epic Riders Team

I admit, this was my stupid idea.  I wanted adventure, after being reminded starkly that life is for living: see here.  

I’ve assembled my team slowly and carefully to comprise an elite squad of misfits, all with complementing skills, each bringing something very important to the table to enable this to be delivered.  This post outlines who’s who and what they bring.  Be aware that we are all very, very funny.  I’m very grateful to all of those who are not only humouring me but offering to spend substantial amounts of time and money joining and supporting this team.  

David ‘Euro Plates’ Mould

I have to admit to starting this thing off.  “It’s only 50 miles more than Lands End to John o’ Groats”.  Well, it might be, and the weather should be fairer, but it’s a blimin’ long way.  I’m a hydrologist by trade, so prone to being a bit wet.  I only started road biking last Autumn, so this transition has been reasonably dramatic.  

Sinéad ‘Aunty Nobby’ Matthews

 Sinéad is an old school friend of Claire (David’s better half) and Jen.  She’s an engineer and inventor, but nobody outside of the Oxford Science Park can expand on this with any certainty.  Nobby’s jokes are pretty horrific at times and often pass by unnoticed, but those that know her best get used to it.  She’s equally horrifically clever and has got a photographic memory, so is a great addition to any team that don’t take themselves too seriously.  

Simon ‘Chicken Legs’ Mould

Simon is my brother.  He’s the senior rider, and renowned across Oxfordshire for the shape of his legs.  Professionally, Simon is untouchable in terms of delivering management consultancy though Ujasiri, and has added great depth to our commercial sponsorship and network of supporters.  He’s determined, incredibly strong despite his immense age and various horrific physical limitations.  

Nick ‘Half-Wheel’ Antram

Never trust the quiet one.  Nick is a user-experience developer, and currently works for Anne Summers.  He’s a talented guy, and always has something useful to say.  Nick couldn’t resist flying out to join in with the Epic Riders for Mont Ventoux, and thought he’d hang on in the slipstream to Barça for a beer. 

Barry ‘William’ Fix (it)

Barry is David and Simon’s uncle, and has agreed to drive our support car all the way, in return for one of those Spanish dancing dolls you buy at a market out there.  He doesn’t yet know what he’s in for.  There’s the laundry, massaging, cleaning, maintenance, verruca-rubbing, applying bottom cream, first aid (if different from the cream...), being the target of endless jokes...  

Just mind those corners on the mountain pass, Bazo.

Filipe ‘Mr Bridger’ Salbany

An ex- cycling pro, Filipe is now a physiologist at Oxford University (their secret weapon in the boat race), bee-keeper, mechanic, father etc. etc.  He’s just The Man, and our Sensei.  He exudes knowledge about looking after bikes, riding technique and trip logistics.  He’s modest, generous and technically brilliant.  We are indebted to him for fixing the mistakes of dozens of bike shops, and for doing the job properly.  And we apologise and thank him for not giving our machines the attention they deserve, and instead just dropping them at his place.  

If we make it, Filipe will be at home with a wry smile as he walks down the metal steps to a celebratory dinner (perhaps with his daughters banging pans in the background).  

Claire Humphreys

David’s (much) better half for the last 15 years.  She’s singularly the best Mum ever to have existed, which includes being a great baker: welcome after a long training ride.  Claire epitomises down-to-Earth, and is a darling of the village, getting involved in every fundraiser possible.  Her cross-cutting résumé of skills is typified by recently netting a composed hat-trick against the Bluebirds Under 8s in a Parents vs. Boys training game. 

Claire has put up with me being absent for many weekend hours over the last few months whilst I get my legs (what there is of them) ready for this.  

Phil ‘Aston Tirrold 461’ Hopkins

Phil is our media man, and is clearly talented as he’s made us look like reasonable human beings in the photos.  He makes moving images for a living, and by all accounts does it rather well as Coo Yah (@philhop/www.cooyah.co.uk).  Phil is haunted by memories of 1920s films from his childhood, but we keep an eye on him.  He’s joining us on Day 1, and I think he will enjoy wearing the team shirt once the memories of coercion fade: ‘friends’, huh!  

Rachel ‘Raquel’ Mould

Not to be confused with Tessa Peake-Jones, Rachel married Simon.  She’s coping, but does like a huge logistical challenge to take her mind off things. 

Jonathan ‘If it’s Italian, I’ll buy it’ Day

Jon is a semi-regular training partner for the Epic Riders, and always suspiciously strong despite the rarity of his rides.  Jon loves the gear, but backs it up with the ideas, and is a thoroughly lovely chap. 

Rob ‘8 Bikes’ Arnold

The third graduate associated with the Epics from the NCT class of 2007, Rob has more bikes than the rest of us put together.  His garage is big enough though (no euphemism intended), so fair play to the man. 

Simon ‘V2’ Collinson

Simon climbs like Quintana and descends like a V2.  He’s put his money where his mouth is for us with some corporate sponsorship.  He’s also helped train Simon up over the winter, and can often be seen with a stopwatch at the top of Chinnor Hill.  We’re very grateful, as we’ll be tucking in not only in the Black Horse in Barnet, but behind Simon on the ride. 

Matt Esrich

Matt is a comedian, often found gigging in Oxfordshire villages.  He’s a serious rider though, with explosive stares.  We’re grateful to have him as a reliable training partner and Day 1 Epic Rider, and are deeply fond of him. 

Pulling this off (or trying to) is no mean feat.  I’m immensely proud of this bunch, and I’m grateful for their commitment, their skills, their generosity and the fact that they put up with my humour.  Thank you sincerely one and all.  Epic is an understatement in my opinion. 

The length of Italy next year, guys?

David

£2,000 and counting!

Wooo Hooo, today we broke the £2,000 mark. Thank you so much to all those people who have donated, we're incredibly grateful!

For those who haven't donated yet, you can do it here: http://uk.virginmoneygiving.com/team/Cholsey-Barcelona

Don't forget to sign up to the organ donation register too!
http://www.organdonation.nhs.uk/

Thank you one and all,
David, Simon & Sinéad

Why WaterAid?

25% of the money that we raise on this mad cap ride will go to WaterAid. I thought it would be worthwhile to share a few reasons why we all believe this is a really important cause to work for.....

A great deal of my (Simon's) career has been spent working with water companies in the UK, and it is fair to say that we take for granted the fact that when we turn on the tap, something clean, clear and healthy runs out. And when we flush the toilet, the nasty stuff gets taken away for us. We take for granted the huge amount of care, attention to detail and dedication that it takes to make that happen, all for a few pence a day.

During the first months of my travels through Africa, I got to know first hand how hard it is when you don't have water on tap like we do in the UK. Walking miles to collect dirty brown, potentially dangerous water, in the hot sun. The usual monthly day with an upset stomach. And worse as you might imagine. Sometime much worse (although I managed to avoid that). Just take a look at the photo - that's me, and the water I had to drink.

So when you've read this, take 5 mins to reflect on how lucky we are here in Blighty, and then take another 5 mins to donate to WaterAid, either for our ride, or just direct.

Around 500,000 children die every year from diarrhoea caused by unsafe water and poor sanitation - that's over 1,400 children a day

What’s powering the pedals?

With 12 days of cycling through England, France and Spain we’re going to need a fair bit of support. The main work will be provided by Uncle Baso, who’ll be driving the support vehicle to provide food, drink and engineering assistance! But we’re also getting some incredible support from a lot of other people. We’re seriously grateful to all the people listed below, this trip would not be happening without their support. Thank You!

Brittany Ferries: rather than having to stowaway to get across the English Channel, the good people at Brittany Ferries have given us our trip half price. (@brittanyferries)

Sealskinz: to keep out extremities snug and warm during the hours on the saddle, Sealskinz have kindly donated socks and gloves for each of riders. (@sealskinz) 

Oak Taverns and the Barnet Brewery at the Black Horse Pub: The fabulous team at the Barnet Brewery have thrown in a good lump of cash for the charities, and have even donated their CEO for day one of the ride.   (@TheBlackHorsePH) 

High 5: to help power us up Mont Ventoux, High 5 has given us 30% off their products.  These must be good - it is the only thing seemingly keeping the old boy of the team together in his training

Aiimi: Experts in information management, Aiimi have also thrown a good lump of cash into the charity pot, to give us the extra incentive we need to keep going. (@aiimiltd)

Thank you everyone! This ride, and all the money it is raising for some great causes, would not be possible without your help.

So who is Jen and what did Penny Brohn do for her?

With 75% of our financial donations going to Penny Brohn Cancer Care in memory of our friend Jen, we thought that we should explain who she is and why we care so much about the people who helped her so much during her toughest time.

Waaaaay back when, September 1993 to be precise, I was fortunate enough to be put in the same class as Jennie Pays, Naomi Lynch and Claire Humphreys. Despite some very different interests, we all became friends and soon the lovely Jo Harding and “Boffin” Jonny Weaver joined in.

Over the years, we might not of have the pleasure of seeing each other every day, but we were still always there for one another providing cheers in the good times and hugs in the tougher times. Jen was always there with her beautiful smile and big hug to go with her wicked sense of humour and love of life. Always the 1^st one to get up and dance, whether on the dancefloor or just round the kitchen, she always found a way to enjoy life.

Her positive outlook meant that when she was diagnosed with bowel cancer in 2013, she told us that she was going to fight it with everything she had. She also told us about this fantastic charity who were providing her with lots of support and advice about how she could change things to best support her cancer treatment. Throughout her treatment Penny Brohn provided motivation for Jen and with the incredible support of her husband Andy and her children Rebecca and William, she was able to outlive all the predictions made by her doctors. Unfortunately, this couldn’t go on forever and Jen passed away last December, with Andy by her side and that beautiful smile on her face.

Penny Brohn Cancer Care helped give Jen some precious time with her children, so we wanted to help them continue to provide support to people with cancer. That’s why we’re taking on this 1,100 mile challenge, to say thank you…

We're not writing this to make you sad, but to start to convey the legacy that Jen left in our lives as her friends, and the inspiration she was to many others through being an Ambassador for Penny Brohn.  Jen did this because she wanted to give something back, which is typical of her.  She continues to motivate those that knew her, and one lasting legacy is the driving force behind this bloody bike ride: we must live life whilst we can.  We intend to, and we also intend to make some money whilst we do it for some great causes.  

I’m not the best with words, but fortunately I have a friend who is, and these were the words that the wonderful Jon penned for Jen in the days before she died (with a little assistance from the musical Wicked and a certain D. Parton):

It's often said, that people come into our lives for a reason, bringing something that we must learn,

And we are drawn to those who would help us most to grow, if we let them, and if we help them in return.

I don't know if that is really true, but I know we're who we are today, because we know you.

A lot can change in 20 years, fashions come and go.

We've certainly had our moments when we've all stolen the show.

We've loved and lost, turned and tossed, we've laughed and danced and cried.

We've moved it on up, and pushed it on, we've shaken it from side to side.

If anyone's wanted to be our lover, they've had to get with our friends.

If anyone's ever messed with us, they've been made to make amends.

When the brown stuff's hit the fan for us, there's always been support.

When we've experienced the highs we've earned in life, pride has never run short.

Hakuna Matata is easily said, but slightly harder done.

But in having each other, be it near or far, it's been easy being strong.

We've slapped on the lippy, let down our hair, and put mascara on,

We've pushed up our boobs, strapped on our heels - and mostly that's just Jon!

We’ve thrown up spaghetti, we've talked about boys, we've learned and grown and won.

We've shared quiet hugs, and we've made a huge noise, and Wang it, have we had fun!

We've walked in the rain, and climbed over hills, we've learned to flirt and flounce,

We've talked complete nonsense, for hours on end, but that's what really counts.

When it's rained you've helped us see the rainbow, when it's dark, you've shown us stars.

When it's felt like the earth has shifted under us, you've helped us move to Mars.

You've done all that without even trying, the photos here attest.

So to you we say, we do not doubt that we have all been blessed.

So, we don't know, just quite how, any of our stories end,

But we do know all our stories have been rewritten, because you are our friend.

So to you we say, stay strong, keep going, keep fighting all the way

And we'll be here, supporting you, and loving you our way.

It might not be much, it might be old hat, it might be helpful. Just.

But we are family. And you've shown us what's possible, when we've got all our sisters with us!!

Phase 1 – Planning, planning and more planning!

Welcome to the ChoBar blog, following the Epic Riders from Cholsey to Barcelona.

Why are we doing this?

On 9th May this year, a group of 3 cyclists from Oxfordshire, will embark on a mammoth 1,100 mile bike ride from Oxfordshire to Barcelona. Simon & David Mould and Sinéad Matthews will be cycling for 12 days through England and France to Barcelona, taking on an additional challenge of Mont Ventoux.  There are a number of local riders joining us for the 1^st day and some even making the journey over to France to join us along the way. The incredible Uncle Bazo will be providing support throughout the journey.

The purpose of this crazy undertaking is to raise lots of money for three really worthy causes: Penny Brohn Cancer Care, WaterAid and Organ Donation. 

Penny Brohn Cancer Care, based in Bristol is fantastic charity that supports cancer patients to live well with their disease.  They are charity very close to our hearts as they supported a close friend through her journey with bowel cancer.   Sadly she passed away before Christmas aged 33 leaving behind two young children.  Her courage, bravery and inspiration is the driving force to raise lots of money for this amazing charity.  They will receive 75% of our fundraising.  

WaterAid is an amazing charity which provides the most basic of needs that nobody should be without.  We support WaterAid's work wholeheartedly, and want to help their mission of providing safe access to clean water and sanitation, something that taken for granted in the western world.   They will receive 25% of our fundraising. 

In addition to financially supporting the charities above, we are also asking people to register on the Organ Donation website in memory of Sinéad’s cousin, Rachel, who suffered from Cystic Fibrosis and who passed away whilst waiting for a new pair of lungs, aged 15.

How to donate

We’re collecting financial donations through the Virgin Money Giving website, http://uk.virginmoneygiving.com/team/Cholsey-Barcelona, all you need is a credit/debit card and they will split the money 75:25 for us. Don’t forget to tick the gift aid box if you’re eligible! You can sign up to the organ donation register at http://www.organdonation.nhs.uk/; we do recommend that in addition to signing up, you also let your next of kin know your wishes. Obviously this is a very personal issue, so we won’t be asking you to sign up to any public website to let us know that you’re going to “give us yer giblets”.

What are we doing at the moment?

At the moment we’re putting in some serious miles on the bikes, trying to get as much support for the ride as possible (more about that in later blogs) and sort out logistics for the journey. We’ll be adding more blogs before the Grand Depart on 9^th May to let you know how the build-up is going as well as blogging about our adventures once the journey starts. We will also link to a Strava account so that you can keep an eye on our daily progress.