The Great British Cycle

I wrote in the cycling section of this website that I was confident that both cycling sections would prove little trouble and despite all my complaining, this was certainly the case for section one.

Before I metaphorically lock up the bike for a few weeks, I thought I’d write a quick summary of the stage.

Roads – I was relatively impressed with the British roads, the cycle routes generally did a good job of keeping you off the main roads, on quieter country lanes. The review is not as positive as it could be due to the numerous ridiculous bike paths that were little more than dirt tracks. If I was to do this cycle again (not likely), I would certainly put more planning into the route and not just blindly follow what the sat nav tells me. All in all, a decent performance from the British roads, with no real preference for Scottish or English roads.

Drivers – I would describe British drivers as awful. I find it remarkable the attitude that most British drivers have towards cyclist’s safety. I would describe myself as a very cautious cyclist, by this I mean that I cycle very close to the side of the road, often too close. Despite this, cars still fly by leaving minuscule gaps between them and I. Surprisingly the best drivers tend to be big lorries and trucks. Outdoor people are also very respectful of drivers, by this I mean cars who have bikes, canoes etc on their cars. The worst drivers are caravans or people towing caravans, they are trouble for a couple of reasons; the first is that they tend to be awful drivers, the second is that because they drive a bit slower, they tend to create a queue of frustrated cars waiting behind them. I really am surprised that there are not more accidents on British roads, the behaviour of drivers really did reduce my enjoyment of this stage considerably.

Legs – Having not done a great deal of cycling in the past few years, I was quite blasé about this section of the trip. However, this relaxed attitude was well merited, not once did I feel any pain or tiredness in the legs throughout the 900 mile journey. My mind might not be suited to cycling, but it seems that my legs are.

Bike – I really can’t praise my Surly Long Haul Trucker enough. It took a real pounding on some of the ‘cycle paths’ and despite a couple of minor incidents, came through amazingly unscathed. A big shout out also to the Brooks saddle that I’ve been using, a late replacement after I broke my previous one a few days before the trip started. I’ve now covered two countries on my trusty steed, I hope this isn’t the last time I get to ride it…………

Highs – I really enjoyed travelling through this great country of ours, I have explored so little of it before, it was the prefect way to experience many places for the first time. Particular favourites were Yorkshire, Cambridge and the Scottish Highlands. I particularly enjoyed listening to the ever changing of accents as I traveled down the country, the UK really is incredibly unique in this regard and witnessing it by bicycle makes it even more evident. As expected, the people were very friendly, never once did I feel threatened (off the bike) and most people I met were genuinely interested in my trip.

Lows – I’ve covered most of them above, the terrible drivers, the ‘bike paths’ etc. The weather was also pretty miserable for most of the trip, but this was expected, it would almost be a shame to travel down the UK without getting a little wet. I estimated that it rained for 10 out of the 12 days, at the end of some days I questioned whether the days ride was better preparation for cycling or swimming. Other than these (and my ever present dislike for cycling), everything else was pretty positive.

A good start to the JOG, section one complete.