Here we will keep you up to date with all of the Bike to the Future preparations, both organisational and riders' training preparations. The update will be posted every Monday until and during the event itself.
training preparations after 24th Oct
training preparations 5th Sept-24th Oct
Practical Preparations
week ending: 14/11
Les went to Oxford this weekend to suss out the route back to Hammersmith. In general, the first half of the route was quite flat and pleasant. Then after Askett, the hills - 4 of them, all which will be pretty testing on the final 30 miles of the ride. Les thinks that 2, possibly 3 can be avoided by more careful route planning, which means he is out during the last weekend looking for alternatives.
week ending: 24/10
The arrangements for our arrival at Hammersmith Hospital are nearing completion. A room has been booked for a small reception, and Cathy Dyer, the specialist nurse in the Cancer Centre has kindly agreed to organise the provision of drinks and nibbles to mark the end of the bike journey.
week ending: 17/10
Smit and Jordanna managed to do a rekkie (in the car) of the day 1 route on Saturday morning (16 / 10). They have reported back that the route provides us with some decent roads which are generally flat, apart from a 2 mile uphill drag at around 20 miles. Smit did add though that it all felt a very long way - and that's only day 1.Hopefully, they have found some stopping points, and eateries along the way. These will be finalised in a couple of week's time when Smit will attempt to ride a large section of the day 1 route and sample some of the refreshments along the way. But so far so good.
Week ending 26/09
With the route now fixed, accommodation has been booked for the team to stay in a couple of Youth Hostels (YHA) along the way - Coalport and Oxford. Les who together with Sue and the children are already members of the YHA said "Youth Hostels are ideal for our purposes, they will allow us to maintain the team spirit throughout the evening as well as the day, they can offer drying facilities and secure storage for the bikes and have the kitchen facilities to allow the Support Team to clear up from the day, and make all of the necessary preparations for the following day's ride". Les also added "As the YHA is a charitable organisation, it seems right that we try to support each other".
