French Correction and Mind Games

The good thing about having regular followers from across the globe, is that one is constantly encouraged to carry on. Even when you seriously wonder why, after a night shift, you are ploughing into a headwind in January on the first half century of the new season.

The downside, or at least flipside, is that if you're dumb enough to slip in some franglais, or poorly attempted French, then you shall surely stand corrected. So it is Celine, that I now know that 'Good Luck' or maybe luck itself, is feminine and therefore not spelt as I had, bon chance, but of course bonne chance. And so it bears repeating. Good luck to all my fellow competitors.

The encouragement of seeing where people are following me from is invaluable. If I learnt nothing else last year, it was that the mental battle is as hard as the physical one. 'Self talk' can make or break you. I intend to spend as much time investigating ways of improving this, as much as I will be putting in even more hard miles than I did last year.

Yesterday I finished my shift as 08:00 and having taken the kids to school, headed out toward the east. I have friends who have recently renovated the old chapel in Reedham. The perfect turning point to achieve my first 50+ for the new training regime.

Powered by a large bowl of porridge and additional side order of toast, I made Reedham ferry by about 11:50. As you can see, not quite so bright compared to the same short crossing last year.
I would not wish to be a fish! That water looks as grey and cold as the sky.

59.something miles and nothing done at home. It's great to be back at it. 147 miles so far. More tomorrow.

On a final positive, Justgiving emailed me to say that I was in the top 5% of fundraisers for 2014. I'll take all the encouragement I can get.

The Theory of Everything

With sub-zero temperatures and night shifts there is time to look for inspiration elsewhere. The timing of this movie could not have been better. Not only is Stephen Hawking a truly inspirational man, but this was an equally inspirational portrayal of his life  by Eddie Redmayne.


Why is this significant within the context of transcontinental bike racing?


Somewhere a long the way I have found myself repeating a mantra to  countless young people who have been willing to listen. 'Everyone is good at something' I would say, but was unsure where I had heard it. The actual quote from the film, 'However difficult life may seem, there is always something you can do and succeed at' has been my excuse at least for chasing challenges such as this and then trying to put it to some good.


I've decided to raise money toward the fight against ebola in West Africa, not because I'm worried about the spread of the disease to Europe or the UK, but because there are people young and old who have none of the advantages we take for granted. Could only dream of riding a bike across a continent. Indeed justifiably question why and live instead in daily fear of catching an illness that is highly likely to kill them.


I have a Paramedic colleague, Peter Simpson, who is currently working in Sierra Leone. I am in awe of those like him who are prepared to put themselves in harms way for the welfare of these people. please check out his story on youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KGlvNjr826c


I shall start my fund-raising campaign next week, so look out for your chance to support the fight against ebola here.


I squeezed in another sharp 22 miles and am up to 86 for  the week. A small start, but a start none the less.

Shaking off the cobwebs

Two days of cycling and two days of contrasting weather. On the 30th December I managed to tear myself away from the house at last and pedaled into a headwind, keepinng to the main road between Norwich and Watton. All the side roads were smeared with a heavy frost well into the afternoon, with patches that never cleared.

I never know quite what to wear when I first head out, but given that I am way off  the pace after 4 months off the bike, three top layers and a windproof jacket proved not to be too much. The bitter wind tugging at the collar of my jacket and freezing my ears and nose.

Despite plenty of energy after the Christmas festivities, my legs had none of last summers stamina and I could feel the beginnings of a shake when I stopped in Watton before heading for home. I obviously have a lot of work to do.

This afternoon, -new years day-, in the failing afternoon greyness and eventual half moon splashed evening I set out again to take on my 22 mile 'fast' curcuit, but without the 'fast'! This time the strong gusty wind was warm by comparison, averaging at about 6 deg. The same clothing made me over-warm after the first 4 or 5 miles and next time I shall ditch a layer.

I am loosely going to follow the advice from https://ultracycling.com/sections/articles/training/training_for_beginners.php and after an initial workup, push hard for 3 weeks out of 4, with a more relaxed training schedule in the fourth to allow for recovery.

I also intend to be more discerning about equipment and am still trying to get my saddle and saddle position nailed. I had problems last year with rear end discomfort, so I have to get this right.

Beyond the training and the bike, I am unsure about whether to raise money for charity again. Last year was the third time I have done so and now total about £8500. It is by far the hardest element, so if anyone has any advice about how to ease the workload or even has a charity that they feel particularly passionate about, please do get in touch. I'm on facebook and twitter @johnnymbakewell. It would be good to hear from you.

Happy New Year. John

I'm in and here we go again with some hard miles

Relief, elation, determination and a bucket load of trepidation as the 'Congratulations, you're in' email arrived this evening. Transcontinental 2015 is GO!

It's all about timing, as I come to the end of a major house rebuild in time for us to move in just before Christmas and what I hope will signal a little more space to return to serious training.

I am under no illusion as to the enormity of this challenge. Hey, I still don't have feeling back in my left little toe after last years race. I have already started to plan the first choice route, though will have to wait until the spring to determine the first part of my route through Belgium and France.

I was determined to pick up my route from Kotor, in Montenegro through Kosovo, Macedonia and Bulgaria, but have thankfully discovered what I think is a better route through part of Albania to Skopje. Since last year, so many people took the Albania/Greece route, I will also plan that route in case I get behind on the miles. I have no doubt though that the greatest adventure lies through the old Eastern block countries to the north.

As I work my way through the route, I shall try to outline some detail and add in thoughts on changes to the bike, kit and strategy.

Bonne chance to all those of you whom I hope to meet in Belgium next summer, Safe training.

To everyone else, if you fancy a long bike ride anytime, drop me a line at johnnybakewell@hotmail.com. In the spring I plan to ride home to Aberystwyth and back in 2 days if I can do it, if you want to join me. That's about 500 miles or so give or take. Seriously, if you don't know what hard is before you leave, it will be a shock when you find out on day two in France.

Istanbul here we come part 2.

Preparing for 2015 starts with reflection

For those of you who have waited patiently for the beginning of the 2015 TCR lead in, this is the first of what I hope will be many posts before and during next years race. It is by no means certain that I shall get a place.

Entries for 2015 opened on the 5th November for veterans and on the 7th for newcomers, but the final decision about who gets the nod and who has to endure the disappointment for another year will not be made until the 30th. (I am not at all sure how I will cope with rejection, if it comes my way.)

From the minute that I hit the tarmac at Heathrow at the end of my 2014 race, I knew that I would have to go back and do it again. To her credit, Laura knew that too and tried to stop me coming home early. My mind though had been made up. My planning though well intentioned for the family in my absence had not been ideal. Two small boys with the energy and zest for destruction of a small army in a strangers house do not make for a relaxing holiday and it seemed hardly fair to extend the absence.

That only tells half the story, however. I have hesitated to write what I am about to say, because I do not like to make myself out to be anyone/thing special. I take on this challenges, because I like to find my limits and then extend them. Well it's fair to say that this is one very, very tough race. I didn't finish it, because I wasn't tough enough. Am I disappointed with that? Well yes, quite frankly I am.

I made a decision about withdrawing from the race in atrocious weather when my experience on a bike did not allow me to wisely carry on. In itself that was not a bad decision and I was unwell. I could however have sat on my hands for 24 hours. I am not good at sitting on my hands it has to be said, but that's just one of things that I need to learn from this years race. Good decisions are not often made in a hurry.

It is also true that nothing can truly prepare you for this event, other than the event itself. I note that Mike Hall, the organiser and winner of the Trans American race, is quoted as acknowledging, that whilst there might be fitter riders out there, it is his experience that keeps him ahead of the pack. It will be true for Kristoff in the Transcontinental, but slowly there will be some who close the gap.

In order to keep this entry a reasonable length, I would urge you to read the blog entry below. Apart from the fact that it includes a very unglamorous, but happy no. 52 at this years first check point, it also highlights details of the 2015 race.

If I get in, I'll be right back here to tell you all about it.

For those of you that did not know, by the way; we raised £4044.14 for The Alzheimer's Society, so thank you all for your support. Ideas for a charity for 2015, most welcome.

1300 miles in 8 days is no failure.

You will forgive my not completing this tonight,  but I have now rejoined my family. Priorities change as does motivation.  None the less I cycled my heart out for 8 days,  climbing some huge hills and scaring myself half to death coming down the other side.  (I have had fleeting nightmares about disappearing off the edge of a cliff!)

I have slept in hay barns, vineyards,  supermarket carparks and hotels. Sometimes for only 3 hours,  sometimes more.

I have eaten a lot of patisserie food, ice cream and drunk a lot of coke.

In the end I cycled to Dubrovnik and was home in less than 8 hours.  From 32 ° to typical English rain.

I am indebted to you all for your support that became so,  so important. There is unfinished business out there and it starts with all the photos that I will post shortly.


Thank you all.

Looking back

The last 24 hours have been an emotional rollercoaster. The climb from Zurich  to Davos was the first real test for in the Alps. It made reaching 200 miles in  a day unlikely and so it proved to be. In total I had, had about 10 hours sleep in the last 3 days. Two nights I spent sleeping amongst super market trolleys.

Half way up the final stretch from Zurich to Klosters and then Davos, I laid by the road and closed my eyes. Despite drivers insisting on tooting, I still managed to sleep for about 20 minutes and felt better for it.

The scenery up here is awesome and I will post photos at a later date, maybe, even today but more of that later. Darkness arrived as I topped the mountain pass into Davos and with it came the rain. Initialy light and presistent and then heavier and relentless. Others would still bivi, but with the onset of a cold, it was time for me to find an hotel.

The staff at the Victoria were gracious, but I declined to join the other dinners in the restaurant on the grounds of health and safety! I had not forgotten my manners, even if I had seemingly lost the soap.

I took a meal in my room and showered and then slept like the proverbial. I already had reservations about the conditions up the fluella pass and the Stelvio beyond. The combination of heavy rain, lowering temperatures and wind chill in the descent plus a fever that I had now been brewing for 24 hours, made me pensive. I have walked and climbed in the mountains for long enough to heed these concerns and so in the early morning I spoke to race control to say that I would not be taking the Stelvio on. Mike was brilliant and suggested that I travel beyond and to quote, "Don't let a bad race, spoil a good
ride."

It was massively disappointing. I was in the top 20 riders which amazed me, but safety had to come first and that is something that each person must decide for themselves. I salute those that took it on and succeeded.

From the hotel I took a train to Klosters and then toward Malles. I forget the station at which the train did not turn up, but it would appear that it was on the line where I was subsequently to discover that a landslide had derailed a train, leaving a number seriously injured, but thankfully no fatalities. (Our thoughts go out to the families and friends of those hurt.)

Instead of the train, I hitched a lift with a group of retired German cyclists, who like me had decided that the weather was not suitable or safe to ride in. Crammed into a minibus, they took me to Merano from where I bought a ticket to Trento. I subsequently got out at Bolzano, since having decided that to complete as much of this ride as possible, I wasn't going to cheat myself of any more miles than I had to.

In any case, as I was to discover, the road from Bolzano to Trento is a gentle downhill for about 30 miles and including the stop half way down for seafood tagliatelli, it flew by. Not so the climb out the other end.

Fortuitously, now that I was no longer bound by the race rules, my route was to take me past the front door of one of our friends who was staying with her family in Caldonazzo. To get there though, I first had to climb up out of Trento, a climb that Vaira said would 'finish her off.' No kidding!

The climb at night highlighted another problem that I was having though, with recharging my GPS and phone. With the lights on, any steep climb disconnected the power to the USB port in favour of the lights. (Good thing.) But the constant on/off destroyed the rechargeable batteries leaving my with no navigation going up hill and also now, no phone!

To cut a long story short, I eventually called Vaira by plugging the phone in and riding round and round a roundabout while she gave me directions to her house.

And to cut another long story short, my body gave out on me when I arrived, feeling suddenly nauseas and exhausted. I have never been so grateful to see a friendly face.

800 plus miles over the ground of which 700 or so miles cycled in 5 days. I was not going to make a decision about what next until after a good sleep.