When we got to the town where we finished, the winner was the first of Freddie or Lawrence to climb to the top of the bell tower and ring the bell. I was drafted in as lead man to set the pace for Freddie and his team and we achieved a good pace. Needless to say being very competitive we all took it as a serious challenge that we wanted to win. We made very good time and were able to watch James and Lawrence rowing in under quite high winds. Their boat was full of water and Lawrence’s shoes, which he had taken off to row, actually floated out of the boat. As they tried to dock they capsized and both ended up in the water. Freddie also ended up being thrown in the water while I made a quick exit stage right.
It’s good to see the Cycle Slam getting more national coverage. Journalist Ian Stafford spent a day cycling with us and wrote a couple of good pieces for the Mail, while Lee Dixon managed to get a good plug for the event during his stint on Match of the Day 2 when they used a shot of the two of us on the tandem. Lee is back tonight and I am looking forward to seeing him. After three days off he can lead the peloton on the big climb we face on the last day of Stage 3 tomorrow.
The momentum seems to be growing and the huge effort by everyone involved is being recognised. Seeing the total go through the £1.5 million barrier really did raise the spirits of everyone. I know we are all enjoying the event and the banter, the fines and the social side of it, but when you look at the commitment just in terms of time for the core riders and everyone else coming out to take part, let alone the daily challenge of getting to the end of each ride, it is impressive and it is great to see those efforts being recognised with the generous sponsorship that keeps coming in.
Obviously from my point of view the stage was quite broken up. We didn’t leave until a bit later while the challenge was being set up and by the time I reached the lunch area my regular Group 3 had already eaten and were ready to go. I had a quick ten minute break and then we set off on a big climb. It had looked quite imposing on the map we were given this morning and lunch was in the shadow of this big mountain but the ride went very well, with beautiful scenery in great weather. In fact the only downside today was that some of the roads were quite busy including a 5 km stint on a dual carriage including two big tunnels which was terrifying. I think I held my breath all the way through or I may have made a noise that could have been mistaken for a scream. I glanced at my Garmin and it showed we were hitting 70 kph at times and I can honestly say I was very relieved to get to the end of the ride.
It never ceases to amaze me how little respect some motorists have for cyclists. We were doing everything right in terms of riding in single file but to say some were passing us within touching distance would not really explain how close they were. We have been discussing it since we got back to the hotel and one of the good ideas suggested was that anyone taking a driving test should have to spend half a day out riding on the roads on a bike to give them an appreciation of just how vulnerable and exposed you can be made to feel when you are a cyclist.
I escaped a fine last night, but I am concerned I may pick one up tonight as I am getting a bit of a reputation for always being in the right place at the right time when there is a camera around. The guys are going on about it so much Lawrence is bound to find out.
Tomorrow is one of those days that we will be pleased to get under our belts. When we received our map of the entire route with the individual days, Day 5 of Stage 3 was one of those that stood out, what with its ‘high’ difficulty rating and 131 km and 2,500 metres of climbing to our destination in the ski resort of Aprica.
We have already done a couple of those ‘Oh my Goodness’ days, and it will be good to have another of them ticked off, rather than be thinking about it.
