In July 2018, I cycled from London to Paris, over 300 miles in 4 days. I passed through the beautiful Kent countryside (it's not as flat as you think) to Dover, before crossing the Channel and continuing through the rolling fields of Northern France, passing the war memorials and cemeteries of the Somme. The ride was very tough, with temperatures of up to 39C. In places the tar on the roads was melting, and at times the strong head winds made made it feel like cycling into a hair dryer on full heat and full blast! We, team DSA (Down's Syndrome Association), arrived at the Eiffel Tower in Paris and celebrated together. The following day we got to watch the fantastic spectacle of the final stage of the Tour De France on the Champs-Elysees and the Place de la Concorde ... they were a wee bit quicker than us!
Pictures from the challenge are shown below.
... at the start in London, (Croydon actually, but it doesn't sound so good ...)
... made it to Dover, waiting for the Ferry ...
Team DSA (Down's syndrome Association), looking good! ...
Bikes on board the ferry ... take your pick!
... in Northern France, en route to Arras, with big skies, long roads, and extreme heat (up to 39C) ...
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... into the Somme ... puts things into a different perspective again ...
... a Canadian cemetery
... a cemetery for German soldiers, somehow seemed to make the sadness even more acute ...
Refuelling again, French style ...
Ready to go! ... on the final day, from Compiegne to Paris!
... and time for another, vital, pit stop for coffee ...
... on the Champs-Eliese!
... on the Champs-Eliese, fixing a puncture (for the second time ... I didn't quite manage to site / sight(!) the patch first time) ... should have gone to Spec Savers, or the Optical Centre ...
Made it! ... over 300 miles in 4 days, in pretty extreme conditions ...
Team 150 ...
... watching Geraint Thomas (British bloke ... would have been Welsh had he lost) on his way to winning the Tour de France ...
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