Day 5 - 65 miles

Today started out like pretty much every other day, a hill and rain. I’ve found my legs though as I’m powering up these hills with no trouble at all. I’ve left everyone I’ve been riding with behind so I’m looking for new friends now.
We left Lisieux and headed on to Bernay, along the route we stopped for a water break and had a talk from Chris Barker the commandant at Selly Oak who told us all about his role and how he’d seen a shortfall in the care received and what he’s done to change it. It’s amazing how much difference one person can make.
From here we continued on until we reached Bernay which is where a lot of the resistance came from. We had talks from two of the FANY’s and SOE’s from the day. After this there was a wreath laying.
It was just onwards and upwards after this towards Evreix, more hills, more rain and more pain……until! We did it, we found a local bar, had a couple of drinks then moved on, and then me and Geoff found another bar wit everyone outside so we had a few more drinks. When we went to leave one of the lads had a puncture so as Geoff was in a different hotel I told him to go on. We sorted the puncture and continued on, as we hit the final hill I put my feet down to get a good hard start and both feet came out of my clips (I’d ruined the bottom of my shoes with all the walking so I couldn’t clip into my pedals) I fell with all my weight onto the cross bar, the pedal hit my shin then span round and hit my calf……..PAIN! I got tot the top of the hill and Chris asked if I was okay, at which point I was shedding a tear. Ah well at least I made it, so this evening has been all about checking that nothing is swelling and hobbling around.

For further info please mail me on yimmin@btinternet.com

Day 4 - 78 miles

Today shall officially be known as Hell Day!
We thought it was going to be pretty laid back with an 8:30 start but then the hills came and came and came some more, then came the rain.
The day itself was pretty cool we stopped at a Canadian cemetery for a walk around and a water break, from there we moved onto Montormel where Uncle John and Sgt Major Andy Newel told us of how they had been wounded in action, in WW2 and Afghanistan, this was followed by a wreath laying.
From here the day seemed to get better, the hills were all down and the rain was just drizzle but then the big hills arrived. I may need to see the physio after tea. So all in all not much happened but we hit the miles hard.

For further info please mail me on yimmin@btinternet.com

Day 3 - 50 miles

Today was one of the easy days, we just had about 50 miles to cover and it was all pretty flat. There was the standard cheeky hill at the start then onto the real speed cycling, we averaged about 20 mph today.

We started the day with a short trip from Bayeux up to Arromaches where we were treated to a visit to the museum and a 360 cinema show, this was amazing, it was a video of the landings but all around you. We also had a wreath laying at the coast where a habour was built in a few days by the british forces. There we were also treated to a talk from Uncle John who had been part of the invasion.

After lunch we moved onto Mereville where we visited an Gun Battery defence which was in use as part of the Nazi's Atlantic wall built to defend continental Europe from Allied invasion. It was one of the first places to be attacked by Allied forces on D Day.

Onwards we travelled to Pegasus Bridge where a ceremony was held at the sight of the liberation and then a second at the Café Gondrée which is now run by Arlette Gondrée, who was a small child living in the home when it was liberated. Free drinks were laid on by Madam Gondrée.

From here we travelled on to Caen to our hotels, it was here that I struggled to find the white markers and ended up 5km away from where I needed to be...ah well!

For further info please mail me on yimmin@btinternet.com

Day 2 - 75 miles

Today was a stupidly early start, anout 6:30, so after a fine breakfast from Basil & Sybil we got the coach back into the harbour and collected our bike (mine was now fixed) and waited fo the off to leave Cherbourg.

After waiting for 20 minutes at the first set of lights we finally got on our way. The ride had begun! I was felling great, looked the business in my new kit and had my bike back running like a dream. Then it happened....the first hill, it was a monster! 200 meters up and it felt like riding up a wall. Once we got over this the day just got better. We arrived in St Mere-Eglise which claims to be the 1st town liberated on D Day where 3 Paratroopers came down with the masses but ended up getting caught on the church steeple. 1 died, 1 cut himself away and the 3rd was up there for 2 hours before being caught by the Germans and becoming a POW before the Americans claimed the town. Here we were treated to guided tours, visits to the Para museum and a show from the Red Devils.

After the air display there was a wreath laying ceremony with a father whose son died in conflict a year to the day. A speech was also given by an American officer who'd come over for the trip.

Following on from this we were led out of the town by a group of Harley Davidsons and headed up to Colleville-sur-Mere where we visited the American Cemetery and Memorial where we held a wreath laying and had talks from two service men from the D Day landings. This was a very emotional event that really brought home the hardship and sacerfice that those men went through.

Following on from thsi we headed the last 16 miles into Bayeux where we took our hotels and rested out weary legs. The hotel was much nicer this time and we got fed. Now I'm off for a well deserved beer.

For further info please mail me on yimmin@btinternet.com

Day 1 - 5 miles

Today was brilliant, a nice gentle start and some amazing sights and tours.
We left the hotel and headed up to Southwick Park to register and get all our admin sorted. About 2 miles into the journey the part that I bent yesterday decided to go into my wheel causing it to jam up and also gave me a puncture. So this is it, I've fallen, broke something and had a puncture, that's it for me now nothing else will happen all week.
After walking about 3 miles with my bike on my back I arrived at Southwick Park to be greeted by Dave in a van coming to collect me...too little to late. He did take the bike away and gave me a spare while it was repaired. I'm yet to get the bill!
Once I got sorted out I registered, got my T-shirt and all my bits and enjoyed the bay at Southwick, we were given a tour of the Map room where, on 5 June 1944, General Dwight D. Eisenhower made the historic and risky decision to launch the D Day invasion. We were then treated to a spot of lunch whilst one of the bands played to us. After a quick meet and greet with the organisers and a quick briefing we went back outside to get ready for the off.
At the leaving ceremony there were speeches by Ross Kemp, Bryn Parry and Mrs Gregory who was at Southwick Park when Eisenhower gave the Green Light for the D-Day landings. As the old Artillery guns set us off we headed down to the Ferry port to cross over to Cherbourg.


Once we arrived in Cherbourg we all head our seperate ways on coaches to get to our hotels, this is what I was greeted by;Basil Faulty would have been gutted with this place. There was no bar, no restaurant and being a bank holiday nowhere was open. Good times! Ah well off to bed to get set for the first big day

For further info please mail me on yimmin@btinternet.com

It Begins.

Well it's been an eventful start, 8 hours on trains from Liverpool to Coventry to Euston then a mad ride across London with all our kit to Watersloo then onto Portsmouth then to Cosham. During the ride ascross London I had my first and only accident of the week, cracked my helmet and bent some bits. Got here in one piece though so got on the lash.

For further info please mail me on yimmin@btinternet.com