Cold, misty,windy and miserable was the best way to describe the weather when we awoke in JOG but the weather soon got better as we headed south.
Below is the 23 strong team that would take on the next 8 days. I had a strong feeling of apprehension, concern of my ability versus the other riders and really wanting everyone to work collectively as a team to ensure we did our best to get everyone to Lands End. There would be no prizes for finishing a day first, making a break away, riding solo or generally not working as a team. Working as a team would be critical in ensuring we had the best chance of everyone getting to Lands End.
Todays ride was awesome. My dad had told me this would be a coastal road and would be impressive on a good day, and it certainly was. The coast road stretched from Wick to Inverness and the calm blue sea was with us all day with the sun breaking out late morning. Me and Ben road alot of the morning together taking in the views, talking about what we where doing and what the next 7 days would hold.....
By Lunch time the sun was out beating down on us. Our halfway stop was at a beautiful place called Golspie at an old mill. We had fresh bread made that morning, locally sourced salmon, venison and the all important refuel of SIS for the afternoon ride in the saddle down to Inverness.
Me and Ben spent the majority of the afternoon riding together.
We had a long day in the saddle on our first day as you can see on the Garmin covering 146 miles. It didnt help taking a wrong turning that increased the ride by 6 miles but whats 6 miles when you have just done 140.
Arriving into camp on the first day was great (and was always a special feeling throughout the 8 days), one that came with a sense of accomplishment that one of the days had been completed with focus turning to refueling, showering, putting the tent up, getting the bike ready for the next day and one of the most important tasks, eating!
It was always great to see our resident hungry cyclist chef Tom preparing the teams meals for the evening. http://www.thehungrycyclist.com Tom has cycled America combining his love for food and cycling and has brought out a book recently on his travels. I will get round to reading it soon Tom.
Below was the camp site for our first nights stay just outside of Inverness. We arrived in camp just before sunset which left a quick turn around in getting everything ready.
Great first day of the JOGLE, Fantastic coastal route, 146 miles, local cuisine, met our fellow team mates and started building the relationships that would develop further over the coming 7 days. 7 days to go...........
Full Day 1 deatils below...
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