London to Paris Cycle 2007
By David Hopkins
Day 1: Wednesday 13th June
Met at start point in South London at 6am! 120 other cyclists meeting too - lots of expert-looking people and gleaming hi-tech equipment - am I in the right league here?! Head off into the rush hour traffic. Safely arrive at the first drinks stop 20 miles later. Lunch is in the depths of the Sussex countryside and, as we head for our ferry in Newhaven, we are more or less following the London-Brighton Cycle route. Weather is warm and sunny. Reach Lewes later in the afternoon feeling rather tired, especially after the early start - oh well, only another 235 miles to go! Ferry leaves at 7pm - exciting to feel that we are really on our way. Reach Dieppe at midnight French time. Delays with a Spanish lorry stuck on the ferry and difficulties with French customs mean that we check in at our hotel at 1.30 pm! Distance travelled: 57 miles.
Day 2: Thursday 14th June
Up at 6.30am - our longest day is ahead - 88 miles! After leaving we discover that our route out of Dieppe takes us up a long climb - the atmosphere is subdued! The next few miles takes us along a glorious coastal switchback with steep descents into some pretty seaside villages. Unfortunately, learn that in cycling it is always a case of "What goes down must go up", in that there is always a climb to follow the downward slope! Lunch is close to the spectacular Pont de Brotonne and we cross the Seine River hundreds of feet up. In the distance we can see a heavy storm which seems to be moving away, thank goodness. After a long steep climb out of the Seine valley, I remark to my cycling companion that the weather looks "a bit dodgy". "No", he replies "I think we'll get away with it". Moments later the first heavy drops begin to fall and soon it is pouring! It rains very heavily for the next 2 hours.....my mobile phone drowns! Later on we assist another rider with a puncture and the rain finally stops. Much, much later....at 7.45 pm....we at last reach our destination for the night which is Lisieux. Distance travelled: 88 miles.
Day 3: Friday 15th June
That lovely long hill down into Lisieux becomes a tough uphill grind out of town to set us on our way. Lots of interesting people to talk to on this ride so the time passes quite easily. The weather is a little better so far. We make some pleasant stops on the way and I enjoy a delicious pre-lunch croissant aux amandes - I tell myself I need the energy! Lunch is in a lovely sunny field in glorious countryside. We are very well catered for at lunch and our water stops (roughly every 20 miles) by a mobile catering van. We also have an excellent mechanical back-up team who have endless patience and a seemingly inexhaustible supply of spare inner tubes (very necessary as there are loads of punctures). After lunch we begin to follow a very black cloud and are hoping that our route will take us away from it. At first it seems to do so, but then we are right under it with lightning and thunder and torrential rain - we hide for a while in a bus shelter! We reach our destination of a hotel on the outskirts of Vernon by 5.00pm - luxury! Some riders are still coming in at 7.30pm looking even more tired than I feel. Distance travelled: 78 miles.
Day 4: Saturday 16th June
Time spent first thing ensuring that our luggage will be readily accessible in Paris this afternoon because we will need to make a quick get-away. Having left last, we soon begin to catch up the rest of the group. There is another very long, steep hill out of Vernon with lots of riders dismounting - I manage to stay on my bike (hooray!). Early on in the ride (near Copthorne, I think it was) my mental arithmetic managed to work out that every mile covered by me raises £50 for the Children's Unit at The Royal Marsden and I have often returned to this very cheering thought as I pedal my way onwards - I have especial need of it on "Hill Vernon"! The weather is alternating sun and showers. By now I have a good routine going for quickly putting on wet weather gear before I get soaked. The one thing I would have liked to have taken would be some sort of waterproof coverings for my feet as these are quickly drenched by spray when it rains - some cyclists have them and I am very jealous! We make good time, but lose an hour when David (my cycling companion) has a puncture. At lunch we take stock of the situation and decide to press on as fast as we can - we must be in the centre of Paris by 4.00pm or we will miss our train! On we go, through the outskirts of Paris and along cycle tracks covered with debris - we pray that we don't pick up any more punctures! Another heavy downpour and another bus shelter, but at last we see the Eiffel Tower in the distance! Right on time we arrive under the tower itself at 4.00 pm and find Emma and my daughter Bethan waiting for us - we have made it!!! A few photos are taken then we are off to collect our baggage from a nearby hotel where it has been left for us. The bikes are quickly taken apart and put into bike bags for the journey. We abandon the idea of taking the metro as we are running out of time and hire 2 taxis instead. We reach the Gare du Nord 30 minutes later and are in time to check-in. We duly take our seats on the 6.16 pm Eurostar to Ashford - sitting down is bliss, although not entirely comfortable! By 8.30 pm we are home and by 9.10 pm we arriving at the Marlborough House School Summer Ball....to a lovely reception. Later we raise another £1600 at the ball through a Prize Draw. It has been quite a day, but a truly memorable one.....and a super evening to follow. Distance cycled: 75 miles.
