My 9 day solo LEJoG in 2002. I'd done 200 miles in 2 days the previous year, to make sure I could contemplate 900 in 9 days, but LEJoG was a significant moment because it had been nagging at me for many years and I suddenly found myself with 9 spare days of annual vacation.
The Beer (yes, it's a real place) to Portsmouth Camping trip. Me, Urban_Biker (on left) and Chillmoister spend a long weekend cycle-camping along the Dorset and Hampshire coast. Just a wonderful way to cycle. This was my introduction to cycle-camping and I plan to do more of it now PBP is done.
Audax, in particular the Bryan Chapman 600.
Significant because once I'd climbed over Pen-Y-Pass, at night, in sideways sleet, descended to Menai, got back to Dolgellau through the long, boring night, climbed over Cross Foxes and eventually made my way back to Chepstow, I felt I could pretty much do anything after that. Probably not the hardest Audax but it has a bit of everything and it's still hard enough to give you a sense of achievment.
Here is me, approaching Barmouth , looking towards a big climb and a severe soaking in Snowdonia.
PBP. What can I say? It's what it was all leading up to and it didn't disappoint. Not the most difficult terrain, certainly not the most interesting but I got to ride through 4 days and 4 nights with almost no sleep. I fought a few personal battles along the way, in order to persuade myself to finish, but the event is just so fantastic, the French public so supportive that I'm already having second thoughts about never doing it again.
Definitely my most significant cycling moment because it had all been leading up to this point, after 89 hours 24 mins.
