Mick’s LEJOG Challenge: Day 5

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Day 5 of Mick’s charity cycle from Land’s End to John O’Groats was a real slog as he was starting to really grind out the ride.

A nice stay at The Bonnington bed and breakfast in Moffat the night before and a trip to a kebab shop to fill up on lasagne, chips and half a kebab, had set Mick up nicely for the day ahead.

However the day wasn’t an easy one, the weather turned a bit but somehow he managed to miss all of the showers, despite riding through some really wet places. A strong headwind made the ride all the more challenging, both physically and psychologically.

Mick met a group of graduates from London who were also doing the LEJOG challenge, which was a bit of a boost for him and helped to take his mind of things. He’d met more cyclists at this point than any other as he never really saw any up until Wigan. This also had its downside as the lads were going faster than Mick’s pace and he ended up going with them, which isn’t a good idea in the long run.

A funny point of the day for Mick was when he pulled up at Forth Road Bridge and stopped to polish off the other half of last night’s kebab, taking a few selfies on the bridge.

He also met a guy and his wife who were cycling, and as they were going up a hill he noticed that the lady was struggling a bit, he said hello and as they kept going Mick realised that the reason she was struggling so much was because she was carrying all of the panniers on her bike. Mick laughed; “Whatever happened to gentlemanly conduct!”

Mick pushed through the headwinds and reached his next checkpoint at Pitlochry after 130 miles on the road. He admitted that day 1 and day 5 we’re the toughest days so far, but it’s another one under the belt and he is remaining positive for the next day.

Keep it up Mick!

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