30 January 2014:

Firstly to the owner of a chicken in a small hamlet somewhere in the rice paddies of central Cambodia, I am sorry. It was him or me. Momentum and weight was with me so he went down. Had I been able to I would have compensated and maybe shared him for dinner with you but time and the peloton (of one, I was several kms behind the rest!)move but my thoughts are with his family at this difficult time.

So yes the deed is done 40 or so heroic figures, many mankini clad, braved the heat and dust of Cambodia and ploughed through three gruelling days and 172kms or so to hit the target of GBP1million raised over 4 rides.

Cambodia and the Khymer people are charming despite being screwed up throughout the past 100 years by external forces and despite the disgrace of millions of land mines left to maim and kill. We were welcomed into every village with happy shouts of genuine delight from the vast number of tiny kids and never with a request for anything but a weary wave back!!! The wats dominated but not eclipsed by Angkor Wat are amazing and can only be understood if visited. To be fair this correspondent was incapable the walking required and took time to rest weary limbs rather than scamper across temples, a task better left to lighter brethren.

The country side was stunning and largely untouched by the modern world. A truly rural community going about its daily battle to subsist amused only by the occasional pack of overweight British cyclists!

The cycling. First day, 50kms. Bikes were good, roads generally well paved, traffic exotic but limited and polite, heat, hot and steamy but tolerable, dust intermittent! To those that taught me the finer points of 'drafting' I am amazed as you were that my bulk could be pulled along so effectively and at such speed by one so small!!! A revelation that has revolutionised my cycling for ever. Now I know I can hitch a ride when a breather is needed.

Day 2. More of the same, a lot more, 75kms plus lonmg sections of testing off road! A couple of nasty crashes sharpened the concentration for the rest of us. A long day but exhilarating as the big heavies in the rear suddenly got wise to the benefits of riding in peloton and created a credible rendition of the 'charge of the light ( or more likely heavy) brigade to cycle in to a cool pool and colder beer, 30 kms averaging extraordinary speeds of over 25kms.

The celebrations of our graduation into the world of real cycling were rather too energetic to my great cost later that morning!

Day 3. Having almost earned ' the most improved player award' the day before I crashed from hero to zero as next morning I could hardly achieve forward momentum and firmly anchored the rear of the peloton.for the first two sessions through thick sand and across rutted and very unsympathetic tracks.
Day finished with the worst 5kms of road most of us have ever and will ever cycle. The reward was a truly amazing boat trip through villages in stilts to the largest lake in SE Asia.  Truly amazing to see people adapting a life half 'waterworld' , half 'apocalypse now' to be honest I was in so much pain and so wiped that the afternoon passed in a blur.

Thanks then to the lovely ladies of the Somevida Hotel spa, for the extraordinary and determined efforts to keep my legs and feet operational over three days. A miraculous effort and delivered with enchanting smiles and not a little amazement!

The Classic Tour crew, Swiss and local, were a delight and took it upon themselves to ensure that all their charges came home safe and against all the odds only lost two to sickness!!

To my fellow Truants what am amazing bunch of men and women! An extraordinary smorgasbord of very successful people but so wonderfully eccentric , flawed (and often floored) humble (and often humiliated) such determination to battle through where logic and common sense strongly commended retreat to the bar or at least the support bus. Only one poor soul succumbed, and we remain unsure what to to this day.

So to all those that helped get me here, to those that helped through, a huge thank you.

To those that have supported me with donations already, thank you from me, the Truants and the three Charities.

To those waiting to see whether I made it or to those still wavering the doors are still open to donate for another couple of weeks and all donations however small will be hugely appreciated by all.
 

SEPT 2013: Here we go agaın!

Havıng successfully completed every metre of a 180km rıde for charıty ın October 2012 ın the foothılls of the Atlas Mountaıns I am surprısed to have agreed to do another ın Cambodıa ın January 2014...

The last experıence was at tımes a delıght, feelıng myself gettıng fıtter and seeıng the gratıtude from the Charıtıes for whıch we raısed over GBP 300,000. Cyclıng uphıll for 2 days ın 36 degree heat was however truly unpleasant.

I am told there are few hılls ın Cambodıa but once agaın ı have to defy logıc and gravıty and drag my 167kgs along 180kms over 3 sweaty days surrounded by a motley assortment of dısturbıngly lıght, ageıng heavy metal and rugby playıng characters who should never be seen ın any form of lycra and certaınly not the much favoured mankını.

Traınıng started well notwıthstandıng 50 degree heat ın the Dubaı summer, but has just been deraıled by beıng smashed off my bıke by a recklessly ındıfferent motorıst who faıled to see a very large cyclıst rıght ın front of hım!  Injurıes slowly healıng and bıke repaıred. Am back on the road!

So in the interests of raising much needed funds for three great chıldren's charıtıes (The Teenage Cancer Trust, Childline and Nordoff Robbins), and to help me to push down the weight again ANY and ALL donatıons would be very welcome.

Thanks for taking the time to visit my JustGiving page.

Donating through JustGiving is simple, fast and totally secure. Your details are safe with JustGiving – they’ll never sell them on or send unwanted emails. Once you donate, they’ll send your money directly to the charity. So it’s the most efficient way to donate – saving time and cutting costs for the charity.