From July 14th to July 23rd I'm cycling from John O'Groats to Land's End. The route I'm cycling goes from the northern most point of mainland UK to the southern most point of mainland UK. I'll be cycling through Scotland, Northern Ireland, Ireland, Wales and England

The route I've plotted is about 1,000 miles and I'm looking to cycle it in 9 days. This means I'll be cycling an average of just over 100 miles a day. Also, hilly Scotland, Wales and the south of England means I'll be climbing over 29k feet!

Along the way I'll be bike packing. I'll be bringing sleeping and cooking gear with me and sleeping where I fall at the end of a day in the saddle.

I'm doing this for several reasons:

1. As a personal challenge. It's important to me to set personal challenges and continue to try new things. John O'Groats to Land's End
has been on my bucket list for a few years and I'm finally doing it!

2. I get to meet up with my cycling buddies. A small team of cyclists from the club I cycle with, Sussex Nomads, are riding in a 185-mile
one-day event, Wales in a Day. I've planned my trip to incorporate Wales in a Day to ride with some of my friends.

3. For my nephew. He's going to be 2 years old this year. As he gets older, starts learning about himself and the world I want him to also
explore new boundaries. I want to be both inspiration and to challenge him to do great things by sharing stories of what I've done. How can I do that if I don't do some difficult things on my own?

4. Plastics in waterways is receiving a lot of attention from companies, government and media. It's a huge problem that we've been contributing to and ignoring for years. I wanted to cycle for a charity that has been making an impact to reverse this mess. Surfers Against Sewage are
a UK based charity that work across three initiatives - 1. Cleaning beaches 2. Educating people about the problem in our waterways and the impact on plants and animals 3. Campaigning for awareness and change.

Please support the plants and animals that are dependent on
water - in effect, us all. Please support the reversal of all the plastics
and pollution we've put into the water and work towards a cleaner, healthier earth. If you want to learn more about Surfers Against Sewage - https://www.sas.org.uk/

If you'd like to connect to follow what I'm doing or to come for a spin while I'm training or during the ride you can find me at:

https://twitter.com/eoghancmchugh

https://www.strava.com/athletes/16677880

No doubt I'll be out on the bike regularly in the next few months so please come and join me for a spin!