THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU all the people who have donated, supported or been there through this mad idea I had! The challenge idea and back story are available here www.wix.com/bikechallenge1/home.

This is what happened! I set off from the start point at 9am on 2/7/11 as planned but it wasn't long before I had my first setback. We had planned that the support car would be with me at the start point but didnt need to "give chase" for about an hour, or till I was out of Nottingham at least. An hour into the ride i had finished the fluid I was carrying and was expecting the support car to catch me up at any time. I couldn't have known the support car would get a flat and not catch up to me for another hour and a half! I wasn't a happy bunny when they turned up but on hearing about the flat tyre I pushed on. *A quick note to the pillocks in the white shoddy camper on the A52 Grantham Road, going round Radcliffe On Trent at about 9.30. Throwing an apple at a cyclists head from a moving heap is not big, hard or clever!! GROW THE **** UP

The ride to Skeg went fantasticly for nearly all the rest of the way, clear skys, no rain or head wind which is unusual apparently. Just after Boston I made a wrong turn which added what felt like an eternity, but could only have been a few miles. I felt fantastic as I powered into Skeg at about 15.35 and ramed a hot meal down my throat in a carpark by the clock tower. I jumped back on the bike and started back towards the midlands.

A big mistake by me was the route planning. Instead of opting for the easiest (flattest) route I chose the shortest. This will be vitaly important! Whilst heading back to the midlands (along a different route to the one to Skeg) we took another wrong turn. We looped back to our trail about an hour later.

Just north of Conningsby there is a large dead snake on the side of the road, not something you see everyday. Whilst riding through Conningsby, a young lad riding with his family, made me brake to avoid him by crossing the road without looking. As I started going again, he proved his determination to cause an accident by falling off his little bmx, off the pavement and into the road, right infront of my front wheel! Literally 10 seconds after getting going a second time, a wasp went up my right sleeve and made a pin cushion of my armpit! I was glad to see the back of Conningsby! *Last time I visited I had a great time!

"Big up the Mansfield boy racer possy for NOT killing me." It had just started getting dark as we were passing Mansfield and I havn't seen so many modded motors since Max Power. A large gang of these layby fanatics just stared as a R reg clattering diesel, covered in sticky back plastic, burbled past followed by a bloke in lycra. THANKS for not kicking my head in boys!

We passed the M1 at J28 and braved Alfreton, Ambergate and Belper after pub kicking out time. LOL *Yes girl with no shoes it's a bike, Yes girl with no shoes it's late to be riding! Why we went this way instead of the nice, quiet, fairly flat, well lit A50 now seems very foolish! The hills of Derbyshire really took their toll on me and the narrow, winding, tree lined roads are lethal in the pitch black for a cyclist. My support team tried to help keep me alive by driving slowly behind me with the flashers on, but idiots like the driver of "that ford ka" meant that too, was just too dangerous! At midnight I hit my first wall, I tried to power through but by 2am I had started to see things "change" before my eyes. Each hill was torture and each time i told myself just one more climb, I knew I was lying! Just after 2am I broke my own rules and had an hour of sleep (effectively ending the dream). I did say I wouldn't be happy unless i got to Wales, I also felt people who had donated deserved more so after hot food, drink and some chocolate I was back on the bike for about 4am with a new sense of determination but seriously hammered legs. Two minutes down the road was the biggest climb so far! By the top I felt nearly as bad as I had at 2am, but the sun was about to come up so I pushed on looking forward to warmth! *I can't begin to describe how knacked I am here. The sun did bring warmth, slowly at first then it became another perfect day of clear blue sky. The last few hills in towards stoke were absolute torture but i kept my spirits high by chasing the support car down the other sides until the long final downhill into stoke where i freewheeled to recoup a little.

All went wrong in stoke! The directions were bad, and i got a little lost when i lost sight of the support car at some lights. Being tired and grumpy i spat my dummy out a little and shouted at the two people that had kept me alive so far ( that's no exaggeration ). Very sorry guys! After a few short but heated directional debates we were off again and eventually found the M6. This was encouraging as i knew it wasn't far to Whitchurch and the Welsh border but then the hills started again.

On the narrow roads near Wales the support car was flying by, then waiting in laybys. I'm glad about this because the last three hills before I finally gave up were climbed in floods of tears! Total exhaustion and pain were taking over, and it was all i could do to quickly wipe my face, and try to at least look like i was coping when i saw my team come into view. I don't know who I was trying to kid as Chris n Deb seemed to know it was over before i had accepted it, and my body certainly knew I was going no further. At least they allowed me to get to Wales, to be fair they could have called it a day hours earlier for safety reasons. For all the people who donated, rest assured that I gave it my best and then some. To the people who shared a kind word before or after, your support makes this kind of thing possible.

THANK YOU, Chris, Deb, Sshokwave Bikes, David Lloyd Fitness, and everyone who helped or did something, no matter how small.

Please follow this link for 2012 update www.justgiving.com/ride2012