UKC

As a memorial to me Mam who passed last month I've decided to redo the Glasgow to Inverness bike ride.  Bloody epic and beautiful ride up through the parks and forests over 4 days, and about 220 miles (ish)

I've done this before when I was younger, fitter and a LOT lighter and loved every mile of it.  This feels like a great way to remember her, raise a bit of dosh for charity (Macmillans), and to have a target to work towards in terms of fitness, health, lardloss...and staying off the booze again.  

So on a bit of a high at the moment organising it.  Feels like a very positive thing to focus on and genuinely looking forward to doing it.  Hoping to time it so that the last day of the ride is on the anniversary of her passing.  It's nice to take something positive away from a sad situation.

That was it really.  No doom and gloom, no charity tin rattling.  Just a fairly happy vibe story on a drizzly Manchester afternoon.

Have a great weekend everyone.

I think it's pretty difficult not to go through some cracking places between Glasgow and Inverness, sounds like a good way of remembering someone!

It's just awesome.  From memory you're out of Glasgow pretty quickly and out amongst the green stuff.  Spectacular views..relatively off road...there's a long stretch alongside the A9 (I think) where the original A9 has been left as a cycle path.  So you're riding alongside the dual carriageway but seperated by a good few metres of barrier and verge, with good tarmac underneath.

Some painful uphill slogs though...memorable ones were going over Drumachter pass, and Schlodt summit

Really am counting down the days...

Have you seen the Badger Divide? I essentially did that in reverse (barring the bit into Inverness) when riding the Great North Trail a couple of years ago, might be an option if you want something more off road?

Drizzly !  Bucketing down here, has been for ages. 

Great idea as well. If you swing by Wigan on your trip, I’ll chuck some dosh into your bucket

Nah, way too accident prone for off-road...

Aye, we have moved from the drizzly to the proper rain now

Wigan might be bit out of the way lad , but feel free to chuck a couple of quid in a Macmillan box you might pass, or any cancer research box...or indeed any charity that might be close to your own heart and I'll do a couple of miles just for you!

Best of luck, beautiful area but I much Prefere an engine on my bike. 

Let us know if you set up a just giving page. 

Thanks mate, that is very kind.  I shall ping you the page across.

The cycling thing is something that I fell into out of boredom and lardiness years ago.  Just used to pootle around the local parky bits, then started to go a couple of miles further each weekend, started feeling impressed when I could do a 20 mile round trip, went further afield into the hills, 30, 40, 50 miles - eventually managed a 100 miler cross border thing from northumberland into scotland and back  (and ruined myself for a good few days).  Then the multi day things.  I think it's just the feeling of being under your own stream and going miles further than I could ever get on foot.

But there is a little part of me that would love a motor bike.  Had a 125 when I was at college and enjoyed that....Imagine how many more miles I could smash with a motor on it....

Ping it to me too please, or better yet just stick the link up on here..

Seconded, stop hiding your light under a bushel and put the link up here please TC?

I would need a very big bushel indeed to hide my light, hence the focus on the need for some serious training.

This is very kind and I'm humbled (and oddly emotional at the responses, I could do without being this soppy on a Saturday morning).  Here's the link.  Please don't give more than you can afford and as I said earlier up there to Bottom Clinger if there's a cause closer to your heart than a cancer-related charity, throw cash at that instead - it's all part of the greater good and I'm more than happy to raise their pot.

I would add that my workplace runs a "charity matching" scheme where they will match anything I raise (up to £1,000) - so effectively anything you chuck in to the link will be doubled.  I'm currently up to about £400, I have an extra £200 to throw in there of off-line donations and I've still not really bothered people at work too much...yet

Want to assure you that none of the costs for transport, accommodation, food, kit etc will come out of donations.  It's all going to the charity and I'll obviously be covering the rest.

Here's that link, and I thank you for your response.  

https://www.justgiving.com/page/hazel-carl-memorial

Posted just there mate.  Picture on the page is her in Paris when after 20 years of nagging I finally managed to persuade her to get on an aeroplane with us to come away on holiday.  I was very proud of her getting past a lifelong fear.

Thank you in advance.  Seriously, as well as going to a good cause, everything that gets donated really does help me stay motivated in terms of training.  When you want to turn over and go back to sleep instead of getting up for a run / ride I now have the guilt of all those people who have put their cash in the pot.

Posted on the page now.  

I think it must have been about 15 years ago when I first tried this ride.  Had really old tires on the bike and one split, the innertube popped out and blew, and the ride was over on the first day.  Had to push the bike for bloody hours to the nearest town hunker down in a pub while Mrs TC came and rescued me.  Did it the one of two years later with a group of pals.

But looking forward to the solitude this time.  And I shall make sure I have new tyres,,,,

Just checking some pics of the original ride.  I actually look relatively skinny.  And I have no grey hair. Great getting old eh?

The smile says she was definitely having a good time. 

If you don't I will track you down and slap repeatedly you with a wet fish. 

She assumed that a lot of the toilets in Paris were unisex.  She was mortified when she realised that she had been using the gents in a lot of restaurants.

Promises promises

My god that's a big mug of beer...looks delicious!