Land’s End to John O’Groats

John Symes-Thompson Pembroke College 1977

CULS President Raises £3,500 for Practical Action in Cycling Challenge

Iam not really a cyclist and this journey all started as a bit of fun during the pandemic when I started going out on my bike for some exercise and “fresh air”. It was a great release from lockdown, and I later joined some local cycling friends on longer, more challenging routes. They were a lot younger than my 64 years, and a lot fitter, so I really found it a struggle to keep up with the group, especially climbing up any hills.

However, gradually my fitness improved and I enjoyed making small improvements to my bike such as fitting clipless pedals and using an old bike computer to record times and distances. Rides of 20 miles or more to attractive villages such as Finchingfield for lunch became feasible. But that is how it stayed until I bumped into my sister-in-law, a life-long cyclist, who announced she was planning to cycle from Land’s End to John O’Groats (LEJOG) later in the year. My interest was piqued and I quickly did some research on routes and timings thinking I could have a go myself – I had the time, after all, being retired!

It also made sense to me to link this plan with a charitable goal and I soon settled on helping PRACTICAL ACTION, the charity founded by E F Schumacher the author of “Small is Beautiful – A Study of Economics as if People Mattered”. I was born in Nairobi, Kenya and my early childhood in East Africa had exposed me to the real hardship facing farmers and remote populations eking out an existence in harsh environments in developing countries. Practical Action, formerly known as The Intermediate Technology Group, is all about equipping and empowering people on the ground to improve their own situations, rather than just distributing financial handouts. This is all so relevant in this era of rapid climate change, and unexpected tilts between drought and flooding.

Although my introduction to cycling had been brief, and preparation relatively amateurish, I became fiercely driven to achieve the LEJOG target. My rather dubious collection of “Lycra” and other cycling paraphernalia mushroomed, and I spent more time out on the road. My training regime during the next three months amounted to around 1,000 miles cycling around the Cambridge area with increasing distances, and shorter breaks between trips. I settled on using the SUSTRANS route on the National UK Cycle Network. This route looked more interesting as it links some of the UK’s most iconic trails with smaller, quieter back lanes but with the downside that at some 1,200 miles it was a good 300 miles longer than a more typical direct route on A roads.

The plan was to take around 26 days, without breaks, to cover the journey unsupported. This would average just under 50 miles a day with variations depending on hills and terrain. I was to be joined by my wife, other family members and friends at di erent stages of the trip.

In terms of “mapping” I now had the LEJOG route saved on my Garmin cycle computer, the handy SUSTRANS map booklet, and Google Maps on my phone so I couldn’t get lost, could I?

Once started in late May the trip went pretty much as planned although in the South West it seemed there were many more hills and valleys than I had expected! Also, the weather was fairly kind until I reached the North West where the rain became a serious di culty. Wearing glasses in wet weather made seeing the Garmin a problem, and traction less reliable especially on steep descents. However, I was thankful that I was not camping, as going from B&B to B&B gave me a better chance to dry out each evening. Further north in the Scottish

Highlands we experienced high winds of 30-40 mph over 4 days which made cycling conditions di cult on any more exposed roads. Luckily the winds were mostly westerlies meaning they were from the side, rather than being strength sapping head winds.

Yes, there were moments going up hills that I can only describe as being tough, and I had one or two “mechanicals” which lost me some time, but overall the trip was both a pleasure and a challenge. I never had to use my expensive bike lock and I really enjoyed the sections that were literally “in the middle of nowhere”! I got lost several times, mostly because road diversions were in place, but also some of the routes through town centres were di cult to find. Biking through cities including Bristol, Manchester and Glasgow seemed like massive urban jungles compared with the long open stretches through the countryside.

• Total Mileage – 1,197 miles

• Total Ascent – 69,467 feet

• Average moving speed – 10 mph

• Longest Day – 63.3 miles in 8 hours 14 mins (Dulverton to Glastonbury)

• Highest Climbing Day – 4,607 feet (Cumbria)

• Mechanicals – two brake failures, and bent handlebars after a fall in the wet, but no punctures!

• Highlights – Mousehole Harbour, Camel Trail, Tarka Trail, Exmoor, Wyre Forest, Bridgewater Canal, Whalley Abbey, Great Asby Scar, The Clyde, The Trossachs, Drumochter Pass, The Speyside Way, The Kyle of Tongue

I think I am now tougher, both physically and mentally, and proud to have raised over £3,500 for Practical Action. On the downside I am probably still addicted to flapjacks! Many thanks to all those members of CULS who supported me and my chosen charity for this challenge!