So, Day 3 over and done with. Covered a distance of 107 miles, with just over 8 hours spent in the saddle, and on 5 hours sleep from the previous night. It was gruelling to say the least, up and down the whole way, and when I wasn't on a gradient I was cycling into a headwind 80% of the time. Was during these times in particular when being in a group, or even just having another rider to rotate with, would have paid dividends. Having someone else to act as a win...

So I set off from Oxford around 10.30am, after watching Lewis Hamilton win the Shanghai Grand Prix. Didn't sleep amazing well, which I was surprised about. Had a pretty huge breakfast to get me going though! The going was good for the first 10 miles or so, then the road started undulating up & down over countryside. The A34 is a busy dual carriageway, and it was a bit scary at times with lorries rushing by. Speaking of which, had an exchange with a Hovis lo...

So first day down. 5hrs17mins in the saddle and covered a distance of 72.14 miles. Found out what my biggest adversary is going to be during this ride - cramp! I had the first onset whilst attempting the first really big hill I tackled today. Got about two thirds up and it hit me, in both thighs, caused my legs to be stuck straight for about 15 mins! Couldn't bend them at all, & it was immensely painful. Had to stop and massage them until I could bend them a...

So that’s it, no work for the next 17 days – and only had to take 5 days out of my annual leave in the end, thanks to working a weekend and those generous bank holidays. Even managed to leave work early with my bid managers blessing and a host of various ‘good lucks’ from well-wishers. At the station now, on way up to Kidderminster. Still feeling a bit daunted about the whole thing, but really looking forward to getting on with it and getting that first ...

So it hit me this morning... I'm cycling to Barcelona! People keep saying to me: "How are you feeling?" "Are you nervous?" and of course "Good luck!" In truth, I haven't had time to contemplate the first two questions. With Stacy doing amazingly well to land a new job in Reading, (but unfortunately the timing of her start date coinciding with he second week that I'm away), and the manic rush to first find a house to live in for the...