Paragon Law Charity Bike Ride

Initially scheduled for Saturday 4th October but postponed until Sunday 5th due to a particularly nasty band of weather circling in from the North Atlantic, we were a small but dedicated team of 5. Convincing the Irish member of the team of the incapacitating nature of wet leaves on the British psyche and therefore the need to postpone by one day meant that we were hoping for much better conditions on the Sunday and we were not disappointed.

At 8.00am on Nottingham Embankment, in the shadow of Trent Bridge, we were faced with the glorious sight of a cold morning sun and mist swirling over the surface of the Trent, with only Canada geese and some early morning rowers for company. After obligatory “before” photographs courtesy of the passing rowing coach, we commenced our journey along the scenic banks of the River Trent and on to the Trent Navigation Canal. Passing through some picturesque settings with the idyllic sound of local church bells calling locals to Sunday Service we made good progress in high spirits along the flat and generally well cared-for route.

With the sun now making a full appearance and highlighting a beautiful autumnal day things were warming up in many ways. Leaving the cycle paths and joining the main roads we were faced with a long, if not particularly steep, climb uphill into the village of Castle Donnington. Heads down, teeth-gritted we felt we were making good (but not spectacular) progress, that is at least until a local cycling group on road bikes came past us with absolute ease at twice our speed to put any lingering thoughts of joining Le Tour next year firmly out of our minds. Pausing at the top of the hill to take in the view of the planes taking off from East Midlands Airport to our left and the sounds of cars buzzing around Donnington Park Race Track in the distance on our right, we sampled the recuperative powers of flapjack, water and (for one person) an impromptu toilet break behind some trees in the centre of a roundabout, ready to complete the remaining 11 miles to the half-way point of Calke Abbey.

This was an 11 miles of thigh-burning climbs followed by steep downhill freewheeling, tempered by the thought that some of the exhilarating downhill bits would be lung-busting uphill sections on the return journey. The pain of the steepness of some of the roads was made far easier by the distracting beauty of Derbyshire as well as being part of a supportive team and remembering that it was for a more than worthwhile cause.

By 11.30 our wobbly legs had reached the imposing buildings of Calke Abbey. This is perhaps the part where most people would reflect on how this is a Grade 1 protected stately home which has been preserved as an example of a story of the decline of a country house estate, maybe even drawing metaphoric parallels between the decline of the buildings and how our bodies were feeling after the initial 25 miles. No. All we can say is that the £2.50 we each individually paid for a warm, if slightly soggy, cheese slice was the best money we had parted with in a long time. Each minute spent savouring the food and coffee allowed us to get some strength back into our weary legs before the return journey.

We had a different route home planned to make it a more interesting journey, but this wasn’t aided by the fact that the sat-nav applications on our phones were draining the batteries at an alarming rate. The laws of physics dictated that the return journey would be far more downhill than up, for which we are forever endebted to Einstein, Rutherford or whoever it was who invented this. It was slightly more uphill for one member of our team who had the unerring ability to charge off in front at enormous speeds downhill before realising that they were not aware of the turning we needed to take part-way down the hill and therefore requiring an unscheduled climb back up the hill. Although this person will remain nameless, let’s just say that the danger of wet leaves and the importance of staying close to the person who has the map are two important life skills learnt by them over the course of the weekend.

The return route took us via the upper reaches of the Trent Navigation Canal along a tow-path which has not seen a great deal of footfall (or wheelfall) over recent years which meant that we had to follow a hypnotic rutted trail on the narrow banks for a good few miles which considerably slowed our progress home. The challenging terrain meant that one team member took a much closer look at the ground when taking an unscheduled dive from her bike, inches away from the murky-looking water.

A lunch break in Sawley created legal arguments over the definition of “lite bites” on the pub menu after portions the size of a house led to only half-joking suggestions of hiring a narrow boat for the rest of the journey home.

The weather continued to be kind to us and the gods of battery-life had decreed that we would have enough juice left to allow us to get to the part of the return journey that we had used for the outward leg, but tiredness was setting in and the “lite bite” was beginning to set. Conversation was at a low point, other than complaints about which unmentionable parts of the body hurt the most and with a resolute determination we counted down the miles back to Trent Bridge. What had seemed like an exciting and short route on the way out had somehow turned into a never-ending repeat pattern of fields and paths.

Finally, we reached the welcome sight of the Embankment which even a sudden strong headwind which made us feel like we were riding through sand couldn’t stop a smile being raised for. The inevitable “sprint for the line” meant that the yellow jersey went to an unexpected candidate but we had started as a team and more importantly this was how we had finished. 50ish miles, 5 people, 8 hours and a bit total journey time with money and publicity raised for an amazing cause is not a bad way to spend your Sunday. Not that we want to do it again anytime soon you understand? No, next year’s challenge will definitely involve narrow boats – that seems like something far more relaxing right?