Logistics – boring sh!te and background to get out of the way

Which coast and to where?

The Coast to Coast walk is an approximately 200 mile walk across the narrowest stretch of England (note I am cycling it I think I’d get bored walking for 2 weeks). This route was first made famous by Alfred Wainright in his 1974 book “A Coast to Coast Walk”. The traditional route takes you from St Bees on the Irish Sea to Robin Hoods Bay on the North Sea. You can of course go the opposite way but for practical reasons alone the East-West route is more popular as you get favourable winds (tail vs head). Boring fact but there has to be some in here.

Because cyclists are masochistic types they decided to start riding the Coast to Coast. Not satisfied with riding a smilar walking route (far too easy), the cycling community mapped out a seriously daunting 4-7 day trek covering 268 miles of some of the toughest terrain the UK has to offer.

Timing is essential

Everyone knows that the UK is not famous for its all year round perfect weather. In fact the North of England where the Coast to Coast traverses the country has some pretty wet, bleak and windy weather at times of the year. Ideally you’d want to ride this in July during the height of the Northern Hemisphere summer. Ideals are just that though. Due to my impetuousness and generally spontaneous nature I’ve decided to attempt the Coast to Coast in October. Almost half way to winter. I like a good challenge. Considering I landed in the UK on June 20^thfollowing a year of travelling covering South and Central America and a ski season in Whistler, amongst other hijinks, 3 months to plan, prepare and train for the Coast to Coast is a fair old challenge.

So that’s a loose outline of what I am aiming to achieve and in what sort of timeframe. I could bore you with more details of route planning, accommodation and other necessary arrangements but I won’t. Go and treat yourself. Have a tommy tank or something with the time I saved you just now.

Coast 2 Coast - cycling across a country...albeit the narrowest part

What's all this then?

If the adventures of an amateur cyclist attempting to mountain bike across England sounds like a bit of a laugh then follow me as I plan, train for, and attempt to mountain bike across England’s famous Coast to Coast walk.

The Coast to Coast walk is an approximately 200 mile walk across the narrowest stretch of England (note I am cycling it I think I’d get bored walking for 2 weeks). This route was first made famous by Alfred Wainright in his 1974 book “A Coast to Coast Walk”.

This book, while detailing a lovely journey through some of the most picturesque parts of England, is by all reports rather dull. I shall seek to rectify this in my version of the Coast 2 Coast. See I've already replaced the "to" with the numeral "2". Instant street cred and cool factor right there.

The Origin of Species/Symmetry/The Universe/This Blog

Why not? That’s the smart a$$ answer. The real answer lies somewhere between that and a latent need to achieve something of note after over a year of essentially living a hedonistic existence.

About a year ago I decided to take a leave of absence from work and do some long overdue travelling. After all, what is Generation Y other than a bunch of over entitled, flighty employees with no respect for hard work? After 6 years as a management consultant in Sydney, Australia it was by far time I wracked off. So, armed with a two passports, a healthy bank account and share portfolio to bank roll my ventures, I set off around the world. To regular readers and friends you will know this portion of my life as Lifestyle Specialising. To those new readers this is called Lifestyle Specialising. For more on Lifestyle Specialising see my early blogs. They unfortunately met a sticky end when the content veered in a direction that was on the whole not suitable for public consumption. Basically from when I arrived in Colombia. You do the maths. The point of this is not about what I did, but how it made me feel. Pretty freaking great for the most part, thanks for asking.

The truth is (a) something you can’t handle, (b) impossible to prove all of according to Gödel’s incompleteness theorems, (c) that after leaving a job where half the fun was working hard, gaining knowledge and insight, and ultimately knowing you’ve made a positive difference, living only for moment can be pretty shallow and ultimately unsatisfactory. If you answered (c) you are correct. If you answered (a) or (b) then you are also so correct but not in this context. Now, this is not about leaving some lasting legacy or breaking records, many other punters have cycled before me, but more so about being reminded of the fact that hard work does pay off and that life is not all beer and skittles, but more like a box of chocolates. You never know what you are going to get. Enough however. This is not a place for moralising or philosophy. I like to leave that to Fox News and talk back radio. On with the show.

Fine, you may say. Do it to feel better about yourself (still pretty hedonistic??). But why write about it? Why not? That’s the smart a$$ answer. The real answer lies somewhere between that and a latent need to achieve something of note after over a year of essentially living a hedonistic existence.

As the famous Russian proverb goes, “a man is judged by his actions, not by his words”.So to action it is. My first of which is writing this. Hmm...