2017 Five Nations

….and now to the last Charity Bike Ride of 2017. Almost 900km (and climbing 9,000m/30,000ft …more than the height of Mount Everest!) around Europe in 4 days; riding through Holland, Luxembourg, Germany, Belgium and France, and taking in several iconic cycling locations – usually iconic for reasons of sadistic notoriety.

Again, fundraising for the Royal Manchester Children’s Hospital Charity along with, this time, the ‘KMAC’ Cancer Charity.

Royal Manchester Children’s Hospital. They need no introduction. The UK’s largest Children’s Hospital. Saved my daughter’s life, and thrust into international limelight after caring for dozens of the injured after the Manchester Terror Attack (and still caring for several). We are so lucky to have this amazing facility on our doorstep.

KMAC. Cancer Charity. Set up by Nicola Murrells after being diagnosed with bowel cancer in 2013. The charity has raised over £2m in 12 months. Nicola sadly lost her fight with cancer on 8^th September this year and was laid to rest on Friday 29^th September in Prestbury, Cheshire just 5 days before we set off….

Nine of us, all Dads from Pownall Hall School in Wilmslow, set off on Wednesday 4^th October, travelling overnight, to arrive in Holland at 7am….then straight on with the cycling.

Day one – Thurs 5^th October – Rotterdam to Aachen
Day two – Fri 6^th – Aachen to Bastogne (along with over 3,000m of climbing)
Day three – Sat 7^th – Bastogne to Roubaix (via the Carrefour de l’Arbre cobbles and finishing with laps of the famous Roubaix outdoor Velodrome)
Day four – Sun 8^th – Roubaix to Calais via the cobbled Kemmelberg Climb

Carrefour de l’Arbre
Our route took us on the (in)famous 2.1km 4th section of pavé from the Paris Roubaix cycling race, the 260km road race known as the Hell of the North, founded in 1896. The Pavé are infamous large cobblestones that make up 29 sections of the race, easily the hardest terrain the road race calendar visits.

Roubaix Velodrome
The finishing point of the Paris Roubaix race, built in 1895.