Day 1 began with drive from Penzance to Land’s End, bags were packed onto Discovery Adventure vehicle and instructions were received and then we were off. It was a hilly ride pretty much from the start, but I was feeling confident and taking it all in my stride. We passed through Cornwall and into Devon, then at the final water stop of the day (which was situated on a downhill and not easily visible from the road) the guy in front of me stopped very quickly when he spotted the water stop which I did not and I did not react fast enough and ran into him.
I do not really remember the accident that well it took a few seconds for my brain to reboot and for me to realise what had happened, I came off very lucky really only some minor scrapes to my arms and back, a bruised coccyx and smashed helmet…
Once I was checked over by the medic and given a clean bill of health to carry on I put on a loan helmet and I was off again albeit somewhat suffering with my bruised coccyx, a short while further on I came across one of my fellow riders, Tillie, our only female rider having some mechanical issues with her bike so I offered to wait with her until Andy the mechanic could come and sort out her bike. This also allowed me to rest for a while as I was still not feeling 100%. Eventually after what seemed like forever we were on our way again and heading for our first night stop at Tavistock, we arrived some time after most of the group although there was still one rider behind us, Ryan, who everyone was starting to get quite concerned about as it would soon be dark. I showered and ate and then as we were returning from dinner Ryan finally arrived.
So that was day 1 it could have been the end of my ride, and my advice would be never ever ride without a helmet (see pictures below:)
Statistics
- Distance: 93.07 miles
- Riding time: 6 hrs 13 mins
- Elevation Gain: 2,566 metres