Day 4 – Paris baby!

Well, I made it!!

Clearly too tired to lift the bike any higher!

Day one began with an early start and was tough to start with. My legs were really aching and I really struggled when we came to a big hill early on. It was pretty steep and I threw a bit of a tantrum when I wobbled off the bike because I was going so slowly! However, things got better when I recovered from that on the big downhill. Sam was helping me along again and feeding me energy tablets which kept me going to the first water stop.

After a swift exit from the water stop to try and stay ahead of the pack we picked up pace and did really well. I was sitting in Sam’s slipstream again and we were going so well that we completely missed lunch! We must have gone straight past the lunch stop and it was only when we realised nobody had whizzed past me on the hill that we decided something was wrong! Having just got the summit of the hill we thought there was no point going back so rang the team to let them know we were fine and bought sandwiches at the local supermarket to keep us going.

Excitingly we joined the very front of the pack after Justin came past with the fastest riders, though we quickly dropped back a bit as they overtook us! Just before the last water stop we came across an accident – someone from one of the other rides had fallen off their bike and was lying in a side road across the path. Sam, ever the doctor, stopped to give assistance, confusing our team when their medic thanked them very much for the Christian Aid doctor’s help!

Once at the last water stop we all gathered together and went off into Paris in two groups. Having decided I was definitely more at home with the rear guard we went in the second group. This was the hardest part of the day as we had to follow the van and all try to get through each set of traffic lights – of which there were many! We got a little bit lost on the way into Paris and tempers were short, but eventually we made it to the Place de la Concorde.

From there we cycled up the Champs-Elysees with bells ringing, round the Arc de Triomphe roundabout and then down to the Jardin de Trocadero for a big welcome and champagne reception in view of the Eiffel Tower. It was a fantastic feeling to have finished and to celebrate with all the riders. Even better, we passed our friend Chris and Sam’s parents who took some great photos of us going past and then met us for the celebrations.

In the evening we all had a great celebration meal and saw some of the photographs taken by Nell, our photographer. We also received our medals for completing the race and some awards were given out. Sam and Harry both got certificates for being ‘Knights in Shining Armour’ and I think they definitely deserve that just for the help they gave me, not to mention keeping everyone else’s spirits up!

The biggest surprise for me was being awarded the polka-dot jersey – King of the Mountains! It’s the jersey awarded to the winner of the climbing stages of the Tour de France and was awarded to me for sheer determination. I was so excited I proceeded to wear it all evening and the next day! Chuffed doesn’t even cover it! Thanks so much to everyone who helped me out – I really couldn’t have done it without you!

So,  I made it. 300 miles – DONE! It was really blemmin’ tough, but amazing!

~ by charlottepage on July 31, 2008.