Just got back from my Charity Cycle challenge in aid of Help For Heros. I managed to complete the challenge, but physically, this was the hardest thing I have ever undertaken.
The first two cycling days were in the rain forests of Panama mainly uphill and all in driving and relentless rain. The rain continued on third morning, but fortunately stopped as we approached the Costa Rica border, arriving that night at a mist-covered Arenal Volcano.
As we left the rain forests on cycling day four it turned dry, but hot and humid and remained that way for the rest of the trip. We continued in Costa Rica, ending the day in Santa Cecillia, where we had unexpected overnight home hospitality. This was a poor village, but the people were happy and certainly not materialistic – an unforgettable experience.
On cycling day five we crossed from Costa Rica into Nicaragua, taking three hours just to clear both customs. We cycled past 500-600 trucks waiting to cross the border. When you consider they only process four to five trucks an hour at best, you can quickly calculate how long these trucks have to wait! And that’s the norm.
We spent the rest of day five and the whole of day six cycling along the shores of Lake Nicaragua, with the Concepion and Maderas volcanoes in the middle of the lake. Some stunning scenery, but the wind made it feel you were constantly going up a hill – again. We had a late lunch on cycling day six and felt pretty smug with only 22km to go to our final destination. However, the final twist in the tail – another hill climb, not too steep, but long ,long, long…….
Fortunately, myself and two colleagues bought a can each of Red Bull from the cafe after lunch and we hit that hill at speed. You should have seen us!
One of the group had a GPS app on his iPhone, which produced some interesting statistics. Over the six cycling days our average speed, including all the hills, was just over 11 mph. The fastest speed achieved was 41 mph. The total ascent was 62,350 feet, almost 11 miles, although the almost equal descent was far quicker and much more enjoyable. In total we used in excess of 17,000 calories apiece, although I am not sure I can see that on me! At least at the end of it I feel fit and well and surprisingly have no lasting aches or pains.
So was it worth it? Without doubt. After the first two days cycling and all the hills and rain, I could easily have come home. But the will to succeed and the encouragement of the whole group made you determined to get through it all. I even started to look forward to the hills and disappointed when we hit the flat straights. It was a fantastic experience and one which I would not have missed at any cost. I feel a deep personal pride in completing this challenge and richer for the experience; it’s something that will remain with me forever.
Not least, thanks to the generosity of many friends and colleagues and others, Help For Heroes are over £5,000 better off. (My Just Giving page will remain open for a few more weeks if you would like to donate – www.justgiving.com/pghewitt).
Seasons Greetings
Back to the real world now and as we make our preparations for the exhibitions in January in Cologne and Birmingham and for another challenging year in 2013, all that remains for me to do is to wish you all a Happy Christmas and all the best for the New Year. Watch this space for more news of all the exciting things we’ll be launching for the UK – our most ambitious launch ever!