Mid Devon has very little to get excited about, especially in the rain. Fields upon fields of grass and livestock, constant hills and driving rain greeted my first 52 miles. Needless to say, it wasn't particularly pleasant.
The day started with breakfast in the Little Chef opposite our Travel Lodge. For some reason I slept poorly and woke at 6.30 not feeling particularly tired. By 7.30 we were eating pancakes and maple syrup which, in hindsight, wasn't anywhere near enough food - even though they were delicious. I didn't feel hungry so decided not to have a big breakfast - I won't be making that mistake again!
I left Sourton (Okehampton) at 9.30, just as the rain started, and it followed me for 50+ miles through Crediton and Tiverton to Wiveliscombe. It was tough to get used to riding in the rain - I was too warm to begin with and my glasses steamed up. I took them off for a while but the rain stung my face and eyes on the downhills so I put them back on and made sure to wipe them often.
To forget about the rain I set myself small distance targets for the morning and rewarded myself with food. I ate a banana, a Boost, a Lucozade bar and an Alpen bar but still found it tough to motivate myself to ride hard. Still, I made it to Wiveliscombe in three hours and met Helen and her Auntie Fiona for lunch.
A combination of good company, good food and wet weather convinced me to take a very extended break. Two and a half hours later I reluctantly got going again, buoyed by the thought of a fairly flat 35 miles to North Somerset. Full of food and slightly warmer after a change of clothing I raced towards Cheddar. As the clock approached 5pm and my total milage tipped the 200 mile mark I began to fade, just as the hills south of Bristol came into view.
I crawled the last 20 miles home, making it through the door at 6.30pm. I managed to avoid some of the city centre traffic by taking a new cycle path but even so it was slow progress heading through the rush hour traffic in the rain.
At home I took a quick shower then walked to Tesco feeling like a zombie. I treated myself to a bag of doughnuts and a chocolate milkshake then cooked a large bolognaise for dinner.
Tomorrow I have another 107 miles to Shrewsbury, although I'll have the company of my friend Pete all day, plus some work colleagues for the first 5 miles and my Dad for the final 60 miles.
Time to stretch and eat some more food before going to bed. I'm having to force myself to eat more at the moment - it's not as enjoyable as you might think!
Album of the day: Walter Schreifels - An Open Letter To The Scene
Most depressing moment of the day: Wringing out my soaking wet gloves on the forecourt of a petrol station.
Happiest moment of the day: Finishing the chocolate milkshake I'd been dreaming of for the final 20 miles.
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