Why LEJOG?

Why Lands End to John O'Groats?

The idea really started when I was 18 (see picture left, complete with hair!).












During the holidays between upper 6th and university, I was lucky enough to take part in a cycle tour from Southampton down to lands end and back (a really big thanks to Lawrence Herklots from KES for this experience).

Now you have to appreciate that I was 18 - planning and preparation were not part of my vocabularly. My bike for the duration was a raleigh ace 5 gear racer that I'd had since I was 12 - far too small for me and all the wrong gears. I'd borrowed some panniers from my friend Pete and loaded them up with my stuff and cycled around the block the night before. Training over.

On the first day, about 60 miles in, I developed muscle spasms in both my thighs and cramp in both calve muscles. I was well behind the rest of the team and developed my own little ritual. It went like this - cycle about 500m, get cramp and spasms in both legs, fall off on the grass verge, lie there twitching like a dying ant, wait for spasms to stop, then get back on bike and repeat. I do remember several cars stopping and their very kind drivers asking if I was OK, but being an 18 year old lad, my stock answer was always "I'm fine".

Anyhow, things did get better and it was a really excellent trip. I remember seeing a couple of lads on a tandem beginning their LEJOG and thinking "that's a cool idea" and it's been at the back of my mind ever since.

22 years later I'm hoping that I'm less of an idiot than I was then - or at least a better prepared one...