Somme Valley 2007

Back to the continent for our third tour, where we followed the coast for the first 2 days then headed inland to the Somme Valley itself, we all like being in France as cyclists are given priority at most junctions and the children cheer ‘ Alez, Alez, Alez’ as you pass.

Day 1 We set off down the coast from Calais following the coast into the 20 mile per hour head wind, somebody in this team should think about prevailing winds we suffer while riding but once the route is set we have to do it!

Day 2 A second day of heading into the wind, it does get tedious at times but we keep going in true Brit Style, single file and determination will get us there, we left several way mark points on round abouts along the way, just to show we had visited.

Day 3 The day began and continued in usual day 3 style, heavy rain all day! We were getting used to this; you have to keep moving to keep warm so inevitably one of our fastest rides. A few navigational issues towards the end of the day, we could have jumped in the bus and driven to Amiens but the thought of soaking the bus spurred us on to complete the final 9 miles!

Day 4 The ride from Amiens to Arras took in all of the Cemeteries along the Somme Valley. A very sobering day, every cemetery had a gardner/groundsman attending to keep a pristine respect for those who fought for us. With this in mind no matter what pain we suffered on the bikes was insignificant by comparison to what the soldiers did for us all. With these memories we persevere to the final destination Arras.