Day 3 Fri 27th August Drumnadrochit to Fort William

http://maps.google.co.uk/maps?f=q&source=s_q&hl=en&geocode=&q=fort+william&sll=57.660096,-4.378052&sspn=1.439931,3.361816&ie=UTF8&hq=&hnear=Fort+William,+Inverness-Shire,+United+Kingdom&ll=57.128786,-4.691162&spn=0.730457,1.680908&z=9

Starting 9am, following A82 south, looking for Nessie, down to Fort William. We will be stopping for anything pretty for photographs, including people. That last bit will get me a kick from the wife...

Day 2 Thurs 26th Aug Brora to Drumnadrochit

http://maps.google.co.uk/maps?f=q&source=s_q&hl=en&geocode=&q=drumnadrochit&sll=58.237272,-3.982544&sspn=1.344597,3.361816&ie=UTF8&hq=&hnear=Drumnadrochit,+Inverness,+Inverness-Shire,+United+Kingdom&ll=57.660096,-4.378052&spn=1.439931,3.361816&z=8

Starting at 9 am.A9 southwards, hoping to visit http://www.glenmorangie.com/home.php#/outils/contact.php?resolution=1024
at Morangie., down to Invernesss, where we'll take the A82 along the shores of Loch Ness to Drumnadrochit.

Day 1 Map. Wed 25th Aug. JOG to Brora

http://maps.google.co.uk/maps?f=q&source=s_q&hl=en&geocode=&q=john+o+groats&sll=53.800651,-4.064941&sspn=12.739664,26.894531&ie=UTF8&hq=John+O

The pic tells you what we're up to. We'll be kicking off at 9am every morning, averaging around 10mph, so check the scale and do the maths.

We're following the A99 southwards to Dunbeath, then the A9 down to Brora. The DISTILLERY looks like the kind of place we will be checking out if you want to meet up.

http://www.discovering-distilleries.com/Clynelish/clynelish

Fire hazard

Tuesday, 3 August 2010

Fire hazard

Here's me, or at least a facsillyme, pictured in my office, dealing with the fanmail and requests for sponsorship forms.

If you click on the pic, you may note that the human person appears female. I am a big fan of Eddie Izzard, and indeed share some of his outlook on life, and this cycle tour was in part motivated by his epic marathon tour.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b00m3z1f

In one of the his films, he was some kind of computer boffin, needed to make a hologram of a Faberge style egg. His answerphone message, in the background of one of the scenes was. "If you must intrude upon my consciousness, leave a message after the beep,. I might get back to you". Reminds me of someone I know very well.

Cross dressing isn't usually my thing, though I have worn women's clothes before. In fact, I entered my Doctor's office one day, and without looking at me, he said "Good morning Sharon". I used my best Billy Goat Gruff voice, and replied " I assure you that whatever my problem, gender confusion is not my problem". He actually smiled.

The bits of paper thing, phone calls,emails etc is more difficult than the cycling part. That is a blessed relief by comparison.

Because of the administrative nightmare, Jess and I are meeting up with the management at MDF Cymru, to discuss how they may take some of this work off our hands in order to maximise the effectiveness of our cycling efforts, by looking for more people who benefit from their largely free services. They are splendid people, and that is why Jess and I are doing our thing.
http://www.mdfwales.org.uk/

Saddles. They have to be right

Members of our team have been addressing the issue of getting the right saddle, as comfort is important, if not essential. Turns out that what is OK for popping roound the block turns out to be a device of torture on longer trips.

Poor us. Poor me. As chief mechanic, I have to think about bottoms a lot, especially the ladies, as I am told they are different in their requirements.

Nothing new then!

Everybody's doing it

Cycling end to end is nothing new really. It is still quite an achievement, as most people can't claim to have done such a thing. Many are low key affairs. Some are very high profile involving famous people who get given loads of cycling kit, even though they wouldn't notice how much iut cost if it were debited form their account. (Jealous? Me?).

So why are we doing it? Surely there's enough exposure?

Noone seems to be doing it with regard to making a noise about mental health, so maybe we'll be amongst a minority when it comes to having done that. Does a little bit make a difference?
Consider a mosquito in your hotel bedroom, or the following little story.

A little boy was on holiday at the seaside once, staying nearby with this family. He set off with his towel and body board ready to see the ocean and go play with it, following the now familiar path over the dunes he'd used the last couple of days.

On reaching the top of the dunes, he gazed out at the ocean, looking for the right kind of surf, especially as there'd been a storm during the night. Seeing it was all very promising, he looked downwards to make his way towards the water.

Something was wrong. The beach was not covered in sand like it should be. It was covered, as far as the eye could see, left to right, front to back, with Starfish. He frantically ran down to the water's edge, dodging through them as much as possible, and started carefully picking them up and throwing them back in the sea.

Some time later, a man approached him, and said "Son, I admire your care for all this little creatures, but there are so many! You can't possibly save them all. In the grand scheme of things, you won't make any difference"Undeterred, the little boy picked up yet another writhing starfish, and carefully slipped it back into the sea where it belonged.

"Made a difference to that one" he said.

Please help us make a difference.

STEPHEN FRY INTERVIEW

Great summary of what it's all about, and the problems associated with the condition.

http://www.itv.com/wales/stephen-fry-interview57034/



It also explains some of the reasons behind 1000 miles.

Professor Nick Craddock's summary of the global impact of depression related illness, and the apalling lack of funding in relation to healping deal with the problem.
Please email for short Powerpoint file, stating 'pp request'
mindworkseducation@gmail.com