The alarm sounded at 04:30 and when 3 sets of sleepy eyes opened, except Matt who completely chinned it off!  After a quick look round Al stated the opposite of what we were thinking, “Are we looking good to go?” As the eyes met it was clear that we were all exhausted with the travelling, lack of sleep and sore legs.  With only one hours travel time to Vienna for the next marathon it was quickly decided  that we would sleep till 09:00.

After breakfast we were set to go and in relatively short order and after a few team photo’s we falteringly stepped into something that represented a run. We both limped along forcing the blood to move around our legs, shaking out the kinks from the day before.  We were looking forward to running the newly planned route along the edge of the River Danube, and not along the howling cobbles of Prague and were both hoping for a more pleasant experience. As soon as we started along the tow path we could see we had made the right decision a smooth surface with no serious navigational dramas or  mist.  We actually were surprised and felt relatively comfortable. The route offered some amazing sights, Devin Castle, the River and some small mountains.  A good route choice takes the edge off a  growing psychological battle.  We were happy to get a time of 4 hours 19 mins, 21 mins faster than yesterday.

Current status – 4 sore legs, 1 blister taking shape and one sore ankle, Matt’s sore bottom has now made it onto his boxer shorts!

After four and a half hours sleep, I woke up at 0430hrs and started getting into my running kit, whilst shaking the others out of bed.  We were all ready and downstairs at 0500, not at all in the mood to be banging out a marathon and were ready at the start line by 0515.  Pitch black, misty and around freezing this was not the Prague I was expecting and it was quickly identified that the route we had initially planned was going to be a drama to follow, with all the buildings and street directions that do not generally conform the following of a GPS bearing.  So with this in mind we decided to sack following the watch and instead just bang out 26 miles, measured by the watch.  We arrived back at the hotel 4 hours and 38 minutes later after dealing with the frustrating city restrictions such as 8 miles of cobbled streets, 5 dead ends, a wrong turn on a island where the support rider (Matt) was misplaced, tram lanes, Matt falling off his bike and this was not to mention that we were trying to constantly find a suitable route. I am sure if you have a look at our honesty trace you will agree it might not have been the best chosen route. 

Current status – 4 sore legs, 1 sore bottom and a happy but tired driver…not too bad.

Another early morning prepping kit, this time ensuring we were not doubling up with excess equipment, packing the car and placing items into groups fora slick transition between marathons and countries.  After a hearty breakfast we all said farewell to Bergen (Germany), Naomi and Mr Bo and headed off towards our first marathon destination Prague, Czech Republic.  20 miles into the journey and we are already heading in the wrong direction and Al is complaining that he needs a wee stop.  Unfortunately the journey was another epic, lasting around 7 hours, poor old Darren who has to slog it behind the wheel for hours on end while the rest of us ‘get our nuts down’!  We arrived in a very dark Prague at 2100hrs and had time only for some final kit preparation, the briefest of sightseeing and a well deserved beer, in bed by midnight.

Malcolm

At 05:30hrs, Darren and I got the kit loaded into the support vehicle, ready for the journey across to Bergen (Germany). Matt having just finished his surprise work leaving party was dispatched to us in dribbling smelly mess by courier, whilst Mum (Lyn Medcalf) supplies a constant and well received flow of tea.

At the first stop, the Channel Tunnel we managed to break the boot latch, after much ingenuity and bungee cords the boot was finally secured shut, stopping the bike rack coming loose somewhere in France, Belgium and Holland.  Once on the Germany autobahn’s the big German cars ensured the we felt insignificant whilst transiting at a mere 90mph.  After 14 hours we finally arrived at Alex’s house at 21:00hrs, a truly epic journey. Alex’s offered the helpful comment of ‘Did you drive here in reverse?’  A feast of turkey fajitas and beer  awaited supplied by Naomi and Mr Bo Jangles, then off to bed for welcome sleep.

Malcolm