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