Distance: 78.6 miles
Miles to Go: 313
Average Speed: 13.5 mph
Time in Saddle: 5 hours 48 mins
Lunch: Picnic (somewhere around Elvanfoot!)
Route Profile:
We left Carlisle in good spirits. We had all enjoyed our night's stay in our B&B's...and the sun was shining. After a few miles over the Esk estuary on the A7 (old Roman Road), we turned west and headed towards Gretna and Springfield and the Scottish Border. The lead group stopped at the border sign for a quick photo, before continuing towards the old A74 (now B7076)....by now the weather had started to close in, and it looked like there was a storm brewing!
In the second group, however, Ali was battling serious pain in her knees. For her to make it as far as the Scottish border despite her considerable pain was testament to her character....unfortunately, her condition was becoming too serious and she needed to rest her knees, and that meant the support crew were called to her rescue. We are hopeful, that this won't spell the end of Ali's ride, but much will depend on how her knees respond to a day or two's rest.
For the remaining riders in both groups, the rest of the morning session meant a steady, flat ride along the old A74 towards Lockerbie, and our mid-morning break, and then more of the same towards our picnic location somewhere in the Lowther Hills.
In the lead group, and only a mile or two before our scheduled lunch stop, on a long gradual climb, Roger accidentally caught his front wheel on the rear wheel of the rider in front, which caused him to take a rather nasty fall. Although Roger clearly was in some pain, he managed to climb back on the bike and ride the last few hundred yards to the waiting support vehicles, and a whole load of M&S sandwiches!
After a relatively short lunch stop, we all saddled up for the afternoon stretch...a rather monotonous and extremely wet ride along the A73 to New Lanark. Roger was clearly by now in considerable pain, although he barely showed it. On arrival at the hostel, after 25 miles on the bike since lunch, it was clear that something was wrong. Ben, our "Doctor on tour", gave Roger a quick examination, and concluded that a hospital visit was advisable, as it was possible that he had broken his hip! So, Adam drove Roger together with Diane and Ben down to the local hospital in Wishaw.
In most cases, it would be unthinkable that someone could cycle 25 miles, in the cold and the wet, with a broken hip, and for these reasons the doctor concluded that Roger had probably just badly bruised himself. However, with Ben's help, we managed to pursuade them to take an X-Ray and sure enough it was apparent that he had fractured the neck of his right femur! The hospital staff could barely believe it! Sadly, though, this meant the end of Roger's ride, and the requirement for an operation. Roger was told that he would have to stay in hospital and undergo the operation asap.
I am delighted to say that at the time of writing (Monday 15th), Roger's operation was a success. He will be sorely missed on the ride...not only was he instrumental in planning the whole expedition, but he was a great inspiration to us youngsters! At nearly 65, he was one of the strongest in the group, and probably in the top 3 most likely to complete the ride to John O'Groats.
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