By Ed Coleman in our software team

Yes it’s true! On Friday last week my brother-in-law and I successfully completed a nine day unsupported cycle ride from Lands End to John o’ Groats, raising money for Macmillan Cancer Support and Spinal Research.

In total we travelled 927 miles, spent 64 hours and 2 minutes in the saddle, averaging almost 14.5 mph. The furthest we travelled in 1 day was from Westbury to Telford (130 miles taking 8hours and 39mins).

It was a great experience and one which I will remember for the rest of my life. We had a real mixed bag of weather with the most challenging conditions hitting us in Scotland. Weather aside it wasn’t all plain sailing; I experienced a couple of mechanical problems with my bike – fortunately no show stoppers, just minor hindrances!
 
A massive thank you to everyone who supported, sponsored and followed us on our journey. Fundraising has gone extremely well; early indications suggest we are well on our way to raising at least £5,000 which is fantastic. We have been overwhelmed by the generosity and support that the Good Energy staff have shown - Thank you all very much indeed.
 
Some frequently asked questions since arriving home:

Would you do it again?
Definitely!

Will you do it again?
Given the chance yes, but very unlikely for a number of years - I will most certainly be returning to the Scottish Highlands to soak up the magnificent scenery.

Did you have a sore bottom?
Surprisingly not!

Do your legs hurt?
Knees ached a little when cycling through Scotland in the cold, wet and windy conditions. This eased off once legs had a chance to warm up. I did experience aches in my shoulders on the last couple of days for the same reasons – not so easy to keep the shoulders warm though!

Would you do it differently next time?
Difficult question - we achieved everything we set out to do in the time we had. Yes, it would be nice to have more time to stop in places of interest but it's surprising how much you can appreciate the scenery whilst on the bike. It would be nice to see how quick it could be done with a support team but I don't think this would be half as enjoyable.

What was the best bit of the trip?
The kindness and support shown by those we met along the way (here are just two of a very long list):

Being handed £10 by a complete stranger leaving the train at Exeter who said he had looked us up on the internet.

A packed lunch given to us by the landlady at our B&B in Loch Lomond who expressed concern about us travelling through the highland in such poor weather conditions.

And sharing the experience - the sense of camaraderie was incredible.

Lessons learnt?
Never take a break at the bottom of a hill

Don't expect others to treat your bike with the same respect you do. My bike was damaged in transit.

A special thanks to Barney Merrett in the Good Energy trading team who joined us at Taunton on day 2, and cycled back to Westbury. It was by far the hottest day of the whole trip with some nice hills thrown in too – Well done Barney!