Cycle To BrewDog

We all have dreams, right?

Last weekend one of my dreams became reality.

Making It Happen BrewDog Challenge Sophie
Making It Happen BrewDog Challenge Sophie

I set the date for my first cycling challenge, spread the word via social media and set to work organising it.

Myself and 35 brave souls rose in the very early hours of Saturday morning on the 1st of February. We met in East London at 5am and cycled 145 miles from London to Bristol. We cycled through blue skies, gales, flooding, mud and rain all in the name of adventure and beer.

Cycling and Beer

I used to dream about being an athlete sponsored by a beer company. The two go hand in hand, right? You challenge yourself and endure the pain of the latest crazy adventure you and your friends come up with. You celebrate in the pub with mud and sweat dripping from your lycra and come up with the next challenge.

A few months ago BrewDogsponsored me. Time to do some awesome challenges, drink the best beer around and most importantly, get all of you involved!

This is what I love to do and why I do it.

BrewDog cycling Challenge Sophie
BrewDog cycling Challenge Sophie

It's 5am on Saturday 1st February 2014, BrewDog Bar Shoreditch.

The bar is filling up with cyclists dressed from head to toe in lycra, chatting and making friends. There’s a nervous excitement in the air. I look around and notice that people are smiling – that’s a good sign,  it’s very early for a weekend. I can’t believe everyone is here, this is happening.

Bikes in the bar
Bikes in the bar
5am BrewDog bar Shoreditch
5am BrewDog bar Shoreditch

The weather forecast issued gales and flood warnings for the SouthWest, and in particular our destination, Bristol. Our only option was to ride and embrace whatever came our way.

BrewDog Challenge Sophie
BrewDog Challenge Sophie
BrewDog Challenge Sophie
BrewDog Challenge Sophie

BrewDog's best selling ale, 5am Saint was on offer but only one brave soul took the plunge!

BrewDog Challenge Sophie
BrewDog Challenge Sophie

At 5:45am we headed out into the night. 145 miles of road to conquer.

BrewDog Challenge Sophie
BrewDog Challenge Sophie
BrewDog Challenge Sophie
BrewDog Challenge Sophie

We cycled through the dark streets as one big group to Richmond Park. Our group began to stretch out as first light crept over the hills and lit up the London skyline. Bingo, we had our first puncture.

Sunrise Richmond Park
Sunrise Richmond Park
BrewDog Challenge Sophie
BrewDog Challenge Sophie

I can remember cycling along, smiling to myself as I listened to the buzz of everyone chatting to each other. No more organising to do, time to relax and enjoy the ride.

Happy :)
Happy :)

The aim was to nail 90 miles before the first stop, lunch at a little village called Pewsey in Wiltshire. Simple right? What could go wrong? 

BrewDog Challenge Sophie
BrewDog Challenge Sophie

We meandered out through West London and over the Thames. Of the 35 people on the ride, 40% were people I knew and had cycled with over the years, 20% were female. It's always great to have more ladies, but the ones there were true gems and I can't wait to do the next challenge with them. Thanks for coming girls!

Lovely ladies
Lovely ladies
IMG_1764
IMG_1764
Brew.Dog-58
Brew.Dog-58
BrewDog Challenge Sophie
BrewDog Challenge Sophie

For the first half of the ride we couldn't believe our luck with the weather. Stunning blue skies and not too cold.

Bluesky cycling
Bluesky cycling

Around mile 45 the support car with Jonathan, Charley and Riccardo caught up with us. They did a fantastic job helping us with route, topping us up with water and Jackoat bars and driving Anna around so she could fix punctures. Riccardo, our resident photographer captured the action as it unfolded.

Cycle To BrewDog
Cycle To BrewDog
Fixing punctures
Fixing punctures
Challenge Sophie BrewDog
Challenge Sophie BrewDog

We thought we had escaped the flooding, we were wrong!

Flooding!
Flooding!
BrewDog Challenge Sophie
BrewDog Challenge Sophie

Most of us in the group I was in took our shoes and socks off and walked through the flood. It felt adventurous. We found out later everyone else went for it and cycled straight through. Of course...

Challenge Sophie BrewDog
Challenge Sophie BrewDog
Challenge Sophie BrewDog
Challenge Sophie BrewDog

About 10 miles from our lunch stop the weather changed. Cycling uphill and into a strong headwind with 80 miles in our legs was the first real test of endurance and ability to dig deep. Lured by the thought of lunch in the pub we encouraged and helped each other tackle the hill, beat the wind and cycle the last few miles into Pewsey.

BrewDog Challenge Sophie
BrewDog Challenge Sophie
BrewDog Challenge Sophie
BrewDog Challenge Sophie
Challenge Sophie feeling the challenge!
Challenge Sophie feeling the challenge!
Challenge Sophie BrewDog
Challenge Sophie BrewDog

At lunch I enjoyed hearing how everyone else on the ride was getting on. It turned out that all the groups (bar the two leading cyclists) stopped for lunch here and left just as the next group was arriving. This meant the information travelled down the line and reassured me that everyone was doing well.

Pensive Paddy
Pensive Paddy
Challenge Sophie BrewDog
Challenge Sophie BrewDog
Scott "There's nothing I'd rather be doing, but I can't wait to finish"
Scott "There's nothing I'd rather be doing, but I can't wait to finish"

Lunch involved soup, omelette and chips. Everyone tried to dry their socks and gloves by the fire. Service was slow so we ended up staying there for about an 1hr 1/2 but it was the first and only rest stop of the day.

Refuel lunch stop
Refuel lunch stop

It was now 4:30pm and starting to get dark. Some of the group made the wise decision to take the train from Pewsey to Bristol and meet us in the bar. We had been making fairly steady progress which was fine when it was light and the weather was good, but now we had neither of those on our side and another 50 miles to go.

What matters is not finishing at all costs, but challenging yourself, your limits and comfort zone and knowing when to call it a day.

Pushing limits
Pushing limits

Alastair, Emily, Anna and myself headed out into the dwindling light to tick off these last 50 miles. Before we left I commented that the distance we had left was "just a London to Brighton bike ride", perhaps not the most motivating thought! I knew we would get there, just need to keep spinning those legs and take it one mile at a time.

Challenge Sophie BrewDog
Challenge Sophie BrewDog

The following 25 miles was some of the most memorable riding of the day. We had been cycling since before sunrise and were continuing after dark. This created a feeling of adventure, we needed to have our wits about us as the fatigue and cold started to kick in. The rain was constant by now but we hardly noticed it biting away at our faces. Our focus was on overcoming the challenges ahead; map reading in the dark, managing the increased risk of cycling in the night and motivating ourselves to avoid letting our speed drop.

Sunset
Sunset
Challenge Sophie
Challenge Sophie

In theory, the last 15 miles should be easy. You've already done 130, what's another 15...

In practise they are often the hardest.

Mentally you're already there, your mind starts to think about drinking beer in the bar with your friends, getting off your bike and eating food that's not energy bars. However, without that focus from your mind on the task at hand, your body can struggle to produce the goods. This is what I love about endurance. The relationship between body and mind and how you utilise both to achieve more than you ever thought you could.

Brew.Dog-94
Brew.Dog-94
Challenge Sophie BrewDog
Challenge Sophie BrewDog

It was 9pm as our team pulled up outside the BrewDog bar in Bristol.

Challenge Sophie BrewDog
Challenge Sophie BrewDog

What a welcome! Riccardo was there to take a snap of Team Smash-a-Lot, as we'd named ourselves. Cold beers were thrusted into our hands, hugs and high fives all round. It was amazing to see everyone there, 15 hours after we'd all left the bar in East London.

BrewDog, Challenge Sophie
BrewDog, Challenge Sophie

What a day! We shared tales of adventure whilst drinking 5am saint and Punk IPA.

I went to bed tired and happy.

Dream.Come.True.

Thanks to all who helped me make it happen.

BrewDog Challenge Sophie
BrewDog Challenge Sophie