Planes, trains and automobiles

September arrives, the autumn is beginning and after completing far too many of our 'summer' challenges in the cold wind and rain of the UK we decide it's time to seek out some sun: destination Chicago!

Our long journey began by heading from Edinburgh to London by train, where we were treated to delightful hospitality from friends  Stuart and Charlotte; including some delicious chilli and a most awesome tart! After gratefully receiving our bed for the night we headed across town to Heathrow, arriving off the Express to the sounds of 'Leaving on a jet plane' we were all ready to go. Sunshine here we come...

One long haul flight later and after a 2 hour wait to clear immigration, we were finally in the land of the free. The immigration man even wished me luck in the race! Big brother Ed came to greet us and soon we were settled in to life in Chicago. A spectacular place to carb load and relax in the sunshine, we had 3 days to acclimatise and banish the jet lag.

The morning of the half marathon arrived way too early. 5am to be precise. Time for a quick breakfast before heading south across town to try to find a parking place and the start line. We abandoned the car in an 'interesting' suburb - taking care to hide all valuables and wondering if the car would still have wheels when we got back! Parking far away had one advantage of giving us a proper warm up for once.

Straight on to the start line we went and started our run in the beautiful morning sun. The conditions were kind; not too hot (yet) and the wind was conspicuous in its absence. We were also helped along by the course entertainment. I feared I was hallucinating early on when I thought I could hear bagpipes... Indeed bagpipes they were, welcoming across the first mile. Another personal highlight was the majorettes using batons shaped like guns - only in America!









The crowd showed enthusiasm like no other. Banners a plenty and cheers of 'You got this Roz' kept the motivation up. The route helped us out by being flat as a pancake with views of the Chicago skyline intermingled with the odd cloud. That's not to say it wasn't tough. Bri was battling with calf pain, Ed had only done 1 training run and I hadn't completed more than 6 miles this year. We weren't helping ourselves...

Despite this, the team put in some impressive performances. Brian smashed his personal best (1hr 33 - super fast). Ed snuck in under 2 hours helped along by the motivator of extra sponsor money and I completed it without dying. Success all round! For some reason none of us felt like queuing up for the free pizza and beer so we made the long, slow walk back to the car. It was still there. Hurrah!





 


Recovery was much assisted by huge slices of Chicago Pizza Pie and some well deserved beverages. That and hearing we had reached our £5000 target. Amazing! Thanks to all who have sponsored us so far. We have gone above and beyond our initial hopes and it's all thanks to you. Visit www.justgiving.com/teams/FCF to sponsor us or see how we are getting on in reaching our new target.











Thanks to Ed and Amy for hosting us and showing us the sights of Chicago. We had a brilliant time and enjoyed every moment. Special thanks to Ed for joining us on the run too - I'm sure you could think of many other more enjoyable ways to spend a Sunday morning. Thanks also to Stuart and Charlotte for hosting us in London and Sophie for attempting to keep us awake for lunch mid way through our epic return journey. We're now back in Edinburgh for the final 3 challenges.... Home sweet home!

　

　

Bikes East!

The year is absolutely flying by! Already we are up to challenge 8 of 12 - two-thirds of the way through 2012 and our fund raising efforts: https://www.justgiving.com/teams/FCF

August brought the Glasgow to Edinburgh cycle along the Union Canal. From George Square in Glasgow to the Lochrin Basin at Fountainbridge in Edinburgh. Just over 60 miles or nearly 100 km of rough canal path, under and over bridges and across aqueducts before the finish and the promise of a refreshing drink.

Roz was injured unfortunately, in part due to our 3-Peaks exertions and a nasty, troublesome knee complaint. We had the honour and privilege of James McLeod stepping into the breach and joining the team for the challenge in Roz's place. James stepped in only 48hrs before we were due to set off to Glasgow, so quite the knight in shining armour. Well, the bloke on a shiny bike. Roz was the road support on the day and also helped us out with some rather large chocolate bars at timely intervals.

We headed off early on the train from Edinburgh Waverley and were in Glasgow Queen Street around half past eight. At this stage we were feeling pretty well set for the ride ahead, little knowing that the road bikes we had were not exactly suited for the terrain!










Despite the outlook the weather was pretty good and we headed off, via a couple of minor wrong turns, on the long road to Edinburgh via Falkirk. Progress was pretty good and although the surface was bumpy and narrow in places we cracked on to make it to Falkirk a little after 11:00. It was a spectacular sight, a feat of engineering and no, I was not wearing a replica as a cycle helmet!

After Falkirk and the Rough Castle and the Falkirk tunnel, we found the going a bit harder. The surface got worse and was even muddier and narrower than the preceding 30 miles. Roz was around to lift the mood around Linlithgow and the Avon Aqueduct - the second longest in the United Kingdom. Apparently. So after a brief chat and recharge we were off. For about a mile.





Disaster hit us with its full force. Well, calamity attacked with icy vengeance. Okay, mild inconvenience struck! We had a puncture, James' rear wheel gave-in to the pummelling it was getting, from the track of course and not the rider it was carrying. James managed to change the wheel with aplomb while I pointed and waved a bit. We pressed on, passing a few fishermen, more bridges than I cared to count and a floating restaurant.

We were now into the final furlong and were keeping our heads down and ploughing on. While the course was flat it was relentless and the surface did nothing to ease the impact on the bikes or ourselves. After covering 50-odd miles we finally hit Edinburgh and a decent surface for the last leg. The path was noticeably busier, and we cut rather more forlorn figures than the families and couples out to walk dogs and ride along the canal path.







At last, after almost 6 hours of cycling we reached Fountainbridge and a pub with food and drink to revive us. We had a great day for cycling and had managed the journey in time to eat a late lunch before heading home to assess the damage, which was mainly aching and mud splattered limbs. We headed out in the evening to toast our success, largely avoiding stairs.

A tremendous thank you to James for joining me on this challenge and completing his longest ever distance ride only a few weeks after tearing a calf muscle. A legend. Our efforts continue, into September and the Chicago half-marathon - with Roz squeezing in an extra challenge in the weekend just gone with the Glasgow 10k to make up for missing the cycle: she's a warrior alright.








Once again, thank you for all the support, it is really appreciated. We are heading towards the £5k mark in fundraising and continue to be amazed by everyone's generosity.

Bri.