Three of us from the team had an early start (7am) on a cold morning to cycle from Cardiff to Barry.
We got there before 9am and the rest of the team gathered while ITV Wales interviewed David and Graham.
Just after 11am nine of the ten set off by some form of cycle with Ruth driving her camper van as support vehicle.
We stopped briefly for a photo with Lord Nelson in the background, before heading to the Cardiff barrage for a pit stop. Here we were joined by another cyclist taking us up to 10.
The rest of day one was through Cardiff and the eastern suburbs then through open countryside and into Newport. We arrived at our hotel just as it was getting dark, about 6pm, after a long cold but rainless day.
We were underway by just after 8am on Saturday with seven cyclists now, to head north and east towards Chepstow, stopping for a coffee break in Caldicot.
Having refuelled we set off for the older M4 bridge as it has a footpath on both north and south sides. We were joined by Abi on her ‘road runner’ who successfully crossed in spritely fashion.
We had a lunch time pit stop in a welcoming hostelry then made our way to Sharpness to view Tenacious and pay our respects.
It was decided that a celebratory piece of cake was required so following that we moved to our overnight stop and some well earned showers, beers and food.
The final day was a shorter ride so we gave ourselves a later departure and progressed gently through more lovely countryside with occasional views of the Severn. We then joined the tow path beside the Gloucester canal and Abi joined us again up to the Docks arriving around 2pm.
What an incredible experience! It was definitely challenging at times, but we stayed warm and dry, and the results were amazing. We reached so many people through ITV Wales and we were mentioned on BBC Radio Wales, it was totally worth it.
The best part? The camaraderie, the jokes, the shared sense of purpose – we had a blast! And guess what? We’re doing it again next year, bigger and better. Ready for round four?
Keep an eye out for the announcement about next year’s adventure(s).
Huge thanks to the hardy folk who took this challenge on and completed it with gusto and humour.
(You can read a lot more about this adventurous ride on the Wheels for Tenacious website.)