Amsterdame10 - Day One

Wow! Can you believe it? A whole year has passed (to the day!) and here I am again!

Amsterdam beckons and 60 ladies are waiting for the off! York's McArthur Glen car park is filled with bikes and bags and yellow ride shirts, the air is filled with excited chatter!

We are checked-in, de-bagged (in the nicest possible way!) and grouped together for a team photo :-)

Next we were split into teams and got ready for the off...

last year I did the ride as part of a year of challenges for my 40th Birthday so you may wonder why was I back? Well I had such a brilliant time last year and the challenge was such an achievement that I just felt compelled to join in once more... so here I was! This year my ride buddies and cabin mates were Sandra and Wendy, friends made on last years ride :-)

We just knew we would have a great time!

One by one the teams set off to cheering and air horns set off by friends and family, all gathered to see us off! So the long line of girls wound our way out into the coubntryside, along cycle lanes and tracks heading off towards Market Weighton where we were scheduled for lunch...

As we pedalled we chatted and laughs went up and down the line. It soon became obvious that one of the characters of our team was Nikki, a self-confessed loud-mouthed Scouser! She was brilliant! She kept us entertained with her banter with Mark, our front ride guide and she had us all calling out in response to her chant 'How are ya feelin'?' to which we would shout 'Gorgeous' in reply... Spirits were high as we cycled along, weaving our way through leafy lanes...

We pulled over beside a road near Seaton Ross to have a drink and check someones tyres and the break was useful to stretch legs and fingers... morale was high... Although we had pulled off the road we were wary of traffic and had various systems in place to warn each other of hazards whilst cycling, these calls often stayed with us when off the road too!

As we waited beside the road a white van was seen coming around the corner and several shouts were heard 'VAN' we called, 'It's coming FAST' I shouted and with that it hurtled around the corner, its driver fighting to stay in control... its brakes screeched as it struggled to stay on the road... we held our breath as it just managed to get around the corner without hitting us... we were angry and relieved all at once - it could have ended so badly! He was gone in the blink of an eye with nothing more than a partial plate to go on...

Shaken but determined we saddled up and rode on, thinking ahead to lunch, with Nikki calling out her chant and getting a few choice words in return!

We arrived at the pub for lunch, chips and sarnies, good job too - we were ravenous, we could have eaten the same again!! All three teams met up here to exchange banter on the journey so far and tell tales of our near miss!!

Freshly filled and ready for the off the teams set off at intervals. Our only deadline was the ferry...

Heading for Hull we followed country lanes and cycled over footbridges, we even lost our way at one point and almost found our way into some private gardens!! We had a Blair Witch experience in the woods and were sure we heard the Hound of the Baskervilles and shots being fired!

We had another mini adventure in North Ferriby but eventually found our way onto the correct road to lead us under the Humber Bridge and alongside the estuary. The dockside apartments are very smart and the block paved walkways make for easy riding. We fly past The Deep and cross over steel walkways which link the areas on both sides of the waterways.

Before long the gleaming white ferry comes into view and we are spurred along... 'How are ya feelin'?' Nikki shouts... 'Gorgeous' we yell in reply! Faster we ride, along and around, with every push of the pedals bringing us closer to our overnight rest...

At last we make it and find ourselves lined up at Passport Control alongside some fabulous Harley Davidson motorbikes! Their gleaming chrome and immaculate paintwork testimony to the pride of their riders...

Finally they agreed to allow us out of the country so we pedalled furiously up the long and winding ramp onto the ferry... what a climb but we made it - without stopping! And honked our horns wildly at the joy! Bikes locked and safely stowed we claimed our baggage from the support van and went off to find our cabins...

Get fed, get settled and get some sleep was the order of the evening... after a stroll on deck and a bevvy in the bar of course!