If yesterday was the day most people were dreading today was the day they were looking forward to the most.
Apart from being difficult to find a hotel en route that could accommodate all of us the organisers decided that it would be a good idea to have an easy day before the final push into Seville.
Breakfast didn´t start till 08.00h and cycling departure time wasn´t until 10.00h. On top of that there was no point in arriving at the destination hotel before check in opened 🤷♂️
When arriving at the hotel yesterday I noticed a car wash directly opposite. Grace was badly needing a good scrubbing clean so I went to the local supermarket and bought some degreaser and sponges. Here is the gleaming result 🤩
It was only 70km today which seemed like a day off considering what I´ve done to get here 🙄 Only one refreshment stop at 43km then onto Talavera. With a population of over 80,000 and an early arrival time I figured that I could find a laundrette and maybe even get a much needed haircut 💈
There was a nice tail wind when I started around 09.45h so I was making good time.
As I got out into the countryside it was clear that the terrain was changing. Until now everything was green (and wet 🙄) but now I was seeing a lot of dry ground, lighter shades of green and quite a bit of barren brown as I entered the province of Toledo (Castilla La Mancha).
The high point today was only 888m and the refreshment stop right at the top of the 9km climb up to the summit. The weather was much better, it was so nice not to be cold 😊I got to 40km and decided it was time to take my jacket off. Yes, you read that right, I was now cycling without a jacket for the first time on this trip🧥
As I was stopped I had a great view of the Sierras that I had had cycled over 🚵
After cleaning Grace I had forgotten to lubricate her so I was hoping that Cris would be there when I reached the stop 🤞
I had a small issue with Grace`s gear levers yesterday and when I mentioned it to Cris at breakfast he immediately went looking for here and fixed it. Let me introduce you to Cris ...
That´s Ricky photo bombing in the background 🤪😂🤪
Cris Ifrim (Driver, Mechanic & Translator) My family moved to Spain from Romania when I was 16 and settled in the Costa Brava. After total immersion in school I soon picked up both Catalan and Castellano and ended up working with British company working in property management, which led to also being able to speak English! My main hobby was always mountain biking and cycling in general, so I moved into the cycling industry as a mechanic and cycling shop manager. In the last 2 years I have focused on working for large cycling races around the world as a mechanic and for technical support. I have just returned from working at the Cape Epic in South Africa where I and my 6 colleagues maintained 73 riders and their bikes. I am looking forward to being a part of this ride and revisiting the route that Joe and I recce’d in January.
With Grace all freshly lubricated up I set of on the remaining 28km to Talavera, the roads were quiet and although a bit undulating at times it was a smooth ride.
I noticed on the inclines that my left knee was sore again, Ricky had taped up my right thumb this morning as it´s falling to pieces and the sore arse hasn´t gone away you know. I´ve gotten this far without taking a single pain killer but parts of me are suffering from wear and tear now 🤕
It got me thinking about why I was putting myself through this so let´s talk about fundraising ...
The work that The Celtic FC Foundation does is wonderful, hungry people get to eat and homeless people are sheltered among many other worthwhile things that they do. Celtic FC was founded as a charity and their Foundation is the modern way to keep true to those values.
I chose €6700 as a target for my personal fundraising for 2 reasons. The number 67 is recognised by Celtic fans everywhere but more importantly I estimate that it is an amount equivalent to what I have invested in this.
All the riders pay their own share of the trip as I have and and then I have to account for the time I´m not able to work.
I figure if I can raise the same as I´ve invested then it will all have been worth it.
It´s going great. as I write this blog post I´m nearly there 🙌
I would love to hit the target before the stadium arrival on Saturday so please keep sharing the Blog and the Facebook posts, thank you 🙏
I arrived in Talavera before long, nice and warm even without a jacket 🌞😎
Checked in, went to the laundrette, found a Barber and had a nice walk around before dinner.
Big 3 days coming up 🚴♀️🚴🚴♂️
Distance covered 70.3 Km
Climbing 838 M
Moving time 03h 16m 49s
Summary:
Easiest day so far and nice weather to boot 😊
Difficulty rating 3/10
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