Palace to Palace 2015 – ACHIEVEMENT UNLOCKED

Recently I completed the 10 year anniversary Palace to Palace cycle ride for The Prince's Trust; a 45 mile "Classic" (or 90 mile "Ultra" if you're crazy) route from Buckingham Palace, along the north side of the Thames, through Richmond Park, and out of West London, through Surrey, and in to Windsor.

Sponsor me and get awesome coffee for £1!

The Night Before

Realising that although the ride itself would be in daylight, it wasn't until the evening before the ride that I realised I'd be riding to the start line in the dark; and none of my lights worked.

A late night wander around West London promptly ensued to every newsagents and corner shop I could find, trying to rustle up a few of those little round batteries; everywhere I went seemed to have sold out! I was a long walk and a late evening before I got home, batteries in hand.

Tip 1: Check your lights and stock up on batteries well in advance..

The Big Day

The BEAST

Previous years I'd wake up and make banana porridge to give me a good start to the day; unfortunately it was always far too hot to eat before I'd have to leave, so I was running on empty before the day had even started!

I found that the same ingredients – plus a few more – could be made into something much more easily consumed on the morning of the ride: a smoothie.

A couple of handfuls of oats, a banana, some frozen berries, and a spoon or two of some sort of nut butter (peanut, cashew, that sort of thing); whizz it in a blender and pop it in the fridge overnight – you can just down it in the morning whilst pulling on your lycra!

Tip 2: Banana + frozen berry smoothie, not porridge

Leaving my house before 6am on Sunday morning, in the dark and the cold, I had a fantastic ride through central London with barely another vehicle around.

I took a few blurry photos whilst riding along my route to the start line; The Royal Albert Hall, Prince Albert Memorial, The Ritz, and Trafalgar Square – all beautiful in the early morning light.

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The Prince’s Trust: Palace to Palace 2015

tl;dr I want your money

Please sponsor me! https://www.justgiving.com/teamadequate

The insignificant detail bit

It’s the 10th anniversary of Palace to Palace – a fantastic 45 mile cycle ride from Buckingham Palace to Windsor Castle, raising vital funds for The Prince’s Trust.

The Prince’s Trust supports 13 to 30 year-olds who are unemployed and those struggling at school and at risk of exclusion. Many of the young people helped by The Trust are in or leaving care, facing issues such as homelessness or mental health problems, or they have been in trouble with the law.

The Trust’s programmes give vulnerable young people the practical and financial support needed to stabilise
their lives, helping develop self-esteem and skills for work.

Three in four young people supported by The Prince’s Trust move into work, education or training. The Prince of Wales’s charity has helped 750,000 young people since 1976 and supports over 100 more each day.

The route is a mere 45 miles (but to an untrained body it might as well be a lap of the Earth):
palace to palace route

I’ve been doing this ride for a few years now; back in my heyday I was able to do more than adequate by cycling across London in darkness to the the start line for 7am, get to Windsor by 9.30am, turn around and get back to London in time for a pub lunch and a pint in one hand, head flung back in hearty laughter.

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Prince’s Trust Palace to Palace sponsored cycle ride 2012

Prince's Trust

I’m doing the Prince’s Trust Palace to Palace cycle ride on October 14th and would very much appreciate that spare shrapnel from your pocket to help disadvantaged yoofs.

If you don’t sponsor me, I’ll hunt you down. Hunt you down and move your belongings.

Not by much, oh no – just a little. Just enough for you to go all “huh? I though I could reach the light switch from this chair..” and “is the TV facing the windows more than usual?” right up until your head pops.

So for your own physical well being, and the cleanliness of your walls, GIMME ALL YER MONEY!