On Day 8, Paul's struggling with a headwind, and his pride when he comes across a cycling couple...
Tim Moore, the travel writer and distance cyclist says that, "Morning miles come cheap and easy - but God makes you pay for them in the afternoon."
After yesterday’s almost 15mph average speed with a moderate tail wind, today I hit the road at 9:00am into an insistent 5mph head wind.
Montélimar teased me with some fantastic cycleway signs, but delivered only bleak industrial estates and sandy paths that were impossible to ride.
After a few improvised miles of a very busy N7, I bit the bullet and followed the Garmin-suggested river path down the Rhone - following the 'Most Beautiful Couple In The World'. You know the sort - they could make cleaning a toilet look stylish and fashionable. And because they were young and fit, I had to go like a bastard to try and keep them in my sights.
Anyway, after watching them take a wrong turn at a crucial point of no return at one of the many river crossings, I smugly got my head down and started to try and put some miles in the bank for when the sun got really hot.
The trouble with a head wind is that you never get as far as you think you should have - given the time and effort you’ve expended. I’d just worked out that I was well under half of the paltry 66 miles to Nimes, when nature decided to chuck in a few mega climbs for me to contend with. Remember, that’s still with a headwind that had now increased to about 15mph.
At times I was stopping every couple of kilometres to apply arse cream, have a drink, have a pee, rub in some more factor 50 - in fact I was using any excuse I could to slow down the task at hand - so the afternoon just dragged on forever.
When I finally arrived at another Kyriad Hotel in Nimes, I just stuffed the bike in the garage with the hope that I might never see it again.
I still haven’t worked out what tomorrow might bring - but I did my laundry so that’s OK.
I’ll sleep well tonight - and hopefully will dream up a fantastic plan to make my tomorrow a good one.
Another beer, this time next to the Arena of Nîmes.
