Dan and Andrea's Charity Cycle

The podium finish

2008-05-07T14:45:00.000-07:00

Man just hear that crowd go!

Oh Vienna!

2008-05-06T11:24:00.000-07:00

we are now sitting in a bar in Vienna drinking Erdinger beer and relaxing after a sprint finish yesterday. Man what a trip. The final count was 917 miles, 4 punctures, and 15 three course breakfasts (we took breakfasts very seriously). Thanks to all that have supported us and sponsored us! We'll be in touch...

Crossing the Schmugglerweg

2008-05-03T12:01:00.000-07:00

Day 12 Obernzell to Linz

That's the sign that greeted us on the German / Austrian border that we crossed today. Of course, we didn't smuggle anything - that would be illegal.

2 Day to go and we're feeling it! Low on Muscle energy but high in spirits - this riding down the Danube malarkey provides an awesome aesthetic boost for the ride...

Just to say...

2008-04-30T23:15:00.000-07:00

Thanks so much for all your encouragement and the comments youäve been leaving for us here. Also, thanks for all the donations so far.

All we have to say is, keep 'em coming and if you know anyone you think might be interested, pass on the link to this blog.

love andrea and dan

Over hill and soggy dale

2008-04-30T22:44:00.000-07:00

Day 10 - Neustadt to Velberg

We had all that a bad biking trip could throw at us yesterday. Wind - in the wrong direction, big hills, ambiguous signage, and loads of all of it - we had over 80 miles on the clock after 13 hours of cycling last night. Thankfully, the hotel was full of stuffed animals and amongst the dead was a live, whistling parrot!

The highlight of the day was a stop for lunch of chips with paprika on them! recommended culinary tweak there.

We had another navigation disaster. At one point we crossed the same junction 4 times including through a soggy field, before eventually finding the right route. Suffice to say, the signage here isn't great. It´s all character building stuff.

By the way, we passed this sign which let us know that we were 840km from london, and 630km to Vienna. Nice.

Now break!

2008-04-27T11:36:00.002-07:00

Day 7 - Frankfurt

We've schlepped around, enjoying our day off drinking Apfelwein and reading a rather cotly Guardian newspaper. Briefly made it into the Deutches Arkitektur Museum, but otherwise nothing but eating and a rubbish curry at that.

We're having trouble uploading any pictures in the internet cafes so Dan says if anyone's got an installation diskette for Windows 95 with camera drivers that you can send us, let us know!

Off to do more sleeping and eating.

Champagne and Impressionist Women.

2008-04-27T11:36:00.001-07:00

Day 6 - Kamp Bornhofen to Frankfurt

The last day before our break in Frankfurt started with the sun in the sky and, unfortunately, the wind in our faces. The stress and strain was aleviated by the glass of red Assmanhausen champagne in a rather fancy, riverside joint for lunch.

The rest of the journey passed without merit and we soon found ourselves weaving in and out of Frankfurt tourist-traffic on the bank of the river. We quickly settled and found we'd arrived just in time for a one-night only opportunity to see all of Frankfurt's museums. Guess how many Dan wanted to visit! Suffice to say we made 5 and made it home by midnight.

A taste of Rhine.

2008-04-27T11:36:00.000-07:00

Day 5 - Bonn to Kamp Bornhofen

Leaving behind us the unremarkable city of Bonn, we started our journey down the Rhine, stopping only to stuff our faces with an ice-cream sundae in a random town we can't remember.

Another map disaster ensued as we lost our way in Koblenz and nearly ended up cycling back into Holland. The route got more interesting as we passed alongside the many vineyards on the banks of the river. Kamp Bornhofen gave us a our first taste of sweet, German vino.

Day 4 - checking every turn

2008-04-24T11:41:00.002-07:00

Aachen to Bonn

Suprisingly quick ride despite the navigation disaster that almost defined today. Between the pre-war map, GPS with no data, rubbish German signage and a compass that needs 10 mins for calibration, we had to stop at every junction and guess at the right turn.

Tomorrow´s ride follows a river the whole way - navigation bliss.

Day 3 - 3 countries in one day

2008-04-24T11:41:00.001-07:00

We managed to leave the asparagus obsessed (enough to host an asparagus festival !?!) Diest (Belgium) and cycle straight through the entire country of Holland (check the map, haters) to get to Aachen in Germany today.

We passed through Maastricht quickly because we couldn´t remember what that treaty was all about. A nice mix of canal paths and Devonesque Holland countryside which took our minds off our numb bums.

Day 1 - Woe the wind

2008-04-24T11:41:00.000-07:00

Dunkerque to Gent

Apparently it takes four times as much effort to cycle when you´ve got a headwind. Man, we felt that fact in our faces today. We were only doing 12 mph and it felt like 100! It wasn´t.

It was slow going, but we made it to Gent and the wondeful Myriam Dolders b&b (who donated some of the fee to Unicef). Pretty city, nice frites.

Ready to go...

2008-04-19T04:46:00.000-07:00

We're packing bags, pumping tyres, tightening brakes, and of course, consuming carbs. Our trip starts tomorrow - and we're fit, confident, excited...but a little nervous at he same time...

So we'd like to say thanks to everyone for their support! We'll see you on the other side

keep checking here, because we'll be posting up photos and bits throughout the journey

We wish we could take the cats

2008-04-16T03:23:00.000-07:00

But unfortunately, we can't. But Ronnie has come to the rescue once again! She's looking after them while we're away. Thanks Ronnie!

She's been having trouble donating online - have you?

2008-04-12T05:06:00.000-07:00

It seems that some of you have been struggling to donate on the JustGiving website. We're not sure why their site's not working properly, but we think it might have something to do with heavy traffic on their site for the London Marathon.

Our advice:
- try to donate from a different computer
- wait until Monday 14th
- if none of the above works, send us a cheque to 39 Jebb Avenue, SW2 5XQ and we'll big you up here.

Could someone you know put us up for the night?

2008-04-12T04:50:00.000-07:00

The cost of doing the trip is having a big impact on our bank balances so saving some money on accommodation would be a real boon! These guys have already offered to put dan up ;-) It would be great to stay with someone less scary though.

If you know anyone who lives in the following places we'd love to stay with them:
Dunkerque, Gent or Diest in Belgium
Aachen, Bonn, Kamp-Bomhofen, Frankfurt, Werthiem, Neustadt an der aisch, Velburg, Bogen or Obernzell in Germany
Linz, Willendorf or Vienna in Austria

Stuffing our faces

2008-04-08T14:56:00.000-07:00

I'm not sure we're gonna come back as lean as we think. We'll have to be putting 3500 calories down our throats a day - to keep up with our hungry legs. & We're on a diet of carbs the week before we leave. Hopefully my bike won't cave under the weight

Clockin up the training miles

2008-04-08T14:38:00.000-07:00

We clocked up 220 miles last week - all part of our strict training regime. We did a 60 mile ride to maidenhead (facinating trip along the A4 - you wouldn't believe the scenery), plus Andrea did an extra long 30 mile trip to work one morning. And I did my regular 12 miles to work and back, the only difference being that I was fully lycra-ed - a bit like this fine chap.

Navigating our route

2008-03-31T02:13:00.000-07:00

This guy was also worried about getting lost in the wilds of South Germany. Fortunately, he was able to rig up a small GPS system to his bike in order to rid himself of the hassle of paper maps.

Seriously, does anyone have a GPS system they'd like to lend to us as a donation?

How to sponsor us

2008-03-26T14:28:00.000-07:00

We have chosen to raise money for two charities: UNICEF and The Diving Diseases Research Centre (DDRC) in Plymouth. You can decide which charity you'd like to support.

Scroll down to click on the JustGiving button for either UNICEF or DDRC (on the right of the page). You'll be able to donate right away.

We are coving the costs of the trip - hostels, flights etc, so any donations will go straight to the charities.

If you'd like to make a corporate donation, email danandandreascharitycycle@googlemail.com

Training trip across Dartmoor

2008-03-26T13:58:00.001-07:00

We conquered Dartmoor this Easter. We made it on the second attempt - the first ended in a return to base after our fingers and toes got too cold in the rain. We Stopped at Princetown for food, but got too cold! Lessons learnt. So the next day, we tried again - this time it was dry, but still cold on the exposed parts of the moor. We made it to Exeter after leaving Plymouth 43 miles away. It was a hard ride - some tough hills - so good for the thighs, but hopefully harder than what we're going to experience in Belgium and Germany on the trip.

Dan's got a new bike too

2008-03-26T13:55:00.000-07:00

A Trek 1200. It's really light, really fast, and I'm worried about how hard the saddle is! May have to get one of those gel saddle covers

Andrea's New Bike

2008-03-22T09:24:00.000-07:00

Andrea finally let the moths out of her purse and bought a new bike to help make the trip a touch less painful. Isn't it beautiful...

Under the sea?

2008-01-20T13:47:00.000-08:00

No, we're not cycling along the ocean floor - once we get to Dover we're getting the ferry to Dunquerke. We booked the ferry tickets and the flights last week so it's all starting to seem more real. It's all about hours in the saddle,so we're using our commute to work to start our training. Think of us on these cold, winter mornings, arriving at the office in lycra shorts with the padded bum and faces like beetroots - well, Andrea's is anyway.

We're loving maps

2008-01-20T13:35:00.000-08:00

We've got loads of maps for the trip. There are 5 for Germany alone! We're planning each leg of the route for each day so that we cycle around 60 miles per day and can arrive at a B&B at the end of it. But google maps have made it easier - allowing us to check distance and locate B&Bs in one foul swooooop