Day 6 - Lying Gits

Today was a big day covering 93 miles from Dumfries to Kendal. We had a great night last night with our friends in Dumfries, we risked going for a curry not knowing the impact of such a risk when sitting (yes I said sitting) on our saddles for 7 hrs the next day! We would like to thank Phil and Mo for their great hospitality on 2 occasions now, they have really made us feel welcome, feeding us, watering us and even washing our gear...so a huge thanks to you Phil and Mo...very much appreciated! We left Dumfries at 8:40 in the lovely sunshine heading towards Gretna Green, the roads were generally good in terms of the hills but again the tarmac or more to the point, the lack of it on many roads didn't make some of the ride that easy. However, again some good country roads and scenery made our route worthwhile. When we got to Gretna Green we were pulled over by a man called Kenny who was so excited at what we were doing as he had just finished doing the LEJOG last week also for Cancer Research. This was typical Scottish friendliness that we have had all the way through this journey and it was nice in that this friendliness ended our time in Scotland as Gretna was also where we left Scotland for England. We were met by our support Jon, Laura and now Dave at the first and last house of Scotland with ice lattes which on this scorching sunshiny day was very welcome! We took some photos here and continued on into England. One the things we wondered was whether people really did turn from having a Scottish accent on one side of the border and an English one on the other....we tested this using a small pub on the English side of the border and our friend Kenny in Gretna and there is definitely a change depending on which side of the border you are on!! We then rode down some lovely lanes to meet the guys again for lunch in the sun. After lunch we met a huge steep hill straight away that was definitely not welcomed after eating...but spirits were high today and we all cycled well today, Steve's knee has had its issues however it has lasted the day and he has rode very well. Jen's knee problems from yesterday seem to have gone away...all good then. The afternoon cycling was geared towards the famous Shap Hill which we met at the 80 mile stage. This is where we explain the title - everyone tells you how good the weather is going to be, how flat the roads are going to be, how good the tarmac is going to be and gentle the terrain is going be and to be honest they are all "LYING GITS". So just before we met the Shap Hill we met two people in Shap one of whom said the Shap Hill was 5 miles away and incredibly steep and the other said it was just down the road and fairly easy as towed his daughter up the hill. The second was more accurate however there are actually 3 hills to climb but the Shap Hill (although a long and a steady incline) wasn't as hard as some of the other hills, so our fears re this hill were never really met. What was good was the desent, a great fast and winding downhill to enjoy. We got about 5 mins from the campsite and the heavens opened - we got drenched as we had put our rain gear in the van earlier because the weather had been scorching. We put up our tent in the rain, got showered and went to the pub for a few Black Sheep recovery drinks. The one story we have to tell you is Laura getting locked in the back of the van and nobody realising and it was only when Damian went to get something out of the van did he get the surprise to see Laura trying to unsuccessfully pick the lock to get out! It was a 'you had to be there' moment but worth telling to embarrass Laura. Off to Wigan tomorrow...see you then. Stats for the day....covered 93 miles in 6hrs 49mins riding time at an average of 13.4mph. Good to see all the comments please keep them coming! The smiley milers.

The three Muskateers...