I’m going to attempt to cycle from the source of The River Thames (in The Cotswolds) all the way to where it meets the Sea at Southend in Essex. 330km (205 miles) in total.
This video is part one, part two will be out next week…

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I need to put my new reading glasses. Apparently, I need glasses to now read. I’m getting old, guys, and stay fit, but I can’t turn back time. I also went to the opticians yesterday and picked out these glasses that I now realize make me look like David Caresh. So, uh yeah, I’m just going to roll with it. I paid for them. Now, this guys is my source to see video. I start this adventure on a footpath through a farmer’s field in the middle of nowhere. I’m at a place marked on the map that’s called Temp’s Head. And as you can see from my clever use of Google Maps here, there is absolutely nothing else around except this pub. So guys, I’m just going to quickly say you find me here in the middle of a random field in the middle of Glsters on a warm sunny day. And this is part one of my journey of cycling the source of the temps to its estie at South End or where it comes out at the sea. And I’m walking to where the the temp starts, which is marked by a headstone here in this field. That’s something out of Blair Witch. As I’ve already said, this innocuous gravestone looking memorial marker, headstone, whatever it’s called, located in this field near the village of Kemble in the Cotworlds is the official start of the rivers. This stone was placed here to mark the source of the rivers. That same huge river that flows through central London. Yes, this same pile of stones that wouldn’t look out of place in that Blair Witch movie is apparently where the Tempame’s appears, I presume, out of the ground. I mean, it’s not going to be out of thin air, is it? And it’s also the start of the Tempame’s path. Saucer Sea Trail, 374 km, 232 mi. So, that’s it. I’m going to hit go on my watch. So, as I hit go on my watch and let it get back to the car, please let me explain to you how I hope this adventure will play out. If I put the journey into Google, it gives me a route that’s relatively directish and it’s roughly 236 km or 147 mi. However, this isn’t the route I have planned. The route I’m going to take is a lot further. I’m going to attempt to cycle from here, the source of the rivers in the Cotsworlds, all the way to where it meets the sea at South End in Essex. As you can see on the map, I’m starting near Sirencest, not a million miles from Cheltenham, and it feels like a really long way from the east coast on the east side of Essex. This may be the furthest distance I’ve ever cycled IRL. And I outlined the word maybe as there’s a long way to go in this video. That was a lot further than I thought. I just had to I just had to sprint it. It’s literally just a few stones. Yeah. In the floor. Oh, that’s it. Right. I need to get the bike out. Will you? Yeah. I filled your water up. Oh, well done. I outlined this challenge in my 2025 New Year’s resolution video as one I’ve always wanted to do and I came up with it as an idea for three reasons. Okay, good. Number one, it sounded really cool in my head. Cycling the length of the river sounds cool. I might take this off. I’m actually sweating. Number two, I’m not the most accomplished road cyclist. My fitness is good, but I’ve been known to have a pension for falling off the bike in previous cycling videos, as I only started cycling last year. This is down to my newbie bike handling abilities. I know cycling a long way over different terrain will be a real baptism of fire. Basically, if I’m not accomplished now, I’m hoping I’ll be better once I hopefully hopefully complete this challenge. So, I’ve got a very, very, very basic bike computer from Kuzo, I think is how you say it. I don’t have a bike computer. I use navigation on my watch. So, I’m just going to use it on this. And then three, and probably the biggest reason, I want to see if I can actually cycle this far. I’ve done it on Zift. I’ve actually cycled a lot further on Zift in one go. So, I want to see if I can cover 300 plus kilometers IRL. Right. See you in a few hours. Yeah. Have fun. Don’t fall off. Try not to. You good? Yeah. All right. Love you. Love you. Oh my goodness. Now Tracy is my onewoman camera person and support crew. And I have to reach Trace in our hotel before dark cuz I forgot to pack cycling lights. A school boy error I know and one I now need to race against if I don’t want to take my life into my own hands or have my comment section filled with people lambasting me. So as I just go up this small hill. So the river tempames footpath to the river tempames is literally just over there as I get up the hill. So at the moment I’m just cycling on these country back roads and uh the main problem I’ve got with the temps at the source is the only way to stay near it and I say I mean stay near it. It’s literally just in the field here but at the at the moment it’s not a river. At the moment, it’s a spring I assume underground and go into a a trick or a stream, a babbling brook, and then a river. The river that we know. Now, I will say 300 plus km. That number is a lot further than a direct 236 km route Google gave me, but that’s because I’m not cycling as the crowly. Finally, by the time I finished faffing with the bike, not including the run to and from the headstone, it was 10 11 in the morning, significantly later than when I wanted to start off. And I eventually set off racing the sunset, which was at about 9:00 that evening. And I really, really needed to pull my socks up. I’ve gone the wrong way. I should have gone right back there. As you can tell, I’m not very used to cycling IRL. I’m not used to cycling out on the roads in general, let alone following a sat. Okay. Right. We’re back on track, guys. We’re back on track. Just a 250 m detour. Nothing to write home about. I mentioned earlier that I’m not cycling via this direct route that Google Maps gave me. You have to remember that the river temps does not go in a straight line. If you’re from the UK and you’ve seen the show EastEnders or the credits, then you will know that old Father Temps really likes to meander its way through London. And this long stretch from here in the Cotsworlds is no different. We’re heading down these tiny village roads through I want to say Glousty. I’m not sure if we’ve left it if I’m honest. We’re heading towards Oxford. So, let me do a bit of a sit rep while I’ve got some quiet roads here. I’m cycling from the source of the temps to the sea. I’ve already said that in the intro. I’m doing it across three days. Reason for that, there’s a few reasons. Firstly, it’s a bloody long way. It’s very technical as well, so I’m okay as long as I’m on these country roads. I’m going to be cycling through central London obviously cuz I’m following the temps and I’m not a I’m not the most proficient IRL cyclist. Instead of doing it in one big goal, I’m going to do it across three days. for today. And there’s also another reason I’m doing it across three days cuz I got to go to work. Now, running our own business makes it significantly harder to just take time off to fit in challenges like this. It’s probably the same for anyone trying to make ends meet and support a family. However, I do this as and when I can. I try and squeeze it in, especially as a self-funded YouTuber. This is probably a good time to say, please meeting Tracy just outside Oxford which is about halfway and I’m going to be covering I think it’s 165 km which will be the furthest I’ve ever cycled. I think the furthest I’ve ever cycled is what is it? 88 km. How far is London to Brighton? That’s the furthest I’ve ever cycled from London to Brighton. So, I’m also doing it across three days because I’m going to work tomorrow night after a whole day cycling and then Wednesday night. So, so tomorrow the plan is leave Henley cuz I’m obviously already on the 10s. The hotel we’ve got is right on the temps. I searched for it yesterday and found this. Uh, it’s actually a Weather Spoons hotel. I didn’t know Weather Spoons did hotels. Nothing but the best hotel for Tracy. I spared no expense. It means I can wake up tomorrow morning, get the bike out of the room, and then I get to leave and be on the temps with immediate effect. So, it means that I haven’t got to have Tracy pick me up. So, that’s the plan. And tomorrow, Henley to Woolage Ferry. That’s the plan. Get across the river if I can. If not, Tracy’s going to meet me at Woolage and then we’re going to go to work. The other thing is I also have the Insta 360 camera that I’m trying for the first time. So, not only am I using a new navigation satnav, I’m also trying out an Insta 360 camera, which I have been told, I’ve been reliably informed by a lot of people that they’re really, really good cameras. This is me just testing 360 and they’re great for events like this. I’m still using my old reliable because it connects it connects to this. It means you just don’t get constant wind blast hopefully. Anyway, fingers crossed I say that. So, that’s the plan. And then Wednesday, Tracy’s I’m going to go home after work Tuesday night. And then Wednesday, she’s going to drop me back at the Woodage Ferry and I’m going to cycle to South End from there. So each day has slightly less distance, but it feels it feels like a good plan. It’s more of an adventure than it is an endurance event. I’m restricted significantly more than if I was walking or running. However, I did try really hard to stay on the temps and I wanted to stay on the temp’s path specifically as much as I could. I am well off course. I haven’t got lost. I need to stop somewhere that’s not on a bend. So, I need to go right up there. I’ve gone the wrong way. But I can see I’m not a million miles away. Unfortunately, this is going to be a bit of a theme in this adventure. I could edit these mistakes out, but in reality, I’m not used to cycling, let alone cycling whilst following two satnav. So, if I follow this right, this will get me back onto the route this road. I’ve gone the wrong way. I might have a snack. I’ve also got it on my Garmin watch. Both devices are faultless and both scream at me when I miss my turning. I just choose to ignore them whilst looking at the scenery and daydreaming or talking to camera. There are just too many distractions on this ride for me to pay attention to a satnav constantly. Okay, we’re back on track on a gravel path. Wa tire went. Having these tight times, gals, adds even more jeopardy to the challenge. And on top of that, I also have to catch the Woolage Ferry tomorrow, day two, to get collected by my onewoman support crew and driven to work while I’ll have a shower and pretend I’m doing stuff until about 10:00 p.m. that evening. This is a proper dirt track. Tracy will then drop me back off in East London the next day so I can finish my journey to Southen and that will be day three. This is the plan in a nutshell, guys. And this is why this video is only part one cuz there’s a lot going on. Where does it say go? Uh, it says go straight. [Music] I will say this is exactly what I was hoping for. Paths and trails like this before I get into London. The 10 starts a long way from London. When you think of the river temps, you think of London. Hi. Uh yeah. Here we go. Is that the temps? I know there are points on here that I’ve marked that mark where I actually crossed the temps. That might have been the temps we crossed there. So, it’s now turned into a tiny stream. Forecast for nice weather today. There’s a bit of rain tomorrow, guys. Bit of rain tomorrow. Not sure about that. Not sure how I feel about that. I have bought a waterproof. Also, also, let me put this on 360. I’m going to stand up for this. I hope you like my new t-shirt. This is my King of the Mountain Tour to France polka dot t-shirt. It’s completely inappropriate for cycling because it’s just a cotton t-shirt. There’s no sweat wicking ability whatsoever. It put a smile on my face. I then reached Cricade in Wiltshire, which is exactly 16 km into the ride. But we’ve just gone over the tempames and it’s just to my left and it is literally a small babbling brook and we’re going over it again. It crossed the river temps but not where I thought. What I’m actually pointing to is another random river. I had crossed the temps about 500 m previously and I did register it. However, because it was a small stream, I just assumed it couldn’t be the temps. I was still picturing the raging torrent that goes through central London. Even though I was still close to its source, I didn’t reconcile that. I didn’t reconcile the size of the river in my head as the same river that spawned the metropolis London. This is a major dual carriageway here. I’m not sure how this how does this get me across. Bit of a steep hill. Okay, I’m not turning around that corner. There’s absolutely no way I was going to attempt going around a 100. Was it 90? 90° turn. No way. Jose insert clip of me attempting to turn a 90° turn. So, as I cross over the airfield, this marks 25k into today’s ride. I’ve got 140k left. So far so good. I mean, I’m 25k in. Of course, it’s so far so good. 25k. I’ve also cracked open the wine gums to celebrate. I should concentrate. I feel I may have cracked the wine gums open a bit early, but they were tempting. All I kept thinking about 25k done, guys. The RAF Air Force Base at Fairford now marked 25K into the ride. In my head, I had a romanticized vision of Cyclon picturesque riverside trails. Instead, I was bombing it along really busy main roads with the river now streaking its way through the countryside, almost completely invisible to me, just off to my right hand side. and spoilers. This would become the theme for the rest of day one. With the fun fun gravel paths or quiet country single lane tracks of the Cotsworlds now behind me, the hustle and bustle of road cycling was about to start. Sit rep. I found a cycle path. I found Be careful what you wish for. As you can see, have I got the camera on? No, I’ll put the camera on. Look, it’s not very well ridden. This is slip central. It’s covered in moss. Annoyingly, I was cycling along this a- road, not realizing this cycle path was here. And this is the end of the route. Oh man, I’m not sure how long that path was, but it was literally there the whole time. And I could have been on it. We’ve reached the village of Lechlade. Very, very quaint village. Very pretty. 35k almost exactly. I now knew I had a long slog from here and my 84 km halfway meeting point with Tracy with all of the A- roads or very busy country roads that link the very pretty villages that I still had to ride through. Now, I will say this road that I’m on, I just had a bit of a battle with another cycle. He didn’t have he didn’t know he’s in a battle. I just took it upon myself to try and keep up with him. So, he absolutely blasted past me. He zoomed past me. I gave him a little hello and he didn’t answer. Don’t know if he didn’t hear me or just miserable git probably. And took it upon myself to then try and keep up with him. And I think he was a bit surprised when he turned around and I’m still there about 2k up the road like a silent assassin on his wheel. And then he uh then did another little sprint, mini sprint. It was like a little zift battle. But these roads, they’re just um like perfect cycling roads. I mean, they’re really I don’t understand how roads like this, which obviously don’t have a lot of traffic. I mean, that’s probably the answer. I was about to say, I don’t understand how they’re completely smooth and pothole-free, yet the main roads that I’ve just been on were just riddled with potholes. And, you know, it’s a good road because there was about four or five cyclists on it. One of which I was in a battle with. I think he won. I didn’t overtake him. Didn’t have the ball to overtake him. I got within I got within a you know a few bike limps and then and then wimped out. But he knew at the end when he looked round otherwise why did he do the sprint? It was fun fun and games. It breaks up a long ride but now I’m back on an a road avoiding the potholes. Right. Okay. I’m just coming into Clanfield and we’re at exactly 43k. I’m about halfway to meeting Tracy. Sun’s come out now and it’s turning into a lovely day. Lovely day. Okay, you probably can’t hear me. That was the temps. Just crossed the temps. Okay, I went the wrong way. I don’t know where it wants me to go. I’m just going to stop here a sec and work it out. I really can’t afford to be making these small errors in navigation. If I miss a turn in when running and don’t realize I only have to backtrack a few meters, which is annoying, but not the end of the world. By the time I’ve realized I’ve missed a turning on a bike and I found somewhere safe to turn around, I’m a few hundred meters up the road. Doing this several times on a long ride can add quite a few kilometers to the route. This is where I really start to show my cycling inexperience cuz there isn’t anywhere to turn, but it’s telling me to turn and I’m not sure whether it thinks one of these. Yeah, it wants me to go back up there. Time for a wine gum. or four. This is where it wants me to go. Apparently, this is a bridal path. Oh, this is fun. Um, yeah, I’m not sure if this is a good idea. And then, in my infinite wisdom, I thought that this shortcut here on the map was a good idea. This is adventurous. I’m not sure. I’m not sure how long this lasts for. Okay, I’m regretting this. This isn’t a gravel trail. This is I don’t know what I’ve done, guys. I’ve made a mistake. This is going on for a lot longer. I tell you what I am going to do, though. While I’m stopped, I’m going to have a wild wee. I hope you like my my t-shirt, guys. It made me smile when I put it on this morning. And I’ve been addicted to the tour to France to the point where it’s inspired me to want to get out and cycle. So that can’t be a bad thing, can it? What a mistake of a maker. I can’t even walk cuz I’m in cleats. Thank god I’m on a gravel bike. I may I may vibrate my hips from my legs and all of the nuts and bolts off this bike and my camera connection points might be frazzled by the time we uh get to the end. Nearly nearly came off then. However, me being me, I decided to power through which I now know in hindsight was a huge mistake. Mainly due to the time it took me. The reason why I came down here is because it follows the root of the temps. This keeps me on the temps on the straight and narrow. If I stayed on the A- road, I wouldn’t really be on the temps. Oh my god. Forget about losing significant time here on this long wash off-road section. If I did get to the end without a puncher or even with my bike still intact, then it would be a miracle. I got to stop. This is hurting. If I get away with it without a punch, that would be a miracle. I think a mountain bike would struggle here. I mean, would it would a mountain bike? Probably not. Okay, guys. I am off the farmer’s field. Thank God. I mean, I’m still on the farmer’s field. I’m just off the actual field. This is a actual track. My gravel bike can cope. I can cope. And I think we got away with that. Trying to stick as close to the temps as I can physically get a bike without breaking laws or trespassing. I’ve managed to achieve that so far. Okay. Right. I need to concentrate. And also, my camera’s just falling constantly now because I’ve shaken it to within an inch of its life. Right. I’m moaning. Let’s keep going. Come on. Okay. We’re at 65K. We’ve just gone through Appleton. What’s the sit rep, Ryan? Sit rep. I have finished all my wine gums which were supposed to last me the entire day. I still have just under 100k left to go. Oxford isn’t a million miles away. It’s not far. So, the next stop is meeting Tracy, which I think is roughly around the 84 85k mark. I got to be honest with you, was the best decision I made to organize to meet her for a little lunch. Super talk super dark. Super tip dark. Look. Do you see the chairs are just up there? Yeah. I need to go and get the tea things. I left them in the car. Tracy just popped back to the car to get some water. She’s fallen over and hurt her knee. Yeah. So, I’m at the halfway point anyway. We’re going to have a cup of coffee just to reset and then do it all again. What I thought was a really quiet footpath. There’s also a large group of scouts. Yeah. Show the camera your knee. How did you do that? So, I came in here carrying all of this and there was a lady running coming towards me. So, I went to hold the gate open for her. So, as I’ve gone to step so she could get past me, I didn’t realize there was a step there and my foot’s just gone under and my knees hit the floor. So, I got I got first a gear in the car. Are you going to clean it and put plasters on it? Yeah. Now, I will say as we sat here on the banks of the river temps, chatting, drinking fresh coffee, eating pasta, and enjoying each other’s company, I could have stayed here all day with Tracy. You see all the little fishes? I wasn’t tired. I felt really good. And it was this vibe, as my kids say, that I was looking for when I thought up this adventure. Cheers, Tracy. Cheers. I also felt really bad for Tracy slipping over. Anyway, stop waffling. 84 84k. 84k to go. Thanks for stopping with me halfway and making me lunch. Well, made me fall over and falling over. Be careful. She was there for me and she’s always there for my nonsense videos and challenges. I hate the idea that she’s hurt herself helping me, but we had a look at her leg off camera as she had to remove her skinny fit jeans in the car. And thankfully the grays on her knee wasn’t as bad as the blood on her jeans or the how it looked. But she was more annoyed that she had ruined her trousers and fell over with an audience of scouts watching. I mean it could have been a lot worse. We could have inspected it with an audience of scouts watching but we choose not to. We’re staying in a very nice Weather Spoons hotel. Nothing but the best for you Tracy. Weather Spoons dinner. Y we finished up and I set back off with one target in mind. Reach Henley before nightfall. Otherwise, I’d have to stop and get Tracy to collect me, which I didn’t want to do. However, I also didn’t want to cycle on these roads in the pitch dark. Okay, guys. Guys, I’ve just entered Oxford. Just saw the sign. I’m on the A40. I think I’ve had to uh dismount just to go over this canal. Just want to show you. Look, I think it’s the Oxford Union Canal, is it called? My route took me down a drop which took me down to the canal and then along the canal and then up here and then up these steps here. I decided not to do it. I went a I went the long way around to get to here cuz I didn’t want to carry the bike down steps. So my route planning does have some flaws in it. Overall 99.9% of it perfect. Rest of it not so much. When planning this on kimoot.com I found it really easy to do. However, because I had chosen to plan this route manually instead of accepting one of its suggested routes, mainly because Kimoot suggested routes took the most direct A to B cycling route possible away from the river temps. Doing this meant that occasionally I came across sections that were best way I can describe them unrealistic for cycling. Okay, I’ve just had to turn around because it the satnav has taken me I think out onto a dual carriageway and I can’t go out on a dual carriageway but I saw there was a foot path back here like this small section just outside of Oxford. I also need a wild wei. Okay, wild we accomplished. I’m just going to make my way down here. I use Kimoot the website. Let me get my foot in. I use Kimoot the website to plan the route for this. But some of the points I’ve dropped are slightly off the road like this one. So this is my fault. I don’t think this is commute taking me the wrong way. The only advantage about being in Oxford is Oxford is renowned as being the city that’s built. Oh, bloody cleat. Oxford is the city that’s known to love cyclists apparently. Spoke too soon, guys. Spoke too soon. I’m now going down some gnarly back trails. No, it’s okay. It’s okay. Take it back. It’s okay. We’re okay, guys. We’re okay. Chill out, Ryan. Chill out. Ah, this is why this is where Kimoot comes in into its own. So, even though as the crow flies, the sensible solution probably would have been go straight through Oxford. Well, the sensible solution would have been go straight from the source to sell the sensible solution would have been just don’t do this. That would have been the sensible solution. I’ve got to film it. We’re on the temps. Finally hit the temps. And then at 88k, I finally and for the first time since starting this challenge at the source, I got to cycle along the river in its full glory. And the best part, it was now a proper river, not just a pile of stones, a babbling brook, or a small stream. I was now on a picturesque, enjoyable cycle path that I had been praying for since starting this adventure. However, this feeling of giddy enjoyment didn’t last long until my next big error in judgment. I’m supposed to be on that side, I think. According to my satnav, Kimoot forced me to cross the river and I missed the crossing point. Mainly because I was too busy enjoying the riverside picturesque cycle path and touristing to pay attention to the two satnavs that were now absolutely screaming at me. I think I’m supposed to be over here and crossing this bridge. I’m not sure. I’m not sure, guys. So, I had to cross the river on this foot bridge over a or make the choice to double back. This doesn’t look right. I am well off course. Annoyingly, there was a perfectly good footpath I could have stayed on, but according to Kimoot, this tiny section here was not suitable for cyclists, even though I saw loads of other commuters using it on bikes. Pay attention, Ryan. Pay attention. The footpath looked very appealing to remain on, but I’ve there’s a reason I’ve chosen this. I like to think there’s a reason. I’m justifying going through some random housing estate instead of staying on the temp’s path. But have I gone the wrong way? I chose to follow my rules and leave the temps and stick to my pre-planned route, which again the wrong way became another poor decision. Again, I’m getting tired, guys. Getting tired. I’m making silly mistakes. No wonder I couldn’t find it. It’s invisible. Tiny footpath in between two houses. On hindsight, and hindsight’s a wonderful thing, I should have ignored Kimoot and remained on the riverside path. Everyone else I passed did exactly that. and getting lost on this completely unnecessary detour added about 30 minutes to my journey. And now I really started to worry that I wouldn’t make it to Tracy or our hotel in Henley before dark. Okay guys, I’m back on the temp’s path after all of that kufflele. There must have been some random bylaw where that small 500 m section you’re not allowed to cycle on. Everyone does. I’ve just seen seven people come past me go straight on. I just added probably 2 km onto what was already a really long journey. That is a cool boat. It looked like a submarine. I’m still processing it. I added like 2k of nonsense. But it wasn’t just 2k of cycling. I wouldn’t mind that. That’s bad enough. But it was 2k of stopping, checking the map, going the wrong way, turning around, going back. It wasted so much time. So this is now the furthest I’ve ever cycled IRL. I had actually already cycled my furthest distance when I hit the temp’s path at Oxford. I just didn’t register it. I was too busy enjoying the scenery and then getting lost on a random unnecessary detour. I had already ridden further than my previous best distance of 88k, which was last year and this year’s London to Brighton bike ride. Both of those videos are already on my channel. I’m back on the A-Rods, guys. Back on the busy A-Rods. Absolutely trying to beast it to get some take advantage at the very least while I can get some decent speed up. I’m at 125k. I felt really good at this point. I have no idea where I am. I’ve got just over 40k left to go. I was also very aware that I still had a long way to go and I was now staring down the barrel of cycling in the dark which was starting to concern me. Sit rep update guys. Sitrep update. I still feel okay. Okay. My bum’s a bit sore but occasionally I get out the saddle and give it a break. I’m starting to get a bit achy in the old shoulders. Nothing major. I have done 127k on the nose. 127k in one day with one break for about 30 minutes to eat some pasta with Tracy and drink some coffee which was by far the highlight of my day. Hello guys, I’m getting tired. Right, distance remaining. 41k. There we go. That’s fun. And I’ve got an ETA of 920. So, I need to really stop stopping now cuz it’s going to get dark and I’ve got no lights. I was a school boy era guy. School boy error. Now, this became a real battle against the clock because of my ability not to follow satnavs. I do it in the car as well. I shouldn’t just blame cycling for this. I don’t follow satnavs in the car very well. If I’m honest, I keep making so many silly mistakes. As I reach reading, I was now only 20k from the hotel and the finish line for day one. However, however, broken. I’m mentally gone. I’m so demotivated. There’s also a raging storm blowing outside. I don’t know what’s going on. It’s supposed to be summer and it’s like 90 mph winds outside. I had somehow managed to cross the temps some way back and I didn’t need to do that. And the temp’s path I was now on had become a foot path that I couldn’t cycle on anymore. And instead of tracking back, something I hate doing and I should have, I attempted to find an alternative route that got me back on track. But all I ended up doing was cycling further away from Henley. Okay, this doesn’t look ominous, does it? But I was doing that thing where I was so invested that I was committed to finding that route back onto the track. However, I eventually conceded defeat, rode back to Reading Town Center, and called Tracy in a frustrated panic, annoyed at my own inability to follow simple directions. I’ve crossed the temp twice when I didn’t pass over. I knew that if I gave up and got Tracy to come and collect me in the car, I’d be really, really disappointed in myself. Would this phone call be the end of this challenge for me? Does Tracy end up collecting me like a lost toddler scared of the dark? And do I eventually reach the temp’s eststerie and the sea at Southoun in Essex? You’re going to have to find out in part two next week, mainly because this video is a hell of a lot longer than I planned it to be. Thank you very much for watching and see you in next week’s video. You’re not going to want to miss it. Also, also please don’t forget to press like and subscribe on this video. I appreciate your support. Did you see those buttons light up? [Music]

23 Comments

  1. I’ve ridden many sportives in parts of the country I’ve never visited before. I miss a turning at least once every time. The sportive I got most lost on was in my own county. Added 5 miles to the 100 mile route and reached the finish line from totally the opposite direction than everyone else.

  2. Good job on getting beyond your longest ride outside ever on day one. Nothing like chasing someone down, who has no idea why…lol

  3. You should bike in the Netherlands … You will love all cycle paths we have. You can cross the country north to south or east to west and never be on a non dedicated cycle path

  4. Solid effort Ryan! I’m sure you rode the rest of it. I totally get the satnav issues lol. However they can make the journey feel more satisfying when your done
    I like these videos that feel like a bit of an adventure as I would like to do something like this at some point.

  5. Superb effort! Looking forward to Pt.2!
    2 comments…
    1. Komoot is unfortunately not great (in my experience), it seems to think routes exist that no other mapping software does. It is the most well known software because they push it so hard through sponsored content, not quality.
    2. Does Ryan know what 'as the crow flies' means? LOL!

  6. Ryan – have you considered doing the Chase The Sun event? 330kms sunrise to sunset on the longest day? Kent coast to Somerset coast. Can imagine something like that would be right up your street!

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