Around the World Charity Challenge - A Tour of Yorkshire

To raise money for the Seashell Trust, SolutionsPT has undertaken the 'Around the World' Challenge - to complete 25,000 miles by running, walking and or cycling. To donate please visit our Virgin Giving Page. 

This week, James Lewis, one of our technical support engineers shares his journey of tackling the 273 miles over the Yorkshire based stages of the  2014 Tour de France course: 

"As a part of the SolutionsPT Around the World Challenge I recently spent a weekend cycling the first two stages of next year’s Tour de France doing Le Grand Départ 2014 from Leeds to Harrogate and then from York to Sheffield -  taking the scenic route and using the train stations as my start and finish lines. All of which added up to 273.9 miles. There was quite a lot of climbing and a few high speeds descents. 

Stage 1 - Leeds to Harrogate

I set off from home on my bike at 05:50 on the Saturday and caught the train from Manchester to Leeds. Without a peloton to slipstream and a support team to carry my luggage and food - it was two long days in the saddle. Plus the early start and big mileage meant that going for a run after arriving late in York was not a very appealing prospect so to maintain my unbroken series of running every day I stayed up late on Friday and did a short token run after midnight.

The weather was superb and really made difference to what could have been two very bleak and difficult days, there was little wind and the air temperature was good so wind chill was not a problem, even on the high climbs. 

Even the early Sunday morning run was a pleasure and it was just a shame I didn’t have more time to explore York as I ran from the hostel to York Minster and back before breakfast and setting off on day two. We had a train to catch in Sheffield so only took a short lunch break in Hebdon Bridge before setting off up the longest continuous climb in England and then climbing through the hills of the Woodhead pass twice.  Sheffield is surprisingly compact so it still felt like we were in the middle of nowhere as we closed in on the finish line. 

Stage 2 - York to Sheffield

Panic was beginning to set in a bit as the clock proceeded towards our train’s departure but eventually one of the late climbs finally revealed the lights of the city as darkness was creeping up around us and the descending through the pot holes was becoming dangerous as well as just scary. 

We made it to the train station with twenty minutes to spare relief at no major navigational or mechanical  failures with the bikes but only to find that Northern Rail hadn't been so lucky and our train was cancelled. 

We just about managed to squeeze into the next train and stand all way back the Manchester and the final 6.7 miles cycle home. 


I was glad to have done my two days of Tour de France and now have even further respect for the riders who will do that, at race pace and still have another twenty days to get through".