Day 3: Nyeri to Nyahururu - 98 km

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Our first day cycling!!!! It was a REALLY tough one: beautiful, hard, never ending hills and a true challenge. I think I assumed (incorrectly) that our third day of cycling (Day 5) would be the toughest. But if this was anything to go by Day 5 is going to be a killer. 

Kicking off with an early start at 5.30am we were ready to start at 7.00 am. I am really rubbish in the mornings - not someone you want to speak to, let alone exercise with!  As we went down for breakfast up you could cut the atmosphere with a knife - I was running on pure anticipation. The fear and excitement of the unknown...  

Group 2 Cycle Kenya - just before we started our cycle challenge

Saddled up and ready to start the day we had to do a warm up. Always slightly awkward (I personally never stretch before cycling) but it was a pretty funny sight: more than 70 lycra clad women! Warmed and ready to go it was my responsibility to carry the pink horn – our version of the Tour De France’s yellow leaders t-shirt. As the first to be honoured with the horn I had to lead the group out of the hotel and we set off on our first 20 km. I LOVED the first 20km – some big hills to contend with but we set our own pace. I rode with Rachel and the other Claire. The time sped by and when we reached the checkpoint I felt as though I didn’t need the break! Little was I to know what was to come…more hills far too many to count. 

By lunch a mere 66km completed I felt wrecked. It was a really difficult ascent – not impossible but tough. I think this was made harder by the heat and altitude. While we’re not likely to suffer altitude sickness – it’s not high enough but usually you would need a few days to acclimatise before exercising. Going up the hills was definitely harder. I now have lovely paw marked hands because I forgot sun screen on the backs of my hand! Suffered from a bad headache but was able to use my huge drug supply to get myself back in gear! Also employed my old field excavation technique of dousing my head with water – no sea to dip my head in – but we have water canisters for just such a purpose. The scenery has been absolutely gorgeous! As we cycled we caught a glimpse of Mount Kenya – heavily obscured by cloud but it was peaking through (as we were told by the Minister for Tourism in the region it must have been shy with so many good looking women – he clearly appreciated lycra!).

I find it hard to describe the scenery because the vista was so beautiful, fields of fruit, vegetables, and sugar cane. Lots of kids lined the route to cheer us on and they like to shout: 'how are you' very loudly. At first this was fun but after a whole day of 'how are you' it got a bit annoying!

It was a really tough day and the last 20 km was a strain - mainly because I was so knackered. BUT we all made it. A truly extreme day, with far too many long hills for my liking. As I arrived at our hotel, Thomson's Falls Hotel, Nyahururu I felt tired but relieved great start to the Women V Cancer Cycle Kenya Challenge.