Photo 11: Paul cycling along with another rider
Photo 12: First sighting of the Chrome Domes
Photo 13: Chrome Domes on their 3 seater tandem!
Day 2 - Total Miles: 184, Total Ascent; 2880 metres
The second day started much like the first. The alarm went off at 05:30 and we quickly washed, dressed and went for breakfast. The starting line was quite a bit busier at 6:30 this time, with lots more teams trying to get an early start in the knowledge that we had an extra 20 miles to do compared to day one. Dave started us off and as on day one it was pitch black when he left. The darkness made it hard to see the signs and Dave and four other cyclists missed a left turn just before Les Archies. We found Dave quickly and turned him around after he'd done just half a mile down the hill. There was one more rider up ahead who'd also missed the turn so we quicky chased him down as well and pointed him back up the hill.
Marc took over from Dave just as the sun was starting to come up. Paul was next and then it was my turn. There were lots more bikes and vans around as we'd lost a bit of time with the detour and dropped back into the main pack. Parking on the roadside was more difficult with everyone else around, but it did mean there were some other cyclists to slipstream with. I dropped in with two other riders who were doing about 20 mph and the three of us kept rotating and taking turns at the front. I was at the front as we were coming up to the bottom of one of the big hils and was pleased to hear one of the guys behind shout to say he was coming through. We steamed to the top of the hill and he then dropped off for his change. I then carried on with the other cyclist for another couple of miles and it was then my turn to change.
We'd overtaken a lot of riders again by this point and as we chased Dave in the van we finally got our first sight of the Chrome Domes on their three seater bike! If anyone remembers the blog last year the Chrome Domes completed the Challenge on an old butchers bike that weighed an absolute tonne and was complete with baguettes in the front!!. This year they had a three seater bike, had added chopper handlebars to it and were dressed like crusaders. A three seater bike meant that each rider was going to have to ride three quarters of the 500 mile challenge. They said they weren't completely sure if they'd make it as the balance was a real problem so as a backup they had a collapsible shopping bike!!
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