Day two was the longest and toughest day of the ride covering 80 miles from Calais to Arras. We had another early start with 6.30am breakfast and an 8am start. The morning was one of the toughest sessions of cycling I think I have ever had. Our ride manager Brian described today's route as undulating which has to go down as one of the great euphemisms of all time. It was rather like when your dentist tells you that you will just feel a little scratch and then pushes a huge needle into your gum. After a fairly gentle roll out from Calais the hills started coming thick and fast. The hills were not particularly steep but some of them seemed to go on forever. We had every type of road surface going as well. We thought we were on the Paris Roubaix race when we went over a cobbled section coming through one of the villages. Some of the roads were very hard to ride on, the worst was an uphill section of about 5 miles on loose chippings. For some reason the worst road surfaces in France usually seem to be on hills making them doubly difficulty to climb. The countryside was very open this morning so you could see the full glory of the hills ahead of you. To add insult to injury there was a strong headwind for much of the morning making the hills even harder going. I really was running on empty by the time I made it to the lunch halt after 40 miles and wasn't sure how I would cope if the afternoon was as tough as the morning.
Fortunately the afternoon was less hilly and I managed to slog my way to the finish. It was blisteringly hot though and I kept having to stop every five miles to find a bit of shade so that I could cool down. I tried a new tactic today of wearing my cap under my helmet which was really effective at keeping the sun off my head. The scenery was stunning today. Rolling hills of wheat fields and sugar beet. It was harvest time and the combine harvesters were out in the fields. There was also lots of calves in the fields and I met 6 lovely white horses this morning who were very friendly. There have been some interesting monuments along the way including the one above to 3 American airman who were killed during World War 2. Some lovely little roadside Christian shrines and chapels as well.
We stayed at a nice hotel in the centre of Arras. My room mate tonight was Dorin who is from London. Arras is a lovely town and I had a nice walk around and stopped for a beer in the main square. We all went to a local restaurant tonight for a very good dinner of chicken supreme before collapsing in bed for a very well earned sleep.
Index to Photos (click on the photos for larger images)
Top to bottom
- A Roadside Chapel
- Memorial to 3 American airman killed in WW2
- Friendly horses
- Wind turbines on the road to Arras
- The old square in Arras
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