Even More Coverage & Support From AFC Bournemouth!

The support and endorsement I've received from AFC Bournemouth for the Prostate Cancer UK Football to Amsterdam 2016 ride has been immense.

From all the support and promotion pre-ride, they have continued to support me post-ride with a news story on the official AFC Bournemouth website and a tweet from their Twitter account.

You can read the full website news story by clicking here or following the link below...

http://www.afcb.co.uk/news/article/afc-bournemouth-gary-trudgett-prostate-cancer-uk-3138565.aspx 

The AFC Bournemouth Twitter account (@afcbournemouth) has 171,000 followers. Plus it mentioned the Prostate Cancer UK Twitter account as well, so the tweet could have been seen by their 30,200 followers.

I can't thank AFC Bournemouth enough for their support.

My London to Amsterdam Cycling Diary....

My cleat clicks into the pedal and I take my first pedal stroke on my bike heading towards the Olympic park. It's early and the weather has an early morning freshness and brightness as I head from my hotel to the velodrome, the starting point of this amazing and epic cycling adventure they call Football to Amsterdam.
My head is awash with emotions… excitement, nervousness, anticipation, intrigue, curiosity, trepidation, confidence…. to name but a few!

As I reach the velodrome I am greeted by wealth of smiles, friendly greetings, waves and knowing nods from every angle by riders, support crew and Prostate Cancer UK staff.

The registration and check-in process is completed instantly and simply, and with my bike now ‘racked’ it is into the Velodrome for the briefing.

This is my first visit to the Olympic park and the impressive nature of it is still immense. With that 2012 Olympic spirit still very much in evidence. Maybe this spirit is contagious as the atmosphere and enthusiasm being generated by the 190 riders inside the velodrome is the start of something very special.

One of the first people I see inside was Watford, AFC Bournemouth and AC Milan legend Luther Blissett, who instantly shakes my hand and comments on my AFC Bournemouth cycling apparel that SaddleDrunk had made for me. As last year Luther had written in a similar AFC Bournemouth cycling kit.
So with the great briefing completed, it is back outside and onto the bikes. And what a spectacular sight it is to see 190 riders in their club colours all lining up on the start line. Especially the large contingents from Wigan Athletic and Tottenham Hotspur, whose team wear and numbers were really impressive

I went off in the third wave of riders, alongside Luther Blissett and we headed out from the Olympic Park through East London.
The first few miles were great fun, with lots of smiles and some really good fun football team banter occurring regularly as the groups of riders converged at the many sets of traffic lights in East London. I definitely get a lot of practise clipping-in and clipping-out of my pedals each time we stopped!

Reaching the first water stop after 22 miles it was great to see lots of smiles and the sound of good natured encouragement. After a quick fuel stop and refilling of my water bottles I was asked if I’d mind doing a video interview with the Prostate Cancer UK team, which I happily and proudly did. Telling my story and answering questions about how I felt about the epic adventure ahead.

So back on the bike and heading out into Essex. Now the next section of the ride will no doubt go down in Football to Amsterdam folklore, as we were all directed to turn left out of the water stop.
This we soon found out was a genuine and honest mistake by the ride crew, who couldn't apologise enough! But it did ensure lots of good humour and banter to Brian and his team from Expedition Wise at the end of day one and occasionally in day two as well!!
I had my suspicions that we maybe were going in the wrong direction as I hadn't seen an orange directional sign in a few miles, but as there were still riders ahead of me on the road I convinced myself that I must have just missed seeing the signs. When I reached a ford and the water was a little over a foot deep as I rode through it, my suspicions were soon raised!!!
With the help of another small group of riders who had uploaded the route map via Strava to their Garmin bike computers, we were soon finding our way back across to the official route. So luckily we only had about a five mile detour, whereas we heard tales from other riders on Saturday night that they had ridden 12, 15 or 17 miles in the wrong direction, although maybe some of this miles recollections could've been a little ‘beer’ embellished!!

So riding through the wonderful rural Essex countryside on quiet roads was amazing. At times you pass riders or are overtaken, every time there was a nod of recognition, a smile and a word of encouragement or support. Occasionally the odd football related quip or comment. The camaraderie was so evident from day one. 
I hadn't realised that Essex had so many hills, as we seemed to climb up more hills that we descended, but the route planners had done a fantastic job in finding a route on great roads with wonderful views, definitely ideal cycling territory.

The lunch stop was a little after Chelmsford and it saw our numbers swell considerably as we met up with Team Ipswich Town. Swelling our riding numbers to over 250 riders. Over lunch in the marquee friendships began with tales of the mornings 44 miles riding and their individual experiences. Along with sharing our training and preparation stories. No one sat alone it was one big group. 
Meeting ex England captain and Ipswich Town legend Terry Butcher over lunch was a great experience as he was cycling his second Football to Amsterdam ride.
With the grey clouds gathering and the temperature dropping slightly I was keen to get back on my bike. So a quick visit to the support truck to rummage in my day bag to replenish my supplies of snacks and energy gels, I was back on my bike and heading towards Colchester.
The groups had become a little dispersed on the road, with everyone finding their own pace and speed or riding in groups and teams. 
I was still feeling good, especially after a great lunch. Now riding the hard miles in a strongish wind, my smile occasionally faded but was soon reignited with the great encouraging football chant signs that the Prostate Cancer UK had erected every few miles. As soon as I read the chant printed on the sign, my subconscious kicked in and I was soon humming the chant or singing it in my head. A really great distraction and motivation every time I passed one of these orange signs.
The hardest part of the ride for me personally was the section just before Colchester where we rode past the reservoir. This section of road was fairly exposed with a vicious cross wind and a hill that dragged on and on into the distance in a curve that you could see for miles. 

But once I finally dragged myself past the reservoir I caught with a group of Ipswich riders and we quickly rode the last few miles to the Colchester Utd football ground for a well deserved and much welcomed final water and snack stop.
Here I had a nice chat with Terry Butcher and the Ipswich team. Soon it was back on the bike for the last leg of the day, the 20 miles to the ferry port of Harwich. Again I was feeling good, legs were OK, bike had been magnificent and I had now ridden a greater distance than I’d achieved in training, as I passed the 67 mile mark.
The route from Colchester, once out of the town centre, was on quiet country roads. Again there were a few hills, but nothing too challenging. Checking my mileage on my Garmin I knew I was approaching the end of day one. The smell of the sea and the sight of the cranes and silhouettes of the ferry docks and port in the distance was a really welcoming and reassuring that the end was near. I spotted a couple of riders up ahead and managed to speed-up enough to catch them. These two chaps from Portsmouth were great to chat with as we rode the last couple of miles together to the finishing line. The end of day one was completed after a warm shower, some hot food and a cold beer or two!  

Starting day two from the Hook of Holland ferry port under misty skies but in very warm early morning heat. I start in the first wave of riders on the most amazing cycling paths. Flat, smooth tarmac on wide traffic-free lanes, a cyclists dream!

Riding with two Southampton fans, we gobbled up the miles at a brilliant average speed. The route dissected the beautiful sand dunes of the fantastic Dutch coastline. Soon we have reached the first water stop at the 18 mile point.

The atmosphere at the stop is all smiles and good humour as we are all really enjoying the flat traffic-free cycle paths, amazing weather and wonderful scenery as the sun has broken through and the early morning mist has dispersed.

I'm really keen to get back on the bikes and continue the ride. Albeit at a slower pace, as I want to take in as much of the Holland experience as possible. Riding now with my cycling buddy Anthony, we eat up the miles in the sunshine, chatting happily as we ride mainly side by side. 

As we follow the directional signs into small towns we notice that the cycle lanes have priority over traffic at intersections, as well as their own crossing lights. Feeling incredibly safe away from the traffic on these cycling super highways we even manage to miss a direction sign and go on a small five mile detour in the wrong direction. Noticing our mistake at the next road intersection, we soon retrace our route and pick up the very obvious direction sign that we missed. We must have been distracted by the wonderful sights or chatting too much!!!
The big difference I noticed on day two was a real togetherness as a collective. Now this could be because we are now all dressed the same, resplendent in our black Prostate Cancer UK cycling jerseys. Hence the banter and good natured rivalry has lessened now our club colours are not being proudly displayed. Or it may have been simply that we had pulled together as bunch of riders with one common cause and objective. But the collective team spirit throughout the day grew and grew to truly epitomise the descriptor #menunited.

The lunch stop was reached after 35 miles and once again the location and food was amazing. Lots of pictures were being taken and maybe a couple of beers were drunk to top up the fluid levels! So over half way on day two I set out after lunch with water bottles topped up and sunscreen reapplied.
The sights and scenery we encountered over the next 15 miles was breath-taking and what I had envisaged and imagined Holland to be like. On a sunny Saturday afternoon we rode passed green flat fields littered with windmills, tree lined roads and beautiful endless canals and lakes. Passing local cyclists who smiled, waved or had a slightly confused look on their faces as group after group of black lyrca clad cyclists rode past them.

I was feeling so happy. My fitness and stamina was holding up really well. Riding with Anthony was great fun as we shared stories and anecdotes. 
The pace was slower today as we had been told at the briefing that the last water stop, which was 6 miles from the Ajax football stadium, we would be held there until there was at least 80 riders to then allow us to finish in large groups or waves to the finish line, rather than as individuals or small groups.
Arriving at the final stop in glorious sunshine we found a little shade in the beer garden. After a small wait and some liquid refreshment we decided to go off in the second wave of finishers.
Riding out with approx 60 riders we headed along the canal heading towards Amsterdam. The banter was good and the pace was a little quick as we headed to the finish. Meeting up with our guide, we stopped about 800 metres before the finishing line to regroup as a collective. Then it was a group ride to the finishing line in front of the magnificent Ajax Arena. 

Through the finishing arch I rode and I felt a mixture of really positive emotions...happiness, relief, achievement and pride. A medal was placed around my neck, congratulations and words of well done rang in my ears as I slowed and dismounted my bike. 

Then it was handshakes and hugs to every rider in my close proximity. There was even a crowd of well wishers at the finish line that were Rotherham Utd fans who were in Amsterdam on a stag-do that cheered us through the finish line and then shook every riders hands. Proving that football unites men across the UK with a sense of achievement and a connection to a charity that we all believe in, Prostate Cancer UK!

A couple of pictures followed, then out with the smart phone to update social media and text family, before a glass of champagne was handed to me to celebrate riding 145 miles from London to Amsterdam for the most amazing charity Prostate Cancer UK.

All that was left was the gentle ride of 6 miles from the stadium to the hotel in central Amsterdam. The group I rode to the hotel with, all rode in single file. If like me they were maybe lost or alone with their thoughts and emotions of what we had encountered and achieved. A truly epic challenge that I can only describe in two words...epic and unforgettable. 
I can not encourage anyone enough to just sign up and ride Football to Amsterdam 2017. It is an experience that will live with you forever and you’ll make a huge impact on defeating Prostate Cancer with your sponsorship and fund-raising.
Please get on your bike and ride, proudly represent your football club and meet some amazing people along the way, whilst raising important funds for a great charity.

I WON The War of Miles With AFC Bournemouth!

After a few technical issues from the AFC Bournemouth Sports Science team accessing the players data for the Everton game, it has now been confirmed I won the 'War of Miles' challenge during April!!

A huge thank you to the Media & Comms team at AFC Bournemouth for promoting and devising the 'War of Miles' challenge. The coverage in the match-day programme, social media, website and local press has been brilliant.
Really helping raise awareness and support for the charity Prostate Cancer UK and the event itself. Thank you so much!

You can read all about the 'War of Miles' challenge by clicking here.

News Story in Local Press

Really pleased to read a news story in my local paper on Saturday. The Stour & Avon Magazine ran a really nice story in their Health & Wellbeing section on page 24.
Featuring the picture of me with AFC Bournemouth player Matt Ritchie, the news story was really great and published my Just Giving page address as well.
You can read the full story online at the Stour & Avon Magazine's website by clicking the URL below the picture

http://www.blackmorevale.co.uk/Cherries-support-Wimborne-man-charity-bike-ride/story-29218505-detail/story.html

War of Miles Update - Week 4

So the final week of the brilliant 'War of Miles' challenge with the AFC Bournemouth has now been completed.
I only managed two training rides in the final week of the challenge, between Monday 25th and Saturday 30th April 2016. This was due to work and family commitments!
My total training miles were....

• 24.5 miles or 39.4 kilometers 

AFC Bournemouth played away at Everton. Never an easy place to play with a very young and talented squad of international players.

A very close game that ended in a 2-1 home win for Everton, who scored first through Tom Cleverley before a Marc Pugh equaliser in the first half.

The second half was a tight encounter, with the winning goal from Leighton Baines coming in the 64th minute. Late chances from AFC Bournemouth weren't converted, in an entertainingly close game.

You can read the full match report via the BBC Sport website here

I've emailed my week 4 mileage to the Media & Comms team at AFC Bournemouth, so I am intrigued to learn how I compared to the midfield players "in-game" miles throughout this brilliant challenge. 

You can read how I did in Week 3 here

To read more about 'War Of Miles', please click here or follow the link below to the official AFC Bournemouth website.

http://www.afcb.co.uk/news/article/afc-bournemouth-prostate-cancer-uk-gary-trudgett-matt-ritchie-3031881.aspx

AFC Bournemouth's Matt Ritchie Is Confident Of Winning The War of Miles!

The support and coverage that my local Premier League football club AFC Bournemouth has been simply brilliant.

Today they have published a great news story on their website and then shared on their Facebook page and Twitter account.
Featuring comments and support from Scotland international player Matt Ritchie about the great 'War of Miles' challenge.

As the 'War of Miles' reaches its conclusion, Matt is quietly confident that the AFC Bournemouth midfield will run enough 'in-game' miles in Saturday's away match at Everton to win the challenge!

Charity: Ritchie hoping to edge Cherries fan in Prostate Cancer UK war of miles

The AFC Bournemouth midfield and Cherries supporter Gary Trudgett are neck and neck as they head into the home straight on their war of miles.Trudgett challenged the midfield to a distance duel at the beginning of April, as the cycling enthusiast prepares to undertake Prostate Cancer UK’s London to Amsterdam charity ride.

Eddie Howe’s midfield have clocked up an impressive 218.4 miles over the past four Barclays Premier League games against Manchester City, Aston Villa, Liverpool and Chelsea.

However Trudgett, throughout a rigorous training programme, has covered 247.9 miles on his bike – giving him a lead of 29.5 miles heading into the final game of the competition.

Despite the current standings, Cherries midfielder and fellow cycling enthusiast Matt Ritchie is confident that the players can turn their deficit around in the final game against Everton.

“We are quietly confident we can catch Gary,” smiled Ritchie.

“Judging by the rules at the beginning, we could play five in midfield at Everton and that would give us an extra pair of legs, so maybe we’ll have to speak with the gaffer!

“In all seriousness though, the distance Gary has covered throughout his training has been phenomenal.


“It will set him up really nicely for his Prostate Cancer UK ride next month, but hopefully we will just be able to nick the lead in a photo-finish!”

You can read the news story on the AFC Bournemouth website by clicking here or following the link below...

http://www.afcb.co.uk/news/article/afc-bournemouth-prostate-cancer-uk-gary-trudgett-3085044.aspx

Training Ride #33

A quick lunchtime training ride yesterday. The weather was a little bit brisk in temperature, but the sun shone at times which made it a pleasant 53 mins on the bike! 

Managed to ride just under 14 miles in a little over 53 minutes at an average pace of 15.7mph

This will be my final training ride in the 'War of Miles' challenge with AFC Bournemouth




You can read more about the 'War of Miles' challenge with AFC Bournemouth by clicking the link below...

http://www.afcb.co.uk/news/article/afc-bournemouth-prostate-cancer-uk-gary-trudgett-matt-ritchie-3031881.aspx

To see the full ride statistics you can view on my Strava profile by clicking the link below...

https://www.strava.com/activities/558268764

Featured & Promoted On The Award Winning SaddleDrunk Blog!

The coverage and support I am receiving has been unbelievable. 
With the latest being a featured blog post on the brilliant cycling blog from SaddleDrunk.
The blog is really well read and massively respected by cyclists. Plus it has been nominated and recognised as winners at the prestigious UK Blog Awards in multiple categories.

Now aside from very kindly featuring me and the London to Amsterdam bike ride for Prostate Cancer UK on their blog. The brilliant team at SaddleDrunk have also very generously made me my very own bespoke cycling kit. 

Resplendent in AFC Bournemouth team colours with Prostate Cancer UK logo's, my cycling jersey, bib shorts, stripped socks and gilet will make me the envy of other riders on the start line!
You can read more about the SaddleDrunk kit that they so generously supplied me on previous blog post's by clicking here.

So once again I can not thank Stefano and the team at SaddleDrunk enough for their brilliant and amazing support.

You can read the blog post about me on the SaddleDrunk blog by clicking here or following the link below...

http://www.saddledrunk.com/blog/2016/4/27/gary-his-london-to-amsterdam-prostate-cancer-uk-ride-2016

You can view and read the award-winning SaddleDrunk blog by clicking here or following the link below here

http://www.saddledrunk.com/blog/

Final Week for "War of Miles" with AFC Bournemouth Players...It's Going To Be Close!

Just seen a sneak preview of the AFC Bournemouth players in-game mileage for the four games so far in April regarding the ‪#‎WarOfMiles‬ challenge!

The War of Miles is where my training miles for the Prostate Cancer UK‪ #‎LondonToAmsterdam‬ charity bike ride are compared to the players miles ran in Premier League games. 

It's going to be a very close with the one game, away to Everton, still to be played on Saturday!

Plus my schedule this week with work and family means I may only get one or two training rides in before Saturday!

Like I said it is going to be a very close final result. I'll publish an update and final results, both here on this blog and the Facebook page.

Training Ride #32

A very brief after-work training ride. As this week is manically busy, so fitting in any training rides before Sunday is a major challenge!
Not the best or ideal planning as we enter the final few days for the 'War of Miles' challenge with AFC Bournemouth!
Still managed a distance of a little over 10 miles in just over 42 minutes, with an average pace of 15.1mph.





You can read more about the 'War of Miles' challenge with AFC Bournemouth by clicking the link below...

http://www.afcb.co.uk/news/article/afc-bournemouth-prostate-cancer-uk-gary-trudgett-matt-ritchie-3031881.aspx

To see the full ride statistics you can view on my Strava profile by clicking the link below...

https://www.strava.com/activities/556623866

War of Miles Update - Week 3

So we are over halfway through the brilliant 'War of Miles' challenge with AFC Bournemouth for the month of April.

I managed three training rides in week 3, between 18th to 24th April 2016, with my total training miles being....

• 66 miles or 106.2 km

AFC Bournemouth played a home game against reigning Premier League champions Chelsea on Saturday 23rd April 2016.

A real tough run of fixtures in April has seen AFC Bournemouth play teams from the top-half of the Premier League with games against Manchester City, Liverpool and Chelsea.

The game ended in a home defeat, with Chelsea winning 1-4. 

A scoreline that doesn't fairly reflect the game as a whole, as the away team scored with all four of the shots on target and the home side created many chances and dominated possession for long spells during the game. 

You can read the full match report from the BBC Sport website here

I've emailed my week 3 mileage to the Media & Comms team at AFC Bournemouth, so I am intrigued to learn how I'm comparing to the midfield players "in-game" miles.

You can read how I did in Week 2 here

To read more about War Of Miles, please click here or follow the link below to the official AFC Bournemouth website.

http://www.afcb.co.uk/news/article/afc-bournemouth-prostate-cancer-uk-gary-trudgett-matt-ritchie-3031881.aspx

War of Miles Update - Week 2

The 'War Of Miles' challenge with AFC Bournemouth continues throughout the month of April.
This weekend saw some great coverage and promotion of this great challenge from the Bournemouth Daily Echo (to read more on this, see blog post by clicking here!)

So I managed three training rides in week 2 of the 'War of Miles' challenge (11th to 17th April 2016).

• Totalling 65.3 miles or 105.1km

AFC Bournemouth played their latest fixture at home against Liverpool FC. 
A closely fought game, in which the away side won narrowly 1-2.

You can read the full match report here from the BBC Sport website

I've emailed my week 2 mileage to the Media & Comms team at AFC Bournemouth, so I am intrigued to learn how I'm comparing to the midfield players "in-game" miles. 

You can read how I did in Week 1 here

To read more about War Of Miles, please click here or follow the link below to the official AFC Bournemouth website.

http://www.afcb.co.uk/news/article/afc-bournemouth-prostate-cancer-uk-gary-trudgett-matt-ritchie-3031881.aspx

Fantastic News Story from the Bournemouth Daily Echo

A big thank you to the Bournemouth Daily Echo for their support. 
On Saturday 16th April they wrote a great article on the 'War Of Miles' challenge with AFC Bournemouth.
This news story was then published in the print edition of the paper, featured on the Bournemouth Daily Echo website and then promoted on their official Twitter feed.

The Bournemouth Daily Echo Twitter account has over 53,000 followers and the website has thousands of page views each day.

You can read the website article by clicking the link below...

http://www.bournemouthecho.co.uk/news/14432027.Can_this_Cherries_fan_do_more_miles_in_April_than_Surman__Gosling__Ritchie_and_O___Kane_/

Training Ride #28

I took full advantage of the glorious sunshine on Sunday for a really good training ride.
I choose a route with a few challenging climbs, as well as the most picturesque scenery across the Purbecks!

So I managed 36.8 miles in 2hrs 27mins at an average speed of 15mph, with 1,310ft of elevation.




This was my third training ride this week, which all contribute to my #WarOfMiles challenge with AFC Bournemouth!

You can see the full ride statistics on my Strava feed here

War of Miles - AFC Bournemouth Top The Distance Charts

So as the #WarOfMiles challenge with the AFC Bournemouth continues throughout April, I read a great article on the Sky Sports website yesterday.

The article was entitled "Eddie Howe and Bournemouth deserve more credit for Premier League survival"

Within the article was a section about how AFC Bournemouth continue to lead the statistics for most distance covered in Premier League games during the 2015/16 season.
As the images below shows, the team averages 117.2Km per game, with the midfield players running the most distance each game. Providing extremely impressive individual results were Dan Gosling and Andrew Surman, with Matt Ritchie, Junior Stanislas and Harry Arter not far behind.

Now I knew that AFC Bournemouth rated highly in the 'Distances Covered' charts and that a couple of players always ranked very highly in the individual tables when I took on the #WarOfMiles challenge during April.

So with five home games for AFC Bournemouth I must ensure I keep my training miles high to be in with a chance of competing with these perpetual running machines!

The team could run over 586km's in the five games in April. Luckily for me I am only competing against the midfield! 

Read more about the #WarOfMiles challenge here or follow the link below...

http://www.afcb.co.uk/news/article/afc-bournemouth-prostate-cancer-uk-gary-trudgett-matt-ritchie-3031881.aspx

To read the Sky Sports article click here or follow the link below...

http://www.skysports.com/football/news/32625/10242403/eddie-howe-and-bournemouth-deserve-more-credit-for-premier-league-survival