The Trials and Tribulations of Van Days
Happy Friday!
For the first time in nearly two and a half years, I missed sending you an email last week. I'm deeply apologetic - but maybe you thought this was a good thing!
In my defence, last Friday I was cycling into Bordeaux with Thighs of Steel, at the end of a long hot day, at the end of a long hot week. To be honest, I felt pretty good - especially after stopping at a Château for an impromptu wine tasting. So no excuse.
Being part of the core team for Thighs of Steel this year is a very different experience to riding the full week as a fundraiser. Mainly because I spent two of the six days driving Calypso, the team's support van.
That's not to say that van days are easy. There's an intimidating list of jobs that need to be done:
Pack up the campsite
Plan a meal and buy food for dinner
Drive ~120km (on the wrong side of the road)
Find the perfect wild camping spot for ~15 cyclists, not too far from the pre-planned route, but quiet, secluded, flat enough for tent-pitching, and ideally close to a river or lake for swimming
Cook the perfect camp dinner
A dozen hot and hungry cyclists depend on the van team getting this right. Oh - and you have to do all of this while feeling like absolute crap.
It is an unfortunate side effect of long distance cycling that your body mistakenly believes that van days are rest days. The body shuts down, the mind follows suit.
I felt like an extremely hot zombie. This was not great news, especially as I was driving and my French was in high demand to help secure us a wild camp site.
But on Thighs of Steel miracles happen. Indeed, the ride depends on miracles, almost every single day.
I'd been warned that finding wild camping for a dozen cyclists and a humungous van is the hardest part of the job. The plan is completely reliant on some kindly farmer, landowner or mayor taking pity on our ridiculous endeavour and letting us camp on their land.
After all, what would you do if you saw a circle of chairs, filled by dirty-faced foreigners, set up in your orchard?
But, in more than 20 weeks of touring, only once have Thighs of Steel been asked to move on. It is a daily miracle. Thank you, kind-hearted people of Europe.
With the help of my co-driver, I rang the doorbell of a likely-looking landowner, not far off route. We'd spotted a campervan parked in a closely-mown field behind his house.
With the help of his excitable dog, the owner was roused. He opened the door, and the dog bolted for freedom.
The man apologised, but couldn't help: the owner of the field was in Belgium. He suggested that we ask the mayor, gave us directions to the town hall, and started calling for his lost dog.
We drove Calypso up to the quaint village Mairie. It felt like we were parking our tank on their lawn.
I began in faltering French: 'We are 12 cyclists looking for wild camping...' And, hallelujah, it was as if he'd been expecting us. 'I have the perfect place,' he smiled.
What followed felt like the oral part of my GCSE French exam: 'At the crossroads go straight on and follow the road for 3km. You'll see a low, white wall, with a gap in the middle. Go down this track, over a disused railway line through a wood, and then over a small bridge into a field.'
I follow the directions with apprehensive nodding. The mayor finishes by kisses his fingers: 'And the river is perfect for bathing!'
We took his address to send a thank you card from Athens, and then drive out - slightly nervous - to our campsite.
To my astonishment, I'd understood his flawless directions and we found the field atop a tiny island, split by lazy turns of the river. Fishermen dabbled in the shallows and a paddleboard drifted past.
It was perfect (especially when the insects clear off).
We set up chairs in a circle, looking out at the sun dunking itself into the stream away to the west. We set the pot boiling with a vegetable curry.
Half an hour later, the cyclists arrive, stinking of joy, bells a-ringing. It's only then that we notice the chairs are arranged in a perfect ring around a single, plump dog turd.
If you like this sort of thing, then you'll probably also like my back catalogue of over 500 posts, all found at davidcharles.info.
I am currently stationed in Napoli, alternating the forno of the streets with the gelato of the air-conditioning.
Due to the ridiculous nature of my life, on Wednesday I shall be returning to the UK for a few weeks to work on Something New with Beth. Then I'll be back out on the road with Thighs of Steel, riding from Trieste to Athens. Praying for miracles.
So far, the cyclists and supporters of Thighs of Steel 2019 have raised over £38,000 for Help Refugees. If you want to help keep the lights on at grassroots refugee organisations across Europe, you could do a lot worse than contribute to my page here. THANK YOU. I promise all donors something delightful by the end of the year...
Save The Date: The first episode of Foiled will be broadcast on 12 August and the following Mondays...
Oh - and always take the swim.
Much love, - dc
CREDITS
David Charles wrote this newsletter. David is co-writer of BBC Radio sitcom Foiled, and also writes for The Bike Project, Forests News, Elevate and Thighs of Steel. Reply to this email, or read more at davidcharles.info.