John O' Groats To Lands End Map & Itinerary

I'm cycling from John O' Groats to Lands End in August as part of my training for the 2015 Dakar. Here is the itinerary and route map. 

03/08/14. John O' Groats - Tongue
04/08/14. Tongue - Dingwall
05/08/14. Dingwall - Fort William
06/08/14. Fort William - Inveraray
07/08/14. Inveraray - Kilmarnock
08/08/14. Kilmarnock - Annan
09/08/14. Annan - Kendal
10/08/14. Kendal - Warrington
11/08/14. Warrington - Shrewsbury
12/08/14. Shrewsbury - Hereford
13/08/14. Hereford - Clevedon
14/08/14. Clevedon -Cullompton
15/08/14. Cullompton - Liskeard
16/08/14. Liskeard - Lands End

Click on "View Larger Map" below to view the John O'Groats To Lands End Route.



View Larger Map

A Bit Gutted

Now back in the UK and feeling pretty low. Although I've been in training for two and a half year, the last 6 months was a program aimed at taking part in an FIM world championship rally and getting a good result. Being the final race in a series of four, and riding the perfect bike I could really push.

The Hellas before was perfect training with similar navigation (just ICO and road book), tough terrain, more days riding, and on a heavier bike. With three weeks to get ready I was really looking forward to the Sardegna Rally. Another finish was needed to help raise money for the local hospice via sponsorship. Getting a DNF is going to make life a little harder.

Well done to Bruno, Xavier, Alex, and Steph on completing the event. Commiserations to Clayton who went out on day 4 with a problem with his hand, and to Robert who at the age of 60 showed us what true determination, stamina, and sheer bloody mindlessness is all about. He sadly had a mechanical problem 50k into the liaison on the last day.

Straight back into the training this morning with a 10k run. Hopefully I can fix a bike and get out over the weekend. I have some energy to expel! Thanks for everyone's kind worlds and help over the last 6 months. It's much appreciated.

Time To Reflect

4 rallies in 4 months with the last event being an FIM world championship event - sounds simple enough right! The reality is far from easy as I was to find out.
Trying to juggle normal life with rallying is at best challenging and always frustrating. On a budget you have to ride what you have, do your own bike builds, maintenance, and basically beg, borrow, and steal to get to the next event. It's a time when you find out who you're real friends are as they give you their time knowing you can not return the favour. Every evening is spent in the garage working on the bike or on the computer trying to organise flights, transfers, race insurance, fill in registration forms, source parts/spares, etc, etc.
After a rally you're bike and gear arrives quite sometime after you've arrived home and it leaves again well before you fly out leaving little time to do what's needed. You're riding gear needs washing, you're rally box needs replenishing (everything in there will be covered in sand), the bike washed (1 day wasted there), air filters cleaned/re-oiled, tyres/mousses changed, bike maintenance done, camping gear aired, and then the bike altered/modified to suit the needs of the next event. This includes fuel capacity alterations, changes in navigation equipment, wiring, full fairing or rally lite kit, alterations to personal safety/medical kit, etc, etc, etc.
Also during this time you need to physically recover and then get back into you're training regime as soon as possible. You have another race to attend after all! This is when the training done during the winter months comes into play. I'm not naturally athletic and have to put in the hours but it's a must. During a rally you hurt (that goes without saying) but after it's how quickly you can recover. For some riders it takes a long time, for the likes of Coma and co they only get 1 week off after the Dakar! I've also had to sort my FIM licence (nightmare organising the medical tests/total pleasure dealing with the ACU), write/print/send my Dakar presentation, build a web site, design race gear/merchandise, find sponsorship, constantly update the social media sites, etc, etc. All this means that time is not on you're side and it unfortunately becomes the norm to still be doing work on the bike 10 minutes before your start time. This then leeds to the inevitable mechanical failures during an event. People have said I've had a bad run of luck but realistically it's a failure on my part to find time. It's easy to say I could of done better if this and that didn't happen but it's rallying and very few riders have a problem free event. It's all part of the experience! In the Tuareg the clutch plates wore out, and there was a fuelling problem. In the Libya bad fuel caused injector failure, tank leaked, and the clutch lever did nothing. During the Hellas the motor was woefully lacking power, exhaust fell off, and the steering head bearing shot. Finally no working clutch again, and the motor died on me in the Sardegna Rally after only 2 specials and a prologue! I now have 4 months until my next rally so plenty of time......  or is there?
As for the Dakar - my registration is in and now I must wait. I genuinely don't know if I'll get in. There are deals with sponsors and a brand new bike waiting for me. I will be using tried and trusted rally parts making the bike light and strong but its all in limbo until I receive the reply from ASO. I'm happy with my riding, and have more days planned with James West in Dubai to improve my dune/sand riding. I need to be smoother and quicker. My biggest issue is the heat. In all 3 of the last rallies I have constantly found myself needing more water! Lastly, I have no problems with a week in the saddle but the 2nd needs work. I have now 6 months to correct this.

Sardegna Rally

A beautiful rally run by people with a true passion for the sport. Obviously this year was not meant to be for me. I went out on only the 1st day with a major mechanical failure. Luck hasn't been on my side this year, but trying to do a rally a month on a budget is complicated, time consuming, and I guess asking for trouble. Drilling holes in your bike 10 minutes before a prologue is never going to be good!

My rally started from the back of the pack as always. I like trying to work my way through the field - I just enjoy it! The clutch lever once again was ineffective after 10 kilometres in the 1st special and I had an off. It was only in the 2nd that I gained the confidence to ride smoothly without the clutch and consequently gained 9 places.

The riding was great with a mixture of fast fire tracks and technical rocky sections. The day included a wonderful tight section in the forest which included a great climb.

The road book was accurate but nether less you had to concentrate with the navigation. Temperatures were uncomfortably hot. Drinking often was a must and I was constantly running out of water. 45k into the last liaison the bike decided it had enough and stopped without any warning.

Many locals tried to help but eventually we had to throw in the towel and I was collected by the organisation (via a bar, some wonderful Italians, and some interesting methods of pushing a motorcycle with a car).

I spent the rest of the rally with the service team and although I enjoyed helping my team mates it was sometimes hard to hide my disappointment.
The service from Nomade Racing was fantastic and as always I made new friends and was reacquainted with old ones. A big thank you to Team Rally-Raid Products and especially Phill Gunn for getting my bike and gear to Sardinia and back.

It will once again be a rush to get the bike back to the UK and fix it for its next event. I now have 3 months to build my new bike (a 2015 Husky - but more about that later) and get ready for my last rally of 2014 which is the Merzouga. During this 4 month rest from rallying I will take part in the Welsh 2 Day, 24hr Dawn To Dusk, and cycle 1,000 miles from John O'Groats to Lands End. More importantly we are expecting our 2nd child in October so very exciting times ahead.

Click here for more Sardegna Rally pictures

Berg Ready For FIM Sardegna Rally

After some long days and nights in the garage the Husaberg is ready for its journey to Sardinia. Team Rally-Raid Products will be taking my bike, box, and kit to the start line of the FIM Sardegna Rally. I will fly out in 10 days time to take part in my last rally for this half of the year.

Hellas Rally 2014

I was never going to do well in this event, but used it as a lesson in fatigue and how to overcome it. Coming from the Libya Rally (via a few days spent with my son) I was ready for a tough time. Back to back rallying, doing my own bike maintenance, sleeping rough in the Bivouac, and riding a fully loaded rally bike pushed me to the limits of my physical abilities.

By the end of day 2 I was struggling and wishing for a smaller bike. The going was tough, technical, and contained long days in the saddle. Liaisons were sometimes long and sometimes off road. While not an enjoyable week I sure learnt a lot about myself.

The 1st pain was in my hands. I was unable to hold the bike, use the controls properly, and that muscular pain slowly started to travel through my body. When fatigue set in I basically rode like a novice, made silly navigational errors and kept crashing.

I really had to will myself on and dig deep to complete every day. I ended up 64th overall and was just happy to complete all the days and collect my finishers medal. The Dakar is 7 months away and the registration process starts next week. More immediately I have the Sardegna Rally to get ready for in just 3 weeks time! Busy busy then

More Hellas 2014 photos can be found here

Libya Rally

This is my biggest challenge to date. Long liaisons and specials. 2,400 kilometres of riding from Fez to Agadir.

Day 1 - Long day with typical Moroccan terrain. 4.00am start - 6.30pm finish. Had to change the Road book 2 times during the day - lots of navigation! Spent most of the day at a very gentle pace as I normally do on the 1st day. Started racing on the 2nd special mixing it up with many cars, some bikes, and the fastest truck I've ever encountered. Scary but thrilling! The only part on the bike that failed was the steering damper when the front wheel lodged itself in a washout at high speed trying to find a way passed a car.

Day 2 - Time to start racing. Very quick morning and passed many riders. Very exciting riding and all going to plan until I hit the dunes. After 5k the clutch fluid boiled over, the fuel was boiling over, and I was starring to feel sick. It was hot and my heart rate was going up and the breathing was getting shorter. I stopped to rest a moment but the heat was unbearable. Battled on for 24k but eventually the inevitable crash happened. Woke up with the bike on top of me on the downside of a dune, and desperately tried to get out from beneath the bike. I was riding alone and there was no way to warn others of my predicament. Got free and then passed out again! Some cars found me (amazingly they didn't flatten me) and phoned for help. They managed to get me conscious and remove my gear. I then threw up which is the 1st thing I remember - Nice! Breathing was a struggle and I just wanted to sleep again. Long story short I ended up in a helicopter. The medics got fluids in me intravenously. I had heard that many riders had suffered with the heat and didn't finish. A driver and rider were in hospital with various injuries. The mechanics fixed my bike after the sweeper truck picked it up, and I did my road books hoping that the next day I could ride.

Day 3 - Was allowed to ride but only on the condition I did not do the 1st 20k of dunes! I protested but to no avail. The doctor and the organisations decision was final! Thanked the medic, and headed out. 1st part of the day was the usual Moroccan tracks, where the only time you saw a rock was when you hit it! No working clutch again, tank leaking in 2 places, and the steering damper is merely an ornament! Today was supposed to be at a take it gentle day but after the 1st fuel stop there was some 70 kilometres of flat wide open terrain. Had to keep the wire tight! It was lovely. Arrived early but tired. I'm still struggling with the heat. Now have a long afternoon sorting out the bike issues. Just heard another of are team has crashed heavily and in hospital with concussion!

Day 4 - 250k of rocks, which included trials/enduro like sections. This was broken up by a good stint in the dunes around lunchtime. Navigating today was sometimes difficult. Many times I thought to myself "surely they don't want me to ride over that!" No working clutch again but I'm kinda getting used to it! No joke - it was that bumpy today, I lost a filling! The dunes were great and definitely my fav part of the day. A sand storm gained momentum after I completed the dunes and visibility was really poor. I hear they later shut the dune section down for safety. Finished in very good time today and I generally feel good. There have been a few crashes resulting in bruised ribs and a swollen ankle. It's now dark, the sand storm is still happening so well have to service our bikes first thing in the morning. Some vehicles spending the night in the dunes. 440k tomorrow. 340 of those is the special.

Day 5 - Day started with a sea of rocks to get through. After 50k of this I had no feeling in my hands. Fast bit next, then sandy pistes, then the dunes. After was pretty much flat out with some dry river beds thrown in to keep us awake! Finished in good time again. Bike needs some TLC. One rider has broken his wrist coming off the back of a dune. Finished 14th today and now placed 20th overall.

Had time to reflect on the 2nd day incident in the dunes. No working clutch didn't help but no excuse. Really stupid of me too push on like that. The heat was like standing in front of an open oven. Was so determined to get a good result and finish the last 6k! Lesson learnt!

Day 6 - Flying! Caught up very quickly with other riders only to have the bike start playing up and then finally break down just before CP2. Checked the usual things but guessing it's the fuel injector. Was at CP2 for 2 hours. A few riders bailed out at this point and headed back to base via tarmac. Meanwhile the rider (Alex) in 1st place in the rally crashed badly and was flown to hospital (broken shoulder and concussion). The organisation were trying to work out how they could get his bike safely out of a canyon. Long story short - I was back in the helicopter, dropped off next to the bike, and was asked to ride it back to base. There's a little more to the story but that will have to wait for another day! The ride back was 70k of technical and slow riding. Rocks, water, dry river beds, climbs, etc, and on someone else's bike. Got in around 7.00pm. My bike was collected by another service truck along with a quad that snapped its swing arm, and delivered back later in the evening. Position is 17th overall.

Day 7 - Got up early(ish) to replace the fuel injector. Bike working fine. Many riders has similar problems, so I'm guessing there was a bad batch of fuel yesterday morning from a local gas station. Started last on the grid and just went for it! Was around the 14th bike in. Lots of over taking, and perfect navigation. The bike stopped suddenly half way through the special - the rear fuel tank was blocked. A bit if time wasted sorting that out! The last 20k was flat out across a beach. Beautiful! Good way to end a rally. Lots of fun watching the trucks racing each other and drifting in the sand to the finish line. Finished 17th overall and got my best result on the last special of 10th.

Although not a great result I'm confident with my riding and navigation. Fitness wise I'd be happy to race another 7 days. I'm ashamed with the incident on day 2 in the dunes but lessons learnt. I have a mass of information from previous Dakar rides on how to combat the heat.

The Libya Rally was very professional, friendly, well organised, and I will definitely go again. The service team was Rally Maniacs and again they were very professional, massively knowledgeable, and great fun.

More photos can be found here