Bike Ride Blog - Day 1
Sponsored Ride for Romania, 29th - 31st July 2024
Day 1: 29th July 2024
Fleet to Dorchester - 96.5 miles
When I announced in church several weeks ago Andy Martin and I would be cycling to Land's End to raise money for Romania, David Garford came up to me after the service and commented, 'What, sponsor you to cycle to Land's End? You might as well sponsor me to eat ice cream!'
After this first day's cycle, I admit he has a point. Perfect weather - sunny but not too hot; hills but not too many, and stunning countryside - especially the New Forest. And yes, 96 miles is a long way and I am tired (resting on my bed in our hotel room after a welcome shower), but no punctures, no breakdowns and no injuries. Could a cyclist ask for more?
The big question as we set off was Andy's back. It seized up several weeks ago and he wondered if he would be able to go ahead with the ride. But with this first day now under our belts and with no undue pain, Andy is cautiously optimistic. He will see how he is after a night's sleep but thinks he will carry on tomorrow.
We begin the journey at 8am as planned. Our back up team, Robert and Janet, are there with their impressive three-wheel motor bike and trailer. Five faithful supporters (including Rosie and Gill) are at the church to wave us off.
Our destination for the day is Dorchester, and the first stop is Winchester. This is a journey I know well. At one stage I used to cycle to Winchester six times a year to see a management coach. Belinda specialised in helping vicars and ministers supervise their teams and run their churches well. She was invaluable in helping me solve knotty problems and make wise decisions (something I managed to do occasionally).
Over the years I have cycled this route in all weathers and in all seasons but today is especially enjoyable. A light breeze keeps us cool in the sunshine and we are there by 10.30am. We stop for a break and a sandwich and call Robert and Janet. They will meet us at the next stop just past Romsey.
A couple of hours later we reach Romsey. Stopping at some traffic lights, Andy points to a pub. 'I remember waiting there for a couple of hours when my son James was 14,' he says. 'He was doing his kid's football referee training. It earned him more money than a paper round!'
Andy and I have been cycling together for over five years. We are part of a group of four that has biked from coast to coast across the north of England, from London to Paris, around the Isle of Wight and, most recently, to Cheltenham where we visited Andy's parents' graves (they both passed away last year).
Andy has recently retired. He used work for Finlay's, a tea and coffee business that took him all over the world - Africa, South America, the Far East, and much of Europe. We bike well together and conversation is always easy.
Around midday we meet up with Robert and Janet. They are enjoying the ride but decide to head straight to their hotel in Weymouth and catch up with us again tomorrow.
We press on and, before we know it, we're in the New Forest. This is a magical part of the ride. As we cycle through the heather we pass donkeys, ponies and cattle roaming free. And Andy, a bird lover, spots a red kite and a green woodpecker. I'm impressed he can identify the latter by its call.
We leave the New Forest and it's time for lunch. At Ringwood we stop by a church and find a bench in the churchyard. Andy asks if I want to take my bike in for a quick service (haha). We find it's important to eat little and often. We have already stopped at various points to refill our bottles of water. It's so important to keep well hydrated.
It's now 2.30pm and we've covered 60 miles with around 35 to go. The next town we head for is Wimborne Minster. It's another great ride on country roads and a three mile stretch of cinder track along an old railway line. We get to Wimborne Minster and continue towards Bere Regis.
We're doing well but at this point, with 25 miles to go, tiredness is setting in. Andy is having problems, not with his back, but with his left foot. It's painful each time he presses down on the pedal (which happens rather a lot when you're cycling!). He stops to sort out some padding and takes a paracetamol. This seems to work.
Added to that our conversation has taken a deep, theological turn. Up until now we've chatted about family, proudest moments, world events and what to expect in Romania. But now we get on to how to reconcile evolution with the Genesis accounts of creation. Maybe this helps because before we know it we are just 5 miles from Dorchester. It's now 5.40pm and we've reached the stage when every mile feels like five but we press on.
We arrive at our hotel in the centre of Dorchester at 6.15pm. We ask a couple walking by to take a celebratory pic. Janet phones us from their hotel in Weymouth to say that they have arrived after a slow journey with heavy traffic. They will take things at their own pace tomorrow and meet us at the end of the day when we get to Lifton. It feels good to have completed day one and to honour the first third of the money raised (£1,650).
But why are we raising all this money? Some of you already know the story of Casa Valentin. If not, feel free to read on for a potted history and how we became involved with this project.
Casa Valentin was started by John and Jean Gutteridge around 25 years ago. Already retired, they had seen on the news the desperate conditions of the 'HIV' babies in Romania kept in poorly equipped hospitals and care homes. These were a legacy of the Ceausescu era, and when John and Jean visited Romania to see the situation for themselves, they felt called to respond.
They felt God say that they should provide a place where both children and carers could get away for a holiday and enjoy respite from their grim living and working conditions. In an extraordinary way God led them to Tulcea, and then land in the nearby village of Cataloi. There they were able to build Casa Valentin, a purpose built holiday home sleeping 25, with grounds to play in.
Through a connection with the local Baptist Church John and Jean met Adrian and Gabriella Popa who would go on to become the leaders of the project on the ground.
Over time, the demand for holidays for children with HIV lessened, but the need for those with special needs or from disadvantaged backgrounds needing holidays remained and groups from all over Romania still come to use the centre .
From the start the project was run from the UK through 'The Sunflower Fellowship' (the flowers most prevalent in that part of Romania) headed up by a board of trustees chaired by John.
In 2015, as a church we wanted to expand the number of mission projects we were supporting. Paula Hallam (John and Jean's daughter) told us about Casa Valentin. We liked the idea of forming a link for several reasons: it was a small initiative that would value greater support from churches; we had a personal link with the project; and it would be near enough to visit with a team.
So in the spring of 2016, Rosie and I met Adrian and Gabriella when they were visiting the UK and then in the summer, we went out to Romania to see Casa Valentin for ourselves. This led to us taking a team of around a dozen to run a week's holiday club in 2017. It was hard work and hot, but great fun. We welcomed about forty children each morning and with a team of translators told bible stories, played games and set up prayer stations in the little chapel there.
In the summer of 2018, we returned with another team also running a holiday club, and then in August 2019, Yener took a team of dads from Elvetham Heath to rebuild the playground. We were considering taking another group out in 2020 but then the pandemic came along, and everything ground to a halt. So now, five years later, it is great to be renewing our link and visiting Casa Valentin to run a holiday club there once more.
Tomorrow we will ride through Dorset and Devon and into Cornwall. We'll let you know how we get on!