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2,242 miles, 125,000 feet of elevation, 144 hours and 38 minutes.
This summer, Cervélo ambassador Chris Hall set out on a journey that was nothing short of insane. The challenge? To ride 107 miles every day of the TDF to raise funds for The Pace Centre—a school dedicated to transforming the lives of children up to the age of 18 with motor disorders such as cerebral palsy.
Words by Chris Hall
In 2020, we would have experienced the 107th edition of the Tour De France, a number that not only has a great significance to me personally but also to many families and friends associated with The Pace Centre. Completely self-funded, it's founded on the firm belief that every child has the ability to learn and make progress, whatever physical or sensory challenges they face.
Each of the 107 children that attend the school face their own monumental daily struggle. Every element of their day requires complex planning. Not only by the teachers, who create tailored programmes to fit each of the kids' needs, but also by their families just to get them to and from school each day.
These kids are the inspiration for the challenges I take on. I certainly faced a few struggles throughout this project. But, then again, we all struggle. In order to bring awareness to and raise funds for The Pace Centre, I decided to ride a self-supported loop around the UK, covering a minimum of 107 miles each day during the course of the Tour.
To learn more and donate to Pace visit here: justgiving.com/fundraising/107tdf
2,242 Miles in Total
The Route
Starting on the 29th of August, I rode from London to Land’s End, to John o' Groats, then the long way back to London, cutting through the most Eastern point of the UK, covering a minimum of 107 miles each day. The amount of climbing, distance, and weather conditions really took its toll more than anything. It was the hardest thing I have ever done, no competition.
Part I
London to Scotland
London and The South West was the most challenging block in terms of elevation. I completed the elevation of cycling across Australia in the first 5 days! When I finally got into Bristol I was pretty broken mentally and physically.
Bristol To Scotland covered some more big hills cutting into the Peak District and through the Lake District—while beautiful, the west coast of the UK is notoriously wet. And it lived up to its rainy standards.
Part II
Scotland
Scotland. Hell, how can I sum this up? Scotland tried to throw everything it had at me, sideways rain, headwinds, close passes, storms, hail, (occasional sun) and lots of off-road. It was physically and mentally brutal. Tougher than it should have been. The day heading up to John O'Groats started with a 40mph tailwind in a thunderstorm which, when I had to turn back was a 40 mph headwind...
Part III
Edinburgh heading South
The day from Edinburgh to Durham was probably one of the best days I had. Cycling with friends in warm weather, the route was perfect. The following day incorporated the Yorkshire Dales and then the Peak District again. Once I was riding through The Peaks I knew my body was about done, problem was, it still had four days left.
Part IV
South East to London
Here I was, the final push. While flatter, it did mean it was time to face the headwinds. Fortunately, the good weather returned and the ride back into London was warm—and just like that, I was done.
The bike to reach for when you know the day is long and the odometer’s going well past the triple-digit mark.
A high-performance allrounder, ready for anything from the weekly world champs to an epic weekend ride.
A final tally from the challenge saw Chris riding a total of 2,242 miles (86 miles further than the actual Tour de France), 145 hours of ride time, and 131,635 feet of climbing—the equivalent of six times up Mt. Everest. He also packed away 18 bags of Jelly Snakes, 3 bags of Irn Bru Fruit Pastilles and burned 87,263 calories which nets out to 300 slices of pizza—ish.
Most importantly, as of December 1st, Chris has raised £12,455 for the Pace Centre and counting through his 107 TDF Challenge. There's still time to donate, or if you haven't yet, to also enter the raffle for a custom painted Cervélo S3 with all proceeds being split between The Pace Centre and Movember.