Okay, good morning.

It's just on 6 o'clock in the morning.

Sun's just coming up over Blackheath and I'm setting off on day one of my bicycle ride

from London to Amsterdam, from Lewisham to Amsterdam.

I have to be in Amsterdam on Thursday evening because on Friday morning I have work to do

broadcasting presenting the darts for coverage for ITV4 of the World Series Finals in Amsterdam.

And my producers months ago suggested it would be amusing if I repeated sort of the trip I did about a year ago I think,

where I rode for no apparent reason in November from Lewisham to

Butlin's minehead over three days. Amsterdam's a little bit further but the

point of similarity is that I've absolutely no idea why I'm doing this. I'm all on my own

I've got two very heavy panniers flopped around my bicycle.

I'm wearing a cagool and a pair of shorts actually because it looks like it's going to be a nice sunny day.

The sun's just coming up over Blackheath and I'm about to set off.

I haven't had a huge amount of sleep because I got back fairly late from

Cardiff yesterday after the end of the tour of Britain, which I very much enjoyed. And I got home

and I found that Kath and I live alone actually because kids have moved out a long time ago and

Kath had a group of friends around and done unexpected plot twist they were all playing

Dungeons and Dragons. You live and learn don't you? I wasn't expecting that one I got home.

The sun's fully up now. It's daytime it's's coming up for half-past seven, so I've been going

right about an hour and a half with a criminally slow average speed.

One that will get me to Dover in time for my ferry, unless I puncture,

I have a leg puncture or anything.

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