Day 7 Derry-Portrush-Belfast-The Crown-The Duke of York-Belfast Ferry Port-Belfast-oh and chuffin Stranraer......

Stats: believe it or not 26.4 miles!

The last blog for this year was originally going to concentrate on a summary of the race, sorry tour, awarding of the jerseys and general comment on my new found love for Ireland. Due to the unique way I am put together, and as you can gather by where I've ended up tonight, my Gift for snatching defeat from the jaws of victory has once again come to pass!

It all started out splendidly, as breakfast at Arckle house was as magnificent as the house and lovely and late, me the last one down at 9.45. I'm even more of a convert to B&B's after this trip as the way to go when staying away. Without fault they've been brilliant. Packed and ready and with our shorts t-shirts and trainers on instead of the too fat sausages in too tighter skin look we'd been modelling all week in our Lycra. It was a leasuirly spin down into Derry across the beautiful new peace bridge (and another bridge for me and Kieran to tick off on the list of "great bridges we have cycled over") with the famous bog side estate in the distance and to the railway station to wait for the train to Portrush were we were going to drop of Kieran and Declans bikes for Yan to transport back from our shop there.

Tickets purchased and we settled ourselves in for the 50 minutes or so with the other 3 chatting while I finished the day 6 blog. We were soon rolling into Portrush and a few photos of the rollercoaster at next door's famous Barrys amusements and we were at the store and soon had the 2 bikes packed and ready, while me and Conleth left our bikes temporarily as we walked into Portrush for the dinner and a look at the Viking festival in town.

I should have known it was not going to be my day when half an hour after ordering I still hadn't had my food. On enquiring where it was I was told that they had no smoked salmon for the scrambled eggs and smoked salmon I ordered but hadn't told me! By now I'd already polished off the slice of chocolate cake Dec had left and had some of Conleth's 15, a cake bound together with condensed milk which is somewhat of an N'orn Irealnd speciality. So taking the money back offered we ventured round the town buying some rock and honeycomb for our kids, and Conleth buying some seaweed for his dad!

Getting back to the shop me and The Druid picked up our bikes, and Kieran and Dec there bags and on to the 3pm train to Belfast. 30 minutes later we were saying our goodbyes to Kieran and Dec as they got off the train at Antrim to get a taxi to the International airport, leaving just me and Conleth to kill some hours very much how the trip started in the first place. As Belfast is somewhat livelier than Cork airport however we set our selves on having a pint in the Crown, the only pub owned by the national trust in the UK, locking the bikes to the lamppost outside.

A very agreeable pint of Guiness later and we cycled over to the Duke of York near the cathedral to be met by a full band playing in the courtyard outside, so it seemed rude not to have just one more and enjoy the atmosphere. Conleth obviously found someone from Armagh who knew his parents and they began barking at each other while I sat back and enjoyed the ambiance. After a quick call to Frankie to rub it in (he couldn't make it as he had the poor excuse of a hip replacement 12 weeks ago, lightweight....!) It was time for the 5 mile ride to the ferry terminal along the cycle track to the docks. Cycling past the lock, I turned to Conleth to say this was a perfect end to a perfect trip. Talk about tempting fate.....

We got to the terminal and Conleth checked in no problem. Now it was my turn. I gave the lady my name but she couldn't find my booking. She asked me for my ref number so I went to get my phone out of my shorts pocket....it had gone. It must of fallen out on the way from the pub, as I had it in there. Checking my iPad for the ref no, I gave it to her and she replied " I have more bad news, you've booked the Liverpool-Belfast ferry, not the Belfast-Liverpool one, and we are fully booked, sorry" How can I be so stupid?! I asked if there was any chance of getting on if someone didn't turn up and she replied possibly. I now had a dilemma whether to go back and look for my phone (10 mile round trip) and try and make it back to see if I could get on, or just wait here and see. Conleth had to go as he had checked in so we said our hasty goodbyes and I sped off back the way we came to see if I could see the phone.

All the way back into Belfast scouring the ground but nothing. Turning round I still had 25 minutes to get back to the terminal to see if I could get on the ferry and as I bumped down a curd, my helmet which was attached to my rear rack slipped, wedged between the rack and the rear tyre and punctured it. I couldn't believe it. Throwing the panniers off I was grateful I'd picked Dec's spare inner tubes up this morning and despite being all fingers and thumbs had it replaced in 10 minutes and everything back on the bike for the sprint back to the ferry port. I was 2 minutes  to late, the manifest had gone, I wasn't getting to Liverpool in the morning. I must admit I did have a bit of a moment and didn't know what to do. So I did what I always do when I've spectacularly ballsed things up, I spoke to Andrea on the iPad via FaceTime and after she got me to pull myself together she helped me sort out what the options were.

First option was to find out if the 11pm sailing to Stranraer would take me, as they don't take foot passengers on the over night service. 2 miles on the bike to the Stranraer terminal and after some pleading and phone calls they agreed to take me on as an exception. I then face timed Andrea and asked her to phone some hotels in Stranraer to see if she could get me somewhere. She had also done what I should have done and rang my phone, which was answered by a lovely gent who had found it! He offered to come and bring it to me, but by now I was getting on the boat, so he has agreed to post it back to me. What a star!

With even Mirren helping (!) just as the ferry left at 11pm Andrea had e-mailed me the hotel she had found in the middle of Stranraer. I honestly don't know what I'd do without her! How she puts up with sort of stuff again and again is truly remarkable! With the ferry crew also taking pity on me, they let me into the section they rope off at night so I could have a quick nap and all too soon we were pulling into Cairnryan port 8 miles up the road from Stranraer. Obviously with no foot passengers there would also be no taxis so it was back in the bike with only my puny summer front light good back light for illumination and waiting for the lorries to leave, it was time to take a brave pill and tackle the A77 for the 8 miles to the hotel. It was pitch dark, but there was just enough light to see by and the road was empty. I was even perversely quite enjoying it, and had a special moment on one downhill section when I was joined by an enormous owl flying right by me at the same speed for what felt like minutes, but was only 10 seconds or so! Fantastic! 25 minutes later I was at the hotel to be greeted by the night porter as Andrea had forewarned him. He had somewhere to put the bike, gave me a pint of coke and ice on the house, and showed me to my room.

I had time for a quick call to Andrea to tell her I was here and safe, and time to see the start of the mickey taking e-mails, one from Kieran saying I should be disqualified from the results as I had deviated from the route.......Plan tomorrow is to cycle the 8 miles back up to the port where there is a car hire place, and drive back to Burnley to get to the office at 1 or plan B get the train. Well nothing's ever simple when I do something......!

Anyway the jerseys! Easiest to give out is King of the mountains. Despite having the heaviest bike it was Conleth who consistently cleared off when the road went uphill. He may well have had an electric motor in his frame bag, been taking his dubious "homeopathy" tablets and using his ju-ju to defeat gravity, but over all a clear victor and red polka dot jersey winner! As my main roomy through the tour he is also a first class chap and is never short of someone to talk to as he seems to be related or know everyone we ever meet!

Green jersey for the most consistent finisher must go to Dec. Despite his disintegrating hip, and dodgy knees, he's like that old mongrel who won't give up the fight! Taking the prologue and the stage into Westport as well as being constantly second to Conleth over the climbs despite his best efforts the disqualification into Galway when he ran the red light cost him overall victory in the end despite what he will say about it being "Fake News!" As a constant on the 3 big trips we've had the kidding and joshing plays a big part in getting me through it, and the goodwill in which he takes the blog and being the butt of most of the  jokes shows what a top bloke he genuinely is. I do love
beating him though......

Yellow jersey then is mine! With the 8 minute stage win on Day 1 and the comprehensive one on day 2 it was never in doubt! And it's my blog, so there!

Last but by no means least is Kieran. Although not winning a jersey as such, without him the tour wouldn't have got to Malin Head. His engineering skills came to the fore on several occasions saving the day when the pannier bolt sheered off, sorting out my pannier mount before we even set off, and playing a key role in fixing Conleth's chain. That is not to mention his tireless work at the front and being the main lead out man for both me and Dec during the stage finishes. Being one of the calmest and funniest men I've ever met, he is the real star, just don't forget to feed him.........!

So it's done for another year. We're not getting any younger so it may be the last big one we do, but you never know....it looks like we raised over £2,000 for make a wish and that's what it's really been all about, if you haven't sponsored us, there's still time!

I'll leave you with a "Fermanagh Finger" and hope I can get home tomorrow to see my incredible wife and kids!

Day 6 Donegal Town-Barnesmore Gap-Balleybofey-Raphoe-Cunningham-Burnfoot-Carndonagh-Malin-Malin Head-Derry-Tracyey's Bar!

Stats: 85.4 miles, 4,559 feet climbing, 6hours 54 minutes in the saddle, 12.3 mph, 2,799 calories.

And it's done, although the last day was not without its dark times and at one point, it looked like we weren't going to get there at all......

The day started inauspiciously when Declan popped into mine and Decs's room to seek a consultation from the "Druid" as Conleth was being increasingly known due to a mixture of his homeopathy pills and general ju-ju, on his sore knees. Believe it or not he is an actual qualified nurse and lecturer, despite his frankly quack beliefs! A few incantations and a bit of advice and we were packed and ready for the off, not at the planned 8am, but a little after 9. I knew yesterday was a one off!

Just for a change you'll be surprised it was raining as we donned the wet weather gear and set out on the long drag out of town towards the Barnesmore gap along similar unclassified roads as we were on for most of yesterday. 3 miles later we were at the side of the road as Kieran's knee was also giving him gip. He put one of his leg warmers on outside his shorts, got the Druid to say some incantations, took some painkillers and we were pulling onto the very busy N15 for the steady climb through the gap in the worsening wind. Conleths ju-ju must have worked as Kieran led the tightly formed peloton (apart from Dec stuck in the middle of the road as usual) over the top, helped, for once by a strong tail wind and we were pulling off to the right to take the quieter roads to Balleybofey for out first break of the day.

The back roads were quiet but the little traffic that past I was trying out my newly acquired "Fermanagh finger" as I was riding along with Conleth. What happens over here is that the acknowledgment you get from other motorists is a half inch movement of their index finger. This can mean everything to get out of the way to how are ya and I was cycling along just the slightest movement got one from the passing drivers. I was becoming a native! Kieran did comment that for full effect however, it was most effective from the wheel of a 50 year old Massey Ferguson tractor!

While on the quiet roads talk also meandered on to where we would go next year. After pushing North Wales I was told in no uncertain terms that this would be far to hilly, and that we would be stopping at Kieran's house, going for 4 laps of the local velodrome and back to his for tea! Dec then tried to persuade me that Northern France was really hilly and we should go there! Much merriment and laughing got us down to Balleybofey and spotting a Supavalue on the outskirts it was inside to honour the wishes of Kieran's susage roll fixation this morning, washed down by a hot chocolate to warm us up.

It was already after 11 however and we'd only done 19 miles. The original plan was to get to Malin Head then cycle the 33 miles back to Derry, but the weather and the idea of a 120 plus mile day and getting in at 10pm was wearing thin. We agreed to see what other solutions we could come up with at the Lucy stop near Letterkenny in 20 miles time.

Still on unclassified roads the route took us down an ever deteriorating road until once again we were on little more than an over grown, rocky, farm track. Cue the noise at the back as Dec protested we weren't going up that! But as you all know by now, "trust in the route!" and we were up and bouncing up the hill to the top, dodging the rope across the track to keep the cows out, not as Conleth thought to decapitate us and with him taking it easy I piled past him to crest the top first! Much to Dec's relief we were soon back onto solid Tarmac and rolling through Raphoe and we'd hit 40 miles stopping outside of Letterkenny for dinner. Soup and sandwiches all round and we looked at the bus times from Malin. The last one left at 4.15. It was 2pm and we still had 42 miles to go. No chance. Last option would be getting a taxi big enough for us and the bikes, but we didn't know what time we would get there, so we decided to get further on and phone some taxi firms in Derry.

At least over dinner, the sun had come out for a while, so we were quickly out on the busy N13 for 8 miles, usual chain with everyone taking a mile on the front until we dropped of the road to the left at Burnfoot and began the biggest climb of the day. As usual Conleth dissapered into the distance with what we now suspected was his hidden electric motor in his red frame bag which he had all gaffe taped up and had not been into all trip! However as me and Kieran rounded the corner at the back, Conleth was off his bike, it was upside down and there was obviously a big problem. Dec had seen Conleth had a problem but with him being as mechanically minded as he is a good loser, he had sensed his chance and steamed past. Once we stopped the seriousness of the problem became apparent, his chain had snapped. This was a real potential for us not finishing the trip, or at least not today. Luckily the airport security in Liverpool had not confiscated my chain splitter with the rest of my tools, so with some trepidation my and Kieran carefully wound the pin out of the next link and managed to reconnect the chain removing the broken link. Having done it before but making a right hash of it twice before I got it right, pressure was on to do it right first time and as we asked Conleth to try it out on the next little bit of the hill we waited for it to break again.......but it held! We were back on! It had taken us about 20 mins and just as we were finishing, Dec made his appearance coming back down the hill to see where we were......

Loaded back up, the next 10 miles were very beautiful, but horribly lumpy as we seemed to be going round and back on ourselves and with time lost to the broken chain, we stopped at the side of the road  with 20 miles to go to take stock. It was 4.30 and we had 20 miles to go. We tried ringing a taxi, but had no phone signal so we ploughed on to stop at Carndonagh and to see if we could sort it there. A big climb followed then there was a glorious 5 miles stretch of open moorland road slightly down hill along the R244 and each one of us took the chance to open the taps on the big ring and the 5 miles to Carndonagh were dispatched in a little over 12 minutes! I stopped at the Carndonagh sign to take a video and through went Kieran followed by Conleth. Then Dec came over the summit but going slowly. As he pulled up it was apparent he had punctured. Aahhhhhhhh! Taking the panniers off we had the back wheel off and as Dec stood around like a chocolate fire guard I managed to find the thorn that went through his tyre, removed it, put in the new inner tube and get the wheel back on as rain started hammering down. Meanwhile Dec was going to ask Kieran to cycle back up the hill with the C02 canisters. I told him to get Kieran to see if he could sort out the taxi, we'd pump up the tyre and get back down the hill and use the C02 down there. Rolling back down the hill we'd lost another 20 minutes and it was now 5.15 and we still had 13 miles to go, or 49 if we had to ride to Derry. Catching up with the other 2 at the bottom of the hill Kieran had managed to get a taxi to come out from Derry but he could only make it for 6.30 as he had to be back in Derry for 7.30. It gave us an hour to get the 13 miles to the end, take some photos and get back 3 miles to the pub where he was picking us up. Pressure was on!

Through Cardonagh and the town of Malin, we turned left into the headwind along side the inlet. It was hard going and I can't remember much about it apart from how nice it would be to come on a still day when the sun was shining and could appreciate it more, until we rounded the head and saw the finishing post in the distance, the Tower at Malin Head. And looked at the massive steep hill that led up to it! It was the steepest gradient of the whole trip at 20% for the last 200 yards! Crawling up at 2.5mph we crossed the line together, ( well nearly, Dec had to get over first!) and we had done it! Fantastic! We only had time to take a few photos at the top admire the view for a minute then it was back down the scary 20% round the head to see the glorious site of the taxi doors open and waiting! Literally throwing the bikes in the back we bombed back to Derry and were unpacking the bikes, in the shower ready to go out for 8.45 after finally coaxing Kieran out from under his blanket with the promise of food and drink!

Despite being knackered, we had a great slap up meal and after that and a beer we had our second wind, and with Derry absolutely kicking on a Saturday night we found a really busy bar, had some more to drink and started talking nonsense for the next couple of hours, ending up in Tracey's bar, with a half naked gay man on the Karaoke singing Earsure's back catalogue! Now that is how to end a trip! With just time to give Kieran his first ever taste of salt n pepper chips from the Chinese it was a short walk and wait to get a taxi and back to the B&B at 2.30am! A fantastic way to finish a fantastic trip! Awards, jerseys to follow on the way home tomorrow.......