Somewhere in 2012 the time continuum had a blip because '78 days to go' suddenly became THREE, which turned into 'The Night' and off we headed.
With bike serviced, lights checked, kit packed and everything double/triple checked... it was here, and ready or not look out London here we come!
The weather for June was foul in the week leading up to the event but by some divine intervention [Thank you, again - prayers answered!] the clouds cleared and it turned out to be perfect; clear skies and little to no wind as we arrived at Crystal Palace, and remained that way throughout the night.
Our group of riders, supporting Eikon, set off at 23.10 to the enthusiastic starting orders of Chris Hickford, founder of EIKON, and a person whose infectious laughter and huge smile put everyone in good spirit and ready to go.
The group set off and a pace just a little too quick, immediately proven by us missing the first turn by some few hundred metres and having to double back - an exercise that would be repeated more than once before the night was over.
So off we went riding through London's dark streets, down toward Greenwich and then heading into the city and around Canary Wharf's deserted streets before doubling back into the City and around St Paul's, past the Emirates stadium and up through Hackney toward Alexandra Palace.
Probably my favourite moments were crossing Tower Bridge, just because it's so iconic, looking back over London from Alexandra Palace where the dark night sky and lights created such a fantastic scene.
Even with a few minor deviations from the route [signs were not always easy to spot..] meaning we completed more than the obligatory distance, the climb to Alexandra Palace at the midway point and the climb back up to Crystal Palace at the end, we finished a little before 5am, which given the traffic in town was respectable.
Navigating our way back though Camden and Regent Street among the revellers who were queueing to go into clubs at 3.30 AM on Sunday morning for something undoubtedly alcoholic while we were swigging energy drinks, was certainly a interesting experience...
Around 4:15 the dawn was starting to break and the bird began singing as we made our way back past the Oval and onward to Crystal Palace, where a well deserved mug of tea and bacon roll, provided by our supporting EIKON team was perfect finish.
I thoroughly enjoyed the experience, and the training rides certainly proved worthwhile.
In the end I got very close to my target and overall the group raised around £17,500 [100 percent of which will go to EIKON] so we're very pleased with that.
Your contributions helped to raise a fantastic sum that will go to a very good cause, thank you all.
