Day 6

Another early start today, with a gorgeous ride along Le Longue du Canal de Bourgogne. A lovely but brief stop for refuelling, a few hills and a long descent found us in Beaune for a quick lunch and a slow ride to Chalon-sur-Saône, just getting caught in a thunder storm for the last 15 minutes.

It is amazing how it is possible to condense 11 hours cycling into three lines but when time is short, needs must.

We covered 105km today and as our group evolves, I found myself cycling with many others that I hadn’t had the opportunity to cycle with previously. Never left on my own, there is always someone telling a story (or Declan and Jim telling jokes to help detract from the 6km climb before lunch) or to simply ride alongside. It is the camaraderie that makes cycling these distances possible and above all else, fun.

The highlight of the day for many of us was whilst cycling along the canal path. We encountered a boat that was marginally too tall to get under one of the canal bridges. The Norwegian owners shouted for assistance and within seconds some of our group (including the Norwegian contingent of our group) descended the canal ladder and jumped onto the boat to add some weight. It was a successful strategy and we watched as the boat sailed under the bridge, dropping our cyclists off on the river bank on the other side so they could make their way back to their bikes to continue their journey to Chalone-sur-Saône.