Day 1 of the ride, sponsored by Simon Kay of iLife Developments Ltd.
Setting off from the hotel at 6.30 to avoid the worst of the Parisian traffic, we made good time covering the 5 miles to the Eiffel Tower. Once the official photos were done we set off in earnest, with 22 miles of riding to cover before the first drinks break. Not the prettiest of surroundings, we worked our way through the suburbs until finally we made our way to rural French countryside and forests. The only drama occurred when a French bus driver decided that a member of the Green Army was fair game and attempted to run them over, thankfully failing in his efforts.
It was clear at the first drink stop that all of the riders were achieving a faster pace than expected as we were encouraged to consider a further coffee stop before lunch. The Green Army eschewed this option and pressed on with Steve Hutton at the vanguard of the peloton. The team were the first to arrive at the lunch stop, with Terry Macey acting as team pathfinder and getting there in time to assist with the set up of lunch.
Following a leisurely lunch we hit the road and a largely uneventful 40 miles followed. Major talking point was the non-puncture suffered by Steve Rice, whose deflated rear tyre (not a puncture) required a change of inner tube. The jury is out on the cause of the deflation given Steve's insistence that it was not a puncture.
We arrived in Sens at just after 4pm, and after rest, recuperation and ablutions the team retired to a local hostelry for pre-dinner libations (we had a shower and went for beers!).
All in all an excellent days ride.
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