Day 11. it all goes wrong!

He has come so far, through 50mph winds, rain, B&B's from the Deliverance and only had one puncture! Well today was just as much of a test! After a late start (@10a.m he just couldn't get out of bed!)  he ploughed on to Slane and then a fellow cyclist joined him for a while to a place called Colin, then on to Ardee, where he called me. For whatever reason he didn't get much to eat at lunch and ploughed on to Newcastle. When he arrived he spent an hour and a half looking for somewhere to stay, but every B&B, guest house and hotel were full ,ironically,with  people doing a charity walk up Slieve Donard, for Marie Curie!! Starving hungry and exhausted he met a nice lady who new a place a little way out and made a call. (Incidentally it was 7/8 miles back the same way he had just come!). So off he went up a big climb when he fell off his bike and hurt his knee and elbow and wrecked his gears! After ages he managed to fix them up (with the tools he thankfully packed) and made it to his lodgings. When he called he was looking up at the Mourne mountains and was waiting for a taxi to take him BACK to Newcastle for some dinner! (and breath...).
Tomorrow he is meeting up with his friend Colin Stevenson at Newcastle, (hi Colin!) who is going to accompany him on the last 60 miles or so, where they will be travelling the coastal route back via a ferry at Portaferry (the clue's in the name!) and then on to Donaghadee (the DEE) and then finally home to sunny Bangor!! The boy has done good! There has been much excitement, jumping up and down and banner making here (and that's just me!!) and the time is almost here for us to get our Gordy back! Oh and did I mention that the lovely Graham Norton mentioned Gordy this morning on Radio two, and said the fact he is doing it "on his own with no support" meant there were probably loads of corners cut and that he probably hasn't done it at all!!! hilarious!...thanks Graham xx