Hi, I’m Marcia.
I’m in my mid fifties, a wife, a mother & a self-confessed bikeaholic.
I’ve had a bike for as long as I remember. When I was young, it was just what children did. We crawled, we walked, we got a bike for Christmas.
My earliest childhood injuries all involved a bike in one way or another. It was my freedom. Wherever I went, so did my bike. Well, that was until I discovered boys….then a girl on a bike wasn’t so cool.
So the love affair with the bike ended as I approached my teenage years, and became simply an occasional mode of transport, but not much else for the next 30 years.
As my children grew up, the lure of the bike returned. I lived in rural Somerset, so it seemed criminal not to start exploring the local lanes & hills by bike. The addiction returned. Slowly at first. A few miles at the weekend, 10 miles at a time. A bit of very tame mountain biking in the local hills, but not much more.
In 2008, after a lot of major changes in my life, I knew I needed more, a challenge – a big one. So I signed up to ride across Vietnam for charity. I learned more about myself in that one ride, than in the previous 42 years of my life. I found that if you set your heart to do something, life has no limits.
I no longer ride a mountain bike. Having moved to the South of England, cycling opportunities on the road presented themselves more often, and provide the most pleasure for me.
I run a small women’s social cycling group call Pompey Pedal Pushers, aimed at intermediate level riders of all ages. Whilst this is mainly for social rides, I do also aim to provide a challenge for the riders, whether it be on distance, or hill climbing. A number of women in the group have now gone on to challenge themselves over much longer distances and challenges.
We are all capable of so much more than we know – sometimes all it takes is a gentle nudge in the right direction to take the first steps.
Be bold, be fearless, get on your bike and ride.
I do hope you enjoy reading my blog
On 23rd August 2020, I began my mission to set a Guinness World record for the fastest female journey to Lands End to John O’Groats and back, in aid of Mental Health Charity Solent Mind. On 3rd September I finished in a time of 11 days, 13 hours and 13 minutes
I have blogged my thoughts, progress, training, and equipment in the run up to the trip, and the journey that I made.
If you want to follow my journey you can follow this blog, my Facebook group, and sponsor me via Just Giving.
