The Great Volac Milk Ride Tour of Czech Republic

14 October 2011

The Great Volac Milk Ride Tour of Czech Republic

30th September - 1st October 2011

The 7th Great Volac Milk Ride on the 30th September 2011 in the Czech Republic was our most adventurous yet covering over 150Km in two days. The event was hosted by the recently acquired Volac Agro-Best and supported by the merry band of local Chocen bike club. 

Once again we were blessed with excellent weather when the 28 Volac cyclists, joined by 6 from Agro-Best and about 15 from the local cycling club, set out from Bestovice (Volac Agro-Best office). We were given a rousing send-off by local press and led away by the junior world indoor cycling champion (watch out at the next Olympics!). 

Initially lulled into a false sense of security as we quickly knocked off 35Km along a beautiful cycle path through the autumnal countryside along the Ticha Orlice river. At the first stop we were given a speech by the 'Stork' who was the local tourism officer expertly translated by Dalibor. We were then told to follow the 'Stork' into Eagle Mountain - ominous! 

As the day progressed the incline became as dramatic as the scenery and the lifestyle division lived up to their name by leading the way. Passing into Poland we stopped to appreciate the natural border between these two historic countries before the final ascent 

The last rest point was a beautiful Italian style church in Poreba with a glass roof - what a good idea! 

Reaching the top after 95Km and 1000m climb is feat enough for any charity ride but for those who wanted more (or in my case missed the finish-line) there was a fabulous 35Km descent back to our hostel at Potstejn 

The group of dishevelled and exhausted cyclists were royally looked after by the local proprietor with an array of fabulous local food and beer. Several shots of plumb brandy later and everyone was back on their feet making merry conversation and singing in a rough mix of English, Welsh and Czech. 

Despite a slow start the next morning our local hosts soon caught up with us for a very enjoyable day cycling. Only losing one cyclist on the way was a bonus and the terrain was less of a challenge. Change of scenery led us through some beautiful old towns of NoveHrady and Litomysl.
 

The really keen cycled back to the hostel while the rest of us enjoyed a well earned beer and cool swim.

Another wonderful evening of local food kept us going all night washed down with plenty of self congratulations - while the more adventurous Welsh bloods headed out to the local disco.

Next day was a glorious walk around Prague before flying home as a close group of friends having shared a wonderful experience together.

A good time was had by all for a very worthy cause. Thank you for supporting the Great Volac Milk Ride 2011 in aid of Cancer Research, we have raised approximately £10,000 so far but we will keep accepting sponsorship over the next couple of weeks and hopefully our target of £15,000 can be achieved. The easiest way to support our endeavours is to donate via www.justgiving.com/thegreatvolacmilkride and remember that all donations will be matched by Volac's charitable foundation.

Best wishes

David Neville

October 2011

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