Back in the UK

Well, I'm back in the UK, driving Mrs C up the wall by going on about how great America is etc and moaning about the British weather. Basically it was an amazing event- Chris and Steve ran 3100 miles from San Francisco to New York in 79 days. That's about it really.

They began here in San Francisco, running out of the Pacific at 5pm on August 17th...

And finished here at 6pm on November 5th with a dip in the Atlantic off Coney Island, New York

Chris' wife Julia and I did all the logistics- making sure the backup vehicle was always where it should be, booking motels, buying food, guiding them on the tricky bits of the route, organising interviews and basically making sure that all they had to do was run. (They had it easy if you ask me).

I also did most of their blog here (which enabled me to avoid being in any of the photos).

More than any other picture, the one below (taken in Nevada on Highway 6 between Tonopah and Ely) sums up the whole escapade best in my opinion. It's first thing in the morning on a stretch of road that continues for 160 miles with no shops, garages, towns, farms or rivers. Both of them know perfectly well that the desert scenery will look exactly the same in 10 hours time when they finish the day. The only difference will be that their shadows will point in the opposite direction and they will be extremely hot, tired, thirsty and sore. They will also be well aware that they have to do it all again tomorrow.

The whole event was about overcoming adversity and these two encountered the lot- heat, altitude, humidity, cold, rain and sleet. Not all on the same day though- wimps.