Coast to Coast 2020 - Postscript

So how did I feel upon finishing?  A sense of accomplishment? Happy?  My initial thought was that I was just glad that it was now all over.  I think the sense of accomplishment will come in time.

I failed in my initial goal of 3 days, but adjusted the target and to do it in 3 days 15 hours and 50 minutes is not too shabby.

The big high for me was how the first day went - clearing 62 miles in the Lake District over that terrain showed I have the fitness, but it came at a cost that I felt for the remainder of the trip.  If I had set out with the intent to do it over four days at the outset then maybe the wheels might have come off much later on and would have made it a much more enjoyable trip.  On the other hand my accomplishment on Day 1 shows that I probably have the fitness, just not the feet to match.

Do I regret doing it the way I did it?  Short answer: no.  It was always going to be a voyage of discovery.

Could have I gone faster?  Without doubt.  If my feet had held together I am sure any issues in my quads I could have managed.  That is without doubt in my mind the difference between finishing within 3 and 4 days.  The 'bonking' on Day 3 and Day 4 was in part due to the long hours being on feet but also as a result of the pain I was having to deal with.

Principal reason for all the pain - feet!

Would I do it again? Not likely!

What makes the trip more memorable was doing it together with my wife.  We both had very separate roles, but it was very much a team effort and without her looking after me, it would have been half the journey we made it to be.  Also, particularly at Kirkby Stephen at 76 miles in I was more or less ready to quit and probably would have done so had my wife not persuaded me otherwise.  She could see I was mentally torn and no doubt helped me make the right decision overall.

Finally, writing this blog update almost three days after finishing, if there is any doubt about the state of my feet, have a look at this video.  Even then I don't think it does it complete justice and bear in mind it was filmed 24 hours after finishing.