Departing from Torun, Cycle Poland enjoyed a later start today. For some of the party this meant an opportunity to enjoy the highlights of the UNESCO city, for others a chance to recover as best they could from the previous night's excesses. Highlights of the night included the light and fountain show where Emily unsuccessfully attempted to dodge the water and a visit Polish karaoke bar. We said goodbye to Chris... by welcoming his replacement, Andy Wood, and instantly forgetting that Chris was ever with us and leaving his bike at the hotel. (Before he has an apoplectic fit - the bike is now with us.) The weather held throughout the day and provided perfect conditions for a 130km ride into Gniew.
Taking advantage of a day without a visit to a hospice, CP had an extended lunch break at a Polish bistro. With everyone keen to maintain high energy levels, all riders ordered big. It is dangerous to allow such inexperienced visitors to Poland to go off piste from hostel cuisine and it so it was proved. Jez, Kuba and Anita ordered the 'pizza' which bore more than a little resemblance to bread with an array of toppings. It was a small feat that Kuba and Anita ate more than half but Jez didn't enjoy the experience at all and stood down after eating just one slice. Kuba took home the award for biggest eater and we left for the final 40km fully fuelled for the high octane finish.
With Killer leading the charge closely followed by the favourites for the spinter's green jersey the peleton pressed towards the finish. The countryside was breathtaking but not as much as the pace of 40km/hour that the leaders were pushing at the front. Some understandably couldn't handle the pressure and were dropped and for those that could keep up they resorted to desperately clinging to the wheel in front of them. In the end Killer led Marcin and Stu home and we arrived at the Castle in Gniew, our stay for the night. The hotel and surrounding impressed us all especially as Miss Poland 2011 was being hosted at the venue. The riders were disappointed when they were not invited to join the event but they did show off their fetching lycra to the contestants.
Taking advantage of a day without a visit to a hospice, CP had an extended lunch break at a Polish bistro. With everyone keen to maintain high energy levels, all riders ordered big. It is dangerous to allow such inexperienced visitors to Poland to go off piste from hostel cuisine and it so it was proved. Jez, Kuba and Anita ordered the 'pizza' which bore more than a little resemblance to bread with an array of toppings. It was a small feat that Kuba and Anita ate more than half but Jez didn't enjoy the experience at all and stood down after eating just one slice. Kuba took home the award for biggest eater and we left for the final 40km fully fuelled for the high octane finish.
With Killer leading the charge closely followed by the favourites for the spinter's green jersey the peleton pressed towards the finish. The countryside was breathtaking but not as much as the pace of 40km/hour that the leaders were pushing at the front. Some understandably couldn't handle the pressure and were dropped and for those that could keep up they resorted to desperately clinging to the wheel in front of them. In the end Killer led Marcin and Stu home and we arrived at the Castle in Gniew, our stay for the night. The hotel and surrounding impressed us all especially as Miss Poland 2011 was being hosted at the venue. The riders were disappointed when they were not invited to join the event but they did show off their fetching lycra to the contestants.
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