Distance 8.3 kms (5 miles), a steep ascent then broadly undulating. Still wet and windy. Total distance covered - 28.3 kms (17.6 miles)
Arrival at checkpoint 3 - 13:34. Time taken on stage 3- 2hours 42 minutes (including break at checkpoint 2). Total time taken- 7 hours 33 minutes. Time since sleep 9 hours 33 minutes
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| Michelle and Sonia get the tent up and wait for the walkers |
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| Heather, Alison and Aly shelter from the rain |
On arriving at checkpoint 3 I was pleased to see the tent was up and I changed out of my wet clothes in the car, while the others used the tent. Michelle asked if I was ok and whether I needed anything to eat or drink etc. I was persuaded to have a cheese roll (the support crew's guidance 'make them do things they don't know they want to do' paid off here). Before leaving we sorted out the clothes we wanted to have dried.
View from the crew - wet, wet, wet. All the walkers' waterproofs (several changes of) were soaked through. And if we couldn't get them dry that could mean trouble if there was more rail later in the day. Plan A - get them to a laundrette. An emergency call to the night shift crew - find a laundrette!
The night shift crew googled 'laundrettes in Sussex' from the mobile which proved hopeless. They then tried to get hold of a hard copy of yellow pages. No one was available at base camp to help. They knocked at a nearby house. They didn't have a phone book but offered to look on the internet (bless them!). Nearest, and only, laundrette at Burgess Hill just a few miles away. Unfortunately raingear was 40 minutes away. At this point all the support crew became convinced there must be a laundrette in Storrington or Pulborough (the only towns anywhere near the two crews). Craig and Margaret agreed to meet Michelle and Sonia in Storrington. On arrival in Storrington Craig and Margaret checked yellow pages in the public library. Yep - Burgess Hill has the nearest laundrette. They decided Sussex is too well off to have any need of laundrettes.They decided to wait for Sonia and Michelle in the White Horse which does a fine cup of coffee served with huge shortbread biscuits. Here they met another support crew and heard tales of the mud at checkpoint 2.
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| Aly's shorts |
Michelle and Sonia arrived at Storrington and after some discussion they all decided that the laundrette option was a no go so, because the sun had come out and it was fairly windy, they took advantage of the drying facilities in the car park. Unfortunately, the walkers were now approaching checkpoint 4.
Stage 4 - CP3 (Littleton Farm) to CP4 (Houghton)
Distance - 9.3 kms (5.8 miles); total distance covered - 37.6 kms (23.4 miles)
The team leader's experience - as I didn't have a charger for my phone I kept switching it off to save the battery. Most of the time this was fine except when support was trying to ring me to warn me that, NONE of them would be at checkpoint 4!! This wasn't ideal as Heather had left her rucksack in the support kcar at CP3 and needed to change some clothes. The snacks I'd been carrying were soon consumed at the checkpoint together with two delicious cups of coffee. On leaving the checkpoint I phoned support to ask them what time it was - our brains were so fuddled neither Aly nor I could tell the time!
View from the crew - probably not our finest moment but the time we'd spent on trying to find a laundrette, meeting up and then trying to dry all the clothes meant we couldn't get to the checkpoint in time. But at least we could swap over the cars so that Sonia and Michelle could head off back to base camp for a well deserved rest and some food, while Craig and Margaret headed off to CP5. Unfortunately, the supplies at base camp were locked in Heather's car and the key was in Margaret's pocket.......
