Page 61 - Wish Stream Year of 2018

The dust had barely settled from the Com- missioning Ball as six Officer Cadets from The Falklands Company rolled out of bed at 0500hrs and onto the beginning of Ex PAPHOS PEDAL. After an uneventful day of travel, we arrived in the eponymous Paphos, savouring the pleasant increase in temperature. Our hire van took us the short distance to our delightful villa, and we spent the first evening settling in.
The next morning, we were introduced to our trusty steeds for the adventures ahead: top of the range full-suspension mountain bikes, and OCdt Whimster spent the morning giving us our first lessons on bike maintenance and the basic mountain biking skills we would need. Having all mastered the ‘attack position’ and the ‘bunny hop’, we set out for an introductory seaside ride after lunch. We sped along the coastal path from Paphos, weaving along beaches, through newly built resorts, and even the ruins of an ancient temple – the highlight of the day. On our way back we warily navigated our bikes down the rocks to take some dramatic pho-
tos on concrete plinths by the sea.
Monday was an early start, as we
first had a forty-minute drive to con-
tend with. This took us to a quaint
seaside car park where we set up
our bikes. To some of our group’s
dismay the first challenge, battling 2000ft uphill on mostly deserted roads, would take up most of the day. However, we were deservingly rewarded with some amazing views at the sum- mit, followed by our first proper downhill. We
OCdt MacGregor
shot down the mountain with glee, quickly cov- ering ourselves in mud from the mountain tracks, slowing only for some more technical sections which required careful handling. Our esteemed instructor also had the first spill of the trip, to the
rest of the group’s delight. In no time we were back down the hill, although we managed to fit in some chips and local Keo beer at a café by the sea before our return drive.
On day four we awoke to some omi-
nous clouds in the distance, a theme that would persist for the rest of the week. We opted for a shorter, more technical route around a nearby dam. Some of the climbing was tricky but everyone’s confidence was sky-high after the previous few days. We even had time to
Exercise PAPHOS PEDAL
We shot down the mountain with glee...
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