We went up on the stage as a team to pick up our medals for finishing and in collecting those medals we officially became Men of the Ras. I may have only finished 118th overall from the 129 that did finish, but finish I did. 51 didn't make it to Skerries. I was 1 hour, 39 minutes and 48 seconds behind the winner, Marcin Bialoblocki of Poland, but he's a professional and I'm an amateur who will be back in work tomorrow and setting out on this Ras the challenge was to get to the finish, and I did. In all I spent 28 hours, 46 minutes and 23 seconds in the saddle completing the 1,180.5 kilometre course, the most I have ever cycled in a week by quite a stretch.
All four of us on the Down Chain Reaction team made it to the finish and we were the only team to complete the Ras in which every member of the team was a member of the North Down Cycling Club. No guest riders here.
I look forward to a bit of a rest now and to enjoying some food I might not otherwise have been permitted to take during this race. Then I'll hope to take the form and fitness I've built from the Ras into the rest of the season and see where it takes me.
I don't wish to go on and on but I must say a big thank you to our whole club for all the support over the past eight days. All of us were genuinely amazed and encouraged that so many people got behind us. Our club is well and truly on the map of Irish racing once again. We received many comments from other Ras men on how well we had done and how strong we were for our first Ras.
While we rode our bikes and got the praise, four men did all the work that got us there and kept us there. We couldn't have asked for better. I honestly think we were the best supported team there.
Team manager Dave Watson is a long time member of this club and he revelled in the role of managing us. I think he got as big a kick out of seeing us suffer and exceed as anything else. His logistical skills really allowed us to just race and relax. He was great for making sure everyone was where they needed to be and no one was left out of anything. We did things as a team of nine.
Our soigneur Harry Adams is a Ras veteran and we now know why professional teams ask him to work for them at the event. Harry knows what to say and when to say it. Moral was never allowed to be low around Harry and it helped on hard stages. When your on the sofa getting a massage and thinking how your going to get round the next day, you can bet Harry has some tale or bit of wisdom that makes you see it from a different angle.
Darren McWilliams was helping us (he had problems with me) with our nutrition and recovery. He and Harry made sure we lived like pros. Darren would have run through walls to make sure we got what we needed. Even if it wasn't something we wanted. I apologise for being so fussy Darren. I DID NOT have a fish supper after stage three.
Mechanic Lindsay Gamble was the steal of the century for us. For an Ards man he's not at all bad. To say Lindsay is into his bikes is a huge understatement. This guy could build a bike blindfolded while hanging out the car window and after spending the week with him I wouldn't be surprised if he has tried!
And finally a big thank you to those who came to support and assist us in the later stages. Tom Henry, Laura Henry, Eric Blayney, Ian Blayney, Terry Devlin, Shirley Blayney, Angie Watterson, Mark Irvine, Rachel Mitchell and Kate Blayney. It has really made the four of us super proud to be in the club and very determined to see the racing side of things go from strength to strength.
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Thanks to everyone who read here. This brings to an end Matty's diary of the Ras though who knows if he'll go back to do it again in 2014. The Cycle Seen continues though and there will be plenty of stories on offer in the coming days, weeks and months including full coverage of the Tour de France in July.
