We all have to speak in public at some point. It could be a wedding, a funeral, a work presentation, an awards evening… a few people LOVE it but the majority of us get nervous, get through it and then have a mix of relief and adrenaline once it’s over.

This morning I had a new experience in the field of public speaking.

On the day we set off for Monte Carlo my son, Sam, made a sign (“Go Team FN”) and waited for us to pass the Wandsworth roundabout on our way out of London to Portsmouth. Not surprisingly he was late for school that morning. When he did arrive the teacher suggested he tell the rest of his class where he had been. Wearing the cycling hat I had given him when I passed and holding the sign he’d made he told the room that his Daddy was cycling all the way to France. (I did point out later that he should have added the word “south” as to merely get to Normandy wasn’t all that hard.)

Therefore when I received the invitation to go into his class and tell them all about the ride I followed in my sons footsteps and prepared to stand up in front of a room of 30 five year old children and attempt to engage them. The school pulled a fast one this morning as I strolled in dressed in my Lycra and wheeling my bike. “Ah,, Mr. Wright. class 4 b and 4 c are interested in hearing about the ride… please set up here. Two minutes later I had 94 Five year old children looking at me expectantly.

It went well. The format was;

§ The bike ride. What we did and what we saw. Big shout out to Marmots
§ The bike and kit.
§ Lessons learned
It strikes me that the lessons learned are not just relevant to Five year olds

1. Aim big. You’ll be surprised what you can achieve if you try.

2. Always wear a helmet

3. Do things with people you don’t know. Be open to new friendships and adventures.

4. Do things for other people/charity. You’ll get a lot out of it

(the second one is fairly cycling specific I agree)

A big thank you to Sacha for the helping me get the pics blown up for the kids. (and yes the map you selected was better)