All that wasting, all that effort, for nothing - but still an awesome experience

Patrick Mullins recounts a whirlwind few days that didn't work out as planned when riding in the Velka Pardubicka on Sunday . . .

Friday

Thud. Screech. The plane touches down on the Prague runway late on Friday evening. Passport control is slow but my racing bag is on the carousel thankfully. I walk out through the sliding doors and see a sign with "Mr Mullinsa". Can't say it doesn't have a ring to it.

The driver leads me out to a big, dark, new Mercedes Benz. A good start. Mr Guick, the owner I'm riding for, means business clearly. We pull out into the slow crawl of Friday evening Prague traffic and continue the journey to Pardubice.