It begins...

After two years of planning, countless hours of preparation, and training trips to the Mojave Desert and South Wales - we are finally on the road.

We left London at a respectable hour on Tuesday morning and after six days have now reached Prague. In that time we've covered about 1000 miles (or one fifteenth of the total distance between London and Cape Town) and we've passed through six countries - the UK, France, Belgium, the Netherlands (for about 6km) Germany and the Czech Republic. The last two have been the best so far, with spectacular roads cutting a glorious line through the rolling green hills. To anyone who has seen The Great Escape - the scenery is similar to the area where Steve McQueen filmed his famous motorbike chase. Needless to say we were all thinking that as we sped through it.

Other than the McQueen roads, highlights have been: a visit to the St. Sixtus Abbey in Westvleterin (where we tasted some of the finest beer in the world brewed by the local Trappist Monks); the scenic roads through the Rhine Valley; and the lively city of Prague. Other entertaining moments have been a few low speed bike drops while maneuvering around boggy campsites, one incident involving a truck and Tyson's pannier where the truck came off worse, and speed tests on the German Autobahns. Ted's current fireblade record is just over 160mph, I'm at a paltry 140.

Last night was the first time since leaving that we've paid for our accommodation. Every other night we've pitched our tents in opportune places, ranging from the St. Sixtus Abbey car park to a hilltop overlooking the Rhine. Camping has been great fun, if a little damp, but last night's luxury appartment was in a league of its own. Clearly we're still well inside the comfort zone. But with road signs becoming increasingly unrecognisable and local currency beginning to baffle, it wont be long before we're outside of it.

More adventures to come.