Distance remaining: 288 miles. Travel time: 5 hours 6 minutes. Warning, traffic congestion en route - do you want to recalculate your route?
This was the welcome I got from my Sat Nav when I started the engine for the journey to Cornwall at 4.26am on Saturday. It was an unearthly hour, but the only way of being sure to beat the holiday traffic, so I hoped.
Picking my Dad up from Chesham we were soon on our way whizzing around the M25 and down the M4. I had in mind that I wanted to be past Bristol by 7.00am. This particular target was comfortably achieved as we joined the M5 just before 6.30am amidst a seriously heavy rainstorm that did, for a minute or two, bring back memories of a first game of the season trip to Cinderford that ended up being rained off; a repeat of that this year would be an absolute nightmare, particularly financially having agreed that we would put the players up in a hotel overnight.
As we ploughed through Somerset there were signs of the skies brightening. The M5 came to an end at Exeter and we joined the caravan ridden A30 for the last 90-odd miles of the journey (the destination for this trip was Newquay where we were meeting up with other supporters that were booked into the same hotel, but had gone down on the Friday to make a longer weekend of it). With the time approaching 7.45am we pulled in for a breakfast stop somewhere near Okehampton. The first services we went into was literally packed out with caranvans and camper vans that had given no consideration to parking bays, or even entrances and exits to the car park...it was heaving.
The next set of Services were much quieter and served up the biggest 'Hearty Breakfast' I had ever seen. Not the healthiest start to the day, but I had a feeling it wasn't really going to be a healthy weekend.
After a 45 minute stop we were back on the road, traffic was slowly increasing, particularly bobbing up and down over Bodmin Moor as the caravans struggled up the hills whilst being over-taken by a lorry or camper van equally unable to climb the hill at any sort of speed. In fairness the journey was not too bad. Despite Mrs Sat Nav's estimation of a journey in excess of five hours we comfortably arrived at the hotel in Newquay somewhere around 9.45am; there, waving out of the window we were greeted by Colin Beton and Dave Jeffrey.
Inside the Cliffdene Hotel Steve Turner, Mike Elliott, Lawrence Greenwood and Craig ' Nobby' Knowles were all finishing their breakfast reflecting on what seemed to have been an eventful evening. Thank goodness for the old lads adage about "what goes on tour, stays on tour". It is fair to say that the tale of a Chesham supporter locked out of his room naked in the middle of the night; then having to take down a curtain from the hallway to wrap around himself to go down to reception for help to get back into the room, will live long in the memory of those that work at the hotel!
Fair play to those that obviously had a heavy Friday night; by 10.15am we were consuming the first pint of the day at the local Wetherspoons. A taxi picked us up at midday to get us to Truro where we had a couple of drinks in the excellent Old Ale House before another taxi ride (or a more expensive bus journey for some people) took us up the hill to the ground for just before 2.00pm. It had already felt like a long day.
The football? Well, what can you say. If I'm honest, I would have been very happy coming away from the match with a point; and by half-time I felt quietly confident that we could achieve that. Shane Gore had made a number of fine saves, particularly towards the end of the half, but we were looking defensively solid and once the nerves settled I felt we could certainly at least match our hosts.
Second-half, we were fantastic. Two superbly taken goals by Steve Wales and a strike from Fanibuyan gave us what looked like a comfortable 3-0 win; but it was only when the third goal hit the net could we really relax, the memory of blowing a two goal lead in the last two minutes when we last visited Truro still sitting prominently in the memory bank.
It was a proud day for Chesham United. A superb start to the supporters run era as we finished the day top of the table (thanks to being alphabetically above Salisbury City who had also won 3-0). I was busy phoning and texting anyone and everyone as the early evening continued as the day had started, with the odd beer or two. You have to enjoy these moments. As Ian Holloway was quick to point out when Blackpool temporarily topped the Premiership, there's going to be tougher times ahead, but that knowledge doesn't need to spoil the moment.
The crowd at Truro was smaller than I expected, and they certainly disappeared from the ground quickly without hanging about for any post-match drinks in the bar. The hospitality from the home club, in the face of what must have been a hugely disappointing result, was superb with the travelling supporters and officials being made to feel most welcome.
The taxi picked us up for the return trip to Newquay at around 6.30pm from which point the day became a bit of a blur. We consumed a curry after a couple of pre-dinner drinks in a Mexican restuarant before the group split up between the hardly able to stand needing to get back to the hotel, and those prepared to head down into the town for more celebrations. I wore my sensible head and went back to the hotel with Colin, a staggering Dad and a gone from this world Dave Jeffrey. Back at the hotel we had one final drink and a couple of games of pool (though Dave had done a disappearing act by now) before crashing out after a hectic, but very satisfactory day.
After breakfast Sunday morning Dad and I hit the road for home, getting back to Chesham around 12.30pm. I settled down with a cup of tea and a copy of The Non-League Paper. There we were, in all our glory, top of The Zamaretto Premier Division.
Oxford City tonight. After Saturday's result you have got to fancy the win, but football's funny like that; the law of reverse expectations has a bizarre way of playing havoc with the emotions.
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