Greg James says William’s ‘royal glutes’ helped power him to finish 1,000km ride

Greg James has paid tribute to the Prince of Wales’s “royal glutes”, which he said helped power him through part of his 1,000km cycling challenge to raise money for Comic Relief.

Crowds of people gathered in Murrayfield Stadium in Edinburgh on Friday morning to watch James cross the finish line, eight days after he set out from Weymouth in Dorset on a tandem bicycle.

The 40-year-old BBC Radio 1 breakfast host was piped into the stadium by the Royal Edinburgh Military Tattoo Pipes and Drums band, and was cheered by the crowd as he completed the final few metres.

After crossing the finish line, a visibly emotional James turned to the crowd and punched his fist in the air, shouting: “We did it.”

On day five of his challenge, William surprised James by joining him on the tandem for a 40-minute spell, getting on just north of Doncaster and cycling with him through the South Yorkshire countryside.

Speaking to the Press Association after crossing the finish line on Friday, James was full of praise for William’s cycling ability.

“Very powerful legs, the royal glutes were firing on all cylinders,” he said.

“They really were. He was a beast on there. I think he’s a keen cyclist anyway, and he refused to wear lycra. I mean, he’s a smart man.

“I can’t believe that happened. He really didn’t need to do that. This is the thing I keep thinking about.

“But what I love about that is that he got the message we were trying to put out, talking about safety nets and making sure that there are people to catch you if you fall.

“Luckily I didn’t fall off the bike with him. Otherwise I’d have been sent to the tower.

“I’m really pleased that he chose to amplify that message, really. It sent the whole thing supersonic.”

Asked about his emotions on completing the epic ride, James said he felt “very overwhelmed”.

He added: “I feel extremely proud that the challenge connected with so many people, that this daft idea we cooked up months ago worked as an adventure, and got people hooked and got them to think about their communities and who their support network might be.

“And as a reminder to look at the world and realise that there are people that don’t quite have that support network, and then donate money.”

Shortly after he crossed the finish line, it was confirmed the ride has so far raised more than £4 million for Comic Relief – which James said felt “crazy”.

“Four million pounds, I can barely bring myself to say it, it feels so strange,” he said.

He went on: “It was a very joyful eight days, apart from the pain. I will look back on it with great pride, but it felt so happy cycling through all those places.

“Everyone was so warm and so generous, and I guess at the end of it all, I want people to treat everyone like they just treated a minor celebrity on his tandem for the last eight days, because that warmth and that love was really quite special.

“But I’ve got too much of it now. I’m full up, so give it to somebody else.”

James credited everyone who had supported him during the ride, which he said kept him going as he made his way through England, Wales and Scotland, where he finished on Red Nose Day.

He said it felt like every time he climbed a hill there was a primary school on top, with “a great bunch of teachers and students with pots and pans and signs and red noses and flapjacks that they’d made”.

He added: “I’ll always remember that. I think everyone was smiling at me. It was just eight days of people just going ‘go on’ and smiling. It was such great encouragement and it’s great spirit.”

James said he is now looking forward to wearing something other than lycra, and to “sit quietly for a few days”.

He added: “I gave it everything and I really did not leave anything in reserve.

“I tried my very, very best, so that total, that challenge, whatever happens next, that was my best.

“I know that I got to my best and now I need to rest.”

For more information about Radio 1’s Longest Ride, and to donate, visit www.comicrelief.com/rednoseday/challenges/greg/.