August 9

Mike's folly and a brutal day.

Today I learned a valuable lesson.

The day started off well- I have loaded two days plus reserve water on the bike to see what riding with all that weight is like and I left Burke & Wills camp on time at about 7:15. The bike felt heavy, but balanced, and I was slower than yesterday out of the gate.

A helicopter pilot named Dale that I met the night before told me to expect some climbs today and he did not lie- it seemed like the whole day was a very gradual long climb.

I decided to experiment today since I have had so much trouble making mileage in the afternoon and to take a long rest during the hottest part of the day. I would pick a shady spot, put down the ground sheet and inflate my air mattress to have a comfy nest against the sun. I would also change out of my road shorts and air them and take the bike shoes off and rest my feet.

I did this for two hours between 11:30 and 1:30 and I felt very smart. The problem that developed while a rested was a 8-10 mile an hour headwind! That was when I remembered the Tortoise and The Hare Story and realized I was the stupid Hare and the Tortoise was kicking my ass!

When I got back on the bike I was in good shape but an hour of long climbs directly into the wind on the heavy bike soon fixed that. My average speed plummeted from 20 kph to 15 or even 13! I was back in the little chain ring again spinning for all I was worth and my feet and seat started to ache and complain seriously.

The day broke my spirit once and left me humbled at how fortunate I've been so far. I go only as far as Australia lets me and she can cut me off at anytime.

I very fortunately found a camping/ picnic area to bed down in for the night so I didn't have o sleep in the bushes and I could make some hot soup and tea!

I feel very low now and looking forward to sleeping tonight. Hopefully things will be brighter tomorrow.

written by

Mike_Veine on August 11, 2012 from Cloncurry, Australia

from the travel blog: Mike's Magical Mystery Tour

Send a Compliment

Keep your spirits up Mike, remember any time that you get down, I'm still back sellin' quality outdoor gear.

written by Rob K on August 13, 2012

Great information mike it's very good blog.. thanks for the post.

http://www.fadini.it/

written by campi di tennis on August 13, 2012

comment on this...