Keep Your Eyes On The Road

Hi there,

I had a busy couple of months planning my trip, booking accommodation and trying to get fit. I am doing well on the 1st and 2nd task.

The trip will take 37 days including the 1st 7 days in Donaueschingen to buy a bike, test it, get the problems fixed, learn to read road signs, get used to riding on the right side of the road, just get familiar with the place.  I booked 25 hotels for a 30 day trip (5 hotels for 2 nights) to do the 1300km. The shortest ride is 35km the longest 67km (if i don't get lost).

As far as my fitness goes, I think I am slowly improving. A few weeks ego I had a back rack fitted to the bike, bought a set of back panniers filled it with 12kg and rode the loaded bike 35-40km 3-5 times a week. It must have been a strain on my bike. 5 spikes in the back wheel snapped so I had to get a new wheel $108.00 (the whole bike costs $300.00), I will never again complain about car parts being expensive.

My bike with panniers in front of the Buddhist Temple along Maribyrnong trail.

The bike is together again and I train regularly. On the 1st day of January 2017 I rode 51.7km at an average speed of 16.68km.

The total distance ridden so far is 3,018km at an average speed of 15.3km (most before the panniers). I expect to ride an extra 2,500km before leaving. That is over 5,500km of training for a biking trip of 1,300km......crazy.

View of the city from Maribyrnong trail.

From this week on I will unleash myself on the motorists of Melbourne. One day a week I will practise to ride in city traffic, so please put away your mobile and concentrate on the road. I don't want to cause you sleepless nights from running me down and I already paid for my plane ticket and have no travel insurance. I will attempt to write two more progress reports before departure.

All the best for the New Year.

Black swan and cygnets in the wetlands of Maribyrnong river.