Cycling

Monday, January 29, 2018

The highlight of the day was a great day on the bike. While I only covered about 80km, I found some quiet roads and felt strong despite some tough climbing.

First a selfie. I am not part of the selfie generation but a photo of me on the bike can’t hurt I suppose.  I think I have to work on the ‘smiling’ for the camera bit. Here I am climbing up a slow grade on the way to Megara. The first quiet road I have found near Athens. Let me say that again. The first quiet road I have found near Athens.

Here’s the climbing profile for the day.   That little bump in the middle was pretty brutal!

I think it’s quiet because the road is ripped up in many places. You could crash in some of the washed out areas, so slow descents were required. I am not sure if the bad roads were a result of weather, washouts, wear or just bad engineering, but with almost no traffic I was in heaven on this road.

The scenery was nice too, not just on the mountain, but along the seafront as well, although I have no pictures from that section.  There was significant traffic along the water, and no shoulder, so it was survival of the fittest, and I lose the battle vs. 1 tonne steel and plastic hurtling killing machines.

Here, on the descent is a somewhat common issue with local roads in the country, or so I have heard. A flock of sheep crossing. And if that’s not enough, the barking dogs chasing you while protecting the herd are always a joy to deal with. Today I was chased four times, but more of a warning from these creatures.  They just want you to know that your not welcome near their herd.

Overall the day was a good day.   I did some work around the boat in the morning, then went for an 80km bike ride.  I enjoyed some of Jinhee’s chili at the end of the day and then went for a nice long walk.   My ride made me feel strong.   Yesterday when I rode I worked very hard and was quite sore today.  Today I made sure to carry food and substantial fluids with me, partly because I was sore.  It made a difference and I rode very strong, climbed 1000 metres and still felt pretty good.

That brings me to my final point of the evening.  I am starting a RAAM page on the site.   Those who know me very well know that it has been my dream to ride RAAM since I was about 17 years old.  I have always prioritized family and financial security.   One part of buying this boat is that I would like to make one more run at completing RAAM before I call it quits.  I am more unsure of that prospect now than I have ever been.  I have many important parts failing (sleep, recovery, digestion) and the prospect that once seemed like an obvious choice now appears daunting.   I will document some of the details on the RAAM page because I am here, partly to train, but I also have some serious choices to make in the next 60 days.

No need to bore readers interested in cruising the world on a Nordhavn with the cycling bits (beyond the ‘nice ride’ commentary that is).