10 days was enough.

After 1600kms my body has said enough. My saddle sores are so bad that I can barely sit on the saddle at all despite all the cream I am putting on them, and the lack of sleep is wearing me out so much that I am simply not enjoying this. When I got on my bike and started vomiting I knew it was time to pull the plug. If I could get one more day to Missoula In Montana where there was an airport and or train, then I could get to Seattle to where my friends live and try to get a flight home.

So one last day of struggling with my complaining stomach and saddle sores over Lolo Pass, I actually had to walk up some of the Pass.
I have seen some great scenery and some lovely people. I've seen Squirrels, Chipmunks, Deer. Birds of all sorts, and on my last day I have finally seen a mother and baby Moose right next to the road.

It has been a great experience and I exceeded my own expectations of my riding ability.
But right now I am going to recover with my lovely friends and enjoy the summer temperatures while I sort out getting home.

I wouldn't want to repeat today.

Day 5 : 200kms and 920kms from Astoria.
It started out as a good day until I took the wrong road and did 110kms off trail. I had no drink left that for the first time in my life I was just guzzling drink from Discarded bottles on the side of the road. I was stumbling with fatigue and dehydration so I was imagining that God put it there for me. My tongue was swollen and my mouth felt glued shut, but I eventually summited the monstrous hill and I crawled the last 21kms in a headwind to Baker City.

 The motel was a god send as well and I just made it to a restaurant before closing. I considered quitting - I really did, but the kind words of Niel and friends encouraged me to carry on and with a whole 8 hours sleep I'm in a better head space.

After staring at the map ' I realize that I can be back on schedule in 2 days and then start making up time again. I will try and keep an eye on Fran so that I don't overtake her.
In the meantime I will be doing a few chores today, rest my body and go to bed early for an early start. I'd like to do 215km tomorrow to a town called Council, and there are no big hills only 2 medium sized ones.
What ever I drank from the discarded drink bottles upset my insides!!! Enough said already.

The first four days.

Hello my followers, this the second time i have written this - as I lost the first draft to the ether somewhere. I've just finished day four and have done 720kms so far .

It's been incredibly hot and therefore tiring, but others are in a worse state than me and I am actually now the first female but I'm sure that won't last.

My worst problems are bad saddle sores from chaffing in the heat (yes I'm using Savlon cream at night and anti chaff during the day. The extreme heat is just melting it off). And a burnt tongue and lips which makes me incredibly thirsty to cool them off. Never the less I am pretty proud of myself so far.

.Oh well it's 4 in the morning and time to get on the road.

Astoria or bust.

I had the strangest feelings leaving Niel at the airport and flying away. I felt nervous for a minute and then suddenly really empowered. I felt oddly like I had gained a sense of independence and self confidence. I don't know if that makes any sense, but I felt liberated. I know what Niel meant when he rode across South America and said he was scared at times, but also felt like he could do anything. Now don't get me wrong - I love Niel and all the trips we have done together, maybe it's simply that this trip came at the right time in my life.

In all my travels over seas I have always struggled to get my bike and gear within the 23kg weight allowance on the plane. Even wearing practically all my clothes and making my carry on bag as heavy as I can get away with, I have achieved the impossible today and my bike and gear weighed in at 22.8kg - awesome.

I've always heard that LA is the busiest and most unappealing of international airports. It certainly is busy but then so is Hong Kong or Bangkok, but LA seems to have endless queues that are very trying. And exiting my flight into the terminal someone had put the heater on! ! It was definitely Summer again and all those extra layers had to come off.
I got my bike together and took it for a test ride and firstly the computer wasn't going because I had put the wheel in back to front - duh. Then the handle bars started to turn around because I hadn't tightened it enough - back to the motel fixed everything and tried another test run this time my bike felt great and I felt less jet lagged and more alive. I'm looking forward to a decent ride to Astoria tomorrow.

Leaving Portland - I was surprised at what a big city it was. My very kind friend - Jan took me to Tillamook - just over 100kms down the Oregon Coast from Astoria and I rode against a strong headwind to Astoria. That coast would have to be the most scenic in the world it is a stunning combination of trees, beaches, rocky islets and estuaries. After getting lost at one point - I finally pulled into Astoria at 8pm.

As ready as I can be.

I attempted one last training ride- the day dawned fine but very cold at 1° Celsius. I had so many clothes on that I didn't know where I was going to put the extra layers when the day warmed up. But the day only warmed up to 12°, so  I had the extra layers on for most of the day, it was only my warm hat I had to deal with, and I tied that to a loop on my handle bar bag. One very difficult part of riding in the freezing cold is that your sweat never dries off (yes I still sweat in the cold), so you are damp when the chill settles in at sunset. 3° with a with a wind chill on damp skin and hair is awful - Needless to say I had to call it quits then and only got in 160kms.

My god it was cold.

So training is completed, I've cleaned my bike ready for dismantling and boxing up. I've added one last thing to my bike of a thermometer. We had one for our trip across Canada and it added another fun aspect to the trip . When it was scorching hot we marvelled at high the temperature got and it helped to understand why we might be really tired. Also when it was a frigid 4° on Allison Pass - I realized it was hypothermia that I was feeling.

My 'coffee milk frothing' thermometer - notice it is only 9 degrees C.

Even though I have endeavored to keep my gear to a minimum, my panniers are full and I'm crossing my fingers that everything comes under my 23 kilo weight allowance for the plane.

Ready for boxing up.

Wish me luck.

Why aren't I nervous?

Two weeks to go till I leave for the States. Niel can't understand why I'm not nervous. I am not at all nervous about the cycling, but I am worried about having to do everything on my own. I fully confess to being old fashioned or old school when it comes to booking things - for example: I would rather look for accommodation when I get there, but these days everything is done online. So that will be hard for me. Also I'm concerned about coping with mechanical problems, although Niel has replaced and checked everything that was likely to cause me any grief. Again if I have a problem I'll have to deal with it with the help of my smartphone. I'm actually more worried about Bears, gun toting hill billes, and tornadoes than I am about the race itself.

Niel getting my bike ready for the Trans Am.

So thanks to my own personal bike mechanic, I now have new: tyres, and tubes, cluster and chain, brake pads, brake and gear cables, Jockey wheels for my rear derailleur, carbon fiber seat post and all bearings checked and regreased. I have a few spokes just in case and a rear drop out because if I broke one then that would be the end of the race as I wouldn't get another one in the States. I have a multi tool that should cover most eventualities.
The weather forecast for the weekend looks good, so I'll be out test riding my bike. It might be the last training I get before I go.

These new bits and pieces get the thumbs up.

Wow it's like riding a new bike except better it is molded and adapted especially for me. The new tyres are heavier but bomb proof and good on patches of gravel where the road was being repaired- but still narrow and responsive. The gears change like a hot knife through butter. With new brake blocks and brake cables - they felt great. The squeak I've had for months is gone with a new seat post. In fact my bike was so quiet - all I could hear was my puffing with effort. All that is left to do is change the batteries in the computer and sensor.
If you want to follow me on the TransAm I have entered under my blog name of Vespa Chick.

I hate grocery shopping.

 I’ve got to that crazy stage before going overseas. Basically I’ve got too much to do and not enough time to do it.  Last week was too early to start all my tasks, but this week I’m stressing that there isn’t enough hours in the day. It would be a piece of cake if I didn’t have to be super fit on top of everything else, but that is essential to the whole trip.

Here’s a sample of my list of jobs: Mammogram to have, visit the doctor to renew prescriptions and get cortisone injections in my feet to ward of pain for at least a few weeks, I have a court hearing about my ACC claim, a load of winter firewood is arriving to  stack in the shed, I have to get all my last  minute stuff for the bike  i.e. tires and tubes, chain and cluster and brake and gear cables – these need to be fitted and test ridden, at least one more mini tour, and lots of 200 km rides for training, the garden needs to be winterised, pruned, sprayed and new vegetables in for spring eating, I’ve just been told that I have to tell the newspaper what I am doing, and then there is the last minute stuff like a haircut, and dismantling and packing up my bike. That is just what I can think of off the top of my head. It doesn’t help that I am working full time. And when I do get a day off - it rains grrrr.

Very tempting goodies at work.

I have managed to keep the weight off that I lost over summer doing my mini - tours; it’s a miracle really when I am surrounded by such yummy food at work every day. Most of the weight loss has been from my backside and legs, which isn’t surprising considering the millions of pedal revolutions I have done in the last few months. I worked out that I turn those pedals about 10,000 times on a ride of 200kms. How many times in a year I wonder? I have no idea, the numbers would be amazing.

Niel helping me with the weekly nightmare of grocery shopping.

My biggest problem I have when working full time is finding time to do the weekly grocery shopping. Most people have a car and can slot the shopping in after work, when you don’t have a car it takes twice as long by bicycle. I simply don’t have the 3 to 4 hours to devote to do the shopping, and I can’t leave it at work all day and ride it home after work – it is such a curse. I have to ride in to the supermarket on my Vespa scooter early in the morning, because the Vespa is faster than my bike, do the shopping and meet Niel outside with his bike and trailer, load his trailer bags, throw down some food and rush off to work. Then on finally getting home – I have to put the groceries away. Yes Niel does attempt to put them away, he has lots of skills – but putting away groceries isn’t one of them. That is my weekly nightmare called grocery shopping.

3 more weeks of full time and then 2 weeks of part time, and then Trans Am here I come.