A Few Days Makes a Difference

Just a few short days ago I received an unexpected message that our accommodation in Litomerice had been cancelled by our hotel. Potentially that left 22 Ghostriders without a room for that night. This was not the turn of events that anyone would want on the cusp of departure.

Fortunately there has been a flurry of activity since then and, apparently, the problem has now been resolved. I have been reassured that none of our team members will be sleeping under the town bridge after all. That left me feeling a little less anxious.

Over the past couple of days I have been working on packing and weighing my luggage. There is an old adage that "half of what you pack you will never use". While that is undoubtedly true, the problem is that you can never be sure which is the half you will not need.

My bags are now downstairs and sitting near my front door. Tomorrow morning I will be heading off to the airport for another crazy cycling adventure. The big question is whether or not my ageing body will be able to last the distance.

About three weeks I suddenly developed an extremely painful left heel, making it impossible to put any weight on it. While it did not seem to affect my riding, it certainly made walking seriously painful. Since then it has gradually subsided, but I still find energetic walking impossible. How will if limit me in Europe ? I guess time will tell. In the meantime I have equipped my shoes with a padded insole, to help cushion each impact.

This will be the last update from within Australia. The next footprint will be (hopefully) from the Marriott Hotel in Hamburg. By this time tomorrow I will be in the air and on my way.

Our team will meet together for the first time at our welcome dinner on the 31st August. That is going to be an exciting time.Read more