July 7: Week 1 wrapup
You might deduce from the last post that right now, I don't have quite the same commitment that I did for the European Divide. Specifically that my training schedule started on 1 July - and the announcement post went up after that.
So this is also the end of the first week's training. It's been very mild. Monday: strength class, same as every Monday over the last year. Wednesday: fitness testing on a stationary bike, but the first serious ride in about a year. Weekend: first training ride, 3hrs - basically take the scenic way home from the supermarket.
Well, the 3hr ride was today and through a mix of shame and/or fear quite a few things happened, in spite of the lack of commitment. Here's a list.
From left to right: it was deeply overcast so I don’t understand why the sunglasses are black. Dutch cyclepaths are awesome and I may have planned the route exclusively on them. And there was a ferry crossing!
- Ordered a replacement shoulder strap for the panniers. This is a short strap that clips into the the existing sockets on the panniers and means it can be carried over your shoulder; one has got lost. This is way more important than it sounds. When travelling I have two panniers and the bikebox, probably 50-60kg altogether. Getting that around with a trolley is no problem - but (for instance) when starting the European Divide I needed to get everything from the taxi through the train station onto the train without one. The shoulder straps leave my hands free to carry the bikebox, which makes it do-able.
- Ordered valve core removal tool, spare valves, replacement mech hanger. I had all these things after the European Divide, but despite a lot of imaginative searching over the last few months, I can't find them. Time to take the L and order replacements. I've been avoiding taking that particular L for a long time. So I picked them up and a few other things like extra sealant - the stuff in my tyres will have fully dried out by now.
- Check the bike and gear and figure out what else needs to be replaced. My left toeclip (basically a fabric strap and metal buckle) fell apart a few weeks back. It was rubbing against the pedal for a few thousand kilometers so it was probably a minor miracle it survived until I got home. I also should replace the tyres, the European Divide plus training rides mean they've done about 10,000km so I shouldn't expect them to last another 10k.
- Get the bike shipshape again. Reinstall the cellphone mount on the handlebars, plus the waterbottle holder. I can't remember how I used to store the repair tools, pump and things, but I've put them in various pockets and I’ll change them if it’s not working.
- Satellite tracker. The subscription isn't cheap so I've been waiting until the last minute to reactivate it. It got online in time for today's ride but I didn't charge the battery in time, oops.
- Timelapse camera. It's the only one I can find with a 9 hour battery life, everything else is shorter. The online reviews are very sniffy about the lack of image stabilization and a few other modern features, but if it records what happened each day, it's good enough for me! Didn't get it charged and installed for today's ride, sadly.
So it was a productive day! Got rained on a few times but I had my raincoat so it wasn't a problem. Thought I could get by without snacks; I learned the hard way that I could not. Kept looking out for a cafe but the first nice one I passed was 20 minutes from home - so I figured I should just kept going.
From left to right: the rain was serious. Had to wait for this movable bridge. One of many canal bridges; the wood was treacherous in the rain but the ridges mean it’s not a problem.
Next week the pace picks up a bit, then there's two weeks in New York. Still figuring out how training is going to work for those weeks.
