Felt F5 Road Bike

Though I may well be required to purchase a "tourer" for my proposed trip through Europe, depending on whether my other bike, the Surly Troll is something that I deem up to the job or not, this bike, my Felt is in fact the love of my life. 

A bike which has served me well, for coming up to six years, during which time, I have ridden well over 20,000KM, including almost the full length of Italy and had many fantastic days in the sun and rain!

It's probably one of the best investments I've ever made.

The handlebars as seen from when in the saddle.

The Go Pro Hero 3+ Camera on the front which I have used to record certain "rides", etc.

The Cycliq Fly6 Rear Light Camera under the saddle

Hopefully the only time I'll be using the footage from my cameras is to post videos up here, not as court, police or insurance claim, "evidence" as to how a particular incident unfolded....

European Adventure Update No.1

I've a slight confession to make. Whilst part of the reason for contemplating a trip through Europe is to stretch the legs, to visit some countries / places I've yet to explore, to catch up with some old friends and to revisit some cities or sights that I've previously enjoyed, part of it is also with a view to finding somewhere new to settle. 

Whilst I may reside in what is touted as being the "Most Liveable City in the World", I'm not so sure that holds true at present, hence the increasing attraction to the idea of moving to either Sicily (Italy) or Tenerife (Spain), not that either are on my proposed route. 

So what's the appeal with these island destinations, I hear you ask? 

Well! The moderate year round temperature, the more relaxed way of life, the difference in the cost of living relative to Australia, the opportunity to start life "afresh" and perhaps most importantly because of the cohesive / friendly manner in which European motorists interact with cyclists, as opposed to the sometimes aggressive / hostile behaviour that occurs here in Australia.

A European Adventure

I've being doing a bit of research and sketched out a bit of a rough plan for a potential route self-supported ride from Seville, Spain to St Petersburg, Russia, and whilst I haven't necessarily committed myself to it, it is a concept I am very much considering doing. 

I mean I haven't done anything in the way of identifying specific tourist sites or what have you, other than perhaps some of the iconic one's that I already had in mind to (re)visit "one day" anyhow.... 

I've examined what's achievable on a day to day basis, from a cycling perspective, for the the first couple of months or so, which will come to about 5,500 kilometres of riding and 50,000 metres of climbing, but I haven't checked out exists as far as what's available in the way of camping sites or hotels or what have you, on the route between Gibraltar and Berlin.

That'd be way too detailed for my way of traveling.

I mean my intention, if I do undertake this journey, is to do so at a leisurely pace, stopping to enjoy the sites and scenery along the way. Riding faster & further when the mood takes me, yet also having the freedom to also stop for a few days if the atmosphere or vibe of a location strikes a chord.

So what does the route I've plotted so far look like, I hear you ask, well.....

Gibraltar to Pamplona via Lisbon & Porto

Pamplona to Monaco via Toulouse, Avignon & Mont Ventoux 

Monaco to Berlin, via Milan, Passo dello Stelvio, & Innsbruck

Whilst I'm not sure what the logistics of flying into Gibraltar with a bike are, it's ultimately where I'd like to start my journey, rather than Seville, which is just up the road but which I do also know has the facilities to handle people arriving with bike boxes, etc. 

Obviously I am just going to have to do a bit of research. If not in a worst case scenario, I'll "commute" from Seville down to Gibraltar before starting my ride "for real"! Now, why the obsession with Gibraltar, I hear you ask, well:

• It's a "country" that I've not visited previously;
• It's somewhere that should be an easier spot to get over my jet lag, than Seville. I mean it is a fairly long flight from the Australian East Coast to Europe and if I can spend the first couple of days recuperating & getting myself organised before having to adapt to a foreign language the easier it makes things!

Once I do "hit the road" as it were, I am anticipating / planning on riding an average of about 75KM a day for the first month or so....In speaking with a couple of good colleagues Brian & Deb Bennett, who are very keen touring cyclists, it would seem that 100 - 125KM per day is also quite achievable, though that does depend of course on the terrain and the amount of gear being carried, etc.

Ultimately my aim would be to just take it one day at a time. I mean, it's not like I have to be anywhere by a specific date (except maybe St Petersburg for the return flight home to Australia), nor do I have to fit with anyone else's schedule or requirements.....

I'll update the rest of the route details / profile, in due course, though I already have in mind where I'm aiming to go, what the route looks like and so on. I just haven't "plotted" it out, yet!

Tour de Burbs

Having recently returned to Melbourne, and feeling somewhat reminiscent for the good old days, I decided to take a wander down memory lane and do a bit of a tour of the area where I grew up. I mean it is where my love of the bike first began......

Initially when as a young lad, where I did a paper round, for many years (often spending as much time reading the paper as delivering it) and where I also used my bike to get to from A to B, whether that be to friend's places, the tennis courts where I played comps, or what have you....

It's also where I was based when I undertook some of the inaugural Bicycle Victoria organised rides. Rides they put on before the Around the Bay in a Day concept came about, etc... That was of course, till the fateful day I decided to participate in one Bicycle Victoria's first ever "Ride to Work" Days. Sure I managed to get to work I just didn't make it all the way home... 🚲 🚗 .... 🚑

The streets of Camberwell only became my ride training area many years later, when I decided to "try again" and bought myself a new bike, never envisioning of course, that I'd one day find myself riding in overseas, as I've done in Italy and parts of Latin America, or that it would become such an integral part of my life that I'd want to continue riding around the world..... I have to say, it's funny where life takes you at times..... At any rate, the link below will hopefully give you an idea of where it all began....

A Historic Tour de Burbs - Route Map

Oh and just by way of a little update, I managed to fulfill my weekly goal in three out of the four weeks in February, but I didn't get anywhere near doing the 800 KM's I'd been hoping to do, during the month. Ah well, shit happens!