Scott T: The Blog
Summer Fun, Part 1
Posted Wed, Feb 29, 2012 at 8:29pm by ScottTagged: cycling, everyday, sailing
(Warning - post content cycling heavy, with a splash of sailing and other stuff thrown in :P )
Hard to believe two months have flown past already! Must be something to do with keeping busy...
January had the 'typical' summer weather: warm sunny days which were great to be outside in - something I was more than willing to do. Mid-month I headed home for another weekend at my parents, while also turning the weekend into a cycling getaway. A ride each on Friday, Saturday and Sunday included three laps of the lake, as well as a stint around the back-blocks. After all the riding around here, the change of scenery was great. Combined with three more rides over the following four days, I covered almost 190km in the single week. Not to say the weather wasn't trying to keep me off the bike.
Then up came the Milang-Goolwa yacht race. Somehow I got talked into acting taxi, which involved dropping my sister off at Milang in the morning and picking her up from Goolwa a few hours later. Not to miss another chance for riding in new scenery I also squeezed my bike in the back of the car - if it was windy I wouldn't need to wait long, while if it was calmer I could ride to fill in time.... Or at least that was the theory.
We got down to Milang around 8am - the grass on the foreshore was covered with boats, along with a lot more moored on-water. Wasn't much in the way of breeze and even then the sun was rather fierce. Despite this, the race still started and those of us on beach-crew duties watched the boats slowly drift off before departing for Goolwa.
Not to miss the opportunity, I grabbed the bike out and rode along the Goolwa-Victor Harbor bike trail. Turns out it's a rather pleasant ride, although I turned around just after Port Elliot as I wasn't sure where the boats were up to. The trail is a mix of on-road and shared-path however the onroad parts were adequately signposted to ensure not to get (too) lost for those unfamiliar with the area.
Despite the weather's attempts, I managed some 50km (Strava track for those interested) before putting the bike away to find food and something refreshing to drink. I even survived a sailing event with only sunburn to my ankles, so while some might call me crazy, I rather enjoyed it :)
Australia Day also continued the warm weather and while many went to the beach or river, I went on an early-morning group ride, and despite splitting up near the end (heading in different directions) I pushed through to my first 100km milestone. Final total for the month: 500km in ~22 hours. Big news of the month however was the bike upgrade - I now own a carbon road bike and it is a huuuuuge step up from my hybrid. Lighter, faster, and (surprisingly) comfier on the longer rides.
No, I haven't fallen over with the clipless pedals yet. Yes, I also now own (and occasionally wear) lycra.