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Monday, December 30, 2013

Numbers

It is the end of 2013 and time to take stock of the year that was. It was a busy year and here are the stats...


I have taken 32 flights this year not including connecting flights. That's roughly a flight every 11 days. 

I have spent 212 days (58%) of the year away from home with 196 (54%) of those away from my lovely and patient wife. 

During my time away, I spent 141 days (39%) of the year staying in a hotel. 

I have visited 29 cities in 8 different countries not including the smaller towns that stage races visit. 

I had 55 international race days and covered a total of  31657km on bike. If I rode every day of the year, that's an average of 87km per day. If you only look at the days I did ride, I averaged just on 100km per riding day. That is 8419km short of riding the distance around the globe!

During these km's, I spent 1026hrs riding a bike which is almost 3hrs per day with an average speed of 30.8kph.

I climbed 317250m uphill which would get me up Mt Everest 35.9 times. 

I went through roughly 4 cassettes, 6 chains and 20 tires on 3 different bikes and I have lost count of the number of tubes I have used. 

Last but not least, I burnt 458067 calories while riding my bike which is  1624 McDonalds cheeseburgers. 

I'm going to get a start on those cheeseburgers now. And maybe a head start on next year. 


Sunday, December 29, 2013

Chris's Adventure Rides

I hate doing the same ride twice. Well at least twice in the same week. As a result, I am constantly trying to find and plan new rides that I have never done. 

I have maps with me on my bike computer and I look for the most obscure way to get to places. My friends have called these rides 'Chris's adventure rides' and some are not so fond of them as, on the odd occasion, I get lost and end up going way further than planned. The adventure ends up being an ordeal. 

Having a mountain bike means that I can also plan some epic adventure rides. There are trails and tracks not far from the city centre that allow you to do endless hours off road in the middle of no where. 

The only problem with planning these MTB adventure rides, is that the maps are very limited and whilst they indicate that there is a trail, in real-life that trail may be over grown and straight up a vertical wall. 


Today, I experienced one such trail. We took a small 'shortcut' down a trail that was quite prominent on my maps but ended up being a 1km hike up a hill pushing the bikes in 40 degree heat. We just about needed a machete to carve our way through the trail. 


Despite this set back, the ride was an 'adventure' in every sense of the word. 120km in the dirt. Dehydration. Exhaustion. Navigation issues. Crashes. It had it all. As I tell my friends whenever they complain about 'Chris's adventure rides'... Attitude is the difference between an adventure and an ordeal!

 


Monday, December 9, 2013

'Off' season

Off season was supposed to be a time to relax at home and take a break from travelling around. It has been far from that. 

After returning home from the US at the beginning if September, I was home for 3 weeks before having to fly to China for the last race of the season. Then, a few days after I returned home, I went to visit my parents after endless reminders about how long it had been since I was last there. 

Another two weeks at home and then I was off to Tasmania to help out at a kids triathlon and visit some friends. I then came home for the weekend  before flying down to Melbourne for the World Diabetes Congress. After a delayed flight on the way home, I got to spend another weekend with my wife at home and now I am currently sitting on a plane on my way to California for the team's pre-season training camp. 


In 10 days time, I will return home for a couple of days to get over the jet lag before heading away for Christmas and New Year's. Then January will start with our 2nd training camp in Spain before kicking  off the racing season in Argentina. 

All routine has gone out the window and it feels like I just go home to do some laundry and refill my suitcase. My ever-patient wife has been calmly waiting to get to spend some time with me and most mornings I need to look around when I wake up just to confirm where I am. The off-season is proving to be almost as tiring as the racing season itself!

One thing is certain... I sure am getting tired of packing and unpacking my bike every few days!