And the rain came down!!!

A day of rain on Tuesday so I thought it would be a good idea to get out there and test the new waterproof gear........and.........pleasantly surprised. After two hours of rain and drizzle, the Altura Jacket was great, though got a bit hot and had to layer down, but good to know that it was waterproof and warm. The Altura over trousers were also great and very warm too; a bit of damp on the cycle tights from sweat - I do wonder how much these garments are really breathable, and if the more expensive ones like Gore Bike Wear are any more breathable than other less expensive ones; and/or more durable? But Gore Bike Wear is so much more expensive than other brands - I wasn't going to spend that kind of money, and am very pleased with my purchases. (you can check out the costs on the 'Funds' page.)
I will be cycling through loads of rain in Central America, but will probably not even put any rain gear on as it will be 'warm' rain....hopefully. Also I hope to be down on the Southern tip of Argentina in the summer, which again should not be too freezing, although there will be the wind chill factor, so I feel confident that the kit will suffice. However, if I get stuck in Alaska in the winter it may be a different story - have never cycled in sub zero temperatures before......might be quite exciting!
The Endura Over shoes were really great - got absolutely soaked but kept the feet warm and dry. The Specialized 'sub-zero' gloves were also great - again they are waterproof, supposedly, and did feel a bit damp at the end of the ride, but did keep the hands warm, and I didn't have the 'inners' in, which I presume will make them even warmer and drier.
Four days break off the bike now as I have a seminar in London Friday through Monday. The break will be good - have cycled every day for the past 29 days, so will be nice to have the feet on terra firma.

Brooks and Ergon

New Brooks saddle - great; an hour and 50mins, no pain in the butt!!! Have to get that up to 5 or 6 hours though!!! Ergon GC3 grips also really good - very comfortable - great support for the heel of the hand and once they were adjusted properly, the 'cow-horn' extensions provided multiple alternative hand positions. Feet very toasty in the Endura Overshoes and the Altura high visibility jacket, nice and warm. So far, so good - bring it on!!!!!!

Guitalele and Bike Parts

I have been very apprehensive about carting my guitar around for 50 000 kms. But a solution has been found. Everybody I have mentioned my trip and guitar to have said that I should take a Ukelele, and when I was in the music shop buying some guitar strings, there was a lady asking them about ukeleles....so of course my ears pricked up. The next day I went in and asked them about the Ukes, but I wasn't sold on the idea. However, researching on the internet that night I came across a Yamaha Guitalele and now was absolutely sold - what a perfect instrument to travel with. Basically the guitalele is just a very small guitar........and I hasten to add is not a toy!!! The Ukelele has only four strings but the guitalele has the same six strings of a normal guitar; but due to the smaller size it is tuned slightly differently. And so voila, the guitalele!

My Brooks saddle has arrived and is on the bike - went out on it yesterday and just for the one ride, was very comfortable. My ergon grips have also arrived but haven't ridden with them yet - looking forward to Friday's ride (although it may be wet....ugh!) to try them out. Slowly getting there! Winter kit keeping me nice and warm - hopefully dry as well - we'll see on Friday!

Awesome!

Bright sunshine in the middle of winter with very mild weather. Had a fantastic training ride - managed to find an off road track in the forest - felt so exhilarated and it started to engender in me the feeling of freedom I hope to find on the open road during the trip. Cold weather clothing worked well, was warm as toast but not fully cooked!! However, am still awaiting an order from a cycle shop for some new stuff - new over trousers, and waterproof jacket (my existing ones have lost their waterproofing!), some sub-zero waterproof gloves for cycling in really cold weather, some cycling glasses with transferable lenses for cycling in differing light, and a kick stand for the bike - nothing more frustrating than having to find something to prop the bike on when stopped, and then the bike falling over, and the paint work getting scraped!!!

Am interested to see how the waterproof gloves work. I have read so many comments from people who say that no glove is fully waterproof - well, we'll see. One touring cyclist said that the best option was to buy a pair of extra large industrial gloves - dry as ever and warm with ordinary gloves on the inside! Another option.

Also awaiting an Amazon kindle which is exciting - have found that I can download the Lonely Planet for most of the Americas, which will certainly save in weight in the terms of not having to carry books on the trip! I wonder if one can also download google maps onto the kindle - that would be great!

Not much work around at the moment which is worrying!! Will just have to win the lottery - dream on sunshine!!

Travels

I have been in the UK for nearly a week now after leaving Zimbabwe - how time flies! The house is hopefully in the good hands of a new tenant who is also very kindly looking after Tango and Lucy, my two canine friends - I miss them, but hopefully they will have lots of company with the other 6 dogs that have joined them!

Lucy and Tango

HOTEL SHARIO!!!

A huge thank you to Mario and Sharon, Sibelius, Jazz and Scarlett, who had me stay for the week leading up to Christmas - it was a real pleasure.

Mario

Sharon and Sibelius

The flight to the UK was good and the leg from Nairobi was less than a quarter full, so was able to stretch out and get some zzzzz.

Work started at Gayshott Spa in Surrey but a little quiet in terms of clients - hopefully it will pick up once we get over the New Year festivities. Very mild weather here which suits me just fine, though no sun....of course - in fact it is chucking it down right now. Went out on a cycle on Friday to take my bike to the bike shop as the gearing was off, and overdressed - the result? Much sweat!!! At least I know that my kit will keep me warm - well at 10 degrees anyway!

Just over 4 months to go before the trip to USA and Nashville.