Dave and his Bike

Well it’s been a busy couple of years since my last proper post. The ride to my new home and new life in the summer of 2022 was a good one, with the only disappointment being that due to the excessively hot weather (44 degrees) and our self-imposed time constraint Jane didn’t quite get here under her own steam. All credit to her though – 800+ km is no small achievement, especially in those conditions. 

I then assured friends and colleagues that as we continued with the restoration of our old house I would add blog posts to show the progress being made. I didn’t. I apologise, but several factors (excuses?) influenced this. We were busy. Really busy. Both with the house and the French bureaucracy which was all quite stressful. I also didn’t appreciate that finishing work after 30 years in the organisation would be so difficult. Not turning up at work was the easy bit. The feeling of losing my identity, less so. But enough of that. 

Now that we have spent an inordinate amount of money on the house and trips to far-flung places (without the bike) it’s time to start seriously planning my next bike ride. The idea first emerged in the late 1980s, inspired in no small way by Nick Sanders’ ‘Around the World in 80 days’, and during many cycling and beer-drinking conversations with my best-man, Steve Bloomer. In lieu of any other decent suggestions for a title, it has become referred to simply as The Big Ride. 

Just to be clear, I am not planning on cycling around the world. I would rather describe it as a round-the-world trip, and I’m taking my bike with me…

The Basic Plan

Firstly, I have agreed with my lovely wife that I won’t put myself at risk any more than is necessary i.e. not war zones, military coups, or places deemed ‘not a good idea’. North Korea is therefore out. I have basically cherry-picked the places around the world which I think will offer me the best mix of excitement, challenge and cultural experience, and limited myself to an approximate six month programme. That should be long enough to tick plenty of boxes, hopefully without getting too travel weary. I also quite like being at home now that we have moved here. 

In order to not feel over-awed by the concept of what I am trying to achieve, I have broken the ride down into six sections:

1. Home to Istanbul, through France, Italy, Slovenia, Croatia, Serbia, Bosnia, Bulgaria and into Turkey. 
2. Mumbai to Chennai, west to east across India. 
3. Bangkok to Singapore down the Malay Peninsular. 
4. Cairns to Sydney. Classic east coast of Australia route. 
5. Santiago to Buenos Aires, so Chile, Argentina, Uruguay and back into Argentina. With a possible foray into Brazil. But probably not.
6. Madrid back home. 

Which all adds up to over 13000km. It all sounds quite simple when you say it quickly. 

I have made the choice to cross South America, not the ‘usual’ route across the USA. I think it will be more of an adventure and the gun culture in the USA is a bit off-putting. 

Oh, I nearly forgot, I aim to set off from home in mid-September 2024. That should ensure that I hit the right weather windows everywhere I go. At least I hope it does!

So Far….

Not a lot in real terms. 

A back spasm and a touch of tendonitis in 2023, followed by a ‘slipped disc’ in early 2024 meant that my cycling suffered. Bad advice from a couple of physios (DON’T ride!) filled by some good advice from one (thanks Jay Ruddock – www.alignbodyclinic.co.uk), and some great encouragement from the sports doctors in Cahors. I am eventually trying to get some mileage in to make up for lost time. It has not been easy.

I aim to update this blog with training progress, route and kit choices, and anything else which sounds vaguely relevant to The Ride. Watch this space.