Making Miles

On my way home tonight I'll pass 900km for the month with more than a week left to add to that. I've been on a bike every day this month averaging nearly 40km a day. My legs feel very strong for a fat old fart. Hills that would normally grind me down just seem to pass. I have just over 300 km left to surpass last year's total. I'm aiming somewhere between 6 and 7000 for the year. My biggest year was 2008 when I topped 7000km .

Last night I came close to being doored less than 5 minutes from home. I had taken a 20km long ride home and had just crossed a side street and as I approached a car parked on the side of the road another that had been parked ahead of it on the wrong side of the road pulled out pushing me towards the parked car. And then the door of the parked car opened, I yelled "hey" and the door closed about halfway leaving me about 8 inches to squeeze through without even touching the brakes. "Sorry" I heard as I continued, yep everybody's sorry.

There are so many inconsiderate people I come across every day. From the golfers that use the pathway as a parking lot, to the woman who stops on the yellow line to water her two tiny dogs. Most give me the obligatory "sorry", but not all. Now as I pass I usually mutter under my breath, "yeah I know...you're sorry".

I have renamed my long distance all road Trek 750 after the women's record holder of the Tour Divide, Lael Wilcox. I still can't believe how far she rode (Fairbanks to Banff) and then went and killed the record. I'll have enough storage to carry my Nikon DLSR and an extra lens, phone, tools, pump, tubes, food and water for the day.

In three weeks we'll be heading for Calgary. Hopefully 'we' will include Sal because she really needs a break. I'm planning one day, all day in Banff on a bike, taking in every trail I can. All of the miles I'm doing now are building towards that day.  I have an internet friend that lives there so I hope I can hook up with him for a ride or at least to talk about some suggested can't miss rides. The images on his blog make me drool. I doubt I'll be riding the road to Moraine Lake as he did in October both because there is too much traffic in August, and (the more detrimental reason) that it climbs constantly for 14km. The climb might kill me but what a place to go.

Kevin Tweed on the road to Moraine Lake, Valley of 10 Peaks Oct. '14

Lael in 'Banff' mode