Flight or fight

June 30
First I had my flight..Melb to Dubai economy on a VERY full flight, then an up grade to Business to Munich.  No probs here although 3 breakfasts in about 6 hours is probably a bit excessive!

July 1
Then I  had the fight.  I landed and after picking up my backpack from the carousel proceeded to wait for my bike to appear....(and I'm still waiting 2 days later).

  Next task..pick up the car

For transport this year, due to at the most crowded part of my holiday there will be 3 of us all with bikes, I'd chosen a Renault Grand Kangoo....and check out the yukky colour!

It's a 7 seater but  the middle row folds down and the back row can be taken out resulting in a bike garage!

Then I drove to Sankt Johann and to my BnB.  This pix was an early morning grab of the Kitzbueler horn ...the weather went belly up soon after .

July 2
 I drove back to Munich airport and went through the same process. Keeping myself nice by remaining cool and polite  despite the inner rage, I managed to squeeze some $$$ out of Emirates as I had to buy some clothes..they tried to wriggle out by saying they only paid up if they had lost ALL your luggage, whereas I also had a backpack.  I managed to persuade them that it was a very small backpack and came away with 80 euros...prob only enough to pay for the extra fuel and parking fees...doh.  Actually I was pleasantly surprised that 4 hours in a park  close to arrivals was only 16 euros..a far cry from the  outright robbery that Melb airport perpetrates in their car parks.

It then pissed rain++++ all the way down into Italy. However, armed with my usual travel food and an audio book, the journey passed uneventfully.  

I, of course,was never the fastest car on the road, despite being 10kph over the stated limit.  Some cars were going so fast my car rocked in the turbulence they created as they warp speeded (or is it sped) past me.  Just  like the Renault cars I've had previously this car is gutless on the hills

  I finally got to my hotel in Follina at 8pm...I'd stayed here 2 years ago and so got a fantastic welcome.  My evening meal was trout from the local river, cooked on an open fire right next to me in the restaurant..pix to follow as for some reason the touch ipod that I used to take the pix wont see the wifi here,

Hopefully the bike will arrive today.  The main prob is that I have to be here to sign for it and so can't stray too far.........to be continued.

A challenge isn't a challenge unless there is a chance of failure

the above image courtesy  http://www.liveforadventure.co.uk/2012/06/12/mortirolo-stelvio-gavia-passes/

Last weekend I was in Alice Springs for 4 days and it seems that the cold, crisp and  clean air finally swept out the bugs and cobwebs.  I was there for MTB Orienteering..which was for me somewhat of a disaster competitively but...the riding on local trails was great.

Yesterday I rode a solo 130km..taking a VERY long time but after the past few weeks when I've been below par, it was the ride I just had to do.

This year I turn 70 so what better thing to do than set myself a challenge of riding as many high mountain passes as possible in the Dolomiti and Italian  alps.

MY count down days til take off is now in single figures and the weather in Feltre where I'm staying for the first 2 weeks is like this:

added:  I've opted not to tide the world masters in Slovenia.....the race is rather long and I've not got the background training done.  Plus the expense was escalating ridiculously.

Life has been far too tedious to prompt me to post anything!

However I'm now on a countdown for my next European adventure.

25 days to go!

Work work work has occupied me for rather a long time and  sadly I'm not as fit as I'd like..having been well sub par health wise for the past 2 months, but I think I'm now on the up again.....Famous last words..but hopefully true this time.

Sooo..this time round the focus is not split between language school and training.....noooo..this time it's all about the bike.

THE Itinerary

this year I'm avoiding travelling over the weekend......finally I've learned

30/06  Dep Melbourne
01/07  Arrive Munich, pick up the car, drive to Sankt Johann, pick up my stashed gear, stay the night
02/07  Drive to Feltre, stay in a monastery!
04/07  Drive to Pedavena (near Feltre ) and with Lorraine  climb many mountains
19/07  Drive to Cortina d'Ampezzo  with Lorraine and Alex climb many mountains
26/07  Drive to Bormio  with Lorraine and Alex climb many mountains
02/08  Drive to Feltre watch Palio, then joined by my sister and with Alex climbing mountains, do some speed work and explore WW1 sites in the area. Sister to Treviso
14/08  Drive with Alex to Hartberg Austria Race many race (Alex to Poland for his MTBO Worlds)
23/08  Drive to Sankt Johann in Tirol rejoined by sister. Do a race or 2
30/08 Drive somewhere nice..not sure where
02/09  Final ride, pack bike, drive to Munich, catch plane
04/09  Arrive Melbourne

The mountains I'm climbing (alongside Lorraine and Alex...well I'll be alongside them at the start of the climb at least) are the iconic climbs of the Dolomites and Italian Alps eg the Stelvio, Mortirolo, Gavia, Giau, Pordoi, Monte Grappa, Bodone, San Boldo, Croce d'Aune, Selle Ronde, Tre Croci, Tre Cime  to name just a few.  There will be photos...if only so I can legitimise stopping!

hopefully after all  effort involved in heaving my sorry self over those skyscrapers I'll be mega fit and rail thin!

Picky grammar nazi things and secondary connotations

1. So, when the waitress asks me if I want my hot cross bun "toasted or fresh" do I take it that, since the opposite of fresh is (for food at least!) "old/stale/past it's use by date etc", my HCB actually "old/stale/past it's use by date etc" and that toasting it covers up that fact?

2. On opening up the envelope with the receipt for work done installing my AC, out dropped a $100 voucher to give a friend who could use it to have their own AC/heating installation. 

Nice I thought ..then I read the fine print which said " This the voucher must be presented at the time of the quotation"!  

Since my next door neighbour works for the company I might just have to give them the heads up that it's really not a good look to infer that  "I give you $100 off the quote that I've just upped by the same amount"!

Some quotes

In a weak moment I read an article about Australia's latest cultural embarrassment - a female Australian who was convicted of attempting to smuggle drugs INTO (!) Indonesia and was in jail for 10 of a 20 year sentence.

The comments on the article provided me with the following pieces of gold:

• "Good on her and her family, 9 years in jail for a very debatable guilty verdict from such a corrupt country when the case was a shambles with no clean proof except 'it was in her bag' is pretty pathetic".

• Rusted on nut jobs   A description of people who still believe in something despite 100% proof against.

• Like most people I'm over the Corby thing.... let's just let bogans be bogans.  

Spell check stikes again an upgrade and a "special" event

this from a cycling buddy writing on Twitter....one could say sooo much could one not!


"I have a lot planned for today but so far the biggest hurdle is getting off the coach..."

and to upgrade youse all...I'm busy training  and have moved from hills, hills, hills to speed speed speed, including a crit or 2

but the body is starting to fray at the edges..........this from me writing to my coach...(not my couch!)

"Currently I have:

• a trigger finger on  my ring finger left hand..  had it for about a month or so...worsening and so it's now splinted and Mt Buller is off the menu since gripping the brake for an extended  period of time is currently not recommended.  1/12 splinting (on and off...actually s'posed to be 24/7!) then if no good cortisone and if all fails an op
  
• 2 dead and dying teeth...these made their death throes known last week and a visit to the dentist confirmed that their 2 year long pall care period was coming to an end.  Strangely they feel a bit better now, but that may be that they are in fact comatose.  A visit to the peridontist will tell me if there is enough bone to put in a bit of metal to ultimately fix an implant to or whether indeed I need a bone graft or..third option  a plate.  All sounds mega expensive and thankfully I'm working to soak up the bills!  however I may well go for the cheapest option, which I'm sure will be the plate.
  
• The ganglion on the toe has emerged again. Speaking to the orthopod the other day  .....he had thought it came from the tendon but now acknowledges it's from the joint.   There is a possibility of arthrodesing the TIP jt on that toe or could it be the whole toe since that toe is starting to claw anyway, or perhaps an arthodesis and a flexor tendon release?? although my podiatrist friend says beware the floppy toe syndrome!  Whatever since it's not getting in the way I've said nothing will happen apart from consults til the end of the year.
  

the rest of me is fine!.."


and the really special day....this is me writing in FB:

"some days are just, well....different! today started with a crit at the Kew Boulie...first race for about 4/12 and yes.... I struggled.

When I finally got home there were blue and red flashing lights everywhere and police cars parked across my road and tape preventing me from getting into my house. WTF?

A friendly police man explained that a "device" had been found in a rubbish bin nearby and the bomb squad was there to explode it...! So.... I got to hear the bang and see the robot. Enough with the excitement!

Bringing me back down to earth is my next appointment which is with the dentist as I have 2 teeth that are giving me grief both in the mouth and, I suspect, in the hip pocket nerve.

Tomorrow will be just plain boring!"

There you are...training, health, bombs!  and apparently it was a battery pack..not a bomb at all, but I guess they have to make sure and perhaps it's also good practice for when there really is a bomb.

Mega long time no write

Finally  the stars are aligned and I have not only the time to write but also a few pix to share.

What have I been doing since I returned to Melbourne..working, training, scaling  "mountains" (ie trying to keep the climbing legs working) going to Italian classes and getting out on the MTB.

Last thing 1st.  MTB.
I put my name down to go to NZ for the Aus/NZ MTBO challenge along with Alex  with a plan to extend the holiday and visit  a few places in NZ..eg Hobbiton.  However, Alex had extended his European holiday budget to the point of having to cancel his NZ plans leaving me to wonder if I should still go.  Eventually I decided I would and lo and behold I found that I was in the Aus team no less!  Riding in the 70 + year age group and paired against a similar aged Kiwi lady...they even changed the rules to allow a 1 person rather than 3 person age group.  so a need to get out on the MTB arose!

This weekend I went in for the Forrest Festival (that's NOT a spelling mistake) a 2 day/5 race event in Forrest.  I hadn't quite realised how the format would play out but on finding out that after my first race of 15km I would have to wait for over 4 hours for my next start, decided to pull the plug.  Actually I was really tired...my training to date not been for MTB and the added concentration required during the 15km/73 min ride over single track exhausted me. It was quite frustrating to have to get off the bike on the technical downhills and then have to overtake on the next climb those who'd passed me while I was going downhill !

Our accommodation was fantastic...very bush and as can be seen by the pix there were King Parrots begging to be fed.  Alex did the feeding as I have a thing about birds flapping around my head...an issue stemming from a traumatic experience I had as a ?6 or 7 year old when I went too close to an owl's nest and it flew at me and landed on my back. An experience that I can still recall in minute detail.

As for the rest..
I've been working on a casual basis with my long time employer and today am checking out another job that will keep me busy for 2 days a week til  after Christmas.

I'm still attending Italian classes at CIS in Carlton  ...they have a sweet deal whereby 4 weeks into the term you can add as many classes as you chose, providing they are not already full.

I'm occasionally racing crits on Tuesday evenings with Eastern Vets and am taking part in the  7 peak alpine climb series where one climbs the 7 decent climbs here in Victoria.  I've done 1 so far..Lake Mountain and next Sunday will attempt to conquer Baw Baw..the worst/steepest climb in Australia.
I have also been having skills sessions with Helen Kelly from Kelly Cycle Coaching 
 to improve on a few technical issues eg descending,cornering, riding rollers, riding no hands, riding no hands on the rollers(!) track stand etc etc. The descending issue was actually one I realised was going to hamper me in my 2014 holiday when I plan on climbing (and descending) many of the iconic passes in the Dolomiti.

Training took a bit of a hit when I had to have a minor op on my toe...getting rid of a ganglion that wouldn't go away but with the help of a pair of sandals that would accept cleats I was able to at least get time on the ergo..totally ignoring the surgeons instructions to stay off the bike for 5 days.  Well ok...some might say that was silly but I analysed the situation...saw that the toe/op site was not being compromised and that it wasn't moving any more than when I was walking......

that's all she wrote