Trip Preparations

Getting ready for this trip requires a great deal of time and thinking. Crossroads does a great job at helping in this area with all the information they supply. In addition, there is the training needed to prepare yourself for the rigors of this adventure. I signed up in August 2020 for the May 2021 trip which was cancelled. This turned out to be helpful for me as I was not in shape to make the ride even though I was training hard and was able to use the added time to get ready. I have ridden 14,699.2 mile since I signed up and feel much more prepared for the ride! We will see if my estimate of what it will take is accurate! Over the remaining two months I am working on increasing my endurance with longer rides and on the Neo 2T Tacx system for climbing as we have few hills in Florida to train on climbing! 

Training for this ride has been a challenge. At 76 years old, I find my body does not respond as it once did so, it takes longer to reach goals for weight, speed and distance. However, I keep reminding myself, this is not a race, it is an endurance ride! The only person I am racing is me! I have had to deal with serve cramping on longer rides! This required figuring out why and what was the best way to deal with managing the issue. In my case it was to closely regulated electrolyte replacement and the use of salt pills with adequate hydration. A great deal of trial and error and internet research.

I plan to update this blog periodically as we get closer to the ride. When I leave for the ride, I plan a daily update on the significant events along with some of the many photos I will be taking.

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