20km....
Thus far the biggest ride I have been on and I am a little proud of myself. As Coonamble cools down and we get some morning sunlight my chances for riding increase greatly! I am limited by my husband and children for now - trying to coordinate everyone for some free time is tricky, but it won't be long and I will be hitting the bitumen at the crackers getting this body ready for November.
My excitement for riding hasn't increased greatly yet, but who knows... a few more early mornings, fresh air and beautiful scenery (minus the brown snake that nearly brought Marissa and I unstuck on yesterdays peddle...) and who knows I might even LIKE this whole bike riding thing! Looking out over the stubble paddocks as we fly along, I can almost imagine the rice paddies... and it's a great thought. Ok, maybe "fly along" implies we are moving at warp speed when we are not... but I managed a modest 15km/h yesterday and again, I am a little proud of myself! Marissa and our new trainer LUKE (together we are the TOORA RD BIKE GANG) can definetely blow me away with speed, but managing to maintain 15km/h is good enough for me.. surely I can improve on that as we go along!
Our fundraising efforts are going along extremely well, we are all feeling really positive about hitting (and smashing) our targets for both fundraising and travel... it's a huge ask, but we are all super motivated and nothing stops a lady when she has her mind set (let alone FOUR)! The response from family and friends has been nothing short of AMAZING and it humbles me to my core that there are people out there willing to support us not only emotionally, but with their hard earned :)
Today I am writing a submission to ROTARY, outlining our trip including an itinerary, the reasons behind the trip and full costings for all our expenses which Marissa and I are excited to present to them tonight! It has made me go over everything for the first time since earlier this year. And ofcourse I am excited all over again!!!! Although it has also brought to the surface those negative feelings I am trying to ignore... leaving my family :( Driving home from Dubbo late last week I found myself crying at the wheel as I played out getting on the plane and flying to Vietnam for the challenge.... I have to stop myself looking at the kids and wondering... it's hard, it's REALLY hard. BUT I am trying to let other things keep my focus, like fitness and riding... and fundraising :)
So, I can still walk today after my 20km yesterday (which surprises me) and even better, I am looking forward to the next ride to see if I can go just a little bit further :) No turning back now...
(L-R) Marissa, Sal, Jane & ME
