Less than 3 months to the Start

It's been too long between blogs - I'm sorry. The RAAM start is looming. I've booked air tickets. We're organising pre-race rides as a Team (we're geographically so dispersed). We're booking in our bikes for full overhauls. The tasks for the crew members is being allocated. We keep publicising our project. Carol, our media guru, has managed already to get stories about our Team into numerous bicyling e-magazines. Even if a bit apprehensive, we're very excited.

Whilst we're getting very close to the start, in practice that means that us riders are training - lots!. A thousand miles a month. Regardless of the weather, we're on a bike. The sturdy New Yorkers ride outside when it's freezing, or sleeting. Vancouver Don flees to southern California, with his bike, to do reconnaisance training rides. Whilst a late summer storm rages across Sydney, I jump on the indoor trainer for a 3 1/2 simulation of the Tour of Flanders . (On Saturday morning, I was the only member of our 360-strong Club to do our Club training rides - I should learn!).

DNF is not an option for us.

Summer in Sydney

My new programme said: 120km ride on Sunday. Friends said: Let's do the 4 gorges . That seemed to fit together - even if it added an extra 10km. But the weather was a bit challenging: 27degreesC (80F) at 5.15am. Most of the morning it was 37C (99F), with my computer registering 44 (112) at one stage. That meant LOTS of liquid - 6 bidons at 600ml (?20 oz), plus an extra litre of water at a stop, and 3 glasses once I got home (oh, and no stopping behind a bush!). But happy to report that for the entire ride I only lost 500g in weight, easily replenished.

New training Programme - Yippee

Is there something wrong with me - I delight in the new Training Programme from my coach. It starts with a mere 350km in the first week, with multiple sessions on numerous days. But it gives me structure - I know that with Peter's help, I can finish RAAM. So off I go this morning - 6 hill repeats at low cadence and steady power output. Happy? Yes! Then this afternoon, theoretically a 90 minute E2 ride which became a 90 minute Tempo ride. But it felt sooo gooood!

Our New Yorkers can ride again

After all the snow, the blizzards and the freezing conditions, Jim finally got to ride outside in New York. Clearly he needed to resolve a lot of pen-up frustration about having had to ride indoors on the trainer. But hey - a 8 1/4 hours ride!? Wow! My mere 3 3/4 was pathetic in comparison. And I suspect that it was still below freezing (or much too close to that!). Good on you Jim! PS - the Garmin also shows you have a heart - we know that!

Thank you San Francisco !

After nearly 2 weeks in Northern California, it's time to go home. I feel that we have dramatically ramped up our preparation for RAAM, I've been riding, made new friends, and spread the word. On top of Mt Tamalpais I meet up with a journalist Alastair. He inquires why riders for RAAM would come to train in Marin County north of SFO. It's obvious - see the photo of Mt Tam. I've done Mt Tam and the Alpine Road 6 times whilst I've been here (110km, 1500m climbing, at 5-9%). Greast scenery, great climbing, great descents, (and good coffee in Fairfax!).

In the last 6 days, I've ridden 723km - solid effort, but still only 57% of my share of RAAM. I feel good. We will complete!

Alpine in the winter?

They call it the Alpine Ride: Mt Tamalpais and then past Alpine Dam, to Fairfax and home. 110km, with 1500m climbing. Weather glorious! 22 degrees - is this really winter? I feel sorry for Jim and Cisco in New York: snowed in and below freezing.

Here, the climbing is steady - just keep going up. The gradients are higher than around Sydney, but the scenery fantastic. I took it easy - as can be seen from the attached extract from my iBike power software. NP= 204/287 up Mt Tam. It's all too good! To be repeated tomorrow and Monday.

schoolboy error - I get a reprieve

An email from my doctor in Sydney: go get meds. He suggests SF Gen Hospital, and gives me some names. I'm there first thing.

The first question I am asked at the hospital is whether I have a valid visa. Now that people with HIV can enter USA just like anyone else, yes I do have a valid visa (but this schoolboy error would have been a major problem before the visa change!)

I get helped, I get new meds, I burst into tears: I am so conscious of the benefits of the medication - it's the only reason I can live my life to the full, and why we can do RAAM.

But the cost of the meds is huge - $25 per tablet (and I take 2 per day) - unaffordable for most people on Earth. One of the reasons why we're riding.