– ODO- 16890 – 17047km
– Location- Non Khai, Thailand – Across the River from Vientiane
– Weather- 25-38
Vivid streams and flashbacks kept me awake throughout the night. For my final day on the bike I gave myself 165km to travel. I woke before the alarm and lay with a heavy head for several minutes. Learning from previous experience I’d fully packed my bags and laid out my breakfast bread and clothes and shoes read to go. The path of least resistance to getting on the road. This is a business of time on the bike. It’s not about speed. It’s about sheer hours. Getting on the road earlier in the cool makes a huge difference.
I had a slight upset stomach from some crab rice I’d had the day before and started slowly. Having passed the second range of hills on my route the roads were mostly flat and continued to be smooth. I plugged in to my podcasts and settled down to the pedals. Without tomorrow to think about I could push for the climbs and click up a gear on the flats.
Over such extended a trip aches and pains fade to nothing. My body knows what to expect each morning. My palms, thumbs and arse are callused knowingly from daily abuse. After a month on the bike I feel invincible.