I have long been a fan of the all encompassing 'to do' list - invariably scribbled on the back of an envelope which is lost before list completion. Planning to cycle the majority of the length of South America has spawned a whole new obsession with such lists, which now lie scattered across the kitchen table in our little cottage on the edge of Sheffield like seedlings requiring daily nurture: an addition here, the infinitely satisfying crossing-off there.
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| Test riding in Wharncliffe Woods |
So out of control have these lists become, sprouting siblings, cousins and children (the 'bike to do' list, the 'to make' list, the 'to take to parents' list which includes, crossed-off, the entry 'sewing machine' which it now becomes apparent is required to proceed through the 'to make' list...cue new list: 'to retrieve from parents') that now in existence is the mother of all lists, written on a crisp, new piece of A4 paper: THE MEGA TO DO LIST.
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| The falsely reassuring Transpennine Trail - flatter than Peru? Perhaps a little. |
Bicycles purchased, packing lists taking shape, practice mini cycle tours complete with only slight trepidation about the weight of our laden bikes, there remains only a small amount of preparation. And the minor detail of booking flights, but the less said about that the better. The date on the calendar titled 'we will now be able to plan our lives' (12th May) has now passed, but frustratingly the ability to plan lives is still slightly hindered by continued uncertainty over the date of starting the next phase of surgical training. Having accepted a urology training number (guarantee of 5 years of registrar training) in the East of Scotland I now wait on word from my supervisor about whether delaying the start date from August 2016 is possible. The double asterisked entry of 'book flights' remains uncrossed for the time being.
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| The ultimate test for a fully laden tourer: a MTB trail in Thetford Forest |
As it happens, 'write inaugural blog post' didn't feature on the to do list. Perhaps, like all good list keepers, I'll add it on now in order to immediately cross it off again.
