According to my recently upgraded cycling spreadsheet (yes, I upgraded my cycling spreadsheet and it’s more than a little fantastic if I do say so myself – and I do!), it’s been 639 days since I’ve ridden a fully loaded bicycle. 639 days! I knew it had been a while but when I actually saw that number I was a bit taken aback. What had I been doing for the past 639 days … other than NOT riding a fully loaded bicycle? Well for starters, as has been pointed out to me on more than one occasion, I haven’t been posting many updates to my blog. (Cue the collective “sigh” from my 11 … maybe 12 … followers)

The main reason for the lack of cycling (and blog entries) was my focus shifted to the Africa documentary (aka. Lucy Has Worms) that my friend Gage and I had been working on. Yes, “had”. After three trips to Kenya and more than a few hours of editing, we’re finally finished. And, dare I say, we’re very happy with the way it turned out. Whether that turns into getting into any festivals or sales opportunities remains to be seen. But we’re hopeful.

Anyway, with Kenya in the rear view mirror, my focus was free to shift to other things. As it turns out, a little over a week ago (i.e., June 7th), it was actually sunny and warm-ish so I decided, for no real reason, to set up my tent. Side note: it’s been 643 days since I did that. Have I mentioned I love my spreadsheet? Ok, yeah, I know … that’s probably not normal. That said, I was pleased to see that my tent seemed to be in good shape after its extended hibernation. Of course, a true test of its condition could really only be done in less pleasant (aka. rainy) conditions. Current weather conditions notwithstanding, upon seeing said tent in its full form I couldn’t help but be reminded of the good times we’d had together. Really good. And even not-so-good times have a tendency to become good times in hindsight. Funny how that happens. And so my mind started to wander.

It didn’t take long for my wandering mind to return to a “plan” I’d first come up with a few years ago. I wouldn’t call it a “bucket list” plan because, as I’ve mentioned in previous posts, I’m not a fan of that expression and, as such, I don’t have such a list. Either way, the plan had been placed on the back burner when the Kenya documentary came along and subsequently became my priority. Now, with an opening on the front burner, the plan of years gone by was gaining momentum.

With my mind really starting to work (it happens from time to time), I thought it would be a good idea to do a gear inventory. My tent wasn’t the only neglected gear over the past 643 days. Several hours later I was looking at a semi-organized pile of cycling and camping supples. There were a few new items to replace tragically lost items since my previous trek but fortunately, only a few.

In the span of a few short hours, I had gone from casually setting up my tent to the realization that I had pretty much convinced myself to load up my bike for what could potentially be another extended tour. Granted, not as ambitious as my 2015 tour of 13,476.57 km (yup, still loving the spreadsheet) but I can’t imagine topping that tour. I’m not as young as I used to be!