How does one unicycle 500km through Laos? Practice. It also helps to use a unicycle with a huge wheel, at least if you want to keep up with the other people on the tour. I'd been riding normal size unicycles for a decade, but had never ridden the giant monster required for this sort of trip, and it's really a different beast. I also needed to whip myself into really great condition. The days of riding on the tour are long and hard and I want to enjoy them, not just barely make it from one day to the next.
We had a suggested training schedule, which was helpful. I was ahead of it for a while, but a few weeks of awful weather made it more difficult, as did the limited daylight hours in the winter.
What follows is a log of all my training rides, which, since I'm starting from zero on this behemoth, is also a log of all the rides I've ever done on a 36 inch unicycle, right up to the tour itself.
| total distance: | 1024km |
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| riding days: | 33 |
| Monday | Tuesday | Wednesday | Thursday | Friday | Saturday | Sunday | 20 Oct 2005 24.5km 11.0km/h 165m climbing 152mm cranks night | 22 Oct 2005 Rancho San Antonio 18.6km11.2km/h 280m climbing 152mm cranks dirt | 23 Oct 2005 to Shoreline and back 34.0km11.7km/h 235m climbing 152mm cranks gravel |
25 Oct 2005 27.8km13.5km/h 180m climbing 152mm cranks night | 27 Oct 2005 23.7km13.6km/h 165m climbing 152mm cranks night | 30 Oct 2005 Rob's Ride 33.4km9.8km/h 640m climbing 152mm cranks dirt |
03 Nov 2005 10.7km13.5km/h 50m climbing 152mm cranks dirt, grass | 04 Nov 2005 31.0km13.6km/h 250m climbing 152mm cranks night | 06 Nov 2005 Lexington reservoir 20.7km11.1km/h 400m climbing 152mm cranks dirt |
07 Nov 2005 32.7km13.7km/h 235m climbing 152mm cranks rain, night | 10 Nov 2005 11.8km13.3km/h 120m climbing 140mm cranks dirt, gravel | 12 Nov 2005 14.2km14.1km/h 220m climbing 140mm cranks | 13 Nov 2005 Aptos to Moss Landing and back 60.9km13.5km/h 870m climbing 140mm cranks |
17 Nov 2005 15.9km14.8km/h 180m climbing 140mm cranks | 20 Nov 2005 Rob's Ride 31.4km10.7km/h 610m climbing 152mm cranks dirt |
21 Nov 2005 33.2km13.7km/h 400m climbing 140mm cranks (dirt, gravel) (night) | 24 Nov 2005 8.6km12.8km/h 0m climbing 140mm cranks 10kg pack | 25 Nov 2005 8.6km14.0km/h 35m climbing 140mm cranks 10kg pack | 27 Nov 2005 Aptos to Moss Landing and back 62.6km13.5km/h 810m climbing 140mm cranks |
04 Dec 2005 Rob's Ride 31.4km11.2km/h 575m climbing 152mm cranks dirt |
06 Dec 2005 Pulgas Water Temple 74.3km13.6km/h 1080m climbing 140mm cranks | 09 Dec 2005 Stevens Canyon 25.9km12.8km/h 370m climbing 140mm cranks | 15 Dec 2005 8.3km14.0km/h 0m climbing 140mm cranks night | 21 Dec 2005 San Diego to Mexico 48.8km12.0km/h 650m climbing 140mm cranks (heavy traffic) (night) | 23 Dec 2005 hilly San Diego suburbs 10.6km10.8km/h 400m climbing 140mm cranks | 26 Dec 2005 Rob's Ride variant 38.7km10.9km/h 780m climbing 140mm cranks loose crank | 28 Dec 2005 Lexington reservoir 20.9km10.4km/h 400m climbing 140mm cranks | 29 Dec 2005 Capitola to Wilder Ranch and back 33.9km12.7km/h 410m climbing 140mm cranks | 05 Jan 2006 Stevens Canyon 9.2km11.3km/h 180m climbing 140mm cranks new brake, new tube | 06 Jan 2006 Palo Alto - Woodside loop 28.4km13.1km/h 450m climbing 140mm cranks | 08 Jan 2006 Highway 1: Santa Cruz to Big Basin 74.2km12.6km/h 1090m climbing 140mm cranks |
11 Jan 2006 Palo Alto - Woodside - Hwy 92 and back 54.2km12.6km/h 685m climbing 140mm cranks | 15 Jan 2006 Eureka Canyon loop 61.5km11.0km/h 1050m climbing 152mm cranks |
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