Day before the tour commences. Quito.

After a fantastic sleep we were up for a breakfast which consisted of 2 bread rolls, a slice of cheese and a slice of ham. Now, I'm not complaining about what we had, and actually it was quite nice. Washed down with a nice fruit drink and a couple of cups of coffee.

Barry and I had planned to meet Jurg from Switzerland ( and he knows my friend Scott Chipperfield who use to play for Australia and one of the big football teams in Europe) at 9 am to go for a ride to the Parque Metropolitano about 5 kms away. The parque has big climb which Dermot rode yesterday, and like all crazy cyclists, we had to take on the challenge today.

We rode the cycleway for the majority of the way, took a quick right and up we climbed. The climb was at around 12% and didn't really let up until we reached  the summit at around 2850 metres. I'm not sure how accurate the altitude reading is on my watch. Tomorrow I'll be able to compare with my new Garmin 1000 with the reading.

The view from the summit over the city and down to the new airport was very impressive. Jurg pointed out in the distance the famous Cotopaxi mountain. Cotopaxi is a stratovolcano in the Andes Mountains, located about 50kms south of Quito, Ecuador. It is the second highest summit in the country and reaching a height of 5,897 metres above sea level. Some consider it the world's highest active volcano, while others give this status to the considerably higher Llullaillaco, which most recently erupted in 1877.

Since 1738, Cotopaxi has erupted more than 50 times, resulting in the creation of numerous valleys formed by lahars (mud-flows) around the volcano.

From the top of the park we managed to get a view of the top of Cotopaxi which is covered with snow. The photo below is not that great of the mountain, but one can see the snow covered peak.

Back on the bike for some more riding of the park. We came across some Lamas and of course had to get a photo standing near one. And to my friends back home, they didn't shake when I came close.

 Back down the hill and out of the park and into the city below. We entered another park and wanted to see why there were so many people wearing Coca Cola clothing and walking around the place. There must have been about 50 people riding bikes and carts depicted in the photo below handing out free bottles. Now I'm always up for freebies.

So when this young lady came up to me and handed me a bottle of coke and insisted on having her photograph taken with me, I had to oblige. Now I can understand why she wanted the photo. I couldn't talk any longer with her and told her I had to continue, as I was on a mission. We rode around the park which was full of children playing football, basketball and having a lot of fun. I think the children must be on school holidays.

In Quito we noticed the cyclists riding in the bus trolley lanes. Barry and I hopped into the lane and rode behind the bus all the way to the 'Old City' where we had been yesterday. Once in the city we made a U turn and latched onto another trolley bus and rode back to the new town where we were staying. The photo below is Barry behind the bus in the trolley lane. Actually it is the safest I've felt riding around Quito thus far on holidays.

Once in town we went back to the Plaza Hotel to pack up some gear and get ready for the first meeting of the tour at 4pm. Bike went well and everything looks in order for tomorrow. I'm now starting to get excited about getting underway. It's time to leave Quito. I'll update you tomorrow on the meeting and how our first ride which is to the equator and back goes tomorrow.

Last night at dinner this young lad came up to us and asked if he could clean our boots. I had sandals on and Barry had boots which don't take polish. Barry ended up giving the boy a couple of coins and I took a really nice photo. Below is the photo.

Now all the work has been done, thousands of kms ridden back home, a bike which is built to take on almost anything. All I have to do is 'just do it'. The photo below is the helmet that's going to protect me over the next 11,000 kms. I'm also filming a lot of the tour thanks to my son's birthday present. Thanks Josh.

Until tomorrow, safe riding.

Sightseeing in Quito. The roads are not good for cyclists.

Before I go into too much about what we did today I thought I should tell you something about Quito.

Quito was a major Inca city that was destroyed by Atahualpa’s general Rumiñahui, shortly before the arrival of the Spanish conquistadors. The present capital was founded atop the Inca ruins by Sebastián de Benalcázar on December 6, 1534. Unfortunately, no Inca structures remain.

Quito Old Town was built centuries ago by indigenous artisans and laborers, Quito’s churches, convents, chapels and monasteries are cast in legend and steeped in history. It’s a magical, bustling area, full of yelling street vendors, ambling pedestrians, tooting taxis, belching buses, and whistleblowing policemen trying to direct traffic in the narrow, congested one-way streets.  As a foreign cyclist I didn't pay much attention to them and rode on like we owned the place.

Quito (elevation 2850m) is Ecuador’s second largest city, after Guayaquil. Quito’s reputation as a dangerous city is increasing. The Mariscal Sucre neighborhood (in the New Town) is extremely dangerous after dark, and we were told that we should always take a taxi, even for short distances. The Mariscal has been plagued by drugs, muggings, assaults and prostitution, and the city has only recently taken even the most token steps to control it (and the police corruption that allows it to continue). Sound like a lot of police forces in many developing nations.

I woke today at 4.30 am and couldn't get back to sleep. Up early is not good for me. After breakfast, Barry and I, and Dave from England went on a ride of the city. First we had to go across the park and check out the bicycle shop so Dave could buy some new bar ends for his handlebars. This device gives you another position to rest your hands whilst riding.

That's Dave leaving the bicycle shop. We told him he'd go faster now.

The video clip was taken on the iPhone whilst riding around the square.

With the bike now sorted it was time to hit the road and fight for a place on the road in a city that is just chaotic. We took as many side streets as possible but no matter what turn we took, it was just dangerous to ride on these roads.  We made our way to the old city to check out the local square. This is a square where the majority of people are elderly who congregate to chat and let the day pass without a concern in the world. We did get to meet a nice chap who wanted to know why we were in his city.

The old chap above, that's the one in the middle, checked out our bikes and was amazed when we told him we were riding to the end of the world. We agreed it was a stupid idea, but we paid too much to chuck it in, so we were committed. After the nice chat we went back into the fire and rode on up to the church of San Francisco which was quite a spectacular church which I had to go in.  In the photo below it's hard to see, but the entire roof is painted in gold leaf. Took a couple more photos and kept riding around the narrow twisty alleys of the old town.

In the distance high on yet another hill in Quito is the Mirador El Pancellio. We didn't want to climb the hill as we were already out of breath and the morning's ride was basically on flat roads. We just admired from the Square as the base of the hill.

The Mirador El Panecillo is a statue that stands atop the Panecillo which held immense religious significance during the pre-Inca, Inca and Spanish rule. The statue known as ‘Virgin of Quito’ is viewed as a protector of the city with the symbolic crushed serpent below her feet. The Panecillo hill has held the value of a fortress and a lookout for defense purposes. The Panecillo hill has also taken part and made its presence felt in the Independence battle of Quito.

It was time to head back to our accommodation. First we stopped off for lunch and then onto a nice coffee shop. I must say the people that go to this coffee shop are a lot more classier than the group I come across back home.

Now how's that for coffee and cake. I know it's not healthy, but I'm on holidays.

The rest of the afternoon is doing nothing. I do feel a bit better than yesterday, so Friday is looking good to start the tour. More cyclists.are arriving by the hour and the trucks are just around the corner.

For some other useless trivia to devour. Ecuador has had 7 presidents in the past 10 years. Now that's stability in a nation. Half the countries earnings come from petroleum based products.

Until tomorrow, safe riding.

Sydney to Quito. Ecuador.

Finally we've reached the city of Quito in Ecuador. The journey started with a 12 hour and 50 minute flight to Santiago, Chile and then a 5 hour layover. If there's one thing I hate and that's sitting around doing nothing. The next flight was to Quito which took another 5 hours and 45 minutes. When we arrived at the airport we were greeted by our driver and taken to the Hotel Plaza International which was another 1 hour of travel. Both Barry and I were stuffed.

Once at the hotel we unloaded the vehicle with all our bags and bike boxes, brought them inside, got our room, and after a quick shower it was time to sleep. And everybody knows how much I love my bed so I decided to sleep till 9.15am. I know my last 2 riding companions Peter and Len would be saying that lazy little Aussie ass, but as I told them both, I need my sleep more than others.

Although we left Sydney at 12.30 pm on Monday we still arrived in Santiago at 11.30 am same day. I'll lose the day or two on the return journey.

So after a great sleep it was down for breakfast. Our table was set with knife and fork, and I was expecting something very special.  Breakfast was 2 bread rolls, 2 slices of cheese and a cup of tea and a glass of juice. Not much if you were going to do any riding. Now for today.

After breakfast we went downstairs and opened the bike boxes to check out if they suffered any damage during the flight. My bike was perfect and went together in no time. Barry's bike suffered a bent brake disc on the front wheel, so we had to go and find shop to sort out the problem. I took over the negotiation skills and got the guy to fix the wheel for 3 dollars.  Now that's a bargain. He couldn't get the complete buckle out so we might have to find a better shop tomorrow. The photo below is Barry and Buck from America standing out the front of the bike shop.

The photo below is the mechanic trying to fix the wheel with a shifting spanner. Not a great mechanic with those tools.

After the bike shop it was time to try and find a shop to buy a sim card. I had spoken to Graham Rutter back home and he advised me to check out Movistar for a telephone and data packages. This will have to wait till tomorrow.

After walking around the city we decided to catch a taxi up to the Teleferico which is a cable car that climbs the mountain overlooking Quito.

The TelefériQo or TelefériQo Cruz Loma, is agondola lift in Quito, Ecuador, running from the edge of the city centre up the east side of Pichincha Volcano to lookout Cruz Loma. It is one of the highest aerial lifts in the world, rising from 3,117 m (10,226 ft) to 3,945 m (12,943 ft).^[1] The ascent takes about eight minutes, traveling 2237 linear metres.

Once at the top the views looking down over the city are just spectacular. 

The photo above is Barry on the left and Buck on the right. Walking at over 4000 metres really takes your breath away. I'll need to get use to it pretty quickly as we start our serious riding on Friday.

There is a good walkway along the rim of the mountain so we took a path get a better view over the city and seriously I was walking like an old man. I was dragging the chain so to speak. Out of breath and doing it real tough. 

We caught the cable car back down the mountain and made our way back to the hotel to clean up. We had a long day out walking around at 2850 metres which Quito is situated, and also up the mountain. Tomorrow is a short ride and getting to meet some of the other 40 riders who will be riding to the end of the world. So I'm not the only mad cyclist on this planet.

Until tomorrow, safe riding.

South America, here we come. Video release.

It's now 2 weeks till we take off and head to Quito in Ecuador to start the next installment of 'Tales from the Saddle'. A South American journey of over 11,000kms to the end of the earth.  Although Quito is situated at an altitude of over 2800 metres, we have 3 days to acclimatise before we commence our riding on the 1st August 2014.

My bike is ready to go thanks to the support of 'Spearman Cycles' in Wollongong and I would also like to thank Matt DeMoss of Garmin Australia.  I recently purchased the Garmin 1000 and couldn't be happier with the product.

I would also like to thank Kieran McLeod for his work on the video and all his help and ideas on filming.

The entire trip will be filmed on 'GoPro' and short segments will be posted throughout the trip.

Until tomorrow, safe riding.

Video release of South American adventure 14th July 2014.

On Monday 14th July 2014 I'll be releasing the video of the up and coming tour of South America.

During the trip I'll be posting video on the site of what we have been getting up too.

Stay tuned and until tomorrow, safe riding.

The greatest gift is to give to others. Thank you Daniel Stone.

Over the past couple of weeks I've been trying to collect some good cycling jerseys from my friends in my home town of Wollongong, New South Wales, Australia. The reason for collecting the jerseys was because in 2011 when I was competing in the Cairo to Capetown bicycle tour, I met an amazing man named Brian Sianyeuka. Brian lives in Lusaka, Zambia, and is a very keen cyclists.  I sent Brian an Illawarra Cycle Club jersey when I came back from Africa and he wears the jersey with pride. From travelling to Africa in the past I know how hard it is to get reasonably priced cycling jerseys, so I though I should do something nice.

After harassing my friends I got over 20 jerseys.

I would like to thank Luke Walshe, Graham Rutter, Tim Manton, Barry Buckley and me, for donating some fantastic clothing and to Daniel Stone for delivering them to Brian at Lusaka airport earlier today. The photo below is of Brian wearing the Illawarra Cycle Club jersey that was donated by Frank Soto of Soto Consulting Engineers.

Daniel is a heading to a game park for a couple of weeks and then going to meet up with my son Josh for a medical placement in Johannesburg in the coming weeks.  Without Daniel's help the cost of sending the clothing would have been over the top.

I look forward to posting some more photos of the Zambian riders wearing the donated gear.

Once again, until the 28th July 2014, safe riding.

GARMIN 1000. Guaranteed not to get me lost.

I received my new Garmin 1000 this week and am very grateful for the experts at Garmin Australia for this product.  A big thank you goes to the new boss of Garmin Australia for such a fantastic product that will help me on the ride to the end of the world.

4 weeks till lift off.

Until the 28th July 2014, safe riding.