The first 10 km of the day out from Montceau-les-Mines was all about hills ... big ones and bigger ones. Not necessarily the Swiss Alps, but more than we have in Brisbane. One had a grade of 18 degrees. A one stage I ducked in behind Brett to benefit from drafting ... until I was told it isn't that effective uphill doing 5 km per hour. This was to be a 90 km day and already my energy was being exhausted at, well, an exhausting rate. I began cursing the French, then came around a corner to see an angry French farmer with a gun strapped over his back. I thought about loudly cursing Macron ... I've been told he's not a crowd favourite with the farmers, however, I opted for the old "Je suis Australien et j'aime votre beau pays", colloquially known as "I am Australian and I love your beautiful country". It worked. He didn't shoot me. We gestured to each other to communicate ... it was beautiful. Then I worked out that he was off to hunt some wild du...
A blog about my touring bicycle rides - slow and steady - for my future self to read and remember.