Older or wiser?

It's a lovely morning outside at this very moment, yet I'm sitting here typing a blog entry rather than riding my bike. Five years ago, this would not have happened, yet today I'm resting up for tomorrow's epic adventure in Lamington National Park (more on that later). I'll still be commuting of course, but that's such an easy ride that it's barely worth mentioning. It's interesting to note the change in mentality over that time period. It seems to have come about as a result of my bike tours, particularly the New Zealand trip in 2006.

A few years ago, I was focused on simply accumulating as many kilometres as possible. Taking a "day off" the bike to do anything else at all was almost considered sacrilege. To be honest I still find "days off" frustrating, and that instinct will probably never change. However, these days that frustration seems to be tempered by reason. I now find it easier to accept the reality that it's ridiculous to try to ride imperial centuries every single day.

The change seems to have been a consequence of my touring experiences. Having now completed extremely rewarding tours in places like Tasmania, New Zealand and Scotland, I've learned to prioritise, and focus on the rides and tours that are going to provide the rewards.
Contrary to what I may have believed previously, it doesn't require neglecting the "training rides", but it's a matter of trying to strike the right balance between the "training" and the "event".

I also no longer feel the need to "prove" anything, or measure myself by the standings on a ride-logging site like bikejournal.com. A decision I made in around June of this year not to log my rides or record my cumulative ride distances any longer immediately resulted in an increased enjoyment of general riding. I felt free again, free of the constraints, of the "obligation" to ride a century every week, and free to enjoy some of the other things that cycling has provided me.

Tomorrow I'm joining a group hike in the Green Mountains section of Lamington National Park. Of course I'll be riding to the start -- which will probably net me around 150km of riding and close to 2,000 metres of climbing before I've even started the walk. The walk itself will be around 13km in length, including several crossings of Canungra Creek, and about 20 waterfalls if my map is correct. It could also take in the spectacular Stairway Falls -- although there is no track to those marked on my map. Either way, a spectacular day is in prospect, and it's these experiences that are my priority these days. If that means neglecting a "training ride" the day before, so be it.