Decamping

[Ian]

Ah, one of those!

[ScotRoutes]

I have genuine respect for the "race" fraternity within these walls - some amazing feats of endurance etc. At the same time, may I make a small voice heard from the "layabout" wing of the house?

I'm not at all bothered how long it takes me to get on the road, sorry track, again after a kip. I come at it from the angle of an hour dozing in my bag is time well spent, not wasted at all. I can gradually resurface to the tune of birdies tweeting, the dappled sunshine on my tarp (or the dappled rainstorm on my tarp if west of Shrewsbury), a sneaky view and so on. My bag's too cozy to rush out of, so maybe I'll lean over and crank the stove up for a leisurely brew. While I'm waiting I'll review yesterday, and contemplate at which pub/caff I might while away a couple of hours today. I might even lie there and think about nothing at all, which in my book is a luxury in today's stressy culture.

Obviously it's nice to bung things back on the bike in some sort of helpful order for unpacking but I'm not gonna lose sleep over it (specially since I only get 9 or 10 hours of that anyway).

"A two-wheeled tramp" is about right. The bikepacking equivalent of a flaneur, mooching, loafing, watching, seeing what happens. I really must invest in a pet tortoise to tag along behind the bike. For example some of the best moments of recent WRT occurred when we just allowed a bit of time for "stuff to happen to us".

Not convinced? Have a read of "Idle Thoughts Of An Idle Fellow" by JK Jerome. Or possibly "How To Be Idle" by Hodgkinson. Your blood pressure will thank you.

"Reg"

Speed/efficiency isn't just for racing - it makes a difference when it's raining or the midge are about