Can a Long Distance Cycling Trip Make Me a Better Manager?
06 Aug 17
Inzpire
Normally, birthdays don’t trouble me, but every new decade seems to cause me far more issues and this year I was reaching the 50 milestone. I had to do something that was;
A) Truly significant
B) A challenge
C) Crossed a major item off my bucket list.
To let it just pass in the pub was not going to distract me nearly enough!
Given my interests, I soon decided that the answer was a long-distance cycle trip. Over the previous few years I had carried leave over and now had a full 3 weeks additional time at my disposal. It’s unusual for me to plan ahead like this, just my luck that Inzpire moved to unlimited leave in January 17! Where to go then? Out came the map of Europe and a calculator and some added criteria were drafted up. I really wanted to cross the Alps and I wanted to cycle back to my front door. Which airline flies where was the next question and which of them would take my trusty steed. Ultimately, one airline's very flexible bike carrying policy won through and their Stansted flight to Ljubljana in Slovakia looked perfect in terms of distance and mountains. 3 weeks cycling would easily cover the distance with the odd down day and I could return to Lincoln via the Rotterdam to Hull ferry – Ljubljana2Lincoln was born!!
The route!
"Winter miles, summer smiles" was my training motto and I started to push out some increasing distances including 2 x 400km rides. I needed a few new kit items from my previous experience having spent a week in the Highlands and I was ready. 100 meters of bubble wrap saw the bike transformed for airport baggage handlers, a large £3 storage bag from a well known Swedish home store made the panniers and tent legal to fly and June 3rd soon arrived. With my luxury items of proper sandals and my Kindle packed, I was off!
Flying out, the sense of task ahead became all too apparent. Could 150 minutes in an Airbus really take 3 weeks on a bike? Luckily, the airline did a splendid job and an on-time arrival with bikes and kit all undamaged was a huge relief. If you ever want to get through Stansted without queuing, just turn up with a huge cardboard box and a poor sense of direction!
My trusty steed before I had the job of unpacking it in Ljubljana
Slovenia made a hugely positive impression, with its wonderful scenery and total lack of litter. The first full day of cycling saw Austria arrive via a tunnel that Hitler built, using concentration camp slave labour, to keep his southern flank better supplied. Respects were paid at the memorial and on we travelled. The next country was difficult to spot but we entered the staunchly German-speaking area of Italy and spent many hours cycling through apple and plum orchards. The best campsite of the trip, with a wonderful freshwater, mountain-fed swimming pool led to the first day off. Then on to Switzerland, where the hard climbing started. Getting a heavy touring bike up a big hill simply requires persistence and a strong personal discipline not to look up! We were heading for the Albula Pass, but had to cross several increasingly demanding“foothills” to get there. Our final “assault” required a 600 meter climb – it took us nearly 3 hours of constant weaving for a horizontal gain of just over 8kms! But what a reward; snow, stunning views, a new fridge magnet from the café/gift shop and a huge sense of satisfaction reinforced by the knowledge that it was predominantly downhill for the rest of the trip.
The beautiful Albula Pass
For the next 26kms, I didn’t turn the pedals once as I glided effortlessly around steep hairpin bends, receiving envious glances from those cycling up them! At Chur in Switzerland we met the Rhine; our conduit to the coast and the location of the wonderful Rhine cycle path. Life just got a whole lot easier. Lichtenstein and a night in France were also enjoyed. One puncture and a sheared pannier bolt were the only hiccups; a Swiss scooter mechanic kindly open his workshop on a Sunday (which is illegal apparently) and rapidly fixed it – even manufacturing a special bolt to fit. The ever changing landscape, the Rhine falls and Gorge were wonderful. Brilliant food, superb coffee and cake combined with my favourite recovery drink (Pils!), made the trip everything I hoped for and more. The weather was also fantastic, which was a massive bonus – we enjoyed beautiful, sunny days and had just 2 rain showers during the entire trip. Also, the savings made on the wet-weather-hotel-plan meant significantly more could be spent on recovery drinks....
The Rhine
So, what lessons can I take from plodding across Europe on a bike to my role within Inzpire? What is the actual point of this blog? I think there are 3 key lessons:
Lesson 1: On day one, my cycling companion showed me with enormous pride the Merino wool tops he had purchased, made only from a certain breed of goats found on the Nepalese side of the Himalayas. He had invested in a few and subsequently left one in Austria, Italy and Switzerland respectively! What were originally the source of deep pride, and what he had considered a significant asset soon changed to being a burden – the very first hill pretty much changed his asset into liability. I guess in business speak we’d talk of efficiency; I want to know that what I think of as an asset is not in fact a burden.
Lesson 2: How do you climb a great big hill on a very heavy bike? The answer to this one is really simple – one turn of the pedal at a time. Also, the hardest bit is the last. Why? Because this is generally the steepest, the air is significantly thinner and, as you approach the top, there is no shelter from the wind and you will be at your most fatigued. Once crested though, life gets a whole lot easier – I’ll never forget the 26km descent!
Lesson 3: Everything I needed to live a really comfortable, warm, sheltered, well fed existence I could carry in 2 panniers. Again, I’m sure this is a lesson in efficiency but a salutatory one. When you have to physically carry something, your perception of need changes quite dramatically. Anyway, I’ve survived 50 years and am not too traumatised, so the plan worked.
I need to start planning for the 60th now; at least I won't need to carry any leave over this time!
2200kms, 67000ft of climbing and a million awesome views!
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