Aren’t You a Little Old for That Sort of Thing?

This fall I hope to ride to Key West Florida over the course of about 6 or 7 weeks. This would be a self-contained bike tour. I am in my early 60s and am starting to wonder whether I will be able to pull this off for much longer. (If I do, I am going cross country next year. So stay tuned.)

So yesterday I received an email from my friend Chanda. She is a goat scientist who lives in rural India. I am not making this up. She is one of the nicest people I have ever known. I am not making this up either.

Chanda’s email told me about an Australian man in his early 70s who is doing supported long-distance bike rides for charity. When Bob Montgomery was a youngster of 69 he rode from the Blue Mountains (west of Sydney) to Port Douglas way up north. It was a ride of a little over 1,900 miles. Dang.

Not to rest on his aging laurels, Mr. Montgomery rode from Perth to Sydney, a mere 2,360 miles two years later in 2015. If you know anything about Australian geography you’ll know this is an astounding feat for a young man. The Nullarbor Plain is not to be messed with.

A few days ago, our hero took off from Darwin in the north on his way to Perth in the southwest. This one is about 2,485 miles give or take a kilometer. Crikey!

I feel like a complete sloth next to this guy. He’s doing these rides to raise money for Motor Neurone Disease and Huntington’s Disease.

I just can’t even…

Check his ride out on his website.