Total Vic: 417.88
Total trip: 1639.5
Actual time on bike: 4 hours
Today was an ultimate test of persistence. It was the heaviest rain I've ridden in and also facing a slight headwind. In the morning when I left Port Campbell it was a bit dark and grey and looked like it would drizzle on and off, but 5km into the ride it started pouring down.
I kept riding in the rain without stopping. I've noticed through my trip that when it rains you actually bet more speed on the bike. I was hoping to get to Port Fairy (which was 98km in total) bit I ended up pulling short in Warnambool (77km in total). I decided on this after I stopped in Allansford, a town about 15km before Warnambool. It was a mistake stopping in Allansford as I only stopped because I thought that would have local cheese to try, as they had signs everywhere saying the home of cheese. It turned out cheese was very expensive, even though they make it right at that spot.
After about an hours stoppage time the rained actually worsened. I started shivering when I got off my bike and I was still shivering by the time I got back on the bike when I left Allansford. The rain was very heavy, the heaviest I've probably ridden in. Luckily there was no hail.
I left and after about 5 minutes I hit a state of euphoria. I had warmed up a little bit and thought "how crazy is this!!!" Why am I riding for starters, where am I, where am I going and where am I staying. I had my music playing loud and had a song on that me and my mates used to all chant to. It made me think of those good times and what I was doing at that moment. For some reason it gave me this big smile and I probably rode for about 8 km with this in an immense state of happiness. This hasn't been the only time I've had this feeling on the bike yet on this trip yet this was probably the most powerful feeling of joy I've had during my trip. Cold, completely wet, short of my location, riding to no destination in heavy rain yet I was completely content and had more joy then any other moment where I've been completely comfortable at home.
I pulled into town only to find that the cheapest camp ground still cost more then the cheapest hostel. I checked into a hostel for $21 and had a good feed.
I dint see the guy from Hong Kong today, as I was expecting to pass him earlier on. I am assuming he caught a lift into Port Fairy perhaps, as his bike wouldn't have handled to well in the wet. He also had a few troubles with his tyres this morning.
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