Back to Canberra

April 14th
Back to Canberra

After the hustle and bustle of my life as a Melbourne socialite, I found myself quite lonely in Canberra with just my broken bike for company. I held off on getting a place to stay, as I was hoping that Anthony and his friend Dave might have found some connections in the city, and sat outside most of the day watching my bike and reading. That evening Anthony called and had found no joy in terms of a free place to stay. The YHA (Youth Hostel Australia) that I had been loitering around had no beds available. Fortunately a local pub, the Public Bar, just north of the CBD and 10-min walk away did. It was a roll of the dice in terms of what to expect, but we were not really in the position to be choosers at this time of night. I secured beds for three at the Public Bar, grabbed a beer and waited outside in the heat-lamps reading and reflecting on my position.

I had realized that last week, for roughly 24 hours, I had completely given up finishing my ride to Sydney. With such a catastrophic break in my bike, it was just not in the cards to replace, or fix. While I did think briefly of Anthony’s bike in Sydney, I felt that calling him up to bring it down would be asking too much. That being said, Anthony did not hesitate to offer to bring the bike to Canberra when he found out. I was floored by his generosity, but what I continue to learn, is typical of Aussie mateship. "No dramas," as they say.

Success in anything we do depends in large part to those around you. In turn the success of others depends on you. My success, or at this point with 299 km to go, potential success depends and has depended on several things. Without Lats and Jonno, I would have never meet Jonno's dad, Frank Stone. Without Frank, I could not have found Ross Ford who kept my bike safe for a week while I went to Melbourne to go to Lats' wedding, Jonno's 30th birthday party or hiked Wilson’s prom. Now, without Anthony and his generosity and belief in me to get his bike and myself in one piece to Sydney, I would never have the chance to finish my ride. I am humbled.