Tasmania

Tonight, or more accurately the next day and a half plus a day leaping ahead over the dateline, I'll be travelling to Tasmania... totally excited about that. I want to see one of these, although I know I'll have to either a) stay up late and find a carcass in the woods to hang out with, or b) visit a zoo:

I'm half prepared. I've been riding a bit, and have restored a semblance of fitness. I almost have logistics and packing worked out... but to be honest, I'm half assing the preparation since it'll be the first english speaking, credit card functioning locale I've vacationed in recently. That should make things easier.

The purpose of the trip is twofold - to do the Wild Side 2010, which I'm totally excited about. One of my boss' relatives sent him some information regarding the race to him to encourage a visit, he realized he's got too many things to make it work. He passed it along to me with the comment that if he can't do it first hand, living vicariously is a decent alternative. It's not the longest, it's not the hardest, or any of those monikers... but it seems to be a great way to see Tasmania up close and personal:

It'll be hard to ride with Aussie's who are in their mid summer form, but I'm there for the scenery and just for the straight up joy of riding where ever I can... even if I try to ride briskly for my "ripe old age". I have a little time before hand exploration too.

After the race Tori and I are meeting up in Sydney for a few days, which again is quality time that's invaluable these days.