Today I successfully finished the #MongoliaBikeChallenge — it certainly was a challenge, but the scenery, the wildlife, the people and culture, and the camaraderie with the other riders made it the experience of a lifetime. There’s very little cellphone coverage here, so photos will have to wait until I’m back in civilisation.

#BikeTooter

We made it safely to Ulaanbaatar, ready to start the #MongoliaBikeChallenge. It's been a bit of an adventure, including losing my passport somewhere between the security counter and our hotel, but it turned up tonight which is a huge relief. My bike's all sorted, I'm registered, and we head out first thing tomorrow morning for a 117 km stage across the Mongolian steppes.

It looks like there's going to be some fierce competition for last place...it'll be interesting to see how I get on.

Another great mid-winter #BikeTooter today, chasing hills in #Whakarewarewa Forest south of #Rotorua. I was up at 5, knocked off my day's work as quickly as possible, and starting riding just before 10. Still ran out of daylight at the other end, finishing just after 6 pm. It was freezing on the last section back into town, but I managed to ride 89 kilometres and climbed 2,300 metres. A great training ride for the #MongoliaBikeChallenge which is now only 8 weeks away.