Still no bike

The trip to collect my new Santos bike has become one of the casualties of the current severe weather in the UK. Admittedly this is a minor casualty compared to some of the crazy stuff that's been going on, but it still means I'm 5 days away from leaving for NYC, and minus a bike. With any luck I'll get to Lancing tomorrow to collect it, then I can breathe freely again.
Meanwhile, I'll save you from the boring details of my life recently - it's mainly involved lots of emails trying to sort out somewhere to live in NYC. Instead I'll share another of the encouraging messages I've received recently.
Will Gow worked in the city while undertaking the odd adventure here and there, before deciding to set up the go all Polar - recreating Ernest Shackleton's legendary Nimrod Expedition of 1909 when his team came within 97 miles of the South Pole before being forced back. Will happens to be a direct descendant of the great Shackleton, and the rest of his team were also related to the original members.
I went along to hear Will speak about their adventure as part of the Canterbury Festival, and managed to grab him for a quick chat afterwards. It's always good to talk face to face with inspiring people, because it can really give you a kick up the backside motivation wise. Will was very down to earth, and was kind enough to give me a few words of encouragement about my trip -

"It sounds like you are taking on an amazing challenge. Best of luck –it’s a bold dream, now make it come true!!"

- Will Gow

Will Gow, upon returning from the Expedition