Bollox to AI!

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AI (Artificial Intelligence) is big news these days, and it’s big business. The makers of one of the best-known AIs, Chat-GPT, claim they spent over US$ 40 million just training their AI. AI is being integrated into search engines, and more. Soon, it will permeate our lives. Keeping it real Various search-engine optimisation sites are ... Read more

Wild Atlantic Way – the aftermath

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Suddenly, almost abruptly, the adventure is over. For over two weeks I’ve been pedalling ever nearer to Galway. On the final day of any real cycling, I did an urban wild camp in Galway city, close to the banks of Lough Atalia, and not overly far from the Eye Cinema. The getting home part I ... Read more

Wild Atlantic Way – Day 16

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My Wild Atlantic Way adventure is, in cycling terms at least, all done. I’m writing this while sat in Galway train station, where I collected my pre-booked ticket to Dublin. Homeward bound Today has been a fairly long day: Doolin to Galway. I’m not a big fan of the entire area from Spanish Point to ... Read more

Wild Atlantic Way – Day 15

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I had a sort of enforced rest day. With only 80km (50 miles) left to cycle to Galway, I’m well ahead of schedule. The only constant is change Unfortunately, the person who kindly offered to host me in Galway on Saturday night fell ill and I had to somewhat change my plans. Originally, I’d have ... Read more

Wild Atlantic Way – Day 14

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The changes I was forced to make to the route, after my bike started breaking, meant that I ended up well ahead of schedule. That, in turn, means that the last few days of my ride were going to be very short days. As I write this, I’m only 50 miles from Galway – that’s ... Read more

Wild Atlantic Way – Day 13

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As I’m still well ahead of schedule, today was only ever going to be a short day. Mike the Pies Originally I planned to end yesterday’s ride in Listowel, which seems a very nice town. I charged up my phone in a pub called Mike The Pies (yes, that’s its name!) When I asked about ... Read more

Wild Atlantic Way – Day 12

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Yesterday’s post ended with me having reached Tralee. Before I continue the tale, I really need to point out that my journey is a snapshot in time, filtered through my personal views. A personal journey If I passed though a place 30 minutes earlier, or 30 minutes later, my experiences and perceptions may have been ... Read more

Wild Atlantic Way – Day 11

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I’m still adjusting to suddenly having such short cycling days! I started my day slowly, and that was intentional, knowing the ride from Killarney to Tralee was short an easy. A short, easy day To the west lies the Dingle peninsula, with its mountains. While I had no mountains ro cross, it still wasn’t a ... Read more

Wild Atlantic Way – Day 10

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I took today off. To be honest, that’s a decision taken the day before, while still in Kenmare. Essentially, I didn’t know whether or not O’Sullivan’s in Killarney would have been able to fix my bike, nor how soon. Worst yet, I didn’t know if it’d last to Killarney. If you read yesterday’s post, you’d ... Read more

Wild Atlantic Way – Day 9

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I will admit to feeling a bit despondent yesterday, what with the bike shop in Kenmare being unwilling/unable to look at my bike. At first I thought about booking into a camp site, but the nearest one was 14km back the way I came. Because I didn’t feel like cycling back the 14km, I just ... Read more

Wild Atlantic Way – Day 8

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Ireland was back to what I’ve come to accept as normal today, and the people I met along the way were all very friendly. Good morning! At some point, as I was cycling past a field with cows, as I often do, I shouted out “Good morning!” Yes, I’m one of those odd people who ... Read more

Wild Atlantic Way – Day 7

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I make a conscious effort to try and avoid being negative, but the town of Bantry doesn’t rate well at all in my opinion. Bantry – best avoided When I arrived in the town, I saw a pizza place and decided to order food from there. It was well before 5pm, but I was bluntly ... Read more

Wild Atlantic Way – Day 6

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Today’s update also carries more news from yesterday. After waking, and packing up, I took up the offer of coffee made by the two YouTubing couples. Video killed the radio star Now I’ve always known that obviously there needs to be direction of some sort when making a video, but I gained some first-hand insights ... Read more

Wild Atlantic Way – Day 5

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Today was different: for the first time on this ride, I had nobody to meet. Like cycle touring normally is (for me, at least) I was on my own. I could stop whenever I wanted, and go as fast (or slow) as I wanted. That’s liberating. Having said that, meeting John Devoy and his wife, ... Read more

Wild Atlantic Way – Day 4

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Just an update on my 4th day of cycling Ireland’s Wild Atlantic Way. Remember, if you haven’t been doing so, you can follow my (glacial) progress in real-time (provided I have a data signal!) by viewing the Where’s Will Now page. On that page there’s a map that shows where I am at that moment, ... Read more

Wild Atlantic Way – Day 3

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Today was a mixed bag! It rained last night, and there was soft drizzle when I woke. After packing up, I made my way back to the road, then set off cycling. I spent a good evening in the company of John and Sara Devoy, who kindly invited me to stay over at their home. ... Read more

Wild Atlantic Way – Day 2

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Though this is Day 2, it is actually the first day of proper cycling. More trains! My day started with a bike ride to the station, to catch a train to Cork city. The real cycling started from there, but it was still a short day. I just made it onto the 09:00 train from ... Read more

Wild Atlantic Way – Day 1

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Today was all about getting to Dublin. Cork city, in County Cork. However, things didn’t go to plan. I belatedly discovered that there were rail strikes on for today, and that meant my very early train to Birmingham was cancelled. I quickly discovered that my only real option was to travel the day before. To ... Read more

Cycle Touring Insurance

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In a perfect world, nothing ever goes wrong. Sadly, we don’t live in a perfect world, and in the real world, sometimes things do go wrong. This is where insurance comes into play. You? Or your bike? It’s really important to understand that you get two types of insurance: 1) Insurance that covers your bike ... Read more

Let me introduce you to the UK

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There are people who love to slag off the UK, pointing at miserable weather, bland food, and numerous sea-side resorts that are well past their sell-by date. Don’t listen to them! Sure, the UK does get a lot of rain, but that’s why it’s so lush, green and filled with rivers. If you think British ... Read more