kinda nervous to do a long ride with all my gear on a quite hot day, but the point is to practice in a relatively controlled setting where i can get a rescue if needed. eventually i'll need to know my limits when i can't easily get a lift home
i know that i approach preparation/training with more incremental caution than most people - lots of people just kinda go for it with a big trip. this approach lets me feel pretty confident about each subsequent step while traveling solo, i think it's important to work out self-sufficiency as i take on longer trips