Well Peter asked for a different perspective on the “Hell of the North” and being the leader of the pack (fall), here is mine..

Firstly let me say that I am OK and thank you for the help and best wishes I have received over the last few days. The support from the SPR community (and my family and partner too) has been outstanding – it’s really appreciated! Special thanks to Melvyn and Jerry who helped all the the way along the journey, and to Mark DeCastro and Stuart Durham at the crash scene. And to Ryan for his banter, and and…

Reflecting back to the start of race when we were looking forward, it is difficult to reconcile the difference betweeen how things should have turned out, and how they did. A good day (albeit somewhat hot) and a big field of 58 on a testing 72 km course with lots of compatriots gave great opportunity for some SPR success, surely!

My first 3 laps were spent near the rear of the field, mainly because it takes that long for me to warm up and also I was not expecting any breakaways to be successful, and certainly I wasn’t ready to be doing any chasing anyway. During this time I was near John and Melvyn and we felt the elastic stretch tight on the hill at the 4km mark of each circuit. I was feeling some sympathy for the maiden racers as I felt a bit stressed already, although the previous night’s wines could be partly blamed for that. At the start of the 4th lap I decided it was time to move to the front, not so much because I wanted to (or could) do anything special, but rather to try to cover the moves which might happen soon. I was correct – the attack came on the hill of the 4th lap, and although I was in a good position to chase, it was hard work. My memory doesn’t serve me well, but my recollection is that there was a small break of 3 going up the hill, which a few of us chased. I sucked a wheel near the crest in order recover and we made ground on the leaders over the top when they slowed, I think. As we started to speed down the other side I “touched a wheel” – I’m not really sure why! Anyway, there was no gentle easing away per more fortunate circumstances. This time my wheel turned hard and I spilled quickly. My speedo later revealed that we were travelling at 53kph, but this may be incorrect because it also showed that we had travelled 39km which does not seem correct!

The imagery in my mind is that the scene was just as you would expect, with bikes and riders piling in on top. My tumbleweed imitation ceased fairly quickly without pain, and the next concern was to get out of the way of the following pack – hence the “rabbit in the spotlight” impersonation as described by James. The peloton passed around, and the race proceeded as described well by Jerry elsewhere in the blog. On the bitumen with me was Ryan, Fred Landon and a few others I didn’t recognise, plus Mark who had already phoned for an ambulance. Fred didn’t look happy and seemed to be nursing his shoulder. My elbow was leaking quite a bit of claret, to the considerable concern of fellow ceased racer Stuart Durham who stemmed the flow by wrapping his race jersey tightly around my elbow. Mark was able to be convinced that the ambovan was not required, and the DNF was formalised by a lift back to the finish where capable first-aid was provided.

Inspection of the bike revealed that the once mighty R3 was now only about R0.3. It’s remarkable how quickly such things are accepted. The other remarkable thing about the whole incident, still only 1/3 travelled at that stage, is the lack of pain suffered – never more than 2 out of 10, and I was asked enough times!

I was able to watch Lorriane’s great win and the good performances by Nico in A-grade and Ben, Jerry and Spud in B-grade – great efforts all!

Next port of call was hospital. After much discussion within the group, including Melvyn ringing Freo ED, it seemed that Joondalup was the best option. Certainly it was the closest. To cut a long story short, after admission at midday, I finally entered theatre at about 10pm for debridement (kinda like a chain-wash I guess) of the gash on my right elbow, to ensure that it was totally clean and thereby minimise risk of infection, given the closeness to joint and bone. Despite that progress through the system was seemingly slow I was well looked after and much better off than some of those in “emergency” around me. I spent the next day in hospital and returned home late on Monday. Subsequent review of the wounds (8 stitches in elbow) indicates they are healing well, but riding is not endorsed for a week or so. At least the timing is acceptable!

Aside from my personal damage, Fred Landon suffered a dislocated shoulder and broken bike (new BH I think) and Ryan received some gashing. I guess there is more that I am unaware of. These things cause me pain. Plus my own equipment damage which includes fractured top tube, gouged and twisted shifters (ouch), ruined hanger and rear derailleur, scratched rear rim (bought wheelset the day before), minor scratches/dings, and busted watch. Like I said, its amazing how quickly one accepts these things and starts looking forward. The frame is now with Aldo at Quantum Bicycle Manufacturers under investigation. All options are up for consideration, but a rebuild is the most likely.

Once again, thank you all for the support. I look forward to riding with you again soon.

stuART