Ride routes 14th – 20th November

The Tour of Margaret River is a special race for the WA racing scene as it gives people of all abilities a chance to compete over a multi-day, multi-stage event. Most of the big races in Australia tend to cater only for the elite end of the sport with very few stage races available for the average rider. SPR has been sending teams to the Tour for years. So long, in fact, that I can’t even remember when I did my first Tour. For those of you that don’t know the format, the first stage is a team time trial which is used as the basis for seeding the teams into different divisions. Yes, it does give certain teams an opportunity to “sand-bag” but usually it works out quite well. Within most divisions (of 10 teams) there was only about 2 min between the first and last team over 28kms. All of our teams (4 men, 1 women’s) rode extremely hard over the 5 stages. This year our Men’s 2 team came away with the silverware taking out Division E where they fought off 3 different Midland teams. Interestingly, this was the most well matched division as there was only 50 sec difference between 1st and 10th after the initial time trial. So well done to the team and the rest of the SPR teams that “enjoyed” the weekend down south.

The Rules – just a reminder that it isn’t business as usual.

As we progress through WA’s phased approach to reopening, how the club interacts within itself and the wider community will also change.
Rightly or wrongly, the lack of community transmission in the state has meant that a lot of the social distancing rules have disappeared. As such we want to streamline what the requirements are from a club perspective. Basically there are 3 main things we want people to keep in mind.

  • The virus can spread via human contact, so minimise the amount of touching between people and each others bikes/helmets etc.
  • No spitting, snotting or sneezing within the group. If you need to, move to the back of the group, but please look behind you to make sure that it is clear of traffic. That is all traffic, not just bikes. We don’t want some dash-cam footage of someone blowing their nose on a car.
  • Personal hygiene becomes very important in the spread of the virus so make sure that you either wash your hands whenever you can or carry a small container of hand sanitiser. Limit your exposure to common surfaces (chairs, tables) and don’t be sharing items.

Club Kit Order– The latest kit order will open this weekend and be open for the next couple with final orders on the 20th Nov. The sizing kit will be available at R&D cycles from Saturday afternoon. Please speak to the shop assistants if you have trouble locating any of the sizing kit. Their will be an update to the material used on the pockets of the standard & slim fit jersey, to provide less sag under “heavily loaded conditions” We won’t be accepting returns/changes on sizes for this or subsequent orders, so it’s important that club members confirm their sizing prior to placing their order.

Thursday Group Ride – There is now a fourth group available during the Thursday training ride leaving from the cityside of the narrows at 5:30am. This will be a Main 2+ speed and not the frantic pace of the rest of the Thursday groups. If you are interested in having a go at the Thursday ride and have thought it would be too fast, there is now an option for you.

Our commitment to Core Values – We are a diverse club that made a point early on of committing to a number of core values to which we have built everything upon. These are – Safe, Inclusive, Organised & Social. It is under these values that we want all club interaction to occur, whether on the road or in cyberspace. Please read the previous post so you understand what we as a club, expect from you as members.

Sunday Summer Hills Start – As per the results of the feedback from the last few year, the Sunday hills rides now starts at 6am and continues this way until the end of February. The extra sunlight early on and the hotter days means a more pleasant riding experience for all. Yes, you miss out on a slight sleep in, but you will be home earlier and can have a nanna nap on the couch instead.

Where do i need to stand again?

Saturday Start Locations – In order to adhere to the new gathering regulations, we need to slightly change the meeting points of the groups. There is a 100 person gathering limit and when all groups are combined, we often exceed that when everyone is waiting for the start. There was a discussion about different start times for different groups, but what we settled on was moving half the groups to different sides of the carpark. This is not ideal as there are usually more cars using the eastern most parks, but we will just have to work around that for now. We understand that the COVID risk isn’t high, but it is more about how the club is viewed from outside. So, please congregate in the assigned locations, so we can continue to hold group rides in the future.

From the Ride Coordinator –  The ride coordinator, Greg, is off sick at the moment, so i have made this weeks selections. Sorry if there has been an early repeat of a route, i may not have been keeping a close eye the last weeks leading up to ToMR. We are going to continue the Saturday hills rides so there is one scheduled for this weekend, however, the expected rain might put a dampener on most cycling activities.

Saturday 14th November

Sunday 15th November

Monday 16th November

Tuesday 17th November

  • Ride starts under the Narrows (cityside) at 5:30am
  • Ride starts Frasers ave at 5:45am
    • Development group – interval training kings park

Wednesday 18th November

Thursday 19th November

Friday 20th November