Ride routes 20th – 26th March

I’ve been thinking quite a bit about how i write the blog post this week as there are a few things that need to be discussed. Primarily it is the AGM that we are holding next week in which we not only vote in a new committee, we also ratify some changes around how we operate, i.e. our constitution. As discussed last week, we need to make sure that we have a good cross-section of people representing the club so that all aspects of all quarters are taken into account. As such, I would request that a few more people from the novice to main 2 riding groups stick there hand up. You may notice below that there are a couple of vacancies. The more nominations we have, the better the democratic process. We require nominations to be in by tomorrow, Friday, as we will open up electronic voting this weekend to run for a week. That way the first order of business will be to ratify the new committee.
Another thing you may notice is that my name is not appearing on the list of nominations. I have had quite a few in depth discussions with a number of people about the club moving forward and I have decided that it is time for me to step away. Over ten years ago when we setup the club, there was no way that we ever envisioned that it would look like it does today. It is a testament to the hard work of the many, many people that have served on the committee over the years to have such a strong club. Not just in numbers, but also in the general organisation and running in which the cornerstones of the club can clearly be seen.
The last few years for me have been a bit of a juggle between work, family, training and the club. I said last year that I recognised that I had been a bit distant and made sure that re-engaged as much as possible. The Watertower Challenge, ToMR and Beverley was the big push at the end of last year but i guess that after so many years, I am just tired.
Some of the discussions that I have had, have been around succession planning and you will see that Daniel Harvey has nominated for President with Andrew Ballam as VP. These two individuals have not only been integral to the running of the club over the past few years, but I know that they have the best interests of the club at heart. I know that with these two, the club will continue to operate with the same ethos in which it was established. However, as per the constitution, anyone can nominate for any position, so we can, in fact, have multiple nominations for any of the 4 named positions.
This is obviously not good-bye from me. I am not moving away or stopping riding altogether, I just want to be part of the club and not feeling like I am the club.
So, we need a few more nominations to kick off 2021 and you can send your nominations through to the club admin email address. Don’t be surprised if a few of the current committee put the hard word on you before tomorrow.

Current Nominations –
Daniel Harvey – President
Andrew Ballam – Vice President
Shirley Vine – Treasurer
Sam Flockhart – Secretary
Greg Jones
Claire Tyrell
Steve Burns
Amanda Nabi
Tom Goerke
Vacant
Vacant

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.

SafeWA registration – As the state opens up to more interstate travelers, the risk of community spread could possibly increase. Contact tracing is an important way to contain the virus in case it finds it’s way into the community. If you want to sit down for a coffee you must register your details at that premises. There are 2 ways to do this, register on a paper form, or scan a QR code on an app.
So, how do i get the app? Download the WA Government free app – SafeWA and sign up as an individual.
– Android users click here
– Apple phone users click here
We have had it pretty good in WA so far. Lets make sure that we can open up safely.

AusCycling Memberships – As of November last year, Cycling Australia ceased to exist and AusCycling was formed to combine multiple disciplines of cycling together. To be part of the national organisation, our club has joined Auscycling and memberships and renewals are now available though it. As such we have updated the memberships page to reflect the membership types and approximate costs. There are now 4 types of licence – Lifestyle, Race off-road, Race all discipline & Non riding. On top of this there is also a Club Add-On where you can join SPR if you are a member of another club, like Peel or RCCC. This is similar to our Extraordinary membership (which still exists for other orgs) but has been formalised a bit.

EDIT: There has been a bit of confusion around the clubs relationship with Westcycle as some people have opted for a Westcycle licence and have linked to SPR as their club. Our club is affiliated with the national body which is AusCycling, but we do have a tenuous link back to the state body which is Westcycle. We are currently working out what that means for members in regards to the rights that they have within the club (voting, committee positions, etc). Until we clarify that, just be assured that your insurance is still valid and you are still free to ride with the club.

2021 State Criterium Championships – You have until 7:30pm tonight to register for the state criterium championships. Held down at Rockingham and run by the Peel Districts club, there are both open and age group races to cover all. If you can’t race, head on down to watch and cheer on the riders a they compete for a state title. Entry is via the EntryBoss link here.

Sunday Hills Ride – As the days start to get shorter and the sun gets up later, the Sunday hills ride has now moved back to a 7am start. The weather has not been quite as hot so we can get a full hills ride in without it being too overwhelming. Also, who doesn’t want a “sleep-in” every now again.

Club AGM – We have just announced the date for this years club AGM as the 27th March. As per our constitution all committee positions are vacated and must be nominated for each year. If you feel like you would like to help with the running of the club or think you have a skill-set that the club could benefit from, then have a chat to any of the current committee to see what would be involved.
Similar to last years Covid restricted voting, we will again hold our voting via an online platform. This allows all members the opportunity to cast their vote during the week leading up to the AGM. The new committee is then announced as one of the first orders of business at the start of the official AGM on the day.
Alternatively there are a number of sub-committees that operate as working groups for areas such as racing, kit or training and development. The commitment is usually a bit less than the club committee and could give you a insight into what is involved with running a club.
Check out the previous post for more info, but you can send your nominations through to the club admin email address.

Change to the Constitution – The change to peak body of cycling last year has meant that we also need to update our constitution. Not necessarily because it was written so specifically, but more updating certain language and affiliations. Changes to the club constitution must be passed at a club meeting and the AGM is a convenient time to get the members to act on this. There is a long, detailed post that Ballam has put together to outline the changes, but simply it has to do with how we define a member and payment terms. It is nothing too stressful, but if you have any questions, please send them through to the club admin email address and we can answer them before the AGM.

Thursday Group 3 & 4 – The last few weeks we have been formalising and supporting the group 3 and 4 rides on Thursday. SPR Thursday has a reputation of being a hard and fast ride and the size of the first group today was a good indication of it’s popularity. However, we also want to provide an opportunity for people to develop and progress through the ranks, so to speak. As such the group 3 and 4 rides on Thursday now have ride leaders assigned to them to help guide people. The expected average speeds for the groups are 34k/hr and 30 k/hr or less average, respectively, so you can make a call as to which will suit you best. Organically developing rides to provide for what the needs of the group is what has contributed to the growth of the club. This is just another step along that path.

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.

Where do i need to stand again?

Saturday Start Locations – In order to facilitate any expected changes to gathering rules, the Saturday start location were modified when group riding resumed in 2020. We still want to maintain the separation between groups as much as possible and as such will continue to start the fast and main 1 on one side of the carpark with main 2-3, trannies & novice on the other. If you are new to our Saturday group rides, click on the photo to see where each group needs to congregate.

From the Ride Coordinator – So this week there will be a quiz delivered to all riders by the ride leaders for our main ride . But I’m going to give you all a heads up on what the question will be. It’s one that you’ve probably heard many times if you listen in to the ride leader briefings, so you should be able to ace the exam this week. The question is: “Who’s familiar with the ride route this week” or the variation “ Who knows the ride route for this week”. If you answer “Holmes Rd” without looking at the route first, you will get only a half mark. If you answer, Holmes Road but with a variation to take out road works on Kalamunda rd and Tonkin Hwy, you can claim bragging rights! So please note for this ride that the group will be turning right from Kalamunda rd into Midland rd and NOT going straight ahead into the road works zone. So please do yourself a favor (and probably for those that don’t read down this far), please note the subtle change to the ride route and turn down Midland. And please pass this note on to your fellow riders if they do not know. It will save confusion and potential crashes if you do.

Saturday 20th March

Sunday 21st March

Monday 22nd March

Tuesday 23rd March

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

Wednesday 24th March

Thursday 25th March

Friday 26th March