Ride Routes 24 – 30th July

Over the life of the club, we have evolved and changed what we provide for members.

You will be pleased to know that this is happening again, and we have something new to offer.

The gravel is calling.

There has been an increase in people riding gravel and MTB bikes (Dean wonders if it is just him, we think that while he has been taking his gravel riding very seriously recently, there are probably more of you).

What we have come up with is the monthly SPR Sunday Gravel Ride.

The rides will be lead by Dean Roser (Mr Training and Development) and will usually run on the last Sunday of each month, although we will be starting them next week (Sunday 1 August). We will be publishing the routes, but expect the route to be approx 60km and start “on location” (e.g. Darlington Post Office).

The rides will be open to everyone, and will be no-drop rides.

If you have any questions, please feel free to speak with Dean at coffee or reach out via email/website/Facebook.

SPR Women’s Health Talk & Afternoon Tea – Female cyclists can often encounter health issues that require careful monitoring or maintenance. Come join Dr Rachel McCormick and PhD Scholar Serene Lee to discuss these issues and how they can be managed to lessen the impact they can have on your cycling and health.

The club will be putting on afternoon tea!

Now fully subscribed – thanks everyone for supporting the club – but for more information see the full post here.

SPR Tour de France Dinner – The SPR Committee is pleased to announce that we are this year again holding our Tour de France dinner. This year at Chez Pierre.

With the recent lockdown, this has been re-scheduled to Thursday 5th August (after the Tour has finished but the best we could do!). Enjoy the night!

Sorry, sold out. Well actually, we’ve found one more ticket. Grab it in the shop if you’re keen.

From the Ride Coordinator – Is that rain finally starting to clear or is the immediate forecast just an aberration in an otherwise very wet winter. As I see more and more Strava ride posts boasting of finally being able to get outside, let’s take the glass half full view and say at least we should be able to ride more.

For those that have already ventured out into the semi dry sandy expanses of our metro road system, one thing is for sure, the chances of getting flat tyres has definitely increased with all the rubbish that has floated over the surface washed down by the rain. I know from recent experience that some of that rubbish includes things like little shafts of metal or flora including leafs/branches/sticks that are not conducive to your tyres remaining fully inflated. 

So a couple of things for all our riders to consider focusing on this weekend.

First is the preparation for the ride. Do you have good tyres or are they worn. Do you have spare tubes, canisters etc that will help you get on your way again. It’s a good time of year to check these things because of the higher chance of finding one of those spiny little suckers on the road.

The second is good communications whilst we are group riding. Calling things like potholes, water on road, debris is vital for group safety at the driest of times, in mid winter it’s essential. Road surfaces are changeable at this time of year. I’ve already noticed a couple of sneaky potholes appear on regular roads that I ride that weren’t there a few weeks back. At best these can lead to flat tyres, worse still, injury to your fellow riders. So please, please call these up the line so everyone in your group maximizes the chances of staying upright. Please leave the “I’m too cool to call” attitude for other rides if that’s your thing. We prefer to have everyone back safely, sipping coffee at the coffee shop.

Saturday 24th July

Sunday 25th July

Monday 26th July

Tuesday 27th July

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

Wednesday 28th July

Thursday 29th July

Friday 30th July