Ride Routes 12th – 18th November

Last weekend our 12 SPR teams represented our club over 3 days of racing and 5 stages. 12 teams are not only a record for SPR but a record by any club at the Tour. This was 72 riders plus volunteers making it a logistical effort record also.

For many riders training started in May or June, through the wet, dark, cold mornings so great effort and dedication. The Tour is about team work and riding together. Our teams had the added bonus of Graeme Brown training sessions, which changed the way we approached the event. 

There were many great results across the 3 days with our Mens 1 team winning the B Grade division, our Mens 5 team winning the K Grade division and our Womens 3 narrowly missing our on first for a well deserved 2nd place. On the GC standings, Mark Sinclair (Mens 5) was the division winner and Doug Pavlovic 2nd, Jacob Langham – 2nd and Sam Mettam 3rd both from Mens 1. In the Womens B grade Lily Handoyo was 2nd and Manou Rosenberg was 3rd.

Besides the official placing many of our SPR rider raced for the first time in one of the hardest road races in WA. That effort alone was simply magic to witness. Our riders getting PBs and completing the event is a top achievement but the Tour is about friendship and to see the teams of all speeds interacting together and just enjoying the experience is what we set out to achieve.

A big thanks goes out to our volunteers who did a brilliant job this year and who without we would not have had such a great time.

Steve

 

Save the date – shop open tomorrow Tickets now available here!

 

A European Honeymoon! We – Heiko Potzeldt and Louise McKay – met through SPR and Strive Cycle Training…and we just got married! 

Those of you who have ever trained or ridden with us will know that Heiko was born half-mountain-goat, whereas Louise tends to prefer river loops with a healthy serve of coffee…so for our honeymoon, Heiko plotted an incredible bikepacking route through Southern France, Andorra and Spain. Plenty of mountains, rivers, and coffee 😀

We drove the 12 hours down from our home in Leipzig, Germany to Clermont-Ferrand, France, and parked the car at the hotel there. From there, we embarked on our 12-day ride through the volcanoes of Massiv Central, the Gorges du Tarn, to Albi then Carcassonne, where we enjoyed a rest day before heading into the Pyrenees. We rode over the mountain pass Pas de la Casa at 2408m elevation, following the one road that goes from France into the single-city country of Andorra and out the other side into Spain. From there it was *mostly* descending to Barcelona – although we certainly felt the climbs along the way, with so many kms in our not-particularly-well-trained legs! After a day enjoying the sunshine and a leisurely bus tour of the big city, we headed back north along the Spanish coast, then inland to Figueres to visit the Salvador Dali museum, before crossing the Pyrenees again to enjoy a few last days of French baguettes and croissants (and more stunning scenery). From our final stop, Beziers on the Canal du Midi, we took the train back to where we left the car.

Along the way, I’d say we probably rode about 60% on tarmac, but the other 40% was a real mix of gravel, grass, sand and rocks. Mostly we followed the suggestions provided by our Karoo Hammerheads, but we also learnt from a few extra-challenging experiences that the Karoo isn’t alwaaays right…sometimes it’s worth stopping to check google too! In any case, having gravel bikes (Rose Backroad and Koga Colmaro) was an excellent choice for this adventure. The bags we packed to take with us probably could have been lighter, but there were one or two days when we were both very very glad for the extra layers we had packed. On one day in particular, this was even supplemented by glad-wrap over our feet, legs and arms to combat the rain and wind, but on the whole we had sunshine and great riding conditions. Bikepacking is an amazing way to travel, especially if you are in a place with great food and plenty of hotels along the way. Would 10 out of 10 recommend a trip like this!

Clermont-Ferrand : 83km : Condat : 102km : Nasbinals : 102km : Millau : 118km : Albi : 92km : Carcassonne : 79km : Ax Les Thermes : 65km : Andorra La Vella : 87km : Solsona : 119km : Barcelona : 93km : Caldas de Malavella : 64km : Figueres : 86km : La Barcarles : 90km : Beziers

 

SPR Chicks — For all us wonderful women that cycle, we have two last events for the year coming up…The first is on Sunday 20th November,  our social ride followed by dinner at the South Perth Food trucks.

We will meet at 5pm at Coode Street jetty for a 30 km, no drop ride (we stay together and ride as a group), returning back to Coode St, finishing with dinner at the South Perth Food Trucks. Remember your lights particularly if you are commuting to/from the event. If you just want to join us for the food trucks, we will be back roughly 6.15pm.

The second event is on Wednesday 21st December, yes a school night for those still working!

Meeting somewhere in South Perth near Mindeerup, final location yet to be confirmed, at 6pm, where we will have something to eat or drink. Then as the sun is starting to set, we will catch the ferry from South Perth to the City, where we will walk the Christmas Light Trail around Elizabeth Quay, St Georges Tce, to Hay St, returning to South Perth via ferry.

We would love to see as many of you as possible, to meet new people, see new sights and get some
exercise.

If interested in either event, please respond to the event on the Facebook SPR Chicks page, or by emailing women@southperthrouleurs.com.au

Cheers,
SPR Chicks

Racing this weekend – If you want to race, or get in on the action watching others race, read on.

1. WCMCC Kewdale Criterium

 

From the Ride Coordinator — I’m sure there are plenty of tired legs out there after last weekend for those who went down to Nannup. Think about the group you ride with on Saturday, and consider dropping down one if you’d prefer to take it a bit easier.

Weather looks good, and the South Westerlies are back, so we’ll head out to Scarborough Beach & Hale on Saturday with a good tailwind home along Mounts Bay Rd.

With the increase in riders on the road, and higher number of spills we’ve been seeing, a reminder that if there does happen to be an incident in your group, don’t turn around to see what happened – it just adds risk. Focus on the wheels in front, and on staying upright. There’s plenty of time at the coffee shop to find out what happened. Whether you’re having an easier few weeks heading towards the festive season, or building up for another event, enjoy the riding and the good weather this weekend.

Remember the Sunday Long and Short hills rides start at 6am, Social Hills starts at 7am.

Saturday 12th November

Sunday 13th November

Monday 14th November

Tuesday 15th November

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

Wednesday 16th November

Thursday 17th November

Friday 18th November