Ride Routes 18 – 24th March

We have a few things to cover in tonight’s blog. On serious note, please read though our piece on safety below – SPR take safety very seriously, and in view of some recent incidents (unfortunately including riders coming off during our rides) the Committee would like to put a focus on the subject in our blog tonight.

There is also a round-up of the amazing Perth City Criterium – if you love racing, you will know that the energy of inner city closed roads is a highlight. Also, for anyone that attended (as a racer or spectator) please fill this survey in. It will make a significant contribution to getting support for the event in future years.

Final reminder that our AGM is coming up on the Saturday 25 March (with voting running online the week prior). This means nominations close Friday week (17 March). If you are interested in getting involved, have a read of the blog post here, and get in touch (myself, Tom or any of the Committee).

And a reminder to register for our upcoming Water Tower Challenge. All the details below.

See you out of the bike.

Daniel

Safety — We know that safety is a top concern for all of us when we hit the roads on our bikes. We want to make sure that we are doing everything we can to reduce the risk of harm to ourselves, other cyclists, and our beloved bikes. That’s why at SPR, safety is one of our core pillars, along with being organized, inclusive, and social.

You may not be aware of all the work that goes on behind the scenes to make our rides as safe as possible, so we want to take a moment to highlight some of the things we do.

First up, we have our Ride Leader Program. You may have seen these dedicated volunteers leading the way on our Saturday and Sunday rides. These ride leaders go through extensive training, both in theory and practice, to ensure they are equipped to handle any situation that may arise. We are constantly reviewing and updating our Ride Leader Program to make sure it’s as effective as possible.

Next, we have our route maintenance and review process. Our ride coordinators carefully select and review routes with safety in mind. We try to avoid right-hand turns across multiple lanes of traffic, and we take member feedback into consideration when planning our rides. Recently, we made a change to our Friday morning ride based on member feedback, and the response has been overwhelmingly positive.

Rider briefings are a regular part of all our rides, whether it’s a weekday spin or a longer weekend route. We take the time to go over specific hazards and dangers, with a particular emphasis on current risks like damp roundabouts.

Finally, we capture crash statistics and review them regularly. We started recording crash data in 2017 and have since logged over 200 crashes. This information helps us identify patterns and understand the reasons behind crashes, which in turn allows us to take action to reduce risk.

All of this work is done by volunteers who are passionate about making our rides as safe as possible for everyone. But we also want to remind you that each of us has a responsibility to ride safely and be accountable for our own actions.

So the next time you’re out on a ride and hear your ride leader briefing about road conditions or obstacles, please pay attention and take heed. By working together, we can make our SPR rides safer and more enjoyable for all.

Perth City Criterium — We have to offer our thanks to Peel Districts Cycling Club, WestCycle, and AusCycling WA for putting on this inner city closed roads race! We loved it. Not to mention, Perth City Council and the Department of Local Government, Sports and Cultural Industries who contributed significant grant funding to enable the additional expenses

Well done to everyone that raced. Again, SPR had over 20 members racing.

We had lots of riders across the grades in both mens and womens, but it was the women who had podium success on the day. Well done!

We love your work 💚

  • B Grade – Corrie Johnstone 1st, Katrina McLennan 2nd, Rebecca Kelly 3rd
  • C/D Grade – Lauren Humphreys 1st, Claire Rapson 2nd, Jodie Chipper 3rd

Regretfully, we send out condolences to Toby and Elar – both looking well positioned going into the last lap before coming down. Recover well gents.

Full results are here and check out the photos below.

B Grade Podium
C/D Grade Podium
SPR Women in action
C Grade Men
Smiles before the pain
More smiles
💚
Ready
Mmmm

 

SPR Water Tower Challenge 2023 — It’s back!! After some scheduling issues last year, we are pleased to announce that SPR’s epic adventure – available in both imperial and metric editions – has been locked in for Sunday 2 April 2023.

Read our previous blog post or sign up on EntryBoss now, and choose from two all new courses.

SPR Water Tower Challenge 2023

This is a fundraiser for the club and helps support our Ride Leader Program that both members and non-members enjoy 365 days a year.

  

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

1. PDCC Summer Criterium Race 5 & Club Championship

2. WCMCC Wangara Criterium

 

From the Ride Coordinator — From time to time while riding or racing in a group, you may hear someone call, “Hold your line!”. This means stay in the same part of the lane throughout the corner or roundabout. Take a group with two lines of riders and a roundabout with two lanes. Assume you’re going straight on; the left line needs to stay hard left (outside) all the way round, so that the right line of riders is not forced into the right (inside) lane. Similarly, going around a left hand bend, the right line needs to stay wide to give the riders in the left lane enough space to avoid the kerb.

Stay safe!

Saturday 18th March

Sunday 19th March

Monday 20th March

Tuesday 21st March

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

Wednesday 22nd March

  • Ride starts Raffles bike path at 5:30am
  • Rides start at Coode St carpark at 10:00am
    • Midweek Transitional – <returns March 2023>

Thursday 23rd March

Friday 24th March