I’m over visiting family at the moment with very little riding on my horizon. I got to check out my holiday bike today and it didn’t look too bad after sitting in the shed for 4 years. But it is cold over here in Victoria. We hit a max of 9 deg today and will hit 1 deg over night. With the wind chill factored in, it will be a couple below zero and not what my body is used to. I may get out tomorrow afternoon but will wait till it hits a balmy 12 deg. There is a reason we changed our retirement plans and decided against moving back to Victoria.
Closer to home, at our last committee meeting, we decided that we needed to increase our transparency to ensure that the running of the club is understood by all members. There are often issues that are raised by members that get discussed by the committee but closing that loop and letting the rest of the membership know, is often lacking. After each committee meeting, we will post a summary as part of the weekly blog. It will not be a detailed discussion or include confidential information, but rather informing the membership of what gets discussed. This way, if others have further questions or clarification, they can ask any of the committee members on a ride or contact the club directly.
- 2026 Budget – Breakdown of what we think we will receive in income via memberships, events, etc compared to what our expenses will be (ride leader coffees, junior events, subscriptions, vehicle costs)
- AusCycling memberships and the JustGo platform – how the new memberships will align with our current structure and what the new platform will allow us to offer.
- Gifts to members after accidents – In light of the tighter predicted budget this year, only members that have accidents on the organised SPR rides will receive a gift hamper. This is often a point of contention and some people have felt hard done by the club as it has been a discretionary point within the committee. Sometimes the committee didn’t even know of an accident and so now it needs to be linked to the accident reporting system. Regular non-members or accidents that happen after the ride will still be acknowledged by the club and will endeavour to still contact the injured party.
- Life Memberships – Some clarification on what the club will cover in regards to membership fees for the life members within the club. This will need to be written into the by-laws to ensure that it is a clear process to be followed.
- Committee charter – Some clear definitions of roles, expectations and decision making authority.
- Strategy session – a couple of sessions run by Gary Pennefather to understand what the committee needs to focus on, what the clubs “North Star” should be, how we should communicate and how we what steps we need to take to increase and hold members.
- Rebranding – As a way of moving forward after last year, we would like to refresh the logo and font of the club. This then leads to a new design of the kit and a new look.
- Expressions of Interest for kit – Linked to the above, we will see what other kit suppliers are out there and what they can offer the club.
Event Information
2026 and 2027 international trips –
SPR is again looking to organise trips overseas after the success of ones to the Italian & Swiss Alps 2025 and The Grand Alps France 2024.
Please complete this brief EOI for either or both tours
Note: no SPR member nor the club benefit from the organising of these trips – it is intended to extend the cycling experience with fellow cyclists
Tour de Cowaramup 18th Oct –
The Tour de Cowaramup charity road bike event is on again this year on Sunday 18 th October. Three distances 60km (piccolo), 85km (medio) and 130km (gran) with funds going to assist men suffering from Prostate Cancer.
Start/ finish: Juniper Estate
Register for normal entry $125 until 30th September, then late registration $145-$180. If no SPR team already established when you go to register, please set up a SPR team based on the distance eg SPR-Gran, SPR-Medio or SPR-Piccolo so others can join you.
We have booked accommodation for three nights at the Leeuwin Apartments as per last year; in Friday 16th October out Monday 19th October 2026. This is now currently full with those who have already put in an EOI. However, in case there is a cancellation or enough new interest, we could book another apartment but would need to know soon via this EOI. Note shorter stays cost the same price. Please contact Carol or Danielle via comdev@southperthrouleurs.com.au for more info.
Canola classic 2026
It has been a few years since SPR formally promoted the Canola Classic and with declining mass road cycling events, participation is key to keeping Western Australia’s cycling community vibrant.
Set in the picturesque Shire of York on Sunday 23 August, cycle routes of 93km (1200m climbing) or 52km (600m climbing) take you from the York township through boundless blooming yellow canola fields of the Avon Valley. Registration costs $145 and $130 + booking fee ~$5 respectively; more information on the ride routes.
York is ~1hr drive from Perth so you can drive up in the morning or stay overnight. Contact Carol at mailto:admin@southperthrouleurs.com.au if you want additional information. So why not support this ride with other SPR members – you can ride or just come up for the weekend to enjoy with wonderful scenery.
Upcoming Racing
- ATTA Champion Lakes (2 Aug)
- WCMCC Dog Hill Road Race (2 Aug)
- Backroads Gravel Multiple Distances (8 Aug)
- WCMCC Chidlow B Road Race (16 Aug)
- X-Speed Round 3 Road Race (22 Aug)
- WCMCC Herne Hill Road Race (23 Aug)
- WCMCC Rockingham Crit (13 Sep)
Juniors
I sincerely apologize for not being able to organize our junior rides over the past few weeks due to a persistent chest infection.
I’m finally feeling much better and am looking forward to getting back on the bike with everyone this week. After three weeks off, we’ll keep things nice and easy to help me ease back into riding, while also making it a great opportunity for any beginners who would like to join us.
This Saturday, we’ll enjoy a gentle ride along the shared paths through the beautiful Canning River Regional Park.
Saturday (1/8)
We will all meet in Shelley (https://maps.app.goo.gl/5WLpEZwqzvB2zyC47) at 10.30am.
Our U17 and U15 juniors are invited to join our main club rides from Coode St car park (South Perth) at 7am. I or somebody else will be there supervising them.
Please check our WhatsApp SPR junior channel for any last minute call. If you are not in the group chat, please let me know if you wuold like to be included.
Events coming up:
2/8/2026 – AusCycling & WACX State Championships, Garvey Park, Ascot
https://wacyclocross.org/racing/calendar
From the Ride Coordinator
Having a set of working lights is a great idea with sunrise after 7am.
At SPR, we encourage all riders to familiarise themselves with the planned route before joining a group ride. Not knowing the next turn can increase the risk of accidents — for you and others in the group.
Saturday 1st August
Ride starts under the Narrows (City side) at 5:30am
Early lap – earlybird 40.93km spr special
All rides start at Coode St carpark at 7:00am
Development group (*) – novice shelley 36.06km spr saturday
Transition: Trans Shelley 40.59km SPR Saturday
Fast & Main: Maddington 51.87km SPR Saturday
(*) Please note that our Ride Leaders will adjust the composition and route for Development, Transition and Main 4 to suit people and conditions on the day.
Sunday 2nd August
Rides start at Coode St carpark at 7:00am
Social River Loop – approx. 50km
Short Hills (Social): Wlsh MWR 58.88km SPR Sunday
Short Hills: Wlsh MWR 58.88km SPR Sunday
Long Hills: Wlsh Obs Chook MWR Goose 91.08km SPR Sunday
Monday 3rd August
Ride starts under the Narrows (South Perth side) at 5:30am
Currently no ride scheduled – stay tuned for a new Monday ride
Tuesday 4th August
Ride starts under the Narrows (City side) at 5:30am
Two groups – solid roll through vs relaxed pace
SPR Tuesday 36.37km (river ride)
Ride starts at 6:30am at Koorak Kings Park Cafe Car Park
Main 4/Transitional/Novice
Kings Park laps at own pace, coffee at 7:30am
Wednesday 5th August
Ride starts under the Narrows (South Perth side) at 5:30am
No drop recovery ride
SPR Wednesday 35.3km (2023 Edition)
Thursday 6th August
Ride starts under the Narrows (City side) at 5:30am
Three groups fast paced roll-throughs
SPR Thursday 37.26km (cott & freo)
Friday 7th August
Ride starts under the Narrows (South Perth side) at 5:30am