so i think that this is the last of the european spr photos.  most people have returned now back to the cold and wet of perth.  however, over the next few weeks there will be a slow exodus to italy for the uwct masters world champs.  i am sure that we will get more european green.  well, since i am going, i can almost guarantee there will be some shades of green over there. apart from that, not much going on.  zwift has been getting a hammering from a lot of people lately, so throw some “ride on”s out there if you see a familiar name.  it is winter, so we shouldn’t complain about the weather…but we will.

ride leader sponsor – the ride leader sponsor for august is Chaotic Energy. they are an exercise and rehabilitation centre with a difference. the general exercise membership gives you access to state of the art equipment (including a number of wahoo kickr’s for those rainy days) and includes personalised gym programming and ongoing support to achieve your goals. the calm and professional atmosphere has specifically been created to enable you to get the most out of your training.

entertainment books – we will again be selling entertainment books this year through the club.  the digital versions actually come online now and last years don’t finish till the end of june allowing you twice as many offers for 3 months.  check out the links on the previous post to find out more.

saturday start locations – we have revamped the group start locations on saturday morning.  please have a look at the map so you know where your group will congregate.  this makes it easier for ride leaders to give you a briefing before the ride starts.  see the previous post for more details.

spr juniors – we have started our saturday juniors rides and we will be ridng again this week as long as the weather holds out.  this is for kids 10-15 yrs old and must be accompanied by a parent or guardian.  the route is listed below and involves laps in kings park.  it will be between 25-30kms by the time you get back to the carpark, so ensure your kids can cope with that.

from the ride coordinator – Cold mornings are forecast for this weekend, make sure you layer up accordingly.  Additional note. Perth half marathon is being held on Sat morning. Be aware after the ride the path may be closed along Mounts Bay rd, Narrows Bridge (west side – the side most of us use) and South Perth foreshore.

saturday 11th august

ride starts under the narrows (cityside) at 5:30am

early lap – earlybird 40.93km spr special

all rides start at coode st carpark at 7:00am

juniors (10 – 15 yrs with parent) – kings park juniors 23.72km spr saturday

development group –  novice shelley 36.06km spr saturday

transitional 1/2 – trans benara 39.90km spr saturday

fast/main – morley drive 50.77km spr saturday

sunday 12th august

ride starts under the narrows (cityside) at 5:30am

early lap – earlybird 40.93km spr special

all rides start at coode st carpark at 7:00am

development group – coffee ride

short – khna weir 72.23km spr sunday

long – khna trnr obs 101.76km spr sunday

monday 13th august

ride starts under the narrows (sth perth side) at 5:30am

south stock 33.76km spr monday

tuesday 14th august

ride starts under the narrows (cityside) at 5:30am

spr tuesday 36.37km (river ride)

ride starts frasers ave at 5:45am

development group – interval training kings park

wednesday 15th august

ride starts raffles bike path at 5:30am

interval training – stock road repeats

thursday 16th august

ride starts under the narrows (cityside) at 5:30am

see previous post for ride groups

spr thursday 37.26km (cott & freo)

ride starts frasers ave at 5:45am

development group – interval training kings park

friday 17th august

ride starts under the narrows (sth perth side) at 5:30am

spr friday 42.01km (shelley)

friday training/recovery ride

so a very hectic week in brisbane for me which has pushed the ride routes publishing out by a little bit.  had a team dinner at my boss’s house tonight so i am only just pulling this together now (22:42 brisbane time).  it looks like i have missed all that bad winter weather as well as it has been a pleasant 24 deg here.  unfortunately no bike to ride though.  and the instragram feed shows that i am not the only one in a different time zone.  still a few away enjoying the european summer and showing off the spr green.

ride leader sponsor – the ride leader sponsor for august is Chaotic Energy. they are an exercise and rehabilitation centre with a difference. the general exercise membership gives you access to state of the art equipment (including a number of wahoo kickr’s for those rainy days) and includes personalised gym programming and ongoing support to achieve your goals. the calm and professional atmosphere has specifically been created to enable you to get the most out of your training.

spr tour de france sweepstakes – the tour has finished for another year and team sky has taken the win and most of the prize money.  thanks to everyone that entered the sweeps as it gave us someone to cheer for during the late nights. check out the results on the sweeps leaderboard page .

entertainment books – we will again be selling entertainment books this year through the club.  the digital versions actually come online now and last years don’t finish till the end of june allowing you twice as many offers for 3 months.  check out the links on the previous post to find out more.

saturday start locations – we have revamped the group start locations on saturday morning.  please have a look at the map so you know where your group will congregate.  this makes it easier for ride leaders to give you a briefing before the ride starts.  see the previous post for more details.

spr juniors – we have started our saturday juniors rides and we will be ridng again this week as long as the weather holds out.  this is for kids 10-15 yrs old and must be accompanied by a parent or guardian.  the route is listed below and involves laps in kings park.  it will be between 25-30kms by the time you get back to the carpark, so ensure your kids can cope with that.

from the ride coordinator –

saturday 4th august

ride starts under the narrows (cityside) at 5:30am

early lap – earlybird 40.93km spr special

all rides start at coode st carpark at 7:00am

juniors (10 – 15 yrs with parent) – kings park juniors 23.72km spr saturday

development group –  novice shelley 36.06km spr saturday

transitional 1/2 – trans mosman 40.39km spr saturday

fast/main – reabold & cottesloe 50.91km spr saturday

sunday 5th august

ride starts under the narrows (cityside) at 5:30am

early lap – earlybird 40.93km spr special

all rides start at coode st carpark at 7:00am

development group – coffee ride

short – wlsh weir 62.23km spr sunday

long – wlsh obs kal 90.32km spr sunday

monday 6th august

ride starts under the narrows (sth perth side) at 5:30am

south stock 33.76km spr monday

tuesday 7th august

ride starts under the narrows (cityside) at 5:30am

spr tuesday 36.37km (river ride)

ride starts frasers ave at 5:45am

development group – interval training kings park

wednesday 8th august

ride starts raffles bike path at 5:30am

interval training – stock road repeats

thursday 9th august

ride starts under the narrows (cityside) at 5:30am

see previous post for ride groups

spr thursday 37.26km (cott & freo)

ride starts frasers ave at 5:45am

development group – interval training kings park

friday 10th august

ride starts under the narrows (sth perth side) at 5:30am

spr friday 42.01km (shelley)

friday training/recovery ride

a combination of a busy work load, late nights watching the tour, early morning rides and the return to school for the kids has meant that i have not even had time to get passionate about a particular issue.  instead i have been enjoying the multiple photo’s that our spr insta-celeb, michael bonner has been providing us with.  he is not the only member over in europe at the moment, so keep an eye out for more dream-worthy shots while we try to avoid the rain

ride leader sponsor – there is no ride leader sponsor for july.  if you own a business and would like advertise/sponsor our ride leaders, please contact the club via email for more information.

ride to conditions – we have been getting a bit of rain lately and there were some crashes on last saturday’s earlybird ride.  as we have always said – you are responsible for your own safety.  this means that if the roads are slippery back off and ride to the conditions.  none of our training rides are races and the saturday earlybird especially is just about getting extra kms.  be sensible out there.  if you are not confident in the wet, don’t push it as it can be a lot worse.

spr tour de france sweepstakes – the tour has only a few days left and at the moment there are clear leaders in the sweepstakes. the dominance by both quickstep and bora has seen them leap ahead of all the other teams.  there are a few that are making good progress and now 9 out of the 22 teams are over the $10 return.  don’t fret if you haven’t seen much return yet.  about two-thirds of the prize money comes from the final position when the tour hits paris.  for example, if gc positions stay were they are lotto nl – jumbo, would receive an extra $30 for finishing 4 and 6th.  we are on the final approach.  only a few more nights of staying up late to see if your team can win you some money. check out the results on the sweeps leaderboard page .

tour of margs teams – emails have gone out to those that have expressed interest.  there will be an information session soon for those that have any questions.

entertainment books – we will again be selling entertainment books this year through the club.  the digital versions actually come online now and last years don’t finish till the end of june allowing you twice as many offers for 3 months.  check out the links on the previous post to find out more.

saturday start locations – we have revamped the group start locations on saturday morning.  please have a look at the map so you know where your group will congregate.  this makes it easier for ride leaders to give you a briefing before the ride starts.  see the previous post for more details.

spr juniors – as mentioned last week we will be commencing our junior rides this saturday.  this is for kids 10-15 yrs old and must be accompanied by a parent or guardian.  the route is listed below and involves laps in kings park.  it will be between 25-30kms by the time you get back to the carpark, so ensure your kids can cope with that.

from the ride coordinator – Lessons from le Tour: Not everyone can corner, makes sure you leave plenty of space, especially when the roads are wet. Beware dust, cobbles, high speed downhills, and (if you’re in a team sky jersey), french spectators. Also mind the edge …

saturday 28th july

ride starts under the narrows (cityside) at 5:30am

early lap – earlybird 40.93km spr special

all rides start at coode st carpark at 7:00am

juniors (10 – 15 yrs with parent) – kings park juniors 23.72km spr saturday

development group –  novice shelley 36.06km spr saturday

transitional 1/2 – trans canning vale 42.34km spr saturday

fast/main – south st 51.23km spr saturday

sunday 29th july

ride starts under the narrows (cityside) at 5:30am

early lap – earlybird 40.93km spr special

all rides start at coode st carpark at 7:00am

development group – coffee ride

short – brktn weir 82.89km spr sunday

long – carr peet obs 97.72km spr sunday

monday 30th july

ride starts under the narrows (sth perth side) at 5:30am

south stock 33.76km spr monday

tuesday 31st july

ride starts under the narrows (cityside) at 5:30am

spr tuesday 36.37km (river ride)

ride starts frasers ave at 5:45am

development group – interval training kings park

wednesday 1st august

ride starts raffles bike path at 5:30am

interval training – stock road repeats

thursday 2nd august

ride starts under the narrows (cityside) at 5:30am

see previous post for ride groups

spr thursday 37.26km (cott & freo)

ride starts frasers ave at 5:45am

development group – interval training kings park

friday 3rd august

ride starts under the narrows (sth perth side) at 5:30am

spr friday 42.01km (shelley)

friday training/recovery ride

so after my little rant last week about the direction of the club, i have decided that being proactive about it is probably a better solution than lament on what used to be.  as such i want to talk about an area that we have rarely touched over the last ten years; juniors.  we have briefly flirted with the suggestion of junior based rides but nothing has really gotten off the ground.  the problem has been getting someone to “sacrifice” their ride to organise the juniors instead.  well now i have a vested interest in it as number one son has a road bike, lycra and proper shoes with cleats and everything.  i have regularly been taking him out at 7am saturday into kings park to do laps of either lovekin or cardiac.  afterwards, we roll down to the coffeeshop to join the rest of the riders that have just completed the main ride. i generally do the earlybird first, so still get about 80kms under the belt and don’t miss out on the social side of it. so what i want to do is invite anyone that has a kid between 10-16 that they want to get into riding to join us on saturday mornings.  this isn’t a “leave the kid and go for your own ride” affair, as you must be there to supervise.  they don’t have to have a road bike or lycra or any of the fancy stuff.  just a want to learn about bike riding and to do it in as much of a social situation as possible. we get to kings park via the mounts bay rd bike path and there is very little traffic within the park on saturday morning. it is probably as safe as we are going to be able to get it without having a stand alone crit circuit.  unfortunately this weekend is predicting lots of rain on saturday morning, so i won’t be there.  but starting next week, i will add it to the ride routes as a reminder for anyone that wants to come out with us.

ride leader sponsor – there is no ride leader sponsor for july.  if you own a business and would like advertise/sponsor our ride leaders, please contact the club via email for more information.

ride to conditions – we have been getting a bit of rain lately and there were some crashes on last saturday’s earlybird ride.  as we have always said – you are responsible for your own safety.  this means that if the roads are slippery back off and ride to the conditions.  none of our training rides are races and the saturday earlybird especially is just about getting extra kms.  be sensible out there.  if you are not confident in the wet, don’t push it as it can be a lot worse.

spr tour de france sweepstakes – the tour is through the first week and successfully (for some) negotiated the cobbles.  after a couple of days in the alps, the front end of the race has had a bit of a shake up. check out the results on the sweeps leaderboard page to see if those differences have affect the prize money distribution.

tour of margs teams – emails have gone out to those that have expressed interest.  there will be an information session soon for those that have any questions.

entertainment books – we will again be selling entertainment books this year through the club.  the digital versions actually come online now and last years don’t finish till the end of june allowing you twice as many offers for 3 months.  check out the links on the previous post to find out more.

saturday start locations – we have revamped the group start locations on saturday morning.  please have a look at the map so you know where your group will congregate.  this makes it easier for ride leaders to give you a briefing before the ride starts.  see the previous post for more details.

from the ride coordinator – The weather for this weekend and coming week looks bleak for riding, it is the middle of winter after all. Have a sleep in, do a trainer session, explore your local cafe options. If you do take the bike out, be extra visible; bright lights, very visible kit / fluoro colours, and limit the time on major roads and truck routes.

saturday 21st july

ride starts under the narrows (cityside) 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

transitional 1/2 – trans reverse river 40.58km spr saturday

fast/main – river ride 51.80km spr saturday

sunday 22nd july

ride starts under the narrows (cityside) at 5:30am

early lap – earlybird 40.93km spr special

all rides start at coode st carpark at 7:00am

development group – coffee ride

short – khna weir 72.23km spr sunday

long – khna can mills 94.55km spr sunday

monday 23rd july

ride starts under the narrows (sth perth side) at 5:30am

south stock 33.76km spr monday

tuesday 24th july

ride starts under the narrows (cityside) at 5:30am

spr tuesday 36.37km (river ride)

ride starts frasers ave at 5:45am

development group – interval training kings park

wednesday 25th july

ride starts raffles bike path at 5:30am

interval training – stock road repeats

thursday 26th july

ride starts under the narrows (cityside) at 5:30am

see previous post for ride groups

spr thursday 37.26km (cott & freo)

ride starts frasers ave at 5:45am

development group – interval training kings park

friday 27th july

ride starts under the narrows (sth perth side) at 5:30am

spr friday 42.01km (shelley)

friday training/recovery ride

i was reflecting the other day about what has changed in the club.  there are things that we used to do for our members that once seemed to be important no longer hold the same attraction.  this year we only have 4 tomr teams.  even last year we had 7.  a few years ago we took 3 mini-buses to kalgoorlie for the goldfields race.  now, nothing.  the tour de france sweeps, used to be a daily tipping comp, but people eventually lost interest, so we changed it to a sweeps, and this year we have struggled to find numbers. the breakfasts have been cut down to only 2 a year as people were skipping them to just have a coffee instead.  an average saturday ride would now see just as many people not in kit as there are in kit.

have we become too big and have we changed from a community to being more of a service provider??? we have lots of training rides on and have made sure that we provide a level of organisation so people feel safe but have we lost our connection??? is it a refection on the modern society where people don’t engage, but prefer to just snipe from afar??? or is it me, and have i been involved for too long and need to extract myself to ensure that positive change can occur???

these are some of the questions that myself and the committee struggle with as we try to keep this beast rolling.  i know that if we stopped providing training rides, we would loose the majority of our members overnight.  but is that all that is holding the club together??? i’m not saying that everyone needs to have a sycophantic, “spr is the best” type of attitude, but we built something that was different to the other groups in perth and sometimes i am struggling to see where parts that have gone.  so what do we need to do to engage???

ride leader sponsor – there is no ride leader sponsor for july.  if you own a business and would like advertise/sponsor our ride leaders, please contact the club via email for more information.

spr tour de france sweepstakes – the tour is underway and now the sweeps are underway.  we finally sold all the tickets so will draw out teams tonight.  so far every team has received some prize money…some more than others.  you can see the results on the leaderboard page.

spr tour de france dinner – the tour de france dinner has now sold out.  members who managed to get in will be enjoying the best of french cuisine at chez pierre.

tour of margs teams – emails have gone out to those that have expressed interest.  there will be another information session this saturday after the main ride for those that have any questions.

entertainment books – we will again be selling entertainment books this year through the club.  the digital versions actually come online now and last years don’t finish till the end of june allowing you twice as many offers for 3 months.  check out the links on the previous post to find out more.

saturday start locations – we have revamped the group start locations on saturday morning.  please have a look at the map so you know where your group will congregate.  this makes it easier for ride leaders to give you a briefing before the ride starts.  see the previous post for more details.

from the ride coordinator – The Sat main route dog legs along Leach Hwy for ~650m before turning right. Ensure groups stay together and changing lanes on Leach is done safely.

saturday 14th july

ride starts under the narrows (cityside) 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

transitional 1/2 – trans reverse river 40.58km spr saturday

fast/main – murdoch & freo 49.8km spr saturday

sunday 15th july

ride starts under the narrows (cityside) at 5:30am

early lap – earlybird 40.93km spr special

all rides start at coode st carpark at 7:00am

development group – coffee ride

short – wlsh weir 62.23km spr sunday

long – wlsh obs kal 90.32km spr sunday

monday 16th july

ride starts under the narrows (sth perth side) at 5:30am

south stock 33.76km spr monday

tuesday 17th july

ride starts under the narrows (cityside) at 5:30am

spr tuesday 36.37km (river ride)

ride starts frasers ave at 5:45am

development group – interval training kings park

wednesday 18th july

ride starts raffles bike path at 5:30am

interval training – stock road repeats

thursday 19th july

ride starts under the narrows (cityside) at 5:30am

see previous post for ride groups

spr thursday 37.26km (cott & freo)

ride starts frasers ave at 5:45am

development group – interval training kings park

friday 20th july

ride starts under the narrows (sth perth side) at 5:30am

spr friday 42.01km (shelley)

friday training/recovery ride

as some of you are aware, a few years ago we had an incident on one of the hills rides.  a rider drifted to the wrong side of the road and hit an oncoming car at about 70kph.  i was about two metres away and got to watch the whole thing.  there are certain things that i never want to experience again and that, plus running back up the road to check for a pulse are pretty much at the top of my list.  to my horror, i saw this scenario about to play out again on the thursday earlybird ride.  coming down the hill from point walter and onto burke drive, a rider who was larger than the person in front, had more momentum and drifted around and onto the wrong side of the road.  i look up the road and there is a car, with headlights blazing heading up the hill.  the rider had enough time to brake and pull back in, and it wasn’t that close of a call, but it was totally unnecessary.  instead of braking as they caught the rider in front, they put themselves (and my sanity) at risk.  now the rider in question was not part of the group.  we had overtaken quite a few riders between cottesloe and bicton, so we had some hangers-on.  regardless, i had a few choice words for him even though he soon drifted off the back.  talking to the leader of another perth bike group and they said that they still have the occasional problem with riders going the wrong way around roundabouts, etc.  on our group rides, these types of risks are unacceptable.  the club as a whole works very hard to maintain a certain level of etiquette and this is something that every person must enforce.  we are the more vulnerable road user out there and taking unnecessary risks can be fatal.

ride leader sponsor – the ride leader sponsor for june is wa cyclocross.  cyclocross is a cross between road and mountain biking usually held on a grass or dirt circuit. there are divisions for all abilities and a kids race before on a shortened circuit.
check out any of the events coming up soon and get on down to ring a cowbell.

earlybird lights – the nights are dark and full of terrors, so that is why you need to have a good set of operating lights on your bike during the earlybird.  on the thursday group 3 ride, there were 3 people that did not have operating lights on their bikes.  if it is a once off “my lights just died” situation, then fine, but don’t argue, just apologise and say you will have them fixed before the next ride.  there is a very big risk that you can be cleaned up by a car because they can’t see you.  especially since people seem to wear a lot of black kit during winter.  if your lights are repeatably failing, then it is time to buy some new ones.  as we have always said, no front flashers and make sure your rear is not on retina burn mode for the people trying to follow your wheel.

kit collection – the latest order of standard spr kit and the national kit is now ready to collect and will be available at the coffee shop after the main ride on saturday.  if you cannot collect then, please contact kit@southperthrouleurs.com.auto organise another time, or purchase a “post my kit” option in our shop.

winter woolies and retro riders – pull out your retro jersey or retro bike and ride with the south perth rouleurs. this saturday, 30 june. meet at coode st jetty carpark in south perth by 7am. spr ride leaders will take the group over a 40-50km ride ending at dome westralia square. there you can display your bike, parade your jersey and #bheroic.  see the ride route below.

spr tomr 2018 eoi closing tomorrow – we know that is seems really early, but team nominations for the tomr need to be in soon.  this is where the club pays the deposit based on how many teams that we wish to enter.  if the deposit is not paid, then we cannot enter a team later on if more people want to be a part of it.  last year we had three men’s, three women’s and a mixed team.  so far this year, we actually do not have enough numbers for a women’s only team.  after being involved with this event for a number of years, i can hands downs say that it is a lot of fun and one of the best biking experiences you can have without leaving the state.  even just the social aspects of the event for the club make it worthwhile.  so, if you want to be part of it, or need to set a goal to make sure you actually train this year, then check out the previous post and get your name to the race committee before the end of tomorrow.

entertainment books – we will again be selling entertainment books this year through the club.  the digital versions actually come online now and last years don’t finish till the end of june allowing you twice as many offers for 3 months.  check out the links on the previous post to find out more.

saturday start locations – we have revamped the group start locations on saturday morning.  please have a look at the map so you know where your group will congregate.  this makes it easier for ride leaders to give you a briefing before the ride starts.  see the previous post for more details.

from the ride coordinator – Do your tax return, buy bike things

saturday 30th june

ride starts under the narrows (cityside) 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

retro roll – spr retro roll 41.60km

transitional 1/2 – spr retro roll 41.60km

fast/main – morley drive 50.77km spr saturday

sunday 1st july

ride starts under the narrows (cityside) at 5:30am

early lap – earlybird 40.93km spr special

all rides start at coode st carpark at 7:00am

development group – coffee ride

short – wlsh weir 62.23km spr sunday

long – wlsh obs kal 90.32km spr sunday

monday 2nd july

ride starts under the narrows (sth perth side) at 5:30am

south stock 33.76km spr monday

tuesday 3rd july

ride starts under the narrows (cityside) at 5:30am

spr tuesday 36.37km (river ride)

ride starts frasers ave at 5:45am

development group – interval training kings park

wednesday 4th july

ride starts raffles bike path at 5:30am

interval training – stock road repeats

thursday 5th july

ride starts under the narrows (cityside) at 5:30am

see previous post for ride groups

spr thursday 37.26km (cott & freo)

ride starts frasers ave at 5:45am

development group – interval training kings park

friday 6th july

ride starts under the narrows (sth perth side) at 5:30am

spr friday 42.01km (shelley)

friday training/recovery ride