All posts by elPrez

Collie Cyclo-sportif

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Report by John Kitching

“This is the worst breakfast I’ve had for a long time: what is it? It’s an egg & bacon McMuffin, Dad, that’s why I’m having pancakes, hash browns and syrup. Enjoy!” And so the Collie Cyclo Sportif morning dawned with some carbo (in)digestion.

The Collie Six. Bill (refugee from Main 1 looking to rediscover his mojo); Vince (his first event and only started cycling 2 months ago); Judy (doing it for the sisterhood); Ross (doing it for the over 70s); John (trying to show his son he’s not past it yet); Keith (showing his dad that he is). Bill had cycled the 21km course on Sat and confirmed that it was a good road, gently undulating and some nice views which was quite correct: a really attractive route. So we met at the gantry, pumped up and ready to cycle as a team and help each other over the 4 laps. Good intentions …that were to go the way of the Dodo.

We cycled together reasonably well for the first two laps; a bit of a split on the long, gentle climb but we’d regroup and get the strongest riders in front most of the time. There were 18 teams entered for the 84km ride so it was not a busy, busy route (unlike Swan Valley). We were overtaken by a few groups and one stuck out: a lady had the most threadbare cycling shorts we have ever seen. A few patches of black thread but predominantly pink buttocks showing through.

Moral dilema1: do you mention this to the offender on the ride? Afterwards? Not at all?

As we crossed the timing station after our second lap it was clear that we were behind schedule. The starter had mentioned that we had to commence the final lap by 11.15 otherwise we would be pulled off the course (to avoid intefering with The Race). We had to average 45 mins per lap and we were about 5 mins behind so we had to increase the pace, which we duly did. About half way round we’d slpit into 4+2.

Moral dilema 2: do you abide by the Cyclo ethos and regroup and get pulled off the course? or carry on to complete it?

There was no discussion really: we knew that the 2 wanted the 4 to carry regardless and achieve what we had set out to do. So we did.. and then ..Ross yelled “Puncture” some 7 km and 14 mins away from the timing station.

Moral dilema 3: do you abide by the Cyclo rules and all wait while the tube is replaced and get then pulled off the course? or carry on to complete it?

Luckily there was no question. Ross told us to carry on. We looked back and saw the picture of martyrdom: back of his left hand on his forehead, right hand pointing to the heavens, plaintiffly crying “abandon me, abandon me for the greater good, ohh ohh”. Ross eventually got back on the bike and WAS pulled off the course (he tried to sneak round a backroad but was recognised). So the Collie 4 became the Collie 3 and on the final 3km we received our instructions from Bill: “I want you two work together to get your speed up to 58kmph with 400m to go, then I’ll whip out and sprint for the line”. He’s joking (he was: I couldn’t even get to 38kmph!) But we finished it just before 12.00 (according to my clock).

Meanwhile the Collie 2 had passed the timing station without being pulled off and although they were passed by The Race, they also completed the course.

So awards to Vincent for completing his first event and first ride of this duration; to Judy for supporting him particularly on the last lap and living the SPR spirit; and to Ross for his tragedian acting ability.

Moral dilema 4: do Bill, John and Keith deserve recognition for completing the course in record SPR team time despite abandoning their mates?

ride routes 10th & 11th may

2 Comments
fair enough
fair enough

so there was an accident on the sunday hills ride and it happened well and truly before any hills.  a pothole on welshpool road was not effectively called and a rider came down hard.  hard enough to be unconscious for a few minutes and also needing an ambulance to take him to hospital.  i just want to take this time to reinforce our ride etiquette guide and or call signals. these are essential parts of what keeps our riders safe and our rides organised.  the safety of the entire group is up to you.  you may make it through a hazard with no problems, but a few people down the line may not be that lucky.  i remember a few years ago that a couple of guys came down when they hit a shoe on canning hwy.  the first few people called “shoe” but then it became a joke, so people were laughing and didn’t call.  by the time the back of the group came across the shoe, it wasn’t called and caused an accident.  for hazards that are a bit more permanent, there is actually a website where you can report road hazards.  you can find it here.

ride leaders – support the club and help us become ambassadors for the sport in the public eye. put your name down as ride leader to ensure that the group ride is safe and organised. sign up here.

women’s skill session – back when leigh o started riding with us she found it quite a daunting experience.  coming down to a saturday morning ride for the first time, with over 100 riders waiting in a carpark, can be nerve wracking as there are so many unknowns.  even after you have been with spr for a while, what skills you need to have to move up the groups may also be unclear.  so leigh has gone out and got her coaching ticket and wants to help the next lot of girls that are coming through the ranks.  this is primarily for those that are in the novice/tranny group and feel a bit out of their depth.  it is also for those women that you know of that may need a little push to come out with the group.  going through the skills course before coming out with the novice group, may be just the transition to group riding that they need.  if you are (or know someone that maybe) interested, please see the previous post.

women’s race training day – hall training is putting on a race training day just for spr women.  if you do race or have been thinking about it, then come along to this free day where you will be shown the basic of road racing.  see the previous post for details.

goldfields cyclassic – the next big race on the calendar is at the start of june and as it is in kalgoorlie, it will take a bit of organising.  more info is on the previous post and if you are interested, please put your name in the comments section.

ride routes – the first real wet week that we have had this year and it looks like it will continue into the weekend.  numbers will probably be down on saturday as the weather report is predicting a 77% chance of rain.  for those brave (foolhardy) enough to turn up, take it nice and easy and keep the group together.  you will still get a ride in, which is better than slipping out on a corner because you went too hard.  sunday is mothers day…just a reminder to grab some flowers on the way home from the hills ride.

saturday 10th may

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 – trans rebold 38.69km spr saturday

fast & main groups – morley drive 50.77km spr saturday

sunday 11th may

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

short – wlsh weir 62.23km spr sunday

long – wlsh obs cam goose 88.67km spr sunday

ride routes 3rd & 4th may

11 Comments
koala of flanders
koala of flanders

as statistics will show, the more people you have doing an activity more often, then it is more likely that there will be incidents.  add in the fact that we also ride on the road with ever changing traffic conditions, random pedestrians and inclement weather, it is almost inevitable that you will be involved in some type of incident.  so, are you insured???  your membership gives you a bit of personal injury cover but you should also make sure that you have adequate health insurance.  as we have seen with the major accident that we had lately, income protection can also be very important.  on top of all that what about your bike??? is it covered in case of an accident and if so, what does you policy actually cover???  i have seen some policies that don”t cover your bike if it is locked in a car unless it is also attached to the car itself.  firstly, make sure that you have some type of coverage but make sure that you understand what you will be covered for.

ride leaders – support the club and help us become ambassadors for the sport in the public eye. put your name down as ride leader to ensure that the group ride is safe and organised. sign up here.

tom lowry race – there are over 30 spr members heading down to collie this weekend for the tom lowry crit and road race.  on sunday, we will endeavour to find a place to set up the tent, but as there will also be a cyclo-sportif on at the same time, there may not be an opportunity to find a spare patch of grass.  just look for other people wearing green and see if you can get together before the race.

women’s skill session – back when leigh o started riding with us she found it quite a daunting experience.  coming down to a saturday morning ride for the first time, with over 100 riders waiting in a carpark, can be nerve wracking as there are so many unknowns.  even after you have been with spr for a while, what skills you need to have to move up the groups may also be unclear.  so casino leigh has gone out and got her coaching ticket and wants to help the next lot of girls that are coming through the ranks.  this is primarily for those that are in the novice/tranny group and feel a bit out of their depth.  it is also for those women that you know of that may need a little push to come out with the group.  going through the skills course before coming out with the novice group, may be just the transition to group riding that they need.  if you are (or know someone that maybe) interested, please see the previous post.

women’s race training day – hall training is putting on a race training day just for spr women.  if you do race or have been thinking about it, then come along to this free day where you will be shown the basic of road racing.  see the previous post for details.

goldfields cyclassic – the next big race on the calendar is at the start of june and as it is in kalgoorlie, it will take a bit of organising.  more info is on the previous post and if you are interested, please put your name in the comments section.

ride routes – a few cold morning”s predicted.  make sure you rug up.

saturday 3rd may

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 – trans canning vale 42.34km spr saturday

fast & main groups – hale rd reverse 51.37km spr saturday

sunday 4th may

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

short – wlsh weir 62.23km spr sunday

long – wlsh obs kal 90.32km spr sunday

ride routes 25th, 26th & 27th april

9 Comments
Anzac Corps Cyclist Battalions in 1916-17
Anzac Corps Cyclist Battalions in 1916-17

share the road.  it is the catch-cry of many a cycling advocacy group but it applies to both parties.  cycling has received a lot of press lately not all bad, but lots not too good.  if you follow the amy gillett facebook page, you would have seen that the last couple of weeks there had been 3 fatalities and a number of serious incidents involving cyclists. the part we play in all this is to be considerate to other road users, cars, trucks, buses, other cyclists and pedestrians.  yes, we can legally ride two-abreast along the road, but does the individual situation call for some common sense and the group rides single file.  most of our rides deliberately target double lane busier roads as it allows more room for cars to get past.  if however, you get dropped off your group, please assess the situation you are in.  taking up a lane as a lone cyclist may not be the best thing to do as it may put you in a dangerous situation.  it is no good being “legally right” and confined to a wheelchair rather than giving space to other road users.  sometimes it may pay to just pull over and wait for the next group, or even find your own way back via some quieter back roads. the ride routes are posted in advance every week so you can study the route and make some adjustments if you need.  physically tired riders sometimes don’t make good choices just the same as frustrated drivers don’t always make good choices.  unfortunately the risks they are taking is with your life not theirs.

ride leaders – support the club and help us become ambassadors for the sport in the public eye. put your name down as ride leader to ensure that the group ride is safe and organised. sign up here.

women’s skill session – back when leigh o started riding with us she found it quite a daunting experience.  coming down to a saturday morning ride for the first time, with over 100 riders waiting in a carpark, can be nerve wracking as there are so many unknowns.  even after you have been with spr for a while, what skills you need to have to move up the groups may also be unclear.  so leigh has gone out and got her coaching ticket and wants to help the next lot of girls that are coming through the ranks.  this is primarily for those that are in the novice/tranny group and feel a bit out of their depth.  it is also for those women that you know of that may need a little push to come out with the group.  going through the skills course before coming out with the novice group, may be just the transition to group riding that they need.  if you are (or know someone that maybe) interested, please see the previous post.

women’s race training day – hall training is putting on a race training day just for spr women.  if you do race or have been thinking about it, then come along to this free day where you will be shown the basic of road racing.  see the previous post for details.

tom lowry race – the next road race on the calendar is being held in collie next weekend.  please see the previous post for more details.

goldfields cyclassic – the next big race on the calendar is at the start of june and as it is in kalgoorlie, it will take a bit of organising.  more info is on the previous post and if you are interested, please put your name in the comments section.

kit order closes – the current kit order will close on the 1st of may.  make sure you get your orders in.

ride routes – tomorrow is anzac day.  many people will be going to the dawn service prior to the public holiday ride and as such we will be starting 10min later to allow them to get down from kings park.  anzac day is also one of the busiest days at Dome, so please be considerate when rolling back into town.  there may not be the space that we usually have on a saturday and there will probably be a restricted menu to choose from.

friday 25th april

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

early lap – spr friday 42.01km (shelley)

all rides start at coode st carpark at 7:10am (later start to allow for dawn service)

public hol 58.97km spr special (fast/main/trans-m3)

saturday 26th april

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 – trans abernethy 39.96km spr saturday

fast & main groups – hale & ridgehill 50.58km spr saturday

sunday 27th april

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

short – brktn weir 82.89km spr sunday

long – cann dam 100.13km spr sunday

ride routes 18th, 19th, 20th & 21st april

2 Comments
combining easter and bike riding. carbo loading.

the easter long weekend is a great opportunity to smash out some big kms.  we have many a ride organised on each day of this extended weekend and Dome will be open each day as well.  make sure you do find some time for your family and maybe even some chocolate eggs.  we will be there to support you burning off all that chocolate you have devoured.

ride leaders – support the club and help us become ambassadors for the sport in the public eye. put your name down as ride leader to ensure that the group ride is safe and organised. sign up here.

spr vice-presidents ride – also known as the good friday dams ride, this is an annual ride dating back as far as last year.  vice-president julian did this ride as a warm up to the 5 dams.  this year the dams have already been ridden, but the good friday tradition continues.  please be aware that this is a hard course, so make sure that you are capable of riding this far in the hills.  remember that there will be limited places open for refuelling so stock up on hot cross buns.  see the previous post for more details.

women’s race training day – hall training is putting on a race training day just for spr women.  if you do race or have been thinking about it, then come along to this free day where you will be shown the basic of road racing.  see the previous post for details.

half the road – come along and see a film about the trials and tribulations of being a female professional cyclist.  profits from this movie go back to the athletes to help them support themselves while they ride.  more info in the previous post.

goldfields cyclassic – the next big race on the calendar is at the start of june and as it is in kalgoorlie, it will take a bit of organising.  more info is on the previous post and if you are interested, please put your name in the comments section.

ride routes – its a looooong weekend, so we have more rides than you can poke a spoke at.  quadruple double anyone??? (the dams ride counts as a double).  there are lots of people that have also taken off the three days in between easter and anzac day.  if you are after some extra rides (i.e. after the normal earlybird rides) place a post in the forums and see if there is anyone else interested.

friday 18th april

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

early lap – spr friday 42.01km (shelley)

ride starts at coode st carpark at 6:00am

spr good friday 3 dams vice-presidents ride

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

public hol 58.97km spr special (fast/main/trans-m3)

saturday 19th april

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 – trans shelley 40.59km spr saturday

fast & main groups – south lake 51.99km spr saturday

sunday 20th april

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

short – goose kal 63.41km spr sunday

long – darl weir 100.09km spr sunday

monday 21st april

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

early lap – south stock 33.76km spr monday

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

public hol 58.97km spr special (fast/main/trans-m3)

ride routes 12th & 13th april

12 Comments

IMG_20140302_084355school holidays are just around the corner and this usually means more kids out on bikes.  as cyclists, pretty much all of us also drive a car.  does your attitude to cyclists change when they are holding you up when you are on your way to work???  do you give enough space to riders when you are overtaking??? make sure that your actions off the bike are just as positive as those on the bike.

ride leaders – support the club and help us become ambassadors for the sport in the public eye. put your name down as ride leader to ensure that the group ride is safe and organised. stu has written a bit about what i means to be a ride leader which pretty much sums it up.  sign up here.

goldfields cyclassic – the next big race on the calendar is at the start of june and as it is in kalgoorlie, it will take a bit of organising.  more info is on the previous post and if you are interested, please put your name in the comments section.

ride routes – just be aware that with the hilly race on sunday, most of the hills riding regulars that normally lead the ride may not be there.  the routes are not too hard, but make sure you have a look before you come out.

saturday 12th april

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 – trans rebold 38.69km spr saturday

fast & main groups – cresswell & herdsman 48.86km spr saturday

sunday 13th april

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

short – wlsh weir 62.23km spr sunday

long – wlsh obs kal 90.32km spr sunday

ride routes 5th & 6th april

3 Comments
sea of green
sea of green

well the uwct has been run and won again this year and it was great to see so many spr jerseys out in force.  even better was the amount of support on the course with random people (probably not random, but hard to focus while racing) shouting out as we rode past.  no one took up my suggestion of actually pushing me up the hill, especially on the last couple of laps when i actually needed it.  even better again, was seeing/hearing that brett and nicky were out to support the spr racers.  i briefly got to see brett on the start line and it was great to see him up and about.  even though it was a pretty important race last weekend, the main takeaway for me (and other in the public i heard from) was the amount of support that we had out on course.  not only that, the way that we help support others in the race with bottles and general cheering was also noted.

ride leaders – support the club and help us become ambassadors for the sport in the public eye. put your name down as ride leader to ensure that the group ride is safe and organised. stu has written a bit about what i means to be a ride leader which pretty much sums it up.  sign up here.

goldfields cyclassic – the next big race on the calendar is at the start of june and as it is in kalgoorlie, it will take a bit of organising.  more info is on the previous post and if you are interested, please put your name in the comments section.

brett and nicky donations – you may have seen that there is a donations button on the right of the webpage.  with most accidents, there are usually a lot of out of pocket expenses that are not covered by all the different types of insurance.  a lot of people have been very generous with their time and skills to help the guys get through this.  if you think that there isn’t much you can do physically, then feel free to donate to help them with any ongoing expenses.  donations will be closed off at the end of this weekend.  thanks to all those that have donated, there have been some very generous amounts of which i am sure the guys will be grateful for.

ride routes – well uwct is over so time for those to test their legs in the saturday fast ride instead.  holmes road will certainly be testing.

saturday 5th april

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 – trans abernethy 39.96km spr saturday

fast & main groups – holmes rd 50.42km spr saturday

sunday 6th april

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

short – khna weir 72.23km spr sunday

long – khna trnr obs 94.99km spr sunday

uwct grand fondo

1 Comment

not sure how many spr people are doing the uwct grand fondo on sunday, but if you are looking at riding to the start, a group will be leaving from raffles.  the event kicks off at 6:30am so we want to get there by 6am.  if we leave raffles by 5:30am then we should be fine.  if there is a decent size group, we will go straight down canning hwy, if not, then alongside the river.  see you there.

ride routes 29th & 30th march

4 Comments

accidenti have been having trouble coming to terms with what happened last weekend.  in some respects it just seems so unbelievable that an accident like that would happen, but watching the news on any given night and there are many similar examples just not necessarily involving cyclists. but anyway, the focus of the club should not be on the accident, but on our riders and how we get them back to full health again.  i appreciate that people have been observing the social media blackout on this issue as it just would not have helped the situation.  there is always so much that we want to say, but how that message is perceived and what the trolls say in reply often blows the situation out of proportion.

an update on brett and nicky is that the mri scans have indicated that neither of them need to have surgery which is great.  the downside is that both have some type of back brace for at least 3 months.  the injuries are serious, but both have use of their legs which could have been a possibility with this type of accident. both are very grateful for the support and help that the club has shown them both at the accident and during the days afterwards.  in particular they (and the club) want to thank the following people;

  • kelly and vicki for the medical support on the day.  it is quite convenient to be riding with a paramedic and nurse
  • andrew for organisation at the scene and for looking after the bikes (very important) afterwards
  • john and jane for helping with the police report
  • travis for visiting the hospital to give the guys some legal advice
  • a host of other people that played a supporting role that i may not be able to name

it is casino pa natet not nicest situation for club members to be in, but everything i have heard so far was that everyone pulled together well to look after the guys.  in the early days of the club, we often talked about the club being more like a cycling family.  as it has grown, i have thought that maybe we have drifted away from that concept.  however, the actions the members in this instance show that we will rally together to support each other.

brett and nicky donations – you may have seen that there is a donations button on the right of the webpage.  with most accidents, there are usually a lot of out of pocket expenses that are not covered by all the different types of insurance.  a lot of people have been very generous with their time and skills to help the guys get through this.  if you think that there isn”t much you can do physically, then feel free to donate to help them with any ongoing expenses.  thanks.

ride leaders – support the club and help us become ambassadors for the sport in the public eye. put your name down as ride leader to ensure that the group ride is safe and organised. stu has written a bit about what i means to be a ride leader which pretty much sums it up.  sign up here.

2014 agm – with all that has gone on this past week, i haven”t had a chance to publish the outcomes of the agm.  will get to it this week.  rest assured that all positions on the committee were filled and soon those committee members will be looking for people to help on the sub committee.

ucwt masters and tour de perth – this weekend will be the culmination of many of our riders training for the past few months.  there are a few members that are racing in the 4 stage tour de perth national road series race, and a whole lot more that will be competing in the uci masters championships.  the tour de perth is held over 4 days (while most of us are at work) but culminates in the final stage around rebold hill.  the masters race is held after the tour around the same course.  we will have a supporters tent in the feedzone and if you have someone in the race, you can join us there to help support/feed/yell at them.

ride routes – with so many races on this weekend, i am having trouble finding a ride route that doesn”t have some interaction yet still allows a tailwind home.  see how we go with these.  hopefully the sunday hills ride will have a bunch of riders to come back with after the grand fondo.

saturday 29th march

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 – trans reverse river 40.58km spr saturday

fast & main groups – morley drive 50.77km spr saturday

sunday 30th march

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

short – wlsh weir 62.23km spr sunday

long – wlsh weir kal 101.71km spr sunday

brett & nicky update

1 Comment
nicky
nicky
brett
brett

i went to visit brett and nicky today as they are still in royal perth hospital.  ct scans have shown that they both have fairly serious back injuries and most likely will be spending a lot of time in recuperation.  further tests today will determine if either of them need surgery or will just need many weeks in a supportive brace.

a lot of people have asked what they can do to help, which is great to hear.  there are a number of areas that they need assistance in right away and some are less urgent.

the primary focus is the back injuries and they are in the hands of the medical experts in that respect.  unless you are a spinal expert, or can call in a favour from someone that is, then probably best we leave that to the hospital.

the police are still investigating the case so there is expected to be some legal ramifications as an outcome.  any advice any experts in the club can give would be appreciated.  a lawyer in the club did go and visit them today, but law is a funny thing, so the more experts the better.  how the system works in relation to 3rd party insurance, compensation, etc would be the focus there.

we are looking at getting the bikes assessed as there could be a insurance claim there too, so that will be organised while the guys are still in hospital.

for many of us in the club, these types of situations are hard as you may want to help (that you can get by approaching the injury attorneys serving Grand Rapids), but have no idea what to do.  accidents like this often mean that the patient is left out of pocket, either through medical expenses that are not covered by insurance, or being out of work for extended periods of time.  as such, we have set up a donation link on our main website.  look for the donate button on the right of the screen and feel free to donate any amount you want to assist brett and nicky recover fully and get back out on their bikes as soon as possible.

the club has shown great compassion in their actions when dealing with the initial accident, but  we also need to look longer term and focus on their recovery.