All posts by elPrez

Ride routes 27th June – 3rd July

Contemplating how much this will hurt. Photo Nancy

Racing has commenced in Perth with last weekend seeing the first post-COVID ATTA time trial at Champion Lakes and this weekend Peel Districts will be holding their first road race. In both cases the start list has filled very quickly and the wait list filled just as fast. Hopefully this is a good indication that people want to get out and race. We have a few events that we hope to put on your radar. September sees the return of the Watertower Challenge a non-race event, but certainly a challenge for teams of 3. October is the Beverley weekend with a race, heroic ride and cx. November is the Tour of Margs and we are currently looking for expressions of interest so we know how many SPR teams to register. There are other race events slowly filling up the calendar, but these are the ones that will support/represent the club, so make sure you pencil yourself in.

The Rules – just a reminder that it isn’t business as usual.

  • Social distancing still applies. This means no handshakes, hugging, high fives, down low too slow, or general touching is allowed. Please refrain from touching other peoples bikes, and allow space for people to gather before the ride.
  • The start locations in the carpark for Saturday will change slightly. See below for more detail and a new map, but basically, we need to ensure we don’t exceed the 100 person limit, by separating into two distinct groups.
  • No spitting, snotting or sneezing within the group. If you need to, move to the back of the group, but please look behind you to make sure that it is clear of traffic. That is all traffic, not just bikes. We don’t want some dash-cam footage of someone blowing their nose on a car the first day back.
  • No “hand of god”. Like most thing in life, any interaction requires two-way consent between adults. If someone is struggling and you want to push them, you both have to be comfortable with being touched. I’m not going to speculate on the risks involved with hand to jersey contact, but before you push someone, ask them first. If they are not comfortable with any contact, then don’t do it.
  • The coffee shop is open, but please be aware that they may not be able to seat everyone. The post ride coffee is a long standing tradition with cycling, but in this new post-COVID world, there are some sacrifices that need to be made. The hospitality industry in general is suffering, so we need to give our support, but if you are just getting a coffee, then consider a takeaway, so that table space can be saved for those ordering a bit more. Hospitality businesses are under stricter regulations than cycling clubs, so please understand that the seating arrangements are what are mandated by the restrictions and you cannot move tables to suit how many mates you want around you.
  • Personal hygiene becomes very important in the spread of virus so make sure that you either wash your hands whenever you can or carry a small container of hand sanitiser. Limit your exposure to common surfaces (chairs, tables) and don’t be sharing items.
The Mayeur sizing kit at R&D Speedshop

SPR Mayeur kit – Orders for the new SPR kit are now open and can be found at this link. A sizing kit has been made available at R&D Speedshop in Claremont and all sizes in the three styles are available to try on.
The Mayeur Clubline range includes standard fit, slim fit, and aero fit unisex jerseys, as well as standard and long cut bib shorts, with mens and womens chamois. A range of gilet, skin suits, arm warmers and jackets are also available. 
Whilst the sizing range covers everything from kids and 2XS to Grande sizing, Mayeur is passionate to make sure everyone in the club has a garment that works for them. In the event you fall outside the range, get in touch with the team at Mayeur and they’ll look after you. For more information check out the previous post.

Proposed Yanchep criterium circuit

Criterium Circuit at Yanchep – Community consultation is being sought for a new cycling facility at Splendid Park. Northern Beaches Cycling Club have worked hard to get the proposal this far – A 1.5km dedicated road circuit for training and racing. Imagine tearing around a uni-directional, 5 metre wide circuit, complete with the option of high banked corners comparable to an indoor track! And a 200m long false flat sprint finish (NBCC website)
Please show your support by completing the survey here

Looking fresh on the start-line

ToMR EOI – Expressions of interest are now open for anyone wishing to be in an SPR team for the Tour of Margaret River. Most people are aware of the event and what is involved after all the club has had multiple teams entered for a number of years now. If you are interested, have a read of the previous post and register yourself so we can start sorting out teams. As we are going through a period of uncertainty, we will most likely have less teams rather than more teams to account for a potential reduction in numbers closer to the event. Therefore get your name in quick if you are keen to race or keen to help volunteer.

Where do i need to stand again?

Saturday Start Locations – In order to adhere to the new gathering regulations, we need to slightly change the meeting points of the groups. There is a 100 person gathering limit and when all groups are combined, we often exceed that when everyone is waiting for the start. There was a discussion about different start times for different groups, but what we settled on was moving half the groups to different sides of the carpark. This is not ideal as there are usually more cars using the eastern most parks, but we will just have to work around that for now. We understand that the COVID risk isn’t high, but it is more about how the club is viewed from outside. So, please congregate in the assigned locations, so we can continue to hold group rides in the future.

From the Ride Coordinator –  Went way too early last week, praying for and boasting about good weather in winter. Looks like I didn’t pray hard enough as it only lasted a week with the forecast looking ominous for this weekend. Hopefully a small window opens up and allows some good, safe riding to occur. The potential slippery conditions is a good reminder for all of us to check our bike is in good running order (frequent and often in winter is appropriate). Brakes, chains and cleats can get messy real quick and cause accidents out there. If you are planning to ride, do it safely on a well maintained bike over winter. We want to see you out there next week as well!!

Saturday 27th June

Sunday 28th June

Monday 29th June

Tuesday 30th June

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

Wednesday 1st July

Thursday 2nd July

Friday 3rd July

Ride Routes 20th – 26th June

Fresh mornings along Shelley

We are very lucky here in Western Australia. Being the most isolated city in the world certainly has it’s benefits when the entire planet is gripped by a pandemic. With only two roads into the state and very few airports to control, the spread of the virus has been contained quite efficiently. What it has highlighted, however, was just how bad our ports are controlled, so i guess that will be an area that will get some scrutiny in the future.
What does that mean for us? Well, we got to open the club earlier than if we were in another state. We didn’t have restrictions on how far we could ride even when we were under stricter control. We actually could get out and ride.
But we also need to be realistic. Victoria and NSW are still having outbreaks and as a country or even state, we are a long way from seeing the end of this. In the event of another outbreak in this state, we need to be flexible enough and smart enough to quickly get it under control. That means that in the future, we may need to again change what we are doing with the club. For now, enjoy the sunshine and fresh air while we can and look after yourself, and if you can, someone else as well.

The Rules – just a reminder that it isn’t business as usual.

  • Social distancing still applies. This means no handshakes, hugging, high fives, down low too slow, or general touching is allowed. Please refrain from touching other peoples bikes, and allow space for people to gather before the ride.
  • The start locations in the carpark for Saturday will change slightly. See below for more detail and a new map, but basically, we need to ensure we don’t exceed the 100 person limit, by separating into two distinct groups.
  • No spitting, snotting or sneezing within the group. If you need to, move to the back of the group, but please look behind you to make sure that it is clear of traffic. That is all traffic, not just bikes. We don’t want some dash-cam footage of someone blowing their nose on a car the first day back.
  • No “hand of god”. Like most thing in life, any interaction requires two-way consent between adults. If someone is struggling and you want to push them, you both have to be comfortable with being touched. I’m not going to speculate on the risks involved with hand to jersey contact, but before you push someone, ask them first. If they are not comfortable with any contact, then don’t do it.
  • The coffee shop is open, but please be aware that they may not be able to seat everyone. The post ride coffee is a long standing tradition with cycling, but in this new post-COVID world, there are some sacrifices that need to be made. The hospitality industry in general is suffering, so we need to give our support, but if you are just getting a coffee, then consider a takeaway, so that table space can be saved for those ordering a bit more. Hospitality businesses are under stricter regulations than cycling clubs, so please understand that the seating arrangements are what are mandated by the restrictions and you cannot move tables to suit how many mates you want around you.
  • Personal hygiene becomes very important in the spread of virus so make sure that you either wash your hands whenever you can or carry a small container of hand sanitiser. Limit your exposure to common surfaces (chairs, tables) and don’t be sharing items.
The Mayeur sizing kit at R&D Speedshop

SPR Mayeur kit – We are taking the final steps to being able to open orders for the new SPR kit. The sample kit should arrive soon so we can sign off on the materials and colours. In the meantime, a sizing kit has been made available at R&D Speedshop in Claremont. All sizes in the three styles are available to try on so that when orders open, you will be ready to pounce.
The Mayeur Clubline range includes standard fit, slim fit, and aero fit unisex jerseys, as well as standard and long cut bib shorts, with mens and womens chamois. A range of gilet, skin suits, arm warmers and jackets are also available. 
Whilst the sizing range covers everything from kids and 2XS to Grande sizing, Mayeur is passionate to make sure everyone in the club has a garment that works for them. In the event you fall outside the range, get in touch with the team at Mayeur and they’ll look after you.

Proposed Yanchep criterium circuit

Criterium Circuit at Yanchep – Community consultation is being sought for a new cycling facility at Splendid Park. Northern Beaches Cycling Club have worked hard to get the proposal this far – A 1.5km dedicated road circuit for training and racing. Imagine tearing around a uni-directional, 5 metre wide circuit, complete with the option of high banked corners comparable to an indoor track! And a 200m long false flat sprint finish (NBCC website)
Please show your support by completing the survey here

Looking fresh on the start-line

ToMR EOI – Expressions of interest are now open for anyone wishing to be in an SPR team for the Tour of Margaret River. Most people are aware of the event and what is involved after all the club has had multiple teams entered for a number of years now. If you are interested, have a read of the previous post and register yourself so we can start sorting out teams. As we are going through a period of uncertainty, we will most likely have less teams rather than more teams to account for a potential reduction in numbers closer to the event. Therefore get your name in quick if you are keen to race or keen to help volunteer.

Where do i need to stand again?

Saturday Start Locations – In order to adhere to the new gathering regulations, we need to slightly change the meeting points of the groups. There is a 100 person gathering limit and when all groups are combined, we often exceed that when everyone is waiting for the start. There was a discussion about different start times for different groups, but what we settled on was moving half the groups to different sides of the carpark. This is not ideal as there are usually more cars using the eastern most parks, but we will just have to work around that for now. We understand that the COVID risk isn’t high, but it is more about how the club is viewed from outside. So, please congregate in the assigned locations, so we can continue to hold group rides in the future.

From the Ride Coordinator – Never thought I would say this so quickly after our return but here it is anyway. Finally, the weather gods look to be smiling on us for this weekends ride after last weekends “showers”. Whilst we will have some stiff Nor Easterlies to contend with at least it will be sunny. Enjoy your cycling whatever you do.

Saturday 20th June

Sunday 21st June

Monday 22nd June

Tuesday 23rd June

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

Wednesday 24th June

Thursday 25th June

Friday 26th June

Ride Routes 13th – 19th June

Don’t stand so, don’t stand so, don’t stand so close to me. Photo Amanda Nabi

Getting back in the groove is proving a bit more difficult for me at the moment. Some days in the office and other days at home, have meant i am losing track of what day it is. Sitting down to do the ride routes is something i haven’t had to for a couple of months and hence i am very rusty.
We turned the keys on the club last Saturday to start up the group rides and there was a good turn out across all grades. People seemed to be adhering to the new changes at both the start and end of the rides. I hate to call it the “new normal” because most of us want to get back to the “old normal” and I think that as a country and a state we have done quite well. You may have seen some advertising around for bike races starting up again; Collie-Donnybrook in August and ATTA time trials in a couple of weeks. These are the types of things that, even if they are run a little differently, help us feel a sense of normality.
As we do transition back to a “slightly socially distance normal” remember to continue to support the retail and hospitality industries that have been suffering through. My first day back in the city and it was quite shocking to see a number of shops that were now no longer operating. Hopefully the club can focus a bit of stability back into most of our lives.

The Rules – just a reminder that it isn’t business as usual.

  • Social distancing still applies. This means no handshakes, hugging, high fives, down low too slow, or general touching is allowed. Please refrain from touching other peoples bikes, and allow space for people to gather before the ride.
  • The start locations in the carpark for Saturday will change slightly. See below for more detail and a new map, but basically, we need to ensure we don’t exceed the 100 person limit, by separating into two distinct groups.
  • No spitting, snotting or sneezing within the group. If you need to, move to the back of the group, but please look behind you to make sure that it is clear of traffic. That is all traffic, not just bikes. We don’t want some dash-cam footage of someone blowing their nose on a car the first day back.
  • No “hand of god”. Like most thing in life, any interaction requires two-way consent between adults. If someone is struggling and you want to push them, you both have to be comfortable with being touched. I’m not going to speculate on the risks involved with hand to jersey contact, but before you push someone, ask them first. If they are not comfortable with any contact, then don’t do it.
  • The coffee shop is open, but please be aware that they may not be able to seat everyone. The post ride coffee is a long standing tradition with cycling, but in this new post-COVID world, there are some sacrifices that need to be made. The hospitality industry in general is suffering, so we need to give our support, but if you are just getting a coffee, then consider a takeaway, so that table space can be saved for those ordering a bit more. Hospitality businesses are under stricter regulations than cycling clubs, so please understand that the seating arrangements are what are mandated by the restrictions and you cannot move tables to suit how many mates you want around you.
  • Personal hygiene becomes very important in the spread of virus so make sure that you either wash your hands whenever you can or carry a small container of hand sanitiser. Limit your exposure to common surfaces (chairs, tables) and don’t be sharing items.
The Mayeur sizing kit at R&D Speedshop

SPR Mayeur kit – We are taking the final steps to being able to open orders for the new SPR kit. The sample kit should arrive soon so we can sign off on the materials and colours. In the meantime, a sizing kit has been made available at R&D Speedshop in Claremont. All sizes in the three styles are available to try on so that when orders open, you will be ready to pounce.
The Mayeur Clubline range includes standard fit, slim fit, and aero fit unisex jerseys, as well as standard and long cut bib shorts, with mens and womens chamois. A range of gilet, skin suits, arm warmers and jackets are also available. 
Whilst the sizing range covers everything from kids and 2XS to Grande sizing, Mayeur is passionate to make sure everyone in the club has a garment that works for them. In the event you fall outside the range, get in touch with the team at Mayeur and they’ll look after you.

Looking fresh on the start-line

ToMR EOI – Expressions of interest are now open for anyone wishing to be in an SPR team for the Tour of Margaret River. Most people are aware of the event and what is involved after all the club has had multiple teams entered for a number of years now. If you are interested, have a read of the previous post and register yourself so we can start sorting out teams. As we are going through a period of uncertainty, we will most likely have less teams rather than more teams to account for a potential reduction in numbers closer to the event. Therefore get your name in quick if you are keen to race or keen to help volunteer.

Where do i need to stand again?

Saturday Start Locations – In order to adhere to the new gathering regulations, we need to slightly change the meeting points of the groups. There is a 100 person gathering limit and when all groups are combined, we often exceed that when everyone is waiting for the start. There was a discussion about different start times for different groups, but what we settled on was moving half the groups to different sides of the carpark. This is not ideal as there are usually more cars using the eastern most parks, but we will just have to work around that for now. We understand that the COVID risk isn’t high, but it is more about how the club is viewed from outside. So, please congregate in the assigned locations, so we can continue to hold group rides in the future.

From the Ride Coordinator – Well we made it through last weekend without too much problem and it was great to see so many SPR Strava uploads, kudos and comments. Seems that all who ventured out had a great time and were pleased to be back in group cycling. From a ride leading perspective it was also great to see so many respectful of the “tweaks” we needed to make to ensure our return is a permanent one. Thank you all! So to the weekend ahead. we are all hoping that the weather  clears enough to get our rides in for both days.  But we can’t really complain. It’s Winter and at least now we are given the choice to cycle  or not. Things aren’t too bad after all!!

Saturday 13th June

Sunday 14th June

Monday 15th June

Tuesday 16th June

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

Wednesday 17th June

Thursday 18th June

Friday 19th June

We’re back. Ride Routes 6th – 12th June

Welcome back. With the state government lifting restrictions on gathering sizes and allowing contact sports training, the new SPR Committee met on Tuesday to discuss how we “reopen” the club. Limits around group ride sizes have been steadily increasing, but the biggest problem for this club is that we often have between 100 – 150 people gathering in the carpark before the Saturday ride. Although the ride groups could adhere to the limitations previously set, the club would be breaching the rules with the initial number of people.
So, what is our COVID-19 plan? Most of you would remember the Pandemic Strategy that we released leading into the initial lockdown. There were four stages and how that related to what activities we could and couldn’t do. On Saturday, the club moves back to Level 2 “Social Distancing”. This means that all groups rides throughout the week return as usual. By “as usual” we mean that there are no size restrictions and start locations and times remain the same as pre-COVID. However, there are some rules that riders need to abide by to ensure that we remain safe.

The Rules.

  • Social distancing still applies. This means no handshakes, hugging, high fives, down low too slow, or general touching is allowed. Please refrain from touching other peoples bikes, and allow space for people to gather before the ride.
  • The start locations in the carpark for Saturday will change slightly. See below for more detail and a new map, but basically, we need to ensure we don’t exceed the 100 person limit, by separating into two distinct groups.
  • No spitting, snotting or sneezing within the group. If you need to, move to the back of the group, but please look behind you to make sure that it is clear of traffic. That is all traffic, not just bikes. We don’t want some dash-cam footage of someone blowing their nose on a car the first day back.
  • No “hand of god”. Like most thing in life, any interaction requires two-way consent between adults. If someone is struggling and you want to push them, you both have to be comfortable with being touched. I’m not going to speculate on the risks involved with hand to jersey contact, but before you push someone, ask them first. If they are not comfortable with any contact, then don’t do it.
  • The coffee shop is open, but please be aware that they may not be able to seat everyone. The post ride coffee is a long standing tradition with cycling, but in this new post-COVID world, there are some sacrifices that need to be made. The hospitality industry in general is suffering, so we need to give our support, but if you are just getting a coffee, then consider a takeaway, so that table space can be saved for those ordering a bit more. Hospitality businesses are under stricter regulations than cycling clubs, so please understand that the seating arrangements are what are mandated by the restrictions and you cannot move tables to suit how many mates you want around you.
  • Personal hygiene becomed very important in the spread of virus so make sure that you either wash your hands whenever you can or carry a small container of hand sanitiser. Limit your exposure to common surfaces (chairs, tables) and don’t be sharing items.

Now as a club, we realise that some people may say these regulations can be a pain, or may think that it’s a waste of time. Others may not be comfortable with any group riding at the moment. Everyone is entitled to their opinion and don’t assume that you understand everyone’s personal situation. The club is not forcing people to ride, but at the same time we are trying to set a standard so that we can do it in as safe a way that we can currently provide.
At the moment, the risk of community transmission in WA seems low, but it only takes a Victorian style meat works and Maccas, to kick off the lockdown rules again.
There is also a hyper-awareness on social media at the moment. Please don’t be posting photo’s of groups squeezing together for a selfie because you are all so excited to be riding together again. Let’s keep a level head and enjoy the ride while we can.

Saturday Start Locations – In order to adhere to the new gathering regulations, we need to slightly change the meeting points of the groups. There is a 100 person gathering limit and when all groups are combined, we often exceed that when everyone is waiting for the start. There was a discussion about different start times for different groups, but what we settled on was moving half the groups to different sides of the carpark. This is not ideal as there are usually more cars using the eastern most parks, but we will just have to work around that for now. We understand that the COVID risk isn’t high, but it is more about how the club is viewed from outside. So, please congregate in the assigned locations, so we can continue to hold group rides in the future.

Please adhere to the new group locations

From the ride coordinator – Welcome back everyone ! It’s so good to be back working through a plan for group riding and weekly ride routes as it signals a return to something that resembles a pre COVID life. This week the choice for our weekend rides at least brings us back to some rides that we get the most positive feedback from the membership. What better way to start our “new normal” with some “old favourites” to get us back into the groove. Please enjoy the cycling as I think we all appreciate it more these days.

Saturday 6th June

Sunday 7th June

Monday 8th June

Tuesday 9th June

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

Wednesday 10th June

Thursday 11th June

Friday 12th June

2020 AGM results

So the voting for our AGM closed last night and we had over 100 members vote on who they would like to represent them. Unlike our usual “hands-up” in the cafe after the ride, this time we had a proper online counted vote. This was quite fortunate since we had 9 nominees for the 7 general positions and the final position was down to just 3 votes. However, i am getting ahead of myself here.
Firstly, i would like to thank the outgoing committee for the work that they have done the past year. Of that committee, three people did not nominate for this year, so i would like to personally thank Belinda, Greg (mo) and Julian for the work that they have put in for not just last year, but in some cases multiple years of effort. Julian, for example has been on the committee since just after the clubs inception. Back then our biggest problem was what to call the second group on the road if the first group was called “fast”. Greg has been invaluable pulling together events like the Beverley and ToMR teams and moving forward he has set the standard to which we now need to live up to. Belinda has been battling on keeping the social aspects of the club alive in a time when we are struggling with engagement.
So to those three, I again would like to let you know just how much i appreciate your efforts, especially during a time in which I know I was not particularly well engaged.

On to this year and the nominees that the members had to choose from. With Julian standing down, Daniel had nominated for the Vice-Pres role which he had kind of been doing recently attending meetings on my behalf anyway. It was really a natural step. This left the Treasurers role vacant as according you our constitution you can’t hold 2 named roles. Daniel has been Treasurer for a number of years and it was always going to be a matter of releasing that control to someone he thought was capable.
Luckily Shirley has nominated for that role and has Daniel’s support to ensure a smooth transition. That just leaves the Secretary role that Amanda renominated for and the President’s role…and nobody wants that..so I nominated again.
As those roles need to be individually nominated for, voting was fairly straight forward with only 4 nominees, so all 4 have been elected.

The committee members that renominated for general committee positions (Rob, Greg, Dean, Steve and Andrew) still left places for 2 more and we luckily had 4 more first time nominees.
Mark is a fairly recent addition to SPR so it was good to see someone new wanting to help in the running of the club. Susie has been with SPR for years and nominated to hopefully give some representation to those that don’t ride in the faster groups. Nancy and Teneal are both fairly well known in the club and have both been instrumental in boosting women’s racing in the state.

However, the voting is up to the membership and who they want to represent them as we navigate the post-COVID landscape. The results of the vote on the general committee positions are shown below.

Unfortunately this means that Mark and Susie missed out on the general committee positions, however, there are opportunities in the race, training and social sub committees.

Our 2020 SPR Committee is now as follows –
President – Peter Mah
Vice-President – Daniel Harvey
Treasurer – Shirley Vine
Secretary – Amanda Nabi
General Committee positions –
Rob Ramsden
Greg Jones
Andrew Ballam
Steve Burns
Dean Roser
Nancy Tippaya
Teneal Attard

Congratulations to all that have been voted in. The most pressing matter will be how and when we resume club activities but as usual, there are other club tasks that are ongoing and will need attention.
The roles within the general committee positions get set at our first committee meeting, and the sub committee’s are then filled once a committee member is assigned to that area.

The President’s and Treasurer’s reports will be emailed out to those that requested them once they have been finalised. Any questions about those reports can be directed to the club email.

Questions answered

There were a number of questions asked of the club as part of the online form and i will attempt to answer them below.

Can’t all 9 nominees become Committee members? Seems strange to turn away volunteers!

In our constitution there are only 11 positions available. We can operate with less than that if we need to, but cannot have more. We will never turn away volunteers as there are other sub-committees that always need members to assist.

It still appears the club is heavily weighted to the Fast, One and Two groups I guess because these are most likely to compete. Am I wrong?

By heavily weighted, i am assuming that you are meaning in things like events etc that are promoted and discussed on the website. The club is organic. It grows to where the need is and that is what we tend to focus on. We also try to have a committee that is as diverse as the club, but it is also up to the members to vote in the people that will best represent them. As the club has grown, there are naturally going to form cliques of people that will want to do stuff together. However, I don’t feel that the club is that uninviting that people can’t move between groups to discuss issues. I will put this onto the new committee to ensure that there is more inclusion socially once we are up and running again, to ensure that everyone’s voices get heard.

1. What’s the plan with the club van? It appears to be underutilised. 2. What’s the strategic plan of the club in the next 5 years with AusCycling in the radar?

The initial intent of the club van was to get all the club gear out of my garage so i could buy more bikes for the kids. It also allowed a central spot for anyone that required any of that equipment and meant that a tow-bar wasn’t required. It is underutilised especially compared to how much we used to attend races. I put this down to some of the lack of engagement that we have been seeing over the last year and hopefully, once we are up and running again, there will be more enthusiasm to be doing what we have been missing. If the current storage location is an issue, we can look around for an alternative arrangement.
As for the strategic plan, there was a meeting that Daniel and myself attended yesterday to discuss the path forward in respect to WestCycle and AusCycling. Neither direction was without it’s own issues but we are working towards what is the best solution for the majority of people within clubs in WA. Will it be awesome for everyone? No, but hopefully there are enough good bits to temper the not so good bits. This is definitely still a work in progress.

Bike Maintenance skills session

This is definitely something that is easy to organise on a purely amateur basis. The professional’s are generally not that keen to take business off themselves by teaching you all their tricks. I have run some in the past and covered the basics, like how to clean and adjust things. We can certainly see who is available to run these sessions.
Suggestions like this don’t have to wait till and AGM. Just bring items like this forward to a committee member and they can table it with the committee for discussion.

The club excels from the pure athletic point of view with organisation of social rides and race events. However, It is my believe that a cycling club without a mechanical support is like a body without an arm or a leg. I would be personally happy to pay an additional fee provided that the club could reach an agreement with a local bike mechanic for at least an annual labour free bike maintenance. It would be also great if the committee could work in the direction of obtaining agreements with on line services for discounts in parts and clothing. I understand that an attempt for the last one was provided for the cycliq cameras and this was highly appreciated. My question is whether the committee is really interested in focusing on this.

We have done this in the past for certain items (helmets from TBE) but the take up was not always that good. People all have personal preferences and getting a discount on a particular product was not to everyone’s taste. It is an area that we can look into again, but it is a lot of leg work and we are at the mercy of what shops want to give us. I doubt that we could secure a free bike service, without it costing the members quite a bit. But we will see what we can get.

2020 South Perth Cycle Club Annual General Meeting.

As previously mentioned, the Covid-19 pandemic has meant a number of changes to the way that we need to operate. Although restrictions in our state are beginning to lift, group riding to the scale that our club is accustomed to, are still not a possibility due to the number of people in our initial gathering.
How we proceed beyond these restrictions is a matter in which the committee will need to spend a great deal of time and energy debating. As such, we are keen to establish our 2020 committee as soon as possible after our initial AGM was cancelled.

The outline of this AGM will be very different to how we normally run things, but we feel that the important aspects are still covered. The agenda will be as follows –

  1. Open AGM and vacate all committee positions
  2. Members are invited to complete a voting form on establishing a new committee
  3. Members are invited to request a report and ask any questions of the club
  4. Voting closes midnight Saturday 23rd May
  5. Results of the Voting are counted and new committee is confirmed
  6. Questions raised will be answered by the outgoing committee and provided to all attendees

Although this will all be electronic, the basis of our normal AGM is covered with all committee positions vacated, new members voted in, reports made available and the ability to ask questions. Feedback will be made available after the votes have been counted and the new committee confirmed.

The voting form can be found here and contains the profiles of each nomination. The four standing positions (pres, vice-pres, treas & sec) need to be individually nominated for and since we only had one nomination per position, you don’t need to make a choice, just a vote.
The general committee positions were a bit more popular. There are 7 positions and we have 9 nominations. These nominations represent a quite a diverse group which is great for the club. Remember, voting for a committee is voting for who you think be best placed to represent all aspects of the club and ensuring that each type of rider gets a voice (gender, race/recreation, experience, skillset).
Things will eventually return to normal but at the moment, we have no idea when that will be. However, the club will continue and we need to be ready for when things change again.

Extraordinary AGM + extras

one of the side effects of the coronavirus lockdown is that we missed our AGM this year. the date was set and we had already called for nominations, but the ban on gatherings and then the closure of the hospitality industry left us with no option than to cancel. the media keeps using the term “unprecedented times” and we certainly feel like we are living through that now. the closure of business, sporting clubs and schools certainly highlights to us that it is something we haven’t had to deal with before. although the club is not running group rides or events, there are certain things that need to be discussed at the committee level. primarily amongst that is the reopening of the club and the resumption of group rides. we could just continue on with the current committee and the state government has given all clubs a 6 month extension to any official activities. however, we feel that any decision that the club makes, should be owned by the new committee moving forward. as such, we have decided to hold an AGM albeit one with a slightly different format.

  • firstly there will be no physical meeting or gathering of members. that was always going to be a given under the current state laws.
  • secondly there will not be a “zoom/webex/teams/skype” meeting where we can virtually meet. we don’t see this as being viable and we don’t think that we will get a good uptake.
  • thirdly, we want to give as many people that opportunity to vote as possible.

so, how do we do this?

well, each year, at the start of the AGM all positions are declared vacant. we do this to stop any potential power-play within the club and to allow members an opportunity for change. so this year, on the 16th of may, we will declare the AGM open and all positions are vacated. members will then have access to a link where they can vote for a new committee. this will be left open for a week and when you register and vote, you will be sent the president’s and treasurer’s reports. if any member has a question that it wants to ask the club, these can be also be submitted. at the end of the week, the votes will be tallied, positions announced and any questions answered.

to kick off this process, we will again be asking for nominations. although people had nominated previously, their circumstances may have changed so we want to give people the opportunity to reconsider or consider standing. there are four standing positions within the club (pres, vice-pres, treas, sec) and these must be nominated for specifically. all other positions are general positions and the actual scope of those roles gets decided at the first committee meeting. so if you wish to nominate, please email the club with what position you want to stand for and a couple of sentences about why people should vote for you (this will be used for the online voting).

current situation – at our virtual committee meeting, we also discussed the current situation. although people can ride in groups of 10, the way our club group rides are structured having 100+ people meet at coode st falls outside what is currently allowed. even if it was broken into groups of 10, the initial gathering would not be a good look for the club or the sport. as i discussed previously, there are a lot of people that are upset that they cannot do the things that they want, so when they see us riding or worse, meeting in large numbers, it would not be a big stretch to see someone reporting the club to the authorities. feel free to organise smaller groups amongst yourselves, but don’t put open invitations on any of our social media platforms where numbers of attendees cannot be controlled.

zwift rides – due to the relaxation of riding restrictions and the continuing nice weather, the current uptake on the zwift meetups has diminished somewhat over the past week. as such the decision has been made to suspend meetups until the rules tighten or the weather turns bad. if, however, you are smitten by the virtual world or have a need to race, then make sure you sign up to zwift power in order to show your club support. rob has put together a little blog on what it is about and how to sign up and it can be found on the previous post.

final words – some people have reduced their riding during these times, others have ramped up their virtual kilometers. however, you decide to play this game please stay safe and within the bounds of any current restrictions.

ride routes for…nah, just a check in.

it has been a couple of weeks since we shut down the spr rides and i thought that it was a good time to check in to see where we are up to. the rules have been constantly changing but i think that we are all well aware that they are being done for the right reason. we have had china, italy, spain, france and now the usa as a fair warning for just how bad this can be. we have also had japan, south korea, singapore and nz as potentially the right way to be dealing with it.

so, as cyclists, there have also been a few changes.  a couple of weeks ago, cycling aust, the state and federal gov went rapidly from groups of 10, to groups of 5 to pairs to solo riding only. luckily for us, the solo riding was reversed and people are allowed to ride in pairs as long as they abide by social distancing measures (see facebook post here). what this means is ride side-by-side, don’t draft and if you have to go single file, allow plenty of space. also be observant of spitting and snotting especially around built up areas. when you do stop, keep your distance and make sure that you don’t touch each others bikes. there is a caveat where riders from the same family can still ride together, so those that ride as couples can still force their significant other to the front to do the work.

however, there is a bit of kick-back that i have seen and heard about from the general public. riders being honked at, squirted or even spat at as they rode by. i personally think that this has a lot to do with people feeling that they have not been treated fairly. what i mean by this is there are a lot of people upset that they can’t watch the footy and go to the pub and when they see that we can still do the things we love, they lash out. fortunately not everyone out there is like that as we had a driver stop and help tighten a bottle cage bolt last weekend while riding around death valley. i guess we take the good with the bad.

there are some coffeeshops still open, but just be aware that although they are doing takeaways, there are still some common touch surfaces that do present a risk. if you pull out a chair to sit down, who else has previously touched that chair and where are your hands going next.

social media has meant that we can stay more connected and show people what we are up to. however, this can also have a negative affect as well. i do know of some people that have turned their strava profile to private as they were sick of the abuse they received from other riders. some people have taken the attitude that if they decide to go above and beyond the current rules and don’t ride outside anymore, then anyone who does ride outside is not socially responsible. everyone needs to act responsibility within the rules. don’t ride in more than pairs and adhere to social distancing measures. if you decide that because you have a potentially vulnerable relative and don’t want to risk any outside contact, then that is up to you. by riding solo or within the rules you can still manage the risks as well as managing your mental well being.

as for those that do want more indoor social riding contact, there are a number of zwift rides being setup each week. currently we do not have a regular “event” that you can join but there are “meetups” being held on tuesday, thursday and staurday. if you put spr after your name and look up rob ramsden within zwift, he can add you to the ride list. there is also talk of a race series where we piggy back on another race series and just pull the spr results out.  keep an eye out for that.

so, this is our new normal for now. in my opinion, this will be the normal for quite a while. until they develop a vaccine, i really can’t see how they can relax many of the social distancing rules without risking kicking off a new outbreak.

selfishly, this is really just about cycling, but i know that there are many out there where cycling is the last thing on their mind. they may have lost jobs or businesses or might be feeling other stresses brought on by our current situation. make sure you reach out to your social circle to check on each other (i hear that coffee via zoom is the new thing nowadays). but ride while we can and look after each other.

 

All club training rides cancelled

The last week and a half has been quite stressful for the SPR committee.  Every day there has been a discussion on what the clubs response will be to the Covid-19 pandemic. An important outcome of this discussion was the development of the Pandemic Strategy which showed just what our response will be at each stage.

Last week we moved to level 3 which meant that rides were still on but we were not recommending stopping at coffee shops.  We believe that the risk of infection was greater when people congregated around common shared surfaces.  This was our recommendation leading into this weekends rides.

However, the discussion about moving to level 4 has continued around the following  points – What is the trigger for moving to level 4, and what is the trigger for coming back off level 4? Our biggest concern has been how long this will last and therefore if we move to level 4 too early, after a while, people will get complacent when they should be getting vigilant.

We decided that a good trigger would be the closure (and reopening) of gyms. Being a niche sport, we were pretty sure that there would not be a government directive pertaining to cycling in this respect. Gyms, however, were the closest business that we thought the government could mandate on.  Today, the PM announced that all gyms would be closed, so we are using this as our trigger to move to level 4.

What this means is that all SPR organised rides will be cancelled. It is now up to you to make the personal choice as to whether you ride or not, who you ride with and where you ride. The club is in the process of organising a number of Zwift rides for both during the week and weekend.  We realise that not everyone has easy access to a Zwift setup, but for now that is all we, as a club, can provide.

The current advice from Cycling Australia is that groups of no more than 10 people should be riding together. Again, this is now your personal choice and may actually change in light of the PM’s announcement.  If you are looking at organising a small group, please refrain from using the SPR social media pages to do that. The risk of more than just a few people turning up will be too high.

Although it seems that the government has forced our hand, this decision has not been made lightly and the discussion has been robust on both sides. While we appreciate that this is such a divergence from what we are all used to doing, the club will be here when we come out the other side. Please continue to stay social on social media. It is important for the club to be both inclusive and social even if we are not riding together.  After all, those are two of the founding cornerstones.

potential ride routes for 21st – 27th march

where to start. there is so much information, advice and opinion floating around at the moment that it is worth stopping and taking stock of our current situation. over the weekend the committee had a lengthy discussion and we posted our advice for group riding and coffee-shop interaction. basically stop snotting and touching and if you have travelled recently or been in contact with someone that now has the virus, stay away. the next day we developed a strategy which showed just how we would deal with this pandemic moving forward. after much discussion we landed on level 2 as it fell in line with the national guidelines.  the next day westcycle posted their advice and using our strategy guidelines, suggested that all clubs need to be at level 3 (riding is ok, but no coffee-shops). As such we have taken that position and although we are still running group rides, our recommendation is that you do restrict any physical social interaction afterwards.

in some people’s opinions, this does not go far enough and we are being told that we should cease all group rides all together. this is contrary to all federal and state level advice as well as the national cycling organisation. however, this is not just blindly following the government advice but making an informed decision and trying to find the right balance.

while the more populated east coast of australia is starting to see an increase in the number of cases reported, there is some benefit in being the most isolated capital city in the world. unfortunately, it is also the home of many cash-up bogans who didn’t want to give up their bali holiday. so, at the moment, the majority of cases in wa are coming from people that have travelled and returned with the virus. looking at the stats for each state in this abc.net article (updated daily), nsw, vic and qld have had a dramatic increase in the number of cases with nsw going from 22 to 267 in two weeks. wa is lagging, but there is no reason not to expect that we will follow the same trajectory. as such, we think that we have about a week before the number of cases contracted locally begins to rise. as we start to see that change, the committee will discuss the best options for the club and communicate immediately. bearing in mind that as this level of isolation could be mandated for months, we are cautious to not over-react.

so, in the meantime what is the risk for riding? in an article from bicycling.com, there is a section about the risks of transmission from sweat, spit and snot during riding. it also covers what to do if you do get hit by someones spit and how long they think the virus (which is not airborne transmitted) can live outside a host. just be aware that this article is written for an american audience and different rules for social distancing apply (50 people, while in australia it is currently 500 people).

there is also an argument that in the event of an accident, you will further overwhelm a health care system that is under pressure.  i totally agree, but we are not there yet and when that time comes, indoor would be the safest option.

at the end of the day this comes down to personal choice and if you have family that are elderly or vulnerable, then you need to make the decision as to how you conduct your daily life.  not just cycling, but using public transport, using areas that have shared spaces and who you do come in contact with. while we do think that the current risk of transmission while cycling is low, we are also aware that the situation can change rapidly and we will endeavour to react accordingly.

so while you still see the ride routes listed out for the coming week, we are starting to develop an online option for those that want to begin isolating now. this may be the norm moving forward so it may pay to get your equipment and memberships ready for when it becomes the only option available. the spr indoor riders collective (sprirc) is being established with the first ride coming this saturday  for those that don’t want to head out (see below). as the situation changes we will work towards making more rides available throughout the week.

annual general meeting – The South Perth Cycle Club Annual General Meeting (AGM) has been postponed due to social distancing rules being applied to indoor gatherings. However, while we sort out a date to hold the AGM, feel free to nominate for a position within the committee. Initial indications are that the club will need at least 2 new committee members for 2020. Please see the previous post for more info.

new spr kit design – as outlined in the previous post, the design for the new spr kit has been finalised.  the kit committee has been working closely with Mayeur to come up with a design that encompasses the clubs main elements whilst presented within an understated style. next steps will be a social event/sizing party to ensure that people order exactly what they need.

mercantile lane closure – some of you may remember that the pedestrian bridge over mercantile lane fell down last year.  this is the back lane that we take to get from mounts bay rd to st georges terrace.  as of 20th dec it will be closed again to facilitate the rebuilding of that foot bridge.  no idea how long it will be down for, so you will need to take the next road (william st) to hook back around to the cafe after the ride.

watertower challege 2020 – it’s back. after a number of years hiatus, we will be running the watertower challenge in september. you can choose between the metric (100km) or imperial (160km) challenge visiting a number of watertowers around the suburbs of perth. form a team of 3 and challenge yourself. more info on our facebook events page.

sunday start locations – as numbers increase over summer, we are looking at how we can manage the groups on a sunday morning.  as such we are implementing a start location system to give us an idea of how big the groups are.  we can then split them before they leave the carpark to ensure that the groups are a safe size on the road.  see the previous blog post about where to meet and the new start time.

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 – juniors have been canceled as per our corona virus pandemic strategy.

spr indoor riders collective (sprirc) – For those who wish, there will be Zwift ride set up for Saturday morning. I’ll invite those who follow me on Zwift, and for anyone who wants to join in, they can get in touch via the zwift app (search for Julian Johnson SPR) and add me to your following list, so I can add you. The ride course is the Sand and Sequoia on Watopia and it starts at 7 am. You can also just join in with the group at the start. We’ll do 3 laps in total, the first lap we’ll make sure everyone gets on and roll around at 2-2.5 w/kg. This will pick up to 3 for the second lap and all in for the last 20 km. Total distance will be 60 km

from the ride coordinator – Wow. What a crazy time we live in. To think that this time last week, the thought of not scheduling a main ride seemed a distant consideration. Fast forward 7 days and it has occupied the deliberations of the committee constantly in the ever changing world we live in. Right now, I’m happy to report that we are still riding but without the coffee shop experience afterwards. We know this is not everyone’s choice so we are also setting up alternatives to those that may be uncomfortable with the conventional form of riding. Whatever option you choose, you can rely on this club committing to being true to itself around inclusion and providing options for as many of its members as possible. Enjoy whatever you choose and stay healthy.

saturday 21st 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

juniors – cancelled

development group –  novice shelley 36.06km spr saturday

transitional 1/2 – trans shelley 40.59km spr saturday

fast/main – canning vale & welshpool 49.74km spr saturday

sunday 22nd march

rides start at coode st carpark at 7:00am

note: sunday rides now start at 7:00am from mar to oct

development group – coffee ride

short –wlsh weir 62.23km spr sunday

long – wlsh obs kal 90.32km spr sunday

monday 23rd march

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

cancelled

tuesday 24th march

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

cancelled

wednesday 25th march

ride starts raffles bike path at 5:30am

cancelled

thursday 26th march

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

cancelled

ride starts frasers ave at 5:45am

cancelled

friday 27th march

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

cancelled