Over the years I have been cycling, I have been asked the question that we all are asked eventually. “Why do you shave your legs”  I usually tell them that I don’t shave, I wax, but that’s a different story.

You might have told them all sorts of things from

1. It feels good between the sheets.

2. The Wife/Husband/boyfriend/girlfriend loves it

3. It means the hairs don’t get pulled out of my legs when getting a massage

4. It helps heal wounds and road rash.

5. It makes me go faster!

Well the guys over at the Specialised Wind Tunnel have been doing some testing. The first one was whether a beard would make a difference or not to your times.  The latest one is whether hairy or shaved legs make a difference.  I will let them tell you the outcome, and believe me, this is worth 5 minutes of your time.  You might be surprisesd. Of course, you need to consider your own personal Wookie Factor when considering this question as well.

Shaved and Dangerous

We all know the importance of red.  When asked what colour goes faster, we all say red (of course my research is impecable), we all want red on our bike, red trim on shoes, red kit. I have even heard red called “Police Racing Green”. It’s the colour we all say when we are in the hurt box, “I was in the Red”. It’s the colour we use to describe how we should train, “You need to train in the red to get better”. The Specialised Venge uses red trim to make it look faster.

There are, however, a few other uses for red. It is the colour of the blood that I saw on the cheek of a cyclist this morning, the colour of the lights on the Ambulance that was called. It is the colour of embarrassment, that I am sure the cycist felt (if he could have remembered what happened). It is also the colour of the light that he ran.

I was on my way to work taking my usual route. As I crossed Murray St, on the bike path, heading towards Leederville, I saw a car stopped in the left turn lane of Georges St, waiting to turn into Wellington St. (I am sure you all know it, most cyclists will run the red pedestrian light to cross Wellington St). What was unusual about this car was that it had it’s hazzard lights on. My first thought was that this car had just broken down. When I was half way between Murray and Wellington St, I saw a scene that all cyclists dread, a car stopped in the middle of the road, a bunch of people standing around, and a person lying on the road. “Oh, No…..He’s been hit…” was my first thought. I stopped and tried to work out what had happened. I couldn’t see a manged bike, but there was the rider, lying in the middle of the road. What had happened?

Someone had gotten the rider up, to move him off the road. Someone else had called an ambulance (All motorists who had stopped). By this stage I had also stopped and was trying to help out. The cyclist was walked off the road, and I can only say, that if I had encountered him on a Saturday night in Northbridge, I would have assumed he had a skin full of booze and needed a taxi home. (Couldn’t walk straight, slurred speech, no idea where he was, or what had happened, all signs of a significant head injury. This article sums it up http://cyclingtips.com.au/2014/04/cycling-and-concussion-is-it-time-to-stop-ignoring-the-dangers/) The two motorists described what had happened. The cyclist had tried to cross the road while the pedestrian signal was red. The two cars coming west along Wellington St had right of way with a green light. The cyclist seemed to panic and slam on his brakes (I can only assume he grabbed a fist full of front brake). He then went over the handlebars and fell heavily on the road. The car only just managed to stop in time.

So what is the point of all this.

A rider this morning went to run a pedestrian red light rather than wait the 2-3 minutes it takes to wait for the lights to change (I know because I now do it every time at these lights). I can only assume he did it to save time, and to get some where a bit quicker. Not only is he not going to get to where-ever he was going quicker, he is not going to get there at all. He has caused others delay as well. The motorists who he tried to beat and ended up having to stop, the riders who stopped, all delayed because of a decision to run that red light rather than wait. “Oh… that won’t happen to me, I’m careful.” I hear you say. I am sure that the gentleman thought the same thing.  It only takes one moment of inattention, one “BrainFart” to cause a serious accident. The last thing I want to see, is the figure of a rider in South Perth kit (or any other kit for that matter) lying on the road because they ran a red light.

I wish the gentleman a speedy recovery.

I also want to challenge all in the club to take a stand, don’t run that red light (Pedestiran or otherwise), wait for the green. You never know, it may just help our relationship with Motorists if we too have to obey the lights that they are sitting at.

First off, I would like to thank those riders this morning on the ride that decided to listen to me when I split the group for safety reasons. To those riders (Jarad, Mike B, Dan and Jason), THANK YOU! For Staying back and doing your turn in the wind (Rule 67 Compliance points on that one) for the sake of some of the less strong riders. THANK YOU to those riders that DID listen whan I asked them to wait for the second group, or when I split the group and didn’t decide to ignore me.

To those of you that ignored me when I stated that we would split the group for safety reasons at Christ Church Grammar, and those that ignored me when I tried to even up the groups at the water tower, Don’t be a Dick!

This post is probably falling on deaf ears, as those people probably do not read the blog. For those that do, please listen to those people that have stepped up and taken responsibility for the safety of the group/s.

As it was, there was a fall in the first group along Preston Point (Edit – Not Point Peron) Rd at the Roundabout. I cannot tell you if it was beacuse the group was too big or for some other reason as I was in the second group. I hope that those that fell are all right and don’t have any injuries. The point is though, that if we had not split the group, the accident could have been bigger involving more riders. It also meant that the Second group became the First group. Even through I was in the Second Group, I still arrived at work at the same time as I do every Tuesday after the ride. (The Mike Bonner Motor Pace up the Cycle Path may have helped a bit…Thanks Mike)

To those that read this blog, please stand up and be counted when we split the group, and if you are the last ones in the front group, if someone comes up behind you, politely tell them to wait for the second group.

[Steps off soapbox and calmly walks back to desk]

Having just recieved the E-Bulletin from Cycling Aust, I checked out the Cycling Race Day Checklist.  Looks like a resonable list for those just starting out, and for others that forget things rather consistently. There is a downloadable PDF of the checklist as well.

Have a look at the article, download it, add to it, share it, use it, burn it….it’s up to you really.

http://blog.trainingpeaks.com/posts/2013/7/24/cycling-race-day-checklist.html

Ever wondered what our kit goes through to get to us.  Well here is an in depth factory tour done by Cycling Tips, showing what happens when we put an order in.

Champion Systems Tour

Ever wondered what it takes to win the Tour de France….Edgar Does.

Ever Wondered what it takes to beat the Doping contols put in place by the UCI……Edgar Does.

Ever Wondered how the Pro’s got away with it…..Edgar Does.

Now you can too.  One of Edgar’s clients will be telling all in a breakfast event right here in Perth. Tyler Hamilton will be speaking at a Breakfast at the Perth Entertainment Centre on Thursday 8 August 2013 between 8 and 9.30 am. Cost is $98.

Clear your calenders, make a comment at the bottom of this post and I will arrange the appropriate number of tables. 

Be Warned, There are limited tickets to this and this will sell out quickly.

I will give you to Easter to comment if you want to come before I start organising the tables.

I will organise the payments and you can all just pay me back (or you can book yourselves). Tables of 8 and if you want to sit with someone (or don’t want to sit with someone) tell me in the coments.

More (but not really that much more) info here

I got a call yesterday from the WA Traffic Police in regards to the White Ute that cut us off during our Friday ride a few weeks ago.  It seems that the report that I submitted is being investigated.  The Guy I talked to (Jeff is his name, I like this guy already…) gave me two options and basically asked what I wanted done.

He said that I could just have an alert put on the Rego so that if he was pulled up for something, they would know that there had been a report against him, or if i was willing to testify as a witness in court, he would investigate the incident to see if the driver could be charged with anything.

So to that end, for those that were on the ride, is there anyone who wants to take this further and have it investigated?  Is having the alert against the driver sufficient?

If you are willing to take this further then leave a comment below with your name and phone number and I will pass your details to the police and I guess you will be contacted for a witness statement.

Ever watched the Goodies and wanted to be Tim Brook-Taylor piloting the other two hanger ons around Great Britan. Ever thought that you would like to lead people astray without them realising. Always wanted to be in the front seat, but ended up in the back, never been able to find someone that will be able to keep up with you on your rides……well here is the chance for you.

Chris from Track Cycling WA has contacted the Club looking for a few pilots for two blind ladies (around mid 20’s) and is looking for pilots for them for both the road and the track. There would be no expense for the pilot, as both ladies already have tandem bikes.

Currently Chris has 2 pilots but is looking for more, and is looking for a committment of 1-2 rides per month (more if you are interested.) You don’t have to sign up for Track AND Road if you don’t want to, any support would be greatly appreciated.

Chris has indicated that the bikes are an average size, (he is able to squeeze on the track bike at 6’3″ but a squeeze it is), so if you ride a medium to large frame you should be right.

Chris has indicated that he is willing to give any volunteers pilot training, so make a comment below and forward your name and details to admin@southperthrouleurs.com.au and we will be in touch to organise further. 

Well, what a fun Friday morning that was.  It seemed from the start that it was going to be a bit of a messy morning. Holden utes, Deraileur Hangers, Red light splits, messy roll throughs. Luckily no-one was hurt this morning (apart from some pride) and we all (hopefully) got home/to work safely.  I thought i would post a couple of points that i noticed from the ride so that we can all learn from what happened this morning.

1. Bravo to everyone for waiting when two of our riders had an accident coming onto Bannister road. Everyone waited until things were sorted out, flat tyres were changed and taxi’s were called. (For the record, the only injury was a broken rear derailuer hanger, an inner tube, and maybe some pride)

2. I noticed from the back of the Shelley Roll Through, that there were a few people in the outside line not rolling through or calling people from the slow line to come through.  Please remember that if you are not going to roll through, make sure you call people through so that they know, and the roll through can proceed a bit more smoothly. In general please make sure that you call “last wheel” when on the back, and “clear” on the front to allow the rider in front to come across.

3. After the Shelley Roll Through and on our way to the High St lights, there was an incident with a White Ute. Well done to everyone for keeping their calm.  I have made an online Traffic Incident Report, and once I get the Report Number will post this for anyone else to add to. The more witnesses the better, even if nothing comes of it, at least there is a record of the drivers bad behaviour.

4. the other thing I noticed when taking off from traffic lights, is that we as a group are still taking off too quickly to stay together. Please remember when you are on the front, that even though you have clipped in, there will be riders at the back that are yet to even get their feet off the ground.  Take it easy for the first 200m to let everyone get clipped in and back into formation.

5. The last lesson I learnt today was that when following The Flying Fynn up the Mill Point Road hill to the zoo, no matter how hard I try to stay on his wheel, I won’t…:P

Have a safe weekend everyone, and remember to enjoy the ride…

Cycling WA have issued an invitation out to all the clubs for any interested people to find out what happens at a Race Management Committee meeting, and what the Race Management Committee is all about.  Please find the details below and post a comment if you are interested in coming along (First five, if there are five interested, get to come along). This is not just for any SPR Committee members but for anyone in the club interested in the behind the scenes of what goes on to sanction an event. So put the date in your diary and come along.

With 2013 promising to be a great year and the number of events increasing Cycling WA invite you to:

Cycling WA- 2013 Race Management Information Session- 

8 January 2013, 6-9pm

Conference Room,

Department of Sport and Recreation, Vincent Street, Leederville. (enter through the North side)

This presentation and discussion will cover Cycling WA event support and process, the role of the Race Management Committee (RMC), risk management, and tips on conducting quality events.

Their will be plenty of time for questions, then you can observe a Race Management Committee meeting, where racing events are appraised and sanctioned.

We have sufficient numbers already promising to attend, so the event will go ahead- Please maximum 5 members per club. Just email me your RSVP by 7th January 2013 for catering purposes.

Presentations and documents from the night will be distributed post event in case you cant make it.