South Perth Rouleurs

https://www.facebook.com/share/1UXMYucWAz

(*) Please note that our Ride Leaders will adjust the composition and route for Development, Transition and Main 4 to suit people and conditions on the day.

Sunday 15th November

Ride starts on Fraser Ave in Kings Park at 6:00am

Gran Fondo Training – 6 laps of the Kings Park circuit

Coffee – Kinky Lizard, Perth City

Rides start at Coode St carpark at 7:00am

Social River Loop – approx. 50km

Short & Social Hills: Wlsh MWR 58.88km SPR Sunday

Long Hills: Welsh Fall Forrest Patt Lawn Zigzag 89.7km SPR Sunday

Coffee – Dome, East Vic Park

Monday 16^th November

Ride starts under the Narrows (South Perth side) at 5:30am

Currently no ride scheduled – stay tuned for a new Monday ride

Tuesday 17^th November

Ride starts under the Narrows (City side) at 5:30am

1/2 Mild, 1/2 Spicy
Stay together till after Freo bridge

Coffee – Steamlab, Applecross

Ride starts at 6:30am at Koorak Kings Park Cafe Car Park

Main 4/Transitional/Novice

Kings Park laps at own pace, coffee at 7:30am

Coffee – Koorak, Kings Park

Wednesday 18^th November

Ride starts under the Narrows (South Perth side) at 5:30am

No drop recovery ride

Coffee – Little Horn, Applecross

Thursday 19^th November

Ride starts under the Narrows (City side) at 5:30am

Three groups fast paced roll-throughs

Coffee – Steamlab, Applecross

Friday 20^th November

Ride starts under the Narrows (South Perth side) at 5:30am

https://www.facebook.com/share/1CJkzMUM9M

Coffee – Hoopla, Kensington

Ride starts under the Narrows (City side) at 5:45am

Gran Fondo Training – 3 laps of the Kings Park circuit

Ride Routes 7th – 13th Nov

November 5, 2026 peter

Lucky number seven. This marks the 7th official club kit for the Rouleurs and a change to the overall look of the club. It started with the refresh of the logo and branding and has now moved into how we combine that branding with the public look for the club. There was never going to be a dramatic departure from the green as we are constitutionally bound to a green, white and black kit. However, as has been shown through the years, that green can change.
The brief to Pedalare was a classic, Merckx-era design, nothing that could be considered fashion, which by definition goes out of style quickly. We want to keep this design for at least 3 years, so it must be something that can stand the test of time. I looked through a number of historic jersey design with Cam and selected a few that stood out to me. Ben then pulled together a few designs and the back and forth process started with the committee.
Where we ended up was a old school look with a throw back to some of our previous designs. The block like design is similar to our first one with no sponsorship on it, and the dark green links back to the first Mayeur jersey. White sleeves like our current jersey, but clean lines for that classic look. The biggest change is the use of the lighter pastel green at the top which is a call back to those lighter and brighter classic jerseys.
The bibs are a plain classic black which makes them versatile and allow them to be worn with anything. Pedalare also use a different process with their screen printing which stops the print from peeling off no matter how much they are stretched. Also using a plain black bib and in-house screen printing means that they are available at short notice rather than waiting for the next order.
We are very pleased with this new look and have already completed an order for those that are racing at the nationals. Over the next week or two we will finalise the rest of the designs (arm warmers, gillet, long sleeve, etc) and open it up to the rest of the club. We have never forced people to wear our kit and or make it a mandatory part of participation, but you do need to be a member to represent the club. We hope that this new design allows us to continue our rebuild with a fresh new look moving forward.

From the Committee

New kit design was discussed and finalised

Event Information

2026 and 2027 international trips –

Note: no SPR member nor the club benefit from the organising of these trips – it is intended to extend the cycling experience with fellow cyclists

Upcoming Racing

WCMCC 2 Day Tour TTT (7 Nov)
WCMCC 2 Day Tour Crit (8 Nov)
ATTA Earlybird 2 (17 Nov)
MCC Pickering Brook Road Race (22 Nov)
AusCycling Club Team Time Trial (6 Jan)
AusCycling Club Criterium (8 Jan)
AusCycling Gran Fondo National Championship (10 Jan)

Race results

With the state championships held last weekend it is important to highlight a couple of outstanding results for a couple of current club members. In the Women’s Elite Road Race Sophia Sammons was crowned state champion and in the Men’s Elite Road Race Jarred Anderson was also crowned state champion. This is an awesome result for both of them and punctuates an already stellar year of racing. Well done also to the other club members that were down in Boddington competing whether in club colours or otherwise.

Juniors

This the plan for this week’s junior activities:

🚴‍♀️ Saturday 7 November

We meet at our usual spot in Shelley (https://maps.app.goo.gl/yoN1QNu6tKUakHYE8) at 10.30am with our U11 and U13 riders.

Our U15 and U17 riders are invited to join our club rides from Coode St car park in South Perth at 7am.

🚴‍♀️ Thursday 12 November

We meet at Raffles (https://maps.app.goo.gl/4MipKfpG5VyD5ss36) for a ride to Point Walter and return. The appointment is at 4:00 pm.

Check our whatsapp chaannel for any last minute communication.

From the Ride Coordinator

Consistent communication(e.g. highlighting potholes) during the ride helps with group coordination and contributes to the safety of the group. Where two groups get caught together at a junction let the front group pull ahead and resist the temptation to jump across. This preserves the group size that was initiated at the start of the ride and reduces the chance of a larger group forming, which is difficult for other road users to navigate around.

Saturday 7th November

Ride starts under the Narrows (City side) at 5:30am

Early lap – earlybird 40.93km spr special

All rides start at Coode St carpark at 7:00am

Development group (*) – novice shelley 36.06km spr saturday

Transition: Trans Benara 39.90km SPR Saturday

Fast & Main: Benara Rd 50.76km SPR Saturday

https://www.facebook.com/share/1UXMYucWAz

(*) Please note that our Ride Leaders will adjust the composition and route for Development, Transition and Main 4 to suit people and conditions on the day.

Sunday 8th November

Ride starts on Fraser Ave in Kings Park at 6:00am

Gran Fondo Training – 6 laps of the Kings Park circuit

Rides start at Coode St carpark at 7:00am

Social River Loop – approx. 50km

Short & Social Hills: Les Obs 67.37km SPR Sunday

Long Hills: Welsh Obs Zig Zag 87.92km SPR Sunday

Coffee – SnL,Victoria Park

Monday 9th November

Ride starts under the Narrows (South Perth side) at 5:30am

Currently no ride scheduled – stay tuned for a new Monday ride

Tuesday 10th November

Ride starts under the Narrows (City side) at 5:30am

1/2 Mild, 1/2 Spicy
Stay together till after Freo bridge

Coffee – Steamlab, Applecross

Ride starts at 6:30am at Koorak Kings Park Cafe Car Park

Main 4/Transitional/Novice

Kings Park laps at own pace, coffee at 7:30am

Coffee – Koorak, Kings Park

Wednesday 11th November

Ride starts under the Narrows (South Perth side) at 5:30am

No drop recovery ride

Coffee – Little Horn, Applecross

Thursday 12th November

Ride starts under the Narrows (City side) at 5:30am

Three groups fast paced roll-throughs

Coffee – Steamlab, Applecross

Friday 13th November

Ride starts under the Narrows (South Perth side) at 5:30am

https://www.facebook.com/share/1CJkzMUM9M

Coffee – Hoopla, Kensington

Ride starts under the Narrows (City side) at 5:30am

Gran Fondo Training – 3 laps of the Kings Park circuit

Ride Routes 31st Oct – 6th Nov

October 29, 2026 peter

Early January next year, the AusCycling National Championships roll into Perth. This will mark the third and final year that the will be held here and each year has exceeded expectation for the Perth cycling community. Mirroring the three main championship events are three club based events that aim to include and promote the club environment that we as an affiliated AusCycling club are a part of.

These are a Team Time Trial on the Wednesday, a Team Criterium on the Friday and the Gran Fondo on the final day, Sunday.

The Gran Fondo sold out within less than a week of registrations opening, due to the success the local Perth riders have found over the past two years. Being able to race around Kings Park on roads closed to traffic is an absolute privilege, and not one that we should take lightly. The traffic management costs alone push an event like this well outside of the means of local clubs, so it is important to take advantage of this while we can.

To complement this event, SPR is again running two training sessions per week to get people familiar with the circuit. There is a 3 lap Friday 5:30am session so people can get a hard hit out in before work, and a full 6 lap Sunday 6am session. These are open to all riders, not just SPR members, and regardless of whether you are racing the Fondo or not. We ran a successful campaign of sessions last year with many riders turning up for multiple rides leading up to the event.

The idea is to run an intense but safe session allowing riders to test themselves on the different climbs and descents. However, before leaving Kings Park and heading onto Mounts Bay Rd, the riders will regroup over a short period of time before riding the heavier traffic section at a neutral pace. This allows more people to participate and feel confident that they can train safely. More info can be found on the events page of the South Perth Rouleurs Facebook page which is also linked on the weekly ride routes blog.

This week was also the earlybird registration cut-off for the Team Time Trial (TTT) and Criterium teams. The TTT is age based, but with a slight twist. The combined age of the three youngest in your team determine whether you compete in the 90+, 120+, 150+ or 180+ age groups. The Club Criterium is also run under a similar age group banner, but a points based system determines which team win the race. We registered a number of teams across multiple age groups, so we hope they all have success flying the flag for SPR.

To wrap all this together, the club is finalising the new kit. The refreshed branding came out recently and hopefully, if you have been at the coffee shop the last few weeks, you have the new logo in the form of a keyring or bike charm. The new kit design is undergoing an iterative process between the SPR committee and Pedalare designers. Decisions by committee are not always easy, but I think we have landed on something that points the club in a new direction. Stay tuned for that one.

From the Committee

Event Information

2026 and 2027 international trips –

SPR is again looking to organise trips overseas after the success of ones to the Italian & Swiss Alps 2025 and The Grand Alps France 2024. Please complete this EOI if you are interested in heading to France next year.

Tour de France Pyrenees 2027 South Perth Rouleurs Bespoke Bike Tour
- Date: July 11-24, 2027
- Duration: 14 days / 13 nights
- Start: Toulouse Airport
- End: Toulouse Airport

Note: no SPR member nor the club benefit from the organising of these trips – it is intended to extend the cycling experience with fellow cyclists

Upcoming Racing

AusCycling WA Road State Champs (1 Nov)
ATTA Earlybird 1 (3 Nov)
WCMCC 2 Day Tour TTT (7 Nov)
WCMCC 2 Day Tour Crit (8 Nov)
ATTA Earlybird 2 (17 Nov)
MCC Pickering Brook Road Race (22 Nov)
AusCycling Club Team Time Trial (6 Jan)
AusCycling Club Criterium (8 Jan)
AusCycling Gran Fondo National Championship (10 Jan)

Juniors

Weather for the coming weekend does not look promising so I have to cancel the junior ride on Saturday morning.

Here’s the plan for this week’s junior activities:

🚴‍♀️ Saturday 31 October

no junior ride due to bad weather forecast.

🚴‍♀️ Thursday 5 November

We’re back at Kings Park! Meet at the DNA Tower car park (https://maps.app.goo.gl/8Xc3PJtdy8kscRrp7) at 4:00 pm for some laps around the park. It’ll be a great opportunity to get some extra riding in during the week and build confidence on the bike.

Kind Regards
Giovanni

From the Ride Coordinator

Looks like another iffy weekend is coming up weatherwise. Another case where we prep our cycling gear on Friday night and do a radar check when that very early Saturday morning alarm goes off! Of course it can also make a difference if you are NOR or SOR.

The opening of the new Freo traffic bridge, Walyalup Bridge, on November 1 means that all temporary traffic changes will be lifted. The other major traffic issue on Cedric St/Mitchell Fwy is also almost finished excepting some night works. This means that our club should be able to utilise the full roster of Saturday rides. We can look forward to some new old rides soon!

Saturday 31^st October

Ride starts under the Narrows (City side) at 5:30am

Early lap – earlybird 40.93km spr special

All rides start at Coode St carpark at 7:00am

Development group (*) – novice shelley 36.06km spr saturday

Transition: Trans Mosman 40.39km SPR Saturday

Fast & Main: Karrinyup 52.34km SPR Saturday

https://www.facebook.com/share/1UXMYucWAz

(*) Please note that our Ride Leaders will adjust the composition and route for Development, Transition and Main 4 to suit people and conditions on the day.

Sunday 1^st November

Ride starts on Fraser Ave in Kings Park at 6:00am

Gran Fondo Training – 6 laps of the Kings Park circuit

Rides start at Coode St carpark at 7:00am

Social River Loop – approx. 50km

Short & Social Hills: Brktn Araluen Palm 73.95km SPR Sunday

Long Hills: Canning Dam 96.46 km SPR Sunday

Coffee – SnL,Victoria Park

Monday 2^nd November

Ride starts under the Narrows (South Perth side) at 5:30am

Currently no ride scheduled – stay tuned for a new Monday ride

Tuesday 3^rd November

Ride starts under the Narrows (City side) at 5:30am

1/2 Mild, 1/2 Spicy
Stay together till after Freo bridge

Coffee – Steamlab, Applecross

Ride starts at 6:30am at Koorak Kings Park Cafe Car Park

Main 4/Transitional/Novice

Kings Park laps at own pace, coffee at 7:30am

Coffee – Koorak, Kings Park

Wednesday 4^th November

Ride starts under the Narrows (South Perth side) at 5:30am

No drop recovery ride

Coffee – Little Horn, Applecross

Thursday 5^th November

Ride starts under the Narrows (City side) at 5:30am

Three groups fast paced roll-throughs

Coffee – Steamlab, Applecross

Friday 6^th November

Ride starts under the Narrows (South Perth side) at 5:30am

https://www.facebook.com/share/1CJkzMUM9M

Coffee – Hoopla, Kensington

Ride starts under the Narrows (City side) at 5:30am

Gran Fondo Training – 3 laps of the Kings Park circuit

Ride Routes 24th – 30th Oct

October 22, 2026 peter

On early Tuesday morning Joseph Paratore was riding his bike on North Lake Road. He never made it home. I never knew him, he never to my knowledge rode with SPR but he was part of PCITP and is part of the cycling community. He faced the same risks that we do on a daily basis and those risks, unfortunately, often unite our community when we hear about a tragedy like this.

Riding in groups gives us a kind of a safety net. More riders take up more space, and therefore aren’t as susceptible to the “I didn’t see you there” excuse. But we all have to get to the starting point of the ride and pretty much all of us ride in ones and twos to do that. Even today, I had no legs and was dropped from the group. This meant that the majority of my ride was solo and therefore increased my risk.

But the question is – “why does it increase our risk?”

What makes what we do dangerous?

Often we hear it said that “you shouldn’t ride on that road as it is too dangerous”. I remember years ago, they were looking at trying to ban bikes from Mundaring Weir Rd because it was “too dangerous”.

So what makes a particular section of road dangerous? Is it strewn with massive potholes? Are there crocodiles waiting on the sidelines to snap at you as you ride past? No. It is the vehicles and driver behaviour that puts us at risk. Like most cohorts, there are always going to be outliers and within our cycling community, I am sure there are people that do engage in risky behaviour while riding their bikes. However, the majority of fatal accidents that I have heard of in my +20 years in Perth have been bikes being hit from behind due to inattention from drivers.

The 1m passing law is great, but that totally relies on someone actually seeing you. I find that this law stops the already responsible people from coming too close and hopefully stops the irresponsible people from deliberately doing a close pass. But in a collision, it is already way too late and a law doesn’t give much physical protection.

So how can we fix this problem?

The inattention and tiredness are hard to fix. People will always suffer from it and it isn’t a metric that you can easily legislate against. Some modern cars came with a Driver Monitoring System (DMS) or Driver Attention Monitoring (DAM) using interior cameras and sensors to combat fatigue and distraction. But the percentage of cars on our roads with these systems are low so it is up to drivers to understand what the consequence of their actions are.

This isn’t necessarily about impatient drivers or tolerance on our roads. I always say that if they are complaining about us, then they see us. We know that our sport is risky and we still do it anyway. All we can hope is that drivers realise that we are putting our lives in their hands.

In the ABC article on this incident, it was noted that Mr Paratore’s family asked for his photo not to be published, so I am respecting that here as well. There are enough places on FB where you can find tributes.

From the Committee

Bike charms for everyone at coffee this week (smaller than the keyring and double-sided)

Event Information

2026 and 2027 international trips –

Tour de France Pyrenees 2027 South Perth Rouleurs Bespoke Bike Tour
- Date: July 11-24, 2027
- Duration: 14 days / 13 nights
- Start: Toulouse Airport
- End: Toulouse Airport

Note: no SPR member nor the club benefit from the organising of these trips – it is intended to extend the cycling experience with fellow cyclists

Upcoming Racing

MCC Midland Traders 100 Road Race (25 Oct)
AusCycling WA Road State Champs (1 Nov)
ATTA Earlybird 1 (3 Nov)
ATTA Earlybird 2 (17 Nov)
MCC Pickering Brook Road Race (22 Nov)
AusCycling Club Team Time Trial (6 Jan)
AusCycling Club Criterium (8 Jan)
AusCycling Gran Fondo National Championship (10 Jan)

AusCycling Club Team Time Trial and Club Criterium – Expressions of Interest.

If you are interested, please click on the link to the Expression of Interest and let us know. We will then form up some teams and get back to you with who you will be racing with and what training opportunities we can provide. Teams need to be registered by the end of next week or else the entry fee will rise. If you have discussed a team but some people haven’t registered yet, please get them to put forward their details so we can organise the teams.

Race Report

Cape to Cape Report by Andrew Biggs

The Cape to Cape is a 4 day MTB stage race covering 180km of a mixture of singletrack, fire trails and road with over 3700m of climbing. Over 700 riders participated in the race this year.

Each day offers a slightly different experience from the picturesque first day starting at the Cape Leeuwin Lighthouse with stunning views of the southern and Indian oceans to the steep and technical trails of the Tank 7 MTB park at Nannup. Day 3 highlighted the loamy and fast singletrack of the Pines with the final day at Dunsborough on pea gravel and rocky terrain.

My training in preparation for this race involved lots of fire road climbs up Mt Gunjin at Kalamunda. While it was hard work, it paid off as the long climbs during the race didn’t destroy me like past events have done. Changing from a 32 to 28 tooth chainring (it’s tiny) also made steep climbs bearable without my heart going through the roof. While I lost a bit of speed at the top end, it was well worth it.

While my goal was to survive, I achieved this only just. While I didn’t actually fall, I came close a few times. The worst was during the final stage in Dunsborough which had a few ‘A’ and easier ‘B’ lines to choose from. Unfortunately, due to fatigue and slow reflexes, I chose the ‘A’ line more than once. Not a good idea for a rider of my ability. But I managed to stay on the correct side of the bike.

The highlight for me was the 3rd stage through Margaret River and the Pines. Nice predictable, fast trails with beautiful singletrack winding through the bush. I even had an unexpected cheer squad of SPR members at one point.

I have to give credit to the organisers and support crew of this event. It really was exceptionally run from start to finish.

All in all, a challenging but thoroughly enjoyable race.

Juniors

With the days getting warmer and more daylight available, we’re pleased to announce the return of our mid-week junior training sessions on Thursdays! 🚴‍♂️

Here’s the plan for this week’s junior activities:

🚴‍♀️ Saturday 24 October

We’ll meet at our usual spot in Shelley (https://maps.app.goo.gl/FDp5XG53rCW656s86) at 10:30 am for a skills session along Riverton Drive.

As we have racing the following day, we’ll keep the session short. It’s a great opportunity for both beginners and more experienced riders to develop their skills.

U15 and U17 riders are also welcome to join our regular club rides, departing from Coode Street car park in South Perth at 7:00 am.

Keep an eye on our whatsapp channel for any last minute call due to weather conditions.

🚴‍♀️ Thursday 29 October

📅 Upcoming event

🏁 25 October 2026 – Midland Traders 100

🔗 https://entryboss.cc/races/32385

This event is also open to U11 and U13 riders. Please note that adult supervision must be arranged for these younger riders during the race.

We look forward to seeing everyone out on the bike as the weather warms up. Happy riding! 🚴‍♀️🚴‍♂️Giovanni

From the Ride Coordinator

Why do we ride in groups?
There are so many benefits:
Visibility – the group is easier to spot. We have our lights and we have a bigger presence on the road. Wearing our club kit is part of this visibility. It allows us to stand out to drivers when we are on the road more so than riders wearing a hodge podge of colours. You will be seen when you’re in green!
Safety – riding together to take the lane helps deter drivers from unsafe overtaking. That is why we want to keep the bunch together. Keep an eye on your group as you roll through so that riders aren’t tailing off.
Support – mechanical support, help fixing a flat, motivation, navigation, and sharing one’s experience & expertise.
Opportunity – opens up opportunities to ride roads that you would never do solo.
Teamwork – coming together to share an experience; working together with the common goal of getting back for coffees & a post-ride chat.
And happiness of course!

Saturday 24^th October

Ride starts under the Narrows (City side) at 5:30am

Early lap – earlybird 40.93km spr special

All rides start at Coode St carpark at 7:00am

Development group (*) – novice shelley 36.06km spr saturday

Transition: Trans Shelley 40.59km SPR Saturday

Fast & Main: Maddington 51.87km SPR Saturday

(*) Please note that our Ride Leaders will adjust the composition and route for Development, Transition and Main 4 to suit people and conditions on the day.

Sunday 25^th October

Rides start at Coode St carpark at 7:00am

Social River Loop – approx. 50km

Short & Social Hills: Victor Darl Zigzag 66.3km SPR Sunday

Long Hills: zania darl mund dodd obs 111.68km spr sunday

Coffee – SnL,Victoria Park

Monday 26^th October

Ride starts under the Narrows (South Perth side) at 5:30am

Currently no ride scheduled – stay tuned for a new Monday ride

Tuesday 27^th October

Ride starts under the Narrows (City side) at 5:30am

1/2 Mild, 1/2 Spicy
Stay together till after Freo bridge

Coffee – Steamlab, Applecross

Ride starts at 6:30am at Koorak Kings Park Cafe Car Park

Main 4/Transitional/Novice

Kings Park laps at own pace, coffee at 7:30am

Coffee – Koorak, Kings Park

Wednesday 28^th October

Ride starts under the Narrows (South Perth side) at 5:30am

No drop recovery ride

Coffee – Little Horn, Applecross

Thursday 29^th October

Ride starts under the Narrows (City side) at 5:30am

Three groups fast paced roll-throughs

Coffee – Steamlab, Applecross

Friday 30^th October

Ride starts under the Narrows (South Perth side) at 5:30am

https://www.facebook.com/reel/1403053028081982

Coffee – Hoopla, Kensington

Ride Routes 17th – 23rd Oct

October 15, 2026 peter

There is a very distinct difference between the world of 2008 when the club was formed, versus how we operate now. Social media was in its infancy and Facebook was only a few years old. The more visual world of Instagram didn’t exist and there were no influencers or content creators. The early blogs (if you want to scroll back almost two decades) often contained detailed accounts of what happened on rides over the weekend. Not just a Thursday ride routes post, but recaps of how the Saturday and Sunday rides went. I could say that things were simpler back then, but I used to sit down for hours after a ride and write a personal account. Now I spend hours going through video footage and creating a personal account.

Social media is a great way to get the message out there as it is so accessible and so expressive. For the data driven amongst us, the amount of stats on how many people viewed what for how long, click throughs, reactions, comments and follows makes the engagement model a lot different from when we started. It can also be a slippery slope, too, as people start to see it as a way to make money and start to compete for the small amount of attention awarded to them from the masses. Luckily, we aren’t trying to make money and the services we “sell” are free.

Besides that “rage baiting” video that got a lot of reactions months ago (been too afraid to use those tactics again), one of the more popular clips has been the one we posted about the development group. That video got about four times more views than we regularly get and over 80% of those were from non-followers of the Facebook group. It did kick off a string of people contacting the club to see what was involved in getting into group riding.

We have always been an inclusive group. We always try to find a place for all types of riders, whether they have never ridden with others, or are racing. The development group for novices, however, is something that many groups don’t focus on as it can be hard work. Making sure that you have well trained people that can look after new riders and impress upon them the skills needed for group riding is important. At the end of the day, it is in our best interest to make sure that people know how to ride with others, as they could end up in one of our groups.

So if you are a solo rider and are reading this, or have a friend that has never ridden in a group before, feel free to get in contact with the club and see what we can do for you.

From the Committee

Key rings for everyone at coffee this week if you don’t already have one

Event Information

2026 and 2027 international trips –

Tour de France Pyrenees 2027 South Perth Rouleurs Bespoke Bike Tour
- Date: July 11-24, 2027
- Duration: 14 days / 13 nights
- Start: Toulouse Airport
- End: Toulouse Airport

Note: no SPR member nor the club benefit from the organising of these trips – it is intended to extend the cycling experience with fellow cyclists

Upcoming Racing

MCC Midland Traders 100 Road Race (25 Oct)
AusCycling WA Road State Champs (1 Nov)
ATTA Earlybird 1 (3 Nov)
ATTA Earlybird 2 (17 Nov)
MCC Pickering Brook Road Race (22 Nov)
AusCycling Club Team Time Trial (6 Jan)
AusCycling Club Criterium (8 Jan)
AusCycling Gran Fondo National Championship (10 Jan)

AusCycling Club Team Time Trial and Club Criterium – Expressions of Interest.

If you are interested, please click on the link to the Expression of Interest and let us know. We will then form up some teams and get back to you with who you will be racing with and what training opportunities we can provide. Teams need to be registered by the end of next week or else the entry fee will rise. If you have discussed a team but some people haven’t registered yet, please get them to put forward their details so we can organise the teams.

Juniors

For this Saturday (17/10) we will meet with our U11 and U13 under the Mt Henry bridge (https://maps.app.goo.gl/9atXr57x4Yuw5Ba3A) at 10.30am for a ride to Applecross and back.

Our U15 and U17 are invited to join our club rides from Coode St car park in South Perth at 7am.

Give an eye to our Whatsapp channel for any last minute call in case of bad weather conditions.

From the Ride Coordinator

Once again, this weekend is looking a bit iffy weather wise. Fingers crossed that we can get our Saturday EBR and Main rides in.

We ask for your cooperation to keep the groups together and avoid surging and splitting of the peloton.

Quite a few Social Hills ride regulars, and its informal ride leaders, will be away this weekend to participate in the Tour of Cowaramup with other SPR members. It’s a great SPR tradition where our social riders go to Margaret River for a long weekend of cycling, sightseeing & eating. We wish the riders well for their chosen distances!

We also wish the participants of “the MACA Cancer 200 Ride for the Perkins” a memorable weekend of cycling.

Everyone else, see you at Dome!

Saturday 17^th October

Ride starts under the Narrows (City side) at 5:30am

Early lap – earlybird 40.93km spr special

All rides start at Coode St carpark at 7:00am

Development group (*) – novice shelley 36.06km spr saturday

Transition: Trans North Lake & Shelley 40.50km SPR Saturday

Fast & Main: South St 51.23km SPR Saturday

(*) Please note that our Ride Leaders will adjust the composition and route for Development, Transition and Main 4 to suit people and conditions on the day.

Sunday 18^th October

Rides start at Coode St carpark at 7:00am

Social River Loop – approx. 50km

Short Hills (Social): Kal Goose 64.50km SPR Sunday

Short Hills: Kal Goose 64.50km SPR Sunday

Long Hills: Kal Obs Goose 94.37km SPR Sunday

Coffee – SnL,Victoria Park

Monday 19^th October

Ride starts under the Narrows (South Perth side) at 5:30am

Currently no ride scheduled – stay tuned for a new Monday ride

Tuesday 20^th October

Ride starts under the Narrows (City side) at 5:30am

1/2 Mild, 1/2 Spicy
Stay together till after Freo bridge

Coffee – Steamlab, Applecross

Ride starts at 6:30am at Koorak Kings Park Cafe Car Park

Main 4/Transitional/Novice

Kings Park laps at own pace, coffee at 7:30am

Coffee – Koorak, Kings Park

Wednesday 21^st October

Ride starts under the Narrows (South Perth side) at 5:30am

No drop recovery ride

Coffee – Little Horn, Applecross

Thursday 22^nd October

Ride starts under the Narrows (City side) at 5:30am

Three groups fast paced roll-throughs

Coffee – Steamlab, Applecross

Friday 23^rd October

Ride starts under the Narrows (South Perth side) at 5:30am

Coffee – Hoopla, Kensington

Ride Routes 10th – 16th Oct

October 8, 2026 peter

Last week we announced our new brand refresh with logo and typeface. This week we are proud to announce that the kit supplier for the next few years will be Pedalare.

Pedalare are a fixture on the Perth cycling scene and have been refining their products in various pelotons for years. They are a Perth-based company with a shop just north of the city on Lord St. This means that kit collection as well as checking sizes will be easier as you can just drop in to the shop. The idea is to not only do 3-4 regular orders, but also hold a limited amount of basic stock so that new riders or replacement kit can be available. Pedalare also offer a repair service for ripped knicks if you have had a small bounce off the pavement.

Probably the most important thing is “what will the kit look like”? Well, we don’t know yet. There will be some more meetings between SPR and Pedalare to come up with a design that we are happy with. You can rest assured that there will be no dramatic departure from the Green. Our club colours, which are specified in the constitution, are White, Green & Black. There is no mention of what shade or shades of Green, so that is where the artistic licence can develop a new look. Initial discussions are for something classic that will last at least 3 years and not go out of fashion straight away. Also something that will complement the new typography.

However, we are on a tight timeframe at the moment. We want to make sure that new kit is here before the nationals next year, so design and orders need to be finalised soon. We have also been looking into the possibility of signing sponsors onto the kit. We went away from sponsor logos a few years ago as the club finances became self sustaining via kit sales. Unfortunately the last couple of years have seen a reduction in income due to the confusion around the main SPR kit and ToMR kit. We are reassessing what that means for the club and what we need to do to shore up our financial position to maintain a strong club. If you are interested in supporting the club, let us know and we can see what options suit your position.

So, a new look is on the horizon with a new kit supplier. The number of riders on our training rides has also been increasing as we come out of winter, and with the sun up earlier, conditions are more pleasant. There are a few more changes that we feel we need to make to keep the club rolling, but our plan is to continue to provide the same quality services to the community that grew the club in the first place. Week after week, we are still here, so whether you are coming out for the first time or returning after a winter hibernation, we look forward to seeing you out with us.

From the Committee

As part of the clubs policy of supporting club members that have serious crashes on club rides, we have changed from hampers to club gift bags. Shown below is what we gave to John Phillips who had to have knee surgery after his accident.
Keyrings will be available again this Saturday to riders in SPR kit.

Event Information

2026 and 2027 international trips –

SPR is again looking to organise trips overseas after the success of ones to the Italian & Swiss Alps 2025 and The Grand Alps France 2024.

Tour de France Pyrenees 2027 South Perth Rouleurs Bespoke Bike Tour
- Date: July 11-24, 2027
- Duration: 14 days / 13 nights
- Start: Toulouse Airport
- End: Toulouse Airport

Note: no SPR member nor the club benefit from the organising of these trips – it is intended to extend the cycling experience with fellow cyclists

Tour de Cowaramup 18^th Oct –
***Last Chance***

The Tour de Cowaramup charity road bike event is on again this year on Sunday 18 th October. Three distances 60km (piccolo), 85km (medio) and 130km (gran) with funds going to assist men suffering from Prostate Cancer.

Start/ finish: Juniper Estate

Register for normal entry $125 until 30th September, then late registration $145-$180. If no SPR team already established when you go to register, please set up a SPR team based on the distance eg SPR-Gran, SPR-Medio or SPR-Piccolo so others can join you.

We have booked accommodation for three nights at the Leeuwin Apartments as per last year; in Friday 16th October out Monday 19th October 2026. This is now currently full with those who have already put in an EOI. However, in case there is a cancellation or enough new interest, we could book another apartment but would need to know soon via this EOI. Note shorter stays cost the same price. Please contact Carol or Danielle via comdev@southperthrouleurs.com.au for more info.

Upcoming Racing

MCC Midland Traders 100 Road Race (25 Oct)
AusCycling WA Road State Champs (1 Nov)
ATTA Earlybird 1 (3 Nov)
ATTA Earlybird 2 (17 Nov)
MCC Pickering Brook Road Race (22 Nov)
AusCycling Club Team Time Trial (6 Jan)
AusCycling Club Criterium (8 Jan)
AusCycling Gran Fondo National Championship (10 Jan)

AusCycling Club Team Time Trial and Club Criterium – Expressions of Interest.

If you are interested, please click on the link to the Expression of Interest and let us know. We will then form up some teams and get back to you with who you will be racing with and what training opportunities we can provide. Teams need to be registered by the end of next week or else the entry fee will rise. If you have discussed a team but some people haven’t registered yet, please get them to put forward their details so we can organise the teams.

Juniors

No Juniors this weekend as Giovanni will be out of town.

Our U17 and U15 juniors are still invited to join our main club rides from Coode St car park (South Perth) at 7am. President Peter and Treasurer Laurensia will be there to look after them.

From the Ride Coordinator

Familiarise yourself with the route! Knowing where you are going will help reduce our accident stats! As a precaution, please call turns, even on familiar routes. If you are new to SPR rides, please introduce yourself to your ride leaders. Those of you who are regulars, please inform the new riders that the blog is released on Thursday evening and contains the ride routes in addition to important club info.
This Saturday we’ve scheduled Reabold and Cottesloe, so be wary of parked cars, pedestrians and impatient drivers as you ride along Marine Parade.

All the best to those of you riding at the UCI Gravel World Champs. Have a fab weekend.

Saturday 10^th October

Ride starts under the Narrows (City side) at 5:30am

Early lap – earlybird 40.93km spr special

All rides start at Coode St carpark at 7:00am

Development group (*) – novice shelley 36.06km spr saturday

Transition: Trans Reabold 38.69km SPR Saturday

Fast & Main: Reabold & Cottesloe 50.91km SPR Saturday

(*) Please note that our Ride Leaders will adjust the composition and route for Development, Transition and Main 4 to suit people and conditions on the day.

Sunday 11^th October

Rides start at Coode St carpark at 7:00am

Social River Loop – approx. 50km

Short Hills (Social): Zig Zag Camel Hummer 72.67km SPR Sunday

Short Hills: Zig Zag Camel Hummer 72.67km SPR Sunday

Long Hills: Zigzag Camel Glenisla Patterson Chook 90.98km SPR Sunday

Coffee – SnL,Victoria Park

Monday 12^th October

Ride starts under the Narrows (South Perth side) at 5:30am

Currently no ride scheduled – stay tuned for a new Monday ride

Tuesday 13^th October

Ride starts under the Narrows (City side) at 5:30am

1/2 Mild, 1/2 Spicy
Stay together till after Freo bridge

Coffee – Steamlab, Applecross

Ride starts at 6:30am at Koorak Kings Park Cafe Car Park

Main 4/Transitional/Novice

Kings Park laps at own pace, coffee at 7:30am

Coffee – Koorak, Kings Park

Wednesday 14^th October

Ride starts under the Narrows (South Perth side) at 5:30am

No drop recovery ride

Coffee – Little Horn, Applecross

Thursday 15^th October

Ride starts under the Narrows (City side) at 5:30am

Three groups fast paced roll-throughs

Coffee – Steamlab, Applecross

Friday 16^th October

Ride starts under the Narrows (South Perth side) at 5:30am

Coffee – Hoopla, Kensington

Ride Routes 3rd – 9th Oct

October 1, 2026 peter

An important part of the rebuild this year has been a rebranding exercise. As we move forward we wanted to establish a new identity, or in part, lean heavily on our roots. What I mean by that is our branding should reflect who we are, which is the South Perth Rouleurs, and not get confused with acronyms.

The logo itself has never really taken off and no-one links the little swirly gear with SPR. If seen on its own, nothing really jumps out that says anything about us. So what we needed was a refresh of the font that makes up the name typeface and a redesign of the logo.

With a little help from a graphic designer we have settled on what you see attached. The font is a more modern design but without being too alternative and can still blend into a classic setting. Fashion changes by design and we wanted something that we would be happy with for quite a few years.

We wanted the logo to show more about who and where we are. By incorporating the SPR acronym into the logo it is clear who it is about. The chainring announces that we are a cycling club and the city silhouette and water show that we are in South Perth. The city view is exactly what you can see from where we start in Coode St, so it has some meaning to the club.

Our club colours are white, black and green. That is written into our constitution and therefore is not about to change. However, there is no specification as to what shade of green we use, so that is where some artistic licence can come into how the club can be represented.

The next step for the club is a new kit design. With these two elements locked down we can now move forward to refresh our look and identity. At our committee meeting this week, we heavily discussed the two submissions that came in from Society and Pedalare. Both brands have their own merits and we will make a decision soon on who we will be moving forward with. It is then onto deciding on a kit design and into production. The hope is to have everything wrapped up as soon as possible so that you can get a new Christmas present and ready for the Nationals.

This week, if you are wearing any variation of our kits at coffee after the Saturday ride, you will get a free keyring as shown in the attached picture.

From the Committee

Look at alternative methods of communication – WhatsApp
Creating teams for Club TTT
New platform for clubs (JustGo) finally transferring fees over
Discussion on the two submissions for kit supplier
Rebranding finalised

Event Information

2026 and 2027 international trips –

SPR is again looking to organise trips overseas after the success of ones to the Italian & Swiss Alps 2025 and The Grand Alps France 2024.

Tour de France Pyrenees 2027 South Perth Rouleurs Bespoke Bike Tour
- Date: July 11-24, 2027Duration: 14 days / 13 nights
- Start: Toulouse Airport
- End: Toulouse Airport

Aigars, owner of HC Tours has designed and lead tours for our club members over the French Alps (2024 – image below), the Italian Alps into the Swiss Alps (2025) and arranged a trip across the mountains of the lesser known, but no less spectacular Green (Northern) Spain in 2026. After watching the TdFrance this year, one of our members wanted to be in the thick of it in 2027. If you want to know more about the Pyrenees TdF next year, you have the opportunity to meet Aigars in Perth. He will join the SPR Sunday social hills ride October 4th and early bird rides Tuesday and Wednesday. Please make him feel welcome and if TdF’27 sounds like you, have a chat with him and his wife Helena; both are here to compete in the UCI Gravel World Championships coming up.

Note: no SPR member nor the club benefit from the organising of these trips – it is intended to extend the cycling experience with fellow cyclists

Tour de Cowaramup 18^th Oct –
The Tour de Cowaramup charity road bike event is on again this year on Sunday 18 th October. Three distances 60km (piccolo), 85km (medio) and 130km (gran) with funds going to assist men suffering from Prostate Cancer.

Start/ finish: Juniper Estate

Upcoming Racing

ATTA 40km Season Opener( ITT & pairs) – Northlink (4 Oct)
WCMCC Dog Hill Baldivis Road Race (4 Oct)
MCC Midland Traders 100 Road Race (25 Oct)
AusCycling WA Road State Champs (1 Nov)
ATTA Earlybird 1 (3 Nov)
ATTA Earlybird 2 (17 Nov)
MCC Pickering Brook Road Race (22 Nov)
AusCycling Club Team Time Trial (6 Jan)
AusCycling Club Criterium (8 Jan)
AusCycling Gran Fondo National Championship (10 Jan)

AusCycling Club Team Time Trial and Club Criterium – Expressions of Interest.

This is potentially the last year that the Nationals will be in Perth as it is the last official year on the three year contract. No idea where it may be moving to next year, and we don’t get many opportunities like this to race around Perth city roads. If you are interested, please click on the link to the Expression of Interest and let us know. We will then form up some teams and get back to you with who you will be racing with and what training opportunities we can provide.

Juniors

Finally the weather for this coming weekend looks fantastic for a ride !

On Sat 3/10 we will meet at the DNA tower car park in Kings Park (https://maps.app.goo.gl/qGZeYdg1odMofijt5) to practice some climbing and descending skills. The appointment is at 10.30am.

Our U17 and U15 juniors are invited to join our main club rides from Coode St car park (South Perth) at 7am. I will be there supervising them if it does not rain.

Please check our WhatsApp SPR junior channel for any last minute call. If you are not in the group chat, please let me know if you would like to be included.

From the Ride Coordinator

This weekend is looking good for cycling with sunshine, dry roads and negligible wind. This good weather should bring more of our SPR members out.
Dust off your skills and pick the right bunch! Consider your fitness & how long it has been since your last group ride. There may be new faces in your group.
As you may have heard, we had a few serious incidents last week and they were mostly due to rider inattention. We are asking that riders are mindful – no earphones, know the route, don’t overreach, don’t cross wheels or brake suddenly and do call obstacles. Ride within your capabilities and as your current fitness level allows. Also, show your commitment and wear your SPR gear. Choosing to participate in an SPR group ride means you have chosen to be part of a team!
Enjoy the ride and see you at Dome!

Saturday 3^rd October

Ride starts under the Narrows (City side) at 5:30am

Early lap – earlybird 40.93km spr special

All rides start at Coode St carpark at 7:00am

Development group (*) – novice shelley 36.06km spr saturday

Transition: Trans North Lake & Shelley 40.50km SPR Saturday

Fast & Main: Stock & Shelley 49.51km SPR Saturday

(*) Please note that our Ride Leaders will adjust the composition and route for Development, Transition and Main 4 to suit people and conditions on the day.

Sunday 4^th October

Rides start at Coode St carpark at 7:00am

Social River Loop – approx. 50km

Short Hills (Social): Khna Weir 68.66km SPR Sunday

Short Hills: Khna Weir 68.66km SPR Sunday

Long Hills: Khna Peet Can Mills MWR 90.55km SPR Sunday

Coffee – SnL,Victoria Park

Monday 5^th October

Ride starts under the Narrows (South Perth side) at 5:30am

Currently no ride scheduled – stay tuned for a new Monday ride

Tuesday 6^th October

Ride starts under the Narrows (City side) at 5:30am

One groups – mild first half with regroups, then a spicy second half after Fremantle

Coffee – Steamlab, Applecross

Ride starts at 6:30am at Koorak Kings Park Cafe Car Park

Main 4/Transitional/Novice

Kings Park laps at own pace, coffee at 7:30am

Coffee – Koorak, Kings Park

Wednesday 7^th October

Ride starts under the Narrows (South Perth side) at 5:30am

No drop recovery ride

Coffee – Little Horn, Applecross

Thursday 8^th October

Ride starts under the Narrows (City side) at 5:30am

Three groups fast paced roll-throughs

Coffee – Steamlab, Applecross

Friday 9^th October

Ride starts under the Narrows (South Perth side) at 5:30am

Coffee – Hoopla, Kensington

Ride Routes 26th Sept – 2nd Oct

September 24, 2026 peter

EOI Club TTT and Criterium

For the past two years, alongside the National Elite time trials and criteriums, AusCycling has run two clubs focussed events. A Team Time Trial (TTT) and a Club Criterium. Both are age group based and both are club focussed. Unlike the majority of the racing held in WA, these events are for club representation only. Most races we normally see on our calendar are usually dominated by teams, in which case many riders are actually members of different clubs. Being an event run by AusCycling, the organisation in which clubs are affiliated, it makes sense to make this about club representation.

On Wednesday 6^th Jan, for the Team Time Trial, there will be teams of four riders and they will complete two laps of the circuit that circles Bold Park. Team categories are the sum of the 3 youngest members of the team at the end of 2027 (Open, Masters 90 +, Masters 120 +, Masters 150 +, Masters 180 +). Much like ToMR, only road bikes are allowed, with no aerobars or disc wheels.

On Friday 8^th Jan, the Club Criterium will be held in Northbridge. Again, teams of 4 and in the age group categories based on the combined age of the 3 youngest riders (Masters 90 +, Masters 120 +, Masters 150 +, Masters 180 +). Riders will be given points based on finishing position and sprints to determine the winning club. It doesn’t look like there is an Open category, so teams combined age of the youngest 3 needs to be greater than 90 yrs old.

We are putting out an Expression of Interest to see if any members would like to compete in these two events in the new year. If you wish to race and are keen to represent the club, we are looking at covering the entry fees for each event. Team based competition is a great way to train as it allows you to be externally motivated to go that extra mile. This is also a great way to show club support and we should have our new kit and branding available by then.

Some important points to remember-

Team events are on weekdays and you may need to take leave from work.
If you are a SPR Club add-on member you can only race with us if your primary club is not fielding a team in that category. It is your responsibility to confirm this before committing to a SPR team. You can transfer clubs, though, or do it when you renew if It happens before the event.
All riders must have a valid Race or Club licence in order to compete. No Ride or Day licences.

This is potentially the last year that the Nationals will be in Perth as it is the last official year on the three year contract. No idea where it may be moving to next year, and we don’t get many opportunities like this to race around Perth city roads. If you are interested, please click on the link to the Expression of Interest and let us know. We will then form up some teams and get back to you with who you will be racing with and what training opportunities we can provide.

From the Committee

Next meeting 29^th Sept

Event Information

2026 and 2027 international trips –

SPR is again looking to organise trips overseas after the success of ones to the Italian & Swiss Alps 2025 and The Grand Alps France 2024.

Tour de France Pyrenees 2027 South Perth Rouleurs Bespoke Bike Tour
- Date: July 11-24, 2027
- Duration: 14 days / 13 nightsStart: Toulouse Airport
- End: Toulouse Airport

Note: no SPR member nor the club benefit from the organising of these trips – it is intended to extend the cycling experience with fellow cyclists

Start/ finish: Juniper Estate

Upcoming Racing

ATTA 40km Season Opener( ITT & pairs) – Northlink (4 Oct)
MCC Midland Traders 100 Road Race (25 Oct)
AusCycling WA Road State Champs (1 Nov)
ATTA Earlybird 1 (3 Nov)
ATTA Earlybird 2 (17 Nov)
MCC Pickering Brook Road Race (22 Nov)
AusCycling Club Team Time Trial (6 Jan)
AusCycling Club Criterium (8 Jan)
AusCycling Gran Fondo National Championship (10 Jan)

Juniors

Great job for James racing D grade at the Pickering Brook race!

The weather for this weekend does not look great again. So keep your phones next to you for any last minute update.

Once again I have to give the Kings Park ride a miss due to safety concerns about possible wet roads. We’ll be riding around Shelley, Rossmoyne and Manning areas.

We will meet (on Sat 26/9) at our usual spot (https://maps.app.goo.gl/Y63Tt7vwTjsQWfYZ6) at 10.30am.

Our U17 and U15 juniors are invited to join our main club rides from Coode St car park (South Perth) at 7am. I will be there supervising them if it does not rain.

Please check our WhatsApp SPR junior channel for any last minute call. If you are not in the group chat, please let me know if you would like to be included.

Events coming up:

Bike It To Ballidu on 27/9: if you will be going to the gravel event in September, please sign up choosing “SPR team” as your team. The event has several options including short distances for the juniors (11.7km is the shortest ride you can participate in). Check here: https://ballidugravel.com.au/rides/

From the Ride Coordinator

A few quick reminders to keep the bunch safe, smooth and riding strong:

Call out obstacles — give everyone a heads-up.
No half-wheeling — ride shoulder to shoulder.
Hold your line through roundabouts and corners.
Don’t run red lights — if we need to split, call “SPLIT!”

***NOTE***

The Dome Cafe will be closed this Saturday to allow maintenance work to be completed. As our rides return via Vic Park we will head into the lower café strip and stop at the Sunday location, SnL (see link below). Groups need to turn left at Bob Jane T-mart instead of heading down the hill towards the Causeway. There is limited space, but also a chance of rain may restrict numbers anyway.

Saturday 26^th September

Ride starts under the Narrows (City side) at 5:30am

Early lap – earlybird 40.93km spr special

All rides start at Coode St carpark at 7:00am

Development group (*) – novice shelley 36.06km spr saturday

Transition: Trans North Lake & Shelley 40.50km SPR Saturday

Fast & Main: Canning Vale & Welshpool 49.74km SPR Saturday

Coffee – SnL,Victoria Park

(*) Please note that our Ride Leaders will adjust the composition and route for Development, Transition and Main 4 to suit people and conditions on the day.

Sunday 27^th September

Rides start at Coode St carpark at 7:00am

Social River Loop – approx. 50km

Short Hills (Social): Welsh Mel-Falls MWR 64.18km SPR Sunday

Short Hills: Welsh Mel-Falls MWR 64.18km SPR Sunday

Long Hills: Wlsh Obs Chook MWR Goose 91.08km SPR Sunday

Coffee – SnL,Victoria Park

Monday 28^th September (Public Holiday)

Ride starts under the Narrows (South Perth side) at 5:30am

Currently no ride scheduled – stay tuned for a new Monday ride

All rides start at Coode St carpark at 7:00am (Public Holiday)

Fast & Main: Public Holiday North 60.70km (2025ed) SPR Special

Tuesday 29^th September

Ride starts under the Narrows (City side) at 5:30am

Two groups – solid roll through vs relaxed pace

Coffee – Steamlab, Applecross

Ride starts at 6:30am at Koorak Kings Park Cafe Car Park

Main 4/Transitional/Novice

Kings Park laps at own pace, coffee at 7:30am

Coffee – Koorak, Kings Park

Wednesday 30^th September

Ride starts under the Narrows (South Perth side) at 5:30am

No drop recovery ride

Coffee – Little Horn, Applecross

Thursday 1^st October

Ride starts under the Narrows (City side) at 5:30am

Three groups fast paced roll-throughs

Coffee – Steamlab, Applecross

Friday 2^nd October

Ride starts under the Narrows (South Perth side) at 5:30am

Coffee – Hoopla, Kensington

Ride Routes 19th – 25th Sept

September 17, 2026 peter

Ever since AusCycling moved to a new membership system this year, there has been a bit of debate about which licence type is best for you. Race, Club and Ride are all targeted towards riders with different goals in mind. However, the underlying insurance is pretty much the same. The difference in cost is basically reflecting the increase in risk between a recreational rider and someone in a race situation.

With the Gran Fondo early next year requiring a Race or Club licence to enter, this may encourage some people to join a club rather than just get a day licence. Just a reminder, however, although you can pay in monthly instalments, a licence and membership is a full year commitment. I have heard of some people that have taken up a membership and are intending to cancel it after the Fondo. Sorry to say, it doesn’t work that way.

The biggest complaint is often the cost of the membership, especially if you want to get a full Race licence. In all cases the club portion is a very small amount as the rest if made up of insurance and operating costs for AusCycling. So what I thought I would do today is breakdown exactly what you are covered for with your insurance. Bearing in mind that this is my interpretation of the policy and it is just to give you an idea of what you can ask for if you get in an accident.

Firstly, when are you covered? When you are involved in activities that are sanction by AusCycling and these include races, organised training (i.e. club rides), individual training rides, meetings, social rides and travel to and from these activities. Now I couldn’t find the definition of travel to and from, but it should be something that you could ask about if you get into an accident.

So, what is not covered? Medicare covered items (GP visits, surgeon fees, Medicare-listed scans), damage to your bike or equipment and non-sectioned by AusCycling events. What this means is that you claim via Medicare first and the things Medicare doesn’t cover, you can claim against your AusCycling insurance. Your bike, helmet, clothes, computer, glasses, etc are not covered and you should get a separate insurance policy to cover this. I have my bike listed on my home and contents insurance and have made a claim twice when I have crashed. Non-AusCycling events means that you need to ensure that the event organiser has their own insurance and you purchase a day licence for this event.

Most people know about all this, but what a deeper look shows is a bunch of cover that a lot of people won’t even ask about. Insurance companies are not in the habit of giving away money for nothing, so often if you don’t ask, you don’t receive.

The majority of the accidents that I have seen over my years riding the bike are ones that people walk away from and eventually get back to riding again. These are the ones that require a bunch of treatment to get you back but are not necessarily life threatening. For this you claim what you can via Medicare, then you claim via your private health insurance, then you claim the gap against your cycling insurance. You can claim 85% of these costs, up to a limit of $10,000. Dental is a bit of a tricky one here and often covers the initial injury, but not necessarily the restoration that follows.

Worse case scenario is that you die, have permanent total disablement, become paraplegic/quadriplegic, lose an eye, limb, or hearing. For all three membership types, you get a payout of $100,000. I didn’t actually realise that we could claim against the insurance policy if I died while riding. As morbid as it sounds, we do engage in a risky activity being on the road all the time, so I just made sure that my wife knows that we can claim against it too.

There is also an “income protection” benefit of up to $750 a week for up to 52 weeks. This one requires a lot more proof of temporary disablement and medical professionals to attest to it. It is worth asking about if you have to have time off work.

If you are injured and require someone to come and help you (not a relative, but a paid person) you can claim up to $200 per week for up to 52 weeks. Again this needs to be certified by a medical practitioner and is paid in arrears.

If you end up in hospital away from home but still in Australia, you can claim the travel and accommodation costs of your family to come and be with you while you remain in hospital. This is up to the values of $10,000 but covers “reasonable expenses” outside of 100km from home.

Funeral expenses are also covered up to the value of $10,000.

If any of the permanent disability things I mentioned previously occur, on top of the benefit amount, there is also a home and vehicle modification benefit. This allows up to the value of $10,000 for any medically certified modifications required for you to return to daily living activities. This includes thing like ramps in the home or changes to car (i.e. steering or pedals).

You can claim a one off “out of pocket” expense of $500 against transportation for the purpose of seeking medical treatment (i.e. you uber to the hospital), or also for medical mobility equipment (walking aids, scooters – probably doesn’t cover campagnolo gear).

Up to $20,000 is available for “Retraining and Rehabilitation”. This is after a temporary total or partial disablement but medical evidence must be supplied by the treating medical practitioner that the vocational training, tuition or guidance is necessary to rehabilitate you as a result of the Injury.

As a student you can claim up to $200 per week for up to 26 weeks to hire a tutor if a medical practitioner has determined that you are unable to attend class.

There is also an “unexpired membership benefit”. If you have prepaid for a gym, sporting club, etc, and have sustained a permanent disablement, you can claim up to $500 if a medical practitioner certifies that you can no longer participate.

There is a “Driver Service Benefit” to the value of $2500. On your return to work, if a medical practitioner certifies that you are unable to drive or travel on public transport, you can claim against using legally approved services like taxis or ride share.

And finally there is “Trauma Counselling”. If you or your family (partner, dependant children) require counselling as a result of a bodily injury sustained, then up to $1,000 per week up to $10,000 is available. Must be provided by a registered psychologist or psychiatrist and must be certified by a Medical Practitioner as necessary for your wellbeing.

Sorry for the length of this post, but I think that it is important for people to understand just what a membership can offer them. We, as a club, do what we can to provide a safe environment for you to pursue your passion for cycling. We pre-plan the routes, provide training for ride leaders, keep the groups sizes controllable, but there are so many unknowns out there that we may not see coming. Hopefully you never require to make a claim, but if you do, at least now you know what you can ask for.

From the Committee

Event Information

2026 and 2027 international trips –

SPR is again looking to organise trips overseas after the success of ones to the Italian & Swiss Alps 2025 and The Grand Alps France 2024.

Japan April 2027

Please complete this brief EOI for the tour

Note: no SPR member nor the club benefit from the organising of these trips – it is intended to extend the cycling experience with fellow cyclists

Start/ finish: Juniper Estate

Upcoming Racing

MCC Pickering Brook Road Race (20 Sep)
ATTA 40km Season Opener( ITT & pairs) – Northlink (4 Oct)
MCC Midland Traders 100 Road Race (25 Oct)
AusCycling WA Road State Champs (1 Nov)
ATTA Earlybird 1 (3 Nov)
ATTA Earlybird 2 (17 Nov)
MCC Pickering Brook Road Race (22 Nov)
AusCycling Gran Fondo National Championship (10 Jan)

Juniors

Super awesome ride by Hugh, representing the SPR juniors at Dwellingup 100! Hugh competed in the 20km race securing the 11th position out of 67 kids in the 8-11 year old category. Awesome job !

Great thanks to Hugh’s father, Andrew, for the pictures and his support with the junior program.

The weather for this weekend looks a little uncertain again. However, it should be OK for a late-morning ride.

Once again I have to give the Kings Park ride a miss due to safety concerns about possible wet roads. We’ll be riding around Shelley and Rossmoyne area, mainly along Riverton Drive, with a focus on group riding, positioning, communication and safe bunch handling.

We will meet (on Sat 19/9) at our usual spot (https://maps.app.goo.gl/Y63Tt7vwTjsQWfYZ6) at 10.30am.

Our U17 and U15 juniors are invited to join our main club rides from Coode St car park (South Perth) at 7am. I will be there supervising them if it does not rain.

Please check our WhatsApp SPR junior channel for any last minute call. If you are not in the group chat, please let me know if you would like to be included.

Events coming up:

Race: Pickering Brook #1 on 20/9/2026. Registrations: https://entryboss.cc/races/31952

From the Ride Coordinator

Rides are always more enjoyable when the group stays together, and shares the “work” evenly. This requires planning, self awareness, and sometimes some sacrifices.

Don’t be a Lemming – and follow other riders blindly. Each one of us is responsible for our safety and that of the riders around us so please remember to check for oncoming traffic at intersections – don’t rely on the “Clear!” call made by the first rider.

Saturday 19^th September

Ride starts under the Narrows (City side) at 5:30am

Early lap – earlybird 40.93km spr special

All rides start at Coode St carpark at 7:00am

Development group (*) – novice shelley 36.06km spr saturday

Transition: Trans Cresswell 40.21km SPR Saturday

Fast & Main: TV Stations 50.29km SPR Saturday

(*) Please note that our Ride Leaders will adjust the composition and route for Development, Transition and Main 4 to suit people and conditions on the day.

Sunday 20^th September

Rides start at Coode St carpark at 7:00am

Social River Loop – approx. 50km

Short Hills (Social): Kal Glenisla Palm Lwnbrk 60.03km SPR Sunday

Short Hills: Kal Glenisla Palm Lwnbrk 60.03km SPR Sunday

Long Hills: Kal Obs Goose 94.37km SPR Sunday

Coffee – SnL,Victoria Park

Monday 21^st September

Ride starts under the Narrows (South Perth side) at 5:30am

Currently no ride scheduled – stay tuned for a new Monday ride

Tuesday 22^nd September

Ride starts under the Narrows (City side) at 5:30am

Two groups – solid roll through vs relaxed pace

Coffee – Steamlab, Applecross

Ride starts at 6:30am at Koorak Kings Park Cafe Car Park

Main 4/Transitional/Novice

Kings Park laps at own pace, coffee at 7:30am

Coffee – Koorak, Kings Park

Wednesday 23^rd September

Ride starts under the Narrows (South Perth side) at 5:30am

No drop recovery ride

Coffee – Little Horn, Applecross

Thursday 24^th September

Ride starts under the Narrows (City side) at 5:30am

Three groups fast paced roll-throughs

Coffee – Steamlab, Applecross

Friday 25^th September

Ride starts under the Narrows (South Perth side) at 5:30am

Coffee – Hoopla, Kensington

Ride Routes 12th – 18th Sept

September 10, 2026 peter

I’ve been sick the last two weeks and it has been bad. Proper sick, too. Not some man-flu but a proper 6 days in bed with fever and aching joints. The weather gods were kind to me last week as there were a number of days where the club ride was washed out but I did manage to stumble out of bed last Saturday to kick off the groups. The morning drizzle has numbers down a bit but I still counted 55 riders that obviously missed enough rides during the week that they weren’t going to miss another Saturday. The previous Saturday when I was totally bed ridden, we had massive numbers, especially for a winter ride. It was estimated that between all the groups there were about 100 riders in attendance. Great to see so many there as it allows us to split into groups of like ability much better.

This week, though has been absolutely marvellous weather-wise, so I thought I better get back on the bike. It wasn’t pretty and I got dropped on the Tuesday Earlybird once we hit the hill on Preston Point Road. Something about a lack of lung capacity meant I didn’t make it up the hill with the group. But I’m a big boy and am capable to riding to coffee by myself. However, that ride has evolved quite a bit over the last year and we need to lay down some rules of engagement so everyone know what to expect.

First thing to cover is the meeting point. It has been under the narrows for the past 15 plus years and will continue to be there. However, as other groups also use the same starting point at the same time, it makes it hard to understand just how many riders we have and if we should split into multiple groups. As such we will slide a little further down the path and under the bridge itself. If you are approaching from across the road, we will be on the right once you hit the path.

Early in the year, Tuesday had two groups, a Relaxed and a Roll Through. Over winter, as numbers dropped this became one group with a variable pace. If we do build number back up, there may be a demand for a harder ride, but for now we are going to try to cater for both. The important thing for me is that the group stays together until it crosses the Stirling Hwy bridge. Even though it is early morning and traffic is light, riding solo over that bridge is not pleasant and an unnecessary risk to our riders. As such the first half of the ride will be “Relaxed”. Now relaxed does not mean Zone 2 as your Zone 2 and my Zone 2 may be two different speeds. Relaxed means that you take into account the whole group and maintain a conversational ride as we travel through the suburbs north of the river. Normal regroup at the water tower and then a controlled crossing of the bridge at Freo.

After that point we can let it get a bit spicy. The rest of the roads back towards Raffles are generally less busy and very much accustomed to having cyclists on them at all hours of the day. The aim would be to allow the spicier riders to get spicy and others try to hold on as best they can. It is also an opportunity to be smart about it too. If a bunch of riders get dropped together, then learn to work together to share the load.

Now this is definitely a divergence from how Tuesday has run in the past, but the club has been evolving over the last year and we need to try different things to maintain that attraction. There is a recovery ride the next day, so having a spicier ride on Tuesday is not necessarily a bad thing.

From the Committee

Event Information

2026 and 2027 international trips –

SPR is again looking to organise trips overseas after the success of ones to the Italian & Swiss Alps 2025 and The Grand Alps France 2024.

Japan April 2027

Please complete this brief EOI for the tour

Note: no SPR member nor the club benefit from the organising of these trips – it is intended to extend the cycling experience with fellow cyclists

Start/ finish: Juniper Estate

Upcoming Racing

WCMCC Rockingham Crit (13 Sep)
MCC Pickering Brook Road Race (20 Sep)
ATTA 40km Season Opener( ITT & pairs) – Northlink (4 Oct)
MCC Midland Traders 100 Road Race (25 Oct)
AusCycling WA Road State Champs (1 Nov)
ATTA Earlybird 1 (3 Nov)
MCC Pickering Brook Road Race (22 Nov)
AusCycling Gran Fondo National Championship (10 Jan)

Juniors

The weather for this weekend looks a little uncertain, but it’s still looking promising for a late-morning ride.

My original plan was to work on some hill and downhill skills. However, given the possibility of damp and slippery roads, I think it will be safer to focus on bunch skills this week.

We’ll be riding around Shelley and Rossmoyne area, mainly along Riverton Drive, with a focus on group riding, positioning, communication and safe bunch handling.

We will meet (on Sat 12/9) at our usual spot (https://maps.app.goo.gl/Y63Tt7vwTjsQWfYZ6) at 10am. Session will end a little bit earlier (around 10.50am) due to a personal commitment.

Our U17 and U15 juniors are invited to join our main club rides from Coode St car park (South Perth) at 7am. I will be there supervising them if it does not rain.

Please check our WhatsApp SPR junior channel for any last minute call. If you are not in the group chat, please let me know if you would like to be included.

Events coming up:

Race: Pickering Brook #1 on 20/9/2026. Registrations: https://entryboss.cc/races/31952

From the Ride Coordinator

It is always great to see a large turnout in club colours. Be seen in green.

We’re putting safety reminders in the spotlight this week. Please:

Call obstacles
Don’t half wheel; ride shoulder to shoulder
Don’t cross wheels (i.e. wheels overlapping)
Hold your line on roundabouts & corners
Don’t run red lights, call “SPLIT”

Saturday 12^th September

Ride starts under the Narrows (City side) at 5:30am

Early lap – earlybird 40.93km spr special

All rides start at Coode St carpark at 7:00am

Development group (*) – novice shelley 36.06km spr saturday

Transition: Trans Mosman 40.39km SPR Saturday

Fast & Main: Wanneroo Kings Park 50.44km SPR Saturday

(*) Please note that our Ride Leaders will adjust the composition and route for Development, Transition and Main 4 to suit people and conditions on the day.

Sunday 13^th September

Rides start at Coode St carpark at 7:00am

Social River Loop – approx. 50km

Short Hills (Social): Zig zag, Hummerston 71.79km SPR Sunday

Short Hills: Zig zag, Hummerston 71.79km SPR Sunday

Long Hills: Zig zag, Chook, Obs 86.79km SPR Sunday

Coffee – SnL,Victoria Park

Monday 14^th September

Ride starts under the Narrows (South Perth side) at 5:30am

Currently no ride scheduled – stay tuned for a new Monday ride

Tuesday 15^th September

Ride starts under the Narrows (City side) at 5:30am

Two groups – solid roll through vs relaxed pace

Coffee – Steamlab, Applecross

Ride starts at 6:30am at Koorak Kings Park Cafe Car Park

Main 4/Transitional/Novice

Kings Park laps at own pace, coffee at 7:30am

Coffee – Koorak, Kings Park

Wednesday 16^th September

Ride starts under the Narrows (South Perth side) at 5:30am

No drop recovery ride

Coffee – Little Horn, Applecross

Thursday 17^th September

Ride starts under the Narrows (City side) at 5:30am

Three groups fast paced roll-throughs

Coffee – Steamlab, Applecross

Friday 18^th September

Ride starts under the Narrows (South Perth side) at 5:30am