This morning was my first mid-week ride with the group since May. To my suprise, I kept up well (although apparently it was a slow ride today) but I knew if it were to go significantly faster, I would be in trouble. I was talking to Shaw at the beginning of the ride and we started talking about making a Thursday ride that wasn’t a smash fest. This way, he and others wouldn’t need to go with the Bell Tower Group.

So, does anybody want to go for a ride on Thursday morning? We’ll start from the usual place (Under the Narrows, City side) at the usual time (5:30am). We can either go round the river (like a Tuesday) or follow the Fast boys and girls on their Thursday morning ride.

by dr ronny

Not much to write about today. 11 of us braved the coldest morning of the year for a ride to Freo and Cott. Lisa came along with us as she had to keep her heart rate down with the odd interval thrown in along the way.
The ride was uneventful and the pace was off. Sandy had a terrible day on the bike and was unable to keep up. Neither he nor I knew what was wrong as he’s been able to keep up for the past month (I even went behind him to see if his rear brake was rubbing but it wasn’t).
Mark rode with him to bypass Cott and I took the Waratah Avenue shortcut through Dalkeith with him.
Along Mounts Bay Rd the pace went up with Mark, Lisa and Leon leading the charge. I paced Ruth and Chrissy back to coffee and they had no difficulty in keeping up with me.
Overall, no problems and it was nice to enjoy the dry (although cold) weather.
Cheers

by dr ronny

A good turnout considering the wet weather with about 20. Whilst it wasn’t raining at the start, there was a bit of drizzle and the wet roads made it a nightmare for those obsessed with having a clean bike.

Ruth had her first go with us from the development squad to join the other regular female riders Anna, Tracy and Emma. The first part along Canning Hwy and then North Lake was a good steady pace. We had dry roads and there was no rain so people were happy to work. Ruth dropped off a number of times only to come back at every single set of lights which was conveniently for her, red with suprising frequency.

The drizzle and wet roads came to effect along South St and the pace dropped off (who’s want to ride hard in the rain, right?). I sat on the back along Bannister to see if people would start the roll through. There was a short attempt but the unsaid agreement by everyone seemed to be to just ride the second half of the ride out and get to the cafe for a hot drink. I didn’t mind as it was probably safer to not do a roll through in the wet. As a result, we rode a pretty stable tempo in light rain to Albany Hwy.

The rain stopped and the roads were dry which made riding a little more pleasant coming home. The pace was still off and my heart rate was cruising at 110bpm. Suddenly, there was a sound from behind and I looked back to see someone had fallen. We safely pulled off the road and I went back to check it out. I won’t mention any names to save embarassment, but one of the guys had come off after putting a bottle back in its cage. Unfortunately, he didn’t let it expand after he had given it a squeeze and the resulting bottle ejection had caused him to try to pull off into a driveway to retrieve the bottle. Unfortunately, a misjudged approach saw him clip the gutter and fall onto the driveway. Luckily, no one else was involved and there was no damage to the bike and only a small graze on his knee. A quick check saw him mount his bike and we were off again.

By now, the roads were stone dry and the advanced group flew by. When we got about 1km from the causeway, Raph Chee took off and got about 100m on the group. A few chasers brought him back and the red light at the bottom of the hill saw almost everyone come back together. Jen took the sprint on Riverside Drive as one by one, riders were unable to hold the pace until he was the only one left.

Everyone got back safe but just a reminder that we should definitely stick together until the last set of the lights before the Causeway after which people can go hard. I normally mention this at the start of the ride but the wet weather made me keen to get going and I neglected mentioning it. I also think the slow pace of the ride with the dry roads at the end made for “itchy” legs causing an early start to the friendly hostilities.

A lesson learnt for everyone regarding the fall. With hindsight, I don’t think the group could have avoided it. Crashes usually happen towards the end of a ride when people get tired. Due to the wet weather, today’s ride was the easiest paced ride for a long while and I don’t think fatigue played a role. The road was dry and the rain had stopped. We were going straight with no obstacles on the road. No one braked and the pace was even. Today’s event is just a reminder that safety is more important than anything. A lost bottle shouldn’t lead to a fall. If you lose a bottle, or a saddle pack or anything else, let people around you know what’s happened and either turn off or make your way to the back when there’s somewhere safe to do so. The worst thing you can do is cause a crash.  No one will thank you for it. There’s the potential to cause an injury to someone else and there’ll be an awkward situation when you’ve caused damage to their bike – even more awkward than this. The next worst thing you can do is to crash yourself. Either way, don’t let either happen and if in doubt, err on the side of caution and continue to ride in a straight line.

Safe riding peeps.

by dr ronny

OK – first of all, some things were left behind at the Bell Tower today. I have an SPR water bottle with the name “Summers” on it and a Multitool left on the jetty. Please respond if you would like these back and I can bring them on the ride sometime.

Now, moving on to the ride report. Today saw our numbers up to around 20-22 with roughly 1/3 female. Our route was the SPR public holiday ride without Shelley, and going up the shorter, less steep hill at Point Walter. As such, I thought we would do the usual with designated fast sections along Point Walter, Left bank and in Dalkeith.

Everyone stayed together really well, especially with the wind picking up in the second half. Tracy and Chrissy were on the front along Canning Hwy having a good ol’ chat before we got to Burke Drive where Tracy and Shaw rode tempo. I went up the side reminding people that we would continue to the end of Burke Drive and took over the pacemaking to the bottom of the hill. I noticed that Anna was boxed in on the left along Burke Drive and being the lightest in the group, I was expecting her to make a move on the hill. She must have found a gap to get out and zoomed past me on the middle section of the hill, but once again, it was a big effort by Shaw that saw him claim the hill as his own. I’m only hoping his new, Patrick inspired, deep section wheels, currently in the post, will slow him down on the hills in the next few weeks (I know a good home if you end up not liking them Shaw).

We pulled over after the roundabout to hear that Tracy got a flat and that a few people had stopped to help. No one had any good jokes to pass the time and after a little while, I began to look around to see who must’ve stopped to help. I noticed that we had a lot of guys and not a lot of girls and then found out the Chrissy and Rose had stopped with Tracy. Horrified that no male, with our inbuilt superior mechanical skills had stopped to fix the flat, I turned around and found Tracy, Chrissy, Rose and thankfully John attending to the flat (ok, it was John fixing the flat and the 3 girls watching). I lent a hand during whchi time I learnt that Tracy has an 8 speed bike (the first 8 speed bike I’ve seen) and a little help from Shaw and his air cannister and the tyre was fixed and the wheel on and ready to go.

Onto Left Bank where the paced got upped. I died at the front as John and Tracy came past followed by a bunch of Cyclemania riders, including one who must have been about 10 years old who managed to comically find Tracy’s wheel. They turned left after the 1st speed hump with little to no warning which was not appreciated by many of our group but everyone made it to the bus stop without a problem. Across to North Freo where I dropped my chain coming to a stop at the lights which put me up the back. I didn’t mind it here as I peered up the front to see Anna and Shaw slogging away into the headwind with their bodies crouched down and Anna’s head bobbing. They took the group all the way to Marine Parade before I moved up to make sure they turned left to Cottesloe and found a companion in Tyrone at the front until the long uphill drag beside the golf course where he slipped back into the middle of the group, conserving his legs for the upcoming sprint. We made it to the roundabout turn where someone dropped another chain. A successsful regroup at the Service Station across West Coast Hwy and we were soon in Dalkeith.

My legs were done for the day by now but I wanted to see if anyone would take my bluff as I attacked. I got about 20 metres on the bunch when Tyrone came up next to me and to my disappointment seemed happy to sit beside me until we were reeled in by the rest of the bunch. Tyrone counter attacked and Anna led the chase but he couldn’t be caught and reached the bus stop first. I was up the back with Chrissy and there was no respite along the Avenue until the group pulled over at a bus stop on Hackett Drive where we found out that Tracy had another flat. Shaw once again offered his help (and cannister) and we made our way to Mounts Bay Rd. Now it was a little sloppy along here as what started as two lines became a single pace line of riders tyring to shelter from the wind behind Tyrone who was powering home. It would have been safer to have two lines and to go a little slower as we’d had our fun and I’ll be sure to note that in my pre-ride briefing next time. Everyone got home safe and smiles were on all round and to be honest, that hot cup of coffee never tasted so good in the cold. The dynamics of the group continues to improve and the “feel” is becoming more and more like the main group. Sections of the ride are becoming more tactical whilst the stronger riders continue to do their fair share (often more than their fair share) of work at the front which keeps everyone happy.

PS – if anyone is thinking about getting the SPR sunglasses or anything from www.chainreactioncycles.com, I’m looking to reach the minimum amount to get free shipping so let me know.

by dr ronny

After the week of rain it was good to get back on the bike. We had Catriona (?spelling) along for her first ride with us joining the other usual girls Tracy, Michelle and Anna. Twelve of us headed out into the easterly breeze with everyone contributing at the front during the ride. Michelle especially took a long turn at the front along Guildford Rd into the wind but managed to keep on the back when she peeled off.  I was most impressed with how aware people are becoming in the group. When gaps formed, riders would fill them in (after checking it was clear to do so, of course). This kept the group organised and helped people who were struggling momentarily to recover. I think that was reflected in the average pace of the ride (29.7kph) which most people seemed to do easily.

The roll through on Benara Rd just keeps on getting better. Every now and again, the formation would struggle but people are now starting to figure out how to fix it. For instance, shortly after setting off from a set of lights, the riders on the left were  20 metres in front the first rider on the right (Tracy) as some people had taken off from the lights with more gusto than others. I went up the side to see what was happening. Tracy said she was slowing the pace of the right lane down and after 30 seconds, she was at the front and moving over. After that, the roll through was smooth and efficient for the rest of Benara.

The trip back  contained another big diesel effort by Michelle in Morley before Shaw and I couldn’t resist going down a downhill full gas but we were all back together on Wheatley Crescent. Shaw continued at the front and the lumps along that part strung out a couple of guys but they held on so everybody was together at the bottom of the “Battale Royale St” Hill. Now, I thought that this would be the bragging rights part of the ride as I expected Riverside Drive to be closed so I was suprised when the pace slowed once we crossed Royal St. I went up the right to see who would bite and the first to jump was Shaw from the front. Now, Shaw doesn’t look like a climber but don’t be fooled. He put in a mighty effort after being on the front for the last 10-15 minutes on that hill. Tyrone and Anna (who do look like climbers) started to chase and were only 3-4 bikes lengths away half way up. I thought they would catch him but Shaw turned himself inside out to win by a safe margin.

We were pleasnatly suprised to see the two lanes of closed road on Riverside Drive and so an impromptu sprint began. I moved up the right to lead everyone out but only Tyrone came. I checked to see he was on and then lead out. By the time we stopped, I couldn’t see anyone in sight and we made it back to coffee first, with Anna gradually shortening the gap.

A very good team effort today. I was really impressed with how everyone stuck together and how riders would move about during the ride and roll through to keep the formation in order. This helped bring the avergae pace of the group up and made us look really pro…but perhaps not as pro as some….although, perhaps we will try this next week if someone needs to pee on the bike —->

by dr ronny

Another beautiful morning saw me get up a little earlier than usual. I’d arranged with Lynda for her to try Miss Emma’s wheels to see if she could discern any difference in performance to her usual set. Conveniently, I’d also had my wheel at Yas’s getting trued so I devised an ingenius (but as it turns out, not guaranteed) plan to make it all work. I would use Emma’s front wheel to go to Yas’s whilst I carried her rear wheel. I had tried it the night before and found my heart rate monitor strap to be a convenient device to put around a wheel and carry it turtle style, freeing both hands to steer the bike. I would then pick up my front wheel from Yas and carry both wheels to the start point where we would put the wheels on Lynda’s bike. I’d arranged with Lynda and Bernie to have them bring a lockring to put on her cassette so I wouldn’t have to carry tools, front tyre/tube/rim tape and Emma’s rear wheel all at once to the ride.
Suprisingly, this worked well. I could ride with both hands on the hoods holding my front wheel with a couple of fingers and had the rear wheel slung over my back out of the way.

I got to the starting point and thought the hard work had been done until Bernie informed me that his chain whip to remove Lynda’s cassette had broken. I thought it might work so we gave it another go whilst the big truck crashed into a wooden bollard only to see it totally snap. Crap – I hadn’t envisaged a broken chain whip in my planning. So, without being able to change the cassette, we put the front wheel on Lynda’s bike and set off.

There were 13 today which I thought would be ideal for the roll-through. Coming up from the Development Squad was Sandy for the first time. The trip down Canning was uneventful and we got onto Northlake Rd without a problem. Once we crossed Leach Hwy, the big hill before South St saw the group split a little. Lynda and Sandy made it over the top and had to chase along South St. Lynda dug deep and did a good job to finally get back on around the Freeway. Sandy and I were off the back and fortunately the group waited for a couple of minutes to let us catch up.

We weren’t back for long before a small rise split us again and this time Lynda and Sandy had more company with Andrew on his Focus joining too. We managed to get back to the group as they waited at the lights to turn onto Bannister. Now, the last time we came they were doing roadworks with a big hole in the middle of the only lane open. This week, they were doing more with traffic banked up for quite a while.
We sat there for a minute and I seem to remember telling Lynda, Sandy and Andrew to NOT go in the roll through and to sit at the back with me to recover for a while and see what the pace was like. If they felt like it, they could join in later on but I’d seen how they had suffered over the hills and along South St so I wanted them to make it through this section.

Someone smart at the front suggested we go through the carpark on the corner and much to our delight, once we came out onto Bannister, we found 30 cars waiting to turn right leaving Bannister all to ourselves. Lynda and Sandy managed to find themselves in the right lane in the middle of the group and when the roll through began, they joined in. I sat at the back with Andrew and watched as the group slowly creeped the pace up. There was a slight headwind and the first 3-4 minutes was a little disjointed probably due to the slow pace to begin with. Once a good pace was set, the roll through began to look very good. And I mean VERY good.

Andrew joined in and did 2 excellent turns just about the time when Sandy and then Lynda were dropped unceremoniously. I moved towards the back to see where they were and found myself next to a new rider (the blonde lady talking to Pete at the beginning of the ride) and she seemed spent so we sat up the back and observed the tiring group. I thought about dropping back to help the other two but I had less sympathy than usual at that point as they had did what I told them not to do and then blown up as a result.

By this time, more than a few riders where getting tired and no one was coming through on the right and it was left to Tracy and a few others to lead the single pace line for a few minutes into the slight headwind. After a little while, some of the guys up the back restarted the roll through with success before we turned onto Nicholson. I moved to the front to slow things down to wait for the dropped riders and before long Lynda was back on. Sandy was no where to be seen and I pulled over and waited for him to make sure he was ok. I found him after a few minutes and paced him along Nicholson, then onto Albany Hwy where we had a good run of green lights. We found the group sitting on the side of the road waiting for us and thanked them as we went past before we had to stop at our first red light. Unbeknowst to me, Sandy cramped up at the lights and fell off the back again. When we stopped at the next set of lights, I noticed he was gone and waited again as I told the others to get to coffee. I rode backwards and found him a few minutes later. He said his cramp was gone by then so I decided to try to get back to the group, leaving him to get to coffee. I’d already missed more than half of the ride so I tucked down and went into time trial mode. I saw the group up ahead and made slow but steady ground on them thinking they were going mighty fast today. When I got onto the back of them, I realised it was Main Group 2 (whoops! )so I joined them for the sprint home. It’s good to see Ivan whose form must be continuing to improve as he was sitting safely in that group – most of whom I think have come through the Saturday Transitional group including Nathan, Jamie and Nigel.

I got to coffee to find my group. I’m not sure if there was a sprint with all the road closures so someone will have to fill me in. Sandy made it safely in about 10 minutes later.

Overall, a good safe ride although I missed most of it. The roll through was solid considering we hadn’t done one in 3 weeks and we had a headwind and a few new riders, but overall, these people are definitely getting better.

The pace was slow today and I can only thank the group for stopping and easing up so many times. We will be going faster next week so beware.

PS – Yas has done an excellent job of truing my front wheel. It’s probably the hardest wheel in the world to true as it’s only got 14 spokes which are paired. I had a good look last night and I can’t even see a hint of a wobble.  If you have any bike related problems or maintenance to do, I would highly recommend using him. He’s also conveniently located about 20m from the other end of Coode St.

by dr ronny

Another solid turnout with our numbers reinforced with some WAT ladies (including Michelle) and Bernie and Rob who were there for Lynda and Tanya’s company, which begs the question – where was Mr Bonner?

I gave a brief overview before we headed off noting the strong easterly which meant that people really needed to stay close and be mindful of where they wanted to be within the group, for instance, if you wanted less work then be on the right on the way out. The plan was to stick together until Nedlands where people would be free to contest the bus stop finish sprint.

We picked up Phil heading out of the carpark who had missed the other groups so he joined us. I suggested he could chase down the Novices (or is it “Development Squad”?) who were ahead of us on Coode St but he declined.

I decided I would take a more observatory role today and keep off the front to let others dictate the pace. The girls (except Emma) seemed to congregate at the back (perhaps the gossip was better???) along Canning Hwy and learnt a small lesson by doing so. Everytime the lights went green, the guys at the front would accelerate a little and small 2 or 3 metre gaps would form between riders. Because of the head/crosswind, this made a huge difference and they began to learn how hard closing gaps in the wind can be. When they got back on at the next set of lights, the process would repeat itself.

I asked Leon and Greg at the front to ease up a little and we were all together just before we made the left turn onto Riseley. Going round the corner, the small gaps formed again and when the tempo was set by Emma over the small hills, the gaps soon became splits in the group. We eased up and the WAT girls rode themselves back to the front group (nice work ladies!) before we came back all together at the Leach Hwy lights. Tyrone and Greg were kind enough to let the girls move themselves up within the group at the lights, which would hopefully protect them a little better.

We seemed to be cruising until we hit a long uphill stretch on Leach Hwy where Lynda cracked. Bernie and I rode with her and we paced ourselves over the hill as we saw Emma set the pace at the front of the group up ahead. Leon got out of the saddle half way up and Tyrone looked liked he was struggling at the back with a few others.

When we crested the rise we found the others waiting at a bus stop and made our way to Freo where we managed the right hand turn onto Stirling Hwy very well. I moved up the back to check on Lynda who apparently had received some help from Rob in the form of a friendly push. Luckily, we weren’t in a team time trial at the Tour Of Qatar and we had Rob, a well decorated expert in the art of “pushing” without “touching”.

We had a nice tailwind along Marine Parade and especially in Cottesloe. Rob couldn’t resist and came up the front asking to go quick. Before I could say anything, he and Tyrone were 30 metres off the front and Greg was asking if we should chase. I agreed but was suprised to see him and two others sprint across leaving me behind 🙂

We regrouped at the top of that nasty little hill after the right hand roundabout turn and got ourselves to Nedlands. Greg opened it up at the end of Jutland Parade and put himself in time trial mode – Cancellara style. The chase behind was disorganised with Leon and then Emma having to give up. Phil came past and I got on his wheel to bridge to Greg. He had a huge gap by now and eased up well before the line. I told him he had enough time to do a victory salute but he couldn’t think of anything to do. After all, there’s not much left with Contador, Flecha and Cavendish taking all the good ones.

Phil and Rob decided to have an impromptu sprint on Mounts Bay Rd (Phil won) and we made it to coffee first. Overall, a very enjoyable ride and everyone did well to stick together given the wind and wide range of ability. See you all on Monday.

Our strongest turn out today with 30 riders fronting up. A few new faces introduced themselves at the carpark and we headed off for a reverse round the river ride. My job was made easier today due to help from Raphael, Josh and Scott.

Our first obstacle was the right hand turn off Canning Hwy to get onto Burke Drive. As luck would have it, a whole bunch of cars were there when we wanted to turn but we managed the turn without a problem – good work guys!
Onto Burke where the pace was pretty civil. The guys up the front decided that they would deviate from the map (yes, I just checked and we were meant to go all the way to the end) and turned left early up Page St.
As expected, the group blew apart on the hill. I came up the right trying to get to the 3 riders who had about 50 metres on the rest but came to a near halt at the corner onto Stock Rd – it’s important to stay to the left if you aren’t overtaking (plus, you might get a draft off someone 🙂
I saw Josh win bragging rights and there was a little confusion at the end of the golf course about how to get back onto the planned route as we intersected a big CycleBuzz group . Raph and I kept going straight which got us onto Preston Point Rd.
We made our way onto Leftbank where he started it off as he moved in front of me and put his head down. I looked back and there were people behind me so when he pulled off the front I continued for another minute. I pulled off and three guys came past and then I realised we had about 100 metres on the rest. We took a quick turn each and stopped at the end before the turn onto Queen Victoria St. We moved to the Bus Stop and waited a few minutes for the back-markers.

We got split at the North Freo lights (Tydeman/Port Beach Rd) and after cruising for a while, I decided to wait at one of those carparks on Marine Parade for the group to come back together. A couple of riders took the shortcut down Curtin Ave to skip out on Cott and we found them at the Stirling Hwy lights. Nice timing.

Got passed by a soccer-mum in a people mover on Jutland Parade with not much room to spare. There were 3 of us for the sprint and I was the only one to know when it finished (too unfair to claim a win I think). A group of about 20 came back together on Steve’s Hill and we were at the Mounts Bay Rd lights for a while but no sign of the others. I figured they had Scott (who apparently broke a spoke sometime along the ride), Raph and Josh so we pressed on to the finish without a problem with Nathan doing the most work to coffee.

Now, special mention goes to Ivan who was dropped a few weeks ago and has apparently been in training. He was towards the front for the whole ride and looks a whole lot fitter so well done.

Secondly, I also know that a few people struggled today. A request to slow the average pace of the group was made (by someone else) and it’s something that I’m open to and something that we should talk about. This group is really about you guys and a group consensus about the pace of the ride should be made. Like all group rides, some weeks will be quicker than others. Some people will be faster than others. What I want to do is maximise safety and enjoyment. I don’t want people to feel discouraged they can’t keep up, but I also don’t want to force everyone else to slow down for the sake of a few others. If you would like to see the pace go down slightly or you’re happy with the way it is, then let us know.
Cheers

by dr ronny

– nice, overcast weather although a little humid and a few drops of rain were felt in mosman park but nothing more
– a good warm up with a steady lead out by the front few guys (including 3 girls) along Mounts Bay Rd and then into Nedlands
– the group stuck well together up the short rise on the Avenue behind Tracey and Emma
– Nathan and I took over shortly after and started to increase the pace a little before our nice little run was ruined by a broken spoke by someone in the rear of the group. No dramas and everyone managed to keep the rubber side down.
– a short stop diagnosed the problem as ride-ending and we left him to poddle home
– saw the Elite Racing Cycles group at the Christchurch Grammar lights who gave me a shout out (what can I say, I’m a traitor :))
– the group started to string out on Stirling Hwy but came back together on the downhill stretch before the hill
– As expected, the wide variety of hill climbing ability within the group showed itself on the hill
– Nathan seemed to start pretty hard before I lost sight of the rest of the group
– Apparently Wye-Shun was the first to the top but Boon got to the water tower first
– I arrived with the last person and everybody looked like they’d had fun!
– Got ourselves through MP to Stirling Hwy picking up a couple of dudes on a Bianchi and BMC who’d we’d past before in Nedlands only to be passed by them with the broken spoke later
– Onto Stirling Hwy where we tried a roll through. There were some good rolls with people taking a longer turn on the front but before long, with the head wind and lumpy roads, the gaps started to form and it wasn’t smooth
– at the top of the biggest downhill, opposite MLC, the guys on the front braked to let others catch up which was dangerous. Period. I can’t stress enough that you should never brake if you are on the front unless you need to slow for a car, a set of lights, an intersection, a corner etc. Yes, it’s one of my pet hates. Especially if it’s for no visible reason in a spot where people aren’t expecting it, it forces everyone else behind to brake. People were approaching at close to 30kph so braking to 15kph was a no-no. If you need to let others catch up it’s generally a better idea to soft pedal (not coast) down the hill and let people catch up on the downhill rather than overslow and make people brake. Just back it off a few percent for a while, and if that’s not enough, back it off another few percent. And make sure you know what’s happening behind you so that you don’t make the people you’re waiting for have to brake.
– At the bottom of the downhill, we changed the format to dual pace line at Christchurch and everyone kept together well (a few small gaps formed on each uphill but these were quickly closed down again)
– onto Mounts Bay Rd with Jordan and Michael on the front for the first half
– Not much of a sprint today – for a start, nobody knew the finish – but I think the honours went to Michael or Jordan or someone else wearing grey/black
– When we got to coffee, there were 4 people sitting on the end of the usual big table
– I politely asked them to move as their drinks had not arrived – they didn’t take any offence (they probably didn’t want to sit next to stinky cyclists anyway).
– Overall, another safe ride – can’t ask for more than that. Not our quickest but I think the undulating terrain was good for some people. It’s nice to see more girls in the group.
– I encourage everyone to go the b’fast next week – even if you’ve been with us for 1 or 2 weeks – it really is great food, company and you may win a raffle prize. Of course, there’s also the bike weigh in (something you can win without having to train for OR a good excuse for why you’re so slow).
– I won’t be there next week for the ride (but I’ll definitely be there for the breakfast) but I think the group can run itself if a few people step up a little. I’d still like more talk in the group.
– Some people might have liked a few more fast sections seeing as we didn’t have a real sprint at the end. Perhaps we can “borrow” the ERC route which includes Riebold Hill along Oceanic Drive and a sprint section along Burke Drive in Nedlands before coming home on Stirling Hwy? There’s nowhere good for a roll through along this route so some might not like it.

by dr ronny

Another 22 or so riders today which I think is close to the perfect number for a group like this. Scott was coming along for his 1st ride with us and there were a few new faces and a few familiar ones which is always good to see. We headed out onto the Canning Hwy, made the turn onto the North Lake Rd and kept together well onto South St and beyond. The pace was pretty civil at this stage with two guys doing most of the work at the front (sorry, don’t know your names but I probably should).

We turned left onto Bannister road where there was about a metre of road missing from the left lane. The call was a little late but everyone avoided it without incident.

The roll through along Bannister was ok today. It was difficult as the wind was coming from the front right and I thought about calling a reverse roll through where people go clockwise (to keep the faster lane on the less windy side) but didn’t want to confuse the group.
There was at least one small gap somewhere in the group for most of the roll through and the occasional bit of braking in the left lane which is something we will have to work on. The trick is to make sure the pace is even, in both lanes – and of course, that’s much easier said than done. Once a gap forms, especially in the right lane, riders have been inclined to sprint to close the gap which just forces the person behind to also sprint to close the new gap left behind. The resulting change of pace wastes energy and makes it less enjoyable for everyone. So how do we solve this problem?

My first suggestion is for everyone to narrow the difference in pace between the two lines. The right lane should only be going a tiny bit faster than the left. You should be able to say a quick few words to every person on your left as you pass them gradually. Once you make your way to the front, you should move over to the left in a controlled manner. Don’t rush. You should be at the front for about 15-20 seconds. Quite a few people have been accelerating once the person in front moves over left to overtake them. You don’t need to feel hurried or rushed to get ahead and pull over left. You just need to keep the SAME pace (but you’ll be doing more work as the wind will be in your face) and without having to accelerate, you’ll find yourself overtaking the guy that’s just pulled over as they’ll be easing up a bit. So, exactly how much is “easing up”? Well, for starters, it’s not nothing. Don’t stop pedalling. A few people were doing this, and much to their credit, some of them were doing it pretty well. But they had to do it because they were going so much quicker in the right lane that when they got to the front, they had to slow up quite a bit as they joined the slower left lane. I would suggest pedalling about 5rpm less than you were in the right lane which makes you go 5-6% slower (depending on your cadence). So for instance, if you are in the right lane doing 36kph and pedalling with a cadence of 90rpm, you would pull over left and reduce your cadence to 85rpm which would slow you down to 33.9kph. It’s not a lot and that’s the point.

So what happens when a gap forms? Well, gaps form all the time – so don’t panic. If the guy in front of you sprints up ahead leaving 3 bike lengths in front of you what should you do? Well, you can close the gap gradually and smoothly. But by accelerating, you just make everyone else behind you do the same which is sometimes ok. For instance, if you go 37kph for 40 seconds, that closes an 11 metre gap. Or, you can stay at 36kph and try to get everyone behind you to start rolling through smoothly again. If it happens the next time round, you should say a quick few words to the guys ahead of you (who are doing it) the next time you have them on your left as you pass them with a cadence of 5rpm more in the right lane.

OK, back to the ride. We turned left onto Nicholson and some people were keen to continue the roll through up the hill – don’t you love enthusiasm? However, thinking that the pace was a little high and the group was a little strung out, I got to the front and took control. We made it through the roundabout and then I called for another roll-through. The roll-through was better – because the wind was more manageable – and we made our way onto Albany Hwy. I found myself at the front with another good looking Asian guy with good taste in helmets – Jen. He’s a friend of Raph’s and I found out that his brother is a gastroenterologist at RPH. We caught every single set of lights between Nicholson and the Causeway and I started to feel a bit tired. My partner seemed fresher and after the last set of lights before the Causeway we agreed to wind it up. We were nudging 50kph over the Causeway when I started to slow down on the right. I was hoping some others would come through. After 3 guys passed me on the left I noticed there was a gap beside me. I looked over my left shoulder to see nobody there. The 4 guys ahead were about 4-5 bike lengths away by now but against the wishes of my legs I decided to shift up and get out of the saddle. After 10 or 15 good kicks I was back on as we turned onto Riverside. My ex-partner started to slow and I could see the guys behind him waiting to pounce. The guy in front of me moved right to overtake and I followed. When he began to slow, I came out from his wheel and led out. The lights behind us turned red and I could hear someone coming from behind. I was done by now and began to hope that whoever it was, that they would come past and give me a draft for the last 200 meters to keep 2nd place. I was chuffed to see Jen after his good turn over the Causeway come beside me and ease up. We had a small gap on our other 3 breakaway companions and poddled in to be first to coffee.

A few comments at coffee about the lack of calling – fair point – a few obstacles weren’t called and when you’re on the front, you should call them (not just signal them). If you’re at the front and too short of breath to call or not noticing obstacles up the road it’s time to pull off and have a rest. I think some more talk within the group, especially during the roll through, will be the key to our success.
Overall, another safe and enjoyable outing. Our average speed continues to increase with an average of 32.2kph today. Well done!

PS – does anybody know how to add paragraphs to a post?