another addition to the spr family.
ronan and his wife had a little baby girl named sophie last week.
total weight of 3.2kg (without pedals) so she may be a climber.
ronan has said – “mother says that all that budget for “bike stuff” will have to go to sophie’s education fund, but we all know that she will want her own bike and accessories in no time at all.”
i know that bonds make a nice green wondersuit. with a bit of work it could look just like a spr skinsuit.
Have you ever thought that you might like to have a go at track riding?? Jump on Grand Prix fever and have a go.
If riding a bike round in circles, with only 1 gear that’s fixed and no brakes appeals to you read on!! 😉
I am looking to organise a weekend afternoon session especially for SPR but before I do I need to know who might be interested and gauge number so I can get a rough idea on cost.
Cost will be determined on how many people are interested and when we can secure the dome (though I am hoping for a Saturday afternoon but nothing is guarenteed).
You dont need a track bike as there are plenty we can hire. All you need is your helmet, kit and pedals and your away 😉
Track riding can really enhance and compliment your road riding skills and ability – Its a lot of fun and I encourage you to try it….
If you are interested then please either leave a comment or drop me an email:
Lisa 🙂
Ride report my Mark
The morning started off a bit strangely, as I thought I’d overslept.
Alarm went off at 6am; I got up, looked at the phone – “bugger – I’ve overslept! Its 5 past 7.
Rush to kitchen, get drinks from fridge – look at clock – Relax – it’s only 10 past 6. Blackberry has adjusted for daylight saving – oblivious to the results of the referendum. Turns out the computer did the same things.
Anyway – popped into the city on the way to the start to see how the triathletes were preparing for their world long course championships today. Saw a couple of guys with disc wheels wobbling along mounts bay road in the howling easterly gale. Bad idea.
Back to the start to meet about 18 starters. Peter did the honours of telling us about the forgotten hills we’d be riding today. Then he and Alistair led us off along Douglas Rd, towards Welshpool. I was chatting to Dan and Carl safely tucked at the back of the bunch, and managed to stay there till we reached the first hill – Welshpool rd.
My hill climbing practice has been sadly lacking; with lots of time spent in the tri bars riding to work and back along a flat bike path.
I started off with the front bunch, but about a ¼ of the way up I was passed by a whirr of well practiced climbers, including Mr Bonner, Julian and a couple of the strong new lads. Peter M came flying past – and I expected him to crash and burn. He slowed to let me catch him, but then found another burst of energy which carried him all the way to the top, and some points. Every now and then I’d try and hold onto a wheel that came past, and managed to stay with new Chris for most of the way to the top. We didn’t do the usual Welshpool rd up to the top, but rather turned left into Lesmurdie, to follow the normal home run backwards.
KOM 1: Mr Bonner, Julian, Judd, Jarrad, Peter M
We went right at the roundabout, and were supposed to carry on to Glenisla, but there was an order yelled out to take an early left turn onto Lawnbrook road. Fine by me. I knew we were meant to do Observatory and Chookenberg, in that order. I suggested that as we were about to pass Chookenberg, we reverse the order. Pete wasn’t having any of it. That way it’s too easy he said, as we miss out on the approach to the Chook. Talk about a masochist! Up we went to the observatory, without turning right onto Patterson as we normally do. At the bottom of Lawnbrook we hit a serious wall as we went from 75 to 5 km/h in a couple of meters. My experience of the hill was much the same – started off at the front, fell back and back as the hill progressed, and ended around 10th.
KOM2 Bonner, Julian, Peter m, Tim, Joe
After regrouping at the top, we did a U-turn and headed back down the hill (with the wind this time) and then up the other side towards the infamous Chookenberg. Once again the nice long downhill meant I hit the hill with a fair lead, but not for long. Michael, Julian – woosh and the rest. I was trying to keep something in the legs to ensure that I pedalled all the way up, as I remembered it from last time, when I accidentally unclipped, and struggled to restart on the hill. I looked down every now and then, and think I saw 24% at one stage – but I was suffering from tunnel vision at that stage so it could have been less (but not much).
I made it without stopping, which I was happy with. Alistair came flying past at a scary rate, making me wonder just what he’d had for breakfast. The order at the top was:
KOM3: Bonner, Julian, Peter, Dan, Herve
From there some riders headed off home, while the rest of us went back onto Lawnbrook (3rd time!!) and headed down to the dip, but turned left this time towards Mundaring Weir rd. We began our standard climb up to coffee, but immediately took a right turn into Alderside (where we normally start the clock) and headed along the bottom of the valley before the left turn and steep climb up towards the top of MW road. Same-old same-old on the hill. It was a fair bit steeper than I remembered from the last time we did it – but definitely one of the better cycling hills that we do; tough gradient, a few tight hairpins, beautiful surroundings, and hardly any cars. I rode up with Heiko most of the way, and led him up the last part of MW road, thinking I’d surprise him with my usual kick at the top. Wrong!. I kicked, and then Heiko showed me what a real kick was, and pulled 5 bike lengths before the top.
KOM 4: Bonner, Tim, Peter, Chris, Alistair (medium)
We regrouped at the roundabout, and a few headed back home for other commitments, including watching the triathletes in action.
The rest of us (around 7 or 8) went off to Merchant coffee shop, just down the road from Paris Brest. What a shock to the system.
They took down our orders with unfamiliar efficiency, and then hardly gave us time to sit down and complain before showing up with the coffee AND food.
It was all too much for us to comprehend. Whilst the ham & cheese croissant was not quite up to PB at it’s best, and the waitress behind the till didn’t know my name and order before I’d spoken, I reckon I’ll take my chances at the Merchant in future.
Dr Marc had to deal with his Macchiato Latte being served in two parts (he thought it lacked a coffee flavour on first taste) – but he managed to pick up the pieces and carry on with his day.
From there it was down Kalamunda Rd and along the flat with the wind behind us all the way to the causeway. We managed to keep a brisk pace – and I was loving the tri-bars.
A few of us watched the Triathlon world champs on the foreshore for a while – and marvelled at the real athletes. Sports men and women who spend 20 – 30 hours per week training, come rain or shine.
Not many prima donnas there – I think they’re a rare breed that reflects the true meaning of sport. They compete to see how good they are against their peers – and to improve. Not for money or glory – just for sport.
It was fantastic to see, and who cares if they blocked the freeway for an hour or three. They deserve the freedom of the city in my books.
After meeting my wife there, and supporting the competitors we knew, I cruised home down the freeway. The wind had died down, and the river looked spectacular.
After spending a week in China, I couldn’t help thinking how lucky I was to live in Perth and ride a bike.
Some of you may remember Flying Fynn sporting a very eye catching moustache about this time last year.
Ryan was doing his bit for “Movember”
Movember is about bringing the moustache back and having
some fun for two very serious causes – prostate cancer and depression in men.
SPR can give back to the community as whole and have some
fun at the same time by getting behind this great
cause.
All you need to do is grow the mo and get your friends and loved ones to support you…
Put your name in the comments and SPR will register a team!
this is an awesome event that many of us have been to the last couple of years. if you have never been to the track before, this is a great opportunity to see it at a very high level of competition. get a couple of friends together and come and support this great event. tickets are available from the link below.
With A reserve tickets sold out, B reserve $35 and C reserve $25 are selling fast.
Witness firsthand the excitement and thrill of the 250 metre timber indoor Perth SpeedDome, recognised as one of the fastest velodromes in the world. Sit within an arms length of the flashing lycra of the world’s most elite cyclists chasing world ranking points for their nation.
World, Olympic, Commonwealth Champions and record holders will line up in a star studded International field at the Perth International Track Cycling Grand Prix.
Leading the charge for Australia will be West Australia’s own 2009 World Champions Cameron Meyer, Josephine Tomic, Luke Durbridge, Melissa Hoskins and Michaela Anderson. Tearing up the boards of the magnificent Speeddome will be World ranked riders from Malaysia, South Africa, Scotland, Canada, America, Poland and Japan all chasing UCI (Union Cyclist International) points in an extravaganza of speed and lycra. Complimented by the Queen of Cycling Anna Meares in the best form of her career, the Perth International Track Cycling Grand Prix is one not to miss.
Don’t forget to quote the code word TCWA when purchasing tickets online, by phone on 136 100 or at all Ticketmaster outlets.
SPR are going international
as well!
Gregor is currently holidaying
in the US and is managing
to fit a little riding in…
Slickrock Mountain Bike Trail, Moab, Utah
Ride report: Awesome!
i wandered down to langley park after the hills ride with my two boys to watch the finish of the long distance triathlon world championships. there were a few people that have ridden with us before competing so i thought i would go down to show my support. here are a couple of photos from the day. unfortunately i didn’t get to see any bike action.
ride report by peter.
so in the middle of the week the weather report said that it will be a brilliant saturday. mid 20’s, moderate winds, all the good stuff. i predicted that this would mean that we would have a good turn out so set the ride routes to split early to ease the road congestion. as i stepped out the door this morning, the brilliant saturday was nowhere to be seen. it was overcast, the wind was howling and someone said that there was rain on the radar. i didn’t check the radar as it was supposed to be a nice day but it certainly looked like the clouds were bringing rain.
as was predicted, there was a good turn out with about 60 riders at the start. i would say that there would have been a few more if the wind hadn’t picked up early and scared them away. we set out to get to great eastern hwy and were instantly split at the first set of lights. i am sure that we got pretty much every set of lights between the start and ascot but managed to keep the group together.
the split went as well as it can with the fast group turning left and heading towards ascot and the main group continuing along great eastern. i would say that there was almost a 50/50 split this morning as i guess that some people opted out of the fast group due to the wind.
the pace wasn’t high along garrett rd and we soon turned onto guilford. the wind was coming from the right and into our face so the group started to roll through. unfortunately, people are used to rolling through in one direction only and it was a bit much to get them to roll to the centre of the road. it caused no end of confusion and this combined with the wind made things a bit hectic. people were already starting to opt out of the roll through as the wind seemed to be getting stronger as we got closer to the hills.
just through bassendean, there was a touch of wheels and josh went down. we pulled up the group to make sure that he was ok. it seemed superficial physical wounds so he was up an riding quickly. however, it would take it’s toll later as the adrenaline wore off.
we grouped back up and passed through guilford and onto bushmead road. the wind was hitting us in the face here and the group was pretty much single file with pretty much only the strong guys rotating at the front. splits were starting to appear here and the group was getting strung out as there wasn’t many places to hide.
i moved to the front as we approached the roe hwy crossing to let the group know where the turn was as we haven’t been down midland rd before. we had to wait for an oncoming car so this allowed much of the group to catch up. the wind was howling off the escarpment and as midland rd runs parallel to it, we were caught in cross winds for this whole stretch. this meant that there basically was nowhere to hide and i soon lost contact with the front group.
i pushed on regardless and had jason on my wheel. we caught brother dan and i think it was snuggles so the four of us stayed together till the end of the road. the front boys were held up at the lights to turn onto hawtin rd so we managed to regroup with them, but there were lots behind us that didn’t.
there was no real reprieve along here either, as we started moving parallel with the escarpment again so the crosswinds were just as bad. i lost contact again but found a few wheels to jump behind briefly. the front guys had managed a gap and there were a few of us trying to bridge it without success.
after a turn at the front, i looked back to see that it was only jason and myself once again. we put in a couple of big efforts and managed to catch back up to the group before we hit tonkin hwy. just after the crossing, there was a loud expulsion of air and jerry slowed his bike. there was a tentative slowing by the front guys before deciding to keep going as a few of us had stopped with him.
this was the second week in a row for jerry so it may be time for a new brand of tyre. we moved over to a driveway as it was mostly dirt here and got off the road. he went to take the tyre off but michael said to see where the hole was. it wasn’t a hole. there was a slash across the width of the tyre that even a $5 note wouldn’t save. after a couple of attempts, he managed to get hold of his wife to come and pick him up so we left him so we can head home.
the following groups had caught up by then and everyone had stopped so we had a decent group to get home. josh had joined up with us after being quite a way off the back as he found out that the little stack earlier on had buckled his back wheel quite severely. he managed to keep going by loosening off his brakes, but i am guessing the stack had not helped his body much either.
we formed up on welshpool rd and started to roll through. the pace was not exceptionally high so we pretty much kept together. dan rolled off the back but it wasn’t till we hit the lights that the others said that he got a flat but told everyone to keep going. josh turned around to make sure he was ok. it is probably worth noting that last week brother julian came out in a trisuit in which we found a lot of pleasure in taking the piss out of him. i am pretty sure that brother dan joined in with it. however, today dan turned up in his spr undershirt with his red bibs over the top. from a distance it looked like a trisuit. up close it looked like he was ready for world wrestling federation or the mardi gras (probably the same thing really).
we kept the pace on all the way to the finish and had a sprint for 15th place on riverside drive. the rest of the group was already waiting at the coffeeshop and the brews came out quite well today.
so a hell of a gusty day today and it really showed out who was strong and who was left wanting. it is hard to hang on when you can’t hide but it is good to stretch you limits as it is only way you get better.
another couple of glorious days are predicted for the weekend so we expect big numbers for the ride again. i was in such a hurry last week that i forgot about the novice ride. luckily carol had it all under control so the five of them headed out together. i will try to be on time this week as their numbers also go up with the nicer weather.
as we are expecting big numbers, we will split the group again to make sure we don’t hog too much of the road. one of our new riders, josh, works for the traffic operations centre as part of main roads. he said that if we get abused like the fast group did last week that we can give the licence plate number to him and they can deal with it. something to think about as we seem to be coping a lot of abuse lately.
sunday will see perth hosting the world long course triathlon championships. rachael is doing it as are a few others that i know. comprising of a 3km swim/80km ride/20km run, if you have done a tri before you will understand what pain these guys put themselves through. head down to langley park on sunday morning if you are not riding in the hills with us. if not, then avoid the freeway south bound as it will be closed between hay st and canning hwy for the bike course as will mounts bay rd and riverside drive.
the 7th of november will see the track cycling grand prix being held at the speeddome. a few of us have been to it the last couple of years and it is well worth it. there are some big names form here and overseas coming out as it sits in between the manchester track world cup event and the melbourne event. we will post some more info on it soon, but it is definitely a great night out especially if you haven’t been to the track before.
south perth rouleurs saturday ride 12 (hale rd reverse)
these routes have been updated for the hale rd ride so if you have a garmin you will need to download the new tcx file. basically the group will head out great eastern and split at ascot. this week the main group will head straight out to kalamunda rd then home via hale and welshpool while the fast group go through guilford and get onto kalamunda rd via helena valley rd. home the same way.
south perth rouleurs sunday ride 18 (chook farm & observatory & gooseberry)
for all that loved the f_ckenberg last week we have the chookenberg this week. this is the ride of the forgotten climbs, so if you haven’t done this one before expect a few different climbs. after the success of the merchant tea house last week i think that it will be our new coffee stop in kalamunda. even if there is no room, a take-away and a shady spot beats a 45 min wait any day.
The SPR kit is showing up all over Australia.
Big day out. Nice weather, Tail wind for the last 105km “Sweet”. 15,000 dgfev online casino cyclists, four crashes that I saw.
Clock in the photo is wrong I did it in 8.35 not that it matters!
Nev