cycling wa meeting – a new board was elected this evening.  i will let you know what is going on once everything is finalised.  expect a “state of the nation” blog soon.

racing – mtb in pemberton this weekend.  busso half ironman next saturday and lowry memorial road race in collie on sunday.  look on the blog for more details.

calendar – scott has installed a new calendar to show the club events.  it shows the entire month and each event is colour coded.  we will update this as we go but you can at least see what is coming up.  our next social event will be the annual social day lunch.  unlike the breakfast, this is not directly after a ride, but at lunchtime at a venue to be arranged.  usually we hold it close to the 9th or 10th of may which is when we first moved to coode st, but this year we have left our run a bit late and need more time to get things sorted.  it will be held on the 22nd may and will be combined with my birthday which is on the 25th.  i figure that i would be inviting the same people anyway.  keep your eye on the blog for more details, but it basically allows your partners an opportunity to see these other people you spend so much time with.

tipping comp – the spring classics tipping comp is coming to a close and there is a bit of a battle for the final placings.  don’t get too dismayed if you weren’t involved or suffer withdrawals as we will be starting a giro tipping comp pretty much strat away as it starts in couple of weeks.

weekend rides – apparently it is a long weekend this weekend.  it kind of crept up on me.  the rides are listed below and as usual there will be a public holiday ride on the monday.  as sunday is anzac day, there are a couple of people attending the dawn service at kings park.  they will meet at the bottom of mount st at 6am and then attend the service at sunrise.  it finishes at 7am and then they will ride to the hills ride start.  as such the hills ride will start about 10min later this week as we will wait for them to attend.

saturday 24th apr- all rides start at coode st carpark at 7:00am

development group – spr saturday 35.48km (novice shelley)

transitional – spr saturday 42.94km (freo & cott)

main 1 & 2 – spr saturday 50.04km (hale & ridge hill)

fast – spr saturday 54.58km (gooseberry hill)

sunday 25th apr- all rides start at coode st carpark at 7:00am

main – spr sunday 70.93km (kahuna)

fast – spr sunday 94.64km (kahuna & canning mills)

monday 26th apr- all rides start at coode st carpark at 7:00am

main – spr public holiday 59.35km (shelley & freo)

redbull – due to the redbull, there is no vehicle access to the north of angelo st so if you normally drive to the start of our rides, then you will not be able to get through.  we will still start at the same place, but you will need to park you car in the senior citizens carpark at the corner of coode and angelo.  both saturday and sunday will be like this.  the attached map also show the road closures.  this shouldn’t affect the bike access, but just be aware that there will be bollards that we will have to avoid, and that riverside drive is closed, so no sprint on saturday. 

jerseys – cannibal have fixed one of the jerseys by fitting a shorter zip in it so that it lies flat.  it seems to do the trick so if you need your new full length zip jersey fixed, i will be putting up a post soon and i will need to organise to collect your jersey and send them back.

racing – this weekend sees 2 events on.  the cyclo-sportif at lancelin and the peter clark classic also up north.  both events will be attended by spr riders, so if you want to support our racers, come along and cheer for our guys and girls.

weekend rides – i have decided to get rid of the sunday transitional ride as all the transitional people are doing the hills now anyway.  the main group may need to split into two if it becomes an issue with size or ability, but the course will remain the same.

saturday 17th apr- all rides start at douglas ave carpark at 7:00am

development group – spr saturday 35.48km (novice shelley)

transitional – spr saturday 39.04km (benara rd)

main 1 & 2 – spr saturday 50.98km (benara rd)

fast – spr saturday 55.32km (maddington & hale & ridge hill)

sunday 18th apr- all rides start at douglas ave carpark at 7:00am

main – spr sunday 70.93km (kahuna)

fast – spr sunday 87.72km (kahuna & peet & patterson)

start point – due to the redbull air race taking over our carpark we have had to move the start point for the next couple of weeks.  on the 17th & 18th we will probably have to move again, but in the mean time we will be starting at the douglas ave carpark just up the road a bit.  you can find a map here.

kit collection – there are a few more kits that have not been collected.  i will not be bringing them to the coffee shop anymore, so if you need to collect you can arrange it with me via email.

sunnies – oakley radar path will be the club standard.  the base model (which is what we will go for) is black frame with a grey lens.  cheapest place i can find is here.  if three of you go in together, the freight is free. 

races – there are a few races coming up.  there is a mtb race this weekend and a cyclo-sportif and road race next weekend.  see the relevant webpages for more details and add to the comments if you want to join in.

training groups – the names of the groups have changed as per the suggestions we received.  sorry kimbo, we didn’t follow your suggestions but i may have to borrow your copy of the karma sutra to find out what we could have renamed the advanced group.  we will be splitting the main group into a fast and slow this week as even though it didn’t look that big in the car park last week, there were quite a few riders in that group.  ride routes are listed below.  make sure you know where you are going.

saturday 10th apr- all rides start at douglas ave carpark at 7:00am

development group – spr saturday 35.48km (novice shelley)

transitional – spr saturday 41.73km (canning vale reverse)

main 1 & 2 – spr saturday 50.47km (hale rd reverse)

fast – spr saturday 54.03km (maddington & welshpool)

sunday 11th apr- all rides start at douglas ave carpark at 7:00am

transitional – spr sunday 64.27km (welshpool & north lake) but following the fast group route to the hills

main – spr sunday 61.14km (welshpool & weir rd) but following the fast group route to the hills

fast – spr sunday 101.86km (welshpool & mundaring & kalamunda)

since the redbull air race has pretty much taken over most of the southern shoreline, we will need to change our start location for the next couple of weeks.  there was no notice by the council, but the carpark we usually meet in has been totally fenced off and is now a restricted area. 

as some people have to drive to the start, we need a carpark to start in.  the one behind the boatshed cafe is also half taken up by redbull stuff and there is a good chance the rest might follow.  however, just behind our normal spot is another carpark on douglas ave.  this should be fairly empty as it is not directly accessed from mill point rd.  have a look at the map below, but you have to drive down pepper st, jubilee then douglas to get to it as douglas is blocked from the mill point rd end.

on the actual redbull day, we will probably have to start back up on angelo st as pretty much all that area will be restricted.

so, easter is here already.  it kind of crept up on me this year as i thought it was at the end of april.  turns out that anzac day is at the end of the monthso we get another short week a bit later.  we had a successful ride last week with phil anderson.  well some of us did.  a bit of bad bike maintenance on my behalf had me stranded out at the base of the hills.  i had to call up the family to come and pick me up and now need $300 in parts to repair the damage.  it sometimes pays to get a professional like yas to service your bike for you.

after the ride this saturday there will be another kit distribution at the coffeeshop for those that missed out last week.  there is also an option for you to collect from my place or alternatively in the city during the week as i work in the central park building.  if you need to organisea pickup time, then send me an email.

we still have quite a few of the smaller 650ml drink bottles left as well.  they are $10 each and i will bring a few of them to the coffeeshop as well if anybody wants to buy some.

much like the helmet deal, i have been trying to finda standard set of sunglasses for the group.  i have not managed to secure a deal with any distributor andactually had a not very nice email exchange with one bloke where he accused me of threatening him.  he saw my request for a price match withthe internet as a threat that if he doesn’t supply glasses, then we would buy off the net.  that was not the intent, but the opportunity for his brand to be spread across our group was lost on him as he was more worried about losing dollars.  most distributors were similar to this so i have sourced a good pair of glasses at a good price.  just so i don’t piss off any more shops or distributors, if you are after a new pair of glasses, then drop me an email and i will give you the details.  you don’t need to be a member to get these, but we will treat them as the spr standard.

there are a few races/events coming up in april.  cyclo-sportif, mountain bike and road racing.  keep an eye out on the blog for more info on these events.  they should be well supported by spr people, so if you want to get into any of these, then you won’t be on your own.

there has been some talk about adding an intermediate group ride to the thursday morning session as the advanced may be too fast and the transitional too slow.  there has also been some issues with the tuesday morning ride being too fast some weeks as the advanced riders set the pace.  what i am proposing is that on both tuesday and thursday morning we have all three groups start under the narrows and you can decide which group you want to ride with.  the advanced starts first then a minute or two later the intermediate and then the transitional.  the route would be the same for each group on tuesday (mosman park hill) and thursday (cott & freo) so if you dropped off the back, you could be swept up by the next group.  these would be self managed groups but all abiding by a set of guidelines that determined how fast etc that each group should go.  any feedback would be appreciated.

there has been quite a bit of chatter on the comments section after the ride write ups.  there have been issues with the intermediate group being too big and now the transitional group is getting both too big and too fast for some.  the aim of the transitional group is to teach people how to ride properly in a group situation.  once people can do this and have increased fitness, then they should move up to the next group rather than try to drag the whole group along with them.  the gap between the transitional group and the intermediate group as been quite large and as such i think that some people have been reluctant in taking that step.  starting this week, we will have a 5th group ride leaving the carpark.  this group will follow the same course as the intermediates, but start a few minutes later to keep them separated.  this group will be made up of those that are struggling to keep up with the intermediate group and those that are now too fast for the transitional group.  the aim will be to start the first intermediate group (usually the faster regulars and some advanced guys looking for and easier ride) to head off first.  we then set off all the other groups and then send the second intermediate group off last.  if by chance they do catch the first group at a set of lights etc, then they should stay separate and allow the first group to get away.  we will see how we go, but i will need some people to step up and take control of that group for me.  let me know if you want to help out.

with so many groups now, i am wondering if we need some name changes.  i am tempted to go back to group 1, group 2 etc, unless i get some better ideas.  feedback to the comments section please.  at the very least i need a new name for the new transitional/intermediate group….transmediate???

the ride routes for this week also include the two public holidays rides on friday and monday.  as previously indicated, jonny will be looking after the friday ride, but hopefully, i should be there for monday.  as for the weekend, i have heard people asking if there were rides on over easter weekend.  generally the weekend rides will always be on except for if christmas day falls on a saturday or sunday.  even then i would expect that there may be a few people that still turn up.

as for this weekend, have a look at the routes below so you know where you are headed.  the transitional group on sunday will alternate each week with a hill one week and a flat ride the next.  this week there will be a slight deviation as they follow the other groups until the split at brookton hwy.

see you out on the road.

friday 2nd apr- all rides start at coode st carpark at 7:00am

intermediate – spr public holiday 59.35km (shelley & freo)

saturday 3rd apr- all rides start at coode st carpark at 7:00am

novice – spr saturday 35.48km (novice shelley)

transitional – spr saturday 40.77km (risley & leach & cott)

intermediate 1 & 2 – spr saturday 50.97km (river ride)

advanced – spr saturday 55.76km (shelley & mosman park)

sunday 4th apr- all rides start at coode st carpark at 7:00am

transitional – spr sunday 76.57km (armadale & canningvale) (follow the adv group to brookton hwy)

intermediate – spr sunday 82.79km (brookton & weir rd)

advanced – spr sunday 96.36km (patterson & canns & urch)

monday 5th apr- all rides start at coode st carpark at 7:00am

 intermediate – spr public holiday 59.35km (shelley & freo)

where to start.  what an absolute mad weekend last weekend was.  so busy in fact that i didn’t even get to ride my bike.  the breakfast was a big success.  close to double the numbers that we usually get which is good to see the group is growing, but we may need a bigger venue next time.  the agm elected the new committee with six new members and five re-elected.  thanks to those that were part of it in our inaugural year and thanks to those who have stepped forward for this year.

the freeway bikehike was the next event on the following day and thanks to lisa and daniel for heading up to joondalup on saturday to help me setup the tent and chris,meg and jurriaan for packing up on sunday.  we were up their for two reasons.  firstly to provide a meeting point for any rouleurs that were doing the event and secondly to try to promote the club to the general public.  the amount of spr’s that did the event surprised me a bit and at one stage there was a sea of green under the tent.  the interest from the general public was a bit varied.  we did a bike weigh to try to get a few people to come and see us and that got a few extra people to come and grab a  flyer.  we may see the results of that this weekend.

i will be bringing the rest of the kit to the coffee shop this saturday.  if anyone has kit to collect, then meet me after the ride.  the extra kit has arrived so everything should be in order.  if anyone is unhappy with the zip on the new jersey, please let me know so we can get them fixed.  this seems to apply to those that have a bit of spare room in their jersey.  see the previous post here.

on sunday we have a special guest riding with us.  phil anderson is over here promoting the new oppy bikes and is coming out on our hills ride.  there is a bit more info here as well as on his website.  since our rides are open to the public, there may be a few more people coming out with us on sunday.  if any of your mates are coming or if you are reading this because you intend to come out with us, please be aware that this is still an spr club training ride.  therefore you must have a look at the ride etiquette section of our website to make sure you know what we expect.  even if the group gets big, we intend to maintain order within the ride and we will not tolerate any anti-social or dangerous behaviour.  no-one wants to be brought down just because you want to show everyone what a hero you are.  we are trying to stay on quiet roads to minimise any disruption to traffic but we will have to see how we go on the day.

the spring classics tipping comp enters it’s second race this sunday.  as there has only been one race so far there is still an opportunity to enter as you can easily make up ground on the leaders.  more info can be found here.

here are the ride routes.  make sure you know where your group is going and do not rely on the group leader to do everything.

saturday 27th mar- all rides start at coode st carpark at 7:00am

novice – spr saturday 35.48km (novice shelley)

transitional – spr saturday 42.94km (freo & cott)

intermediate – spr saturday 50.72km (rebold hill & cott)

advanced – spr saturday 56.10km (canning vale & freo)

sunday 28th mar- all rides start at coode st carpark at 7:00am

transitional – spr sunday 53.55km (kalamunda rd)

intermediate – spr sunday 52.14km (darlington)

advanced – spr sunday 85.81km (darlington & mundaring weir)

so this weekend is the autumn breakfast at my place and just for a change they are forecasting nice weather.  due to the number of rsvp’s we have had, we will still split into four groups as it look like it will be a big group.  i need to remap all the routes so that they finish at the breakfast but have been a bit under the pump, so will update as i go. 

due to work commitments, lorraine is unable to cater for this event so kate has stepped in to fill her big shoes.  as per other breakfasts, the cost is $10 and we will provide coffee, hot choc, hot food, cold food and raffle prizes.  there will also be a bike weigh-in so you can see how much you are carting around and try to justify that upgrade.

running off the back of the breakfast will be the club agm.  if you are a member you are able to come and participate as we will be voting on the committee positions.  there are still some spots available, so if you want to be more active in the club, send me an email to nominate for a position.  if you are not a member you are still welcome to hang around to see what goes on.

the majority of the spr kit has arrived and has been packaged up ready for distribution.  unfortunately there were issues with a few garments so we currently don’t have the following. xxl jerseys, s bibs, summer arms, undergarments.  these are expected to arrive on monday, so you have the option to wait till then or collect what is available and get the other bits later.  there is no problem with the garments, just these were late back from the sewing people and missed the first 2 shipments.  we also have drink bottles still available so if you want a bottle, they will be available at the breakfast for $10.

sunday is also the freeway bikehike in which a few of you will be participating in.  we will have a tent set up at joondalup so once you arrive, keep a lookout for us (see map) and you can come and grab a coke.  we are using this as an opportunity to try to attract a few more members.  many people have never ridden in a group before the freeway ride so we can show them what we get to do every weekend.  if you have any mates doing the ride, tell them to find our tent and come and say hello.

the online memberships is having a lot of trouble at the moment.  you can renew from last year, but currently you cannot join as a new member.  the best thing to do is call cycling australia directly, ask for memberships and give them your details over the phone along with your credit card.  their number is – 02 9339 5800 or email – info@cycling.org.au

as most of you have heard, we have managed to organise a helmet deal with TBE for any member.  i am in the process of trying to extend that and will set up a members benefits page where it will explain what discounts you can get just for being a member of spr.  stay tuned.

i have had a few enquiries about juniors recently and whether our club has a program for them.  currently we don’t so i have looked into it.  there are a few coaches that i am talking to that can provide services to any juniors that join the club.  if you have any kids from under 13 through to under 17 that may be interested, let me know so we can try to tailor a program to suit.  again stay tuned as this will be coming soon.

finally, we are also running a spring classics tipping comp.  this involves 7 races from this weekend through to the end of april and includes such monuments of the sport as paris-roubaix.  if you think you know your pro-riders and who is suited to these hardman races, have a look at the tipping page and follow the instructions to join in.  cost is $10 and the money goes towards the prize pool, so the more entered, the more money there is to win.

on to the rides…

saturday 20th mar- all rides start at coode st carpark at 7:00am

sorry, i need to remap these rides so they finish at the breakfast rather than at bells.  check back often to find the update.

novice – spr saturday 31.61km (novice shelley breakfast))

transitional – spr saturday 39.32km (canning vale reverse breakfast)

intermediate – spr saturday 48.07km (south st breakfast)

advanced – spr saturday 48.11km (canning vale breakfast)

sunday 21st mar- all rides start at coode st carpark at 7:00am

transitional – spr sunday 57.66km (zig-zag)

intermediate – spr sunday 56.93km (kalamunda)

advanced – spr sunday 85.76km (gooseberry & kalamunda & bickley)

it’s amazing how many different things can go wrong with your knee.  while the physio has been rectifying one issue, this has lead to me getting pain in another spot.  the human body is so damn complex that it is a wonder that it holds together as long as it does.  i am back on the bike again, but still under orders to take it easy for a while so it is the intermediate group for me this weekend. 

there is a crit on at osborne park on sunday for anyone wanting to stretch their racing legs.  this is a fund raiser to get a couple of juniors to italy this year for the junior world champs.  bella is one of them and she has been out with us quite a few times in the past.  more info here.

this sunday will also see a few of our riders tackle the 5 dam and 3 dam challenge set up by the ex-cyclosportif group.  as such we will be doing the reverse of some of their routes so we can yell some support as they head the other way.

a big weekend next weekend with the breakfast and agmon saturday and the freeway bikehike on sunday. we will be setting up the tent in joondalup to promote the club to the riders finishing the event to try to encourage a few more people to come riding with us.  this will also double up as a base for any spr riders that do the event and we will try to provide some refreshments for your arrival.

there are still a few outstanding kit orders that are yet to be paid.

and finally we have managed to secure a helmet deal with TBE for any of our members.  info here.

ride routes are below.  it is up to every rider to make sure they know the route to minimise the risk of accidents due to navigational misunderstandings.

saturday 13th mar- all rides start at coode st carpark at 7:00am

novice – spr saturday 35.48km (novice shelley)

transitional – spr saturday 40.21km (mosman park)

intermediate – spr saturday 49.38km (tv stations)

advanced – spr saturday 56.56km (scarborough beach rd)

sunday 14th mar- all rides start at coode st carpark at 7:00am

transitional – spr sunday 68.62km (south st & freo)

intermediate – spr sunday 82.79km (brookton & weir rd)

advanced – spr sunday 92.56km (carradine & peet)

well the physio gave me the all clear to ride a bit harder but it has co-incided with a week of everything else getting in the way.  i missed tuesday morning as kate’s bootcamp was moved because of the long weekend, i missed spin due to meetings and equipment failures and i will miss the saturday ride as i am manning the tent for the expo.  the only ride i got in this week has been the thursday advanced ride which had me strung out from the word go.  hopefully next week will be back to normal.

as i have said, we are promoting the club at the south perth recreational expo in manning.  it would be good to get a few spr people swinging by after the ride to show that bit of support.  we will be having the power-test running again, but this time all have to do is get a high power/weight ratio and you get yourself a drink bottle.  i have updated the post here.

autumn breakfast and agm coming up soon so mark the 20th in your calendar (info here).  the freeway bike hike is on the day after with some info here.

sorry if we have done some of these routes recently.  with the new distances requested for the different groups, i need to map a few more.

saturday 6th mar- all rides start at coode st carpark at 7:00am

novice – spr saturday 35.48km (novice shelley)

transitional – spr saturday 41.73km (canning vale reverse)

intermediate – spr saturday 50.47km (south st)

advanced – spr saturday 54.42km (canning vale)

sunday 7th mar- all rides start at coode st carpark at 7:00am

transitional – spr sunday 64.27km (welshpool & north lake) (but following the advanced group on the way out)

intermediate – spr sunday 61.14km (welshpool & weir rd) (but following the advanced group on the way out)

advanced – spr sunday 88.87km (welshpool & observatory & camelberg & gooseberry)

well it is the end of summer this weekend and already i can feel the oncoming winter…..not.  the working week ends with a stinking hot finale and there is only a slight respite for the weekend.  mid thirties are predicted with strong hot north easterly winds. 

speaking of lots of hot wind, there has been lots of discussion on the blog about the rides and the rules.  whenever a new person contacts me about coming to join in the rides, the first thing i tell them is to “have a look at the ride etiquette section of our website so you know what we expect”.  i think that some of the riders that have been with the group for quite a while may need to have a look to refresh their memories.  the first section pretty well sums up what should have happened last saturday in the advanced group.  in any of the groups, everyone needs to be aware of the group as a whole.  it is not just up to the group leader to enforce the rules.

few things coming up.  there are quite a few spr riders heading down to pemberton race this weekend.  it is quite a big trip to take for a bike race so it is good to see so many riders committed to making the journey.  good luck to those taking part.  at least they are not predicting hail storms like last year.

the following weekend we are manning a stall in george burnett park just off manning road to take part in the south perth fiesta.  they are showcasing a bunch of sports and clubs from within the south perth area so we will be trying to “seduce” a few more members.  it is on from 9am to 1pm so a couple of us will be missing the ride to man the stall.  if anyone want to help out drop me an email or alternatively, after coffee swing by to have a look and so we can get a few people hanging around in out kit.

speaking of kit, the order is underway so if you have purchased anything you need to get your money transferred across soon. 

the rides this long weekend are a below.  you may notice that the saturday intermediate group is doing one of the advanced routes.  i am in the process of renaming all the routes so that we will just have a selection of saturday and sunday routes of varying distances.  all will be mapped to allow for any group to be able to use them.  however, it takes time so bear with me  for a bit.  remember, the public holiday ride is aimed at the intermediate group so keep the pace down and look out for the slower riders.

saturday 27th feb- all rides start at coode st carpark at 7:00am

novice – spr saturday 35.48km (novice shelley) 

transitional – spr saturday 39.04km (benara rd) 

intermediate – spr saturday 50.98km (benara rd) 

advanced – spr saturday 50.04km (hale & ridge hill) 

sunday 28th feb- all rides start at coode st carpark at 7:00am

transitional – spr sunday 76.57km (armadale & canningvale) 

intermediate – spr sunday 70.93km (kahuna) 

advanced – spr sunday 87.72km (kahuna & peet & patterson) 

monday 1st mar – ride starts at coode st carpark at 7:00am

intermediate – spr public holiday 59.35km (shelley & freo)