26/8 Saturday centenary.
28/8 Fresh 'n frosty five.
Temperature speculation started Sunday night, sending several soft before the day had arrived! Monday's minus 1 had culled the crew to just Tina, Cate, Principal Skinner and Sly, single file getting the vote with a tiny team. Like a parade of perverted proctologists perched partially prostrate perving at posteriors, 5 escaped east of town, Principal Skinner playing rear gunner (gunna have a go at the front some day). 7 k's east to Boundary and 10 k's south to River, 4 shared the chore of the chill as light slowly filled the sky, an eye on speed to conform when it was my turn at the frosty front.
29/8 By a Hare's breadth.
The seasons 27th day of one or below was wearing my resolve thin, NOW is the winter of our discontent! (there was just 6 days of 1 or below last year) Cate, BamBam, Ralphy, Tina and Trav's camaraderie and commitment mustered enough numbers to (hopefully) hold off the Hares (starting 5 minutes behind) at Tuesdays' grid, BamBam taking the first shift thanks to Foss's foot fumble leaving the carpark. It was a nice change to get this old engine up to speed in a tow before the duty of driving, the cold biting the legs and griping the lungs emerging from BamBam's draft, but progress was pleasingly pacy on my turn to Orrvale Rd. Five drafts to follow restored some wattage, great to have Trav aboard (his comeback to the Hares hampered by holidays) as all did their bit toward Boundary Rd, my second shift working the last leg of Channel Rd. There was no scenery spotting today, all focus on the wheel ahead with just a peek back occasionally as is compulsory in the caboose. Consistent cranking kept wheels humming along Boundary and River roads, BamBam handing me shift #3 from the dip to the bridge. Ralphy's come out of hibernation with vim and velocity, Tina's turning on the tempo and Trav's tearing into long turns. Too inquisitive, I glanced back in Mitchell Rd to see Hare's headlights some distance behind, a bit of snuff for our speed as I took the drivers seat from Archer to the highway. A 'roo at Roubaix caused a calm till it had decided which course to bound, back on the gas, Trav took us to Arcadia Downs and BamBam cranked into Conrod. (of course, I get the turn of torment to the finish line) With Hares homing in, Cate motivated my motion out of the dip into the mid 40's up to the 250 mark, Trav sealing our victory with a sprint to the line, Rocket suddenly appearing in 5th place made it a close one.
30/8 Safety (and slumber) in numbers.
Bo & Merida-not-AvantiJohn got into Mitchell Rd mischief picking up the pace into the 40's. Troy had joined but Rocket settled the speed in Central Kialla winning votes from the spent majority. Two long lines stretched out ahead in River Rd, I'd not quite reached the back when called over (several sprinters now sitting out the circuit, saving speed for Thursdays thrash?) Kel and Cate dialled up the speed to the Broken bridges, the blur of Coggo, Carl, Tina and Sly slogging south on a short train of pain. I'd finished another turn as the crew cornered west onto Channel Rd, I might get lucky and avoid the chore of the ChaCha at the front today. Some turns rolled quickly, others went long, but I sat back a few places with Temple to let the serious contenders crank. I'd rejoined the rotations on the swing left at Kinder corner (couldn't see Nev rejoining on the MTB) but at a rapid rate behind Boof, enough now driving toward the 50's to keep me from the front. Unable to sprint resist, Boof and Troy turned up the turbo at Prentice Rd to stretch all out behind, the next kilometer to the truck route spent regrouping for a chatty roll back to town.
31/8 Hare style
There was a pause at Thursday's grid waiting for Wozz (don't you just hate discovering a puncture right on saddle-up time!) kicking off conversation on readying for a ride. Wozza's arrival soon set the wheels turning, Troy, Boof, CatCol, Rocket, Bruce, Cate , Merida-not-AvantiJohn, Tina and PistolPete carving through the Channel Rd chill (zero), two rows taking turns while Cate, Tina and CatCol deliberated driving. Over Orrvale Rd Cate tried a turn, velocity's reality hitting hard emerging from the draft. Sandwiched between Merida-not-AvantiJohn and Wozza, I cranked forward to contribute (the effort you recall and reality, often worlds apart). It was cruelty to the Kinder and massacre to McFadyen, Christmas coming in the tow from Wozz as he and Pistol powered to the cypress trees. I was getting my head around the hurt as Rocket, Bruce, Troy and Boof slogged out their smooth style seamlessly, seemingly unstoppable. Another turn beckoned as we belted to the Broken bridges, millimeters from my mental maximum (far from the physical frontier, frustratingly the head handbrakes!) I called a shorter shift to Wozz at One Tree Dam, no way I could sustain this speed at the pointy end, so slipped back to focus on recovery and keeping the caboose in contact. Like a well oiled machine, Wozz, Bruce, Troy, Pistol, Rocket, Boof and Merida-not-AvantiJohn propelled us west on River, Indian file called at the kennels as chains dropped to a smaller cog. Over the bridge Boof bailed out of the turns, he could have the gatekeeper job while I tried to keep in touch on the corners. Full steam along Mitchell and a clean cross of the highway, we ripped into Raftery where Bruce retired at Roubaix. Still the drivers kept throwing themselves to the sacrifice of speed, still the hangers-on found that extra to keep up as the finish drew near. Rocket then Wozza crucified themselves in Conrod, the podium places blurring as I got to the last dip, all craving the oxygen refill to Raftery's skinny bridge, celebrating a 39.5 average (a fair flog at zero)
1/9 Spring ain't sprung
Temperature (or the lack of it) almost anchored me Friday, Spring was on us and so was the chill (minus 1), but camaraderie and curiosity enticed me to the grid, who'd front in the frost? Boof, Cate, Merida-not-AvantiJohn, Tum, Shorty, Pelly, SuperMario, Kenworth, Bruce, Kel, Trav, The Godfather, Bo, Troy, Nev and CatCol proved it's not temperature but tempo that attests the attendance. 6 bells started the train rolling south, passing Craig Lotsalumens on our way to Mitchell and reeling in a riding rarity, Chops, enmerging from a long hibernation. Bruce belted the Central Kialla crater (the ever enlarging pot-hole) and won himself a puncture as we turned into River Rd, the pitstop pause swiftly socialising the ride (warmed by that feeling of TGIF). SuperMario savoured the slow restart but the tempo soon wound up, that freeze through the bones spurring on a workout to warm up, but only multiplied the chill factor proportional to pace. Nev continues to monster the MTB (heaven forbid when he's back on the road bike!), 3 Cats cranked clockwise but it was a Goatless Friday - this winter culling the numbers of many bunches more so than previous years. My second shift came up in Boundary Rd, over the Broken bridges and onward to Channel Rd, the third beside Boof to the Kinder. Tum was pickled by the promotion toward the front as the sprint wound up, taking refuge in the down line while I was vacuumed along in the draft of the fast fellas pursuing a podium for the ChaCha. Tormented faces soon turned elated by the Orrvale school, a lap survived and a weekend nigh put us all in a happy place, brief sociology on the spin home hoping that spring would end the winter woes.
Week 35 238 km YTD 8,747 km
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