Week 42 : Here comes the hurt!

Post 417

14/10. A pliant peloton.

I was feeling just a bit Gumby in the legs after Friday's ton, though the "feels like 4 degrees" numbed the niggles en route to the Saturday spin.  Jase, TatPaul, TatMat, Lenny, Nick, Boof, Cate, AvantiAndy, Lucy, Shorty, Rocket, The Godfather, Kel, PistolPete, Big Len, Wozza, Bo, Jen, TrekTrev, WhisperingJack, Trav, BassoDan, Liam, Bruce, Travis, AvantiTrev, OldAvanti-not-NewAvanti-not-MeridaJohn, SuperMario, HBK and KillkennyPaul populated the peloton, 5 years this Saturday ritual has been going on and look who's come and gone!  The bunch was as pliant as toffee rounding bends and crossing intersections, the front end winding up the knots as the back end were still under brakes.

Needing a blast at 45 km/h to catch the tail as we worked east on River Rd, it soon settled (almost) into the limited Saturday speed, dependent on the pairings at the pointy end (that mischievous meter rises and falls as some become over excited in the drivers seat). TrackStan appeared from the west and jumped aboard, TatMat was keeping a birthday under wraps, Boof back from a Thai escape, BassoDan (rare to Saturdays but regular solos) is tempo tuned, TrekTrev emerging from obscurity (and paying a pace price) and The Godfather musing musical memories.  I finally got to the front beyond the Pub with Travis then TatPaul, pegging the pace and calming the corner into Old Dookie Rd to prevent snapping off the caboose.  Another scenic sunrise (oft overlooked with an eye on the wheel ahead) to add to the blessings, though the parfumerie du pork palace swung the scales somewhat.  Pussycats rounded Emu corner as we rattled over the rail line, then we worked west back to breakfast, motivated by aggravated appetites.  Snap, crackle and pop went the gravel over Ford Rd's repairs, another stonechip as a Saturday souvenir. 

A clear cross of Numurkah Rd was a rare occurrence, the speed coming to a boil on the drive to DECA.  It's more than circumstance when Rocket, PistolPete, Wozza, Boof and Liam line up toward the pointy end (here comes the hurt!), Rocket driving on and on as the hopefuls were dragged in his draft.

The elbow eventually signed off Rocket's shift, Wozz the next to be sacrificed to the speed gods.  Young Liam made it look easy drawing away as Bo attempted to reach the front, up and over Wanganui hill we went a huffin' and a puffin', but there was no rest along the Boulevard with a bolt to breakfast.

A determined drive on "the last hurrah" incited me to hurry, but traffic compressed the pack to make the Lemontree seats a battle. Ghost signage, the insidious scourge of mental illness and mortgage stress made the racket on a long Lemontree table.








16/10  Mono Monday.
The wrong rendevous at 5:30 altered my course, no hope of catching Troy, Wozza, Pistol, Kel, Bo and Trav so I set sail on the Archer, Mitchell, River, Boundary and New Dookie course for some solo therapy (wrestling with the inner demons) Attempting to sustain some spin (78 rpm), it was one of those days where the wind was against me, yet the trees remained frustratingly static.

I'd convinced myself the north leg of Central Kialla was easier, then tuned out to River Rd's 6k length, at least there was a dawn to distract from the distress (worth a brief halt to snap)
A few bikes were working westward to justify a ride at this silly hour, the push north finding two's and three's southbound.  New Dookie was the road less traveled and rewarded the rump with a steadily smoother surface to home, heaven.

17/10 Two teams tempo.
The planets had aligned to bring almost perfect weather to Tuesdays thrash therapy, 10 degrees and a light northeaster just perfect for pace.  Hamish, Pelly, BamBam, Cate, Softa and KillkennyPaul gathered at the grid, Hares already assembling as 5:45 tolled.  Off on our eastward effort, Hamish took the drivers seat half way through my usual shift, no argument with that manoeuvre!  Seven swapped the suffering toward Boundary Rd, Nath making it eight, joining at the Kinder (a Murcielago among the Mahindra's)  The loose gravel at Sellmans felt like a handbrake, happy to reach Boundary Rd upright but nitrous was needed to catch Hamish's drive to the bridges.  KillkennyPaul is pedaling possessed, Softa learning the fine art of pace (leaving enough jellybeans in the jar to catch the tail and not go OTA)  Nath ripped into River Rd and almost broke the bunch but it soon settled to a smooth speed.  I was put to work at Laws Drive when Softa swung off the sweaty end of the train, finding my mojo atop the 14 cog to drive to River's end (great to find that headspace of pace, legs and lungs complying, Cosmics crooning, the goal reachable and the gasps coming from behind and not within).  Hamish hurtled down the 2k leg of Central Kialla, Cate monstered Mitchell's opening k and BamBam bolted toward Archer.  I could see Pelly's distinctive gait grinding along in the drivers seat, Nath taking the reigns just as the Hares had hunted us down and powered past.   The extra effort to catch the draft was dug from the depths, but the bolt with a clear cross of the highway snapped the trains' chain dislodging 4 from the rear.  I could nearly reach the Hares tail but Softa, Hamish and Cate were 5 meters in arrears, so I eased back to work with the wounded as Nath, Pelly, BamBam and KillkennyPaul tucked into the tow of the Hares.   Keeping our previous pace, despite the lament from the legs, we worked to Conrod straight, the Hares unhitching BamBam and KillkennyPaul as they hurtled to the horizon, us last four finishing content, puffed but chuffed with a 38.2 average.

18/10  A packed peloton.
Turn on the good weather, slap a speed limit on the bunch and the whole town turns up to ride! The Couldabeens carpark crammed with AvantiTrev, Lucy, Kenworth, Lenny, PistolPete, Sean, GTCraig, PaulVanP, Robbo, Nath, Cate, Mel, BeerMat, Shorty, SuperMario, Jen, AvantiAndy, Nick, Nev, Kev, CatCol, Boof, ScottMatt, Goose, TrekTrev and Hamish, ready and raring for Wednesday's roll of relaxation.  Nev and I captained the crew to Sanctuary's roundabout, and arriving at the truck route, the early crew of Kel, Pelly, Jed, BBgun, Car, BamBam, Ralphy, Trav, Troy, Bo and Rocket  inflated the pack to Ben Hur proportions.  (special commendation to correspondent Kel for assistance in the roll call recall)

Robbo, GTCraig, PaulVanP and Nath were on an MTB recovery roll, BeerMat suddenly in intensive training (forthcoming Tour de Pub) Kev accepting a long standing invite, Goose, TrekTrev, Nick and SuperMario conditioning to the comeback trail, Lenny keeping a 50th under wraps, Sean new to the crew and Troy and Jed were concreted to the caboose.  Lapping up a tail breeze, the Goat pain train pumped into River Rd just as we finished it.
Quick rolls in Channel Rd moved me toward the front, swinging into Central Ave it was drive time to the Kinder, surprised AvantiTrev came up to pair.  Kenworth rolled across soon after to save AvantiTrev the tempo torment, but Pelly cut loose to set the sprint smokin' early.  Drawing alongside me approaching Prentice Rd, CatCol was on a hot tin roof with sprintention, launching his attack early, but with Boof poised to pounce behind.  Several were wilting ahead but with such a packed peloton it was best to hold the line and station for everyone's safety.  Boof was clear and bolted to victory, the calm and conversation commencing for the crank back to town.

19/10  Acceler-eight

A new Dura-Ace 9000 groupset was bestowed on the Baum for it's 2nd birthday, ye olde set judged to have had a good innings with 136,000 km clocked.  Tropical temperatures (20) and a short window of hope on a spotty radar energised and enlisted BamBam, Ralphy, Cate, Lenny, Lucy, KillkennyPaul and Softa to the carpark for the 5:45 flog fest.  Shorter turns made sense with a NNE'er to punish our progress, a pleasure to have BamBam shoulder the first shift, halving my usual workload to the truck route.  New carbon pedals and cleats felt foreign, with the slightest change to foot position I felt like a knock-kneed pidgeon-toed flamingo running over hot coals!  Cate and KillkennyPaul cranked courageously to Orrvale Rd where Lenny assumed the captains position, but velocity variations wrecked those at the rear.  Lucy smoothed the speed at the cypress trees and Softa ploughed on to the S bend, previous explosion experience telling him to relinquish the reigns before ruination. Ralphy towed us to Boundary Rd for the tail wind treat, BamBam giving me the elbow at One Tree Dam for my go to River Rd.   Our energy echeloned in River Rd and was tested by Lenny's fluctuations but it eventually evened to keep the train together.  My third thrash at the rushin' front came in Mitchell Rd (work to do after the bludge in BamBam's draft) and handed the helm to KillkennyPaul at Dave's Dip hoping for some recovery before Raftery's toil.  Cate called a quick cross of the highway, a hurry-up with Hare headlights hunting us from behind.   Lenny smoothed the velocity to Galbraiths Gate, an urgency overcoming us with Conrod straight and the Hares so near.  I'd braced to do another turn in Arcadia Downs, made it to Conrod's first dip but my elbow couldn't encourage KillkennyPaul to deliver any more watts.  The head wind soon taxed Lenny when he took the lead, Ralphy stepping up to keep the pace percolating and get us to the finish line for a 38.7 average, just ahead of the Hares.

20/10. Windustrious weather.
The head wind neurosis hit hard Friday morning, silly me had arrived early and scored the first shift again, straight into a 25 km/h south southwester!  Thankfully, Hamish, Liam, Kenworth, Travis, Mel, Chops, Cate, TrekTrev, AvantiTrev, Nick, Boof and Jen rolled through for shorter turns to spread the load.

Earlybirds Bruce, Kel, BamBam, Wozza, Rocket, PistolPete, ScottMatt and Bo arrived as we reached Mitchell Rd, the pressure now off with the wind mostly favoring the rest of the lap.  Chops is on the comeback trail, Liam celebrating his 18th and ScottMatt off the back of a windy 'round the bay.  River Rd showed little damage of Thursday's explosions (multiple OTA's from the Hares)  though some were wincing at landmarks that flooded back the memories.  The Goats train of pain had turned tame, missing a few usual offenders, the olive branch had been extended to the B team aboard.  AvantiTrev broke his own speed limit in Boundary Rd's tail wind, Mel hard to match as I attempted to pair at the front from the Broken bridges.  Turning into Channel Rd pegged the pace, the southwester a slap in the face for the ego, still, I got my turn done and looked forward to a tow home.

Alas, Friday's now habitual caboose cramming meant half the bunch were sitting on, I was again being promoted forward at an alarming rate.  PistolPete had drawn the short ChaCha straw as the bunch barreled into Hopeful corner, the pack turning thin as Pistol's tank emptied nearing Prentice Rd. (Boof in prime position to podium)  A chin wag on the roll home was made exciting by a close encounter with a car door flung open by a motorist (hasn't read his eyelid instruction manual)



The week's end was crowned with the official opening of AvantiTrev's (hereafter dubbed "MyRideTrev") new shop, old and new bike faces attending in sumptuous surrounds, several Couldabeens preparing for an intense hydration therapy session after.  (read the aftermath next post!)

Week 42      248 km              YTD 10,915 km