Post #670
Legs going to jelly when rising from the lunchtime table told me the 6am Saturday spin was a quick one. The usual culprits were to blame ; GiantAndy, Gazza, Rocket and Wozza, all conveniently line astern as if to inflict maximum impact on those of more humble horsepower (like me!). Is it luck that groups all this wattage together (to intimidate the "have not's") or is it to help their h.t.f.u. factor? (left to our own devices, we'd probably be sliding down that slippery slope of softness wouldn't we?) Bruce, Grumpy, Emil, Greg, PistolPete, Boof, Bo and Nev were no slouches either, assembling at Sanctuary's roundabout so Troy, the 5ft Ninja, Lili and I were almost the rank outsiders (funny, we were all line astern too!)
PistolPete (doesn't surprise you does it?) and Wozza started the squad south with 37's and 8's on the menu and a weak westerly (barely a breeze) got Gazza excited in Mitchell Rd to make 40's de rigueur. I reckon Troy and Lili were wondering if this Saturday stuff was a good idea, but they were brave enough to join the advance (I felt duty bound to keep an eye on the new recruits so joined the line too) Pace seemed to have settled in the high 30's on River Rd and plenty of chat in the ranks suggested most had found some comfort with the standard of speed.
This is a tolerant team so I was sure a slightly slower velocity when the "have not's" got to the front wouldn't cause too much distress. (Snoring maybe?) Troy was promoted to the front in Coach Rd and kept the tempo tame for Lili who was braving the bike after 3 weeks recovery from Around the Bay (if the horse throws you Lili, get straight back on!) The air of determination to her drive lasted till reality struck a few hundred meters later, rolling across before the bridges in oxygen overload mode, so I rolled straight over to donate a draft. Emil shared my thoughts of a tap to the highway in sympathy for Lili's laboring, though 1400 meters later I was starting to suffer too! Lots of liquid spilt from transported fruit had coated Boundary Rd to give a sticky-tape symphony under 32 wheels - though nowhere near the noise from The Godfather (noted by his absence again).
The long lamented warmth of Spring sunshine was nearly felt for the eastern effort to the Toaster and with that breeze fading to nothing, the big guns would most likely provide some heat for the western work toward breakfast. I rejoined the advance again, although a little sceptical of when and where duty might call. There's that fine line to tread between effort and explosion - sitting in the slipstream does you no favors and making a contribution gives you some sense of worth, but blowing a gasket at the pointy end of the pack is something to avoid, so survival won the day when 40's stretched the tenacity on the last leg of Ford Rd as Wanganui Rd's labor loomed large.
As focus fixed on Cemetery hill and what watts were wanted beyond Canterbury's roundabout, Troy delivered the news of Lili's o.t.a. so I needed little encouragement to back off the gas to assist; LiamM had opted for sleep over the role of chaperone (and my legs were hating me anyway!) A little chivalry goes a long way doesn't it? So I did get a long drive at the front anyway, albeit slower than what my previous fear imagined it. Speed was set at sustainable to the Butter Factory. Horizontal hiccups, high paid jobs and education expectations kept bike babble at bay over breakfast.
7/11 Monday Mass.
PistolPete and Emil then Kreeky and Gazza had paired at the front but a long thin left line had strung out behind on the way to the truck route. Not many were ready to front for duty on a Monday. (Maybe the thought of pairing with Gazza at the business end was a scary one?) I eventually plucked up the testicular tenacity to join the advance line when it was still empty headed to Mitchell Rd, maybe the southeast breeze would actually help me keep up when it was my turn to front with the young lad? I'd ignored the 37's and 8's setting the precedence on pace 'cause I'd be setting my speed rather than busting a boiler to keep up with anyone else's.
Emil finished his shift on the north turn to Central Kialla so the 2 k stretch of tarmac to River Rd lay in wait for me. Gazza was most gracious keeping to 36's. It was reassuring to hear Tina's voice behind (she'd braved the advance too) so I was counting on part two of my duty being a little easier on this old engine. I survived part one with Gazz without cardiac complications but Tina wasn't going so easy on me in River Rd ; I had to wait till 300 metres from the bridge for some sort of respite.
I'd almost got a breath or two back when Bruce and Lenny were asked to captain to the dip, so recovery had to be put on the back burner for a while. (No rest for the righteous is there!) A few sentences became possible reaching the quarter horse stud and with plenty still to serve their style of suffering at the front, it seemed likely my 4 k's worth would be the sole sacrifice today. Jen and Kel towed us to rooster corner. A trimmer Trav hadn't made a big noise about the new Scott Foil under him and surprisingly, The Godfather wasn't so vocal on his return from a few days of being under the weather, though I reckoned that wouldn't last long! Not until reaching the fig farm did I realise that Gazza was on the missing list ; he'd u-turned at River Rd's end to head homeward with a niggle in the knee (I doubt from keeping pace with me!) My neglected chain was lamenting the lack of lube (or was it rusty old joints protesting the pace?)
8/11 Syncronised squirrels.
The slightly slower squirrel standard of speed is my savior at times ; the feeling of fighting a losing battle is a regular one (particularly by the sixth spin of the week) so Tuesday's and Thursday's is therapy so there's something left for the weekend. The effort wasn't so easy into an east northeaster on Channel Rd, so some sort of respite was planned for the return trip. Pace to the truck route was the usual test set by Emil but I wasn't going to attempt 37's into a headwind ; 35's was enough for me (and I had money on Tina, Jen, Wendy, Lili, Kim and the Ninja thinking likewise) A bright orange sky lit Tina's way to the Kinder and from there, Jen kept 35's going to the cypress trees. I'm sure Emil would aim higher but he was outnumbered on the velocity vote.
Wendy has slipped quickly into the Squirrel standards and delivered us to Beckhams bend where Lili took over the towing duties to the S bend. Kim was the day's dark horse to ply her pace to Coach Rd, but not content to end it there, pushed on to the highway. The Ninja had avoided the east northeaster but did a long drive on Boundary to make up for it. Emil made his second shift from Old to New Dookie Rd but the blast to 40 for the last 400 metres might have created the cusses from behind.
I had the role of reaching Lemnos-Cosgrove Rd and felt that I'd done Tina a favor towing her to a tailwind turn, but it certainly felt like a northwester at the nose pointing at Lemnos. Understandably, Tina and Jen shared the load, syncronising the shifts smoothly. Wendy proved her worth with a long shift on Ford Rd to Grahamvale so Lili had the luck of the shorter drive to Verney, leaving Kim to set us south toward Balaclava Rd. With elbows firmly fixed and a focus on driving long, her tempo kept the line of eight silent to Pine Rd when....you guessed it!, Emil launched a coup for the captaincy. Naturally, his trophy at Balaclava Rd was a red light.
9/11 Well, sort of social.
It was worth spending the extra energy entering Archer Rd to sprint for the slipstream of Wozza, Rocket and Boof, the free tow to the grid reserved a few watts for later! Heaps of headlights lit Sanctuary's roundabout, a perfect 14 degrees with a hint of a southeasterly making ideal conditions for Wednesday's social spin. It even attracted BamBam out of obscurity to get aboard. Lance was a surprise starter too, and with Bruce, Grumpy, Greg, Kreeky, Kel, The Godfather, the 5ft Ninja, Tina and Troy making up two long lines, PistolPete and Emil towed us to Mitchell Rd.
Social speed had turned to swift for some reason ; it may have been Emil's exuberance or does a big attendance mean a bigger tempo? Those expecting a quieter pace were quick to tuck into a draft, The Godfather (late arrival) keen to muscle in on PistolPete's wheel. Plenty had favored the left line for a later shift but those blessed with watts (you know who they are!) had no issue to join the advance.
Oscar joined the mob in Mitchell Rd and that breeze was subtle at the right shoulder when I was promoted to the right line (though it wasn't a worry; my turn looked likely to be due in Coach Rd where the breeze could make my weak watts look awesome!) Troy, BamBam and Lance spent short shifts in the driver's seat on River Rd to survive the circuit and the Ninja teamed with Kel aiming at the Broken bridges, though the 5ft one made part two of her shift shorter than her headstem. So with Tina as team-mate, I headed to the highway, but we were sticking to Wednesday's social standards. A passing truck was perfect timing for Tina to be drafted the last 200 metres.
Boof and The Godfather were put on duty in Boundary Rd and velocity built back up again toward Old Dookie (by the banter at the front, The Godfather was being put to the tempo test) Wozza turned up the heat when he teamed with The Godfather on Old Dookie and the big fella did well to survive the speed (but don't tell him, I'm not sure they make XXXL helmets!) Social speed was ignored toward Central Ave (though bits weren't breaking off the back of the bunch) and the habit of a hurry to SPC lay in wait ahead (making Grumpy grumpier), suitably served with speed by Rocket.
10/11 Northeaster nightmares.
Perfect conditions one day, something to grizzle about the next! Wednesday was a bit too good to be true ; mild with barely a breeze is as rare as rocking horse manure! Spring winds had arrived Thursday and the northeaster (17-24 km/h) awoke a few memories of Summer battles ahead. Why should we get it easy? (Martyrdom needs the negatives to garnish the suffering doesn't it?) The wind made the commute to the shop a swift one but Tina, Emil, Wendy, Lili, Jen and the 5ft one would all get to grumble about the effort needed to reach Lemnos-Cosgrove Rd before the bliss of a boost at the backside back to the Butter Factory. It was like the cruelty of a climb before the delight of a downhill for us flat-landers. (Better that the other way around in my books!)
Consistency is a comfort for many and Emil stuck to the protocols of first shift to the truck route, though 37's with the wind at the left shoulder wasn't so comfortable for me. Even cutting a couple of k's off wore down my watts on the Doyles to Orrvale leg so I was delighted to hand the workload to Tina. A scenic sky was a great distraction while I regained some sort of composure in the caboose. Ingesting some of the swarm of insects wasn't the tastiest way to get protein into the diet. Pace to the cypress trees was kept keen by Wendy where Lili became fifth to work into the wind, somewhat overdressed for the occasion.
(LiamM again had preferred bed to the bike - won't he be burning up on re-entry to riding!) Jen picked up the pace from the S bend but dislodged Lili from the rear (it's so easy to burn those remaining few watts to catch the tail when speed spikes on the next shift) but we're not in the business of leaving those labored behind - a short time off the gas had us as a group again. All were ready to stay aboard for the Ninja's blast toward Boundary Rd and with a considered (mid-field) build of pace across the highway, seven were line astern toward the bridge. Emil's energy is a bonus for the bunch taking on the wind to New Dookie Rd though I wish I could download some of it to hang on at second wheel. (With a bit more ballast he'd be a decent draft!) A blast of wind from a passing truck stirred up the steering but my mission was holding the wheel to keep the line intact. Facing the wind from New Dookie to Lemnos-Cosgrove Rd wasn't easy though I should be grateful the shift was a short one.
A few trees beyond the disused railway line gave a little shelter as our paths crossed with the southbound Cobbles. Tina did get a turn with a tailwind today, sharing the joy of the assisted passage to Lemnos with Wendy. (Does the ego good to find 40's on the Garmin without bursting a boiler) The standard scenario of Emil driving the southern shift to Balaclava seemed to be set in stone ; Lili and Jen shared Ford Rd's first 3 k's and the Ninja lit the afterburners to Verney (it's ok short stuff, we were on for the last 400 metres!) so Emil kept up the consistency of him heading the way to Balaclava's traffic lights (red, of course)
11/11 The old engine refused to start Friday morning (that flogging a dead horse syndrome) so I softened and slept-in.
This week 278km
YTD 11,290km
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