Week47: Servants for the sprinters

Post 372

19/11

There's nothing like the warm welcome of a weekend and the shared social stimulus of a Saturday lap. TatPaul, BassoDan and Cougar had berthed at the carpark, gridphobia evident again as Boof, Cate, AvantiMat, Rocket, Bruce, Kel, Hollywood, Troy, SuperMario, Tommygun, Shorty, Bo, AvantiAndy, Jen, AvantiTrev, Temple, The Godfather, Tum, Nev and even BigMat fronted.  TatPaul and I were left to lead leg one as six bells tolled, Cate braved leg two, and like mischievous schoolboys, the Godfather and Bo created havoc with the velocity as we worked east.  KillkennyPaul and Softa joined the long line at the Pine Lodge pub, the once enforced 35 limit is a distant memory but the carpark still fills each week.  (BigMats rare appearance might just be related to next weeks Tour de Pub?) Several had doubts of hanging on as the tempo touched the fourties, the rubber band effect strong at intersections with a long line of reactions. 'Round the Toaster and up to the church, the rear order shuffled as several sought shelter in preparation for the drive west.  The southwester spread the bunch across Lemnos-Cosgrove Rd, over the main eastern channel to see Trudy driving a copious Cat pack cranking east.  Popgun appeared at the soup tin and took up residence in the caboose, Bo and the Godfather again turning up the tempo.  Cate dropped a chain at the halt for Numurkah Rd, and with the bunch driving into the distance and Jen close to expiry, I hung back to gather them, KillkennyPaul and BassoDan (the sprint cast-offs) to work Wanganui.  BigMat had pitted with a puncture in RuddRd, the bunch now broken into bunchettes, Lemontree bound. Roadside rubbish, race tactics and ride variety kept the jaws flapping between coffee and breakfast.
 

20/11
The sanctity of Sunday's usual day off was broken for the Goats early Christmas ride, a casual muster at Friars of Spartacus, Cindy, Brendy, Hommy, AvantiAndy, AvantiLeigh, Sandy, Jen, Dipper, Heady, Tina, Phil, Belly, Coggo and HG. It was a calm start on a route to Murchison via Tatura and Rushworth,  PinarelloMat, Snow, Jen, Lee and PrincipalSkinner forming a B team direct to Murch.  A pause at Mooroopna as Tina dealt with diabetic dilemmas, then a southwest idle (98bpm) as the turns slowly rolled in the rare warmth of Springs' late arrival. Finally at the bunch front as we exited Tatura, I'd scored the pairing with Hommy (a house ahead), but kept steady in the standards of low 30's rather than be drawn into his agenda.  Beside Jen was a different world, smooth, level and perfectly poised as the Basin drew into view. An incline or two rippled an itch through the Goat guns, a hillness lifting the tempo and relegating several to the caboose.  I'd reached the front again as Hommy hammered the rise from the Basin's western channel bridge, so all stops out to make him work for his lunch. The pack had Indian filed the rise, Coggo's steady draft relieving me of driving duty as we dodged the massive tarmac blisters of recent rains. Reprieve reaching Rushworth's edge, most lured to the bakery's carbs and calories to compensate the climbs, I'd abstained (with difficulty) in vigilance to the new diet, and to keep space for a gastronomic lunch.  Refuelled and remounted, it was east to Murchison, Heady and Cindy's breakaway soon shut down to resume a single filed battle against wind and traffic.

It's been many moons since feeling a heat nearing 30, H2O consumption and sweat on the brow well up from the woes of winter.  Turns were about as organised as an immigration policy, shared in sorts by AvantiLeigh, Dipper, Coggo, Hommy, Belly and I, almost Pain Train days revisited in the fourties on the billiard table surface of the last 8 k's.  The mass meandered into Murchison and set a course for Longleat wines, Heady couldn't help himself with a sprint to the gate. A luxurious lunch of tapas, garlic prawns, oysters, lobster bisque, mussels, pasta marinara and pavlova, washed down with Longleats' lushious liquids topped off a ripper ride, Goats prose and presentations adding the laughs. 

21/11

William Cowper called it the very spice of life, a circuit change Monday put variety into the routine.  Raftery Rd commenced a reverse Cat lap with Cate, a wind assisted passage south and a distracting dawn dragging thoughts away from the north and east work ahead.

All was well with the world till the turn into Mitchell Rd, the effort into the ENE'r (and Cate's Sunday attack on Harry's, Kelvins' and Polly's) wearing at the wattage.  Wiz and Minno worked south at Central Kialla,  Sosso solo at 'wait for David', then three long lines of stretched bunches in River Rd blasted merrily west with the wind up their seat posts while we muscled the mistrale, savouring the odd shelter of a few rows of trees.   A short Goat peace train of four then an unidentified couple were the last signs of clockwise life in Boundary Rd.  Finally relishing the tailwind homeward on Old Dookie Rd, a Dobsons estate sprint wrung the last watts out.

22/11

A verandah pitter-patter finishing the 5:15 breakfast rethought a Tuesday ride, deferring was regretted till a 6:15 downpour approved the decision. (Damp didn't defer Wozz and ChrisA scorching a lap)

24/11

Almost suffering withdrawal spasms by Thursday, wet weather finally went OTA but a "feels like" 4 degrees dragged the winter base layer out of retirement.  It was nearly nirvana aboard the Baum again, the well worn golf course loop spent reacquainting the ride routine.  A southwester massaged the ego out to emu corner but swung WSW to hammer the heartrate (175) from the Toaster to town (12k), personal progress pleasing but.  Belly, Coggo, Tum, Sandy, AvantiAndy, Snow, Jen, Tina, Hommy, PrincipalSkinner, HG, Brendy and JB were the Goats gathered, Temple and HBK a Couldabeens contingent in cross-bunch diplomacy (in light of the scarcity of Thursday turtles).   It was almost a holiday tucked into the bunch draft but I was soon blessed by a proper half biking from HBK (thinks.......the clash of the Titans if he and Hommy pair!)  Velocity varied depending on who was in the drivers seat, chat meant HG, silence meant Coggo.  Sunday's lunch got the nod though I suspect HG and Hommy were suffering the effects of excess.  River Rd's end spelt my exit, the usual short cut home avoiding pot holes and a cash filled purse speed bump (honourably handed-in but not a peep from the owner)

25/11

A golf course prologue (old habits die hard) was an attempt to warm up the old engine, a spin in the 80's loosening legs.  Down the main drag into a southerly, a cute collection of Car+Mel and Cate corralled to commute south.  Gripped by gridphobia, the early carpark arrivals sat short of the line **, the lead role left to the same old drivers^ yet again.  Trav, Pistol, Rocket, Bruce, Nev, Chops, Boof, Nick, WhisperingJack, Shorty, Troy, Grumpy, Pelly, BamBam, AvantiTrev, Cougar, Jen, Kenworth and Weapon (by the skin of her pearly whites) launched at 6, frustration (**) fuelling my 3k foray at the front, half the first leg kindly paired by Boof (^), driven to the delicious drone of Weapons' Zipp's behind.  Old Foss faired well reaching Sanctuary roundabout still firing on all cylinders, thinking the new dietary direction (and several kg's less ballast) is delivering dividends.  There was a mixed bag on my demotion down the left line, Trav's pornstar mo, Grumpy on pot-hole watch, Bruce rueing Nev's nasal annointment, Pistol's return from holidays (performance unhindered), the ladies line astern an inspiration, Kenworth keen-as for tomorrow's Tour de Trough and Cougars observations on ride technique beggars self analysis.  Six sizzled southbound on the Goat pain train as we plied north in Boundary Rd, Cate curiously curtailed in our caboose.  There was a smooth cruise along Channel Rd, the rotations rolling rapidly by the cypress trees.  Beside Shorty at the front headed toward the Kinder made he and I the ChaCha chumps, servants for the sprinters delighting in the draft to Prentice Rd.  Lucky to hold Boof's wheel kept me near the pointy end, a bit squeezy in the final metres with an oncoming car limiting the road space. An effervescent epilogue with Weapon and selfies with the quick chicks concluded week 47 on a perfect positive.

Week 47.     263km.         YTD 14,277km.  

Week 46 : Gridphobia and an antidote for Alzheimer's

Post 371

12/11

Like 125psi and a smooth stretch of tarmac, good health is only valued when it goes missing.  Robbed of riding by flu, the Saturday antidote was cafeine with the crew (Temple, Boof, AvantiTrev, The Godfather, Mel, Cate, TatPaul, Cougar, Popgun and BassoDan).  A bonus appearance by Weapon, Jase, AvantiAndy and Jen (also in civilian mode) opened the chat on peaks, going OTA and motivational company.

14/11

A brisk southwester pushed a long grey blanket of cloud toward Yabba on Monday, but it was great to be back aboard the Baum after such a long absence (48hrs). The wind uploaded a carbon chorus to tune Cate and I toward Pine Lodge church, but a tail wind out and a head wind back was akin to serving brûlée before Brussel sprouts.  With the head into the groove of the grind west the task wasn't so bad, the odd clump of trees allowing a few moments of recovery. The fading flu still had a grip on my lungs and hijacked the heartrate, the wind a little angrier in Channel Rd but the bait of the ChaCha pulled out the stops to put a peak in the graph.

15/11

A calm and contemplative cruise to the Turtle faction on Tuesday, scenic sunrise to the left and super moon to the right as WhisperingJack, Nick, Pelly, Cougar, Jase (and an unusual appearance of MrMagnet) fronted the carpark.  WhisperingJack found reverse gear quickly, ushering me to the next shift at the pointy end before we'd even entered Channel Rd.  MrMagnet's turn at the front had lasted just 50 metres from the Kensington roundabout, so I turned up the heater to set a single file trajectory.  Seven had stretched out by leg two, so settled into a mid 30's tempo, no challenge to my position till Pelly took the helm at the Kinder.  Jase, Nick and WhisperingJack had a crack to the S bends, Mr Magnet close to haemorrhage by this point. Jase drove a strong leg to River Rd, full steam cornering west snapped off the magnetic hitch-hiker.  Carry on was the call, but it was down to Pelly, Jase and I to cart the carriages as daylight lit our course to Kialla Central.  Long turns were the order of the day, Cougar uncoupled as we ascended Dave's dip but an early ease for the highway glued the line back together. Careful on the gas into Raftery Rd I got the boiler up to steam by Galbraiths gate, two bikes ahead inspiring Pelly and Jase to crank us into the fourties.  Rising from Conrod's dip we flung a sledge or three passing KillkennyPaul and Softa (reacquainting themselves with reality aboard two wheels).  Pelly pounced to pinch podium position, all savouring a social suburban spin swept by the southerly homeward.

16/11

Grid phobia retreats some from an early shift at the pointy end, concrete drove me to jump in at the deep end for first turn Wednesday.  Wozz drew alongside at the town's limit, my mental mistake was squinting to the roundabout a thousand gasps away.  Spent, sweating and speechless, the eternity ended at Sanctuary estate, lungs still wearing the wheeze of Friday's flu but recovery in the tow of Wozz, Bruce and Bo was Christmas.  Cate, Shorty, Hollywood, WhisperingJack, Car+Mel, Kel, AvantiTrev, Weapon, Jase, BamBam, Troy and Pelly rolled through, Boof joining at Kialla Central from a prior puncture predicament.

The sun burst through the bunch on Rivers' route east, like minded cyclusts from unlike tribes toiled west, waving, whistling and whooping.  There were faces pained on the train of Goats grinding south on Boundary Rd while I was worked by Weapon to the bridges and whipped by Wozz to Channel to exhaust all energy.  Sans speech till the S bends, I was on a rapid recovery before the ChaCha appeared, inspired by Cate braving the drivers seat as the pace percolated to the Kinder.   Rotations had almost ground to a halt as Shorty reached maximum velocity at Prentice Rd, I emptied the tank just to roll past as Wozz, Troy, Bruce and the princes of pace stepped up to sprint, Troy triumphant.  The almost post coital pant and pleasure proceeded on the roll back to town, Bo's excuses (Vol 27), chuckles and comparisons on the chat agenda.

17/11

Immersed in random thoughts on an early solo tap, I was suddenly shaken by New Dookie's resurface (harsh 20mm stone replacing the once sweet billiard table tarmac) pummelling the posterior.   Smooth surface service didn't resume till beyond Central Ave, but an inspiring sunrise soothed the senses. 

A rare easterly eased the exertion back to town, a sluggish six pack then a profusely populated Pussycat peloton plied east.   Principal Skinner, Sandy, AvantiAndy, Snow, Coggo, HG, Belly, Hommy and Tina had Goat gathered at Friars, an idle out of town gathering up JB at SPC.  There was a rotational reshuffle as Coggo courted competitive company, the tame tap to Boundary taken up with talk of the forthcoming lobster lunch as part of a Goat Christmas ride.  JB and Coggo dialled up the stress in Boundary Rd, so who was I to mess with momentum? (oh what fun it is to ride beside a huffing Hommy!)  The pace slowly went off the boil till JB and Coggo returned to the pointy end in River Rd, the hint of a northeaster helping us into the fourties.  Time again turned me north, west and north from Rivers end to home.

18/11

Assisting a sting on a Stravassailant, a crack at the McIntosh meltdown pushed a heart rate hump into Friday morning (637 metres in 55 sec), I'd almost recovered arriving at a crammed Couldabeens carpark with Cate, Car+Mel.  Rocket, Boof, Bruce, Shorty, Trav, Kenworth, AvantiTrev, Ralphy, Wozza, Pelly, BamBam, Troy, Grumpy, Weapon, Jen, Bo, Cougar, Jase, Tommygun, Temple, WhisperingJack, Nev and Hollywood assembled in a cast the size of Ben Hur.   An 80 metre long train steamed south on Archer collecting AvantiMat, the up line forming fortuitously. I finally faced the front in River Rd wit Wozz (King of the Kialla mini-loop), head and heart wanted to reach the bridge but the lungs cut it 300 metres short.  There was a self imposed challenge tallying up the troop list today, a brain strain and an antidote for Alzheimers with a bunch this size.  The Goat train was on a mission of pained pace, already at the River Rd ripple strips (well done on a 40.9 average lads) when we'd arrived.  The turn west toward home and Channel's ChaCha challenge charged the enthusiasm, Darth Vader baulking barking at a big bunch.  A "car up" at Hopeful corner hesitated the back end, the big guns blazed and opened a gap, a hungry Hollywood and a bolting BamBam filling the space quickly. The calm after the storm found DocPaul rolling into town, the social dessert shared through the suburbs.

Week 46      207km.         YTD 14,014km

Hope the pictures put perspective into the prose, feel free to add a comment 'cause I'm flying blind folks!  (flattered by the Foss followers in Poland, France, USA, Ukraine and Portugal)

Week 45. The isolation sensation

Post 370

5/11

What motivates six and a half hours and 200 k's of self imposed torture? The challenge? The satisfaction to finish? 'Cause it's there? A twisted craving for pain?  The Tatura 200 was on my tick list, a Saturday substitute for the sociability of the Couldabeens.  A large amount of starters (including familiar faces) for both 100 & 200k rides assembled, a bit of amusement watching the preparation of some, even oiling chains and adjusting derailliers in the last minutes before flagfall.

Caught within the crawlers in a crowded and chilly 7am start, It was caution till Tat's exit before breaking free to pursue a bunch that wanted more than 24km/h. (one bloke who'd obviously swallowed a wombat, carried a ballast of two sets of lights, a big battery pack, a Go-Pro, 3 bidons, a back pack and saddlebag to suit an overnight stay)   The lead bunch was a k ahead but I wasn't going to burst a gasket chasing them down, settling into a comfortable rhythm with many k's ahead, rounding up and passing a few cast offs to Toolamba and beyond the highway gave some sense of wellbeing.  Union road is as rough as hessian undies, so pleasing to reach the smooth Shepp-Euroa Rd and tap to Mitchell.  I'd set a target reeling in a bunch of ten ahead in Boundary Rd (hopes of sharing the headwind back to Shepparton), k by k slowly chipping away the gap till I caught the tail at the Pine Lodge pub. Damn! It was Mr Magnet and the erratics! Sociable for a k or two then head down and tail up in Old Dookie Rd to snap them off the back, passing a large bunch stopped at the Pine Lodge church filling bidons. Turning at the Emu, the reality of the SSW'er (22-32km/h) hit hard, it was a push to catch S-WorksSteve (Wangaratta) to work with him for the long 15k leg back to town. We'd soon reeled in and recruited the solo WillierCol (my ally and working partner from the windswept Benalla 125) to make a threesome, a load shared well to reach civilisation at a reasonable rate, my native navigation leading them through town and head across the Midland highway.  The large bunch (previously filling up at the church) caught us in Mooroopna, comfort finding the gorgeous grins of Car+Mel, the big engines of Coggo, Belly, Carl and co with a gaggle of Goats, Cats and foreigners to borrow a tow.  Sadly, it was quite a surge-a-thon headed to Ardmona, I guess there's nothing like working with people you know to smooth out the pace.  There was a questionable call to cross the highway with cars rapidly approaching, only AvantiDave (Tatura) and I were without a death wish and stopped.  Off the back of the bunch, we teamed together back to Tat, a Lions lunch, bananas, coffee and cake refilled the tank, Car+Mel's motivation inspiring leg two.

Northbound from Tatura, I was baulked by traffic again at the highway, detached from the big guns Eggman, BigBen, Dion, 'lilTony etc driving the lead pack.  Repeating the mornings steady grind in the hope of collecting a small group, I'd passed a few offcasts en route to Ardmona and Mooroopna, even a few still toiling the 50k event.  Nearly within reach of a dozen in Mooroopna, highway traffic lights forced my two minute stop, all hope of sharing the load with a bunch was lost, 32k of headwind was all mine!  Frustration at the relentless WSW'er (32-44km/h), fighting the gusts coming in at two o'clock, annoyed being unable to bridge the gap (27 was all the legs would give) and fumbling to peel an energy bar wrapper invoked growling out loud. On and on trying to reel 'em in, the eternity finally ended at Murchison, finding the bunch (Tina, Clive, Jodie, CitizenCain, AvantiDave, 2 Brunswick LaPierre's, a 15 y.o. and a handful of other foreigners) berthed filling tanks at the drink station.   It was sheer joy to join in and share the fight west, the pong of dead roo's, an incline or two and our ever present enemy the wind, 18 k's of teamwork reaching Rushworth to welcome the long awaited tail wind home.  Twas heaven with the wind up our cassette, the sweet sound of wheels humming in the fourties with just a touch of over exuberance on a few rises toward the Basin.  A steady slog on the little cogs to Harston, my right knee creak forced a back seat for relief. On the outskirts of Tat I hit a small hole, rupturing the rear tube, a niggle so close to the finish but it's just a part of the bike riders tax to pay.  Repaired and resaddled, the Garmin showed 194.4 km, my OCD urging a couple of town laps to ensure 200.02 ticked over at the inflatable finish arch. 4227 calories to compensate, a big feed was enjoyed, even a complimentary ale!, hats off to the motorcycle guides (even stopping to point out the larger road craters), the organisers and caterers for a great event, just turn the wind off next year!  Steps 78,447

The pedometer challenge finally finished, a 28 day total of 1025826 steps tells me I need new shoes.

7/11

Rice bubble legs had stopped their Saturday night snap, crackle and pop and by Sunday arvo the posterior had stopped glowing like Chernobyl's reactor.  Now all remained was the cognitive aversion therapy to treat my wind terrors.  Mountain machine (and Vets vixen) Cate was keen to keep the Monday habit, an easterly effort on New Dookie Rd comparing hills, distance and racing, another delicious dawn distracting us from pushing into the northeaster.  There was restitution turning at the church for a few moments till the speed instinct took over, felt more like summer with a tailwind helping the trip back to town.  A long peace train of Goats were approaching as we swung south into Boundary and made good ground to Channel Rd, company drives you a little harder than solo (meant to be beneficial), the twang in muscles murdered on Saturday sent conflicting messages. The lure of the ChaCha summoned yet more pace, a lap well spent to shake off the distance dramas.

8/11

Turtles were an endangered species on Tuesday, only AvantiTrev, Temple, Nick, HBK and Cougar fronting the carpark for the early off.  Feeling fairly primed, I had no hesitation pairing with HBK (well, alongside in rather loose terms) for leg one, silence from the bunch indicated a maximum had already been reached.  Temple fronted leg two and AvantiTrev tackled leg three, but that was the sum total of contributors to the pointy end.  By Channel Rd's end just Temple, HBK and I were taking the helm, so it turned Indian file rules.  Temple to the bridges and HBK to the turn west left me the front-of-house for River Rd, gently on the gas for a hundred metres to gather the tail then squeeze the accelerator to guess what was acceptable.  By the 2nd k I had the isolation sensation, a glance back finding a 100 metre hole between engine and carriages. I backed off for a bit to recouple the train, then slowly back onto pace (but a considerate k off the previous per hour).  An eastbound Wozz was in search of the Hares as I handed the helm over to Temple to take us to Rivers end, HBK dragging us to Mitchell, my turn again west to the highway.  Temple's tempo was tamed for Raftery's first k so we didn't snap off the tail, but the drive to Conrod straight soaking up an assisting breeze busted bits off. I wound up the wick out of the dip, but HBK lay in wait for a short victorious burst in the dying metres, a decent lap done for a small pack.

9/11

Short knicks (to defy the winter that won't let go) didn't raise the temperature to double digits, but a warm and welcoming Couldabeens commute with Wozz, Cate, Car+Mel helped.  Chops, Shorty, SuperMario, Nick, Cougar, Rocket, Nev, Kel, Bo, AvantiTrev, Bruce, Boof, Grumpy, BamBam, Pelly, Troy, Weapon and Jase almost set an attendance record, but  the likes of KillkennyPaul, Softa, BigMat, Fisky, WhisperingJack, Lucy, Gazzagrasshopper, HashBrown etc are extinct.  Wozza steered the ship south at six, AvantiMat (fresh from Nevada) joining on the town's exit.  My sandpapered tonsils sent a no no to the head about a turn at the front, good on 'ya Cate for mixing it with the horsepower driving to Mitchell Rd. A reunited HurtLocker straggled south at Kialla Central, our flu full Rocket sitting quietly in the rear stalls as two long lines of cyclusts rolled east in varying velocities.  Hallelujah! The Boundary Rd chasm has been patched, a bitumen Band-Aid to ease the concerns of murdering wheels or those propelling them.  I'd almost reached the front in Channel Rd when begged to fill an enlarged hole in the bunch's left lane, not troubled to sit this one out.  Eventually called across to the up line at Prentice Rd by Mel (an ulterior motive me thinks), I wound up the tempo behind the long lean legs of Weapon.  The FDC's had the box seat with Grumpy, Troy, BamBam and Pelly line astern in the final 100, but it was Boof who snatched the honours from Bo, the recovering Rocket in a rare repose.

10/11

Ctrl-Alt-Delete the regular ride routine with a long lap Thursday, reckon it's good to break the ritual 30-40k circuits and teach the head and legs to cope with something different.  A New & Old Dookie loop was an aperitif to a gallivant with Goats, the intention to tap to the church thrown out with a SSW'er as an ally for pace.  A calm at Boundary Rd to cruise to the church, at the Toaster it was pleasing to be faster than predicted into the headwind but the piggery perfume was particularly pungent.  Joey was limb limbering at Friars for my early arrival, Brendan, Tina, Phil, Coggo, Belly and Snow rolling in, HG and JB the latecomers joining on the exit.  Coggo and I set the cruise control on Old Dookie, JB dialling up the effort aboard the squeaky MrSheen clean Pinarello to Dobsons. Joey's and Snow's go was abbreviated, Tina, Phil and Belly in good form, Coggo taking me out of my comfort zone and into the high 30's for River Rd.  Speed see-sawed on the 6k way west, minutes mattering for me to early exit via the deserted truck route and soak up Archer D's tail wind home.

11/11

Cate, Car+Mel were the social salve Friday, pushing (165 bpm) to reach the carpark with a lashed larynx.  Me thinks the flu is nigh, but legs craved a thrash.  Kenworth, Boof, Chops, SuperMario, AvantiTrev, AvantiMat, Nick, Kel, Weapon, Bo, Temple and Jase formed a grid, even WhisperingJack appeared from the obscurity of hibernation!   Early FDC's Troy, BamBam, Pelly and Ralphy with Wozz and Bruce rolled in from a Kialla mini-loop,  Car+Mel's manoeuvre to mid grid was scuttled by lining up behind, but Boof braved the front for leg one, Bruce taking the trek from fourteenth to form the up line as we gathered Shorty on the town limit. I was the bunch trailer today, now regretting not embracing the doona for a sleep-in, hanging on with WhisperingJack as company and squeezing a slice of sociability as Couldabeens changed over to the up-line. Bunches galore hummed and hollered on their way west, an expired skippy to dodge at the Boundary Band-Aid.  My throttled throat made it hard to call the punters across to the up line, hand signals sufficed in Channel Rd. By the cypress trees it seemed half the bunch were sitting on, Bo skipping duty but hatching a sprint plan for the ChaCha. Surprised to nudge 50 and finish mid field in my state, but the tank was empty on the commute to reach home.

Week 45.        407km.           YTD  13,807km

Week 44 : A pot-hole pucker and a kanga cadaver

Post 369

29/10

Sudden brake lights, a loud thump, and a clobbered kangaroo was flung from the passing Navara's bullbar straight into the bike lane, twitching with an express ticket to heaven....just another thing to dodge on Saturdays early lap. D shackles, big bitumen blisters, steel strapping and stones littered the highways edge on a 17k solo, better on the well worn track of Mitchell and Archer to rendezvous with the Couldabeens at the shop.  Kel, TatPaul, Cougar, Shorty, Trav, Cate, SuperMario, Mel, Rocket, Pistol, Ralphy, Wozza, Troy, Nev, HBK, Bruce, Temple and a thousand uninvited murderous mosquitos filtered in for the 6am off.   TatPaul and I had the honours of dragging the bunch up to speed on leg one (the resplendent Godfather gracing us with his presence) the pack settling into the social schmooze till Orrvale Rd when a vehement verbal was hurled from a ute driver, inconveniently forced to stop at a stop sign, just for 19 lives on bikes.  Unperturbed, the journey east continued, a holler to caution Darth Vader's appearance sharpened eyesight and wits.  The sidekick decoy Rottweiller lay at the roads left edge, Darth barking and bolting from the right (without consequence).  Deviations and distractions over, bike business resumed for Boundary, steering east into Old Dookie flagged the day's scenic solar start.

Words with Wozz, banter with Bruce, guffaws with the Godfather, rhetoric with Ralphy and cackles with Cate make for a satisfying social start to the weekend, oxygen usually used for gasping on weekday rides and the race to reach work usually stealing any post ride interaction.  Headed homeward in Lemnos-Cosgrove Rd, my turn two arrived at the kennels with TatPaul then with Bruce from Boundary, heart and lungs coping admirably, mental detours distracting leg objections to reach Ford Rd.   Pussycat pack #1 was well populated, BassoDave back in the bunch a welcomed watershed moment.   Sprinters and stayers shuffled the sequence in Wanganui Rd, Rocket unusually taking a back seat as Wozz, Bruce, Boof and the sprint starved wound up the boost to the hill.  Picking off those jettisoned from pace, I'd led a string of tailenders (motivated by magneticMel on my Mavic) up the hill to reconvene rolling in Rudd.  The Lemontree's table tattle on nana's recipe's, sports doping and peloton positioning kept the head occupied, taste buds tied up with breakfast.

Steps 35,211

31/10

The Cate collaboration Monday works well, reacquainting the legs to turn after a slack Sunday (24 hours seems an eternity off two wheels). New Dookie Rd is rarely spoilt by traffic and a WNW'er for propulsion made an easy tap to the church. More a niggling breeze than a tough wind west in Old Dookie Rd, enough though to brew an angry crank to crest the main eastern channel bridge and get it over with to Boundary Rd. Being slowly drawn closer to the summer and its solstice (by two minutes a day) the sun peeked atop the clouds at the fig farm.  Back to town via Channel Rd and the mandatory charge at the ChaCha tuned up the engine and the head for the working week. 

Steps 38,975

1/11

My mules and stallions concept for a Melbourne Cup day ride found favour (an anti-clockwise Toaster lap left A Mart at 7 for the mules, the stallions at 7:15  to chase) Kenworth, TatPaul, Shorty, Temple, HBK, Cougar, Ralphy, Car, AvantiTrev, SuperMario, Jase, Kel, Weapon and Bo fronted, long-time-no-see Lucy, Aimee, Jen and AvantiAndy too,  ring-ins MeridaAndy, GiantLen and ApprenticePete put the starting gate at 21.......the biggest collection of self appointed Donkeys ever!   Shorty and I set the pace at 'no chat but not flat chat' for leg one south on Conrod straight, silencing the troop talk and setting a precedent of pace to make the stallions sweat. My recall was rusty on MeridaAndy and GiantLen (from the distant days of the hospital and library bunches) while two long lines of hopefuls worked east. Helped in Mitchell and River by a light WNW, ApprenticePete and Weapon, AvantiAndy and Jen commanded the caboose, as the pack hovered in the high 30's. Lucy's a tough nut to match as we worked north in Boundary Rd, last weeks pot hole dramas now disasters from a vehicular pounding.  

GiantLen has taken a half wheeling leaf from the HBK book, MeridaAndy reacquainting himself with the Merida, good to have Jen (with her mojo) back, the usual verbal nonsense swapped with HBK, but no hot tips for the afternoons race.  No sign of the 7:15 stallions (Hoges, Trav, Bruce, Nev-bro-Kev, ChrisA, Boof, Wozz, Pistol, Rocket and Cate) as we turned into Old Dookie Rd but ApprenticePete was missing in action (taking a shortcut of recovery with Weapon riding shotgun).   Heart and lungs ran well for my 3k turn at the front in Lemnos-Cosgrove Rd, the diet direction and 4kg less of ballast has the old engine coping better.   Word of stallions approaching in the rear distance enthused the drive to Wanganui Rd but I'd been caught within the survivors as rotations froze at DECA, no escape till the fragmentation nearing the hill.  Tailenders were collected in Rudd Rd as the pack drove toward the base station, euphoric stallions catching us at Tarcoola,  hoot'n and holler'n a fine 39 average. Seemed like Saturday all over again with breakfast and banter at the Lemontree's long table.

Steps 35,321

2/11

Still we wait for winters weather to wane, the warm layers out yet again (15 degrees this time last year). Numbers were down from yesterday's peak, Wozz, Cate, Rocket, Boof, Shorty, AvantiTrev, Pistol, Weapon, Bruce, Ralphy, Troy and Jase the die hards on Wednesdays grid.  Spearing south out of town, FDC's were absent from leg 3, my turn to huff and puff with Jase from the bridge to the dip in River Rd, but next up AvantiTrev trimmed 10% off the pace.  It was almost a holiday in the draft of a dozen, time spent pondering position of the next turn with a wary eye out for Boundary Rd's archeological dig.  Into a light headwind on Channel Rd, the ChaCha arrived all too soon, the ever so slight downhill to Hopeful corner was no help to me, on the front again in the mid fourties cooked me by Prentice Rd. Still pleased to finish within sight of the sprinters, the social roll home a tasty dessert.

Steps 36,390

3/11

Rear wheel rebuild #2 (replacing a well worn hub, correcting the crooked cassette) and a slick new pair of Michelin Pro4's were easier to roll, there's a measure of comfort on fresh rubber replacing the treaded (but thin) Michelin Grip's at 6,000+ k's.   A solo Toaster was tapped as a prep for the weekends Tat 200, I was away in 77rpm la la land on Lemnos-Cosgrove Rd with a delightful dawn arriving.

An earlier westerly had fizzled out to nought to make the turn back on Old Dookie Rd a pleasure, south in Boundary Rd the distant strobe of turtle tail-lights pierced a low fog.  By River Rd's third k I had Hare headlights in hot pursuit, but was sticking to my resolve of a tentative tap to tackle Tat's 200.  Hares had caught me by Kialla Central, the invite to climb aboard their track turns train to great to resist.  Pistol, Rocket, Wozz, Hoges, Bruce and Trav swapped 30 second turns in the 40's, but by Dave's dip thoughts of Saturday's distance threw me into a conservation cog, dropping off the back at the highway to cruise back to town. 

Steps 51,832

4/11

Kenworth, Bruce, Rocket, Weapon, Pistol, Cate, Shorty, Hollywood, AvantiTrev, Kel, Bo Chops and Boof made up Friday's happy clan, FDC's Grumpy, Pelly and Ralphy joining in at the grid instead of an out-of-town rendezvous. A pacy spin south in the 6 degree chill warmed up the muscles and the heartrate, Kel, perfectly perched, prompted a sit study, so many with a unique seat stance.   Kenworth positioned behind Ralphy in the bunch must rate as a B double draft.  Into River Rd, the oncoming Cat pack was longer than a BigMat absence, our velocity east pegged for a bit by AvantiTrev but reinvigorated by Ralphy.  So keen to avoid the chasm of Boundary Rd's pot-hole, I missed and struck a fist sized rock, kicking the front wheel sideways to prompt a proper posterior pucker. Plenty of daylight to navigate Channel Rd, the speed built steadily to the Kinder, Hollywood reckoning he had just 3 seconds worth of sprint. Yet again I scored the front out of Hopeful corner, way too soon to figure in placings I sunk all investments into stretching the bunch long and hungry.  Grumpy wound up the boost at Prentice Rd but Boof appeared to have the Avanti advantage for the ChaCha honours. 

Steps 38,162

Week 44       273km.        YTD 13,400km