Week 11: The sweet sprint spot

Post 388

Away on a long weekend (with the bike of course!) I scored a berth in Ballarat's Myer bunch on Saturday, a change to the habitual Couldabeens crank.  23 fronted at 6:30 (larger than usual I'm told) to exit town, a bit out of my comfort zone being in the dark on route, speed, protocols and distance, but there's nothing like a challenge eh?

Unaccustomed as I am to the ups and downs of rolling hills, I found myself coping rather well, surprisingly not the asthmatic wreck blown out the back of the bunch, but plugging away midfield (in the big dog of course) en route to Wattle Flat.  The large proportion of young blood was a little intimidating but at least they were respectful to the elderly, spearing through the dark on a thin strip of tarmac snaking uphill and down dale through the heavily treed Glen Park, passing rustic ruins (worth revisiting in daylight).
A long downhill to the Creswick-Dean Rd maxed the Garmin at 59 clicks, but with every downhill lurks a payback.....the toil of the climb uphill.  Ascending through a ferny forrest as the sun crept to the horizon made pleasant scenery to distract from the hurt, the front runners kindly pausing at Dean for the stragglers to rejoin before tackling the Dean-Newlyn Rd. 

Potatoes prospered in the dark red soil, the sun peeking above the hills to guide us onto Long Swamp Rd to Rocklyn, then a left onto Blampied-Mollonghip Rd taking us up to the Midland Highway.  The keen tapped toward Clunes as I joined Rob, Graham, Col and Ross taking the short route (80k) back along the ribbon roads of undulating countryside via Allendale, Ascot and BaldHills.  A long straight stretch on Gillies Rd took us toward Ballarat, joined in the last 10k by the Yabbie Divers (Ben, Nick, Darren, Brendan, Kanga, Shane, Josh, Nick and Haggis) with the customary sprint for town lines.  

I was welcomed to join the crew for post ride socialism at cafe Lekker, Strava analysis, sledging and tall stories the stuff of all bunch babble, coffee and shared plates of toasties de rigeur with this lot. 

 

13/3

Another morning of mystery on foreign soil Monday, a solo spin from Creswick at 6, northwest out of town on an unknown climb (judged only by the reach of the CatEye's lumens), certainly a heart starter for this flatlander climbing 280 metres to Springmount in the first 5 k.  

I had a new appreciation for the almost level ground to Spring Hill, the half light at 6:30 showed low misty cloud capping the hills surrounding Kingston, a long gradual decline pumping up the speed and the ego with plenty of rabbits darting about in the dark.  A sharp left onto W Berry Rd, the rises and falls towards Clunes picked up a light mist nearing Allendale while trying to keep my bearings southbound on the thin track of Creswick-Lawrence Rd past Broomfield.  A swing onto Gillies Rd put me back on familiar (Saturday) territory, the long southbound stretch beside Mt Hollowback to Bald Hills and beyond, still with a few ups and downs to lift the effort, my usual focus on average speed forgotten in lieu of cresting the rises.  I veered left through Sulky and along another ribbon of tarmac to the Midland highway, then north with the pleasure of a tailwind but the work of an uphill back to Creswick to earn my breakfast. With the respiratories rapid on the rise, the pong of roadkill didn't help, but a brew reaching Creswick's 'Bean & Barrow' topped off 50k nicely. 

14/3

It was a pleasure to be back on the homeland flatlands Tuesday, a calculated cruise to the carpark (to avoid the first shift) but there was only Jase, Cougar, HBK and AvantiTrev tempted to Turtle tap.  Single file was the unspoken and understood formation, Jase doing the honours of the first leg.  I had the short half draft of AvantiTrev till my turn from Orrvale Rd to the Kinder.  HBK did a double shift to the S bends, kick starting a long drive habit for all (but a wary eye on Cougar keeping hold of the caboose).  AvantiTrev ground out Boundary Rd on the front, I was spurred on to do the first half of River Rd to the dip while HBK tackled part two. (must be some sort of weird male measuring mindset, sizing up your competition?)  Cougar bailed out via Archer Rd but four fought on, calculating the turns to Conrod, I reckoned a long drive to Galbraiths gate might put me in the perfect pozzie.  HBK took us to Conrod's kink, Jase shouldered the load for 500 metres to give me the last 400 and the honours. 

15/3

Finding a flat just minutes from launch time puts haste to the forefront, but a wriggle on got me back on agenda to grid with Grumpy, Shorty, Kenworth, Mel, AvantiTrev, Troy, Pelly, BamBam, Cate, Wozz, Pistol, Temple, Trav, Nev, Weapon, Ralphy, Kel and Bo for Wednesday's whip around. A northeaster told me to get a turn in early to avoid the headwind, but many had the same idea filling the up line.  HurtLocker was trimmed to a trio at Central Kialla, Cats were late on the River Rd westward procession, a new course and start (Old Dookie Rd roadworks) put them down the list.  The Goat PainTrain progress was pacy, prevailing winds and the whiff of catching Cats had their hammer down.  I'd fluked the preferred position of AvantiTrev ahead and Mel behind to limit my tempo tax, many others shortening their turn feeling the breeze on the brow.  All my stars were aligning in Channel Rd, the breeze behind, bludging at the back with just a k till the ChaCha and in Kenworth's tow couldn't be better. Sentences stopped, heads lowered and heart rates heightened in a cadenza of cranking to the Kinder, Kel and Bo delivered us to Prentice Rd for Kenworth to turn up the torque, my dream sit to the 200 metre mark was just textbook.  Out of the copious Kenworth current, I throttled the thighs and crucified the cranks to take a rare win, though Pistol made it hard labour nipping at my wheel in the dying metres.

16/3

Missing the motivation to tap an early lap Thursday, I succumbed to the sloth of a salubrious sleep-in till 5:15, then a slow paced preparation to join the group 'o Goats (Belly, PrincipalSkinner, Dipper, Phil, Heady, Sooty, Bickers, Sandy, Spiessy, HG, Hommy, HBK, Joe, Temple, Tina and many-months-missing-much Comet!)   A straggling start split the herd into 3 as I had a bit of effort dragging some dawdlers back to the bunch in Old Dookie Rd, but some semblance of order resulted in the rotations.  Much Goat gloating amongst the PainTrainers from Wednesday's Cat attack, Sandy was speedoless, Heady extolling the virtues of self flagellation (training PainTrainless), Bickers had engaged his cloaking device and HG's huge hangback hindering anybody behind. A balmy 22 degrees in Boundary and a tailwind propelled the pack south, the weight of responsibility resting on me to call the highway intersection traffic.  It's nice to work with the echelon educated, the northeaster attacking the starboard bow had us fanned across River Rd with Belly driving to the 40's, poor Comet caught behind HG's hangback deserved my delay to draft a delicious damsel in distress. Eventually back into the formation, I was soon promoted forward, Sooty and I captaining the crew from the bridge to Rivers' end. Alas, time to take my leave and battle the headwind home, back to setting speed standards (31+) on level ground.

17/3

 

A stiff southerly (24-37 km/h) sorted the die hards from the bed warmers on Friday, I was ready for a lie down after just 5k's of headwind hell getting to the carpark! Bruce, Wozz, Boof, Troy, Rocket, Pistol, Nick, Kenworth, Chops, Cate, Kel, Bo, Nev and Cats Col and Avanti-not-MeridaJohn assembled for action at 6, Chops bearing the brunt of the breeze to take the bunch south on leg one.  Only the brawn and the brave formed the up-line into the brow-beater, Rocket and Pistol driving unperturbed and unabated to Mitchell Rd.  Col and Avanti-not-MeridaJohn were along on a respite from the catty felines, the social sentence swapping getting well underway with the wind at our side in Mitchell Rd. Despite the wind whipping at our wheels, it got easier closer to the front in River Rd, almost a calming crank beside Bruce beyond the dip in the right lane,  though it's not nice to be greedy so I shared the workload around.  Cobbles and The Godfather turned into River Rd as we exited it, the usual shy retiring vehement sledge delivered in his unmistakeable tone, they were well clear of a thin line of late Cats slogging south on Boundary, but not a Goat in sight.   We caught and absorbed Manny and Carl into our pack at the Broken Bridges, spitting chips at being left PainTrain-less from a mass abandonment (concrete needed in the Goat feed trough?)  Dissecting the orchards and vegetable plots along Channel Rd's 8k length gets the troops excited for the thrash of the ChaCha, though the Cats were possibly in the dark on its location (they know now!).  I was almost in the sweet sprint spot like Wednesday, except Rocket, Manny and their swift associates swept by, five gasps beyond Prentice Rd.  Ah, reality deals a savage blow!

Week 11:   278km                 YTD 2,739km