RR: 160 km MBTC training ride for ATB

Epping-Gisborne-Bacchus Marsh-Werribee. Or not.


Started off fine, but with a bit of wind.

Then it ****ed down. Very large raindrops, very heavy, and I'm sure
that if it were a degree cooler, then it would have been the forecast
hail (it did hail in Northcote). Water went down my back, and I was
pretty darned cold. My fingers were terribly sore. The cold sucked
all the energy out of me, and I was pretty much the slowest in the
entire bunch at this stage.

Then the headwind. 50km/h gusts at that time in the city, no idea
what it was halfway out to Gisborne. We were doing 11km/h in a bunch,
on the flat. Extremely demoralising, still being cold, and in the
middle of nowhere. One time, Jim had just rotated onto the front, and
then suddenly stopped as a gust pushed him back, and we all very
nearly piled into each other -- I got on my brakes with about a cm to
spare. Mind you, the forecast was for the wind to change 180degrees.
Just in time for us to get the headwind on the way back.

Then the crosswind on the highway -- bike leaning 10 or 15 degrees to
go straight, and trying not to steer into the path of passing trucks
as they blocked off the crosswind.

I was ready to pack it in at Gisborne, and catch the Vline train back.
I was just going to have lunch, warm up, see what the weather was
doing, and then decide from there.

But one of our crew got hypothermia, so we spent an hour or more
tending to her. Had a tasty warm lunch, coffee. Got our clothes put
in the drier at the laudromat. Felt substantially better. The rain
looked like it would hold off, but it was already 2:00, with the delay
at lunch, and the very slow going we had been doing (avg 18 or 19km/h
over 65km). So we decided to miss Bacchus and Werribe, and just go
straight to Melton. Which mean maybe 40km/h of tailwind?

We (I anyway) had no morale left by the time I hit Gisborne, but this
(exact!) tailwind gave it all back to me. Ripping along with no
effort and not feeling the air flowing at all, at 40km/h up slight
inclines, and 50km/h on the flats along the 80km/h highway. Cars
barely passing us. Me and a lurker (Hi Graham!) got a fair bit of
the way in front of the others -- we were so keen to be moving again
-- that I decided to pull into a bus bay to let them catch up, and to
make sure that we were taking the correct path along the increasinly
suburban terrain. And it started ****ing down for a while, so we got
changed back into our wet weather stuff.

Decided we were now too keen to just get in the train at sydnam, so
went all the way into the city to one of the riders house for a bit of
a visit. I had never been along the Marrybinong (how the heck to
spell?) river path, which was fantastic.

Then I went along to the goat, via some other path along a creek.
Which was also fantastic in the dark and with all the fast flowing
water. What a night

Despite cutting out Bacchus Marsh/Werribee (maybe 50km/h in total?), I
still had 167 km on the clock by the time I made it home. And the
average picked up to 22km/h (according to the BC1600, which does weird
averages), from that hour or so going along at 40km/h. Max speed was
62.3, when we had a partial cross wind down a lovely hill before
Gisbourne. Total moving time, including the pub detour to home, was
8h:20min.


I might try to avoid touring rides in the future with forecasts for
overly adverse weather (I really don't have the kit to do it safely or
enjoyably in, yet; and 2 out of the last three rides I've done with
the club were in pretty adverse weather), but I would have missed out
on the best tail wind I had ever had, had I not been there yesterday.



--
TimC
'Vegetarian' -- it's an old Indian word meaning 'lousy hunter'.
-- Red Green

TimC Wrote:

Then I went along to the goat, via some other path along a creek.
Which was also fantastic in the dark and with all the fast flowing
water. What a night

Goat good, celebrating *TWO* birthdays with free beers & yummy
cupcakes!

So was it BR or a well deserved rest? Also how did the drivetrain clean
go/is going?


--
cfsmtb

On 2005-09-18, cfsmtb (aka Bruce)
was almost, but not quite, entirely unlike tea:

TimC Wrote:

Then I went along to the goat, via some other path along a creek.
Which was also fantastic in the dark and with all the fast flowing
water. What a night

Goat good, celebrating *TWO* birthdays with free beers & yummy
cupcakes!

Sooo many cupcakes, I'm surprised my digestive system hasn't just
given up on me completely. How did the birthday boy like the
cupcakes?

So was it BR or a well deserved rest? Also how did the drivetrain clean
go/is going?

Forgot to write about that

I set the alarm for 5:50, and woke up at preceisely 7:00. I was
feeling fine though!

I just had an attack of the sleepies, but I think I am over that now.

--
TimC
I'm all for computer dating, but I wouldn't want one to marry my sister. --unk

"TimC" wrote in message
...
On 2005-09-18, cfsmtb (aka Bruce)
was almost, but not quite, entirely unlike tea:

TimC Wrote:

Then I went along to the goat, via some other path along a creek.
Which was also fantastic in the dark and with all the fast flowing
water. What a night

Goat good, celebrating *TWO* birthdays with free beers & yummy
cupcakes!

Sooo many cupcakes, I'm surprised my digestive system hasn't just
given up on me completely. How did the birthday boy like the
cupcakes?

So was it BR or a well deserved rest? Also how did the drivetrain clean
go/is going?

Forgot to write about that

I set the alarm for 5:50, and woke up at preceisely 7:00. I was
feeling fine though!

I just had an attack of the sleepies, but I think I am over that now.

--
TimC
I'm all for computer dating, but I wouldn't want one to marry my
sister. --unk

I missed cupcakes?! *pouts* Alas, I could afford neither the time nor the
money to leave the house last night. Many apologies and belated birthday
greetings.

TimC,

Those experiences you describe are hauntingly familiar from the 2003
Around the Bay ride. I understand what you went through - it ain't
pleasant.

Well done on hanging in there.


--
jazmo

jazmo wrote:
TimC,

Those experiences you describe are hauntingly familiar from the 2003
Around the Bay ride. I understand what you went through - it ain't
pleasant.

Well done on hanging in there.



We will all remember that one for the rest of our lifes.

Like the kodoka trail.. the retreat from moscow, among australian
cyclist there is the 2003 ATB. Ride or die.

I consider that easily the toughest thing I have ever done.. and I
include learning how to walk the second time in that. Tho mind you that
did take longer. The ATB took 11 hours and 5 minutes that year.. it
just felt like 11 months

On 2005-09-18, dave (aka Bruce)
was almost, but not quite, entirely unlike tea:
jazmo wrote:
TimC,

Those experiences you describe are hauntingly familiar from the 2003
Around the Bay ride. I understand what you went through - it ain't
pleasant.

Well done on hanging in there.

I think ATB would have been a bit tougher.

We will all remember that one for the rest of our lifes.

Like the kodoka trail.. the retreat from moscow, among australian
cyclist there is the 2003 ATB. Ride or die.

I consider that easily the toughest thing I have ever done.. and I
include learning how to walk the second time in that. Tho mind you that
did take longer. The ATB took 11 hours and 5 minutes that year.. it
just felt like 11 months

For it was 11 hours of hell, and our training ride was only 3-5 hours
of hell, and at least one hour of 40-50 km/h bliss

--
TimC
Sign on door of computing lecturer: "If your project is 90% right,
I will give you a distinction, your employer will fire you." -- Zebee

On 2005-09-18, Resound (aka Bruce)
was almost, but not quite, entirely unlike tea:
I missed cupcakes?! *pouts* Alas, I could afford neither the time nor the
money to leave the house last night. Many apologies and belated birthday
greetings.

Essentially unlimited supply of cupcakes (although I think I may have
been getting funny looks from the table that had hoarded them , and
free pint at the start, and apparently free pint at the end, although
bike soiler kept this secret to himself until we left. I was stuffed
anyway, I needed to get home.

So, all you would have had to pay for was a train ticket (well that,
and time), but I won't rub it in

--
TimC
"Legacy (adj): an uncomplimentary computer-industry epithet that
means 'it works'." -- Anthony DeBoer in ASR

TimC wrote:
On 2005-09-18, dave (aka Bruce)
was almost, but not quite, entirely unlike tea:

jazmo wrote:

TimC,

Those experiences you describe are hauntingly familiar from the 2003
Around the Bay ride. I understand what you went through - it ain't
pleasant.

Well done on hanging in there.


I think ATB would have been a bit tougher.


We will all remember that one for the rest of our lifes.

Like the kodoka trail.. the retreat from moscow, among australian
cyclist there is the 2003 ATB. Ride or die.

I consider that easily the toughest thing I have ever done.. and I
include learning how to walk the second time in that. Tho mind you that
did take longer. The ATB took 11 hours and 5 minutes that year.. it
just felt like 11 months


For it was 11 hours of hell, and our training ride was only 3-5 hours
of hell, and at least one hour of 40-50 km/h bliss

If you did 160 km in 6 hours you were slaughtering our time for 2003

On 2005-09-18, dave (aka Bruce)
was almost, but not quite, entirely unlike tea:
TimC wrote:
On 2005-09-18, dave (aka Bruce)
was almost, but not quite, entirely unlike tea:
Like the kodoka trail.. the retreat from moscow, among australian
cyclist there is the 2003 ATB. Ride or die.

I consider that easily the toughest thing I have ever done.. and I
include learning how to walk the second time in that. Tho mind you that
did take longer. The ATB took 11 hours and 5 minutes that year.. it
just felt like 11 months


For it was 11 hours of hell, and our training ride was only 3-5 hours
of hell, and at least one hour of 40-50 km/h bliss

If you did 160 km in 6 hours you were slaughtering our time for 2003

Nah, 8 hours, 2 mins. There was another 2 or so hours of "just
cruising" (throughthe suburbs) not in either of the "hell" or "bliss"
categories above.

The avg speed of 20km/h was really helped by that "bliss" section

Was it 2003 that Dutchy said he opened up his jacket to get the
more of the tailwind?

Anyway, bike is now rather more clean and smoother running than
lastnight

--
TimC
It typically takes 25-30 gallons of petrol/diesel to fully-consume an
average-sized body under ideal conditions. That I am conversant with
this level of detail should serve as an indication of why the wise man
does not ask me questions about MS-Windows. --Tanuki on ASR