unbelievably arrogant. so i was asked during the week about the clubs official response when a video similar to the truck overtaking the two riders in freo happens to someone in spr kit. officially our response will be….nothing. in that particular case, the riders were doing nothing illegal so to comment on it would just start an argument for arguments sake. you could say that the riders could have moved to single file, you could say that the truck could have changed lanes, you could even say that the council should not have made the kerb kick in and then out again for no apparent reason. there are lots of things that could be said but it also just gives airplay to those that want to fight for their right, to be right….regardless of the situation. not only does it give them a platform, it allows them to find other people with the same bias to affirm their beliefs. i have seen time and time again people try to explain that they legally can ride single file, don’t have to pay rego, should be given more space, but at the end of the day, the people that you are arguing with, just don’t care. if that truck had connected with the rider, then the driver would probably be charged under the new 1m rule, but being right is no good if you are dead or injured.
in the case of the picture above, the group was following proper road rules and were stopped at a red light yet still we cop abuse for essentially getting in the way of the truck that wants to turn left. if there were two cars waiting at the lights, he would have been in the same situation, but i am sure that he would not have snapped a photo. lately we are under the spotlight and it seems that people feel that they can gain some notoriety from posting pictures of “arrogant” cyclists using the road. on two occasions during the saturday earlybird we had vehicles video us as we were riding along. in both cases we were not doing anything illegal (unlike the two individuals using phones in their cars) so if the footage does hit the web, our response is still nothing.
there is a war on our roads, but in reality it is a cold war where the two sides are building up their stockpiles of video evidence in order to go – “ha, you are worse than me”. it doesn’t solve anything, it just starts arguments. if you are not using the footage to report incidents to the police, then just be careful where and how you use it. we know there are stupid drivers and out there just as much as we know there are stupid riders out there. fueling the fire and arguing with trolls does not help our case. however, if you are caught on a club ride or in spr kit doing something illegal, dangerous or stupid, we will be calling you out for it and expecting you to own it and formally apologise.
ride leader sponsor – the ride leader sponsor for january is Valetudo Health. SPR club member Corrie Fillmore (Johnstone) coaches triathletes and cyclists at Valetudo Health and also provides injury rehabilitation, strength and conditioning, sports dietetics, and exercise physiology services.
the ring crits (australia day) – the next race in the ring series will be next week on australia day where rccc and spr will be hosting the event at tech park. a great circuit for spectating so, even if you are not racing, come down and check out the action. entry for the race can be found on this link.
tour de bintan – the tour de bintan is a great 3 day race on the island of bintan in indonesia. not only is the race well organised and in beautiful tropical surroundings, but it also a qualifier for the UWCT final to be held in italy in september. toby brown’s strive cycle training, has once again organised a combined travel and training package that includes return airfares, accommodation and transfers, and access to strive coaching services for the event. there are approximately 5 spots on the trip left to fill, and these now available for SPR members. if you’d like the opportunity to qualify for the UWCT final, and experience racing in asia get in touch now. dates: 23-25 march. cost: $1666 per person
info@strivecycletraining.com
ride start locations –just a friendly reminder that the bike path under the narrows is a public thoroughfare that needs to be kept open. please make sure that bikes and pedestrians have access in both directions. we are getting more and more people on our rides and it is starting to become a problem. please be considerate and move down rather than stand 3 abreast.
2018 licences renewal – any race licence that you purchase now will be valid until the end of 2018. recreational licences are a year from the date purchased, but race licences are for a calendar year. if you are looking at changing clubs and wish to join spr, then now is the time to do it. a club change before a renewal is free, so get it done now then when you renew you will be a member of spr. if you want to change clubs, email through your membership number and we can initiate the change. make sure you are insured while riding, even if you are not racing.
group sizes and ride etiquette – a timely reminder from our training and development officer on just why we split the ride up into certain size groups. why we need to keep separated on the road and what it means for your safety. have a read of the previous post, because if you get pulled up for one of these issues don’t expect that “i didn’t know” to be a valid excuse.
saturday start locations – we have revamped the group start locations on saturday morning. please have a look at the map so you know where your group will congregate. this makes it easier for ride leaders to give you a briefing before the ride starts. see the previous post for more details.
ride routes – so after an absolute soaking this week, we are seeing some fine riding weather on the horizon. just be aware that it is starting to get a bit darker in the morning with official sunrise now close to 5:30am. make sure people can see you when you are riding to the start of the earlybird rides.
saturday 20th january
ride starts under the narrows (cityside) at 5:30am
early lap – earlybird 40.93km spr special
all rides start at coode st carpark at 7:00am
development group – novice shelley 36.06km spr saturday
transitional – trans abernethy 39.96km spr saturday
fast/main – holmes rd 50.42km spr saturday
sunday 21st january
ride starts under the narrows (cityside) at 5:30am
early lap – earlybird 40.93km spr special
all rides start at coode st carpark at 7:00am
development group – coffee ride
short – khna weir 72.23km spr sunday
long – khna can mills 94.55km spr sunday
monday 22nd january
ride starts under the narrows (sth perth side) at 5:30am
south stock 33.76km spr monday
tuesday 23rd january
ride starts under the narrows (cityside) at 5:30am
spr tuesday 36.37km (river ride)
ride starts frasers ave at 5:45am
development group – interval training kings park
wednesday 24th january
ride starts raffles bike path at 5:30am
interval training – stock road repeats
thursday 25th january
ride starts under the narrows (cityside) at 5:30am
see previous post for ride groups
spr thursday 37.26km (cott & freo)
ride starts frasers ave at 5:45am
development group – interval training kings park
friday 26th january – aussie day
ride starts under the narrows (sth perth side) at 5:30am
all rides start at coode st carpark at 7:00am