i was doing a cupboard clean out this week and found last years festive 500 patch. i hadn’t removed it from the cardboard and when i did was surprised to see the little poem behind it. “Most lay in bed. Contented, well fed. You forge on ahead Legs like lead Did something great instead.” the last week has been an interesting time and has shown some interesting behaviours from people. who would have guessed that nancy would be first to crack 500kms, that marcel would have a 300km day and finley would do a ride starting before 2am. all three of those people covered more than 800kms in the 8 days and i know that there are many more stories out there from the challenge. here is your new challenge. from your own festive 500 experience, write a 5 line poem on what was important to you. whether it is watching the sunrise for the 5th morning in a row, or riding all the way to a closed coffee-shop, there must be something to inspire the poets amongst us. another pair of sunglasses is up for grabs.
crit racing – there is racing available throughout summer – pretty much every weekend. this weekend alone there are FOUR options available – Midland CC on Saturday afternoon, while Peel District CC, RCCC and West Coast Masters all have races on Sunday. There is an updated program with links to the events HERE. for a bit more info on why crit racing could be for you, check out the previous post.
social club awards – the weekend before last we had our xmas breakfast and club awards. the social club awards are voted on by you, the members and feedback is asked for as validation of your nomination. with the exception of dean roser nominating himself for every award, this is a great way for members to let someone know that they are doing something right. check out the previous post for the results and feedback.
mercantile lane closure – some of you may remember that the pedestrian bridge over mercantile lane fell down last year. this is the back lane that we take to get from mounts bay rd to st georges terrace. as of 20th dec it will be closed again to facilitate the rebuilding of that foot bridge. no idea how long it will be down for, so you will need to take the next road (william st) to hook back around to the cafe after the ride.
hot weather policy – there has been a lot of discussion after last weeks heat wave as to how the club should run the sunday hills rides when the mercury rises significantly. there are a number of options being looked at including shortening rides, cancelling rides or changing times. as always, we cannot tell you not to ride and you do so at your own risk. however, if we deem that the conditions are not suitable, the club sanctioned training ride may be adjusted to suit. watch this space as more develops.
rapha festive 500 – this year’s festive 500 saw a very competitive finish with a couple of people leapfrogging positions at the last minute. with 5 people clocking up more than 900kms in the 8 days and 1 exceeding 1000kms, there were a lot of tired legs come new years day. there will be a final washup post soon which shows the club leaderboard and just who won a new pair of sunnies.
cycling trip to france – this year long time spr member, christophe is looking at organising a trip to france to ride in the mountains. it is 12 nights with 2 french speaking guides cruising around such little hills as mount ventoux. if you are interested, see christophe at the coffee shop after the ride or email him at crosstraining@optusnet.com.au
sunday start locations – as numbers increase over summer, we are looking at how we can manage the groups on a sunday morning. as such we are implementing a start location system to give us an idea of how big the groups are. we can then split them before they leave the carpark to ensure that the groups are a safe size on the road. see the previous blog post about where to meet and the new start time.
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.
spr juniors – juniors, juniors, juniors. the weather is awesome out there, so get the kids out and onto the bikes. come ride your bike and you may get to feed the magpies. lets see if there were any bike related presents under the tree this year.
from the ride coordinator – Happy New Cycling Year everyone! Well the 2019 kilometers are now in the Garmin/Wahoo/whatever bank and the clock starts ticking again for this year. Hats off to those who completed the Rapha500 over the festive season, unbelievably there was 1 SPR rider who effectively did it twice with a tad over 1000kms (you know who you are). As usual, this time of year there are lots of cycling events on, with the nationals and the Tour Downunder topping the immediate list. Whatever your goal in 2020, enjoy your cycling and I hope you achieve what you are looking to strive for.
saturday 4th 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
juniors – kings park juniors 23.72km spr saturday
development group – novice shelley 36.06km spr saturday
transitional 1/2 – trans canning vale 42.34km spr saturday
fast/main – maddington 51.87km spr saturday
sunday 5th january
rides start at coode st carpark at 6:00am
note: sunday rides start at 6:00am from nov to feb
development group – coffee ride
short –khna weir 72.23km spr sunday
long – khna trnr obs 101.76km spr sunday
monday 6th january
ride starts under the narrows (sth perth side) at 5:30am
south stock 33.76km spr monday
tuesday 7th january
ride starts under the narrows (cityside) at 5:30am
spr tuesday 36.37km (river ride)
wednesday 8th january
ride starts raffles bike path at 5:30am
interval training – stock road repeats
thursday 9th 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 10th january
ride starts under the narrows (sth perth side) at 5:30am
So what was the winning poem? 🙂