If you haven’t been to the Pemberton Classic for previous years, I would suggest this is the year to try. The Pemberton is a two-parter: Saturday afternoon Crit on a 1.5km course; and a graded Road Race through the hills around Pemberton on Sunday morning.
For this year the Crit event will make up part of The Ring Criterium Series – and that 1.5km course is something special. Through the middle of town starting right near the pub (WIN!), starting down a nice hill (WIN), nice wide berth through the fast right hander (photo opportunity – WIN), flat section around the back of town (WIN) then a sharp kick upwards to the sky (um….), continuing up past the pub (oh, not stopping AT the pub….) and uuuuuup over the start finish. She giveth and she taketh away. It’s a course that rewards the punchy power climbers and not so much the sprinters.
Pemberton Classic Road Race course.
The Sunday Road Race sees a sharp hit up Pump Hill Rd in the first km – a hill similar to Oceanic and Reabold – and rolling country hills with a fast descent back into town for another lap, or a left hander to the short sprint finish depending on your grades’ distance. It is a picturesque, challenging and fun route.
What makes this special is the town – there are bike frames hanging up all over town and every single local business sponsors this event – really. We couldn’t find a business in town that wasn’t on the supporters list of the program. It’s quite something. The hospitality of the town is spectacular, with a cracking pub menu (exactly what you need after a hard day’s racing) and any number of wineries, breweries and local producers to visit after the legs have cooled down.
Happy Birthday Poodle!
Check out last year’s Race Report HERE which also saw the debut of the SPR Van. The Pemberton Classic 2018 is on the March Labour Day Long Weekend, you get to ride your bike, and there’s a brewery – I’m in.
Registrations are scheduled to open this week, and with accommodation starting to book out for the long weekend, you should get in quickly. The SPR Race Committee will be there with the Van and the support kit of tents, flags, Jon Hanson’s exceptional stories and Poodle’s squeaking turkey. I can assure you that you won’t be disappointed.
A new venue was on show for Renae’s Race this year, and the Midvale Speed Dome course is sensational, having been used for the Mid-Week Madness series this year. Renae’s Race is run in memory of the late Renae Baker, and is and always has been supported by Renae’s family – brother Craig again attended for the prize presentation. It does make for slightly different and more thoughtful day out racing. It’s also The Women’s Day. The blokes get a token support run and nothing more, and it makes for a great event that way. Perhaps another one each year…..?
Renae’s Race was a late burner, and with a big push late in and a recce session offered by Davina Summers (and a generous race entry extension too!) SPR has filled over 50% of the race entries on the day. BOOM!
Punch it.
Men’s Support was a mixed bag of D though A grade racers, with the Dome Boys dropping watts and pain for 30 mins on the also rans. Unfortunately Bernie Swart ran off on the final corner, and left all his left knuckles behind on the track. Be aware if eating and perusing the Dome Racing FaceBook page. Andrew Ballam picked up 2nd and Race@SPR pipped a Steven Bradbury 3rd. Men’s A grade was a belter. Only 6 finished and 3 were clear for nearly the whole race and Steve Hall took the win.
But the reason we were there – Chicks racing Chicks. What. A. Day. Some of the best, most exciting, unpredictable, animated, tightly contested racing we’ve seen locally. And this was a group of less regular cycle racers! Ladies – it was a genuine pleasure to watch your contests. All we needed to do was bring the cowbells.
Davina – Chaperone and Coach
Women’s D grade. Just 5 seconds separated 1st from 5th in a race that was shadowed and coached on-the-fly by Davina Summers. Live race coaching on attacks, moves, counter moves. The feedback on Davina’s was really positive, and some of those legs now BELIEVE they can punch and attack, though some of us already suspected…. From SPR, Debbie Bertolatti (hot off her first ToMR in 2017) took 2nd and Audrey Xie 3rd, with barely a breath back to Bree (don’t tell Mum) and Belinda.
Head down and bury.
Women’s C grade (vested interest statement) saw some solid racing. Sam, seemingly not knowing when to stop attacking, had enough punch in the tank and took a 3rd, Rebecca 4th. From 1st to 4th places, there was barely a second in it. But again the win went to young Emily Wiggins with a text book race. As Bec’s other half, watching the intensity of the group hitting the ramp into the Speed Dome was awesome and inspiring. And a little scary. Main 1 – watch out….. They’re coming to get you.
Go greeeeeeen!
Women’s B grade. And so it was that another Wiggins set the pace and remained the wheel to watch. Following in Green were Vanessa Johnson, Olesya Alutina and without fail, the newly engaged Laurensia Rosana (Congrats Jay…….and Polly!) giving one of the BEST pain faces in cycling. This group of Chicks absolutely hammered this race out, with a best lap time of over 40km/hr, and barely behind A grade Women!!!! Ferocious. Truly like wild animals. Vanessa seemed to be pace setting for ever over the final 6 or so laps, leading the front three in full Hammer-Time mode. As was the theme of the day, the first wheel through the final corner was to take the prize with Danica Wiggins winning, Olesya 2nd and a 3rd to Vanessa. Quite possibly the race of the day.
Dome Women, SPR Chicks, coming to Chick you on a group ride soon.
Women’s A grade displayed some of the best racers WA has to show. And with this being the Premier race in memory of Renae, these Chicks came to fight. The race was fierce (not Beyonce fierce – proper Viking Warrior FIERCE!) with a number of attacks going off, but getting reeled in steadily, noone allowing the wheels to get clear. The race saw the debut of the Dome Womens Racing Team, sadly meaning Amanda, Corrie and Michelle were no longer racing in the green. What a race to introduce yourselves in. The attrition rate was lower than in the Mens A Grade, but some late surging from the front saw a gap form with Robinson, Fillmore, Nabi, Mascaro, Mackey and the visting Ehler break the elastic to the rest of the peloton. And then it got faster. Several laps later the elastic broke again as Bec Mackey, Emily Mascaro and Desiree Erhler broke clear. The final lap saw some foxing start approaching the Speed Dome ramp, and the now 2 chasers Corrie and Amanda came within a sniff, but into the final corner, Erhler jumped and just stayed away from and fast closing Mackey and Mascaro, and Corrie hitting home to 4th just a further second back.
There was a special Thank You made at the presentations from Dan O’Donoghue for the SPR support on the day, given the impressive turnout we managed. Race@SPR thinks this is a pretty bloody good result. We saw new-to-crit-racing Debbie and returning-to-racing Audrey knock out a podium each, all of the SPR girls punching hard, pedalling their guts out. If anything, it proved that SPR Chicks are here to race and ready to rumble. Faye Dalglish-Jones has captured some awesome pics of the day, and they are upon FaceBook and some pilfered for here as well. Race@SPR do doth our caps to you, Chicks. You rock. The full results are available HERE.
Craig Baker, a man of few words, and this year no words, shows us that whilst we really like riding and racing bikes, there are bigger and more important things in life. We should support our local events that support local people and activities. Renae was part of our extended cycling family, and although most of us weren’t to meet her, this event is a reminder of how family-like we are.
Don’t tell Mum. No photos!Lucky 13!So, who’s leading me out? Not me!And then I attacked, and we laughed and laughed.B Grade Women podium. Zipper, as always.2/3 of C Grade winners, we’re missing a Wiggins!Deb and Audrey – new to the podium, but get used to it.Michelle – monstering it on one of about a million laps on front.Token, but blokes did get a few laps.
Personal and philosophical thoughts on the date of Australia Day aside (it’s not an opinion piece after all), the Aus Day Crits at Tech Park are a staple of Perth bike racing. This year’s event was a cracker. True to recent trends and form, the Women’s racing was an absolute highlight. The crowd that came out to support was loud and fun. Here’s how it went down.
SPR Chicks – big things to come from these ones.
Women’s D grade saw Debbie Bertolatti and Belinda Evans back up their recent form, but today weren’t able to contest the sprint – the SPR Green Army was still went nuts. Women’s C was empty of SPR Green this week, but true to this seasons trends we saw another Wiggins victory, Emily taking the win this race.
Missed it by THAT much.
Men’s D grade had Liam Walker top 10, and our old mate Chris Coote take the win – Chris has been our Moto Commissaire in the Beverley Handicap, and it’s great to see him back racing, although not so much at the expense of Green!
Business time.The Softer Side.
C grade men (as seen from inside the pack by Race@SPR) was by far and away the best “race” I’ve experienced in C grade. Bike skills have soared this year and made for really fun, fast and safe racing. A poorly timed, ill-considered – but by all accounts spectacular – attack launched too early saw the Mo flying at half-mast by the final, Yaro Volkov and Race@SPR crossing 11th and 12th, Ben Loader, Jon Hanson a little further back. Look out next race though….
ATTACK ATTACK ATTACK!!!!
B Women had no SPR this week, and few surprises, with another Wiggins victory to Danica. B grade men was a cracking race – attacks, chases and a huge finish. With Craig Denham, Dave Manners and Elar Kalda in the mix and animating throughout, the final lap saw Mr Manners come off (shoulder, skin and, sadly, bike damage) and get an ambulance ride. Craig and Elar took 5th and 6th respectively after Elar’s enormous workload. Again. If you cut him he’d bleed hydraulic fluid! It was a strong run out for SPR (in other kits too) with Darren Shanahan, Andrew Ballam (Dome), Wil Celis and Brian Saunders all in. The win went to young James Derrick and a well-deserved one too.
Calm before the storm. Mackey out front.
A grade Women presented a solid group of hitters – Robinson, Mascaro, Allen, Nolan, Mackey, NABI to name a few. It was a strong race with plenty of animation from Mel Robinson, but the win went to visitor Desiree Erhler with a huge sprint finish. A grade men brought out the big wattage, too. NRS racer Scott Sunderland, Stephen Hall and Tom McCracken taking 1st through 3rd. SPR’s Brian Sing held for 9th and Thom Perry (Dome) for 19th.
As it should be, I also want to recognise the SPR Green Army that stepped up to volunteer and assist on the days’ events: Peter Mah (no surprises there!!), Michelle McLintock, David Menarry, Faye Dalglish-Jones, Ross Boaden (albeit with only one arm), Craig Denham, Liam Donley and Liz Sheehan. Long gone are the days where el Prez does everything solo. Thankfully he now has fewer excuses to not ride more!
Next round of The Ring Series is in Bunbury at the new CBD circuit, fully closed to traffic on Sunday 4th February. See you there!
Photos: David Menarry and The Ring Series FaceBook page, published by Series sponsors Cycliq, as marked.
#Squad. Shade. Cowbells…..SPR Chicks United.Men’s B Grade start – it’s about to heat up.Men’s B Grade start – sadly not the same all-intact scene for Dave Manners by races end.Bernie Swart from Dome, with all his knuckles still in place. Wasn’t to be the same after Renae’s Race. OUCH!Elar. On the front. I mean, where else would you look for him?Men’s B Grade winner James Derrick asking if he can go on the front. I think Elar said “no”.el Prez on the job. Women’s A Grade winner Desiree Erhler was to take out Renae’s Race a few days later as well.
Not to push the point, we have enjoyed another wonderful year at the Women’s and Men’s Tour Down Under in #Radelaide. The women’s racing was exceptional, with some brutal climbs and hard fought sprint finishes. And the SPR #Radelaide Crew also caught up with old friend and current ITT World Champion Annemiek van Vleuten. As you do. And now it’s got us all primed for more racing here in Perth.
One of the big stories over in #Radelaide was that the SA State Government has added cash to the prize money for the Womens’ TDU to offer EQUAL PRIZE MONEY across both the women’s and men’s races. Awesome, right?
el Prez and the Queen of the Mountains.
Which brings us to………
Renae’s Race, Sunday 28th January.
This annual Criterium format race is THE race event where the Chicks (and not just SPR CHICKS) take centre stage. The race event is run in memory of Renae Baker, who was lost by her family and the greater WA Cycling Community way too early. The Baker family have supported this great Women’s event directly since its inception and are ever on hand to make the presentations to the winners.
For something new, this years’ event is being hosted the Midvale Speed Dome complex, moving away from the Tech Park site. The Midland course is fully closed to traffic (TICK), has a freshly finished face lift (TICK), some shaded areas to sit and watch the action (TICK) and is focused on Women’s racing for the day – Big Bloody Tick.
Some of the best Women riders have won Renae’s Race – State, Australian, Oceania and World Champions and Olympic medallists including Sharon Suckling, Emma Pooley, Josie Tomic, Jessica Allen, Amanda Nabi (yep, same one!) and Rebecca Mackey to name a bunch.
Former Renae’s Race winner and SPR friend Emma Pooley.
SPR Chicks, we need YOU! It’s a Public Holiday Long weekend so come and have some fun. There are more event details on the RCCC website here and on the Entry Registration page here.
Entries close Thursday night 25th January, so you only have a few days to organise.
When: Sunday, 28th January 2018
Where: Speed Dome, Eddie Barron Drive, Midvale
Entry Cost: $20 plus $5 transponder fee (BYO transponder available)
All registrations must be completed online, day licenses and three ride permits are available via Cycling Australia online.
Get on it, or get out and support!
Strong Women – SPR have been dispatching them since 2008!
The Annual SPR Christmas Ride and DOME Breakfast was hosted again this year, on Saturday 23rd December. For those that attended, thanks for helping us all celebrate another awesome year in green. Along with the decorated bikes, costumes and killer soundtrack on Main 1.1 (“Oooooooh, we’re half way there-ere…..”), we award our members for their efforts, results and sometimes their epic failures.
The SPR Social Committee put out to the membership a survey to find out what we thought were the highlights of our year 2017.
Social Committee Survey Awards.
Most improved rider and racer; a rider or racer who over the last year has made the greatest improvements in ability and skill.
Faye, just hangin’. With a World Champ.
Faye Daglish-Jones – Faye improved an enormous amount this year, riding smarter, in a better position and with much more confidence which has also shown up in her racing outcomes. She has competed in many events this year including Tour of Margaret River and Amy’s and she is a superstar up Stock Road.
Liz do be festive today!
Liz Sheehan – Liz… what a gutsy effort, in 4 months having almost never raced, she went from the nominating for Tour of Margaret River, to competing. Liz puts in a lot of training and never gives up.
Other Nominees:
Adam Ralph – Beverley ..ToMR …Amy’s. A general mountain goat
Andrew Williams – going up a hill like a demon now
Anna Lim – took on Tour de Gracetown and moving up to tackling the Sunday hills
Ashley Brown – worked hard and improved throughout the year
Belson Yong – Alias Mr Wobbly. Belson has been a steady improver since his beginnings at climbing hills. The very staccato peddling rhythm causing him to wobble everywhere. He has been a big improver and now does ride leading AND can present himself as a reasonable hill climber and coach to his wife Anna.
Bonner 2.0 – got on the Bonner train and never got off
Bree Mitchell – progressing and taking up ride leader program.
Claire Tyrrell – from aspiring MTB rider to placing 4th at Amy’s GF in age group, and regularly heading out in faster groups is a huge leap.
David Menary – become much stronger in the last 6 months
Debbie Bertolatti – great growth in climbing and endurance thru ToMR training. Massive effort at ToMR
David Jones – improvement and inspiring
Greg Jones – from not wanting to group ride to taking on being a Ride Leader
Jo McInnes – dramatic improvement over the last 2 years, going from a very nervous rider to tackling long distant events like Tour de Gracetown – Town finisher. Just keeps slogging away, working on her skills, speed and fitness
Josie Meyers – her consistency and she rode at Amy’s so well; joined SPR hills
Kate Bonner – growing in strength & confidence, from beginner to Dolomites in a year our if nowhere she’s dominating rides
Liz Leydon – fantastic improved rider
Meegan Fyfield – dedicated training has led to an amazing increase in strength fitness and capabilities this year. Just keeps getting better.
Sam Flockhart – has dedicated herself to training this year, getting fitter and stronger. Working FIFO, most of her training KMs are done far from home on a stationary bike – her self-discipline and dedication to train after working long shifts in order to achieve her goals are inspiring. Her feisty racing style and the Leederville crit made the race, and Sam the poster girl for The Ring series this year!
Steve Burns – new member, started at the back and now pounds it out at the front.
Tania Baharom – from 0 to 5 dams
Leigh in Black – it’s the new green.
Most inspirational rider: someone who has influenced you this year through their deeds or helped to motivate you to achieve more in cycling than you thought you could.
Leigh Outschoorn -Leigh is such an inspiration to all riders, always positive and encouraging and she qualified for Amy’s in style. She is dedicated to training and to the leadership program.
Make sure you get the good side.
Amanda Nabi & Andrew Ballam#banabi –
Amanda: for consistently showing grit and determination in training and racing, she digs deep and just keeps on taking it up a level, such as 4th and 6th places at the Worlds in Albi. She gets the results and is inspiring to ride with, always leading by example.
Andrew: rides hard and provides encouragement to others when the going gets tough. At the same time, he is always ready to help anyone even if it impacts his ride.
Other Nominees:
Al “Panda” Penaranda – came back after serious accident
Belinda Evans – bounced back with dignity, hard work and her big sense of fun from a very difficult year. She is hitting all-time PBs in TTs and pinning on numbers in Crits. She is always so supportive of other riders and racers, putting her had up to volunteer at the Beverley and ToMR as well as numerous other times over the year. She is so inspirational to other who have suffered health or other issues and spent significant time away from riding
Belson Yong – always there to lend a hand and offer advice
Claire Tyrell – Amy’s qual, then cape to cape, then ToMR just cause she can!
David Menarry – always pushes me and offers advice and encouragement. The “look” is all I need from David to know I need to get out of my comfort zone and try harder
Davina Summers – really made me face my fears, and now feeling a lot more confident on the bike
Dean Roser – simply an absolute gentleman by every measure, always helps the weaker riders and is as fit as a fiddle (good going at his age)
Debbie Bertolatti – always encouraging, I have watched and learnt from her and she is always so helpful and positive and supportive
Faye Daglish Jones – has achieved so much and has done it in style and always ready to help others. Peaks, Amy’s, ToMR, Ride Leader training
Fiona Hope – inviting me on our own shorter rides
Gary Boylan – for ‘results in excess of appearance award’ proving that looks mean SFA
Gary Pennefather – to be back riding in G2 on a Thursday is an amazing feat
Greg Murray – helped make the step up to racing feel more achievable.
Heiko Potzeldt – always willing to pull you out of your darkness
Jon Hanson – was so encouraging when I first started racing, always made me feel so at home at events several “Spartan” rides over 300km, trains harder than most everyone, ALWAYS has fun doing it and is a ‘king good bloke!
Josie Meyers – 3 Dams & Amy’s
Kat Buckley – always affirming of other riders, and always encouraging those around her to keep going and push harder
Mark D T. – Fat bastard rides better than me
Meegan Fyfield – for her commitment to training and constant improvement
Mike Bonner – never seems to get pissed off
Paul George – rides like a tank, all the time. Always on the front with a go hard or go home approach
Peter Mah – always helping others achieve their goals
Phil Stephens – his epic 300k Spartan rides are something I consider some of the best days on a bike ever.
Rebecca Kelly – always supportive
Rob Ramsden – Ride Leader Program is a fantastic achievement which delivers real benefits to the club; the work, time and effort put into a great ride leadership course. Also, FWRC organising, genuine Crumpet credentials and is riding super quick. Cool, calm and collected all the rides! ToMR; crits. Is there anything he can’t do?
Sarah Fitton – post cancer scare she has returned to training harder than ever and racing at close to a national elite level
Shane White – patient and very encouraging. Lovely man!
Smittons – their desire to hurt themselves is unsurpassed. From the Dirty Dozen to Fitton’s riding round the Vic outback to Smithy’s recovering from injury those girls are an inspiration
Tania Baharom – from 0 to 5 dams
Vanessa Johnson – nominated
Good Samaritans: someone who has taken an opportunity to help on the spur of the moment another cyclist in need.
Oh behaaaaaave! (Craig might be watching).
Liam Donnelly – For the donation of his bike to Bec Kelly so she could ride stage 4 of the ToMR after her bike was written off in a stage 3 crash. This allowed SPR Women’s 2 team to finish competitively and snatch 2nd in their division. This sacrifice meant Liam rode a borrowed bike for his last stage of the tour that was several sizes too big.
Dave, not sure whether to accept certificate from such a character……
Dave Menarry – Oh My God, this guy needs to stop helping everyone. He helps random cyclists with flats as well as SPR members. Not only that, despite injuries that prevented David from riding, he still went along to Amy’s event to provide as much support as possible.
Other Nominees:
Andrew Ballam – the Hand of Ballam – always prepared stop and give you a hand fixing a mechanical or give you a little assistance to get back into a bunch for always, always, always waiting & helping (me & others) especially in the hills; So many times he put others ahead of himself. Always helping all others in need.
Andrew (and Fiona) Williams – they were sold out as slave labour as ToMR Event staff to allow SPR to be allocated current World ITT Champion Annemiek van Vlueten, and made an awesome contribution to the overall event. Stopped to lift the saddle of his wife, Fiona Williams. Volunteer at ToMR and running around after all teams to make sure we had good races
Anna Lim – very helpful to new starters.
Belson Yong – really helpful and positive ride leader
Bryan Thurstan – for stepping in at the last minute to manage ToMR for the club
Dean Roser – pretty much every Ride, every day
Faye Daglish – always happy to offer a wheel
Ginny Donley- was nominated
Greg Murray – for 100 percent commitment to others
Heiko Potzeldt – who always helps and then inspires with his ability
Iain Dow – I have often seen Iain Dow offer help to cyclist within his group – a gentle push or even help other cyclists fix broken chains.
Leigh Outschoorn – what a gem of a lady, patient, giving and caring at all times, lots of love for the Trannies
Mark de Castro – recently encouraged & helped me complete hot short hills
Michelle Bonner – ToMR helper extraordinaire
Fiona (and Andrew) Williams – they were sold out as slave labour as ToMR Event staff to allow SPR to be allocated current World ITT Champion Annemiek van Vleuten, and made an awesome contribution to the overall event.
Pete Mah – So many times he put others ahead of himself
Peter Wilshaw – gave guidance with recovery and despite injuries preventing him from riding, still went to Amy’s event to provide as much support as he could
Rebecca Kelly – always offering a kind word; letting Kate Bonner take bike parts at ToMR
Rob Ramsden – aka Good Cop aka Crumpet
Whoever donated their bikes at ToMR for the SPR Womens 2 team.
Epic equipment or moment t award: something that sticks in your mind about a rider and/or their bike/gear that was so unusual, be that good or bad
Too soon?
Heiko Potzeldt (the Panzerwagen) – A clear winner for his Isadora Duncan moment when his gilet fell into the rear derailleur on Amy’s Grand Fondo. Heiko had to abandon the race to peel out the pieces of his gilet.
Coming to an SPR jersey near you soon.
Ben Thorman – too many to mention but includes the wheelie up Mur De Hay ToMR, and riding Stockies on a Wednesday morning with Nico Brungger, a Pro cyclist who was not known to any of the riders that morning. Ben cracked after the 4th climb, with Nico not breaking a sweat…Ben later commented, “I was sure I would have cracked him….”
Other Nominees:
Al “Panda” Penaranda – most injury sustained in one fall….. softy.
Andrew Ballam – Rumplestilskin (who could spin straw into gold); breaking so many bikes he now has Velosure gold status; Ridding his TT bike in the Worlds with a crack held together with duct tape!
Anna Lim – having a Cinderella moment – no shoes.
Ashley Brown – demonstrating pace lines with spoons
Bec Kelly – bike ready for Stage 4 ToMR.
Brian Sing – quick enough tube change in a race to stay in A grade contention during a time trial. Sub 20sec tyre off with bare hands.
Cate – stung by a bee -lost pearl diamond earring. Went back for it. Spent an hour combing the narrows bridge. Found all three parts – she could go home to her husband then!
Dave Menarry – winged appearance at Amy’s; spectacular dismount during Amy’s GF training, but didn’t quite execute the landing.
Faye Daglish-Jones – no longer wears a high-vis vest.
Greg Murray’s moustache.
Greg Prosser – Mission Impossible. This bike will self-destruct in 5 seconds.
Greg Murray – 100 mile fixie attempt at Beverley after being the legend of the preceding weeks to organise the Road Race. Legend.
Julian Johnson – Skippy the Bush Kangaroo – for an incredible early morning hit on VP Julian Johnson on the Zig Zag road. What’s that Skip? You nailed him good?
Peter Lander – for his outlandish Polish & Russian cycle tops, as well as his colour coordinated (orange) shoes & bike.
Sarah Smith – bang for buck the biggest damage done to ones’ body in a single crash with her broken leg, and now sporting more metal than a l’Eroica bike event.
Shane White – riding the last stage of TOMR with a damaged derailleur.
ToMR Womens 3 team – getting kits from Annemiek van Vleuten.
ElPrez Awards
Completely at the discretion of el Presidente, Mr Peter Mah , and awarded for contribution to SPR over the year:
Racer Boyz and lights.
Jon Hanson, Race Committee, ToMR racer and ToMR Team Manager (until 2 days before!)
Greg Murray, RD for SPR’s Beverley Road Race, Race Committee
Race Committee Awards
The SPR Race Committee has discussed, deliberated and arbitrarily awarded (as only the APRC can!) our Racers awards this year.
Best SPR Female racer 2017 (predominantly in SPR kit)
The consolidated points of Corrie Fillmore and Corrie Johnstone took The Element Series for A grade Women.
Our nominees are:
Amanda Nabi – because #banabi
Louise McKay, Vanessa Johnson – both have stepped up grades this year and consistently improved.
Corrie Johnstone nee Fillmore – winning.
Sarah Fitton – East Coast chapter hitting podiums having done lots of training dragging around Smithy all year long.
Winner – Corrie Johnstone (nee Fillmore). Actually, we allowed the results for both Fillmore and Johnstone to count!
Best SPR Male Racer 2017 (predominantly in SPR kit) –
Our nominees are:
Elar Kalda – 2nd The Element Series in B grade
Michael Bonner – Mr Worldwide
Stuart Gee – Strong consistent very near misses through the Road Race season.
Winner Elar Kalda. Season-long consistency.
A familiar sight – Elar, out front, hurting himself, but hurting the other B graders more.
Most Improved SPR Racer 2017
Our Nominees are:
Ashley Brown, Liz Sheehan – stepping up to eventual ToMR representation.
Mike Madsen – winner of The Ring Series 2017 E grade.
Jiyoen Kwan – The Element Road Series win for Women’s C grade
Meegan Fyfield – contested C grade racing through the season with some strong results and a consistent gain.
Meegan surprised. Not so the rest of us, Megs.
Adam Ralph (top 10 at The Beverley, qualifying at Amy’s GF and division winner ToMR.); Leigh Outschoorn (qualifying for the Worlds at Amy’s GF), Clare Tyrrell (4th in 19-34yo Amy’s GF). Each stepping up to more road racing, contesting The Beverley, and ToMR.
Winner – Meegan Fyfield. This award made for a difficult choice, but a consistent improvement throughout the season in speed and race craft saw Meegan win out. But not by much!
Best SPR Racers’ Crash 2017 – wiping out the competition and their season.
We have tried to be lighthearted about these, but only after the fact. There’s no doubt we have seen some spectacular and damaging incidents in the list here, but we are happy to report all have been on the mend successfully.
Our Nominees are:
Stuart Gee – 6 ribs, collarbone, and massive bruising after getting collected by a car in KP.
Sarah Smith – spiral fracture of her tibia and fibula failing to cleanly un-clip, whilst exiting a Margaret River winery, no less. Permanent metal work now in place – a carbon upgrade was not available.
Greg Murray – dislocated shoulder, 3 weeks. Hang on, that was just left on the template. He doesn’t qualify…..
Louise McKay – capsizing on the TT rig with excellent photos captured, whilst following THE SMOOTHEST wheel in the club.
David Menarry – Amy’s GF training ride, collarbone.
Andrew Ballam – a late but brave entry after a quiet year, stopping with his face last week in The Ring B Grade criterium.
Winner – Peter Wilshaw. A broken pelvis suffered near the home straight of Collie Donnybrook. Won partially because he can actually put socks on again. But mostly because it was in the heat of battle.
And the iPad Winner is………..
This year there was a draw for a brand spankin’ new iPad for those that took the time to complete our SPR Club survey, and put their name to it. And the iPad went to:
DAN CROSBY – absent on the day, but CONGRATULATIONS!
Thanks for a great Xmas Ride and a fantastic year SPRouleurs.
Photo Gallery
Come and sit on Santa’s lap.Crew – strong as Bru.Graham, out-kitted for today.Where’s Wally? That massive wally is right there in the hat! To the left……Come hither, sexy cycle person.El(f) Prez and Busted Up Santa.MC G-Ho-Ho-Ho. Ruler of Stage and Sound.Santa, Incognito.SPR Committee, post “Living on a Prayer” roll throughs.Hey Santa – Bro Bro Bro.Strivers.Matchy Matchy Matchy.“Tickets Please!” Bonner Train fares are due to be enforced in 2018 with Transit Cops on a crack down.Ooooh, your face isn’t busted up. Niiiice.Williamseseseses. Bestest Mates of Race Committee for their tireless volunteering. And being whored out for a World Champ. And clearly not reading the weather forecast before choosing winter kit for the day.Say Cheeeeese! Or, just eat the cheese.My antlers bring all the Boyz to the yard.Wally, Williamseseses and “Casual-Friday” Santa.Post ride Saturday is Dome Westralia Plaza Cafe time Thanks Dome – you guys rock.Share? We don’t play well with others.
As my team rolled into the start grid for stage four of the Tour of Margaret River, it was a miracle we were all there. Our cracking third stage was not without its casualties – Kate Bonner and Rebecca Kelly were both taken out of the race after spectacular crash about 14km in.
But stellar performances from Ali Ramm, Leigh Outschoorn and Katheryn Dines on the final climb of stage three (with me lugging myself up just behind them) saw our team win the stage. This left us just two points behind the leaders Busselton Cycle Club and two points ahead of Veris Womens Development going into stage four.
We were hungry for a win, and we knew our chances would be greatly diminished without a full squad.
The SPR community was in full force during the short break between our third and fourth stage to get us all on the road for our final team time trial.
SPR stalwarts Daniel Harvey, Andrew and Fiona Williams and Mike Masden made it their mission to find a solution and SPR Women’s 1 ring-in Stef van Amerongen came through with her mechanics skills.
Liam Donley didn’t hesitate to lend Rebecca Kelly his bike, despite the fact he had his own time trial to race with SPR Men’s 3 (which he did on Jordan Brock’s bike, kindly donated for Annemiek Van Vleuten’s friend Kim).
This is, apparently, how Bonner v2.0 warms up.
Kate Bonner’s bike had more than a few things wrong with it after it hit the deck at 30km/h – a broken front rim, cracked crank, misaligned gears and bent bars. None other than the WM3 Pro Cycling Team mechanic managed to get Kate’s bike close to roadworthy. With a few parts from the pro Dutch team’s van and from Rebecca’s half-broken bike Kate was ready to race.
If we had learnt anything from our countless team time trial practices in the lead up to TOMR and on stage one, it was communication is the key to a good TTT.
I’m really not sure. I got nothin’.
With three days of hard racing and over 160km in our legs, we agreed to warm up on the first 10km and wind it up from there. Our star time trialist Ali Ramm led us out up the first hill and we followed on with short and sharp turns, with the occasional extended effort from our star climber Kate Bonner.
Each team member lifted to put in their best performances and with continual calling of ‘up’ and ‘down’ we were able to maintain a solid pace during the undulating stage.
About halfway in we realised the saddle bag on Rebecca’s (well, Liam’s) bike was hanging off the frame dangerously close to the rear tyre, so we came to a standstill to quickly rectify that.
Kate Bonner was our first to pop about 32km in, with broken gears making the journey too frustrating. We powered on and into the last 10km of the race Katheryn Dines had turned herself inside out one too many times and dropped off the back.
The four remaining riders, we put our heads down and focused on the task at hand – getting to Nannup as fast as possible and finishing an extremely taxing three days. Leigh, Ali, Rebecca and I gunned it around the last corner and over the finish line at Nannup to be greeted by several cheering SPR club members.
As we waited for our team members to cross the line we were filled with emotion and exhaustion.
We didn’t find out the result until at least an hour later at the presentations. Sadly, Veris had a super fast time trial (despite being one woman down) and had taken out the win. Our time was one minute slower than Veris’ and one minute ahead of Busselton Cycle Club’s.
We finished the TOMR in second place by just one point, but with the knowledge we had given it our all. We are all extremely grateful for the SPR spirit which shone brightly during TOMR and we would like to say a huge thank you to our team volunteer Michelle Bonner.
There’s no ï”in team. But there is an AvV.Another ITT World Champ, Emma Pooley. Have W2 moved on from Annemiek already?So, what’s the ride route?Bonner v2.0 with strong bidon matchy matchy game.Must. Eat. More. Stem.Smiling on the finish line? Must have had some left in the tank. 😉Hey Kim, that kit looks familiar.Bonner v2.0. Part mountain goat, part human.Looking strong, Mrs.Spin it out, Claire.Women’s Division L Hitters unite. Dutch Pro’s bringing the world together.Imposters – they’re not SPRouleurs!A hot day at the office.
Stage 4 (Balingup to Nannup) is final stage of the TOMR event, it is the team time trial, that starts not long after 71km road race which had a very brutal hilltop finish (think 3 mount streets).This stage has an elevation profile 457 m of rolling hills (nearly 8 Stockies). It is after lunch time now and the weather has gone from cool/over cast to toasty!
The power of team, started long before this race, through the training time with my ‘teamies’, Jen (captain), Sam (v/captain), Meegan (the power house) and Skip (tough as nails), along with our coach Davina who put a lot of effort into each of us. This combination, took me from being absolutely terrified of peddling down Lovekin in Kings Park to grinning from ear to ear.
However the super star of ‘team’ had to be Annemiek! That is, Annemiek van Vleuten, 2017, world time trial champion, wow, what an amazing individual, intelligent, fun, high energy not to mention a seriously good cyclist. Beerlinda, our volunteer, was also amazing, doing a different kind of pedalling for us, organising some pretty challenging logistics, and keep us constantly entertained.
The team started the race enthusiastically powering up the first hill. We were rolling through beautifully. At 10km point, I started to regret my lunch time food choices and the minimal time to digest it. I am not the strongest in the team, so this stage, I had to dig deep. My teamies knew I was suffering, they took longer turns at the front and constantly talked me up (I couldn’t speak)! Then we’d spot another team in front and we’d get excited (it was like a red rag to a bull) and a welcomed distraction. We did get the opportunity to pass a couple of other teams, and definitely benefited having Annemiek in the team, protecting us when it counted. She was constantly breaking it down (so that no matter how much it hurt, there was an end point) – I clearly remember hearing only 15 minutes to go, thinking yes I can do this.
The last 100m, seemed like the longest 100m, I couldn’t see any markers telling us how far to go, until we hit the sharp right turn.
Crossing the finish line was an awesome feeling, the SPR crew cheering everyone as if they are world champions (oh wait, we did have one with us).
Çause when you is World Champ, you gotta be workin’.Finally some shade. Start of Stage 4, final TTT.Warm up in SPR Village.Lean in, smile, pretend it doesn’t hurt so much.When the World #1 wants a selfie, you’ve got to oblige.For the record, Poodle’s signature is worth nothing.GOOOOOOO FAAAAAAAAAAAYYYYYYYYYE!Annemiek, setting the pace, Faye doesn’t look so sure!Stage 2 approaching the finish.In the drops, power down, camera to the right. Got this.Sprint.Everyone’s a winner, Baby, That’s no lie.Go team.
Just to break up the happy happy news from ToMR this year lies a story from Stuart Gee of a near miss in competing at this year’s Tour, but a direct hit into the side of small sedan. Over to Stuart…..
Warning: post contains some mild injury pics.
Stuart (0) v Hyundai (1)
I was very much looking forward to the upcoming summer season of cycling. The Tour of Margaret River (ToMR) was just a few days away, followed by ATTA’s series of time trial events headed by my favourite, Brookton Highway ‘Hilly’ 49 km TT. But first, Tuesday’s ride in King’s Park. The day began well enough, catching up with ToMR team mate Mark De Castro on the bikepath at South Perth as he also headed to the park for his group training session.
Kings Park is one of my favourite places in Perth to run/ride and since 1977 when I began running there I have done countless kilometres along the many tracks and roads that weave their way through the bushland. As I neared the completion of my third lap around Lovekin Drive/May Drive a car suddenly attempted a U-turn right in front of me, and I knew the day was not going to end well. I yelled “NOOOO’” as I slammed into the driver side of the car.
Prone on the ground, I was angry, very sore and did not want to move. Somebody said to relax, did the traffic accident tips and that they had called for an ambulance, which arrived soon, I think. The paramedics checked for serious injury (neck, back and head) but none seemed evident. Before the painful loading onto the stretcher I was able to phone Yvonne to let her know what had happened, and exchange phone numbers with a witness. My bike (damage unknown) was taken away for safe keeping by the park ranger. I
Fortunately, Sir Charles Gairdner Hospital (aka Charlies) is adjacent to the Park and so after about a dozen X‑rays and two sets of CT scans, confirming six broken ribs and fractured scapula, I found myself dosed up in ward G62. I can’t say there were many humorous moments during the whole process, but the remark by one of the nurses upon seeing the amount of dirt, bark and leaves on my clothing and stretcher that there can’t be much bush left in Kings Park brought a smile to my bloodied face. Apparently after colliding with the car I ‘face-planted’ on the somewhat softer road verge.
At 11:20pm that night I was awoken by the resident orthopaedic surgeon to give me an update on my injuries, and options for recovery: either choose surgery the following day for which a decision was required early next morning, or allow the fractured scapula to heal without intervention. I favoured the surgery option despite the associated risks and after discussion with doctor friends and family, that’s the option I chose. Fasting needed to commence immediately because the actual time of surgery was uncertain and could be ‘any time’ the next day. As it turned out, fasting lasted over 20 hours until ‘anytime’ 3:30pm. After surgery, I woke at about 5:30pm to learn that the procedure to install two plates in my shoulder and clean-up the damaged ligaments went well, and I was soon transferred back to my ward. When it comes to injuries, one can get help even for slip and fall injury if there is a missing a wet floor sign.
The following two days in hospital were filled with ’obs’, reading, sleeping, responding to many messages of goodwill, and medicating. It was impressed upon me many times by the staff at Charlies that pain must be 100% managed so as to be able to breathe deeply and cough, so that the risk of contracting pneumonia is minimised. Message received! Even so, I dreaded a sneeze or big cough which would certainly score 10/10 on the pain scale!
The discharge process on Friday afternoon was welcome and painless, and the bag of medications for the forthcoming two weeks homestay was impressively large. It needs to be mentioned that although there is much talk of cost-cutting, turmoil and unhappiness in WA’s health sector, the service I received through the whole incident was absolutely brilliant.
The first weekend recovering at home was largely spent reading and wondering how SPR M1 team mates Andrew Lilley, Elar Kaldar, John Carnicelli, Andrew Ballam, Mark De Castro and Craig Denham were faring in the ToMR at Nannup. I’m not sure who was in the least pain over the race days, but I certainly know where I wish I was! Our team practice sessions suggested we were a well-knit team with good prospects of going more than OK, but it was the actual riding and ‘team’ experience that I was most looking forward to. I chose products from https://www.stealthbelt.com/contact. It had been many years since I had last ridden the tour – I last did it when the format consisted of quiz night and handicap points for age, maybe just maybe contributing to the success we had then.
Well, ToMR Tour has come and gone, likewise lawyers and police crash investigation, and I still have another week at home. Son Brendan returned my beloved old Cervelo R3 framed bike on Sunday (12th). Inspection revealed rear derailleur/hanger damage and minor scrapes and scratches – no surprises there. More serious though is a fractured left chain-stay which will likely cause the frame to be ‘written off’. Formal assessment for other damage and cracks is yet to be done, but needless to say I’m looking for a replacement frame/bike! Hopefully, I will be on the trainer soon and back on the road before Christmas. Sadly , the TT season is now shot to bits!
Thank you to the many get-well wishes and helpers, without whom my recovery would be significantly more arduous.
For the Mens 3 team (Dave Menarry, Dan Harvey, Ray Martin, Mark Tancell, Liam Donley, Rosemary Reid and Craig Duarte), Stage 3 really began at the dinner table the night before the actual stage itself, where we were discussing team tactics.
It was at roughly that point when Dan received an email from the Womens 1 team informing us of their reconnaissance drive of the Stage 3 finish – “its worse than the write up, 12% average, peaking at 20%, oh no, world is coming to an end”.
Panic began to set in. We don’t like hills, and by that logic we don’t like climbing walls either. Being a scientific lot, we set about implementing our “friction reduction” plans – clean chains, clean bikes, pump tires, etc – anything to make the stage end “easier”.
I focused on “fuelling the machine” by eating leftovers from a couple of days earlier, ordering Connoisseur Cookies and Cream ice cream (thanks again Rosemary for picking this up) and sucking down beetroot juice – my potent food combo for any effort the next day.
Dinner was then had, followed by an early night given the 5.30am departure time the next day. I am pretty sure we all had an uneasy sleep thanks to the Womens 1 email.
The moral: Psych-outs work. Don’t listen to Womens 1.
The Warm-ups
Warming up. When it’s already 36 in the shade.
I noted that some of the team (Liam, Ray and Dave) really liked a structured and quiet warm up on trainers, whilst Mark and I preferred a short chatty ride out and back. Mark enjoyed telling his story (repeatedly) of how he rode with Luke Durbridge to close a gap between groups on the previous stage. He also said “he took him on the hill” – whatever that means – so ask him about that at coffee next time.
The moral: Misery loves company. Bring good conversation for the ride.
Race Time
From my perspective the start seemed to go okay, with a gentle uphill to the first climb. Dave had a little more work to do having to manage a mechanical on the start line, and then solo TT back to the group. We both stuck with the main peloton over the first climb and settled in for the long haul to the wall at the end.
Fatigue from the previous days racing was setting in and Liam, Ray and Dan became separated from Dave and me on the first climb. They thankfully elected “to catch the Durbo-express” to bridge back into the game a short while later.
Black and white. Even better than tubeless.
Meanwhile Mark had a flat… and another flat… and another flat… and the Durbo-express wasn’t waiting… Durbo must not have wanted to “get taken on the hill” again is the only reason I can think of here.
At this point I must point out that I used tubeless tires for this event – yeah – that’s right. On the previous 2 stages I had a flat post the stage being completed, however the goo sealed the leak easily. Mark had taken notice of this and was now asking for $1 each time I pinched my tire to ensure it was inflated – I think I owe him quite a bit as a result.
As Murphy’s Law would have it, Mark had 3 flats on the stage with his clinchers! Tubeless 1, Clinchers 0, but who’s keeping score? Give tubeless a try is what I say. Kudos to Mark though for carrying so many inner tubes, persisting with the change outs, and then soloing to the finish!
As for peloton riding – this was the first time I have ridden in a group of say 30-40 people. I was somewhat nervous of this when I signed up for the tour and I did lose a little sleep over this issue in the run in to the event. However, once you are going, the fear disappears as you realise you are riding with other capable riders. For the future SPR TOMR riders who are worried about this aspect, I would say not to let this hold you back – it’s a mental thing.
The morals: Don’t deny technology, embrace it – Try tubeless.
Riding is mental. You need to confront your fears to overcome them.
The Wall…Or Was It?
Mark on the Ballingup climb to the finish. No photo has yet done this brutal finish justice.
The goings on at the bottom of the final climb cannot be logically explained, lest to say the Womens 1 recon email from the previous day reached other non-SPR riders and fully psyched them out. What sticks in my memory was that as we came to the climb, some riders put on the brakes, got off their bikes and elected to walk up the climb. WHAT THE …?
Mens 3 smashed that climb – simple as that. I cannot remember the pain. Ray was described as climbing “Contador-style!” We all looked like we were suffering less than the other non-SPR riders, which was a good thing. We weren’t the weakest there, and were stronger mentally than many.
The moral: Don’t overthink things as you will come to a standstill. Spend that energy pushing on up the hill.
Bike Exchange
This was one of the standout moments from the stage – Liam gave up his bike to Bec just prior to the Stage 4 TTT back to Nannup and rode Jordan’s bike instead. This exchange required the quick mechanical skills of Andrew Williams to swap cranks, seat posts and other bits of kit. Amazing teamwork and commitment to the cause to get a fellow rider back into the game.
Final Remarks to Mens 3:
What a great bunch of guys – different abilities, quirks and ways of doing things -all coming together as a team and succeeding was an awesome experience. To take out 3rd on the first TTT was a highlight. Also, special thanks to Rosemary, who made sure we were all taken care of – it would not have been as successful without her support. Again, well done to all, and hopefully we’ll do it all again soon.
Did Ray attack on the wrong stage?Have numbers, will race.Pipped him on the line, Craig for the win!Daniel crunching numbers. Big numbers, Treasurer style.Cross the line, find shade, rehydrate.Ray, Ray, hot day.Liam, always ready for the camera.Coupla legends………. and here comes another one.And another! Requisite Annemiek photo.And now we’re done. Stage 4 Team Time Trial finish. And don’t they know it.Fuel for champions.When in Rome….Nutrition to go, please. Simmo’s. Saving lives.The REAL story of ToMR, right here…..
…. and here.Team mates that race together…….. let’s leave it there.
To fully understand ToMR Stage 3, it’s tactics and how it was raced we need to start from the very beginning. For men’s 1 team the first team time trial was executed perfectly and set the tone for the rest of the weekend. Mark de Castro put up a massive fight. Taking the Division B win on day one (with a bit of luck) was somewhat of a surprise and yet no surprise at all. Then, having had The Element road race season it was quite interesting to approach Stage 2 in Division B from the statistical analysis point of view – who has been strong throughout the season on which races and trying to map their strengths and weaknesses to the “Kandalee Catapult” course.
Andrew Ballam literally simplified and summarised the main objective for Stage 2 with a single sentence: “Ride as hard as we possibly can and hope for the best!” Made sense and so we did. Elar sprinted to fourth, John took an honourable sixth after attacking Kandalee climb and contesting for the KOM, Andrew B. crossed the finish line as the third rider 3 minutes 39 seconds later locking in second place in the Division B classification.
This is how we enter Stage 3. King KOM Race team started to show its true colours by taking maximum points from Stage 2 since two of their riders managed to place themselves between main bunch and Andrew. Their strongest rider was clearly unbeatable whenever the road goes up. The big question in my mind was what can be done to make sure three SPR riders are as close to the front when we hit the last Mur de Hay climb on Stage 3.
Two perspectives emerged – keep the team as close to the front as possible or go with a break. Using WorldTour racing as a guide everyone has probably seen how teams go completely berserk before the major climbs to bring their protected rider to the start of the climb in the best possible position. Every small gap means extra energy spent for the chasers which could be decisive. Another tactic was to try to establish a break, put decent time on the peloton and hope the gap is still present at the finish line. Andrew Lilly was ready to give everything to drive the pace. I was ready to ride as hard as necessary to hold off the attacks and protect John and Andrew B. while hoping to establish a break. Or in other words (from Andrew B. again) ride as hard as possible.
Have to admit and hopefully everyone agrees that this was probably one of the most awesome races amongst “B graders” in recent memory. Assertive, full of attacks with occasional lull moments (to produce more attacking), team tactics and individual heroics. Even one of the female pro’s attacked 🙂 Unfortunately none of the breakaway attempts succeeded. Most of them where quickly brought back by a single King KOM Race team rider. Keeping everyone together was inevitably the best possible outcome for them. But looks like the idea to keep the pace high and keep SPR team close to the front still worked – no one got dropped and everyone was in a good position.
When the road tilts up like Mur de Hay it’s every man for himself! Brutally honest comparison of the fit and agile sportsmen. You know it’s bloody hard when you feel like someone is squeezing your throat and the body is running out of oxygen. Unbelievable how much pain and suffering your body and mind goes through in just 800 meters. History books will mark that Division B win was decided on Mur de Hay climb on that day. SPR Men 1 lost the overall Division B by 1.
SPR Men 1:
891 Andrew BALLAM
892 Giovanni CARNICELLI
893 Mark DE CASTRO
894 Craig DENHAM
895 Elar KALDA
896 Andrew LILLEY
All business at the start line for Mens 1.Precision, pace, pain face.Andrew Lilley, relief.John Carnicelli taking a lazy third on stage, and making it look easy!Ballam. That is all.DeCastro at speed – no effects in this image!Ballam, no doubt looking for Nabi already.Statistics show two out of three SPRouleurs plan to start Stage 4. Ur, el Prez?Aaaaaaaaaaand we are done, pretty sure Elar knows it.Pretty sure they cannot get up off the floor. The boys went within seconds of taking the win in Division B, but got the Silver. Stunning result, especially looking at the competition they were up against. Nice work, Gents.
If you haven’t been to the Pemberton Classic for previous years, I would suggest this is the year to try. The Pemberton is a two-parter: Saturday afternoon Crit on a 1.5km course; and a graded Road Race through the hills around Pemberton on Sunday morning.
