Self Righteous Cyclist

Our family's summer holiday this year was to the mid-north coast of NSW to a little place named Boomerang Beach, about 20km south of Forster, the original home of the Australian Ironman triathlon for my triathlon friends.  With quiet undulating and winding roads in the hinterland it's great cycling country, similar in many ways to the back roads of Lorne, in my home state of Victoria.  The local popularity of cycling was evident to the large numbers out early on Sunday morning and the large number of bikes on the roofs of cars.  Unfortunately with a fully loaded car  and no roof racks I was not one of them. But just because I didn't have a bike, doesn't mean I don't have a cycling story to tell.  Yesterday on my commute back to Melbourne ahead of the family to get back to work, I had time to kill in the town of Raymond Terrace, just north of Newcastle.  The last thing you expect to see in the food court of the local shopping centre is a touring bike. In...

As my eldest son Matthew keeps reminding me, I haven't posted on this blog since March, so an update is well over due. Yes I've still been riding and doing a few other things in between. In October I ran my 9th Marathon and came home with a PB which was very satisfying. My wife Paula also ran her first half marathon using a training plan I put together for her based on the Furman Institute of Running and Scientific Training (FIRST) program. For the last 3 years I've been listening to a mate of mine Tamas talk about his annual trip to Lorne to join a few friends for an adventure race. So about 8 weeks ago while tapering for our respective events I suggested that we enter as a team in the Lorne Anaconda Adventure Race a 50km unsupported event consisting of a 1.9km ocean swim, 13km ocean paddle, 15km trail run, 18km mountain bike (MTB) ride and a 1.2km beach run to finish off with. Both of us had done triathlons and team events before but nothing like this. How many eve...

After my last post I reflected on the cruel irony that it was two of the lesser fines, Failure to give way - $183 and Car door hazard - $122, which actually posed more danger to me on my daily commute.  Three news stories days later provided some perspective that the law enforcers and the Victorian state government are taking shared road use seriously and another revealed the law to be an inadequate consequence to the dangers posed by drivers to cyclists. It was promising to read Bicycle Victoria’s report on Operation Halo , which targeted dangerous deeds of pedestrians, cyclists and drivers users in Police Service Areas in Melbourne and hit them where it hurts.  Hopefully it’s enough to positively change long term behaviours of those fined and warned.  Like all good research, it would be great to see a similar operation repeated in 12 months time to see whether there is a measurable change in the attitude of all road users. A recent story in The Age online in recent da...

Lots of press in Victoria in the recent month about cycling and responsible road use, which occasionally pitted self righteous drivers Vs self righteous cyclists.  As self righteous as I am, I aspire to do the right thing on the road regardless of whether I'm on two wheels or four.  The Age on the 7th Feb provided its readers with a refresher on the legal obligations of cyclists and drivers alike. Here's a run down and the contribution you'll be making to state revenue should you get busted. Cyclists Must Not Ride without an approved Helmet - $153 Ride without lights - $153 per light Ride without a bell or a horn - $153 Carry a passenger on a bike illegally $122 Ride more than two abreast $122 Fail to give way to a pedestrian $122 Drivers Must Not Present a car door hazard $122 Stop in a bike area at traffic lights $244 Drive in a bike lane $244 Fail to give sufficient distance when overtaking $244 Fail to give way when turning if a cyclist is travelling straight ahead...

Let's get this clear, this topic has nothing to do with me going out to my man cave, gloving up and lovingly applying generous amounts of lubricant to my chain, followed by a vigorous rubbing of the chain with a rag to remove it and the built up road grime followed by a leaner coating of lube and another wipe.  That's called maintenance and should be done at least every 100 to 150kms to keep your drive train clean and to maximise the life of my chain. One of the great things I like about riding is .... the whole bike community which is instantly joinable when you find yourself at the lights admiring someone else's ride, complementing them on their steed or engaging in small talk of where they're riding from and to.  It's one of the few modes of transport where it's completely acceptable to start a conversation with a complete stranger and there's a strong chance they'll  reciprocate.  In my teens the presence of a road bike at our cam...

We've had a few hot days recently here in Victoria so no better time than now to reflect on how to successfully manage our bodies while exercising or competing in warmer conditions.  I recently dug up an article I wrote for a Tri club magazine about 10 years ago and thought it might provide some fodder for the blog.  The trial sought trained male athletes to be involved in a study of the affects of heat on muscle during exercise, which is relevant  now that we are coming into summer. First up was a VO2 ( http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vo2_max ) test on an exercise bike.   During this trial the resistance on the bike increased every three minutes for the first nine minutes and then every minute for the remainder of the trial.   Basically you ride till you drop.   On the surrounding walls of the VUT lab at Footscray where the trial was held were photographs of the who’s who of Australian sport.   The " Oarsome Foursome”, Big Merv Hughes and the Aussie cr...

One of things which really stands out about cyclists is the strong tendency to look out for each other.  If you are out for a bunch ride and get a flat and have to pull over to change a tube, your mates riding with you are going to pull over and wait for you or even render assistance if it's needed.  If I'm riding solo, riders going past will often slow and ask if everything's ok and I'll do the same.  There's an instant trust, camaraderie and willingness to help because you are one of us which you just don't get if you're stranded in your car.  I've done it myself and just driven past someone in a car and it's not that I don't want to help, but mechanics is not my strong suit, it feels kind of creepy nowadays to help a complete stranger and the person seems to be on their mobile phone to their local roadside assistance provider. My Dad on the other hand is one of those people who will stop and render assistance.  A backyard mecha...