2016 Sydney Spring Cycle - 50km Classic Ride - Report
So yeah, I finally made it to the 2016 Spring Cycle. Only this time I had Cath, my work colleague ride with me. Also for the first time, two bikes that I built were in it! Cath rode the Centurion single speed and I rode my Thorn Nomad. So why you may ask did I not ride single speed? Well, truth be told this has been the most unfit time in my life and I did not want to push myself too much so i decided to play it safe and opted for the geared touring bike. With the Thorn being set up for touring there was more than enough gear options to tackle anything. Cath is much fitter than me so she used the single. I built it up and gave it to her as a present. I have too many bikes anyway!
Early Start - 5:30am meet up
Fortunately for us, our workplace is located about 10 mins from the finish line. So we decided to meet up at work early. Security let us in so that we could park securely. Having our cars handy meant that we could ride straight to them after the event, pack up and head home. This is what it looked like, dark and abit cold. Cath is trying to pin her ride number onto her shirt. Mine was attached to my handlebar bag. Because we had our ride numbers, we would get free train travel all day. So we cycled to the station which was only about 5 minutes away and then hopped onto the train to North Sydney.
Starting Line - 7am
Ready at the start line waiting for the bell. This was Cath's first ride of the spring cycle so she was very excited. I was a bit nervous as I had talked about it to her for the last couple of months as I had done it a few times in the past. But I was also a lot fitter then. I was pretty sure I was going to have trouble keeping up with her. But the morning turned out to be nice and cool with the weather forecast predicting a 29 degree day. It's always hot during the spring cycle.
First Stop at Halfway point - Refill water and toilet break
We decided to pass the very first stop of the ride as we were both feeling ok so we kept going. Then at the halfway point we stopped for a break. Cath had her hydration pack filled with coconut water which kept her going. I just had two bottles - one with powerade and the other with water. They were nearly empty so i refilled them. Then we both had to use the loo too. I had brought along some Endura gels which were a few months past their expiry date. Cath had a coffee one and I had a grape one. They were both revolting but gave us a bit of a to keep going.
Finishing at Olympic Park
We stopped a couple of times more, mainly because a bolt from my fender had come loose so I had to tighten it. Also I wanted to take more pics. But in the end we managed to get to the finish line celebrated with a well deserved free giant banana and some Korean food which consisted of some marinated pork belly, chips and salad!
Results!
So at the end of the ride we had our stats as we both use 'Map My Ride' which gave us distance, times, average speed etc. We also got given a medal for our efforts which was a nice little addition to the end of the ride, and it was still morning! So much of the day left!
Official 2016 Spring Cycle Photos!
So here are some of the pics. As usual Epsom Road Studios have done the photography. First one is just before the bridge, second one is after the bridge where I was explaining to Cath where the photographers would be and the third is crossing the finish line. Man I need to lose some weight. It was the first spring cycle where I had ridden the longest distance on my touring bike and also Cath rode the Centurion single speed that I had built. Awesome!!!