Riders Blog

This will truly be one of the rides to meditate on. Oh how i love the thought of doing 170 kms when i know whats ahead of me

Saturday 23rd January - 154km - What a ride, not the hillyest but did require some endurance. I started out the front door to meet at the Bell Tower, bye Dianne only 85km today because of the heat? Somewhere down Albany Hwy I remembered that we were going to Wungong Dam. Wasn’t feeling too well at all with stomach cramps. A short pits stop later after riding over the Dam wall and i was right, well, i was feeling better than what I was. Temperature wasn’t too bad at this stage must have been around 27. Out towards Serpentine and a short stop for more water. I was starting to have visions of the other Dam being on the itinerary. The heat was now sitting on about 35. Out across the flat lands of Rowley Road and I’m sure my Polar recorded a temperature spike up to 40 degrees. Practising a few roll throughs got everybody to concentrate while riding on the flat and hone up their team working skills. Out towards Baldivis and North along the Freeway to expire back at the Bell Tower. Some of us actually had to ride home while others took the “phone a freind” option. I suspect Biscuit that you will have to pay the ferryman for that one.
While suffering up some hills, Tinkle Bell amused himself be recording the faces of pain with his camera, Wiggles was glad to hang in there, Clare was shooting off the front during the roll throughs (no speedo) and i think there was a caste of thousands trying to sit behind me.  Had a Good Ride - The Big Fella 

Well, we cruised around the river and the shelley loop this saturday, my legs felt like they were on fire for the first 30ks and I was a bit stuffed after a little “super sprint” and I cracked it! Only with myself and my lack of ability to keep going. Poor old Ice I think he thought he’d done something wrong. Anyway after I had my little “inner sooky” moment I managed to warm up and not do too badly on those nasty little spiky sharp bits that just seem to appear on the Icemans “jaunt” around the river, by the end of the ride I felt Ok and probably could have kept going. I’m not sure if this is the case or whether its the thought of how close the coffee is at the end. When I can smell the coffee I miraculously seem to get a bit of a spur on.

Sunday was just a gentle spin around the usual river loop (minus Shelley) with a little scooby snack and coffee in Claremont. Beaut ride, nice company then off to work.

Catchya round

 Wilson

A nice week of riding..Clare K and I checked out the rider support his week just to see if it was up to scratch, pretty impressive actually, I’m sure Deb was very excited when two of her riders turn up on her doorstep at 0730 in the morning for a cuppa. Nice PJ’s Deb!!!!

 It was a great weekend of riding up into “dem dare” hills, have no idea exactly where we rode cos i spent a lot of time just staring at someone elses knicks trying to hang on to get myself back up the hills. Those short little steep ones….they are NASTY little sods fortunately there is always the downhill bit on the other side. Todays ride was slightly more pleasant just wish someone would turn that easterly wind down a notch, apparently it builds character (or so a famous coach …Iceman once told me) ……oh yeah and leg strength.

So toodleloo from me will catch you folk later. Hope your enjoying following us on our journey and enjoying the new year.

Wilson

What a brave little trooper she is, our Clare has perfected the dive, roll and recover. A little bit bruised, a little bit shaken but not stirred and still determined. No bones broken, she just got back on the bike and still did the rest of our so called flatish recovery ride. There was no whining or complaining, she just got back into it.

Our training will up its intensity after Christmas ?  I thought that doing 155km to Jarrahdale and back was quite a challenge in 38 C temperature. What has gone unsaid; well there was Marco who felt hungry after we got to Rockingham one ride. On the way back he wished he hadn’t ordered a chicken and avacado foccacia with chips. Man that is one way to suffer.

On the way to the Bell Tower one morning, one of the Kingsley kids in the abscence of a responsible adult took a dive at a wet ”round a bout”. End result was a fractured Scafoid only 3 months out from the ride. Ably assisted by Nurse Gladys “Wilson” the patient ended up in plaster, only after completing the 85 km ride that day.

Responsible imbibing and the correct choice of dietary intake the night before a ride resulted in one very green looking “Sonny” alias the “Vindaloo Kid”. He was also the less fortunate rider who failed to avoid a few rocks on the road on the up and back to Two Rocks - 2 flats.

My lucky day was today, 95 km before Christmas Eve. I went for a ride with “Hollywood”, “K2″ and the other young bloke - 6′ 5″ and built like a greyhound. He kept us all honest. Luck or misfortune, I punctured  just before the Roe Hwy bridge on Welshpool Road on our way to Kalamunda.

Bike fixed and tyre pumped up I removed the pump complete with the valve stopper for an immediate flat. Start again. Thats why you carry two spare tubes. The rest of the ride was uneventful really, Lewis Road and then Watsonia , Ridge Hill and a coffee at the top. Down Kalamunda Road and off home.

I’m sure there will be further posts of the intersting overtraining mistakes that people make. Yours Truly will hoping that the 3 previous days of riding and the one recovery day of imbibing  at Christmas will allow him to do the Canning Dam ride on Boxing Day.

  ”The Big Fella” - every hill is a challenge. 

My head is telling me to get out there and get on that bike….my legs are feeling stiff and taking forever to warm up…only done 130 ks so far this week, pretty lame really (especially when that includes the 70ks I did on saturday with the group).  Only got one more day this week to ride then its xmas…yippee..I love christmas!  Think I will only manage 190ks max this week.  Better week next week me thinks!

 Merry Christmas to you all, hope its a great one!

 Jo

I thought we were progressing very well on our training rides - some of which have been in extreme heat and 140km ++ until Ice mentioned something about starting serious training after Christmas!!!

Welcome to the Red Sky Ride ‘10  blog.This blog will be a record of each rider’s journey from the pain of training to the elation from finishing the 8 day, 800km event. As each rider trains over the next few months, you can keep updated with their progress and make comments on their posts. Visit here again to see the latest on the riders and thanks for supporting the Red Sky Ride.