Category Archives: Bike

Something good, something bad

June 1, 2011 12:35 | Leave a Comment |

I’ve noticed a pattern. Something good is always either preceded or followed by something bad. It’s like I can’t have one without the other.

Things at work have gotten… umm… stressful. For the first time ever, I’m caught in the middle of a restructure. Plenty have happened around me (it’s a university, we restructure all the time) but this is the first one that has directly affected me. From where I stand, the process hasn’t been handled particularly well. There’s a lot of misunderstanding and defensiveness on both sides now and right now I can’t see how it’s all going to be resolved in a way that makes everyone happy. How we’re all supposed to work together, I have no clue.

I know that I should be worrying only about myself but I can’t help but be really angry at what’s being done to some of my workmates. I’ve worked with these people for over five years now. I see them every day. How can I not be concerned about what’s going to happen to them? Unlike them, I have the (dubious) fortune having a position to move to. I know I should be happy to have this certainty. However, I can’t help but have some doubts about what it’ll be like to work in the new group. The position description for the job I’ll be slotted into is vague at best and I’m not sure I want to be a “Content Analyst”.

Still, the daily work stuff continues as it always has and there’s a strong sense of solidarity in the team now. That’s one good thing to come out of the whole sorry situation.

All I can do is wait and see. The situation is out of my hands, I can’t change it.

It’s funny… I had a terrible week at work and spent a lot of time wanting to punch someone in the face but get me out on my bike and it just doesn’t matter. The stress just falls away. The weather on Saturday was – in a word – crappy. But it didn’t matter. I was with people I like, who make me laugh and I was doing something I love. Work is just work, it’s a means to end so I can do the things I actually want to do – like get totally filthy and saturated. Then sit around in damp bike kit, drinking cider at Little Creatures Dining Hall while my companions had a pint.

Sunday was another go-round of the Emerald Bakery Loop. The something bad of this was the stretch between Emerald and Kallista. I have no idea what happened but I was really suffering. I dropped further and further behind, I was gasping for breath and my legs felt like they were about to fall off. It was so incredibly hard and I still don’t know how I managed to get up the really tough section (3kms at about 7 – 9%). I felt sick and exhausted but somehow I did it. I wonder if the climbing is ever going to get easier or if it’ll always be this hard for me. Something good was that I had someone drop behind to stay with me for most of it so I had a wheel to follow.

Still, I had a ball flying down The Wall. When I hit 70km/h I figured I should probably slow down a bit as I was overtaking quite a few people, riders who had been 3 – 5 minutes ahead of me. Got to one corner and all I could smell was burning brake pads from the person who had gone through previously. Every time I get to the bottom of a descent like this I always have the biggest smile on my face. It’s an awesome feeling.

The descent down to Montrose was amazing as always. I don’t think I braked once and I managed to pick and stay on some excellent lines through the corners. I love it, just love it. Thinking about it now is making me smile. There’s nothing like the sensation of speed and the world flying past in a green blur. All those tiny movements you make on the bike which make it lean and shift with you. The bike feels like it’s a part of you, that it’s alive. It’s joy, pure and simple.

Something bad (work) countered by something good (bike and an unexpected development in my private life). The universe likes balance so I suppose this is the way it’ll always be.

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It was epic. Epic I say!

May 10, 2011 12:41 | 6 Comments |

On Sunday, I broke 100km on a ride for the first time since the Great Ocean & Otway Classic. And that’s what made it epic. Big distance, lots of climbing (for me anyway) and no SAG wagon.

Five of us got together on to try the Kinglake climb via Humevale Rd. Every time I’ve climbed Kinglake, it’s been via the traditional route on Hurtsbridge/Heidelberg Kinglake Rd which includes the soul crushing Wild Dog Creek Hill. I was quite excited to try the Humevale Rd climb simply because it meant I didn’t have to torture myself by having to climb up The Dog (as we’ve started referring to it as in a very unaffectionate way).

The Climbing Cyclist site (which I’ve linked to above) called the Humevale Rd climb a hidden gem. And it is. For the entire climb (about 7kms, gaining around 600m) we encountered one car – yup, just one. The driver was decent enough to slow right down and pass us with caution. This is one of the roads that was damaged when the fires ripped through the area and not much has been done to repair it. To be honest, it would easily be the worse road surface I’ve ridden on but we were taking it slow so it didn’t matter so much. I really wouldn’t want to attempt it as a descent though. The area is taking some time to recover but there’s a crazy amount of regrowth near the edge of the road which makes for a lush, green ride. And it’s quiet, incredibly quiet and peaceful. All you can hear is the noises of the bikes, people’s breath, the odd snatch of conversation and the bird calls. That’s it. There’s no pollution, no cars, no people. The best word I can come up with to describe the area is serene.

After our first stop at the Flying Tarts Bakery in Kinglake West (think we’ve found a name for our group!), it started to drizzle so all the wet weather gear came out and we rugged up. Only to overheat on the way to Kinglake as there were plenty of rolling hills. Brief stop at Kinglake to put on any final kit and we were ready for the descent down to St Andrews.

Everyone knows I love to descend. I love the rush of speed and the sound of the wind blasting past. I love leaning into corners and feeling the bike move with me. Just love it. I really suffer when I climb so a great descent like Kinglake makes up for it. I’m fortunate to have a dad who worked hard to teach me to corner properly (when I was first learning to drive I couldn’t corner properly to save myself) and on the whole, I can descend quickly enough to keep up with the boys but keep myself safe as well. Uhh… most of the time. This time I totally messed up my lines not once but twice and found myself praying there wasn’t any oncoming traffic as I ended up on the wrong side of the road. But I was incredibly lucky and managed to get away with it. (Let that be a lesson to me to be more careful next time!) Still, I accept the fact that there’s a pretty good chance that one day I’m going to get it wrong in a corner and the end result will not be a happy one for me. I should just remember what my dad told me recently – it’s amazing what can happen if you go into a corner more slowly. You can accelerate out of it!

Then the inevitable happened. We started climbing again as we headed through Kangaroo Ground and Warrandyte South and I found myself dropping further and further behind to the point I couldn’t really see the others ahead of me. I was suffering, a lot. What is it about climbing that I find so hard? A couple of times I wanted to cry because I was feeling so bad and I was so far behind. The mental demons really came out to play and I felt weak, slow and stupid. Stupid for thinking that I could do it when evidence was heavily leaning towards couldn’t. Sigh. I feel that I’m not mentally tough enough but I don’t know how to fix that.

I have no problems with the physical act of riding a bike. My legs are in pretty good shape. I’m stronger than I was. Logically, I know I’ve vastly improved if compared to where I was last year. This time last year, I hadn’t done a single serious climb and hadn’t done a ride that was further than 70kms (I think). But mentally? Every time it gets tough, I start to fall apart. I doubt myself, I make it million times harder because I don’t believe I can do it – even with evidence to the contrary. But as to how to fix this, I have no idea. I know I’m only going to improve if I keep pushing through barriers but it’s really hard. I have to push myself past what I’m comfortable with. I’m letting myself down by always believing the naysayers in my head, that evil little voice that whispers that I’m weak, fat, stupid for even trying.

Maybe the mental toughness will just come over time. Doubt it though. It’s too heavily ingrained in my personality to always believe the bad stuff and deny what’s good. Doing rides like this will probably always put me through the wringer because it’s who I am. There will always be a little voice of doubt in my head. However! At least I always try and I don’t give up, even when I’m gasping for air and my legs are screaming at me. I don’t quit. Strength comes from the strangest places and perhaps I just haven’t realised it yet.

But you know, it’s not necessarily a bad thing to be put through the wringer like this. Odd thing to say considering how much complaining I just did. It means I’m not emotionally dead, that I can still feel really intense emotion and pain. It indicates progress because a few years ago I was too afraid to feel anything at all, even physical pain. If I can master it on the bike, perhaps I can master it in the rest of my life.

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So, this thing called sleeping in…

April 26, 2011 19:06 | Leave a Comment |

I’ve heard it’s this idea where you don’t get up while it’s still dark and no birdies are chirping in the trees.

My sleep in during this Easter break was on Good Friday where I managed to make it until just before 9am. Surprisingly enough, no one put on a load of laundry at 8am – a normal occurrence on the weekend mornings when I’m actually home. My first though when I woke up was (after going eeeeuuugghhhh) hey, the sun is up.

No sleep in on Saturday as I tootled my way over to Ringwood North to join in on the Easter Bunnies Emerald Bakery Loop Ride. The group I ride with had been talking about tackling the well known Emerald Bakery Loop for awhile so why not do it when everyone was on holidays? Just over 75km of hills, hills and yet more hills. But of course that meant plenty of opportunities for descending 🙂

The Yarra Ranges actually make climbing kinda fun. The area is stunningly beautiful and this time none of us were busting a gut to get to the top of the 1:20. The funnest descent of the day was coming down The Wall. As I was unfamiliar with the descent, I was on the brakes a few times to make sure I didn’t crash by being overly enthusiastic.

The bakery at Emerald was worth the effort of getting there. Been a long time since I’ve seen so many yummy cakes and slices crammed into a glass display unit. I have to say that these stops during rides are one of my favourite parts. It’s great to just sit around and chat. I’ve never been great in social situations and this one of the few times I feel okay. Plus there’s usually nummy treats involved which is fine by me!

What I thought would be the hardest climb of the day came as we left Emerald and headed towards Kallista. It was about 3kms of slogging away up what around 7 – 9% gradient. There was water cascading over the road and I was glad we were climbing (!!!) and not descending but it still made for a hairy climb as the road was rather slippery.

I must admit that I didn’t enjoy the descent down to Montrose as much as I normally do. I was feeling pretty knackered by the time we got there and my body was starting to complain. However, I made it down the whole way without touching the brakes once which is the first time I’ve managed this. I think I descended a little more slowly than normal because it was taking a lot of effort to concentrate. I love to descend as fast as possible but I’m not willing to risk my safety when I know I’m tired. See, not totally stupid!

By the time I got to the bottom I was ready to call it a day but of course that meant getting back to the starting point. And that’s when it happened. For the first time ever, a climb defeated me. I had to get off and walk. Eastfield Rd in Ringwood East. We could see it from the other side of the traffic lights we were stopped at and it didn’t look good. I only got about a third of the way up before starting to struggle and at the halfway point I realised I was going to fall over so I stopped. I looked down at my garmin and it was telling me the gradient was 22%. I was sure this was wrong but this reading has been corroborated by other garmins. I felt so defeated. Everyone else did it but I walked it. I just felt so inadequate. But what can you do? Nothing but get over it and swing the leg back over the bike.

The funny thing is that there’s a bike path marked on the road. The running joke at the moment is that someone needs to go out with a can of spray paint to add a happy cyclist at the bottom and a dead cyclist at the top. It would be appropriate.

After 70kms of hills, I decided I needed a cruisy ride on a flat roads so I took my bike to my parents’ place. I did learn one important thing – if you’re not 100% sure about where you’ll be riding, check your route beforehand. I was out in the orchards, pedaling away and I realised I had no clue where I was going. I had a rough idea of where I was but no idea where the road I was looking for was. In the end, I took a punt and turned down a road I thought I recognised the name of. Turns out I wasn’t that far away from where I wanted to be and if I’d continued on I would’ve found the road I wanted. Typical! I had a laugh when I looked at the elevation after downloading my stats. I went from climbing 1,324 metres to a grand total of 37 metres.

Today’s spin was a MRR loop with some extras tacked on. I like the MRR loop and I’d do it during the week but the logistics are too difficult to overcome. I’d have to be up so early and there’s no guarantee I’d be able to get to work on time. I’ll be sticking with my laps of Yarra Boulevard.

And to finish off…

Tree project, week thirty one

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So, what happens now?

March 31, 2011 20:52 | 2 Comments |

I’ve been thinking a lot about what happened to me on Saturday. The ride definitely won’t go down as my best and I’m still baffled as to how I managed to finish the ride. 80% of me was saying stop, stop, stop, stop!! so I have no idea how the 20% managed to override this and get me to the finish line.

My default position seems to be one of not having any faith in myself. I don’t believe I can do things yet when it comes to the crunch, I somehow manage to pull what feels like a super-human effort out of the bag and do it. I defy myself every time. The proof is there that I can do but I still have the mindset that I can’t. I’m not sure how to change this apart from simply setting myself challenges that I don’t think I can achieve and crashing through them.

I always told myself that I’m a terrible climber but on Saturday I powered past so many people, including guys who I thought should’ve been able to kick my butt. Rode past plenty of people who’d totally given in and were walking up the climb. If nothing else, at least the climb didn’t defeat me. A few months ago it probably would’ve.

80% of me wanted to stop. And I mean it really wanted me to stop. I was in so much pain. I really don’t know how the 20% that was determined to finish managed to shove the majority out of the way and struggle on through to the end. I suppose in the end what it came down to was that I didn’t want to revert to old behaviours which was to quit as soon as it got hard.

In the end, Lance Armstrong summed it up best: Pain is temporary, quitting is forever.

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2011 Great Ocean & Otway Classic ride

March 29, 2011 18:17 | 1 Comment |

Ahh… where to start?

I’m not quite sure why I’m having so much trouble writing about the ride. Well, I suppose the starting point could be that it won’t go down as one of my more successful rides. It’s not because I ended up in the sag wagon – I didn’t. I finished the ride. However, it did put me through the wringer.

I’ve started wondering if there’s a cycling equivalent of a runner’s wall. Because it certainly felt like I slammed right into it, repeatedly.

100kms of the ride was fine, which is a little surprising considering it included a decent climb. I actually enjoyed the climb! Unlike other climbs I’ve done, this one had small breaks in it so you’d slog your guts out for a bit and then just when you started think you couldn’t possibly keep going, an opportunity to have a rest would pop up. The road goes right through the centre of the Otway forest so it was strikingly beautiful. The whole area was burnt to the ground in 1983 Ash Wednesday fires and the way it is now is a testament to how amazing the Australian bush is. It’s lush, green and full of animals, including frogs which I could hear as I was pedaling along.

A few sections of the climb were quite steep and I realised I was going too hard so I decided to play a game of How slow can I ride before I tip over? which apparently was quite slow – under 10km/h. Still, I overtook a bunch of people and a lot of them were off their bikes walking up the hill and a few people were looking decidedly shaky. I rode past one girl who lying on the ground in the coma position while her friend was waiting for either an event official or a cop to go past so she could get some assistance. Another guy was being helped off his bike by his friends and looked like he was about to collapse from exhaustion. But not me! I powered on, only wobbling occasionally as the gradient really started to kick in.

The descent was fantastic. So much fun! The road surface wasn’t the best but I still managed to overtake a bunch of people on the way down to Lorne. I did have to slow down at one point because a rider was being picked up by an ambulance with what looked like a broken collarbone. It’s just as well I really enjoyed the descent because after that the fun stopped.

The last 45kms totally destroyed me. How crappy I felt went well and truly beyond a hunger fade, even though I was feeling pretty bad because I hadn’t eaten enough. I was in so much pain. My back was shouting at me, my shoulders and neck were cramping up. I really don’t know how I managed to get back on the bike after stopping at Anglesea.

I was mentally under-prepared for how hard the last leg of the ride would be. I feel really disappointed with myself because I couldn’t make it in the time I thought I would. It took me nearly six hours to complete the ride when I felt I should’ve been able to do it in five and a half. When I finished Amy’s Ride, I really felt like I’d accomplished something but this time I don’t feel like I’ve achieved anything. Mostly, I feel like I failed but I don’t know why. I know logically that I shouldn’t because I did manage to ride the whole 145 kilometres but logic doesn’t really have much to do with how I feel right now.

Definitely won’t go down as my favourite ride.

I did do something I didn’t think I would. I braved the cold and walked into the surf after getting back to the hotel. The water wasn’t as cold as I thought it would be but it did help. If nothing else, it helped me relax after being extremely stressed in the last 25kms of the ride. The first wave that got up over my waist made me squeal and then laugh. I spent about 20 minutes standing in the water, looking out towards the horizon. Then I walked back to the hotel and jumped into the spa in my cycling kit. Eh, what else can you do when you have no swimwear? It’s all made of lycra in the end. I think it helped though. Sure, I hobbled around the house on Sunday but my legs were okay on Monday so apparently the whole spending time in the surf thing works.

I did come away with one very valuable piece of knowledge – I need a narrower seat. This was the furtherest I’ve ever ridden and it became very apparent the width of the seat was causing me considerable grief. I visited Total Rush in Richmond on Friday to buy some new gloves and took the opportunity to get my sit bones measured as I had started to wonder if my seat was too wide. The guy doing the measuring agreed and said I could do with a narrower seat than my current one. (Kudos to him for not trying to sell me one.) I didn’t think it’d make much of difference but by the end of the ride, my hips hurt quite a bit. So I’m on the hunt for a new one. I’m thinking a Fi’zi:k one. No cut out but 5cm narrower.

Anyhoo… my Garmin stats. I’m still very eh about them.

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Tree project

March 19, 2011 15:51 | Leave a Comment |

Week twenty six

Okay, so now it’s been half a year since I first picked up my camera and aimed it at a branch on the fig tree that overhangs my tiny back yard. To be honest, I was sure I’d get bored of it and stop after a few weeks in but it has been interesting to record what been happening with the tree. The last photo will be taken when the tree is bare.

In the meantime, my new photography project – 52 weeks is coming along. But I do wonder why I set myself such long time lines to complete something. Maybe this will be the one I get bored with.

Aaaaand… stats from today’s ride. It was my first go at the RRR (Ringwood Road Ride) and it turned out to be a lot of fun. The climb up the 1:20 was hard though. Still managed to shave 10 seconds off my first time so I suppose that makes it a PB for me. Hooray?

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Tree project

February 27, 2011 17:41 | Leave a Comment |

Week twenty three

So yeah… that plan to ride up Mount Donna Buang? Didn’t exactly come together because Mother Nature had other ideas.

The view from the observation tower at the top…

I’m sure there are some trees out there somewhere.

It started raining about 7pm last night and didn’t stop until around lunchtime today. We decided to drive up to the top anyway as two of us hadn’t seen the climb. About two-thirds of the way up, we drove into low cloud and that was it. We decided to climb up the observation tower anyway. It was about half way up that I discovered I have an issue with heights. I’ve never really had a problem with heights but today I got about half way up and my legs turned to jelly. I think the problem was that I could see through the stairs and there was nothing to look at, just solid white. I had no horizon reference. Not a pleasant sensation.

It would be a great ride, just not today.

Still, had a nice breakfast with pleasant company so that’s a win in my books 🙂

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And for my next trick…

February 22, 2011 12:13 | 6 Comments |

…I shall attempt to ride up Mount Donna Buang this coming Sunday.

All 16.61 kilometres of it at 6.2% grade. It has an elevation of 1,250 m (4,101 ft) and it snows there in winter. It’s the closest mountain to Melbourne where you can go skiing in winter. I’m thinking it’s going to take me between 1.5 – 2 hours to ride up (and that’s being generous).

If I can do this, the 145km Great Ocean & Otway Classic Ride should be a breeze. Uh huh, right. I’ll just keep telling myself that.

I think Master Yoda has it right on this one: Do… or do not. There is no try.

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SkyHigh

February 15, 2011 11:38 | Leave a Comment |

Sunday’s ride was an adventure out to the Dandenong Ranges.

And it was a total blast. It was the most fun I’ve had on a ride which involved climbing.

We started at Mitcham where two of us on the ride parked our cars. We picked up two more companions on the way and headed out to The Basin and the famous 1:20 ride up to Sarrafras. Unlike the ride the weekend before (which went something like oh my god, it’s so gorgeous up here on the way up to Aaarrrggghhhh!! I’m gonna die!! on the way down due the fact that it started pouring with rain about five minutes into the descent), the weather was kind if but a little chilly. At least this time I was better equipped. Had my arm and knee warmers as well as full finger gloves for the descent.

There was quite a bit of chit-chat until we hit the 1:20 ride and I did my usual thing of falling off the back of the group. The 1:20 climb is one you’re supposed to measure your time on. The road has start, distance and finish markers painted on it so you know exactly how far you have to go. I was hoping to do it in under 25 minutes but I couldn’t quite get there. I hit the finish line painted on the road at 25:20. So close!! However, I have a problem in that I get distracted by how mind-bogglingly beautiful the area is. I spend too much time admiring the view than concentrating on my time (check out Cycling Tips Blog for some photos of the area). Still, I have a target now so hopefully there will be some improvement. I’ll just have to learn how to set up manual laps on my Garmin. I should really read the instructions one of these days!

After a break in Sarrafras, we headed up to Olinda and SkyHigh on Mt Dandenong. It was chilly up there but the view was quite spectacular if a little hazy.

Having never been up there before, I was admiring the view when it was pointed out to me that the map that explains the view to tourists actually had shopping centres on it. So naturally enough I had to take a photo.


Look ma! I climbed 2069 feet!!

After coffees and hot chocolates to warm up, we headed down the mountain. The initial sharpness of the descent caught me totally off-guard and I found myself struggling to control my bike, trying to slow down whilst doing over 60km/h with really grabby brakes so I was essentially fish-tailing and scaring the crap out of myself. Once we hit Mount Dandenong Tourist Road it was so much fun. Unlike the Kinglake descent which is all S-bends and switchbacks, this was big sweeping turns. Means a lot less riding the brakes and a lot more free spinning. It was amazing. As I was hurtling down the hill, I could feel a huge bubble of laughter building. How else can you express the sheer joy of it? It’s as close as humans can get to flying and it’s simply amazing.

Rode the rest of the way back to The Firehouse in Ringwood in a kind of euphoria. The rolling hills on the way back were hard but I didn’t feel like I usually do. I’m never going to be a brilliant climber but on Sunday I actually felt pretty good. I felt tired and the effort at some points felt enormous but it was a good kind of hurt. Except when I dropped my chain near the crest of a hill. It seems that whenever I do that, I always manage to drop it in a way that means I can’t pedal it back on and I have to stop. Must be my special skill. (Can I get another special skill? This one is really annoying.)

I felt that all the effort warranted one of these…

Rides like this one make up for all the crappy ones. The ones where you feel like death and the effort of turning the cranks is enormous. There’s nothing quite like cycling to put the hurt on you but when it’s good, it’s the best thing ever.

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I was right

January 5, 2011 22:11 | Leave a Comment |

120km really was a lot further than I thought it would be. But I had a great ride!

I was hoping to do it in 4.5 – 5 hours and my time ended up being 5hrs, 5mins and 18 seconds. A little over but still pretty damn close. It was a huge effort. I feel like I’ve achieved something but I’m not sure exactly what. I have to say that by the end I was spending a bit of time out of the saddle as my butt was starting to hurt quite a bit.

The Bellarine Peninsula is stunningly beautiful. At once point we were riding along and the ocean was about 20 feet away and perfectly still. It was so gorgeous.

The ride was a bit hillier than I expected but it also gave me proof that my climbing has come along in leaps and bounds. The hill I struggled on last year was easier (still not a cruise because it is an short, sharp climb) but it didn’t feel anywhere near as much of a trial as last year. There were a few long, slow climbs that I didn’t even notice. The road surface was a bit crap but there’s not much you can do about it. As we were heading into Queenscliff, I developed huge cravings for a sandwich so we had a break and ate something that wasn’t an energy bar. The cafe we stopped at even had my favourite juice.

It was a different ride from last year. Apart from being longer, I was much fitter and better prepared. I did a lot more of the lead work and supported my riding buddy through to the end. Last year it was the other way around. It’s really satisfying to see how much I’ve improved. I’m stronger and fitter then I thought was. It hard to judge my progress when I don’t have anything to measure it against and don’t really set myself challenges. Perhaps I should.

Anyhoo… it was a great day out on the bike.

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