• RSS Feed
• @darylcook
• Flickr

From British Council film, a short film from 1945 that shows how a bicycle is designed and manufactured (probably in my home town of Coventry).

via Kottke

An inspiring talk by Rob Penn:

Perhaps against my better judgement, I’m signed up to do the 100km Around the Bay in a Day ride on Sunday 16th October.

Yikes, that’s less than 3 weeks away!

Ideally, I’d be at the same level I was this time two years ago when I was riding every day doing a 40km round-trip commute. But that’s not going to happen, so I figured I had better draw a line in the sand and just get back on the bike in a big way in the next couple of weeks and at least try and get in some sort of condition.

I started this morning. I decided to work from the library in Eltham, which is a decent ride from home, but not too far away. It’s quite a challenging ride because of the hills — a 108 meter ascent.

Conditions were perfect. It was a nice morning, and although there was a slight head wind, it wasn’t strong enough to cause too much concern. What was cause for concern were the magpies. There seems to be quite a lot of magpies in the leafy suburbs north of Melbourne. I was swooped twice by different birds, just a short distance from each other. Both managed to have a go at my helmet, but didn’t cause any damage. One chased me for quite a distance. It’s not much fun, I can assure you!

The weather was perfect for the ride home. The sun had disappeared behind the clouds, but it was still quite mild. I struggled with fatigue for most of the ride, but I’m determined to going to keep at it and get that fitness back.

I plan on riding again tomorrow, and hopefully a couple of other days this week. On Sunday Tony and I are tackling the 40km Warburton Trail, which I’m really looking forward to. Bring it on!

Here’s today’s ride stats:

Map: 13.70 km, 55:55 minutes.

This morning, I caught the train out to Elsternwick to meet Tony, for what’s becoming a regular Sunday ride.

It started out as a nice morning, but before I even got there, a cold south-westerly wind had picked up and made conditions less than ideal.

Once again, we didn’t set ourselves a cracking pace, preferring to ride just fast enough that we could still ride abreast and talk.

Along the esplanade, the tide was surging and crashing waves were breaking across the path. It was only by sheer luck that we managed to avoid getting wet.

Thankfully, the rain held off until the end of my ride, and I trailed off at South Oakleigh to meet up with family for lunch.

Map: 15.96 km, 57:49 minutes.

Today’s stats are a little inaccurate. I forgot to start the Cyclemeter app when we started out at Elsternwick station, and only remembered it when we had nearly reached the Yacht Club at Elwood.

It was an absolutely gorgeous winter’s day today.  The sun was shining and there was not a breath of wind.

I was feeling kind of lousy this morning, so I decided to head out for a ride to release some endorphins and to meet Mrs C. for lunch.

It wasn’t a long ride.  It was quite tough going early on, with quite a decent hill to climb at the 2.5km mark.  My lungs felt they were going to burst by the time I got to the top.  The rest of the ride into Eltham was mostly down hill from there, which was a relief.

Map: 7.56 km, 27 minutes.

It was a beautiful, clear and crisp winter morning in Melbourne today.

It’s been a while, but I finally jumped back in the saddle and went out for a decent bike ride. It wasn’t ideal weather for cycling, as there was a strong north-westerly wind with gusts up to 52km per hour.  There was a slight head wind up and tail wind down, with the wind mostly blowing across the path.

Tony and I met in Brighton and rode to Port Melbourne. It was a leisurely ride. We talked about podcasting and hatching evil plans. We got to the turnaround point at Station Pier, in what seemed like no time and ate breakfast before the return leg. Very civil — and enjoyable. We certainly didn’t set any records, but it was good to be back on the bike.

Map: 21.32 km, 1 hour 25 minutes.

Hat tip to Dave Winer for the idea to blog this, and for pointing to Cyclemeter. It’s such an awesome app.

On the weekend Tony and I–just as we did this time last year–joined 2,000 other riders to support the Amy Gillett Foundation on Amy’s Ride. The ride supports a great cause–to promote awareness and safety on our roads, and trying to reduce death and injury caused by interaction between cyclists and motorists. And after reading Cadel Evans’ take on his experiences along the Great Ocean Road, what better place to hold ride than around the Bellarine Peninsular?

This year we decided to tackle the 65km course (or 70km according to the Bikely course map), which was a step-up from our 40km-come-20km effort last year.

After a hot couple of days in Melbourne leading up to the event, the weather on the day proved to be almost ideal conditions for riding–mild and overcast–although at times there was quite a strong headwind to contend with, particularly through the coastal areas around Breamlea.

The chosen route was not overly difficult. The climb upwards at Leopold was the most challenging hill, with most of the terrain thereafter pretty flat, open and slightly undulating. The breath-taking scenery on the bluff at Barwon Heads was the highlight, with uninterrupted views of the ocean. On the bike you get a real appreciation of the scenery. You can see it, feel it, taste it, smell it and hear it. All of your senses are engaged, compared to witnessing it visually through a 1/4 inch piece of hardened glass in your car. It’s difficult to explain, but it’s almost like you become part of the scenery. I suppose that is a large part of the attraction of cycling for me–feeling closer to nature, and being more at one with the environment.

Having recently completed the Coastal Explorer Ride and getting through the 85km leg on day two comfortably, I went into this ride very confident that the 65km would be a breeze. However, with about 10km to go I started to feel a little soreness in the right thigh. I changed down a cog to make the pedalling a little easier to ride it out for a while. That seemed to work as it came good, and the soreness disappeared. Until, a couple of kilometers later the pain returned and I also started experiencing similar pains in my left thighs. It was cramp. I was completely incapacitated. My left leg ‘locked’ and I just couldn’t move it. I nearly came off my bike, and swinging my leg over the saddle to get off the bike proved a major challenge.

I’ve never experienced anything like it before–not cycling, nor doing any other sport. I can’t say what caused it, although I discovered later when removing my bike from the car rack that I have a slight buckle in the rear wheel of my bike. This causes the brake to grab at the untrue wheel in spots, which I suspect may have added extra load to the energy of pedalling. It’s plausible, but it’s more likely that the cramping was the result of dehydration. Despite carrying two bidons and drinking plenty of fluids during the ride, a few days of hot, dry weather before the ride had taken its toll. A lesson learned for next time!

So, for the last 5 kilometers, I had to put up with Tony chiding me about having to walk up hills and for holding up the team. But despite that–and my ailment–I really enjoyed the ride. It’s a great way to start off the new year and Tony and I got to do an extended GTD review along the way. An exciting year lies ahead.

Perhaps next year it’ll be the 120km course? Those guys passed us at about the 55km mark, putting them a good 60km ahead of us–although we did stop to smell the coffee, take in the magnificent vista and soak up the atmosphere.

26-Nov-2007: Day Three — Wilsons Promontory

I’m sitting in a cafe after spending the morning exploring Wilsons Prom. It was a great day for it–perfect weather, and a day off the bike.

Shortly after getting there, I took off on the Lilly Pilly Gully walk, which in total ended up being about a 10km trek there and back from Tidal River. It was a fantastic walk though with some beautiful rainforest, and some unbelievable views from near the top of Mt Bishop.

After getting back from the walk, I paddled in Tidal River, cooling my legs after tackling yet even more hills. I still can’t believe that I decided to go on a walk up the side of a big hill after the day I had yesterday. It was good though to stretch it out and use a few different muscles.

I spent some time sketching before wading into the ocean up to my waste. It wasn’t really warm enough to go in all the way, but I wanted to get the benefits of the cool water to help with the recovery.

So, after three long days my trip has all but come to an end. All that’s left to do is to pack up my tent, put my bike on the truck, grab a bite to eat for dinner and jump on the bus home. We should arrive back in Melbourne around 20:00, exhausted.

I’ve had a lot of fun, and really enjoyed the break from the hustle and bustle of life in the city. As the ideal holiday, it’s probably not everyone’s cup of tea, but I had a blast and rate it highly. Now to start planning for the next one, perhaps even the whole shebang next time — around 500km in 9 days!

25-Nov-2007: Day Two — Wonthaggi to Foster

Well it was tough going at times, but I managed to ride all the way to Foster without the assistance of the Sag Wagon! 84km in total today–25km more than the longest ride I’ve done, so a personal best for me. I was really pleased when I arrived–a real sense of achievement, and relief!

Words can’t describe how sore my rump is at the moment, but otherwise I’m pretty much unscathed. I’ve seen a couple of riders who weren’t so lucky–a few tumbles resulting in scraped knees and elbows.

Riding in such a big group this morning was difficult. The ‘traffic’ was quite bad on the coastal road through Cape Patterson on the way to Inverloch. The road (Bunenong Coastal route) was quite narrow and at times twisty. I managed to stay out of trouble by staying to the left and keeping up a steady pace.

The second stage from Inverloch to Tarwin was relatively uneventful–a mostly flat ride with a few small undulating hills. The traffic was managed well by police and Bicycle Victoria volunteers at intersections. From there to Fish Creek was a bit more of a climb. I must admit, I stopped on a couple of the longer climbs for a short break and a drink to rehydrate. Actually, I think this was a pretty good strategy, as I managed to get straight back on and to keep going.

After a longish lunch at Fish Creek, it was time to set off again. Knowing that we’d already traveled 2/3 of the way by lunchtime and that there was only 25km left to go to reach Foster was motivating. However, the motivation was quickly given a reality check. Riding out of Fish Creek and turning right was one of the most challenging hills of the ride so far. It was something no-one was looking forward to straight after lunch. But, once up the hill, there was quite a bit of downhill cruising from there on as we wound down towards Foster. There were a couple more small, steep hills, but they were manageable–even after 80km in the saddle.

So, I’m glad that I did it–that’s the end of riding for me on this trip–and grateful for a rest day tomorrow. I’m really looking forward to going to Wilsons Prom. and spending most of the day there before setting off for home. I might do a couple of short walks, and depending on the weather, go for a swim at the beach near Tidal River. Perhaps a swim will help aid my recovery and ensure that I don’t end up with aching muscles?

Hills
Like the little red caboose, I tell myself
“I think I can”, “I think I can”, “I think I can”
Heart pumping, legs on fire
Pushing, pushing, pushing
Just a little bit further, not far now.
Phew! I finally made it to the top.
From here I can see everything –
including the next hill in front of me.

24-Nov-2007: Day One — Phillip Island to Wonthaggi

Route.

I made it okay! Actually today’s ride was not too bad.

As planned, I made an early, waking at 0500 to the sound of birds. I sat at the beach for an hour and then headed up to get breakfast at around 0700. Phillip Island isn’t really a thriving metropolis, so nothing was open. I decided to head back to camp. I packed up my gear– which took about half an hour–and got changed into my riding gear so that I could load my bags onto a truck that would cart everything to our next camp site.

After packing up, I headed back into town and managed to get myself a cup of coffee and a muffin for breakfast. I drank my coffee and chatted to other riders about the days ahead. Soon after, the event was on. I was heading back to camp, where the starting point was, but soon discovered that a lot of people had already left and were riding along the main road out of Cowes. I was already on route, so decided to just keep going.

The first 20 kilometers were pretty easy going–it went really quickly and it was relatively flat. I reached the ‘lunch’ spot around 1030, perhaps a little earlier, and tucked into a bread roll and banana to boost up the energy for the next stage, which I knew was going to be more challenging.

After crossing the bridge from the lunch spot at Newhaven into San Remo, the terrain became a lot more undulating with quite a few steep climbs before reaching the roundabout on the Bass Coast Highway. From here, there was another decent climb. You’re rewarded for your efforts here, with spectacular views of the coastline and beaches of Kilcunda. I stopped for a quick breather and to take a couple of photos.

At Kilcunda I took a bit of a detour off the road to check out the view along the coastline. While I was there, I noticed the entrance to a rail trail that went directly to Wonthaggi, and decided to follow it. I figured this way–along the coast–would be more scenic. I didn’t realise that it would eventually take nearly 10km off my trip, as the main group turned left outside Kilcunda and up to Archies Creek before descending into Wonthaggi. I wasn’t alone though. Quite a few others were on the trail. Besides, it was a nice ride, through some nice coastal scrub and farm land.

As a result of the short-trip today, I’m now even more worried about tomorrow. The route from Wonthaggi to Foster is 84km. I’ve never ridden that far before, so it’s going to be a big challenge. The last time that I did a long ride–a 60km ride through the Macedon Ranges–I had a lot more preparation. I’d been on the bike a lot more and was a little more bike fit. My plan is to take it steady and strong, no rushing. Just keeping a good pace and making plenty of stops.

I went for a walk in Wonthaggi earlier to try and walk off a little of the soreness from today’s ride and to warm down. Amazingly, I managed to find a nice little cafe that sold decent coffee. After the walk, I came back to the tent and had a little snooze, which invigotated me.

I’m ready for dinner now, which is about to be served. I’m expecting large queues, so I think that I’ll go now and then turn in early again tonight. It’ll be another early start in the morning–the route opens at 0630 tomorrow.

Cycling
Riding, legs pumping like pistons
Faster, faster, driving the machine
Wind in my face, scenery breath-taking
Serene, calm, invigorating.