Sydney to Gong 2009

Bicycle related chatter & discussion
malee
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Joined: 22 Jul 2008, 21:58
Location: Ashbury

Postby malee » 01 Nov 2009, 20:06

Yes, it took us till 1pm to get there. We were doing well when I yelled out to Weiyun. We waited for the tandem at all the stops. So, with the waiting and the tyre fixing and brow mopping, we finally got to the brewery. Even the bartender asked me why I was in the last bunch as he had already had heaps of cyclist through. Despite all that, we had a great day! I feel even better now that I have had the biggest piece of Oreo chocolate mousse cake at Peter and Fiona's.

MarkG
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Joined: 21 Mar 2009, 11:39
Location: Earlwood

Postby MarkG » 01 Nov 2009, 20:33

We had a great but tough ride to the 'gong and back today. About a dozen DHBCers left St Peters around 6:20am and Miguel, Anthony and I got to the finish just after 10am. After the usual coffee break and a look around the three of us headed off for the ride back at 11am. After a few stops at the top of climbs and another coffee at Waterfall and again at Brighton (coffee stops being more of an excuse to rest than a needed cafine hit) I was home by about 4:30pm. That was a first for both Anthony and I, Miguel's done the return before. We were really pleased with our effort, 174.5kms round trip for me. Feeling pretty tired and sore now though.

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AntonyGreen
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Location: Enmore

Postby AntonyGreen » 01 Nov 2009, 21:57

I did the extra 30km to visit the folks in Kiama. It was easy with the prevailing wind. Bumped into a bunch of Kiama cyclists on the way home so I had some company and didn't get lost.

Well done for riding back. It was getting warm and I'm sure that wind would have been very unhelpful.

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simon.sharwood
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Postby simon.sharwood » 02 Nov 2009, 05:15

My mates decided a leisurely 7:45 departure time was a good idea. I have no idea why.
There were heavy crowds, but I rode well, clocking 3:40 for the ride, waiting time excluded. No return - I've had the beginnings of a cold for a couple of days.
Great ride this year - excellent weather!

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Trouty
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Postby Trouty » 02 Nov 2009, 05:32

After the usual coffee break and a look around the three of us headed off for the ride back at 11am. After a few stops at the top of climbs and another coffee at Waterfall and again at Brighton (coffee stops being more of an excuse to rest than a needed cafine hit)
Actually with a return ride like that (pleasant with lot's of coffee stops) I would consider doing a ride back with a group next time. That sounds good. Well done guys...mayb I will join you for the return ride next year.

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weiyun
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Postby weiyun » 02 Nov 2009, 06:08

Actually with a return ride like that (pleasant with lot's of coffee stops) I would consider doing a ride back with a group next time. That sounds good. Well done guys...mayb I will join you for the return ride next year.
We should aim to organize another big DHBC group next year (like 2008). This year we got scattered by the fixie century and various others pulling out, including myself.

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simon.sharwood
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Postby simon.sharwood » 02 Nov 2009, 06:09

I reckon we should also get our marketing s**t together and distribute DHBC fliers at St Peters Station before and after the ride. There's gotta be a lot of inner west riders getting on and off there!

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geoffs
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Joined: 20 Nov 2006, 12:07
Location: Ashbury

Postby geoffs » 02 Nov 2009, 06:48

that's an excellent idea simon.
we would need to have plan in place to manage the extra numbers though prior to the event.

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Stuart
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Location: Dulwich Hill

Postby Stuart » 02 Nov 2009, 06:58

So I started with Jo's work bunch (thanks Blue Star for the jersey and bib nix) but rode "alone" for most of the distance. We got away at about 6:15 but I thought it was more crowded at the start this year compared to last as more people were starting early. This was especially evident on Grand Parade. It didn't really thin out till after Loftus.

Had a great ride though finishing in 3:17:45 - only 17 minutes behind Jo! Then had the pleasure of the Blue Star hospitality tent with cold drinks (including beers), BBQ snags etc and seats in the shade. Bliss! Saw a couple of DHBC riders from afar at the finish including Miguel, I assume heading off to ride home just as we were leaving. We rode all the way to the station and got the train. Home by 13:00.

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simon.sharwood
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Postby simon.sharwood » 02 Nov 2009, 07:07

we would need to have plan in place to manage the extra numbers though prior to the event.
I figure we have a year to hatch those plans!

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weiyun
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Postby weiyun » 02 Nov 2009, 07:19

...I thought it was more crowded at the start this year compared to last as more people were starting early. This was especially evident on Grand Parade. It didn't really thin out till after Loftus.
Just like a grand tour with the breaking up of the peloton by the mountain climb. :wink:

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weiyun
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Postby weiyun » 02 Nov 2009, 07:20

I figure we have a year to hatch those plans!
Plan away! After all, we are the local club for the starting point.

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yewenyi
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Postby yewenyi » 02 Nov 2009, 09:20

saw miguel and the others riding back at about coal cliff. did you ride or walk up to bald hill?

AnthonyI
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Joined: 25 Feb 2009, 19:49
Location: Summer Hill

Postby AnthonyI » 02 Nov 2009, 10:36

saw miguel and the others riding back at about coal cliff. did you ride or walk up to bald hill?
We all managed to ride up, although if the climb went any longer walking would've been a pretty good option.

We joined up with another fellow from the Canada Bay bike group who was riding his own designed and built carbon fibre recumbent. It was amazing seeing him climb that hill on that bike. :shock: He more or less stayed with Miguel, Mark and myself from Bald Hill to Waterfall..and he was really flying onthe downhill bits.

The freshening NE in the afternoon made life interesting and dropped our average speed down a few Km/h. The two espresso stops on the way home certainly made it a pleasant ride. Great day all up!

Terry
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Joined: 20 Jul 2008, 12:09
Location: Newtown

Postby Terry » 02 Nov 2009, 20:03

I did the ride with my wife this year and had a pleasant time due to the fact that I was resigned to the fact that it was going to be a slow ride.
Lannen has only been riding a road bike for about two months and had an excellent ride. She was determined to ride the whole distance with a lowest gear of 39/28 up from a tiny 28/34 on the hybrid that has done the gong previously .
We started at around 6:45 and finished at 11:05 with a total of 3:56 riding time. we went to the pub for a quick drink and thence to the train and were home by 14:00.
We were hoping to meet with geoff, Marian and others as I thought that they would be not far behind but Marian's postings have explained their absence.

Susie
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Joined: 08 Aug 2009, 16:18
Location: Marrickville

Postby Susie » 02 Nov 2009, 20:08

Just a brief note to say a big thank you to Geoff for riding tandem with me even though it practically killed him. Also thanks to Marian and Frank for their support.

It was a difficult ride for Geoff and me. By the time we got to Loftus I realised that I was not ready for it yet. I had real difficulty pushing consistently up the long steep hills. The only other long ride I have done was with Lindsay in April in Mudgee.

In between the enforced waiting, tyre changing and brow moping that Marian mentioned we had a few rest stops for me.

Initially I was dreaming about the beer I was going to have when we finished. In the end all I could think was how much everything hurt. The last 10km seemed to be the longest.

Anyway I am glad we did it and we finished it. It is big achievement for me as I have only really started doing regular exercise since school in the last year. I now know I still have a long way to go.

Thanks again Geoff.

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yewenyi
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Postby yewenyi » 03 Nov 2009, 02:38

We all managed to ride up, although if the climb went any longer walking would've been a pretty good option.
I'm impressed! The other riders I saw going up the hill as I was coming down were all walking.

Here are my ride stats. They include riding from Marrickville to the start and from wolli creek back to Marrickville. The GT3 is ok in a tangara, but on the older sets it is a bit wide.
  1. Distance: 98.16 km
    Average Speed: 15.23 kmh
    Riding Time: 6:26:45
    Max Speed: 59 kmh
I've started posting some photos, but it will be probably be a week before I get through them all.

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SuzieSpiro
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Joined: 16 Feb 2008, 15:51
Location: Marrickville, NSW

Postby SuzieSpiro » 03 Nov 2009, 20:23

Hi everyone,
As most know, I ended up riding with my girlfriends Toni, Loretta and Lisa as part of 'Annettes Army', a group of parents and kids from St Andrews Primary school, Malabar. One of the mums at the school, Annette has MS and is looking after 2 primary aged daughters on her own. We did the 58kms course from Engadine to the Gong, left Engadine at 8.30am and got to the Finish line just before 12.30pm. Which was absolutely fine, I actually found the hills a lot easier than the last time I did the ride (2007). Saw Marion, Geoff and Suzie at the Royal National Park lunch stop and Miguel riding back from the Gong. Our group (approx 25 riders all up) had a safe and enjoyable ride - thankfully no crashes or flat tyres, a good time was had by all. Cheers, Suzanne :)
P.S. Won't see you at Saturday Slowies this week as Michael & I are doing the 'caterpillar tour' of Melbourne this weekend (i.e. eating our way through Melbourne). Will need to get back on the bike to work some of it off the following week!! Have a good week everyone.

Jono
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Postby Jono » 05 Nov 2009, 16:52

Hi everyone,

I did the ride with the Pedal Power ACT team (I got talked into it) I copped a puncture on the descent from Lawrence Hargraves Drive and wound up changing the tube from behind the "safety" of the crash barrier. I briefly saw Brian Yap at Lawrence Hargraves Drive and at the end he I caught up with Jeff and Marion afterwards at the Five Islands brewary and saw Simon Sharwood and some DHBC riders riding back. I am missing you all and wish I was back in Sydney. I will be back for a couple of weeks over Xmas so hopefully will see you all (or most of you) soonish.
Jono the member at large

malee
Posts: 36
Joined: 22 Jul 2008, 21:58
Location: Ashbury

Postby malee » 06 Nov 2009, 19:02

Hi Jono
Good to have seen you although we were leaving to catch the train. See you on a ride during the festive season.

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Beanzy
Posts: 100
Joined: 16 Dec 2007, 15:50
Location: Riverwood

Postby Beanzy » 15 Nov 2009, 10:20

Hi All.

Syd ney to gong link of my ride:

Sydney to Gong 2009

We started from Centennial Park to avoid the crowds at Sydney Park. We made it to the gong in under three hours riding time. We stopped for a puncture at Engadine. Total time 3hrs 2 mins

Cheers

Beanzy


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