All roads lead to Mt Gambier !

My BOM Melbourne forecaster mate, one D Fuller, simply said "dejavu" when indicating by email todays infuriating forecast ...yes another bloody headwind !

It's hats off to anyone that has cycled around Australia and in particular one M Murray, not only for enduring the weather conditions this great country can throw at you but for also often enduring endless miles of nothing ! Combine a headwind with the "nothing" and you have a real mental battle going on within ! Some innner voices simply saying "WTF" while others implore you to just get off the bike and walk ! Against that you have a deeper inner voice saying just 1 more k, just one more K and then finally you have the voice of reason telling the other voices to just "shut the f€%k up" !

We set off pretty much at 8.30 aiming to get to Mt Gambier in time (52 kms) to allow Chris to temporarily remove herself from " servitude" by enjoying the fairways of Royal Mt Gambier although whether in fact she gets past the first tee will very much depend on how the clubhouse views Henleys "once were plus 4's "

Todays ride was pretty much full of expletives. Whike fighting with the never ending headwind we had the added challenge of dealing with a  busy main road complete with semis and a multitude of log trucks ! The constant buzz of traffic had us sticking mainly to the rough surfaced debris filled verge with only an occassional forest, a few pinches and a suicidal crop duster copper pilot spraying nearby fields for entertainment !

The long main street finally  signalled our entry to Mt Gambier with both Kev and Marysia doing really. So well in fact that Marysia had enough energy to also head off to the golf course while Kev decided to postpone his threatened "arse transplant" for another day.

 For me the math is simple - head to the bike shop to get some hydraukic fluid in those back brakes or risk doing a really good impersonation of superman the next time i need both brakes !

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Groundhog Day !

Weather gods please give us a break ! After 3 consecutive days of headwinds we awoke to yet another windy morning and with the wind coming from a Sth East direction it meant that we were once again setting off directly into a headwind towards Beachport and Millicent.

Marysia took a sneaky headstart this morning while I mucked around with my panniers - "We'll see you on the road said Kev" ! Despite leaving only 15 minutes later we didn't in fact catch the pocket rocket until the 25 km mark - don't worry i have already referred the matter to the drug doping tribunal !

Our remaining 25 kms to Beachport were all in windy conditions with some spells at 10kms/hr and a few at 20kms+hour (dont ask me how) as we rotated the lead taking turns up front or drafting behind in superb pelotonic discipline ! Finally after a fair bit of punishment we reached the foreshore of lovely Beachport with its amazing near 1km long pier stretching out nearly into the middle of the bay ! Here we took a quick cuppa and cake courtesty of our travelling Angel Chris, then set off back into the wind heading to Millicent

This was "butt" painful but with the experience of our 149 km day behind it was af least bearable .. well maybe not for Marysia who had to listen to Kev and self belting out Chords of Thunder from Acca Dacca to stop us from going totally insane !

Another stop, some more food fuel and we finally rocked into Millicent just affer 3p.m. to complete yet another difficult day !

After Spag Bol for dinner we look forward to its a shortish day tomorrow as we make our way to Mt Gambier with self aiming for a bike shop to restore my missing hydraulic fluid and Chris aiming for a game of golf at the beautiful Mt Gambier course !

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Resting in Robe !

After a series of punishing headwind type days it was great to sleep in and rise to - you guessed it another windy day although this time also cool and overcast !

Having breakfasted we started the day in fine style attempting to adjust my slightly noisy rear brake succeeding in emptying all of the hydraulic fluid out of the brake line leaving my rear brake inoperative. I must say Kev took his punishment well as i nailed him to the flagpole and used him as a windsock for the remainder of the day !

With little on we took the opportunity to have a look around the picturesque and windy seaside surrounds before lounging around in a wifi cafe with the locals on a Sunday afternoon.

All cafiened out we returned to the park and engaged in a social afternoon of drinking while trying to stop the caravans awning from taking off in the wind (... dont know if you can see the common theme here !)

For dinner Chris and Marysia helped prepare a lovely roast chicken meal but not until I'd bravely held Marysia's legs as I pushed her into the oven to help light the gas element - Kev would have volunteered but suggested that he couldn't afford to lose his eyebrows as it was the only facial hair left on his bald dome !

Dinner and good company gone Kev & i settled down for a long night of tag teaming at the toilet having downed a few glasses of alcohol over dinner.. oh the joy of getting older !

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Kevs Rantings !

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-------- Original message --------
From: Kevin Henley <kevinhenleywb54@gmail.com>
Date: 05/03/2017 2:29 AM (GMT+00:00)
To: litchy76 <m_litchfield@hotmail.com>
Subject: Fwd: Bike ride

---------- Forwarded message ----------
From: "Kevin Henley" <kevinhenleywb54@gmail.com>
Date: 5 Mar 2017 3:10 pm
Subject: Bike ride
To: "Kevin Henley" <kevinhenleywb54@gmail.com>
Cc:

> Some clown said once that " life wasn't meant to be easy " he was obviously a touring cyclist .

> The days ride distance of 150km from Strathalbyn to Kingston SE was always going to be one hell of a bumbuster and we all hit the sack the night before hoping to wake up to the gentle wafting of a 70kph tail wind , no such luck .
> Marysia and I hit the road at 6.30 am , nobody with any sense starts riding at 6.30 , and for the first couple of hours it was pleasant cycling until we turned right towards Salt Creek straight into an energy sapping , mind numbing headwind which would stay with us for over 100km .
> Salt Creek was our first revival point where we met Chris for cold drinks and a quick snack , a welcome respite . The news that we still had over 80km to go didn't go down nearly as well .
> We were working in blocks of 10kms where we would pull over for a 5 min spell but after about 80km those breaks extended to sometimes 10min as bits started to become a smidge sore , the word agony was also mentioned .
> A delicious lunch and cold drinks provided by Chris revived a couple of comatosed brains and reluctantly we left lunch with 50km to pedal - how hard could that be .
> BLOODY SERIOUSLY HARD .
> For our last 50km Marysia and I were just working on 5-7km blocks and ticking off each block . By this stage I didn't know whether my rear end freckle was still attached as contact had been lost many kms ago , shoulders were aching and hot foot made an appearance - I'm certain this must still qualify as fun .
> With 20km to go just for good measure somebody turned up the wind generator to high giving us a strong headwind right on the nose , the breaks quickly became 4-5kms .
> It became a real slog until we finally staggered into KSE and collapsed on the van park grass - totally knackered .Mike rocked in about 30mins later looking as stuffed as we were .
> An outstanding effort by Marys and Mike to finish such a tough day and big thanks to Chris for the life saving food and drinks along the way .
> We're still hanging out for THAT tailwind .

Where the sun doesn't shine !

You'd reckon that after 10 hours of sleep, a full English breakfast and a planned shortish day we'd be raring to jump back on the bikes for our cycle from Kingston to Robe but with tenderised butts, creaking knees and a breezy morning we were less than enthusiastic !

After much procrastinating we finally left overcast Kingston jumping back on to a narrow main road in almost perfect peletonic discipline slowly knocking over the km's as we cycled through countryside that comprised open countryside, a few hills, the occassional vineyard and little else !

After only 2 1/2 hours we passed the Tourist Info welcoming sign indicating that Robe was only 5 kms away ! 2kms onwards the official marker again indicated that Robe was still 5 kms away ! If we'd had the energy we would have gone back and dug up the TI sign and taken it into town planting it into some bureaucrats desk !

Our top 4 caravan park allowed us early entry to our cabin where we mainly relaxed until later on in the day when Chris took us out on to nearby Long Beach for some 4wd experience and a late afternoon BBQ on the beach a unique touring experience for anyone. 

Marysia "i never drink beer" Murray enjoyed a couple of well earned beers while we enjoyed a great bbq while the strong wind set about depositing sand in places where the sun does not shine !

After nearly 400 kms covered we are over 1/3 of the way back to Melbourne and look forward to taking a day out in Robe tomorrow as the weather cools down.

This was recovery day only just over 40kms which was about all our still tender bums could handle

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Heroes All !

The Coorong name brings up images of a wildlife domain filled with areas of outstanding natural beauty. It may in fact be seen as such by those with a "Green" disposition but for us on bikes this was 150 kms of bum burning, mind numbing stretches of arrow straight roads (we assume built by the Romans) that disapperead into a never ending haze on the horizon 

I knew i'd set the challenge for Marysia & Kev the night before by suggesting that none of us would make the 150 km distance if we got yesterdays wind although Marysia's steely eyed glint in particular suggested  that she would make it even if Kev had to drag her over the line!

Marysia and Kev opted once again for an early 7a.m. start to take advantage of the milder conditions while I opted instead for my customary sleep in time start of 8.30. As far as the Coorong goes at least the 60 kms to Salt Creek had some interest , undulating roads, an occassional emu and brine lakes that had that timeless smell of a urinal at a pub following the 6 o'clock swill (... ahh the memories !)

Salt Creek was a road house and bugger all else other than the welcoming sight of Chris who has turned our cycling adventure into a 5 star experience - where else can you rock up to your very own caravan cafe out in the middle of nowhere !

The 2nd leg though was both physically and mentally tough. Endless km's of straight roads with scrub and only the sounds of passing trucks, caravans and your own grizzling to keep you company.  t

Having congratulated ourselves on missing tbe worst of the headwinds to Salt Creek we got struck with the full works at the 125 km mark, the worst possible time ! With knees hurting and bums chafing we fought the last 25 kms into Kingston straight into a powerful headwind ! Doing only 10 kms an hour meant that each km went by with painful slowness ! 

We finally entered Kjngston collectively on our last legs, Kev and Marysia at 5.30 p.m. after nearly 9 hours on the bike ! I wouldnt have been too far behind except i didn't make it past the shop at the entrance to the caravan park buying a cold drink and an ice cream and then internally debating about whether to eat / drink both or use them to cool down my raw rear end !

Stuffed as we were we had just enough energy left to hit the town for dinner (yummy chicken pieces with gravy - not !) before crashing and hitting the sack not much after 9pm.! Watch out nusing homes here we come !

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Coorong by bike

Well why would you do it !! A Good question that I can't think of a sensible answer to ! Anyhow I did it! Yeh 😊all 149 kms of it. It was mainly thanks to Kevin letting me draft behind him ALL the way and Chris who saved all our lives with food and drink stops along the way. 

The ride started well enough with a very slight head wind  and lovely scenery, so we made it to Salt Creek in fairly good time. Not much in Salt Creek except perhaps a Salt Creek and a Road House for weary motorists to fill up with fuel and food and get out of there. For us it was the almost halfway point and the food and drink stop that Chris provided that enabled us to get out of there and head toward Kingston SE our destination for the day. 

After that it was more of a physiological battle ( well for me anyway) of breaking down the distances in ever smaller increments. The last 20 kms being the most difficult ! Increasingly strong head winds, boring never ending straight long roads, and kms that took forever to cover. 

Anyhow Kingston SE was eventually reached ,tired ,muscle weary ( will I ever walk properly again!) but happy to have been physically able to do it. 

Thank you Kevin, thank you Chris for your support and thank you Mike for suggesting 149 kms was "doable" ( I think!) 

Thank you too to all the truckies and motorists that gave us a wide berth and many even a friendly wave along the way. 

Ps I don't know where yesterday's blog went that I spent an hour writing. Perhaps it was censored, or it is still hanging about in the ether. At least a bike is a bit more dependable and predictable than technology. ( eg one can predict that if you ride 149 kms you'll end up cactus at the end of the day you can depend on it ) So here is hoping this makes it onto the blog. Cheers 

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Be careful what you wish for !

After 2 consecutive days in a cycling sauna we collectively hoped and prayed that day 3 would finally provide a respite and boy do we wish we hadnt as what we got instead was an unrelenting, unabating,never ending f×%÷ng headwind !

Marysia and Kev started preparing for the days ride shortly after midnight (so it seemed) hitting the road at 6.30a.m. to avoid a hat trick of hot days while i continued luxuriating in my slumber at least until the sun came up !

The ride to Wellington (50kms) on the Murray was a delight partly because of the road conditions and absence of traffic but mainly because of the headwind. Up ahead Kev scored the first puncture on tour with his slightly balder than bald rear tyre (read exposed sections of wire beading) giving way. After a few more expletives when he couldnt release his brake cable the tube was replaced and both Kev and Marysia were back on their way !

After crossing the Murray on a small punt we all eventually turned southwards towards Meningie and that was where the fun started. Our generous headwind had now turned into a punishing soul sapping headwind as we inched our way forward on a high speed road complete with competing caravans and trucks towards Meningie

In conditions like this the challenge is mainly mental as you battle to stay focussed despite the fact that you seem to be getting nowhere on dead straight roads that disappear into the horizon. After 2 hours of torture I was still 7 or so kms behind Kev & Marysia until Marysia had indicated by phone that Chris had incredibly set up a tea stop up the road complete with hot tea, a cold drink and a salad sandwich ! Its amazing what an incentive can do and somehow my speed doubled until I finally caught up to the group!

With Chris having done a fantastic job we set off this time together to Meningie with 18 more kms into the strengthening head wind 

With the kms painfully reducing we finally entered Meningie heading straight to the caravan park wondering over a chardanay or two how the hell we were going to repeat it all tomorrow when we aim to complete 150 kms in the same direction !

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Crafers Revisited

Well that's done and dusted and I'm not really sorry. 

Firstly it may work once ignoring my early rise in anticipation of an impending heat wave and a 10 km climb not to mention the 8 km climb to get to it. 

And did I hear someone say ( no names) we should have left earlier !!!!! 

Secondly I preferred it the first time 3 years ago when everything was shrouded in a heavy fog so it was impossible to see the incline ahead, also it was much cooler then and guess what!  I left early way before peak hour.  But then my memory has faded a bit, well alright a lot then but that's why I am here now isn't. 

It was a lovely down hill run ( well most of the way) to Strathalbyn where we scored the disabled cabin ( don't laugh) . Only thing missing was the swimming pool to cool off but the boys set the air con to 17 deg and I was almost glad I had brought along a long sleeved jacket . 

So it was off to the local for a cold one and contemplate tomorrow's ride ( eg an early start) 

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Cranking up Crafters !

It was 30c and the sweat was pouring off Marysia's back as we powered (read crawled) up Crafters Hill around 10% corners that seemed to go on forever !  This was day 2 of our cycle, 9a.m. and our days ride was less than 10 kms old !

 We'd started the day well enough, discretely ignoring Marysia's 6.a.m wake up call not wanting to leave our air conditioned paradise to front another Adelaide scorcher. With all the haste of a pair of Sloths Kev & I finally presented for an 8a.m.start just in time to battle Adelaides peak hour traffic under the guidance of one Google Maps Murray (promoted after yesterdays fine effort !)

As busy as the roads were the conditions for riding were generally safe and it was wasn't long before we were facing our first challenge of the day the Crafters Hill cycle trail - a road over 10 kms that climbs out of Adelaide on a gradient ranging from 5-10% to the township of Crafters. According to one of our cycling mates Crafters served as an old hill climb challenge during his time in Adelaide (cars not chariots !)

Tough at times the ride gave great views back to Adelaide although our focus was mainly on avoiding the cyclists who were descending at a blur! Finally at Crafters we took morning tea in the air conditioned comfort of a local cafe while we worked out our onging route in the hot conditions (a forecast top of 38c!).

With the directional help of the owner of our cafe we walked a nearby pedestrian bridge crossing the busy Sth Eastern Freeway before taking a downhill forest trail into picturesque Stirling.

From Stirling we took a lovely undulating ride in the inreasingly tough heat conditionn through a selection of country towns ( a es forgotten in the heat blur) before pulling into one 10kms shy of Strathalbyn for a much needed break and Kevs much neded beetroot infused salad sandwich !

The final 10kms to Strathalbyn provided at last a good downhill section We rocked into town, cycled to our caravan 

park (sadly without swimming pool) and raced to our cabin to immediately set the air con to frigid !

Having cooled down and with domestics done we headed into town to take advantage of the local pubs $11 Wednesday night meals which included unlimited returns to the salad bar (or at least did until H took advantage!) - great value and no seniors card needed ! 

It may have only been 60 kms today but the heat is really starting to tell - so much so that Marysia is seriously considering a 6.30a.m. on road start tomorrow while you i'm seriously considering jamming my door with a chair so i can sleep in !

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