Since we all had Monday off work, myself, Kev, Niall and Tom decided to head down to Kangaroo Valley for some MTBing. Watches were syncronised the night before and rendevous was arranged for Tom’s house at 0745hrs at the latest. I got there with time to spare, which was used for some last minute bike maintenance. Kev was late, though he redeemed himself by bringing coffee for everyone and as he pointed out he still had to sit and watch Tom & Niall make sandwiches for another 10mins. We finally left Bondi some time after 8am for an uneventful drive south to Kangaroo Valley.

Once there we had to do the car shuffle, so we’d have one waiting for us at the bottom of the run, which gave me time to do some more bike maintenance, and also to fall over while still clipped into my pedals. I feel it’s best to get these things over and done with early in the day. We hit the trail and immediately stopped for some photos. Tom wasn’t feeling too good already, admitting that he may have eaten too many Easter eggs on Saturday. He figured things would settle down once we got going.

The whole route consists of various fire trails and 4WD tracks. The first section is quite flat and winds through farm country, before taking a turn into Morton National Park. We briefly debated adding an extra loop which was marked on the map, but decided against it. Shortly after entering the park, my front tube exploded. Niall and Kevin almost ducked for cover as they thought an irate farmer might be out with the shotgun! Ten minutes into the ride and we were already stopping for repairs! I threw in a spare tube and off we went again.

We found a nice bit of singletrack and did some exploring but it all proved a little too much. Tom cleared a log, then promptly fell over while trying to cycle on. Kevin’s front wheel slid out from under him and he ended up flat on his back off the trail. Myself and Niall escaped from the singletrack unharmed, but Niall decided to go back in for some reason, whereupon he promptly fell off as well. As mentioned earlier, I find it’s better to get all the falling over out of the way early on. The lads felt it was better to do it without the sort of audience you find in a car park. We wisely decided to leave further exploring for another day and continued down the trail to our lunch stop at a quiet lookout, with a spectacular view across Kangaroo Valley laid out before us as we ate.

Niall broke out the gourmet sandwiches which had taken so long to make earlier in the morning, along with his cup of tea. Myself and Kev had shop bought pasta salads and Tom only managed a couple of grapes. By this stage we were a little worried, as you know there is something seriously wrong when Tom refuses food!

After lunch we continued on our way and the lads got to do a few jumps. I decided to skip the jumps given my impressive performance the last time I tried jumping in Kangaroo Valley, ie: I crashed badly! Soon after that I had another flat, though not in as spectacular style as the first. I’d used my spare tube, so I had to borrow one from Tom. Five minutes later Kevin also flatted, only to find that his tubes felt like they were Teflon coated. The patch wouldn’t stick, so he had to get a tube off Niall. That was our last tube, so we had to hope we wouldn’t have any more tube issues. Lesson for the day: don’t buy tubes made in Thailand, or Teflon coated ones made anywhere at all!

After another couple of kays, we made it to the creek crossing. I waded through with my shoes still on, figuring it wouldn’t take them long to dry out. The lads stopped to take theirs off and I think they had the right idea. As I write this (the following morning) my shoes are still outside on the balcony at home drying out. We were now at the worst part of the ride: a 3km serious hill climb. Tom was in no fit state to make the climb, so he decided to walk. The rest of us were determined to give it a go. Niall and Kev made it to the top without stopping, but I wasn’t able for it. I reckon I cycled about 60% of it, though split into three cycle/walks.

Once up the hill it was a straight-forward on-road 10km back to the car for 37km total riding for the day. Niall took the car back to pick up Tom who was really suffering by this stage. Not being able to eat anything all day meant that he had zero energy left. We thought we’d get stuck in holiday traffic on the drive back to Sydney, though we got lucky and it was plain sailing, apart from the moron we saw reversing through 3 lanes of traffic near the airport!

So, all in all it was a good day. I’d been itching to do that route for a while, so it was good to finally have the chance. I’ll need to work on the fitness for that hill as Kev & Niall can get to the top & Tom managed all but 400m of it ona previous visit. I’ll have another chance in two weeks as we’re supposed to meet the guys from Canberra for another MTB trip, so we’ll see how I go on that one!

Photos are here.

Back on the bike today for the commute. A bit windy this morning, but my legs felt fine after last night’s run, so it wasn’t too bad. Cycling home was quite good. I was trying to practise pedalling correctly, applying power all the way around the stroke, rather than just pressing down. It felt easier for a while, then my hamstrings got sore, probably because they’re not used to doing much work on the bike.

B: 20km – R: 3.3km

Struggled out of bed this morning. Was not looking forward to cycling anywhere, but forced myself to do it. I’ve finally cracked the 100km in a week barrier. Tried doing a swim before work as well, but gave up after 400m as I was drained.

B: 102km – R: 4.4km – S: 1400m

Did three laps of Centennial Park with Greg and then another run along the cliffs. Am almost at 100km for the week.

B: 92km – R: 4.4km – S: 1000m

Did another couple of laps of the park with Niall on the way home. Tired now ;-)

B: 62km – R: 2.2km – S: 1000m

Well, I did it. I managed to get out of bed in time to go for a swim, even if it was only 1km. I found that my arms get tired quite quickly, so I guess I’ll just have top stick with it for the moment. Got myself a 20-visit pass which should last me at least 6 weeks, assuming I stick to 3 swims a week.

B: 41km – R: 2.2km – S: 1000m

Got this week off to a good start. Did a couple of laps of Centennial Park as part of the commute home, then went for a run once I made it home. The run is along the cliffs, passing Australia’s first Lighthouse, and sure beats trudging through the streets of Canberra! Maybe that’s why the run felt reasonably good today, or it could have been the fact that my legs were well warmed up after the 21km cycle home.

I’ve just rung the Cook & Phillip Pool to see if they have lap swimming in the morning and they do, starting from 6am. If I can get up around 7, then I’ll cycle in and have a small swim. It’s about time I got back in the water.

B: 31km – R: 2.2km

Hit the park on the way home for a couple of laps with Niall, so the cycling is going well. Needed to do a couple more laps tonight to hit 100km for the week, but it was raining when I was supposed to leave the house this morning, and thunderstorms were forecast, so I got the bus instead. 5mins into the bus ride the blue sky came out. I should have cycled after all. Bloody typical!

I’ve been a bit slack on the running front this week (in that I’ve done none). I’ll have to make up for it at the weekend and go running on Saturday and Sunday.

B: 71km

Weighed in at 88.0kg this morning, 300g more that the last time. However, since my body fat is down to 18% that means my legs must be muscling up from all the cycling ;-)

B: 25km

Went for another ride around the lake last night. I left work late, so I didn’t have time to do a full lap before it got dark (should really buy some lights) but I still got a 21.2kmh ride in, with an average speed of 29kmh which was pretty good. It felt quite easy as well. The only downside to riding at dusk was the clouds of midges at various parts of the trip. Had to make sure I closed my mouth before passing through the cloud!

On a positive note, when I get around to doing a triathlon I’d be aiming to average 30kmh or so on the bike, so I shouldn’t have too much trouble doing that based on last night’s ride, especially if I was on a road bike rather than an MTB. Now all I have to do is learn to run!

Got a good ride in last night after work: around Lake Burley Griffin. It was 33.5km from the hotel, around the lake and back to the hotel, at an average speed of 27.2kmh overall, and 28.1kmh if I exclude the hotel to lake and lake to hotel bits. It’s quite a nice ride, hugging the side of the lake most of the way around, passing Old Parliament House, The Governor General’s house and the National Museum of Australia. It’s a tarmac bike track almost all the way around and is mainly flat. The last 20% of the ride was into the wind but it wasn’t too strong. By the end of it my lower back was a bit sore & my legs were a little tired, but other than that it was plain sailing. I’ll hopefully do it again on Thursday.

B: 33.5km – R: 2.2km

Well after a heatwave hit the east coast of Australia over the last few weeks, hitting mid-40s Celcius in some places, we’ve had a solid 24hrs of rain. It’s still blowing a gale outside with a bit of rain as well. Hopefully it’s raining in the right areas so that the dam levels rise.

I didn’t cycle home yesterday and waited 45mins for a bus home this evening before giving up and deciding to cycle home instead. Got soaked, but it was fun!

B: 20km

Bloody hell, I’m exhausted. I cycled in and out of work today, the first time I’ve done so. That’s 10km each way, including two decent hills. As if that wasn’t enough I decided to do a couple of laps of Centennnial Park with Niall which wasn’t as easy as yesterday, probably due to the wind having picked up a bit. Just to annoy me, it was also in my face for the climb up the hill to home. My legs are totally exhausted now. At least I’ve two days off now.

B: 71km

Fixed up the puncture and trued the rear wheel, as it was a little buckled. Stopped off for a few laps of Centennial Park on the way home, with Tom & Niall. It’s an easy 3.8km lap, and the Park looks really nice, with plenty of cyclists around. Once I get used to cycling in and out, I’ll probably incorporate a couple of laps into my cycle home, the same way Niall does, the plan being to cycle over 100km each week. I’d love to blast around it on a road bike too, just to feel the difference between that and an MTB.

Also, did a body fat check when I got home, and I’m now down to 18.3%. Progress, progress.

B: 48km

The cycling is going fine. I can’t accelerate too hard, or hit potholes sitting down as my ribs are still a little sore, but apart from that all is well. Did the full cycle in to work this morning, rather than getting the ferry. Apart from the hill on Old South Head Road the rest was fairly easy. I was looking forward to cycling home, but I’ve just looked across at my bike and the back tyre is flat. I’ve got a replacement tube, but no pump. Looks like it will have to wait until tomorrow then.

Have been looking around for a back-pack too. Have decided to get the Deuter Cross Air, a 22L pack with a 3L hydration system. It’s got a cool webbed back, keeping the pack off your back, so air can circulate and you don’t sweat like a b’stard. Should have enough room for swimming gear once I get back into that too. It’s $100 US, which given the exchange rate, still works out about $60 Aussie cheaper than I can get it here.

B: 25km

Had an eventful day yesterday. Myself, Niall and Kev headed down to Kangaroo Valley for another downhill run on the bikes. Tom stayed at home as he hurt his back playing squash with Billy. We had a much more streamlined operation than the last time, and planned to do the run twice. First one was great fun and uneventful, apart from me hitting a top speed of 68.7kmh on the tarmac run back to the car. Kev also made it to the top of the long hill without putting a foot down. None of the rest of us have managed it yet.

After a bit of food we got the car shuffle underway and were all ready at the top of the second run around 2pm. Niall led the way and got a puncture almost immediately. Luckily we had tubes this time, so we just swapped a new one in and kept going. Kev made it over the big hill without stopping again, and I took over the lead for the second half. Toward the end of the run there were a few jumps in a row. First was good, the second was much better, but I landed the thrid one all wrong and I came off the bike at around 30kmh.

I bounced and rolled a bit and once I stopped I couldn’t breathe at all for about 10secs. I faded out a bit and heard the two guys telling me to stay down. I remember thinking to myself “oh yeah, I’ve crashed my bike”, so there must have been a period before that when I had no idea what was going on. Kev said that I was shaking, and was ghost white, then green for a bit. I was going to stay where I was for a bit and get my breath back, as I was seriously winded, but I was lying in amongst a load of bull ants, so I had to move. The colour returned to my cheeks a minute or two later, and after a while I was able to get back on the bike and take the rest of the ride very easy. Kev and Niall did a great job making sure I was OK and taking my bike apart for the ride back to Sydney.

I took this morning off work to get my ribs checked as they were really sore. I had an x-ray and all is ok, so I’ll just have to put up wiht the pain for a couple of days until it heals up a little. I’ll also have to cut back on the extreme mountain biking for a bit ;-)

B: 35km – R: 3.2km – W: 2 sessions – Row: 1km

Had a long day yesterday! 6 hours and about 30km of off-road cycling. Myself, Tom, Kev and Niall headed up to the Blue Mountains to have a go at The Oaks Trail. Left Bondi just before 9am, drove to Glenbrook, parked the cars and hopped onto the 10.02 train to Woodford.

After a bit of faffing, we hit the trail. It started off with short downhills followed by short uphills for a few kilometres. The new shocks were working perfectly and it was a lot easier to go fast and maintain control. Tom was the first casualty of the day, going over the handlebars on one downhill. Kevin had already fallen off his bike, but that happens so often it’s no longer regarded as exceptional. A third of the way through the trail we found the helipad area. There was a couple of bits of tree trunks lying about, which provided the perfect opportunity for everyone to practice their bunny-hops.

Shortly afterwards we hit the main downhill section and we took off. I nailed a maximum speed of 53kmh down one section, an indication of how well the shocks were working. Myself and Kevin stopped half way down to wait for Niall and Tom. When they still hadn’t arrrived 15mins later we figured something must be wrong, so we started cycling back up the hill. Rounded the previous corner to see the lads watching someone fix Niall’s puncture. We’d seen the guy having a rest and a drink as we flew past. Niall had gotten a puncture somewhere up the trail and since the repair kits were with myself and Kev, he’d stopped to ask this guy if he had a patch. The poor man volunteered to fix the puncture, only to find that there turned out to be four punctures in the tube! Got all that sorted out, then took off again. At the end of the downhill run, we hopped the National Park gate and headed off on the singletrack part of the trail. We’d covered about 1km when Niall got another two punctures, in the same tyre, so we stopped to fix that. We decided that in future we’d all bring two tubes so we wouldn’t have to deal with punctures again!

The rest of the singletrack changed between nice wooded sections through the trees to more technical, rocky downhill sections and a couple of kms later we ended up in a car park. We weren’t sure where to go from there, so we followed the tar road, splashed through the creek and stopped. We were faced with a very steep hill, which we were hoping to avoid having to climb, but a couple of passing bikers told us that the hill was the way out. Just what we needed to finish the day: a bloody long, steep hill. Thankfully it wasn’t as long as we thought it was going to be, and 6 hours after we’d started the trail, we reached the top, with lots of needed drinking water available from the fountain.

A quick cycle back to the cars, a change of clothes and we headed into Glenbrook for a perve at all the cool bike gear in Cycle Fantasy. There was a lovely Ellsworth frame for $3250!! A couple of Coopers later and we were on the road back to Sydney.

All in all it was a bloody long day, and everyone was exhausted. We’d cycled around 35km, 30 of which was the trail itself, and it had turned out to be a fair bit hillier that we’d expected. We’d also learned to have a couple of tubes with us in future!

B: 80km

Have decided not to get a new bike, but will get a new shock put on my existing bike. I’ve had the Rock Shox Duke SC Air recommented to me, so I’ve gone with that and I’ve also asked them to put clip-in pedals on the vike too. I’ll drop the bike in tomorrow and hopefully it will be ready on Sunday. There’s a vague plan to do the Oak Trail on Sunday, so if the bike is ready in time it will be a perfect opportunity to try out the fork.

B: 45km

Now that the cycle computer is working, it tracks the distance for me. I reset it last night, and it’s now showing 15.9km. Up until now I’d thought that I was cycling 12km a day, whereas it turns out that I’m actually cycling closer to 16km. I’ll call it a nice round 15km.

Body Fat today is 18.6%, down 0.6% from last week. Though I still have a bit of a gut, I’m no longer considered medically overweight. I’m now ‘Healthy’.

B: 30km

Dropped the bike in to Clarence St. Cyclery for a service this morning. I described the issues I had with my shocks at the weekend and asked what were the minimum shocks they would recommend as replacements. He suggested the Rock Shox Duke SL for $590! Screw that, I’m not putting $600 forks on an $800 bike! I’ll have to do a bit of research into a new bike.

Picked up the bike in the afternoon and it felt great. Gears changed smoothly, and the computer worked properly. Tried it out on the way home:

Distance: 11.1km

Avg. Speed: 19.8kmh (including sitting at traffic lights)

Top Speed: 55.2kmh (down Old South Head Rd.)

B: 13km