Cycling in Sydney Australia
Go Loopy 1-2-3-400km Audax Rides, 21st April 2012
I thought I'd post this one a little early and here instead of in the Audax group on this site, give those that have not done an Audax ride the chance to get on board, get ready, get past the excuses.
The Loopy series offers a 100km, 200km, 300km and the surely very tiring 400km ride.
All rides start at Waitara, a roll from Waitara train station. No transport excuses for the car free.
Maps here:
100km, http://www.bikeroutetoaster.com/Course.aspx?course=370933
200km, http://www.bikeroutetoaster.com/Course.aspx?course=317244
300km, http://www.bikeroutetoaster.com/Course.aspx?course=317543
400km, http://www.bikeroutetoaster.com/Course.aspx?course=317555
Just quietly I'm considering the 300km ride.
Start times are 6:00am for all but the 100km ride which starts at 6:30am. These Audax rides are self supported, you bring your own food or buy it along the way. Water, fill up at checkpoints or places inbetween. To successfully complete any of these rides you must average above 15kmph but below 30kmph and have your brevet card (handed to you at the start) signed at each checkpoint.
Parts of each of these rides require Audax lighting and reflective vest rules to be followed. http://www.audax.org.au/public/images/stories/Documents/reflectiveg... & http://www.audax.org.au/public/images/stories/Documents/lightingreq.... If you do not comply you do not ride.
For those that have never ridden the M7 shared path on a Saturday morning it gets quite busy so max 2 abreast and give joggers the wide berth they expect. I ride it nearly everyday and it is the best piece of shared path in the Sydney region.
Ride info document and online entry not up yet but will post when I see them. Entry fee is $5 for members and $10 for non members.
the www.audax.org.au site has info on rides in general and a calendar of events.
Replies to This Discussion
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Permalink Reply by Michael O'Reilly on -
Did you say "a chance to post your excuses"?
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Permalink Reply by robflyte on -
No doubt all those that say they'd like to do one of these rides will find the usual excuses not to do this one as well.
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Permalink Reply by Neil Alexander on -
More rides for someone to O'void.
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Permalink Reply by Michael O'Reilly on
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Would love to but not sure I can keep it under 30km/h.
Rules is rules I guess!
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Permalink Reply by Lucas PawPaw on -
Hi,
I've never done Audax and thinking of giving this a go. I'm looking at doing the 100km and have just read through the ride documents and it seems like the navigation has quite a few twists and turns, do you have any advice or tips on how to keep on track?
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Permalink Reply by Si on -
My order of preference:
1) Ride loads, and everywhere, so you pretty much know the route anyway
2) Cue sheet and a functioning cycle computer (navigating like this is actually very effective)
3) GPS, although you don't get to know the roads as well (see 1) and mine always seems to screw up somehow. I have recently just been carrying it in a jersey pocket and turning it on when I think I need it (but have not actually needed it)
4) Follow someone who you know knows the route, although you don't get to know the roads as well (see 1)
5) Print out maps (pain in the arse, but I still do it when I am on a new route but have never had to use them - bikemap.net is great for printing maps out, export them from bikely or bike route toaster as a gpx, import them into bikemap.net and print :))
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Permalink Reply by stuh on -
Is the ride not signposted? I've already signed up for it. Don't have a bike computer so may have to ride the route in advance.
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Permalink Reply by Si on
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Nope. It's not like one of the big events. Just a group of people riding a set route with a time limit.
Step 5 :) and make liberal use of Google Maps/Streetview. Seriously, look at the turns on street view so you know what they (might - things change) look like.
Navigation skills are kind-of part of the audax thing. Self-sufficiency etc,
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Permalink Reply by Rob Berry on -
Yup.
I go into a ride with 2 or 3 pieces of paper - one is the cue sheet, the others have a couple of screen shots off Google Maps for sections bits that might be a bit tricky or involve multiple intersection in quick succession.
Once you get out on to the open road out of the city you can go for many kilometres without having to make a turn. On my first audax there was a stretch from Old Northern Road, over Wiseman's Ferry, and then north to Mangrove Mountain where there were at least 50-60km where there weren't any need to look at the cue sheet or a map for help because there was only one way to go.
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Permalink Reply by robflyte on
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that is a good stretch Rob, loved it.
On the subject of carrying stuff, apart from cue sheet and distance measuring device I also carry many other things, to many possibly.
A few sandwiches, endurolytes, fizzy endurolytes, glucose tablets, 2 hours worth of gels, mulitool, tube, tyre lever things, glue and patches, pump, reflective bands and jacket (night), full first aid kit, energy bars, perpetuem powder, 2 front lights and batteries, helmet light, 2 tail lights plus spare tail light and batteries, cash, drivers licence and medicare card, sunscreen, bum cream, zinc cream, night glasses, sun glasses. Hopefully that is it, may have forgotten something. Oh a phone as well, used to carry a camera but hardly used it and my phone is good enough now.
Front rack bag carries food, rear rack back carries everything else. I could ride a lot lighter and then even get rid of a rack considering I rarely use all this stuff but I cannot get myself to unload any of it.
Carry this thinking over to my commute and you get to understand why I ride a Big Dummy, well that and a monstrously heavy portable computer.
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Permalink Reply by Rob Berry on
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full first aid kit
If you don't want to bother with this yourself, just make sure you ride with Rob, or a little ahead of him, so when you are lying on the side of the road in a bloody mess he can patch you up, has worked for me so far.
I've been pondering over what kind of bag I will get for audax rather than taking a pannier, which is too big for what I need, thinking something like this, this or this.
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