And so, it was Finally here, the day all of the Rock Riders had been setting themselves for, our first “Big Ride”, a test to gauge where we are at, Saturday morning 24th March 6:00am, gathering at Rock Riders HQ (Pearce Residence) to set off for Curtin Springs...85+ Kms away
Ben, Roger, Leon, Mandy and I were all pumped and eager to go, our support driver Adrian was there as was Jenn who would follow later to collect us at Curtin Springs......Jenn was the luckiest Girl in Yulara, seeing so many fine athletic specimens in Lycra so early on a Saturday Morning was a site to behold....a Brisk 15c was the temperature outside...we were all ready and waiting for 6:30am, Matt would not be with us today as he extended his Honeymoon ...and no one had heard from Christian but we would wait until the 6:30 start time before we would leave without him.
6:25am, outside in the driveway, lights on, helmets on, iPods in, no sign of Christian.......Go! And off we went, albeit casually, out of the resort, right onto the highway and into the dawn breaking Central Australian wilderness along the Lasseter Hwy towards Curtin Springs, where Steak sandwiches and beer awaited us.........15 degrees and a slight cross breeze...why didn’t I wear long sleeves and Skins?
It didn’t take long for the five of us to spread out and settle into our own pace and “comfort” zones with Roger and I doing our normal ride, followed by Leon on his “29er” mountain bike, Ben and Mandy. This was not a ride of speed or to arrive as a group, but for us all to ride at a pace that was “comfortable” and to ensure we all arrived at the end.
15 Kms along the Hwy we commented how we had well and truly left Yulara behind and were in “uncharted waters, In the deep end"...we had not ridden past 13kms on this stretch of road previously and it was Cold, Bloody cold, with the sun still not up, The gentle cross breeze had turned into a 25km head wind and let me tell you Lycra is not warmth giving!
Adrian followed behind the riding group, with signs in the rear window stating “Idiots ahead”....I mean “Caution, Cyclists Ahead”. The car had an esky...Packed full of Cold water & Powerade, a First Aid Kit, everyone’s personal stuff for the other end and there was also a good selection of Red Frogs, Snakes, Jelly babies etc and everything we needed to complete the journey
At 25Km Roger, Leon and I pulled over when we saw Adrian approaching, filled up our drink bottles, got some sweets, and handed out some “GU” and away we went, informing Adrian we would be right for the next Hour and he could stick with the others.....
At about the 26km mark, my toes on left foot started to feel numb like they were frozen...I kept taking my foot out of the cleats to shake it around and wriggling my toes to try and fix this minor issue without stopping...at about the 60km point I had to stop, and no sign of Adrian....we pulled over and stopped, took my shoe off and walked around for a bit and the toes came good, must have had the shoes a bit too tight...we stretched a bit, had a good drink, filled up on sugar Lollies and away we went again. Adrian informed us we were about 12 Kms in front of the others...Roger and I were very keen to get to Curtin Springs, Turn around and ride back 6kms to the others and ride back into the station with them, this would have given us an even 100Km ride.
The wind was a constant pain, fully in our face the whole trip, the road seemed to be a never ending incline..we started to try reverse psychology wishing for bigger hills and stronger wind and guess what...I think we got what we asked for and more.....80Km into the ride we crossed the Cattle Grid into Curtin Springs station, on their land, cursing the head wind and hills and now we had the roughest road surface we had ridden on and decided to stop and have one last break. During this break we informed Leon his rear tire looked flat since we had left the resort....so he pumped it up with the pump he had in the car and then said it felt like a new bike, Roger stretched his back and rubbed his calf...I didn’t want to rub anything as I was sure everywhere hurt evenly and I didn’t want to play favourites with any particular aching muscle......
2kms to rest area, Curtin Springs Road house the sign said, we were almost there....then out of nowhere came a gust of wind that physically pushed all three of us across the road and very nearly knocked me off my bike....into the station we rode and pulled up on the edge of the gravel driveway...deciding If indeed we really wanted to ride back to the others, all the while watching the wind seemingly increasing....the decision was...NO, we would go and get a well deserved beer instead.
We got a Coopers each and stood at the entrance waiting for Ben and Mandy who shortly joined us.
So, Sunday we have the Family Fun Day and Fund raiser at the Residents Club where we will be raffling Harley Rides, Kings Canyon accom, Hire cars and special Dinners while selling our Merchandise....
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