At 6:45am we met outside the accommodation at Falls Creek in the dark & fog/cloud. We rolled down the hill to the start line in front of the main chairlift in the dark. Everyone was nervous & not saying much. Kiwi Paul said he felt like we were soldiers going off to war. It had an eerie quiet about the place. 1500 or so people all waiting for what lay ahead wondering what would unfold.

We rolled over the start line around 7:04am. Roads were wet, but not raining. I was wearing short sleeved jersey, arm warmers, windstopper & raincoat for wind protection on the 30km descent. Weaving around the hubbards, spending most of the time on the right hand side of the road was interesting. About 20-25km into the 30km descent, the rain started. Sharpy had some hack dart at him on a tight lefthander, forcing him onto the painted line & then onto the tarmac for an early visit on the road. It tore his shorts open on the left, requiring him to dress to the right for the entire day. We waited for the slower descenders (or perhaps more sensible) at the bottom & regrouped. There we got word that Matt Redman (my mate from year had also come down & was walking back up to the ski village.

In no time we were onto the first climb of the day – Tawonga Gap. The rain eased a fair bit, but everything was still saturated. It wasn’t too much trouble & not much more than a Greenhill climb. My time was 33:09. My Garmin decided now was the time to start playing up…& I wasn’t the only 1. Matt appeared around the corner with road grime on his face. Clearly he hadn’t pulled out & was soldiering on.

A really nice descent with flowing comfortable bends in pouring rain followed & I dropped like a brick off the front of the bunch. The only time it pays to be in the mid 90s. Dunc & I got in a lovely rolling group of around 20 & sat comfortably on 35-39 for the 20km to the 1st meal dropoff at Harrietville. As advised by Chriso, I had 2 nutella & honey sandwiches waiting & a Redbull shot.

About 500m up the road we began the longest climb I had ever done in my short cycling career. The 30km Mount Hotham climb. I sat with Shane, found a comfortable rhythm & tapped it out. Before long we had the jackets off & arm warmers down. It was still wet, but we were heating up.

As the climb continued we again found ourselves in the cloud, which quickly got thicker & thicker. Towards the top we made the call to put the jackets back on, & as we were doing it I got my 1st taste of sleet! It felt like hail coming in sideways, but wasn’t falling as hail. The road really began to pinch at this point & our group split up. Visibility was about 3-5m & there were some short downhill sections before the summit where with full brakes on, you picked up speed quickly & had NO IDEA what was in front. That was pretty scary. At the top, after an official climb time of 2:00:15, we stopped by the ski village chairlifts for some photos & a winners bar or 2.

Dinner Plain, at the 115km mark, was a short ride along the top (about 10km) & was clear from cloud. We stopped for about 30min all up I THINK & had a sandwich, some Gatorade, & a muffin. The break was maybe a little too long & I started to get cold. So starting the next section, Sharpy & I spun the legs on the front of the group, trying to warm up ASAP!

Before long it was bright sunlight & warming up fast. Kiwi & I stopped to strip layers, leaving Boordy & Sharpy to shell us like prawns & ride off into the distance. Sammy McClure joined us & made it 3, riding in the 28 degree sun in summer kit. the 2 of us left Sammy for the nice up & downs into Omeo. Kiwi & I were the 1st of the main Cibo bunch into Omeo at 155km & we regrouped with 6 other Cibo lads to form a group of 8 through the next 30km to Anglers Rest.

Soft pedaling, Team Cibo rotated through carefully saving the gun powder for the final climb up the back of Falls. As we pedaled along the valley, we consistently gobbled up dribs & drabs which tacked on behind & when we arrived at the food drop had grown the passengers group to somewhere in the order of 40. when we pulled up we received plenty of thanks, handfuls of gels & even an offer of post ride massages from one thankful passenger.

After another 2 sandwiches of nutella & honey, a can of Redbull, refilled bottles & a roadside pee, we were on our way towards what we’d been told is Australia’s toughest vertical climb. The Team Cibo passengers waited for us to roll out & with calls of “all aboard the red train”, again took the sensible easy option on our wheels for the tow to the 198km mark where the 27km climb to Falls Creek began, & 35km in the ride to go.

NOW…we’d heard all sorts of folklore & rumour about this climb & were wondering how much would be true. It turned out to be everything we’d heard & more. Easily the hardest thing I’ve ever done in my life & probably would have still been so without the 200km already in the legs!
It starts at a t-junction very similar to Torrens Hill Rd, coming off the Gorge. The 1st 1-2km is a 19% punch in the mouth. It was now about 29 degrees & the engines were running hot. After the initial ramp it “leveled off” to a constant unrelenting climb, never changing from 14-16% for the next 7km. literally no change, just constant torture. Around every bend, more white stony steep gradient. At this point punters began pulling off the road, sitting on the ground, in the gutter, zig zagging or walking. I’ve NEVER experienced anything like it. After that 9km, it continued on for almost another 20km never really dropping below 10%. Before this day, the longest single climb I’d ever done was Greenhill/Mt.Lofty, which totals around 11-12km & summits at a measly 720m above sealevel. Falls Creek tops out at 1780m & Mt. Hotham at 1861m. I met a bloke named Trevor & we rode shoulder to shoulder out of the saddle for 20km. talking about how we’d both recently lost our Dad’s. we were soldiers sharing a battle. There was no position sitting or standing, that wasn’t excruciating. My lungs, my arms, abs & of course my legs were screaming. My lower back however was ok, thanks to my Tuesday nights doing reps of Greenhill Rd. My official time for the back of Falls Creek, was 2:37:22.

Approaching the final drink stop around 15km from the finish line, I felt I didn’t have the capacity to restart if I stopped for water. I saw Shane standing waiting to go, so I just pointed & rolled on. About 5km later Shane reeled me in & we rolled across the top of Falls for the final 10km together talking about the day & the hellish climb we’d just conquered. We both agreed there was nothing fun about what we’d just been through. It was horrific. But we had a HUGE sense of satisfaction for getting through the day where others had failed. We crossed the dam wall approaching the finish line & with about 500m to go, mother nature decided to give us one final kick. Torrential pouring rain came from absolutely nowhere. A huge crack of thunder, & we rolled down the hill across the finish line, 11:14:18 after first heading out at 7:04am. Bicycle Victoria claim 5334m of climbing & ASSUMING stoppages of an hour or more, I’m guessing I was on the bike for around 10hrs.

It was without any shadow of a doubt the hardest thing I had ever done. I was totally & utterly obliterated. As I dismounted & the officials came to take my bike for me, I felt a huge release of emotion & tears welled to the surface. I looked over at Shane & he was experiencing the same thing. JSR crossed the line minutes later also showing signs of man-tears as did the following Smokin Joe & then Dunc. Speaking to the lads back at the accommodation everyone seemed to have the same emotional explosion after crossing the line. It was a surreal feeling, something I will never forget.

Later that night we all agreed we would never again ride in Victoria. 24hrs later after the initial pain had started to subside, I was thinking “well, maybe we’ll not close that door just yet” Would I attempt 3 Peaks again? Maybe………..

Today was, again, a family outing for me. We again caught the bus in to the city and then walked the length of the finish straight to War Memorial drive. The area behind the Adelaide Uni Rowing Club has become a bit of a family favourite possie. We were there last year, but on the Southern side of the Drive. This year we found the huge gum trees on the Northern side and parked ourselves: picnic rug out, lunch eaten, books out for the girls and to the fence for us.

It was a great day for watching the racing once again. The weather was perfect, and the shade of the trees worked well with the breeze to keep things nice all afternoon.

While things on the sidelines were nice and chilled, the action on the road went straight to BOILING from the first lap! A crash before half a lap was over and a breakaway with a 10 second lead set the right tone for the 90km race. There were attacks from then until the end of the race. One breakaway would be swallowed up by the HTC juggernaut, only for another to begin as quickly, leaving the HTC guys with nothing left in the tank by the time Matty Goss needed the awesome leadout for the second intermediate sprint on lap 12 of 20. From then onwards it was going to be an uphill battle for Goss to get to the winner’s post first.

I lost count of the number of times that Stuart O’Grady was in the attacks, but obviously someone else didn’t. Stuey was awarded the Most Aggressive Rider for today, and for the 2011TDU. One more accolade for the man who won the very first Tour DownUnder. Some are saying today’s performance may have been his swan song. We shall have to wait and see.

There were more appearances today, as you would expect, of the “Sparrow” t-shirts. This is not something I have commented on here, but the Port Adelaide Cycling Club last year started a project to support an obscure rider. This year, they again picked a virtual unknown to throw their support behind: Movistar’s Number 164, Angel Madrazo (aka The Sparrow).

They had t-shirts printed up in the team’s blue and lime green colours announcing to all of Adelaide who they were supporting. All a bit of fun, but for a great cause. I’m sure his team and sponsors appreciate the PACC’s efforts. I wonder who next year’s obscure rider support will back.

After the race, I went down to the Hilton to do a bit of star spotting of my own. The two “big name” pictures I got were Stuey and Greipel. It was incredible to talk to people down there who didn’t even know what these guys did, let alone who they were. There was one guy from interstate who was out the front with his camera because his girlfriend back at home told him to go get her some pictures. He didn’t even know who he was taking photos of!

It takes all kinds, and I think that is one of the great things about the TDU. It brings cycling to the attention of people who would, ordinarily, not take any notice of cycling or of cyclists. It makes us all just that little bit visible, and that can only be a good thing, right?

Before I sign off from this short stint at 602nds.com thanks to Evan and Simon for giving me the opportunity to try on something different to my normal cycling blog. I’ve had a ball.

Keep your eye out for more blogging from the Wombat, or Tweet me @d_wombat

Blog ya later!

This is a man who rides 500+km per week pretty much every week of the year and is an inspiration to many for his attitude to cycling and the way he has used cycling as part of his regime to overcome some pretty serious health issues in the last year or so.

Besides finding out about my friend’s mis-adventures, today was a really good day.

This morning we had a family breakfast to celebrate my daughter’s birthday (yesterday) before I set off for McLaren Vale and, eventually, Willunga and the KoM climb of Old Willuga Hill. I hadn’t exactly decided on a route when I left Glenelg at just before 9.30, so I just headed up to Brighton Road and pointed South. This lead me to another first for the week… Cement Hill (so named because of the Cement Works that used to inhabit the western side of the hill for many years) is fairly short, but busy with traffic and fairly steep in the lower part.

It is one of the hills I had been hesitant to ride. but now it is done and out of the way.

I rode along Lonsdale Highway with a small bunch from Victoria who had driven across yesterday, stopping along the way in Strathalbyn for the presentations before arriving in Brighton last night. They were a little shocked this morning when they rode out of their hotel and came face-to-face with Cement Hill. I rode with this group until we hit Noarlunga and a poorly timed traffic light change separated us. I caught up with them later in Willunga.

Their plan had been to follow Lonsdale Hwy and the continuations thereof until they got to somewhere around Aldinga and then head inland. I was not sure about this plan, quite simply because of the head wind they would turn straight into when they turned left at Aldinga.

I turned inland sooner and rode, protected more by the hills, along the Pat Jonker Veloway and arrived in McLaren Vale in time to see the start. I made it to the top of the town with a crowd that was pressing in on both sides of the street. Nobody wanted to move back from the road to let the Peleton through. I tried to warn a couple of parents whose kids were all over the road. I got a look back of “who are YOU to tell me how to look after my kids?!” and shut up after that. You win some you lose some.

The ride to Willunga was quite fast. I got caught up in a train of sorts with two lines of riders that kept formation all the way along Main Rd. It was much faster than the last trip I did along this road… another new experience. Along the way I chatted with a bloke from Brisvegas who gave me the lowdown on the floods and Wivenhoe dam. The upshot of that was that the floods are NOT SEQWater’s fault. Thanks for that.

After reaching Willunga behind the race (WAY behind!) I found a spot at the fence and waited for the completion of the first lap and the U-Turn that would head them out on the second. I was stood in the same place for about 20 minutes when three Media Motorcycles came and parked RIGHT IN FRONT OF US!!! grrr. The life of a NON-Media accredited punter! The rider had the cheek to tell me to not be so cheap and go buy some of the shots his photographer took from The Advertiser! grrrr.

Well, the riders came past and my ride partner and I headed up Willunga Hill to see the Kom. It wasn’t the first time I had ridden this hill, but it was the first time I had ridden it in front of an audience. I was cheered (and probably jeered quietly) and had a smile on my face most of the way up… that was until the Promo cars parked at the top and all the people who HAD been sitting quietly on the sidelines out of my way decided all at once to get up and walk across my path! grrr! I nearly skittled an old lady who just randomly stepped in front of me from nowhere. Tunnel vision!

I stood just to the left of the archway and what a spot THAT was! One pic I took was of a Lampre rider’s helmet at VERY close range. He was close enough that as I was taking that picture, my left hand was on my bike pulling it back towards me so he didn’t hit it on his way past. Not to mention the support car (team unknown) that nearly squished my toes the driver came that close to me.

Exhilarating.

After the first pass up the hill, we decided to return to town to see the final two passes. The crowd was thick (some thicker than others, like the guys who thought that because there was a gap between the riders coming through they could cross the track! Don’t worry about the Shimano Support car that SPED through Willunga, closely followed by two CFS trucks!) and the action was frenetic. The huge screen that showed the race live was closely watched by all as the peleton tried in vein to catch the splinter groups off the front. So close and yet so far.

It was another bad day for Mr Cav. He finished in the last 3… about 10-15 minutes behind the rest… and no, the GreenLight vehicle did not overtake him today.

The ride back to the city was uneventful. We caught up with a couple of other friends and rode back down the Veloway to home. Another 100k’s up today… 320ish for the week. Not a bad effort and the first time I have done over 300 in one week.

One stage left: The city Crit stage. The plan is to head in with a picnic and find a shady tree to sit under while we wait for the race to start.

We were on the lookout for a particular rider from a particular team, who has captured our household’s attention: Davide Vigano from Team Leopard-Trek. This down-to-earth Italian rider has given us a glimpse into the world of pro-racing in a way we could never have done otherwise. He has become our poster-boy, but also a friend.

We found Davide riding back to his team and called out. He came to the fence and greeted us and our girls had their picture taken with him. It was one of the highlights of the morning for them… and for me to see them so happy in the atmosphere and on the sidelines of a sport that also forms part of our lives.

Living without a car, as we have for more than 18 months now, has led us towards a new appreciation of cycling, and of cyclists. It has led to me taking up cycling after not owning a bike for most of the previous 20 years. It has led to my daughters being able to ride upwards of 20km in a day and to them being among the fittest little kids at their school.

Cycling is a way of life, and for us to have found a friend amongst the highest ranks of professional cyclists in the world is not something that everyone gets to do, and we appreciate it for what it is.

As the “race proper” doesn’t start at Norwood, but rather starts about 20 minutes’ ride away at Gorge Rd, the beginning was a muted affair, although there were many in the crowd, including my 5 year old, who participated loudly in the countdown to the riders being let loose on the road. Travelling behind the Race Director’s black Skoda up The Parade, the parade moved. Anyone who has watched the movement will know what I am talking about.

First the Police, then the Race Director, then the Commissaires and media motorbikes. Following these are the cyclists, corralled between the barriers like cattle on wheels, and followed closely by the Team Cars and then the red support vans. These, in turn, are followed by more Police and finally, The Green Light Vehicle (the one causing Cav all his issues on Stage 3!). This is actually followed by more Police, but who’s counting?

Hmmm… Interesting point there… Has anyone actually counted how many vehicles are involved in the whole procession? I’d be interested in seeing the numbers.

Anyway, back to the race start: This morning was a time to soak up the atmosphere, to get close to the stars of the show, to get a few cool photos and to watch the riders ride. We did plenty of all of these and spent the rest of the day following the race via Twitter from sunny Glenelg where we had some more of the best chips in Adelaide, played in the water spouts in Moseley Square, went to the Beach House and rode the waterslides and then caught the Tram home. Not a bad way to spend a 9th birthday, I would say.

Sleep well and see you all tomorrow at Willunga! Back on the bike for that one.

We set out this morning by bus into the city and out again, headed for Stirling; the finish of today’s 129km Stage. It was quite nice early. We were all sun-creamed up, had our hats and a drink bottle each and we were going to be early. That’s just fine, because Stirling has a great little playground for the kids, and any budding steam roller engineers (like my 5 year old who directed about 8 other kids to their positions and then announced that she was driving!) but there was a little hiccup in the process.

We were instructed by the bus driver at Crafers that we were to get off and that there would be a Shuttle Bus to pick us up to take us to Stirling shortly… so we did. Another bus pulled up. First, the driver sent a passenger back to our stop to ask if we were going to Mt Lofty, to which we answered politely, “No, thankyou.” Then the driver himself got off the bus and asked in a quite confused manner where we were going if not to Lofty. When we told him the story, he was quite surprised (and still confused) so he spoke to the depot.

The first Shuttle Bus, we were told, would arrive at Crafers at 1pm. This was going to be a long wait. As it turned out, nobody on the bus was in very much of a hurry and, as it wasn’t all THAT far, the driver could detour to Stirling and then return to his route. Nice. We were on our way again. We arrived at Stirling and saw the bicycles lined up heading into town.

Back to the playground, third bidon of the day finished off, children happily playing. Nice.

At around 11 we decided we should go pick our viewing spot, and what a corker we stumbled upon!?! 25m from the finish line. Full shade all afternoon. Elevated view. Nice people in front (who went and bought boxes of icecreams for themselves and shared them with us! If that was you, thank you. Very much appreciated on a 36 degree day!) and bike porn going past all day, albeit having to squeeze between seated viewers, our lump of dirt and the other punters trying to get through the logjam.

Now for the “Downs”… At the end of the first lap, while I was videoing the riders going past, the rock I was standing on gave way and I ended up falling down the embankment onto the path. Neither camera that I was holding was damaged and I was just a bit bruised, but I took care to make sure I stood on something more solid the next time around.

The race, itself, was quite eventful, although none of that was within our view as there was no screen showing the race today unfortunately. We had to rely on the audio from the finish line commentary to fill us in on the different happenings out on the road. Thankfully, we were within camera shot of the finish and got to see all the riders go past 3 times and to watch the goings-on post race between team mates.

The most touching was the interaction between Greipel, who waited for the rest of his team and greeted and thanked them all as they arrived behind him before riding down onto the oval to the Team Car. Nice work Andre.

It was a pity that the roads were opened before the last few riders had crossed the line and that Cav had to dodge cars in the middle of a professional race. It is also a pity that the weather was so warm today, but I don’t think it bothered too many people. The streets of Stirling were packed. The traders in the main street will be happy.

Our ride home was a lot less eventful. We got on a bus. We got off a bus. We got on another bus, and arrived home.

I’m just glad that I didn’t have to ride with the thousands of cyclists heading down the Old Freeway to the city… although from stories I have heard, the ride back down the hill with Pro’s and Amateurs riding together, would have been a different experience.

Off to Norwood tomorrow for the start of Stage 4.

First, there were all the firsts for me. My first ride up Norton Summit Rd. My first ride through the hills to Nairn. My first time riding through Hahndorf and my first time nearly coming seriously unstuck riding down the Old Freeway.

Second, there was the disappointment of not making it to our planned spot to watch the Riders pass. We were aiming for the KoM outside of Nairne, but our 70km (including over 1100m of climbing) took us longer than expected (mainly due to my tired legs).

The group ended up leaving me behind in an attempt to reach the KoM hill, but stopped short when they saw the crowds already in position. I was so tired by this stage. I had been telling my legs to shut up for 3 hours. I had not eaten in that time and I was fading fast. I ended up stopping just outside Nairne in a shady spot on the grass next to some locals… sort of.

They were a family of South Africans who live in the hills somewhere not far from Nairne. I asked them how far it was to the Kom, and when they told me, I just laid down my bike on the embankment and collapsed on the grass. They asked about what I needed to carry to ride the distances I have been covering, how much water I had; as well as some important questions about the race (like whether a random cyclist heading in the same direction as the race would be going was the breakaway). I let them know that they would not need to ask that question when the race was actually approaching and, I was right.

When the Breakaway and the Peleton did ride by, my poor camera skills showed through and the shots I took were of no value whatever. They included the fence on the other side of the road and a long blur of colour. Very disappointing.

I did manage to get a couple of shots lying on my back on the grass and looking up at the foliage, but I’m not sure that’s what you want to see here.

The pic of the day was taken by a fellow member of Adelaide Cyclists at yesterday’s stage Presentations in Angaston… as he said, I’ve been Paparazzi’d!

Tomorrow, I’ll be taking a bus up to Stirling early with the family and staking a spot right by the finish line. Hopefully I’ll be able to get a pic of someone in Black, Teal and White crossing the line first. For now, it’s off to bed for recovery sleep.

This morning started out with a quick ride into the city to catch the train to Gawler. From Gawler, we rode across to a little spot just outside Angaston where we could see the riders race past on their loops… but that’s not all! Our possie allowed us to jump on our bikes after each circuit and race down the road to watch the peleton pass again! Double the action for no extra cost!

So this was the routine we carried out for a couple of hours. Our time under the tree at our first spot was great. There was a stiff breeze and we had the chance to talk to the couple whose house we were parked in front of. We talked locusts and water purification and a bit about riding, but the excitement with which this couple engaged with us was palpable… and they were great hosts. The young lady even filled my bidons (with triple filtered rain water) to keep me going. I tend to drink a bit of water when I ride… I’m on my 8th bottle of the day as I sit typing.

The local towns had all their finery on today, including green and gold ribbons around the trees. The roads were lined with deck chairs and picnic rugs and the streets were full of lycra.

At one stage I commented to one of my ride partners that riding through these towns today was like being on a float for the Christmas Pageant. We were cheered, had bells rung for us and whistles blown at us. People waved at us from cars and footpaths alike. These folks really seem to like having people to show off their towns to, and when they put on a show, they are happy for the world to see them at their best.

After we heard the call of the end of the stage via a car radio tuned to the ABC, I headed off to Angaston and arrived in time for the jersey presentations… they were a bit samey really… Same bloke getting the Young Rider’s Jersey. Same bloke getting the Sprinter’s Jersey. Same bloke getting the Ochre Jersey.

Bit greedy if you ask me!

I’m only kidding of course. The crowds at Angaston for the presentations were huge. The area in the main street in front of the stage was packed full of people. Some had ladders and cameras with lenses as long as your arm. Some just sat back, shoulders draped in their flag-of-choice (mostly Australian) and loads of kids. It provided just the right atmosphere for the podium time. I’m sure Mr Goss and co appreciate the support.

After that it was time to hit the road again. I was still tossing up the idea of riding the 90k’s back to Adelaide when I got on the bike. Those thoughts vanished when I turned the corner out of Tanunda… straight into a stiff Southerly. 90k’s into that at the end of the day did not seem like my idea of fun so I set off back towards Gawler.

When I had decided to go to Angaston for the presentations, I had left my ride buddies to head back to Gawler without me so it was a complete surprise when I caught them up about 15-20k’s from Gawler. It was tough going bridging the gap between us, but I did get there and we all caught the train together back towards the city.

Once there, it was back on the bike for the 12km ride back home.

Thankfully I had a glorious recovery dinner placed before me at the table by my ever patient, ever thoughtful partner. Nut and Mushroom loaf, potato salad, mango and grape salad and a green salad. Nice!

I arrived home tired and happy… and with the prospect of another 100+ day tomorrow. Should be interesting. My first time backing up one 100k day with another.

Masseuse!!!

I am really looking forward to following the race this year. This is the first year I am watching AS a cyclist. Not a Pro, but a dad who, with his family, made the decision 18 months ago to do away with owning a family car and, who last January, took up cycling as my primary form of transportation.

So my views on the racing this year may be different to past years. I am more involved, doing some work for one of the Leopard-Trek riders helping out with his fan page, riding with Cancer Voices SA in Lance Armstrong’s Twitter ride this morning and generally being on the lookout for opportunities to get close and personal with the Pro riders… just like any die-hard fan.

What I hope to do over the next week or so is to offer you some of my thoughts and experiences chasing the Peleton across the countryside… on my own bike.

The Armstrong-Factor…

This morning started out with a quick ride into Adelaide to join up with a whole heap of people wearing the same jerseys to promote a cause that is close to the heart (as well as various other body parts) of 7-time TDF winner, Lance Armstrong: Cancer. Well, we weren’t exactly promoting Cancer. We were raising awareness of, and giving a voice to, those who suffer from cancer, those who care for those with cancer and the family members of both the aforementioned groups.

Begun by Ashleigh Moore about 3 years ago, CVSA is an advocacy group for the above. They are not doing research into cancer or really even raising money directly to help others do that. Their primary purpose is to advocate for the above groups of affected people. That’s why I’m a part of CVSA.

So we met in the city, had a natter to friends, old and new and had a briefing on the ride. We found out that the Big A was to ride with us to Glenelg… or were we riding with him? Not only did Lance share his peaceful ride with 100 or so of his closest friends, but the whole RadioShack Team (The Shack) came along to ride with us too.

Taking up 2 lanes of Anzac Highway most of the way to Glenelg, we hiked along, with only the odd shake of the head from an annoyed driver and many cheers from the roadside as we passed. Some had parked their BBQ chairs on the verge in anticipation of our arrival. Nice. I’ve never ridden for an audience before!

Having arrived at Glenelg, it was time for me to leave again; family commitments called. What was interesting was that I then had the experience of a car driver honking their horn TO me and waving rather than the usual honking AT me for being on the road!

So today was a good little experience for me. I got to ride with a pro team for the first time. I didn’t fail any doping controls. I didn’t use any illegal mechanical propulsion devices in my bike. I didn’t even have that much caffeine in my system. I did “Livestrong” to ride another day.

Thanks for the experience everyone. I had a blast!

LanceArmstrong with Ashleigh Moore aka @CancerVoicesSA

All images courtesy of Ashleigh Moore from Cancer Voices SA

There was so much happening today… and I’m not talking just about the men’s race this evening. There was a top women’s race this afternoon also.

For the father of 3 daughters, this was a great race to be watching with my girls. It was fast (laps around the 2min 25 mark towards the end), there were plenty of changes to the lead throughout the race and the finish was a corker! Rochelle Gilmore was just beaten to the line by Chloe Hosking (HTC) from Canberra. The girls loved watching the women race, and whoever thinks that the women’s races aren’t as exciting or as full of aggressive racing and tactics must be watching something else altogether!

This race had my youngest wanting to get out there and race too… and she’s only 5!

The men’s race was great too. There was a break-away of 5 riders from the first lap. They stayed out (up to 35 seconds at times) until all of the sprint points had been won a the end of the 20th lap before the last of them (Durbridge from UniSA) was swallowed up a couple of laps later.

The pace then really wound up over the last 10 laps. HTC and Omega-Pharma Lotto (the two teams you would expect to be at the front) kept the pace high with Team Sky and Leopard-Trek’s Davide Vigano also in the mix in the last few laps.

Vigano had a good chance of getting a place until Team Sky crashed out in front of him in the last corner, opening a small, but significant, gap for the front 4 riders that he was unable to close before the line.

Today was the first time I have been on the finish straight and the first time I have attended the team presentation and sign-on before the race.

I got talking to a hipster dude on a fixie who was there watching. He was having a great time soaking up the atmosphere and watching proceedings like the rest of us. There was an older english couple standing up at the fence with me on the finish straight who had been to every TDU. They remembered seeing Mike Turtur’s face the first year, when he got out of his Race Director’s car and realised just how many people had turned up to watch the race.

There were so many kids! One lad I let stand in front of me at the fence for a while had on his jersey and cycling cap. He had a video camera in hand and wanted a shot of the riders whizzing past. So serious about his task, he was! At another time I let a mother and her 18 month old stand up at the fence so he could feel the bikes go past. You should have seen his eyes light up!

Then there was the Robbie fan who talked all afternoon to my kids and cheered for Davide Vigano and Team Leopard-Trek with them. The signs they made for the team were great.

The girls came away from today really full of energy and full of a love of cycling and racing. That’s what the Cancer Council Classic is about. Getting the racing close to the fans… and by fans I mean families.

Oh, and we also had this young guy standing by us for a while wearing a Leopard-Trek cap who said as the riders flashed by “I think I just saw dad!” Guess whose son that was? I told him I wanted his cap, but he wasn’t about to let it go. Pity! I’m sure he would have been heartbroken that ‘dad’ got tangled up in a crash with about 5 laps to go and finished a lap down. Bad luck Stuey.

Tomorrow it is off to visit the Tour Village for us and the girls. Wonder who we’ll bump into there…?

My Ironman journey began in 1986. I did a “try-athlon” held at LaTrobe University in Victoria. The swim was in a largish dam, I wore a “Stackhat” on the ride and I distinctly remember my legs turning to jelly on the run! But, at the age of 16, I got the triathlon bug.

I’m from the generation that watched our triathlon heroes slugging it out on TV in a variety of race formats. Guys like Brad Bevan, Greg Welch and Miles Stewart.

Fast forward quite a few years and I’m lining up with my hybrid commuter bike for an enticer triathlon here in Canberra. I had a great time. After this I did a couple of longer races, eventually bought a road bike and had my arm twisted into joining a triathlon club. Tridents Triathlon Club is just awesome. We have a great coach in Ben Gathercole and the club itself is very active.

Ironman, to me, is the pinnacle for age groupers. For pros it is very different I imagine. After a few seasons racing in local events and a few Olympic distance races I stepped up to do the Canberra ½ Ironman in 2009. The swim and cycle were good but the run was a disaster with ITB flaring up and me walking at least 16km to finish in over 7 hours. I wasn’t happy at all.

Once I took some more steps to sort out my ITB I decided that it was time to commit to doing an Ironman. I’d been pretty excited when some friends did IM WA in 2008 and their tales of a great event and a flat course convinced me to enter for the 2010 event.

I came off a pretty good summer of triathlon and when our club went into winter “fat months” I only had a few days off. Then I went into “pre-Ironman training” preparation. It included a lot of mountain biking and running. In June the club went back and my training load increased and got a lot more focussed.

All was going pretty well until I noticed my calf and foot were getting really sore after some sessions. I ignored it stupidly thinking it was just a niggle and would get better. It didn’t and a scan revealed a torn Achilles tendon. Well, that sucked. I could swim and ride just fine but running was out for quite a while. In what turned out to be 9 weeks away from running I had acupuncture and massage to sort it out. My coach also replaced my run sessions with yoga which I did at home on the Wii! I recommend it as it worked!

The long rides to Goulburn and back (about 180km depending on the route) were made bearable by the four other guys in Tridents training for IMWA – that and the other club mates that rode with us some of the time. The weather was usually cold and windy and there were plenty of rides in cold weather gear for the whole 6 hours. Training through a magpie swooping season was also a challenge as I have a terrible fear of them!

Swimming has always been my strong suit so upping the distance, whilst still hard work, wasn’t nearly as hard as all the riding. That isn’t to say backing up for a swim session the afternoon after a 6 hour ride wasn’t a real challenge because it was. It certainly added to my mental toughness.

Busselton is a long way from Canberra. It was also the first time I’d been to a race where I had to pack my bike up to take it. Another challenge! It took a whole long day of flights and a bus ride to get to our HQ which was located on the run course at Geographe Bay (about 7km into the run).

The Friday pre-race dinner was great. It was like going to a U2 concert when we walked into the marquee and the presentation didn’t disappoint. It was really good at motivating me for the big day. Shame the race briefing was directly after but that’s life I guess!

The lead up to race day was great as three of us from Tridents were staying in the same house along with a support crew who looked after us admirably.

I think the only time it all got too much for me was about 5pm on the Saturday evening. I had to get the iPod out and go for a walk along the run course to calm myself down.

Race day started at 3am because I couldn’t sleep anymore. We left home at 4.30am and by the time we’d checked bikes, inflated tyres and put wetsuits on it was time for the pros to start and us to line up.

Swim 3.8km – 1hr 08min: It could’ve been better but it was my first race in salt water! The swell got me a few times and I got pretty well slammed going around the buoys at the end of the jetty. My water polo skills and confidence in the water helped me out there! I should’ve gone a little harder on the way back to dry land in retrospect but hey, I knew there was a long day ahead.

Ride 180km – 6hrs 29min: First lap, awesome. Second lap, shocking. Third lap, pretty good. In the second lap my back gave me grief, I felt dizzy and also nauseous if I tried to get on my bars. I was seriously worried at about 75km that it was all going to go pear shaped. But it didn’t. I broke the ride into 15km sections (to each aid station), kept eating and drinking as well as switching to cola for a little while. It worked and by the time I told Mike Reilly that I had one more lap to go I was feeling OK.

Run – 42.2km – 5hrs 43min: I was worried, really worried. How would my Achilles hold up? The longest I’d run in training was 2 x 1hr sessions in a day. Well, the first lap of 4 was OK. I ran the whole way and felt good. The second lap wasn’t bad either. I had a few walks but not too much and certainly not through town!! On lap three fatigue was my problem not any injury. I shuffled, walked and ran through that one again doing my best to look happy through town. But on the last lap I went around the corner past transition on my way out and I knew I was spent. Despite all the awesome support from people lining the streets I couldn’t run any more. I ran a few more times until the 38km marker but not a real lot. At this point I knew I was going to make it and easily under my 14hr worst case scenario goal!

I decided that whatever happened I would run the whole last kilometre. Although I couldn’t stomach anymore Gu, Gatorade or pretzels at the last two aid stations I kept the water going. When my watch beeped for 41km I started running. I got the prized red wristband to say I was off up the finishing chute and then I was there. And it was LOUD. Loud like I imagine footballers hear at a Grand Final. And everyone knows your name as well!

I was the only athlete in the chute the whole time I ran up it which was magic. I heard the announcement that I was an Ironman and smiled and waved my way across the line. It was just awesome. 13hrs 37mins.

My friend AB was there to meet me having waited around for a couple of hours after finishing himself. I rang my wife and said never again right after having my photo taken! AB then made sure I got to the massage tent (more pain than the whole race but worth it!) and then to the food tent which was the best thing ever.

Pretty soon I caught up with Craig who had raced a 10:10 for his first attempt – wow! We headed back home all pretty pleased with ourselves.

Unfortunately for some of my family, the race tracker stopped recording my details at about 32km and there were some anxious moments! I think it still says I am out there running!

The other two Tridents had raced well so we had a 100% finish for the club.

I don’t plan on doing another Ironman for a very long time. It isn’t the actual race but the 6-8 months of intense training that is the issue. My family didn’t see a lot of me in that time. Add to that the days where I really didn’t achieve as much as I should’ve at work due to fatigue.

But I would certainly recommend the experience. It was a magic day, one I’ll never forget.

Rob #577

From the team at 602nds we congratulate Rob on joining the ranks of Ironman.