Gong ride - 4 seasons in one day

Well it was a wet old morning on Sunday but it didn't seem to dampen anyone's spirits. Thank goodness for Linda's coffee and Anzac bikkies at the Moose Espresso Bar at 5.30 in the morning! I must say I was very happy that Moose was actually open otherwise there would have been hell to pay for my undeliverable promises of caffeine !
















After a quick team photo at the start we headed off down the Princes Highway in the pouring rain. The bunch was about 20 strong but soon broke up over the first 20kms or so. This was helped along by Mal's epidemic of punctures that saw many of us road side helping him out. Mal is now ready to challenge Dave Cottee in an inner tube changing competition, given that he has had so much practice ! I think the last count was 4 punctures !

The ride into the National park was spectacular, as usual. The climb out saw team Boost win with Loey heading the field.....Bad luck Lemo Vittoria didn't feature ! Needless to say that poor old Loey wasn't quite the same for the rest of the ride.
















Despite all of this, we emerged from the National Park to a magnificent sunny day with spectacular views down towards Wollongong and the ocean.

quick team photo and we were on our way again !

The last stages into the Gong seemed to fly. After the Cougar's photographic session of all of us coming around the coast road, a lead out group including Shane cranked the pace up into the 40s and left most of us for dead.......or to just simply enjoy the ride !
















The finish saw us all meet up at Verdi's cafe. Great location but a pity about the service. A big plate of scrambled eggs and copious cups of coffee was just the ticket, even if we did wait for an hour to get it.

I must say Stephen Lo was looking very relaxed after his great effort. Just a natural athlete I guess !!!

The award for guts definately goes to Geoff, Shane, Tom and Mal for riding back to Sydney from the Gong. These guys are truly legends........or crazy ! Either way it's blue jerseys all round.
I'm sure Mal is in deep gratitude to Stuey who loaned him his front wheel. No punctures for the return trip.
Of particular note, Tom was in some formidable company. Great effort mate !

So, as a final wrap, it was a great day and most importantly no one crashed. It was amazing how many people commented about Tour de Cure and how the profile is building. For those of you who couldn't make it, we look forward to seeing you next year.


Cheers everyone....PHIL