Tour de Cure

sunday - no more training

2009-05-23T21:40:00.000-07:00

today is the first day i can safely say my training is now over. there is nothing more i can do. it's not like cramming for an exam, i actually need to rest for the next 4 days before we blast off!

Quality Putt Putt

2008-12-26T16:53:00.000-08:00

Way back in October of this year a few fortunate ones of the Tour de Cure family enjoyed a morning of Putt Putt with some of Camp Quality's finest.
Among the contenders were the ever competitive Cougar, Mal, Kate and Josh, with a cameo from duo Rick Horvat and fiance Ellen. Slowing up each hole was the Hollier duo, who should probably got in some practice before the tournament of all tournaments in Putt Putt.

We should not however discount our younger rivals and their golfing skills. However it was the seasoned veterans that struggled on the twisting courses and undulating hills. Our young foes showed skill and poise above their years when facing a tough par shot and the less then pleasing face of Mr. McBride willing them to miss.

Despite the fierce competition that ensued on the putt putt course, there was a grander purpose to the morning, and this was to present Camp Quality with $85,000 to go towards their National Camp to be proudly supported by Tour de Cure.

This $85,000 will go directly to the formation of a National Camp for those children and their families suffering from Cancer. Camp Quality will use this money to formulate the structure, location and timing of the Camp to occur in 2009.

A huge thanks to all those that came and were gracious in defeat. And to the continued effort of Camp Quality in making laughter the best medicine, Tour de Cure gladly laughs all the way to the bank with them.

Around the Bay in a day

2008-10-22T03:11:00.000-07:00

Saturday October 18 signalled the start of an action packed weekend of cycling in Melbourne and a small group of TDCers were there to soak it up and 'fly the flag'.

With many of the pro teams in town for the last stage of the Jayco Herald Sun Tour, there was a real buzz in the air !

Team CSC was already well positioned with both the yellow and green jerseys on the backs of CSC riders Stuart O'Grady and Matt Goss in the lead up to the finale and given that they are a major sponsor of Tour de Cure, we were there to cheer them on.

Thanks also to CSC, Mal Heath and I had the pleasure of participating in a group ride with the CSC pro team on the Saturday morning and this was a unique chance to meet legends such as Stuart O'Grady and Brad McGee. We met at the Park View Hotel at 10.30am and after being kitted out in CSC gear, we set out for a few leasurely laps of Albert Park before arriving at the Belgian Beer cafe for a ales and some lunch. It was all great fun and we even got to catch up with some of the CSC staff that joined us for sections of this year's tour from Melbourne to Sydney. Barry and Sarah, in particular were in good form.....Sarah showing off her new bike as well !

Needless to say, Stuey went on to win the Jayco Herald Sun Tour and the champagne corks were flying ! Saturday night celebrations would have been a blast and even more 'over the top' because this was the last race for Brad McGee's professional career. Having enjoyed a long and very accomplished career, Brad now hangs up his 'cleats' but will take over the job of Directeur Sportif for the new team. Good luck Brad !

So it was a great day and after a nice meal at the London Hotel in Richmond we returned to the Hotel for an early...ish night's sleep before tackling 'Around the Bay in a day' the next morning.

Our thanks again to Choice Hotels, who generously provided accomodation at the Comfort Hotel Elizabeth Tower over the weekend. This was the second year in a row that we stayed at the Elizabeth Tower and Carol was once again a great host. Choice Hotels continue to be a strong supporter of Tour de Cure and this is very much appreciated.

It was hard to get out of bed at 4.30am Sunday morning, but once we got over the initial stupor, we were ready to roll ! Who said that the carbs from last night's beers would help !

The weather was a bit overcast but not cold enough to wear winter gear....phew. We were pretty happy about that as we headed down Swanston St to meet up with Dan and Mark who are contemplating riding in the 2009 TDC. So, off we went...the 5 of us.

We had opted for the 210km Sorrento return trip this year so instead of crossing the bay and returning to Melbourne via Geelong, as we had done in the past, we turned around and returned via the coast road.

It was an absolutely fantastic ride ! No punctures...thankyou Victoria, your roads are beautiful and so much better than what we are used to in Sydney.

After lunch and a coffee in Sorrento, we set off for the return trip and what a trip it was ! We hooked up with a couple of good 'bunches' who set a very respectable speed of approx 40-45km/h for most of the way. We were back in St Kilda by about 12.30pm. Dan made a great suggestion for lunch and we stopped at 'Racers' cafe for eggs, toast and coffee..beauuutiful ! You really get an appreciation for Melbourne's strong cycling culture as this cafe was dedicated to cyclists and had large hooks from which to hag your bike plus a replica of Cadels Ridley Noah proudly displayed above the counter.

Bonjour Tour de Cure

2008-07-29T18:18:00.000-07:00

As any keen cyclist would agree, the place to be in July every year is France. The Tour de France is in full swing, the weather is great and the cycling is awesome.

I had the great priviledge of spending 4 weeks of holiday in Southern France and Spain this year, with my family. Of course I packed my bike and covered over 700km of Spanish coastline and French mountain passes. Naturally, I was wearing TDC kit and it was amazing how much interest it received !

Obviously the French don't understand the word 'cure' so the TDC was quickly renamed the 'Tour de guerrissance' during my stay !

My family comes from the small town of Mazamet in the Languedoc region of France and it is nestled in a valley surrounded by 'La Montagne Noir' or 'The black Mountain'. This is the home town of famous French cyclist Lauren Jalabert (JaJa) and it is pretty obvious why he was such a good climber !!! Lots of big bloody mountains.

My 'standard' ride was a 50km loop including the Pic de Nore which is at an altitude of 1100m. 25km up and 25km down !!!
I must say that riding up there in the early morning, with occasional encounters with deer is truly amazing and the view from the summit beautiful on a clear day.

Our first visit to the Tour de France was the stage finish in Foix. It was a great day and in particular because Cadel was still in yellow !! My kids had a ball but were confused why the Tour de Cure wasn't riding ....ha !!!!

Of particular note, I made a visit to the famous Mont Ventoux not far from Avignon in the Provence region of France. Dubbed the 'Giant of Provence' I set out on the 22km climb culminating at the summit some 2000metres high.
There were literally hundreds of riders from all corners of the world making their 'pilgrimage' to this truly iconic mountain.
A daunting sight was the monument to Tom Simpson who died in the 60's while climbing Mont Ventoux in the Tour de France.

After a quick stop to pay hommage to Tom, I completed the ride at the summit. To my surprise and extreme enjoyment, there is a lolly market there for all those riders needing a sugar fix. Let me tell you, you definately need it !! I had my fill and then set out on the terrifying decent ! While I clocked 83km/h this was pretty lame compared to fellow TDC ride Mike Bolt who reached 97km/h the day before !!

That night I returned to Nimes for the Tour de France stage finish and met up with TDC riders Gary Bertwistle, Mike Bolt, Denver Beven and also Simon Martin and Shane who were all doing various trips to follow the Tour. We had a great dinner together and thought about our mates in Oz freezing to death on their early morning rides......ughh.

The rest of the trip was a mix of great family time, eating, drinking and soaking up the sun. Not that it has anything to do with riding but sunflowers are part of the 'essence' of Southern France in Summer and this shot of my son Max really captures it all.

So now I'm back. The tan is wearing off, I've put on 4 kilos and it's back to work. I had my first early morning ride from Maiseys today......brrrr.

Adieu la France, a la prochaine !

Trans Alping Steve Davies

2008-07-27T16:51:00.000-07:00

Whilst we were absorbed by a thrilling Tour de France and Cadel’s superhuman efforts riding against the sheer might of Team CSC, another enthralling cycle race loomed nearby in Europe over some impressive Alps.

Tour de Cure Sydney rider, Steve Davies, teamed up with MTB mate Richard Paine of Singapore under Davies' aptly named company Think Global to compete in the gruelling Jeantex Bike Transalp 2008 from 19 – 26 July.

Resplendent in Tour de Cure cycling kit, Davies and Paine and 1,098 other riders set off from Fussen, Germany, taking on the majestic mountain ranges of Germany, Austria, Switzerland and Italy, before rolling into Riva del Garda, Italy one week later. They covered 600km, a vertical gain of over 21,000m with Think Global's riders spending 45 hours and fifty minutes each in the saddle. Think Painful!

By invitation only, 550 teams from around the world competed in five race categories. Think Global finished 65th in the Master Men's category and 268th overall.

Congratulations Steve and Richard. A great effort and fantastic result.

Enjoy a well earned rest boys. Steve take some joy in knowing your TDC HTFU credits have now been topped up... to the max.

Splashing out - THORPIE helps the TDC

2008-07-22T21:17:00.000-07:00

A Very kind and gracious Ian Thorpe took time out from his busy pre Beijing Games trip to share his secrets of acheivement for the upcoming Day of Inspiration.

To have accomplished so much and remain humble and down to earth is truly inspiring.

Thanks Ian!

We know those who attend the Day of Inspiration will appreciate your time and the pearls of wisdom you shared.

To hear what Ian had to say be at the Day of Inspiration. Click on Events in the Tour de Cure home page to book your tickets now.

All Fired up!

2008-07-22T21:09:00.000-07:00

On this morning's very cold and crisp training ride we saw what happens to a Porsche when you forget to ash outside the window on these cold days.

Happy to report that the Driver (of German origin) was safe and already on the phone to his insurance company as we rode up to ask if he was alright............hmmmm!

DON'T SMOKE AND DRIVE................it's just not worth it........or is it....hmmmm

The HARD WAY ROUND

2008-07-22T20:34:00.000-07:00

On June 22nd, three MEN (a father ALAN and his two sons Johnny and Ben) set off from Sydney on dirt bikes to travel across Australia to live an adventurous dream and raise money to help find a cure for cancer.

The ‘Hard Way Round’ as it is so aptly called, will see them cross the Simpson Desert to Alice Springs, travel north to Darwin through some of Australia’s most desolate lands, then across the Kimberley region and through the Pilbara down to Perth.

Their journey will take them through the Nullarbor and Flinders Ranges and back to Sydney where they hope/aim to come home to the knowledge that they have raised $50,000 for the National Breast Cancer Foundation.

This journey is completely unassisted so the guys will rely on months of calculated planning, their wit to see them stay focused on the long and tiring days and their faith to see them through this journey safely and welcomed home by their Mother and sister.............who one can only imagine anxiously await the next phone call from them.

To follow this incredible Journey and help them with a donation please click on the link below.

http://thehardwayround.wordpress.com/

Safe Riding boys.................Enjoy every minute out there

Latest Technology in Bikes

2008-07-22T20:30:00.000-07:00

Our very own Craig 'CHOPPY' Cairnduff is considering a come back to the Tour de Cure in 2009 and has swapped his dodgy specialised for the latest technology.

We wish Craig well in his training and look forward to seeing those streamers fly

New Road Rules for cyclists

2008-06-23T00:34:00.000-07:00

There are new rules shortly to come into effect that we cyclists and drivers should be aware.

New bicycle storage areas at intersections

See RTA NSW Gov website ref. http://www.rta.nsw.gov.au/rulesregulations/roadrules/2008nswrrulechanges.html

Some intersections that have traffic lights may now contain bicycle storage areas. These are painted areas on the road in front of the stop line that allow cyclists to wait at the traffic lights in safety.

There are a number of new rules relating to driver and cyclist responsibilities at bicycle storage areas.

For example, when traffic lights or arrows are red, drivers must not allow any part of their vehicle to enter the bicycle storage area.

PENALTY: Three demerit points (four in a school zone) and a $324 fine ($405 in a school zone).

Hook turns by bicycle riders

When a cyclist chooses to do a hook turn at an intersection and a bicycle hook turn storage area is provided, they must now use that area. The RTA website shows the bicycle making a correct hook turn at an intersection with a bicycle hook turn storage area.

Cyclists should keep to the left when riding across the intersection to enter the bicycle hook turn storage area, turn right and wait in the storage area until the traffic light shows green (if you are at traffic lights) or if there are no lights, until it is safe to cross.
PENALTY: $54 fine.

There are more rules coming into force too - like you can no longer ride with a pet on your motorbike's petrol tank, unless it's for farming purposes but in that situation, for no more than 500m. Check out the RTA website.

And details of Tour de Cure's rider etiquette document can be downloaded from http://www.tourdecure.com.au/docs/BunchRidingEtiquette.pdf

"Carried Away" in Sydney

2008-06-09T18:51:00.000-07:00

A few months back Meg came up with a brilliant idea to help boyfriend Josh raise money for the Tour de Cure – hold a movie fundraising night, featuring the new Sex and the City movie. Realising that the organization of such an event would be “bigger than big”, Meg roped in me as her trusty assistant, who was more than happy to help husband Brad raise money for cancer research as well.

The perfect movie choice! Truly under-estimating the power of Carrie, Charlotte, Miranda and Sam, tickets sales went from 200 to 400 to selling out the cinema – 760 tickets sold! Fabulous Sydney women flocked from far and wide (rumours of a mini van from The Hills area have surfaced and two girls flew all the way from Perth!), dressed to the nines, to sip cosmos, meet with friends and help raise money for cancer research. The night was a fabulous success, raising $13,731 through tickets sales and the raffle.

We can’t forget the raffle! We had very generous sponsors donate amazing prizes, hotly sought after was the weekend with the BMW 1 Series and the Cerrone diamond necklace - how perfectly Carrie! And what about those ticket sellers? Not that it was a contest, but Pup definitely came out on top as the #1 raffle ticket seller for the night. Who could resist the charm and cheeky smile from a cute young thing? In fact all of the boys were in their element – thanks to those who circulated the room selling tickets and raising awareness for the Tour de Cure.

Indie Grace Coombes

2008-05-21T17:39:00.001-07:00

Welcome to the world India (Indie) Grace Coombes.

Check out how gorgeous she is (taking after mum of course)

and how proud Sophie and Geoff are of their new daughter!

From Aunty Sam and the entire Tour de Cure Team

Not just any sunrise

2008-05-09T15:01:00.000-07:00

A few weeks back a core group of TDC riders recommenced the usual training regime.
5am at Maiseys........ north to Mona Vale Hospital and back for breakfast in Manly. Tough I know!

On this morning there was a secondary group leaving at 6.30am Something about it's too early to go at that time................Too Cold to get out there then..............My Pillow just won't let me go.............

Needless to say, on this morning when many emails had gone around the group, bantering over the pro's and con's of taking the extra hour sleep in, seeing as we are not officially training for a TDC ride we experienced what I believe was the SUNRISE of the YEAR.

For those of you who don't have an alarm go off at 4.35am, Lycra read to pull on, lights charged, tyres pumped and water bottle filled (to our partners who put up with the noise we make getting all this ready....we thank you!) then you would have missed and most likely do miss the incredible sunrises at this time of year.

Here are some pics..................This is why we get up so damn early (beside the great coffee, good company and rush of endorphins)

Eating their way to Sydney

2008-04-17T06:58:00.000-07:00

Well the riding has come to an end for 2008, and a fantastic job by all involved to make it to Sydney in one piece. I know many of the guys and girls had to dig deep, especially on the hills. As the dietitian on tour I can appreciate the effort it took to get from Melbourne to Sydney in just nine days.

1200km with a total hill climb that adds up to more than climbing Everest. The riders each burnt an average of 14,000 kilojoules a day, and that’s just the part of the day spent in the saddle! Each day they also sweated out 5 litres of fluid. No wonder I spent most of the day telling them to eat and drink more.

And eat and drink they did. In a single morning (not including breakfast and lunch) the team went through 30 cereal bars, 18 coffees, 38 muffins, 13 bananas, 14 packs of lollies, 40 Gu sachets, and 49 litres of fluid. In this regard I have to say an enormous thank you to the girls from Canadian Kitchen for their fantastic catering - their passion for the tour matches that of everyone else involved. Thank you also to Kelloggs and Powerade who generously donated food and drinks. Without these contributions an event like this wouldn’t be possible.

As a sports dietitian, I can't tell you how good it is to work with such a motivated group of athletes as the Tour de Cure team. Their enthusiasm and willingness to learn was far beyond what I see in professional sporting teams, and is a credit to the commitment and passion they share for the tour and everything it stands for. It is difficult for the average punter to comprehend what these guys have put their bodies through over the last few months. For a group who normally only get to ride a couple of days a week to back up 9 days in a row, many of them the longest distance they’d ever done in a single day, is nothing short of inspirational.

Congratulations to all involved with the Tour de Cure. It was a fantastic week for me to be involved with such a great cause. I hope the donations continue to come in thick and fast, and you smash your targets. I hope you also learnt plenty about how your bodies work, and can take that back with you to your everyday cycling.

Until next year,
Alan McCubbin – Sports Dietitian, Recover Sports Medicine http://www.recoversportsmed.com.au/

Andrew (CSC) Thanks

2008-04-16T15:35:00.001-07:00

CSC (my employer) became involved in Tour de Cure not long before the tour began, so the other CSC Vic BUG people and I had a week before the Melbourne launch to take up the opportunity to do a day's ride with the Tour de Cure.

It was obvious to me that the Tour de Cure riders had been planning and training for the ride for months, and had been serious about arranging the significant corporate sponsorship and their individual donations. I was left pleased to be representing one of the significant corporate sponsors - CSC, but conscious that I hadn't had to work on that part of the overall effort like the others, which is important for something like cancer that tends to touch so many of us when we least expect it.

So this is about my impressions of the way it worked - not so much the history of the day which was blogged by someone else right after the finish of the day's ride.

The organization was superb. Geoff on the road had safety and efficiency working really well, and Sam at all the stops had the arrangements and our movements planned. She had a great roster for the teams of riders at the end of each day, that seemed to give small but necessary tasks out for the smooth running of each overnight stop. The food from the mobile catering truck (Canadian Kitchens) was more than plentiful, tasty and highly nutritious. The porridge at the first of the two(!) breakfasts for the day was excellent, and the beef, beans and rice at lunch was also great!

The bike mechanics (Alex and Tricky Ricky) from King of the Mountain Cyclery were amazing. I had turned up on one of my sons' old Cadex road bike, and they gave it a check before I rode for the day. Their quick comment about the need for adjustment of handlebars and not needing to raise the seat were proved absolutely correct and left me comfortable and not sore at all at the end of the day. When I had a problem with my front derailleur, Alex's diagnosis took less a second or two, and his adjustment took under a minute. I could have done the same at home myself and maybe not got it right after an hour's fiddling! When people had flats they were fixed in a couple of minutes, and the two mechanics "towed" the rider back to the bunch whilst we slowed to maybe 20km/h. When Jack (my 15yo son, who was filling the 2nd CSC spot on the day) started to tire late in the ride they towed him back to the bunch a couple of times too. They were changing tyres for some others, and the occasional slowing for them to rejoin was never irritating - just a reasonable rest, and all the easier to chat to the other riders. This support from the King of the Mountain Cyclery mechanics was something that made the whole ride just work properly.

We cycled at a reasonably quick average pace - about 30 to 32 km/h on the bike computer average whilst moving, but quite often over 40 for some sections on the mostly flat terrain in the Latrobe Valley. For safety we needed to stay together as a group, and pushed on together in the afternoon as the Tour de Cure had a media appointment to keep on arrival in Traralgon. And media is important, when a focus of the event is fundraising.

I had not done a lot of bunch riding before and was impressed with the attention and correctness displayed by the group in communicating with hand signals and a small number of arranged shouted warnings to ensure safety. Many of those from Sydney had been doing extensive training for the tour - several averaging 500-600km/week for the couple of months leading up to the tour. I ride either 30 or 40 km each way to work most days, but feel I would want to do a few more longer rides in the lead up if doing the full distance.

It was a good experience for the day, and we would like to have stayed for the evening's Cateogry Jersey presentation and dinner, but had to catch a train back to Melbourne. As Jack commented on the way home, "Everyone there was just so nice to be around". I'd think that knowing about this level of support and structure would make people compete to be involved in the future.
My dad (who did a couple of Around the Bay rides with me) died of cancer in early 2006, my father-in-law found he had prostate cancer a couple of months ago, and I went to a funeral on the Friday afternoon of the ride (day 5) for my next door neighbour Lou, a really nice old guy who lost his battle to cancer the previous weekend.

I don't think I am special in how cancer has touched me though, having seen the enthusiasm on Tour de Cure. It's not just some people out for an adventure - they are working at doing something good too...and finding a cure!

If you would like to make a donation to help this great cause please click on the link below. They are trying to reach $550,000 to go towards helping...

Men with cancer via the Prostate Cancer Foundation of Australia
Funds from Tour de Cure in 2008 will enable the convenor of each of the 73 Prostate Cancer Foundation of Australia support groups, and their carer, to attend PCFA's inaugural national conference "Supporting Quality of Life for Men with Prostate Cancer" to be held on the Gold Coast over the 16th and 17th of November 2008. This conference will NOW bring together representatives of PCFA support groups from across Australia for the very FIRST TIME with some of the world's most respected authorities on the disease. It was Tour de Cure's 2007 donation that funded the national conference initiative. The initiative aims to create a forum of learning and education that will further work to find a cure.

Women with cancer via the National Breast Cancer Foundation
Money raised by the 2008 Tour de Cure is going towards sponsoring the 'Easie Evie' Robot throughout 2009. The 'Easie Evie' Robot can do in one hour what use to take 10 scientists two weeks and is the latest in breast tissue research and analysis. Through this the NBCF aims to identify better methods of detection and improved treatments for breast cancer sufferers, to improve survival rates and ultimately to work towards finding a cure for breast cancer.

Children with cancer via Camp Quality
A National Camp!!
The funds raised from the 2008 Tour de Cure will go towards the creation and implementation of a National Camp for children and their companions suffering with cancer.
This Camp will see children from all across Australia come together to experience the time of their lives! The destination for the 2009 Tour de Cure National Camp is a big secret!
The last national Camp was held in December 2006 and delivered laughter to
411 children and their companions.

CSC and Tour de Cure are on the rode to finding a cure for cancer!

cheers, Andrew Lavery (CSC Corporate Rider)

TDC 08' Reflection

2008-04-13T22:45:00.000-07:00

This is the email that i sent to the members of the 2008 Tour de Cure. I thought it would be great to share with the entire TDC family a few of the highlights as well as a few special thank you's.

I'd like to take the chance to thank everyone involved in the 2008 Tour de Cure for an amazing experience. Coming into the tour as a relative unknown I was instantly accepted and I cannot thank you all enough for making me feel so welcome. The Tour is an experience that has definitely changed my life. Not only has it put things into perspective but it has given me a greater appreciation for the good people in the world (that's all of you). The final couple of days allowed me to think a bit about what the Tour represents and what the outcomes were. Although the fundraising outcomes were nothing short of spectacular, there were a couple of highlights that really showed the effect that the Tour has had on people.
Bowling and Putt Putt with the Camp Quality Kids was for me close to the best part of the Tour. What really hit home was that unless you asked, you couldn't tell who the effected children were. They all had the same great attitudes and zest for life and deserved to be here just as much as the next kid. I think we have all been given a great lesson in life by these kids, that no matter how bad things may seem, you are only as happy or as sad as you choose to be.
However, it wasn't just the kids that made the tour special. There are a few people who deserve special thanks.
Firstly to James, David and Unit. Thank you all for so publicly sharing your stories. You are the real reasons for the Tour and are what gave me inspiration during the though times. It takes a strong person to get up in front of a crowd and share what is a very personal story and I will never forget those moments. I feel honored to have been a part of your Tour de Cure and am proud to call you all friends.
Secondly to the riders who toiled through the toughest of days. Coming into the tour with a very abbreviated training lead up I personally felt the wrath of both Victoria's and NSW hills. Although I neatly hid my pain under my cool, calm and collected exterior, there were many times where I was most definitely in the hurt basket. Saying that, there were many other riders that did it a lot tougher than me. There were days that riders were forced to dig deep and it was these moments that provided inspiration for the rest of us to keep pushing on.
Thirdly to the support team. You guys are what makes the Tour what it is. Without your incredible efforts we would still be somewhere in Victoria with no money in the bank, no direction and frozen to the bone.
If someone were to ask me what the hardest job on Tour was I'd definitely have to say a support team member. While us riders had all the cycling to do (with sore legs and bums to show for it), the support crew had all the thinking to do (with blank faces and massive yawns to show for it). I was very happy to get to bed at the end of every day, while I knew that the support crew still had many late night hours ahead of them to ensure that when we woke up everything was ready to go.
Yesterday someone asked me how we all came together to form the Tour and it got me to thinking about the common link between everyone. While Gary, Geoff and Sam were the Tour founders, somewhere along the line each member of the Tour decided to give a piece of themselves to the cause. As Gary put it, Coming together is a Challenge, Working together is an Achievement, Staying together is Success. (sorry if I misquoted) The success of the Tour has really relied on each and every member and the results are a testament to the type of people involved. After some consideration I answered the initial question of the common link with that the Tour attracts a certain type of person. While we all have very different jobs, lives and personalities, we all share the desire to change the lives of those less fortunate than us. Its no wonder we all got along so well when you consider that the foundations on which we base our lives are the same. I feel absolutely honored to have been a part of the 2008 Tour and to have shared the experience with such a high caliber of person.
All that remains is to look forward to the upcoming TDC events with anticipation of a reunion with all of the out of state (and country) members.

Best Wishes to you all,
Garrick Transell
Proud to be a 2008 Tour de Cure Member

TDC 2008 AWARDS

2008-04-13T15:51:00.000-07:00

What a Tour...........So many highlights, memories and outstanding performances by the TDC team (Riders, Support, family and friends)

Celebrating our success and recognising individuals and the Team of the Tour was no easy task. Each and every TDC'r raised the bar in 2008! As we sit on $473,843 on our target of $550,000 the Tour de Cure has raised $877,000 in just over 11 months. WOW! Our first Tour began May 28th 2007................It is humbling to have such support from those directly involved, our corporate partners and each and every donor out there who has believed in what we are doing and financially committed to help find a cure for cancer.

The 2008 Tour de Cure Category Jersey Winners are:

Yellow – Phil Mouret (Team CSC)

Pink – James Buttelman (Team Boost Mobile)

Blue – David Campbell (Team Ella Bache)

Polka Dot – Alex Malone (Team Ella Bache)

Congratulations guys! We hope you will all be back in 2009 to defend your jersey!

The 2008 Tour de Cure Team of the Tour
TDC Team of the Tour is judged on the following criteria where teams were ranked 1 – 7
• Fundraising as an average per team member
• Fundraising on tour
• Team work & spirit of the tour
• Above and Beyonds (postcards nightly / rider etiquette / initiatives of PUP / PR & Ideas of Gary)
• Riding on Tour

THE 2008 TEAM OF THE TOUR is:

Team O’Sullivan Pullini

Lead by
* Amy Copcutt
And team includes
• Garren Cronin
• Gary Bertwistle
• Malcolm Heath
• Tom Hogbin (Pup)

Team O’Sullivan Pullini was a clear cut winner thanks to their incredible dedication to each of the judging criteria which directly reflect the values of the Tour de Cure. Congratulations guys! We hope you will all be back in 2009 to defend your title!

Phenominal result for 2nd place = three way tie between
• Team Icap
• Team CSC
• Team Boost Mobile

Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful,
committed people can change the world.
Indeed, it is the only thing that ever has.

Uncle Pup

2008-04-13T11:36:00.000-07:00

FINALLY!

We in the Hogbin family only had to wait an extra 8 days, but I can very happily announce the arrival of my first nephew-

Baxter James was born at 11:36am and weighed in at 3.53kg

After all my belief and willing for the birth to occur whilst on Tour, Pup is now an uncle!
Woohoo!
I'll be up to visit the newest edition of the Hogbin clan on Anzac day and will be sure to give him the right advice on sporting equipment... Cannondale all way!

(Uncle) Pup

Video Blog Day 2 - Delayed

2008-04-10T22:10:00.000-07:00

DAY 9 - WOLLONGONG to SYDNEY

2008-04-09T21:13:00.000-07:00

Our final day and the weather appeared to have finally caught up with us! It rained through the night and none of us could really complain seeing as the last 8 days had been almost perfect! Who would have thought on the day we left Melbourne and they had the worst storms in decades that we could miss that all together and even benefit from the tail wind on our longest day. I would like to think it was Karma helping the Tour de Cure

Our traditional final dinner in Wollongong was celebrated with family and friends, sharing stories about the incredible journey we had had these past 9 days. The Max and Amy slide show had mouths agape and tears streaming from riders and loved ones. The friendships formed over the 1137km already ridden will live on long after the final pedal is turned in to Fox Studio's. We had some amazing stories shared with us on this trip from those close to us and those we touched. To quote Drew McAlister’s song (which we sang loud and with a tear in our eye on our final night) "it's the thought of you that drives me on" " no matter where the road may lead".............Not a truer word spoken!

As usual our fantastic caterers "Canadian Kitchens" (canadian_kitchens@bigpond.com) severed up a treat for our final push in to Sydney. With only 112km to ride today the girls spoilt us with Bacon and Eggs on muffins on top of our usual 3 course breakfast buffet. It is going to be strange waking up to no CK smiles and coffee being handed to you hot and ready to strengthen our tired bodies.

I was honoured to again wear the Yellow Jersey on the final day in to Sydney. Pulling on the yellow jersey was like pulling on a superman outfit. Ready to leap tall buildings (Stanwell tops) at a single bound.........I am sure Andrew in the Pink Jersey, Sam in the Blue jersey and Tom in Polka Dot Jersey felt exactly the same way.

A final briefing and a quick thank you to Mary at the Comfort Inn Fairways who not only hosted all 38 riders/crew but our families and our final dinner. With 8 days of safe riding behind us my focus was on getting all 36 riders and crew to Sydney in one piece. I must apologise to those who I barked at on this tour, my comments were only made out off concern for everyone's safety.

A big thanks to Sky Dive the Beach who kindly donated two midweek jumps over Wollongong to help the Tour de Cure fund raising. www.skydivethebeach.com.au
I did the jump a couple of months ago and can highly recommend the thrill!

Wollongong to Sydney certainly rates as one of the prettiest rides we did. The suspension bridge south of Stanwell Tops is a must see for visitors to Sydney. Not quite the Great Ocean Road but still a stunning view of the coast line. I will post a couple of pictures which Anthony from pearsephotography.com.au took when they come in. Seeing Ant perched on the top railing of the suspension bridge as we snaked towards him was a sight. The winds where strong and his balance looked precarious at best.

Final King of the Mountain Points were eagerly fought out on road to the Stanwell Tops. A 1.4km climb at approx 15% grade was the final category points for the 08 King of the Mountain! Mike Bolt showed that his 8 days of sand bagging in the bunch had left him in good shape for this final attempt. Loey (Cough cough how sick am I REALLY) showed that 65kg's climbs much better than the Units 84kgs. Now I was not there for the finish but I was told that Alex Malone (AKA WonderBOY) looked comfortable as he held off a late charging Mike Bolt and ever present Garren Cronin. His fellow KOM Shop mechanic RICKSTER (also 60kg's if a kilo more) came in 4th to Loeys commendable 5th (or 3rd if you don't count the 2 semi professional riders). Nice work Alex........KOM champion for 2008

A delicious final lunch atop Stanwell Cliffs with soaring hang gliders and a meat buffet fit for a king got the TDC crew ready for the final ride in to Sydney. Steven Lo joined us and with the GPS telling us we had 22km to Bundeena for the Ferry we gave ourselves 75mins to ride the 22km and enjoy the scenery. The road in to the national park was one of the best................ until we passed a sign at the bottom of our climb telling us there was 23km to Bundeena. A quick check of the clock and it was 12.17 and we had to be at Bundeena for the 1pm ferry............YIKES! The bunch had split on the decent in to the national Park and the gap only increased as those feeling strong after 8 days and 1175km climbed easily whilst others found the going tough. I had to share this photo with you. To me it typifies the Tour de Cure Spirit, values and commitment fight to find a cure for Cancer!

This picture was taken on day 6 but exact same image could be seen by SAM and Robyn in the support car as the TDC family pulled together to help those struggling to reach the top of the climb and make up time to the lead bunch as we all sprinted to make the Bundeena ferry in time. I am pleased to say that we made it with just minutes to spare. Nice work Josh, Alex, Denzel and Garrick!

Thanks to Bass and Flinders Ferries who kindly donated out Ferry trip to Cronulla.

A quick coffee in Cronulla and some eager fundraising by PUP who may have found a golden source and we were almost home.

A drop in to Sydney City Lexus to say thanks for their continued support of the Tour de Cure and the Camp Quality Yellow Jersey and we were ready to finish this amazing journey. Mark Ferguson pulled out the big guns and organised a news crew to film our welcome home..................The streets were lined with family and friends, banners and blow horns, tears and hugs as rode in to Fox Studio's. It was great to be home!

Stay tuned for the final Awards BLOG...........Will be posted tomorrow!

Cougar............Signing out for 08!

Day 8- Nowra - The Gong

2008-04-07T05:55:00.000-07:00

Waking in Nowra we were faced with a leisurely start before the shortest leg of the trip at 75km. Departing the hotel we were lead out by the Tour Princess Sam, decked out in cocktail dress and high heels on the back of a Fat Boy Harley.

First stop was Nowra High School to talk to Year 10 students about the ride. Nowra High School lost a much-loved member of staff last year to cancer. Geoff talked up a storm, and when he asked who had been affected by cancer, more than three quarters raised their hands – further confirmation about the far reaching effect of these 250 different conditions collectively known as cancer. Many of the kids took it upon themselves to donate their pocket money to the Tour de Cure which was phenomenal! So in exchange we left some boxes of Kelloggs Nutri-Grain and K-Time bars for morning tea.

The major points on offer today were courtesy of a K.O.M hill sprint on a nasty little pinch in Geroa. The major contenders had organised at the front of the pack in anticipation of the contest, however once the attack commenced Alex “The Russian” Malone swept by from the back of the pack and dominated to take out maximum points. Garrin, carrying a severe cold claimed second ahead of a hard-charging guest rider, Tim Morris of CSC (not the pro-tour squad…) Obviously the strongest effort was from Mike Bolt of team ICAP who lead out and whilst wearing the pink jersey supported all whilst sacrificing the potential selfish points grab.

Minnimurra featured a number highlights!! Arriving in Minnamurra, we rode past the amazing students of the local primary school who lined the street to cheer us on! You’re all fantastic and made our day!! This was followed by a typically amazing lunch in the park on the waterfront, and coffee and scones donated by the Minnamurra General Store (voted best coffee in the region!!), in addition to the $350 they raised in the last week for the TdC.

Minnimurra also featured some gutsy grabs for extra donations from the Pup – firstly a swim/run/swim/run/swim across the lagoon within 3 mins for a nifty fifty, followed by 9 scones consumed in 2 mins after a massive serving at lunch. All in all, nearly $200 raised and a lot of amusement for all!

Alex The Russian often tells us (and occasionally shows us) just how good he is on and around bikes. However today he displayed further proficiency in a less than cool area, known as “The Hubbard Tattoo”. Apparently in a lapse moment he stumbled and scored the finest hubbard tatt of the Tour. Sorry Alex, you’ve stuffed up

The final highlight was Vaughan attempting to clip in whilst completely motionless on the grass at lunch prior to departure. This resulted in him very quickly being completely upside down, on his back with the bike in the air, still clipped in. Seemless, and you’ve stuffed up too (no damage done, just dented pride and total loss of respect in the peleton.

For the second time only in 1060km, our fearless and nearly faultess lead drivers made a wrong turn!! The missed exit on the highway lead to some hairy and amusing reversing, apologising, but no harm done and very quickly we were on our way in the right direction.

We arrived at the lovely Comfort Inn Fairways in Wollongong, had a quick unpack, stretch, swim and headed off to meet a bunch of Camp Quality kids for a round of Putt Putt and swings on the driving range. We paired up with the kids, agreed on the prizes (ice creams, and the variety chosen was almost unanimously “the most expensive one!”). As golfers, the TdC riders are fantastic cyclists and the greens at the local Putt Putt proved too much for us bunch of hacks and we happily paid up. These kids were inspirational – some of the stories were humbling in the hardships these young people and their families deal with on a daily basis. By the time you’re reading this, Keely, 11, who has already had 5 brain operations on tumours, has just started another bout of Chemo. Her attitude was “It kind of hurts, I’ll probably lose my hair again, but it grows back…”

While we write, Pup is sitting behind us. A person walks in, puts their hands over Pup’s eyes. Pup’s first guess is Renae, which results in much laughter. So Pup checks the hand and watch and declares it must be a female. However, on turning around, he finds his old man and TdC veteran Ian Hogbin standing behind him (with apparently hairless and beautifully manicured hands). Welcome for the final day Ian.

So right now we’re looking forward to spending the final night together and a fantastic day tomorrow into Sydney. The forecast is thundery showers, heavy at times. We’ve had such fantastic luck with the weather, hopefully our luck holds for just one more day.

Cheers,
Team ICAP

Day 7 - Welcome to the 1,000km Club!

2008-04-06T14:46:00.000-07:00

Batemans Bay – Nowra

Distance 120 odd clicks
---

Day 7 from Batemans Bay to Nowra (120 odd clicks) was another cracker for Team TDC.

After a massive 4 days (where many riders had ridden back-to-back personal bests for the past few days) we welcomed a bit of a sleep in and a late kick off.

Huge thanks to Charlotte and Bec who drove in from Sydney & Canberra respectively to provide much needed Osteopath support to the riders. Also joining us was Megan from Kensington Physiotherapy who will be dishing up the Physiotherapy - huge thanks again! (We actually have a selection of Deep Tissue Massage, Osteopath Treatment and two Physiotherapists to choose from - were in better hands than the Australian Olympic Team!).

Today’s riding was a bit of a mixed bag – some beautiful scenery mixed in with a bit of traffic and some rain – but overall another great days riding.

A highlight was being met at on the outskirts of Nowra by a bunch of Harley Davidson riders for a quick photo opp with the local press and an escort into and around town.

After arriving in Nowra some riders took the opportunity to do an additional 15km loop to knock up 1000km in a week – a huge achievement!

Tomorrow we have a gentle 85km to Woolongong and then onto Sydney!

Congratulations to today’s Jersey winners;
Pink - Breast Cancer Foundation - For Support - Mike Bolt
Blue - Prostate Cancer Foundation - For Guts - Brad Peake
Polka Dot - Focus - David Lo
Yellow - Camp Quality - For Attitude – Josh McBride (at last!)

Team CSC

Day 6 - Welcome to the Hills

2008-04-05T03:41:00.000-07:00

We awoke to a beautiful clear morning from the Comfort Inn at Merimbula. Overnight, National 9 News anchor Mark Ferguson drove four hours to arrive at 1am to join us for 2 days of the Tour as one of Camp Quality’s patrons.

Over our usual hearty breakfast one of our riders Brad shared a story of a friend who passed away overnight from skin cancer and Brad asked us to dedicate the ride to him - Gary. This yet again brought home the reason for why we're all doing the ride and motivated us to complete days like today ............

Geoff sent us off with the promise of a ‘few hills’ for the majority of the day and he didnt disappoint ....200 metres into the start we saw our first climb that had the blood pumping and the legs and arm warmers coming off as we ascended 3kms - straight up into the beautiful Merimbula forest.

The following 80kms along the coast was nothing short of breathtaking as we rolled through beaches and inlets with crystal clear blue waters and true blue Australian camping grounds and a sense that everyone was on holiday. Unfortunately in between all the breathtaking views was hill ... after hill ... after hill ...

The group broke in to two again - with the natural hill climbers taking the lead. Team O'Sullivan Pullini once again dominated in many of the hill sprints and Garren led the pack whilst enduring a head cold. Alex and Rick from King of the Mountain set a nice steady pace for the the second group took leading us through the rolling hills and some of the steep never ending climbs.

The day heated up and numerous bottles of Powerade were drunk by every rider and those that collected the daily statistics counted over 78 GU's and 50 Kelloggs Bars consumed during the ride. And those at the back of the pack were kept amused with the dancing and singing antics of Cromo.

The last 15km's into Moruya (for lunch) felt like 60km's and hunger complaints were heard drifting through both packs of riders. The girls from Canadian Kitchen didn't disappoint with a fantastic Mexican feast which lasted about 5minutes - with riders pushing each other out of the way..... followed by Pavlova. It's not until days like today on the bike when you realise how important a good meal is to keep you going. We are indebted to the girls for keeping us well fed with nutritious meals at every stop.

Lunch finished way too soon with all of us knowing that there were 30kms left to 'climb' as we had been warned about the upcoming 'killers' ... and they weren't exaggerating. We finally rolled in to Batemans Bay and many of us were stoked to see friends and family waiting for us and who also stayed on for dinner and the Category Jersey presentations

Category Jersey Winners tonight were ....

Pink - Breast Cancer Foundation - For Support - The Canadian Kitchen Girls - Leisa and Mel
Blue - Prostate Cancer Foundation - For Guts - Garren Cronin (and his bee sting)
Polka Dot - Focus - Rick Horvat (who is sitting here helping me write this now ... still focused)
Yellow - Camp Quality - For Attitude - Mark Ferguson ( Channel 9 News Anchor)

As we sit here typing this feeling worn and weary I know that each rider had to put in a big effort to get through today but we feel it was the most rewarding day of the tour and nothing compared to what many cancer patients have to go through every day. We hope this small effort increases awareness in the community and makes the road to finding a cure that much closer.

Signing out Team O'Sullivan Pullini

Day 5 - Mallacoota to Merimbula

2008-04-04T03:24:00.000-07:00

After a solid 400+ km over the previous 2 days and early departures, we had a leisurely start to Day 5 with breakfast at 8am. We awoke to a gorgeous sunny, clear and almost windless morning.
Following brekkie, our new black Body Torque jerseys were presented to the team down by Lake Mallacoota. Then we gathered for some model team photos before heading back to pack the Avis truck and Lexus cars. We said a big farewell and thank you to Cath Turner and the ladies at the lovely Mallacoota Hotel Motel, before finally rolling out at 10am.

Thanks to a solid morning by Robyn Canner Massage a few more bodies were back in shape for the start of today. Which was just as well, because the first 23kms out of Mallacoota were pretty hilly and a lot of us took a while to warm up. But it was gorgeous scenery and everyone enjoyed the beauty of the morning. Lemo was even willing to pay for it - $40 flew out of his jacket as he sped down one of our descents. Thankfully Garren stopped to pick up $20. If anyone happens to find $20 on the road from Mallacoota to Genoa just donate it to TourDeCure.com.au! The peloton then turned onto the Prince's Hwy and shared the next 50km with some very accommodating logging trucks….although one truckie stopped to pass on some rather animated advice to our champion lead drivers Evo and James. Of course, all constructive feedback for our safety – thanks mate!

Pretty much from then on, it was single file through the hills, some of which proved to be a little testing for some sore legs. The pack split into 2 with Pup and Brad leading the charge for the front markers (Doing Team Ella Bache proud – great work Brad), with Josh, Denver, Rick and Alex looked after the second pack. With expectations of morning tea around the 50km mark, we were all a little surprised to still be riding at 70km….now with empty water bottles and little food remaining. However, we were rewarded for persistence at 72km when we found the Canadian Kitchen Catering girls and filled up on Orange & Poppy Seed muffins, margarita pizza and plenty of Powerade.

A mere 30km more brought us into the gorgeous town of Merimbula. But not before a very testing 14% (ie really steep), 2km climb about 10km out split the pack once more. While a few of us battled our way up King of the Mountain line honours went to Garren, with Gary Bertwistle a close second.

We filled up on pasta for lunch before heading up to our Comfort Inn for chores, stretching and some recovery time. A big thanks to the KOM boys who every afternoon tweak the bikes in preparation for tomorrow’s big day.

Today also proved costly for Gary ‘Unit’ Holland. Our star yellow Camp Quality jersey wearer, Amy, bet Gary fifty bucks he couldn’t stay at the back of the pack for the whole day. Sure enough, he was back in the front few after only 23km!

Evo and Lemo had to take a little detour via Permbula District Hospital, for suspect chest infections (or a bad case of Man Cold). The doctor and nurses on duty were fantastic and both boys were treated with some tender loving health care.

Our evening meal of Paella and Pasta was provided by Merrimbula Comfort Inn. We then sat back and enjoyed two days of photos from Max and Amy’s slide show. The category winners for today were:

Yellow Camp Quality (attitude) – Marty Pearce
Pink National Breast Cancer Foundation (support) – Geoff Coombes
Blue Pratt Foundation/Prostate Cancer (guts) – Evo
KOM Morph Polka Dot Jersey – Robyn Canner

Everyone’s trying to get to bed early as we have another big day tomorrow – close to 200km. Renae has got half the team out chatting up the town tonight for some much needed funds to help fight cancer. So if you see the team out there, empty your pockets and please given generously – especially to Team Ella Bache!!

Day 4 (Biggest Ride Ever)

2008-04-03T03:21:00.000-07:00

Our 5am wake up call had Lake’s Entrance greet us with a balmy 4 degrees and saw team choice in a word of pain. A horror night on laundry duty ended at 10:30pm with the erstwhile and legendary “Evo” of Team Boost our support crew finishing off so we could get some much needed sleep. The team was pleasantly surprised to hear that the forecast hail storm had blown over a few hours earlier.

Due to the distance (210km) and 5 large climbs (totaling over 2000m collectively) the decision was handed down to split the group into two teams. The first group rolled out at 6:30am with the second group, chomping at the bit, being released at 7:00am intent on mowing down team 1 before the morning tea break at 60km’s in. After some dubious navigation by the first team the contest was declared a dead heat (by Lowy in the first group).

A quick stretch and hydration tutorial by Alan at Recovery Sports saw us roll out at a respectable pace of 27km/hr whilst taking in the beautiful scenery on the road to Cann River. (Insert movie )Our first major hill climb saw Ricky Horvat giving Charmaine (a less experienced rider) some advice on climbing technique, only to have her take his advice and fly past him on the next hill!

2 climbs and many km’s down saw the local traffic pick up. All in all the riders were pleasantly surprised by the quality of the road as well as the friendly waves and smiles, not to mention the occasional air horn.

Stopping at Cann River for lunch our amazing caterers from Canadian Kitchens again made sure that every one of our 140km’s worth of energy was replaced. We were joined for lunch by some fantastic locals who generously donated all they could and uplifted spirits amongst the riders and crew. A few of the riders took the chance to get some remedial work done from Robyn aka house of pain. It seemed that the ‘few’ riders was in fact just Andrew “Lemmo” Lemon, who needed the entire Boost Mobile support crew to tend to his aches and pains.

After lunch the riders were again split into 2 groups for the remaining 77km climb into Mallacootta. Team Choice sent 3 of its members into the first group who ended the day with an average speed of 30km/hr (quite incredible considering the 2000m+ of climbing) Of note in the first group to leave lunch was some fantastic banter including a song adaptation which rung out “sweet home Mallacootta, where the Powerade is blue.” The scenery along the trip into our destination was nothing short of breathtaking with long sloping hills which were painful on the legs but easy on the eyes. Funnily enough there were similar reports of a trip full of singing from the second group to leave lunch. It must have been all that was capable of distracting the riders as the final 77km’s seemed far longer than the first 140km of the day.

Upon arrival the entire team congratulated each other on an incredible day and given how big it was, the energy and elation took everyone to a higher place. The Caterers hit town to get supplies and were stoked that Foodworks Mallacoota came to the party with boxes of bananas, lollies and juice to the value of $350.The evening’s events were just as colourful with the Cougar (Geoff Coombes) going to extremes to spur the locals in the pub into donating over $1000. A fantastic day ended with some light (painful) massage in preparation for the trip to tomorrow. Merimbula, here we come!

Wild Wednesday

2008-04-02T02:32:00.000-07:00

We would firstly like to start our blog by thanking Geoff from the Quality Inn La Trobe Convention Centre in Traralgon for not only providing superb accommodation, but by donating dinner to the whole TDC group - Fantastic Hospitality and generosity!

The morning started somewhat unusually by the riders collecting sample cups from Allan of Recovery Sports and then returning them charged with urine for analysis of our hydration levels. We were all surprised with how dehydrated we had become, with the worst result being 1 litre down. This meant everyone made a mad rush to increase their water intake, which subsequently meant that the first 70km's of riding was littered with 'comfort stops', this somewhat slowed us down, but we were all well watered!

On a day that became known as 'Wild Wednesday' due to ferocious storms that lashed much of Victoria we managed to weave our way through the Gippsland countryside with nothing but a solid northerly wind which at times made riding difficult.

A Herculean effort from The Unit and Crommo made sure that the rest of the TDC group (including the cars) were able to ride 171km smoothly averaging over 31km/h in winds gusting up to 40 knots.

For lunch we stopped in the beautiful town of Bainsdale where a group of riders smooth talked (Denver) locals into generously donating to this great cause.

The last leg of our ride took in some great country side but also provided some tough riding due to the wind. All riders and crew had to dig deep to ensure that we all arrived safely into Lakes Entrance.

All sprint points were dominated today by team Travelforce with Crommo 1st in the first sprint, Steamboat first in the second sprint with Crommo finishing second and Marty pulling away from a poultry Josh in the third and final sprint of the day.

Category Jersey winners for today were as follows;

Yellow for attitude and spirit: Denver
Blue for guts: Kate
Pink for support: Alex
Polka Dot for focus: The Unit

Signing off - Team Travelforce

Day 2 - Cranbourne - Traralgon

2008-04-01T03:05:00.000-07:00

Day 2

April Fools Day – 1st April.

Category Jersey Winners

Versol Lexus Camp Quality Yellow Jersey for Commitment: Vaughan Kerr for setting up the kickoff day activities at Federation Square and using his endless contact within the media and entertainment business to secure our place on morning television and radio.
Pratt Foundation Prostate Cancer Blue Jersey for Guts: Awarded to Max Walker for his tenacity and battle to get fit for this years tour despite endless overseas and local work commitments.
Morph KOM Polka Dot Jersey for Focus: Stuart Crompton for his endless bar raising when it comes to fundraising and anything else.
New Idea Breast Cancer Pink Jersey for Support : James Buttelman for his selfless support of rider on the roads by constantly ensuring the peleton was clearly visible to our fellow road users.

Day 2 started out with the pleasant surprise that the showers forecast for today last week had failed to arrive and we were instead left with blue-bird skies and a chilly 10 degrees for breaky. A special thanks to the team at the Comfort Inn Mahogany Park in Cranbourne for hosting us for the night and a putting on a wonderful spread!

We were greeted in the briefing by the news that Phil Mouret (Team CSC) had thrown the gauntlet down early with an amazing verified donation of 2000 Euros (AU$2943) from Verosol Europe, sending him smashing through the $35,000 mark in personal donations!

We were also greeted the news that a new publicity opportunity had arisen over night which meant 60km had been added to the day, taking the ride to 195km. This was received with a mixture of nerves from some and slightly lunatic excitement from others!

The Tour de Cure welcomed special guests Andrew Lavery from CSC and his 15yr old son Jack (whose training consisted of the ride to school and back a few times!) to come along for the ride today. The TdC peleton rolled out with a degree of trepidation but smoked through the first 50km; smooth, flat country back roads, no wind and fresh morning air allowed us fire along in tight formation at +40km/hr.

This stretch featured the first KOM (King of the Mountain) points opportunity: a nasty “Cat 4” (ie short 1km) pinch which allowed the riders to raise the heart-rarte. Garrin Cronin of Team O’Sullivan Pullini claimed the points cresting in front of a steaming Crommo (Team Travelforce) and Gary “The Unit” Holland of Team Choice Hotels. Clearly though the real General Classification hopes are holding back for later in the Tour, with Team ICAP keeping their lead rider Michael Bolt well protected in the back half of the peleton.

At morning tea Tommy “Pup” Hogbin took the opportunity to raise Team Travelforce’s funds with the local Senior Ladies and ended up with kisses from some of the town’s finest over-60’s! The combination of the Puppy charm and mentoring from “Obi Wan Denver” (full-time Mayor of Manly and part-time Jedi Love Master) obviously leaves ladies of all ages utterly defenceless…

Lunch at Yarragon featured 3 highlights – the food (obviously) and the generosity of the township and the 2nd Points opportunity – the Main Street Sprint.

1. Food: Java Curry with Beans, Vietnamese salad backed up with Mousse and Ice cream….
2. Generosity: Renae, Pup and Denver were again a cyclone of energy canvassing the local stores and came up trumps!!!! Firstly, with our truck up ahead containing the Powerade, the local Yarragon Milk Bar produced 2 cases of icy Powerade for the crew!!!! Then entering Annabel's Gift Shop, the team met a lovely lady named Mary who had lost her parents to cancer and currently has both her brother and sister ungoing treatment. Mary had set up a collection tin on her counter for spare change from shoppers and her own cash register to try to help contribute to finding a cure for cancer. She happily and VERY generously donated this to the Tour de Cure.

3. Main Street Sprint: The first Sprint points were located at the far end of the Yarragon Main street, and involved a 300m flat chat sprint from a standing start taken out by the reigning Australian and World Champion Bike Mechanic Alex “The Russian” Malone of Team Ella Bache showing uncharacteristic speed from a known climber to dominate out of the blocks leaving Cougar (CSC) and Unit (Travelforce) to argue over the minor placings

Upon being told that the altered route for today and 195km was actually an April Fool's Day prank, the tension within the bunch eased significantly (although some sicko's actually looked dissappointed...) We set off for the final leg into Traralgon and quickly the road surface on the break down lane deteriorated: The lead car worked hard with Evo and James clearing debris such as retread, rocks, and a full (yep, used) nappy, adding keeping Australia beautiful to TdC’s list of achievements. The KOM boys also worked overtime changing 8 tubes, 2 tyres and dragging cyclists back to the peleton time and time again as the gravel and glass took its toll.

Arriving into Traralgon, we were greeted by local media and the friendly team at the Quality Inn La Trobe Conference Centre. After a quick unpack the TdC stretched and relaxed in the sun by the beautiful central (and chilly) pool briefly before getting into the daily chores and joining some locals for dinner. In true form the cyclists were in bed by 9pm (aside from team ICAP who are probably still trying to complete this blog of the day's sensational events...)

Special thanks AGAIN to

Comfort Inn Mahogany Park, Cranbourne

The team at Yarragon Milk Bar, the finest milk bar in the Western Gippsland region!

Mary from Annabels, your story only strengthened our resolve to help find a cure

Team ICAP

BOOST MOBILE - ABM

2008-03-31T13:28:00.000-07:00

Boost Mobile -Australian Bike Mechanic Championships

Representing QLD – Todd Preston (Ferry Road Cycles)
Representing NSW – Alex Malone (King of the Mountain Cyclery)
Representing VIC – Doug Greenal (Gran Prix Bicycles)

The first Australian Bike Mechanic Championship, sponsored by our Telco Team Partner Boost Mobile, was held in Federation Square on the 31st March 2008 on a breezy Monday morning at 9.00am on live national television- Channel 9- Morning’s with Kerri-Ann. A fierce contest was held between the three contestants to determine who was the fastest man to change a flat.

The contestants had two heats to perfect their technique prior to the finals……was this enough and who was looking like the potential winner from the early form??? Certainly not the Queenslander Todd who managed to explode his tube by overinflating it, rather worrying actually. The early form going into the final was the New South Welshman Alex who was taking 55 seconds to change the flat. Anyway, introducing the final was Hawthorne’s favorite son Dippa- who happens to be a bit of a cyclist himself and about to head off to Outer Mongolia in July for a cycling adventure.

Tension was in the air and the contestants were starting to sweat. Conscious that they were on live television added additional pressure. The Victorian had a sensational start- whipping the wheel off in no time and was well ahead of the others- Unfortunately Doug felt the strain of the early lead and surrendered it to Todd, the Queenslander who was rebuilding his confidence after his earlier debacle. Sadly, as if often the case with the Queenslanders the situation got the better of him and Alex- the New South Welshman came home in first place.

Following the Boost Mobile Championship the Tour De Cure riders set off on their journey to Sydney with some trepidation…..

TDC Category Jerseys

2008-03-31T13:19:00.000-07:00

In true Tour de France style, the Tour de Cure has it's very own category jerseys celebrating success on the road. Our jerseys have been designed by some of Australia's hottest fashionista's

Blue Prostate Cancer Jersey - Design by MAMBO......thanks Reg!
Pink National Breast Cancer jersey - Designed by Charle Brown........Thanks Charlie!
Yellow Camp Quality Jersey - Designed by Dinosaur Designs........Thanks guys!
Polka Dot jersey designed by Body Torque........love them dots!

A big thanks to our partners for each of these jerseys......your support is most appreciated and we know that each of the team wear their jersey with pride for the charity it represents and the partners behind it

Blue Prostate Cancer Jersey - Partnered by The Pratt Foundation
Pink National Breast Cancer jersey - Partnered by NEW IDEA
Yellow Camp Quality Jersey - Partnered by LEXUS and VEROSOL
Polka Dot jersey - MORPH

At our evening event the Category Jerseys are awarded after dinner with much anticipation

The YELLOW Jersey embodies the spirit of the Tour de Cure and is awarded each day to the person who best delivers the Tour values on the road.

The PINK Jersey is awarded to the team member whose efforts during the day helps and supports the other team mates. It is the most coveted jersey to win due to the nature of the jersey , which is about helping others.

The POLKA DOT jersey goes to the team member who is the most focused on the day. It is awarded to the one who has their mind on the job, leads by example, and is determined to make it a great day.

The BLUE Jersey goes to the person who exhibits “GUTS”. It goes to the one who digs deep, rises above and carries on regardless.

The team members who wore the category Jerseys on day 1 (bestowing on the them our respect for the months leading up the this tour) were:

Yellow Jersey = Phil Mouret
Pink jersey = Malcolm Heath
Blue Jersey = Tom 'Pup' Hogbin
Polka Dot = Sam Hollier-James

Photo's from Day 1 to come.............

TDC 08 DAY 1 Melb - Cranbourne

2008-03-31T13:09:00.000-07:00

TOUR DE CURE – MEBOURNE – SYDNEY 2008

DAY 1

From: Federation Square, Melbourne
To: Sunny Cranbourne
Distance: 76km

--

After what seems like years of riding & preparation by all TDC riders, family and friends the TDC 2008 finally kicked off today.

With a flurry of first day jitters, last minute bike checks and mobile phone alarms the TDC Team descended upon the hotel restaurant for the Day 1 breakfast and briefing.

Alan from Recovery Sports Medicine gave a run down on nutrition, hydration and carb loading to make sure that we consumer refuel the energy that we burn throughout the tour. Evo has taken to carb loading beautifully, knocking back gallons of Powerade and giving muffins/sandwiches/biscuits a fair old nudge throughout the day. If only he was a rider and not part of the support crew!

A quick thank-you to the Quality Hotel Batmans staff and we were finally out of the hotel and onto the bike for a quick dash to Melbourne’s Federation Square for the Launch Event and Official Kick Off.

We arrived at Fed Square to receive a warm welcome from friends and family – it was just as well being a very fresh 8 degrees!

Upon arrival the first sprint (to the masseuse) was won by the seasoned veterans Loey & Denver – even though they’d only ridden all of a block & a half.

Kudos to Pup who managed to extract a mobile number from one of the Ella Bache Massage ladies & land himself an additional $100 TDC donation from Garren & Crommo (here’s hoping it’s the first of many!)

The Launch event was a blast for all with the Boost Mobile Bike Mechanic Championships (Won by our own Alex from KOM!)

Dipper helped with crosses to Channel 9 News and Kerri-Ann. Bernard and Stephen Curry hosted the event & were great value keeping the audience entertaining & laughing along.

A quick good bye to a familiy & friends and final cross to Kerri-Ann for the official start and before we knew it we were off heading down St Kilda Rd.

Lexus have been brilliant partners for TDC and have donated a couple of support vehicles so first stop was Lexus of Brighton for a thank-you, photo, and much needed coffee. Another quick stop at Recovery Sports and we were heading out of Melbourne’s suburbs and onto the open road.

We must have been blessed on day one as the weather did us a big favour and we avoided the rain beautifully. With a tail wind at our backs and some of Victoria’s best road surfaces, we had a cruisy run down to Mordiallic and finally Cranbourne.

At our lunch break at Mordiallic a gorgeous little girl called Kyria came up to us and donated $3 (from her mums purse) for her school friend Kate who came down with Luekemia last year. Thanks Kyria and we hope Kate gets well soon!

But the day was not yet over. We all headed down to Cranbourne’s Bowland for some ten pin bowling from the kids from Camp Quality.This was great fun and everyone had a ball…bowl !!! Funny feeling with a bowling ball in hand, in your lycra and wearing a pair of bowling shoes.

A big thanks to Sarah and Barrie from CSC who joined us for day 1. Sarah joined us on a bike which sould have been left in the 70's and did an incredible job keeping the back of the pack filled with conversation. It would be nice to think that Sarah and Barrie might train up and join us for the entire tour in 09.

Dinner at the hotel was great..........Lots of laughs, some funnies stories from the day and certainly the beginning of some jousting between Evo and Sam! The Category jersey winners for day 1 were

PINK JERSEY - James (Lead Car Driver) for his outstanding support and manouvering leading us through some tricky sections and getting us from A to B safely

YELLOW JERESY - Vaughnie (Team CSC) for helping secure the support of the Currie brothers and other Media support for the Tour de Cure

POLKA DOT JERSEY - Crommo (Team Travel Force) for his focus and determination to continiously lead from the front both on the road and via his fundraising

BLUE JERSEY _ Maxie (Team Choice Hotels). This jersey is awarded for 'GUTS' but in this instance was awarded for lack there off...........Maxie lost a whopping 9kgs over the last 3 months getting him lean and mean for this tour and his 40th year! he doesn't look a day over 39

And so day one came to an end…..the anticipation of tomorrow on everyone’s minds, it was lights out at 9.30pm and everyone was sound asleep.

Let the Journey Begin

2008-03-31T11:21:00.001-07:00

Well after months and months of preparation the Tour de Cure 08, Melbourne to Sydney ride was finally upon us. 18 of the 28 original Tour de Cure (TDC) team were back to take on the next challenge and joined by 12 new recruits who each bring their own unique qualities which are sure to make this TOUR as memorable as the first.

Seeing 23 TDC'rs at the airport, each in their TDC kit, logo's a blaze, POWERADE bags covering 1/2 the departures terminal was quite the site.....Tom our newest HOGBIN to ride the tour appears quite comfortable amongst the see of blue.......these uni students can sleep anywhere!

TRAVEL FORCE who are again back to help us find a cure did a sensational job getting 35 TDC'rs + family who came to send us off to Melbourne for our launch. I don't think the Qantas group check in person had ever seen so many smiling faces

Making friends on the plane, Amy must have thought this little girl had some pocket money to donate to the Tour.............

The staff at Quality Hotel Batmans on Collins were sensational. Catering to our nervous energy they gladly accomodate our many strange requests. The Hotel is located in a convenient position close to the centre of Melbourne and opposite the train station. Extremely handy for anyone travelling to Melbourne and looking for a great place to stay

Final Preparations and briefings filled the minds of all as to why we were here. Hearing from Max, Dawn and Jay who came to speak with us on behalf of the Prostate Cancer Foundation, NBCF and Camp Quality we got to understand just how much this ride means to so many people. The hope that lies in each and every cancer sufferer, survivor and their families that one day we will find a cure is enough to make us all want to ride the tallest mountain

Video Blog 1

2008-03-31T00:38:00.000-07:00

Beware the smiling physio...

2008-03-28T01:26:00.000-07:00

I decided to sneak in 1

last treatment at

Kensington Physiotherapy today-

to make sure the legs were

ready for the first hill, the first

sprint and to put in the hard

yards in to finding a cure.

At Kensington Physiotherapy I',m

just a piece of meat to be tendorised!

Every time I hop on one of the beds

I need to be mentally prepared-

I'm known to be poor at stretching

and thus my muscles are usually pretty tight...

all in all I end up squirming in pain.

Just wanted to let you guys

know to be ready for the

smiling Megan- her hands

and in particular her elbow!

Megan will arrive the night we

get to Bateman's Bay and travelling

the final 3 days with us into Sydney.

Her and I are both hoping that there

is someone with less tolerance than

me...

You might just be able to guess as to

how well I tolerate pain...

2 and a bit days boys and girls...

I may be a little girl on the physio bed, but on the road, on the hills, in the sprints & to finding a cure...

BRING IT ON!

LEXUS ready for the road

2008-03-27T03:35:00.000-07:00

Dont they look great. A massive thanks to Lexus for the fantastic vehicles and signage

A big thanks to Shane from Vital Signs for helping at short notice

Shane Powell
Vital Signs of life
0412 265 691

We are ready.................

LETS RIDE!

Video Blog from SteamBoat

2008-03-26T20:50:00.000-07:00

Unfortunately the interview was not able to be posted to the blog which is a real shame as it was damn good!

Oh well. Speak soon, Rick

Staying clean and dry at the Otway

2008-03-16T22:19:00.000-07:00

Unlike Josh, I decided to keep as clean as possible over the weekend whilst riding 150km through the Otway ranges.

The Otway Classic took us from Torquay, out the back of the ranges, and then over the ranges, along the great ocean road back into Torquay. The weather was perfect, and Will and I were really looking forward to a fantastic day in the saddle. After a couple of hot cross buns each, we were off.

Apparently 2,500 riders took part this year, and to tell you the truth it certainly felt as though this was the case in the initial 50 km's of the ride. It was Chaotic! It was as though every man and his dog had hoped on a bike to take part. There were riders everywhere!

As we began to encounter some wind and a couple of rolling hills, the bunch began to thin out and the riding became most enjoyable. Will and I took to the front of a pretty good bunch of riders and punched out a solid pace into our pit stop at the 70km mark in Deans Marsh.

We were both feeling strong and had no need to stop for any longer than 10 minutes. The next section of the ride took us through the Otway Rangers where we had a steady 12km/s of climbing. The scenery was just amazing although I'm not sure if many riders had the chance to enjoy it? Most of the guys I passed had their heads down and were fighting with their handlebars as they climbed to the summit. I felt proud as punch wearing my TDC kit passing most riders with ease. At this point I had confirmed that my preparation for the tour was on track.

The decent from the summit into Lorne (8 km's) was a hell of a lot of fun. There were some great corners and very little traffic that made for exciting riding.

The last 50 km's took us from Lorne, along the great ocean road back into Torquay. For those who have not ridden the great ocean road, I would strongly suggest that you do. Words don't do the scenery any justice, so I hope that TDC may take this path on it's way to Adelaide next year so you all can see what Victoria has to offer.

I picked up the pace back to Torquay and managed to finish the ride in just under 4 hours and 30 minutes. I averaged a pace of 34 km/h which I was quite please about. I would be lying if I told you that my legs weren't a bit saw at the end of the day, but I put this down to 'having a crack'.

Really looking forward to hoping on the bike with the crew in 2 weeks time. Bring on the Tour!!

Steamboat

Tour de Cure Reaps Benefits From Over Zealous Soccer Dads

2008-03-15T20:40:00.000-07:00

Over zealous competitive Dad's betting on Ben Lo's and Lachlan Heath's soccer game results in a $100 donation to Tour de Cure... & coughed up by Mal Heath.... <>

OK, Loey, being a good dad, was at the match and therefore had the advantage over me in having inside information on pitch reports, injury lists, team compositions, player positions, game strategy and coaches' analyses, not to mention conditioning information from the players' trainers (forwards and backs), and the Clubs' physiotherapists and sports psychologists. (Hey, Ben and Lach are playing in U7's and it's lower north shore soccer comp we're talking about here....it's very serious) And me? Well I confess to being on a ferry from Ettalong - Palm Beach, clocking up another 140km of training with the Unit (Gary Holland), the man back from the deal bunker, Garren Cronin, and the 2007 Pink Jersey winner, (for Support) Josh McBride....

Geoff Cougar Coombes was to be with us but broke down at Road Warriors with some serious mechanical troubles, and has now added his bike to the ever growing collection of Tour de Cure riders' bikes for repair at KOM.

Oops!! and just how did this picture of my daughter Olivia shaking hands with YOU KNOW WHO get into this blog? (Sub editor's fault, probably) And isn't that Josh Lo looking on in the foreground?

Go On..... you know you want one.

2008-03-11T00:11:00.000-07:00

The title of this blog is the typical statement Elle (my partner) will make when I'm at the South Melbourne Market walking past the doughnut stand.

It's true.... I love 'em!! But each time I walk past that stand, in the back of my mind is the picture of our detain looking at me shaking his head, and the thought that if I'm not careful, I could end up being as big as Geoff (only kidding cougar).

As the Tour De Cure gears up for its second year, attention is turning firmly on physical preparation for this year’s event. This not only includes the thousands of kilometers of black top the team has been pedaling in the last few months, but also the nutritional aspect. Whilst the Tour De Cure is by no means a race, 1200km over 9 days is still a mammoth task, and one that requires the right food and fluids to get the job done.

Joining us again this year is our dietitian Alan from Recover Sports Medicine. He’s working with us to make sure we get all the nutrition we need to survive the ride. One of his main roles is to liaise with our catering partner, Canadian Kitchens. They did a great job keeping us fed last year, and with Al’s input provided us with the fuel we needed to keep riding all week long. He was also able to advise us on how much fluid we needed to drink, having conducted hydration testing on several on the riders prior to last year’s tour.

This year Alan will be joining us on the road, as a member of the support team for the first few days of the tour. This will be an invaluable addition to the team, as this year’s tour promises some longer and tougher stages, placing even more importance physical conditioning. He’ll not only be watching what we eat, but conducting detailed hydration testing to make sure we stay in good shape on the road.

Recover Sports Medicine is a sports medicine practice based in two clinics in Melbourne. They provide physio, massage and nutrition services, and also have a resident sports physician. To contact Alan or the clinic, visit their website: http://www.recoversportsmed.com.au/

Alan has been, and continues to be a great support to the tour, and he definitely knows how to ensure we have the right diet to complete this amazing journey.

www.predictweather.com

2008-03-09T15:44:00.000-07:00

Ken Ring........Long Range weather predictor for several Australian weather news stations has kindly done a long range forecast for the Tour de Cures intended route.

Many thanks Ken!

We certainly hope you are right as you have predicted the incredible storms and rain Australia has experienced for the past 5 months

___________________________________________________________________________
Tour de Cure charity ride weather expectations

On March 31st, Melbourne may be cloudy, with showers to mild rain, and cool moderate breezes.

Clearing about 1st in Melbourne, the weather may be mostly dry for the whole ride except for the last two days.

Head winds are likely from the 4th or 5th onwards.

On the Monday the7th, showers may develop in Wollongong, falling the next day. The road from Wollongong to Sydney may be hazardous due to recent rain along the route.

Your arrival in to Sydney on the 8th may be in clear conditions.

Safe riding

From Ken Ring of www.predictweather.com
Allow 24-hr error.

Getting Dirty at the Otway

2008-03-06T01:54:00.000-08:00

As a few of you would know, a small but hardy contingent of TdC drove south a couple of weeks ago to compete in the Otway Odyssey, arguably Australia's hardest 100km MTB marathon. Starting from Apollo Bay, the course winds it's way north into the Otway Ranges, ascending to 600m above sea-level at the 30km mark through a series of very steep ascents punctuated by tough descents. The course then climbs and drops for the nest 70km, finishing with a total ascent of almost 3km!

What made it tougher though was the weather. One of Victoria's longest, driest and warmest summers was assaulted by howling southerlies driving rain in almost horizontally for 2 days prior.

The result = MUD

Friend of TdC Ben in front of an easier, flatter muddy track

Mud that made the already unrideable climbs for many alomst unwalkable;
That stole 20cm off every 60cm stride during the walking/stumbling/slipping stages that were up to 5km long;
That stuck hard around tyres meaning they couldn't rotate through the frame - cleaning stops every 20m the norm;
That packed your derailleurs, chain and cables with mud;
That infiltrated every crevice of your body, aided by the numerous falls on and in the slippery mud and puddles;
That was about 20 degrees C, an advancing Japanese Army and a few Fuzzy Wuzzy's away from resembling the Kokoda Track;
That sucked your energy and motivation, left you longing for the hot showers, beer and under-cooked sausage sambos still 85km away...

This sort of treatment would cost around $150 at many Sydney Spas

But from 30km the trail began to dry out a little, a stream allowed the entire bike to be dunked and freed of it's 5kg of muddy burden, and from 40km we entered some of the best singletrack I've ever ridden. - Berms, gully runs, jumps, double jumps, little drops, - the Forrest trails were a veritable playground for anyone with enough energy left to enjoy them!

The other highlight was the spirit of the riders - lots of smiles, jokes and carry on from many of the punters we rode with, sharing the fun of the mud, the awesome trails and the shear pain of so many hard hours on the bike.

And the TdC did WELL! Amy Copcutt came in 12th in the Open Females! Peakey finished first of the TdC gents in a very solid 8hrs 17min. I DNF'd at the 87k mark due to terminal mechanical failure. Our mates all performed spectacularly well, from Marty's 7.5hours to "the other Brad"s huge effort - damaged rear derailleur at 20km, hitched a ride down to the finish 25km away, replaced it, rode back to the 20km mark OVER the highest peak, turned around, rejoined the race and re-ascended the highest peak and rode on to finish strongly.

A massive thanks to Amy who realised our folly of trying to camp in 35knot onshore winds and driving rain! Put us 4 lads up and we all rocked out.

By rocking out I mean cleaned the bikes, went to the pub for dinner, had 2 beers and fell to pieces.

AVIS back on the Road

2008-03-05T14:58:00.000-08:00

GREAT NEWS!

AVIS are back to help the Tour de Cure.

A big thanks to Cress Dawson and his team for providing the 3 Tonne Avis Truck which will carry our POWERADE supplies as well as the KING OF THE MOUNTAIN support equipment and all our gear!

We are almost ready!

3.5 weeks and counting

Cougar

INSPIRING OTHERS

2008-03-03T02:13:00.000-08:00

Wanted to share a beautiful email about a courageuos man who is the father in law of one of the Tour de Cure Riders...........he inspiring others

Jeff Pearse (founder of Mailcall) is in hospital at the moment undertaking his own cancer battle, so the Tour de Cure is a cause very close to our heart.

This is the third time in 20 years that Dad has fought cancer, and unfortunately this time the prognosis is more than ever an uphill battle as it's developed into a very rare type of Lymphoma which is only the second case in Australia to date. He's been enduring chemo and radiotherapy for 5 months and is in North Shore hospital now for a prolonged stay for the last hiroshima chemo treatment (fondly nicknamed) and a bone marrow transplant which started yesterday. Being the hardened battler that he is, he's up at the Hospital giving everyone else pep talks, many of whom are in a much better state than him.

Yesterday I dropped off a pile of printed material from the Tour De Cure website for him to read, including all the stories, articles and support messages you've received. I showed him the maps of the climbs each day on your way to Sydney and told him that he's not alone in the battles, and to look at the climbs people are doing for him and others when he is having a bad day. Being an ex marathon runner he's been giving Garren lots of advice on pushing through the pain, and has offered a number of times now to change places! Each day he asks me how far Garren and the team have cycled and I think it makes him feel a bit better knowing that there are people out there trying to make a difference.

So I hope that everyone knows how important and valued their efforts and dedication are to finding a cure for cancer. This cause means a lot to the individuals fighting these battles as well as the family members who struggle with the realisation that they are in face quite helpless. Being able to support a cause like the Tour De Cure is our way of helping to fight the fight.

Best of Luck on the ride and our thoughts and prayers are with all the riders for a safe trip to Sydney

Emma

PS..... Dad proudly told me that he did 7 laps of the ward yesterday, not quite Everest but gives you an idea of the challenges he puts before himself each day. It's a battle of the mind for these guys and every milestone or day is approached as a unique challenge, with every victory celebrated. You should all be doing the same on the tour, chipping away one day at a time and pushing through the pain.

COFFEE CONFUCIUS

2008-02-24T14:57:00.000-08:00

Easi Evie- the TDC effect.

2008-02-21T09:00:00.000-08:00

Thursday 14th February gave some of the original and new members of the Tour de Cure family the chance to see where the fundraised monies go, and how helpful their efforts are- not to mention how well recieved!

Out at the Westmead Millenium Centre- the research facility attached to the Westmead hospital- we got to be a part of the naming ceremony and see a demonstration of their new research robot, EASI EVIE!

The name EASI EVIE is thanks to the clever Olivia Heath, daughter of Mal. She won the competition that was held to name the robot- and deservedly so. After hearing what EVIE does, the name is so fitting- she makes life so much EASIER for all researchers, and takes some of the steep hills out of the road to finding a cure!

A huge congrats go to Olivia! Well named and well spoken on Thursday.

Tour de Cure's involvement with EASI EVIE came from our 2007 donation to the National Breast Cancer Foundation (hence the pink writing), and allowed us to adopt EASI EVIE for 2008!

For Alex, Mal & Sam (Tour originals), viewing EVIE would have been awesome as it is a chance to see where their efforts have gone and inspire them to raise more and more this year. For the newbies, Charmaine, Ricky and Tom it was inspiring to see where our first time efforts can take us!

And how about those that get the benefits from using EASI EVIE! All of the hard workers at the Millenium Institute absolutely love EASI EVIE- I think it is something similar to the crush that we cyclists have on our bikes!

Huge congratulations on their hard work and thankyou for hosting us goes to Professor Christine Clark, Dr Rosemary Balleine, Ms Barb Guild & Ms Jane Carpenter. The lucky lady that gets to work with EVIE every day Ms Li Ma does a terrific job- and, just quietly, enjoyed showing off her new favorite piece of equipment.

As for EVIE herself- she is amazing! Her sleek curves, shiny finish, German design- who wouldn't love her!

Practically she is even better... do I have a crush...? EASI EVIE is a robot that extracts DNA samples and stocks up the institutes tissue bank supplies. The number of tissue samples is extremely important when it comes to finding a cure for cancer- the more trials researchers can do, the closer they get to a cure!

What use to take 10 workers, 2 days- EASI EVIE does in 30 minutes!

And because she is pretty much flawless the researchers don't have to put up with human error either. As Christine was telling us "EVIE is certainly going to make our life easier and allow us to be much more productive". Because EVIE is SO great, it allows other institutes, other researchers to access the higher quality and quantity of DNA samples- thats right, EVIE does the hard yards- she's not just a pretty face- wish the bikes would do that sort of work for us!

The TDC effect- On the road to finding a cure with the National Breast Cancer Foundation, Westmead Millenium Institute and EASI EVIE.

2008 TEAM DRAW

2008-02-17T18:45:00.001-08:00

The 2008 Tour de Cure team draw was held on Saturday the 9th of April and Castle Killcare

with 7 weeks to go and an even balance sought amongst teams both for riding ability and fundraising capacity, an unbiased draw was held.

the names of the 30 Tour de Cure riders were placed in a boniculars container and drawn out with official flare and pomp n pagentry by Emanda and Charlie Bertwistle, Saskia Pickup, Brad and Sophie Gemmell (soon to be Coombes/Cougar)

The draw has certainly thrown the cat amongst the pigeons with some clearly strong teams and others who will no doubt surprise all on this dual journey

As individuals we can only raise so much. As one team the sky is the limit

We are committed to raising as much money as we can to find a cure for cancer. We will find a cure for Cancer in our life time..........................with your help and thanks to our generous corporate partners a cure for cancer is out there to be found

Out of Bounds

2008-02-17T18:00:00.000-08:00

Sydney to Ettalong and back via Palm Beach has to be one of best rides Sydney has to offer.

Especially when the weather holds out and you see sunshine and blue sky instead of grey clouds and driving rain.

Some of Tour de Cure's best took to the roads on Sunday morning, leaving the club house whilst it was still dark and filled with midnight ragers wondering why we would choose to go to bed at 9pm on a Saturday night jut so we could ride half way to Newcastle and back without anything artificial in our bodies......................All I can say is thank goodness for our VITTORIA COFFEE at 5am.

My trusty training partner Mal was ever present as was the Ferges and Pup. Berty joined us for a pretty rotten coffee at Road warriors before returned the old hwy to Sydney for some solid solo training. Good effort mate

With good time under our belt we decided to take on the Old Road to Mooney Mooney which is still closed due to the slide which we narrowly missed on last years tour. The road in to Mooney Mooney was sensational and free of cars.................gotta love that.

Reaching the road works we were surprised to see that the local council had undertaken some excavations since we were last through................the digger had been busy and so our crossing became more of a mountain bike session than road session. Poor Pup..............his nice WHITE cycling shoes got worn in through the silt and mud in the sand pit.

Realising that we had no time time to ride back and still make our ferry we crossed the PIT and high tailed it to ETTALONG, just in time to get 5 of the best (5 x Bacon & Egg Rolls + 5 Double shot coffee's) to take on the ferry to Palm Beach.

B-Lining it for home, to not spend too much time away from the loved ones, the old fella's as Pup would call us (Stu, Mal, Cougar + Kate) gave some fantastic support to Tom as he rode his 600th km in the week. Have to think that if we (the old fella's) hadn't have been there to help him, I doubt Tom would have been able to finish this ride and clock up his 600th kilometre

Well done Tommy!

Great ride Mal, Tom, Kate and Stu!

6 weeks and counting...............

HERE SHE COMES

2008-02-17T17:21:00.000-08:00

Well I must admit when TRAVEL FORCE suggested CHARMAINE GAIR join us on this years Tour de Cure just 9 weeks out from the ride I was hoping that Charmaine was an accomplished rider and already clocking up the km's. Far from an accomplished rider, Charmaine's riding experience was to and from work (14km each way) a couple of times a week.
I am very pleased to report that Charmaine has taken to riding much better than I had hoped and much quicker than I had prayed for. With an athletic background in running and personal fitness Charmaine started this campaign from a better fitness base than most of the other TDC riders. Having said that, cycling fitness is a whole other ball game.......ok wheel game! Getting your body comfortable on a tiny little seat for 6 - 8hrs a day , riding anywhere from 100 - 200km through the beaches and gorges around Sydney will challenge anyone new to the sport.

On our first bright and sunny Saturday in almost a month, Charmaine joined the TDC peleton and headed up the HWY to take on the might Gorges. The 34km from our Club house (MIASEY'S MILITARY RD) to Berowra is a steady climb through some narrow streets in the dark. 14 of the Tour de Cure's best charged up the HWY and Charmaine in only her 2nd bunch ride and 6 TDC training ride, kept pace with the peleton to their turnoff in to Bobbin Head. We kept our steady pace up the HWY to Berowra where we descended in to the gorge to catch the car ferry to the other side.

For those that have not been to this place it is certainly worth a drive one weekend. Lush farms, sweeping hills and beautiful Australian wilderness surrounds you for most of the ride. One thing a cyclist gets to know is that what goes down must come up so our decent whilst a lot of fun only hides the formidable hills on the other side. I say formidable as for a new rider the gorges would be something you undertake a couple (3 -4) months in to your riding. In her 2nd week of training and 6th ride overall with her previous longest ride being 65km and here were are, 45km from home and 55km in to our ride and we start climbing. Not easy by anyones standards!

Like the trooper she is, Charmaine gritted her teeth and pushed her body up the hills at I might say, a pretty handy pace. A pleasing sight for me knowing we have only 6 weeks to get her ready for 1200km and 9568m vertical over 9 days. Not to mention we need to ride at an average speed of 28km/hr in the peleton.
Catching the TDC peleton as we rode to Glaston Gorge we doubled back with them and did Berowra in reverse.................It is a harder climb on the way out this time and again Charmaine impressed all with her courage to not lose too much time on the peleton.

With 6 weeks to go Charmaine is well down the road to helping us find a cure for CANCER.

Nice riding Charmaine.................keep up the good work!

PUP gets OLDER and WISER

2008-02-17T17:06:00.000-08:00

HAPPY BIRTHDAY to our fresh faced, just out of puberty, smart mouthed, hoping he is in good enough shape to take on the old fella's, TOMMY HOGBIN

Riding in to form at just the right time, Tom you are showing everyone what youthful exuberance and hard work can yield.

Congrats on the Mile stones!

It's great having you along for the ride

6 weeks, 600km, $6000!

2008-02-17T13:25:00.000-08:00

6 weeks to go!
Pup is counting down the days, k's and donations- loving the riding!
Starting to chase some of you old fella's-

600 club:
(-woohoo!)
Monday: 88km (Church Point)

Tuesday: 50km (broken spoke/buckled wheel)

Wednesday: nothing- fixing the bike

Thursday: 101km (Eastern suburbs)

Friday: 97km (Eastern suburbs)

Saturday: 128km (Bobbin, Berowra, Gallston, Bobbin)

Sunday: 161km (Ettalong)

Total: 625km

I think the CAAD 9 has suffered more injuries this week then me- poor bike.
To round out the hatrick- somehow I've crept up to $6500 in donations... according to the team site, that has me in 4th place!
Finally- Denver, you just lost 30 seconds of your handicap (not that you need one)- the Pup just got a year older!
Bring on the race to find a cure- Pup's gone on the attack (way too) early!

600km CLUB Crommo + Cougar

2008-02-10T22:12:00.000-08:00

What weather we have been having. Sure is making the training harder this year than last. Having driven the route I know first hand the distances and elevations we will be challenged by on this years Tour from Melbourne to Sydney. It really is uphill riding from Melb - Sydney! Can't wait to ride it the other way one of these years.

A huge congratulations to Crommo for clicking in to the 600km club without the constant support and camaraderie we Sydney TDC riders have from the likes of Phil, Mal, Maxie, The Ferges and others who can be relied on for training partners rain hail or shine.......well almost all the time.

Crommo recalled with me how he felt when he joined us on the second day of last years Tour from Surfers to Ballina..................he was a 'Hurtin Unit' as I think he put it. With that feeling stuck in his mind he has consistently ridden 450 - 550km each week since the beginning of the new year. Considering QLD has been under water for most of Jan/Feb that is a huge effort. Testimony to his training was his ease up each hill we encountered on our 300km weekend to Killcare. His dedication doesn't stop there as he has also been off the drink since December.........accounts for the 5kg's he has lost as well.

In our first 7 days on the tour we will clock up 800+ km..................................got to do the work now to enjoy it later.

Safe Riding everyone

A leader by example

2008-02-10T16:45:00.000-08:00

I thought I was pretty good clocking up a second 500km+ week's training for the year along with Phil Moret in what was one of the wettest Sydney weeks for years. Five of the six day's rides were wet, the soaking, sodden, sopping saturating kind of wet - damn wet.

But there's a guy who managed to clock up 635km in this wet. During this week, he dedicated one of those mornings to train and instruct an up-and-coming TDC cyclist. He headed out that day at 4.15am to squeeze in "the overs".

On his last ride for the week, he told me he was going to sit back in the pack and take it easy. And fair enough too. And he did ... for about 15 mins before he took the lead, and regularly lead the pack during a bone-drenching 215km ride. He stopped to repair other riders' punctures, he was with camera in hand, riding ahead, stopping to take shots of the team, and then riding back to the pack, offering subtle advice to riders on riding technique and bunch riding etiquette... and the list could go on and on.

A huge effort Geoff Cougar Coombes - inspirational stuff made all the more remarkable in what were very bleak weather conditions for cycling.

TDC ART

2008-02-05T19:51:00.000-08:00

A very creative birthday card for Garren from his company this week.

Happy Birthday mate!

Another one for the 500 club

2008-01-31T19:35:00.000-08:00

Well I'm about a week late in writing this blog, but here goes my claim to a 500km week.
Good to see 3 out of 4 members of 'Hogbins Heroes' now cracked the barrier ! Go hard Pup, Mal and I are with you and if it wasn't for the Rickster's close encounter with a car, I'm sure he'd have banged out some extra kms as well !

Sunday 20/1 - 178 kms. Started at Maiseys and did Waterall with Gary, Vaughan and Garren. Despite being called 'Chicken s..t' by one of our co-founders, I left the bunch in Nth Sydney and clocked up the extra k's on my own by doing a loop of Church Pt and Mosman.

Tuesday 22/1 - 60 kms. Standard ride incl Maiseys, Warriewood & Manly

Wednesday 23/1 - 73km. Same as above but went to Church Point

Friday 25/1 - 25kms. On my Rollers ! and yes I am claiming them as legitimate kms despite Cougar's scepticism. As far as I reckon, rollers should give double bonus points. I hate the stupid things. And on top of everything else, my only real crashes have been on these contraptions. My 2 year old daughter finds it very amusing and I've got the carpet burn to prove it !

Saturday 26/1 - 172kms. Big ride out through Bobbo, Berowra, Galston Gorge, Bobbo again, Akuna, West Head and return to Palm Beach. Over 2500 metres of elevation ! Bunch started with 13 people and only those in the picture made it to West Head for the happy snap....and it was hot.

Total: 508km

So I guess this is still less than half the work load of the tour itself and includes lots of recovery which we won't get in April. Clearly there still needs many more kms in the legs before March 31 !!!!

See you all on the road......P

500km club... has a plus 1

2008-01-27T00:45:00.000-08:00

The Pup has joined a club!!! woohoo!

Here's the weeks rides:

Monday: 91km includes my first criterium

Tuesday: 40km

Wednesday: 60km

Thursday: 61km

Friday: 48km

Saturday: 125km includes a 10km up Dorrigo mountain (the local peak)

Sunday: 79km includes a 17km climb

Total: 502km

Weeks Average: 29-30km/h

Looking forward to rejoining the peletons training in two weeks time and possibly getting a few in the 700k's in 7 days...

happy riding

Is the 500 club going to accept a new member?

2008-01-24T01:29:00.000-08:00

It's Thursday night and I've just completed my 252nd km for the week. 500 is well in the sights and a new member to the 500 club will exist come Sunday night.
The secret training is working a charm- I'm ready for wind and rain that's for sure!
This weeks k's have included my first ever bike crit- which I won!!! It was only C grade, but I'm working on peaking at the right time- A grade come the start of April, and with the lead out men I've got, watch out old boys!!!
Keep watch, the Pup will have 500 down come Sunday...
so we have no excuses about being a lazy uni kid, I've actually been working a 40 hour week- I'm really tired!
When I get back to being that lazy uni kid in holiday I think I'll look at doing 700k's in 7 days- I'll be back in Sydney for that so I already know Mal, Phil and maybe even Rick will be keen to join!

500km Club

2008-01-08T13:56:00.000-08:00

Happy to report the year is off to a cracking start. The Learjet and Cougar are already in the 500k Club and looking forward to the other TDC'rs joining over the coming weeks.

Below are the rides we completed.

Thursday - Naremburn - La Perouse - Naremburn 65km

Friday - Naremburn - Palm Beach- Naremburn 81km

Saturday - Naremburn - Glaston Gorge/Berowra/Bobbin head (3peaks) - Naremburn 89.5km

Sunday - Naremburn - Ettalong via Palm Beach - Naremburn 133km

Monday - Rest Day

Tuesday - Naremburn - Church Point - Naremburn 65km

Wednesday - Naremburn - Church Point - Mosman finger - Naremburn 75km

TOTAL 508.5km

Some interesting facts which I managed to record from the rides

Total Calories 12611

Total hours 22.5

Total Climb 5552m

Cost for food $70

Average Heart rate 132bpm (beats per minute)

Drank 15biddons of water on the bike

There were certainly some good and bad days on the bike during this first week back from holidays. Interesting to note that Pizza the night before the 3 peaks ride, subsequently saw me last up each and every climb.....funny that!

The learjet on his trusty new steed (KOM - Cannondale six13) proved that age is no barrier to acheivement. His strength on the flats was legendary and his time at the front of the peleton each day meant each of the 500km was earnt .............. Euro hardcore cyclists know how to ride!

“pain is temporary, failure lasts forever...” Lance Armstrong

Great quote. Great shot. Great ride. Great 500km. Great mates... Loving it all!

Thanks to all who joined us for rides along the way. Your company and competitiveness made each ride another one to remember.

Can't wait to start TDC 08............bring it on!

Ride safe

Back on the bike, & a little "PING PONG"

2007-12-26T02:32:00.000-08:00

After a fractured back half of the year - a trip overseas, an intense period of work, some time in the wild west and a kick-arse flu which belted me around, I finally hit "boot camp" - Christmas hols and time to start the slog back into fitness and form.

FRIDAY - first day out, Vaughan showed me how 8 weeks TOTAL on a bike can belt a TdC vet who's let himself go, with consistent hill attacks against Mal leaving me wallowing down the back. Mal mentions a possible new bike on the way - what about the aqua/blue Learsport? It's an icon!! 50 pedestrian km's and I'm absolutely flattened.

SATURDAY - Cougar calls an Ettalong ride. Apparently the precipitation at his house didn't occur at Mal's house 125 metres up the road, as a result Mal, Shane and I hit out north into a fresh northerly breeze and 98 - 99.5% humidity. Shane's limited by his recovery from his first half-ironman and a diet the day before of rocket salad, and hence only JUST dissappears ahead in the distance on every hill. Mal's on his hammer, I'm limited by lack of fitness, leg strength and heart. But I'm still going.

On the downhill approach to Mooney Mooney Bridge, I'm following Mal at around 60kmh when I hear a very familiar sound - "PING". On dead flat road, on fairly new but run in Ultegra wheels, Mal busts ANOTHER spoke. Even better, Shimano have used an oversized spoke nipple on the 18 spokes so we can't recover the very-buckled wheel from hitting the frame. Shane gets us going but Mal and the Learsport are left with a front brake, a dodgy rear wheel and a long, long way from home, with descents, ascents and wet roads still to come

On the ferry the humidity cracks 100% and down comes the rain, however the rain jacket's useless because we're steaming ourselves. The northerly tailwind now is the only thing which is keeping my sorry legs and gunked-up lungs going. But still rolling.

Shane decides to take the easy route whilst recovering and pump out 20 more k's and 2 more hills, however Mal and I head uneventfully south. Until I hear from behind me (where Mal is riding) "PONG". Mal loses his right shifter cable and is now left with "hard"and "hardest" for gear choices with a couple of climbs to go. The Learsport's breaking down before our eyes! Mal however pumped through the last climbs with his rediculous gearing and I departed him having ticked off 130km. Allegedly the front wheel also shattered shortly after I left and Mal wheelied most of the way home until his handlebars fell off, however these events are unconfirmed.

Sat arvo saw Marty P, Mal and I in KOM at the same time and Mal get fitted for his spanking Six13, resplendent in navy blue and dura ace. Well done fella, but it's the end of an era!

SUNDAY - a lazy KOM ride, 60km on a fine morning. The KOM crew are good value and their Sunday ride is a relaxing affair, until they hit the hills where they just maintain their flat-road speed. My now hammered legs don't cooperate when the road goes up after the first km and I climb solo.

MONDAY - A lazy Christmas/cafe ride with Cougar, Mal, Denver, and "friend of TdC" Paul, which takes in 30km more than planned, a couple of stonking climbs and a great breakfast with loved ones down on the beach in Manly. A total of 85km in the end

Finally the legs are feeling a little better but still sore and stiff and a few rides with the TdC crew have the fire beginning to burn again.

TUESDAY (Christmas)- Well, if the 4 rides back and the comradery of the TdC crew re-established weren't enough to get me firing again, Meg pulls this chrissy present out...

Having sat in the corner since that amazing Wednesday despite my good intentions, the TdC canvas was spirited away, framed up and is now proudly on display in the lounge room. I wanted to go ride right there and then! It was easily up there with the

I can't wait for the Tour! See you all in 2008

Cheers

It's all about the OVERS

2007-12-17T14:19:00.000-08:00

Training last weekend was all about the overs!

Knowing that days 4 and 6 of next years tour are equivilant to climbing to base camp of Everest, a group of TDC riders (Cosie, Phil, Mal, Max, Marty, Loey) began 3 solid months of training to be fit and ready for next years ride. Over the next 3 months TDC riders will clock up close to 5000km in training. Hate to think how many powerbars and energy drinks we will go through to complete these rides. Apologises to all partners for the after effects of those bars and GU's!

Some compelling facts behind our solid training regime

Tour 08 is 1206km over 9 days

Our longest day is day 4 and that is 207km

Day 6 is not far behind with 205km

On each of these days we climb some 2000m

Over the entire 9 days we will climb 9643m. Everest is only 8848m

Backing up on Sunday taking the long slow dead road* to Ettalong having done Palm Beach and an equally slow dead road out to Akuna Bay on Saturday was great training. Punch up the hills knowing these were the 'OVERS'.

Total Km's for the 2 days Approx 250km

Approx ascent for the 2 days 1800m

Average Speed for the 2 days approx 26km/hr

Food Consumption for the 2 days.............HEAPS! Loved those extra pancakes on Saturday.

Great to see everyone in kit and making some great impressions on passers by. The roads taken were absolutely perfect training and I expect this could we be the norm for the next 3 months. Personally I will be aiming to do 250km every weekend and at least another 150 during the week if I can. For me, shedding a couple of extra kilo's before the ride will make every meter we climb that little bit easier. Giving away 20kgs to Berty, Loey, Beast and in fact most riders (except MAX at the moment) is inspiration to be lighter for the ride.

Great company and a little luck with the weather made it a fun weekend of training. Looking forward to many more before the TOUR de CURE 2008

Can you guess who's legs these are?

Safe riding everyone. Enjoy the training over the holidays and remember you don't want to be under done on the TOUR!

Cougar

* Long slow dead road = a back country road that is not tarred (hot mix) and has little or no free roll when on a bike.................we don't like these!

A Day Of Inspiration

2007-12-16T15:46:00.000-08:00

In what for some may have been an overcast, drizzling, ordinary day, the Tour De Cure presented a very contrasting opportunity. The Tour de Cure put on what was a most inspirational day for close to 150 very lucky people!

Hosted at the immaculate Four Seasons hotel, the inaugural “A Day Of Inspiration” commenced with anticipation and eagerness to hear & learn from some of Australia’s successful sports, entertainment and business people alike. To hear their exceptional stories, adventures and tips are a rare privilege, but we were lucky enough that many of them hung around to mingle, chat and enjoy and hear from the rest of the speakers. What made the day even more inspirational was that the speakers kindly donated their time as a show of support to Tour de Cure.

First mention goes to the MCs of the day, Rebecca Wilson, Rob Duckworth & Blake Beattie. They kept the day running seamlessly and (seemingly) effortlessly.

The day got off to a GOLD start with Kerri Pottharst sharing her medals (gold and bronze), Olympic torch, and even her Olympic cozies! Kerri recounted how she 'faced her fears' in hers and Natalie Cook's historic GOLD medal effort on the golden sands of Bondi. Her message was set into action when she got yours truly and Margaret Heath (Mal's sister) up out of the crowd to face our own fears and to walk on what was a LOT of broken glass! Despite a lot of crunching and a few well timed gasps from the audience, we both came away cut free and grinning from ear to ear! Believe me when I say the glass was real and despite having seen Margaret and Kerri both do it, I still had some doubts and fears.
The inspiration continued with the frighteningly awesome tale of Heather Swan. She ever so coolly showed us (with incredible footage) how difficult and often physically painful (e.g. sustaining a hole in your intestine) her challenge was, to become the world record holder for base jumping and winged suit base jumping was.

The view from the top of Mt Meru (in India) was something. Jumping off it- well that is a whole LOT of 'somethin somethin' else.

A Day Of Inspiration was expertly constructed to timely remind us of why we were really there by incorporating the real life journeys of 3 separate cancer sufferers.

Claire O'Conner, Daniel Staunton & Paulina White all so kindly shared the experiences they have had with this disease. Their stories were full of courage and inspiration and, as many people commented, it made "A Day Of Inspiration" that extra special and unique. For mine it reasserted what this day was all about- to raise awareness and empower us to help make a difference! A huge thanks to Claire, Daniel and Paulina- and for those that don't remember why the washing machine was laughing-

go get Daniel's book!

The day didn’t stop there (although that was a brilliant start). Following a quick morning tea, and a serenade from Drew McAlister, Naomi Simson came on stage and spoke of building the Red Balloon Day company. It wasn’t hard to notice and be infected by her positive attitude... and dream of working for her- what a boss! I wonder if Naomi got 150 job applications the following day.

There were so many ideas and so much information to process and it just kept coming with the extremely successful Siimon Reynolds. He has experienced much success in his life and he ever so simply highlighted the 4 characteristics that makes him and any successful person. Siimon was very well spoken and it is no wonder he talked his way into a job that he was 15 years to young for!

We then had a quick reminder from Geoff as to why we were all there and what inspired him to get Tour de Cure off the ground- inspirational in itself. He was followed by a very busy and charity committed, question/answer session with Guy Leech. His continued involvement with the Tour de Cure among his other charities is just amazing, and despite his statement that his 'bike legs' aren't very strong, his title of fittest man in Australia makes that hard to believe! If he manages to find the time to get on the road with us TDC riders again in 2008, I know he wont be the one hanging off the back of the pack!

A delicious lunch put on by the Four Seasons was only settling when we were treated to a very good humoured and exceptionally well voiced Mark Gable.

Then the penultimate speaker was our very own. The ‘ordinary punter’ and co-founder of Tour de Cure, Gary Bertwistle. The Old Dog as I like to (kindly) refer to him had managed to incorporate the messages from all of the speakers before him and add that weight to his own message and stories. His encouragement for us to all be exceptional at everything we do was well received! Despite me still not drinking coffee, I would definetly drink up if I was recieving a coffee with as much effort as those displayed by the Old Dog.

The Old Dog set the floor for us and the sky as our limit- I think his talk of making your ten sets (at the gym) to 11 or 12 was also a 'subtle' challenge to the TDC riders make your $10 grand 11 or 12! Game on Old Dog, game on!

Another nice touch to the day was the occasional pre-recorded messages from Roger Black, Michael Roux, Matthew Pincent and our very own DuncanArmstrong. Thank you so much guys for aslo taking the time from your busy schedules to pre-record messages of support and secrets of what inspired them to achieve.

The officialities of the day was to conclude after a much anticipated Steve Waugh. I was just as excited to see him this time as I was 14 years ago, although I did refrain from getting yet another autograph! His question/answer session was pretty special, and to hear of his work with his many charities made us realise how lucky we were for him to so kindly donate his time to come and speak to us. It also highlighted how important the Tour de Cure is considered by so many people.

A couple of Peronis to cap off a brilliant day, thanks to Saskia and Max. Everyone was a buzz- talking about how much of an amazing day they had just experienced and I defiantly saw diaries brought out to mark the date of next years Day Of Inspiration- September 9 2008.

A huge congratulations and thanks to Geoff, Gary, Sam and Mal or conceiving, creating and successfully completing "A Day Of Inspiration". It was awesome- and then some!

Biggest entourage for the day goes to Phil. At 26, he must be a popular man, or very good at persuasion!

Thank you also needs to go to the Four Seasons hotel and all the lights, camera & action crew from Microhire- special thanks to Daniella & Nick!

Again to all the speakers who did their job of inspiring, donated their time and made the day- cheers! I think everyone hopes to see you again with Tour De Cure in the very near future.

As I left and wandered back towards the buses I couldn't get the huge (and somewhat goofy looking) grin off my face from what I had just experienced. Yes I may have been skipping a little, but that's alright... I was skipping at an exceptional standard, and according to Berty, if its done exceptionally well- it's ok...

To all the riders that made the day, I think we have got just a bit of an inspirational edge for Melbourne to Sydney- just remember your neuro commitment!

It was an amazing day, and the next one has been penned in (no pencilling for me) for the 9th of September 2008- make sure you all do the same!

If the rate that the merchandise was going is anything to go by, I think we’ll need a bigger room next year.

Pup

ICAP CHARITY DAY

2007-12-14T01:59:00.001-08:00

Let me set the scene. The Elevator door opens to the sounds of cheering and music as we walk the narrow corridor following the ICAP sign to reception. Plastic drapes cover the entrance to a room where flashing lights and smoke crept through the cracks of the industrial plastic. You could tell something was going on inside that room…………………….We kept following the signs to reception.
Cosie, Phil and I, dressed in TDC lycra, pushing our bikes through a very corporate corridor felt more than a little out of place. That didn’t last long as we turned the corner to see a hive of colour and characters, yelling and shouting, laughing and winking, roll playing and secretly enjoying their costume choice for the ICAP CHARITY DAY.

In this room, deals worth MILLIONS of dollars were taking place every minute. The most unlikely characters dressed as 1920’s Gangsters, Hari Chrisna’s, Santa, The Spice Girls, Arab Sheiks, Haz Chem cleaners and Scottish Kings were making deals with banks and financial institutions with the profits being shared with 12 other charities on this one day.
ICAP are the biggest broker of its kind in the world however they do have some competitors (none of whom do such a wonderful thing to help different charities each year). On this charity day the market tends to give most of it’s deals to ICAP knowing that the money goes to a good cause. Last year the ICAP day raised over 7.1millions Pounds Globally ($700k+ Australian) for their chosen charities. We were honoured to be chosen for this years ICAP charity day and in return for our generous inclusion , we have named a team in next years charity ride in their honour.

So here are Cosie, Phil and I, shaved legs and lycra completely unsure of what our roll was on this day. In the room when we arrived were the following slightly recognisable characters. Steve Waugh, Dr Charlie Teo (Brain Surgeon), Jonathon Coleman, David Peachey and a couple of others whose name I don’t remember from the tabloids. Each charity was asked to provide a celeb or 2 on the day to walk the floor and help close the deals with customers on the phone. As you can imagine Steve Waugh was constantly on the phone closing plenty of deals for the charities on this day . Nice work Steve!

Our sponsor in to the ICAP Charity Day is Tasman Lovell (ICAP Director and great bloke). Watching Tom orchestrate his team, push his guys to make the deals, massage some numbers in our favour, having complete control over 4 or 5 deals at any one time was amazing to watch. These guys talk at a hundred miles an hour with Millions rolling of the tongue like its change from the supermarket. We soon learnt that the louder you yell and getting eye contact with the other dealer meant you got your client in the hot seat. We also learnt that a YARD is equivalent to a BILLION Dollars……………………OMG! Phil the textile king from Verosol Blinds has a new found respect for the word Yard, as would most

Unfortunately we missed the 10am rates announcement which is the time when banks and investment funds, hedge against the pending change in the rate. We can only imagine just how frenetic the atmosphere was for those first few minutes.

The afternoon session 3pm – 4.30pm saw Maximus, The Mayor, Stiffler and I join the ICAP traders for a couple of cheeky beers as the trading continued until the market closed at 4.30. The jokes got dirtier and thanks to Mrs Clause (Aka Natalie from another Charity) the ICAP team kept up their endeavours to make every deal matter on this day. Stroke of genius bring Mrs Clause to help close the deals. I think Mrs Clause and Steve Waugh single handedly raised the most money on the day! Not sure if Mrs Clause will be telling Santa just how many times she was invited out for some eggnog and cookies at the CBD bar that night.

A massive thanks to Hugh Gallagher, Mark Benfield, Tasman Lovell and Michelle Cheevers for not only including the Tour de Cure as a charity of choice on this day but also for allowing us to share in the excitement of the day on the trading floor with the ICAP team.
As you can see from the picture there was no room for the quiet on this day. For more pics from the day go to Http//charityday.icap.com.au
ICAP set a new record this year raising a whopping $9.2million POUNDS on it’s Charity Day. That’s up from the $7.1million pounds it raised in 2006……………..AMAZING!

No matter how much the final amount, every dollar counts and we are extremely grateful for being included in this years ICAP Charity day.

Cougar

Let the Tour begin

2007-11-26T18:02:00.000-08:00

It's been far too long since I last wrote on this blog.

I guess I would like to firstly let you all know that I have a new bike. I love this thing! I need to send out a big THANK YOU to DC at KoM for putting me onto the SuperSix and hooking a brother up. You go alright DC.

Secondly, I was shocked but elated when the Cougar announced that he and Sophie (his Fiance!!) were pregnant. Congratulations mate. Awesome news. Having said that, as soon as I mentioned this news to Elle she looked at me and asked when we were getting married and having kids. So for that Cougar, I hate your guts!

So now we are at that time of year when we start receiving count down emails from Cougar. I remember this last time around and looking at these emails and saying to myself 'ha.... it's still ages away', and then all of a sudden, we were leaving Brisbane on our way to Tweed Heads.

It becomes a question of when do I start doing the serious k's? Do I wait until after Christmas or do I start getting them under my belt now? Well from previous experience, it doesn't hurt to start building now. I've been trying to get in 300km's + each week for the last 2 weeks. I've been mixing it up where I will ride shorter distances during the week (50-70Km's) and longer rides during the weekend (90-130km's). The shorter rides I'll try and belt out with an average of 32-36km's an hour. This although isn't always possible given that these rides are quite hilly. The longer rides vary depending on how many times we stop for a coffee along the way.

The other obligation we must attend to is making sure we raise funds. This is what this ride is all about. There is nothing better than talking to family, friends, clients and strangers about the fact that we are raising cash for cancer, and what this cash means for the three cancer charities. I'm so proud to be involved with this cause and I thank Geoff, Gary and Samantha for inviting me to be part of this again.

I look forward to catching up with the crew once again when I travel to Sydney for the Day of Inspiration. I also look forward to meeting those involved with the tour who I have not met previously. To all of the new crew involved this year..... You are going to love this!

Signing off, Ricksta (AKA Steamboat)

PS. Training Stats to date;

Flat sprint top speed = 61km/h

Fastest speed = 88km/h (down hill)

Fastest holding speed on the flat = 55km/h (1km+)

Largest gradient = unknown but it was bloody steep!

Around the Bay in a Day

2007-11-14T20:34:00.000-08:00

Tour de Cure and Choice Hotels - a great partnership.

A group of Tour de Cure cyclists hit Melbourne for the very popular Around the Bay in a Day cycle - Sunday 21 October, joining some 14,000 others for a great ride.

Choice Hotels were fantastic in supporting us in Melbourne as we riders descended upon the city from Brisbane, Coffs Harbour, Sydney and Geelong. A special mention of thanks to Nick Wright and David Bayes of Choice Hotels. Thank you for all your effort and support.

Shane and Tom getting ready to show off the Tour de Cure brand

Melbourne was excellent. It was some ride, and well done everyone for getting through it so well, in excellent time, and especially with that searing afternoon heat - hitting something like 37C and gusty north-westerly winds to add to the elements.

There were a number of (non-TDC) riders in pretty severe difficulty on the sides of the road in that last 50km stretch. Some looked absolutely shattered. I saw a couple throwing up.

Denver, - thank you for making the effort of joining before, at breakfast (no choice there though, being in Geoff’s and my room, which became the central b/fast room) and at the finish. I know how much you would have wanted to be out there, and had done a lot of training before your injury, so your support was very much appreciated. Let’s hope full recovery is near and you’re back in the saddle in no time.

Tom Hogbin – great effort! Having just got back into riding after major knee reconstruction surgery, and a very short training time for this event…. You blitzed it and should feel on top of the world. Scary to think how you would have gone with solid and long training behind you. You’ll eat up Tour de Cure ’08 for breakfast.
And how special to ride with your Dad. I know it was a thrill for Ian, and it was a superb moment to see father and son ride together in this major event!

Shane? He does a quick 90km Saturday afternoon warm up. Leads a huge amount of the way a on the day. Gets home to Sydney (finally) and goes for a major spin class on Monday. Inspiring! And here's a photo showing how much he's enjoying it!... Just waiting for the chalk!

Geoff – well done to get the numbers kitted out in TDC kit – Tour de Cure really stood out and a number of riders along the way spoke to me of their recognition of TDC and how impressed they were of our first Brisbane - Sydney tour earlier this year. Great branding. And thanks also for the brown liquid stuff you organised from KOM’s Dave Cottee – as hard as it was to keep down, I’m sure it helped.

Flick, was fab to catch up with you and part of your great team (Kim and Louise) at Body Torque at dinner Sat night and, as always, have many good laughs.

Who designs and makes unreal cycling kits?

The group of 12 of us covered almost 3,000kms, with 10 riding the full 250km and 2 others doing 210km (wimps!). Some noteworthy efforts too with Geoff dropping back and toeing in riders to the bunch was a huge effort, as was his support in repairs – puncture/ handle bar alignment etc. Norm the wizard who is able to repair within minutes a broken bike chain. Legend. Shane, taking the lead back up into Melbourne through the heat and wind… and many other efforts that I was probably too far behind to note, it was a great team effort. And we all returned in great condition, relatively! Note to self.... never show pain, especially when there's a camera in the midst.

The Roads - now they're worthy of a mention. Victoria's roads are so so much better than NSW's. The shabbiest parts were Sydney’s norm. And for those doing Sydney – Wollongong, keep an eye out for the number of tyre repairs. Unbelievable numbers versus what I saw on Sunday. (I wrote this before the Syd-Gong ride, and just to prove my point, I got four (4) pssssssssss.... punctures on the way to the Gong,... so there!) The Melbourne and surrounds road conditions we had made the ride so much easier and more enjoyable.

Around the Bay in a Day - just great! And the evening beers never tasted better! Cheers!!

Gong ride - 4 seasons in one day

2007-11-04T21:09:00.000-08:00

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

Congratulations Geoff "Cougar" Coombes

2007-09-23T20:39:00.000-07:00

On behalf of all the riders and team members of the Tour de Cure,
congratulations to our own Geoff 'Cougar' Coombes, for not only
making the Australian Dragonboat Team for the World Championships,
but also putting in an outstanding effort and making us all proud.
For those Tour de Cure and support teams that went out to Penrigh to
see Cougar take on the world's best, I'm sure everyone would agree
that it was an outstanding event and Geoff certainly lead from the
front. Cougar we're all terribly proud of what has been an
incredible year for you, and your leadership in the boat was a
reflection of your leadership on the bike. Well done mate and we look
forward to having you back on a bike seat on a more regular basis,
getting set for Tour de Cure 2008. It was interesting to note that
the Dragonboat team also wear lycra.....You don't need to be too
observant to be picking up a theme. Anyway, enough of that, well done
Cougar from the Tour de Cure team.

PCF ~ Sydney's Secret Ingredients Dinner

2007-09-12T20:43:00.000-07:00

On Monday night 9 of the Tour de Cure's finest attended Sydney's Secret Ingredients. The Prostate Cancer Foundations first ever Gala dinner. A fantastic evening was had by all and our congratulations go to the brains an beauty who pulled the night together. Our very own R&M Director Samantha Hollier-James and the ever talented and highly creative Popcorn Team (Pete and Andrew Lemon aka Stiffler) served up a delightful night of sensual treats for the taste buds and some beautiful ornaments to which Denver enjoyed admiringly. PR Princess Dani Lombard ensured only the elite of Sydney 'A' list attended the event........hence 2 TDC tables

In true TDC fashion the event was almost hosted in our honour thanks to Sam and Popcorn Events recommending that we present our TDC cheque on the night. Strategically positioning the TDC table next to the PRATT table and beside the media table meant there was no shortage of opportunity to spruik our wares.

Hosted by Karl Stephanovic from the Today Show the guests were treated to entertaining video links with celebrates and Australia's favourite house wife DAME EDNA EVERAGE. The Dame kindly donated her husbands Prostate in a delightful display case for one lucky bidder to win. Note sure who won that item but I am sure it will adorn a mantel somewhere in the Eastern suburbs.

After a beautiful entree by Tetsuya, the crowd settled down to the Prostate Cancers National Chairman, Graeme Johnson, thanking the sponsors of the evening and inviting Richard Pratt from Visy to the stage to present a cheque. Now word had it that Mr Pratt was intending to donate $250,000 which was eagerly anticipated but Wendy and her team. Mr Pratt casually took the stage and nonchallently donated a cheque for 1 MILLION DOLLARS. The crowd rose to their feet and he received a standing ovation in honour of his incredibly generous donation to the Foundation. For those who don't know, Mr Pratt is currently battling Prostate Cancer so his generosity financially and as a spokes person for Prostate Cancer is worth many millions to PCF.

The main meal was served and complimented by some incredible wines all donated by Guiamme (hope I spelt that right). Andrew Giles took to the stage giving a heart felt and somewhat cheeky portrayal of the battles PCF and Prostate Cancer face in the Australia. One hopes that with nights such as this and events such as the Tour de Cure and Movember (that other little event which helps raise almost $6MILLION) that Prostate Cancer is on the road to recognition and greater awareness which may see more men get tested and beat this disease.

Andrew gave a wonderful introduction to the Tour de Cure calling us to the stage to present our cheque. Rising at our tables and coming to the stage from the wings the The TDC crew (Max, Loey, Robyn, Sam, Marty D, Denver, Lemo and I) in superman style, striped off our jackets revealing the Mambo inspired Prostate Cancer Jersey. I would like to point out, Denver lead the strip like a true MANPOWER performer and I think some of the Eastern suburbs ladies slipped him their numbers after the show. To a loud applause the TDC crew took to the stage, proudly showing the detail in Reg Mombassa's prostate Jersey. The camera man took special interest in the crank giving the people in the tables nearest the screens more than they had bargained for.

Not to be outdone by Richard Pratt, I gave the 350 guests a short and well rehearsed life story on the Tour de Cure thanking our incredible supporters and the wonderful work done by the TDC family in bringing an idea over a coffee to life in less than 9mths. I was told a long time ago by a wise man that it's always good to throw in a joke or 2 if you can when making speaches. Perhaps this is only true in Best man speaches but I decided to give it a go, telling the incredibly powerful and influential audience that we did in fact have a larger cheque to present than Richard Pratt.

So with the formalities of the evening behind us the TDC crew (still dressed in sky blue lycra) enjoyed many compliments and enquiries from other guests. Loey, in fine form on the night got the bargain of the century when he won the first of the nights auctions. A full kitchen fit out from Electrolux, Cooking course from Tetsuya and dinner for 4 at Tetsuya's ........a fantastic prize kindly donated by Tetsuya himself! Marsha has a second honeymoon thanks to his successful bid on the Tasmanian holiday. Well done lads!
A special thanks to the wonderful TDC partners for enjoying the evening with us. Their support often goes unnoticed but is certainly never unappreciated. Thanks Soph, Scott, Shoiban, Elisha, Saskia and Caroline (future Mrs Max). A big thanks also to Alan Wahlhaus and his family for attending the night with us.

Well done Sam, Dani, Pete and Lemo! TDC is alive an well in 2007

Life Will Never be the same Again

2007-07-25T16:46:00.000-07:00

i was recently listening to a song by Haddaway called Life Will Never
Be The Same Again. for the riders and support crew of the 2007 Tour
de Cure, life will never be the same again. The minute you completed
the 2007 event in Sydney, you achieved something that most people
only dream of. You can at any time from this point forward say that
you made a difference. You can say that you left a legacy. You can
say you truly helped others. Most people get to the end of their time
and regret not doing more for friends, associates, society, and the
world in general. This won't be you.

In her acceptance speech at the 2005 Academy Awards, Reece
Witherspoon said that her Academy Award for Best Actress for Walk the
Line came to the inspiration given during a meeting with June Carter.
She said June Carter would walk the streets and when people would
walk up and say 'How you doing today June?', June Carter would reply
"Just trying to matter".

From this day forward, anybody who was involved in a small or a big
way with the Tour de Cure, can honestly say that they mattered. When
Wendy from Prostrate Cancer called the riders 'heroes', I don't think
she fell short. To all the riders, this is the start of a great
journey, but no matter what happens from this point forward, you can
say you mattered, and life for you will never be the same again.

Westpac Helicopter Joy Ride

2007-07-06T01:14:00.000-07:00

Update for all.

Peter, Annette and the two Dianne's enjoyed a scenic flight over Newcastle last week. Thanks to the generous donation of a Westpac Helicopter Joy Ride from Richard Jones.

Peter outbid a 1223 Abc Newcastle listner at Tour de Cure's function at Quality Hotel Noah's on the Beach. Peter took his wife Annette and then to be fair put all his friends names (from the Prostate Support Group which include their wives) and drew out 2 lucky friends to join them.

Peter and the girls thoroughly enjoyed the flight and even got to see the wedged ship on Newcastle's shore being worked on.

Thanks to 1233 ABC Newcastle and to Richard Jones and the team at Westpac Flights.

Thanks from Bron & Jay

2007-06-13T16:54:00.000-07:00

Hi Sam & all the Tour De Cure Team,

Jay and I would like to thank you all so very much for being so kind to us - we have never experienced such kindness before, and never had anything done for us like what you all did for us before.

Jay was very sad to come home, and so was I, we just wanted to stay because you are all such nice people.

Jay and I would very much like to stay involved with the Tour De Cure is some way. and we very much would like to join the ride when you all ride from Sydney to Melbourne, that is a goal of Jay and mine and we believe we can help in raising lots more money to find a cure. The Tour De Cure course is close to my heart because we do need to find a cure for the illness Jay has and the only way we can do that is to raise lots of money for research. Jay may not be able to be cured, but we might be able to save one child's life - and by doing that we know we have done a great thing.

Life for us has not been a great one, it is very difficult having a child with cancer, and more difficult trying to get through life with no support (doing it on our own) but to know we have great friends like all the guys riding their bikes it makes it puts a knew perspective on the word CARING - THOUGHTFUL - GENEROUS. All you guys really have a caring heart, something we don't come across that often and I thank you all so much.

What you are all doing may not seem a lot, but please let me tell you that it means a great deal to me & to Jay.

It is hard to explain to people who have never experienced living with cancer what is is really like - but is it something I do not wish upon anyone, it is hard enough having to live with a family member with cancer, it is harder when it is a child. I lost both my parents to cancer, I was not going to let my son die as well. To lose Jay would destroy me and that is why we must find a cure, that is why research is so important to children living with cancer. Kids like Jay have only had a short life, it is so unfair that their lives are taken from then because us parents can't afford treatment or we just don't have the money to give to research - with your help in raising lots of money, we live in hope that a cure will be found so no more children like Jay have to suffer.

When with you all on Saturday night, I was holding back the tears, I try not to cry in front of Jay as I don't need him to see me upset. I take on all the stress of what he goes through and knowing he has a spot which sits on his spinal cord and is a ticking time bomb I get a bit upset when I have to tell people about his illness. I was really holding it in when talking to all the guys about Jay's illness and when I got back to the hotel and into bed I just cried my eyes out. Also yesterday I did a bit of crying and it was just so over whelming and starting to get to me (but Jay did not see me cry).

Please know how much I appreciate what you did for Jay and I hope you don't forget him - he and I really want to help and that is from our heart and Jay so much wants to join in the ride.

We were on the flight home last night and Jay kept saying - I want to go to Sydney to see them ride home, I will see what I can do, I would also love to go up to greet you all in Sydney. (Is it the 6th June you arrive in Sydney)? anyway I will see what I can do to get there, that is if you all don't mind if we come up to welcome you .

Keep doing what you are doing guys, keep that great attitude you all have, keep smiling always, have fun doing what you are doing while knowing you are saving some ones life, make the most of each and everyday, and remember that PAIN IS TEMPORARY - QUITTING IS FOREVER and we know you will never quit and you will NEVER GIVE UP, just look at Jays wrist band each time you think you have pain, just remember your pain is nothing compared to the pain Jay and other little ones go through and look at what that band say's NEVER GIVE UP.

To each and every one of you - you all have a heart of gold.

I have attached photo's for you all - please share these photos' - you may put them up on your web site.

Jay is trying to get a journal together, hopefully buy Friday it will be up (not sure) he has so much he wants to say and so many photos he wants to put up and share - he thinks you are all the best and he hopes to see you all again.

Give that Andrew Lemon a big hug from me - he is a (cute one) I like him (lol).

Please tell all the guys they can email Jay or myself anytime, or leave a message on his guestbook, I know he would get great joy our of hearing from everyone.

Remember - GIVING UP IS NOT AN OPTION

All our love to you all

BRON & JAY

www.jaysjourney.org

The Final Day Tour De Cure 2007

2007-06-07T23:43:00.000-07:00

Team Vittoria from the road.

It was a wet and windy final day for the 2007 Tour de Cure. The
pelaton rose early to meet at the Vault at the Entertainment Quarter
at 5am to head into the last phase of this years tour. There was a
great spirit amongst all the riders as they had sorely missed each
other over the last 24 hours. Although there were no pancakes,
oatmeal or coffee available, the spirits were still high as Con
'Paris' Athans, passed around Dencorub and suggested it could be used
as _______ cream for the day to keep us warm. Althought not many
riders took him up on the offer we left the warmth of the Vault to
brave the wet cold and windy elements to head to the Channel 7
Sunrise studios in Martin Place. It was a dangerous and precarious
ride to Channel 7, with the cross winds and mini tornados blowing
across the city. However all the team arrived in tact, and we had a
great morning with Monique from the Sunrise program. The team starred
in several crosses to discuss the route, the donations, the charities
and the 'house of pain' that had kept us going for 10 days.

It was great exposure for the corporate supporters of the Tour as
Sydney City Lexus, Dencorub, Vittoria Coffee, Ella Bache received
plenty of signage opportunities. Celebrities Wayne Gardiner, Jayne
Fleming and Guy Leech showed their support by turning up in team
colours, to be a part of the breakfast cross.

After a photo shoot in the mall and a farewell from Monique and the
Channel 7 cameras, we headed up to the Tropicana Cafe in Darlinghurst
for a quick breakfast. During this time the team scoped out First
Fleet Park for the final concluding concert with the Choir Boys. Just
after 11am the team rolled out in once again windy rainy cold
blustery conditions. After an easy roll down to First Fleet Park the
team were welcomed by a rendition of 'Along for the Ride by Drew
McAllister and Geoff Robertson. The hair rose on the back of the
riders necks as we entered the stage area to the welcoming applause
of the charities, friends, families and onlookers. It was a reat way
to put final closure on the 2007 Tour de Cure. Hard core Australian
rockers The Choir Boys braved the elements and turned up to rock the
house with 'Run to Paradise', as the final farewell to the Tour. Our
riding helmets go off to the boys from the Choir Boys who, although
played in tragic conditions on a wet and damp park, brought it on the
day, and never once hesitated in plugging in the guitars and turning
it up. Thanks boys.

Its been an awesome event, and enough has been said of the success of
the Tour. Every rider should know that they have now left a
significant legacy on this world. If nothing else ever happens in the
lives of the 23 riders and 6 support staff, you can feel comfortable
in the fact that you have left a legacy in helping to find a cure for
Cancer. As a united bunch of 29 tour participants, we have a common
dream to see one day a cure found for Cancer. It may not be on the
back of the Tour in 2007 but it will be during our time on the bike.

Last Leg - Team Vittoria

2007-06-06T16:58:00.000-07:00

......from the road Team Vittoria.

The last couple of days have been incredible for the whole Tour de
Cure pelaton. Our 2nd last day on the road saw us moving from
Newcastle to Gosford. it was a pretty cruisy day on the road for the
team following what was a massive day of riding from Taree into
Newcastle. The relatively calm 100kms from Newcastle to Gosford was
tame in comparison. The team went along at a comfortable 30 - 32km/hr
for most of the day through the flat sections of the course. There
were a couple of slight inclines which put the pressure on the back
end of the pelaton, however there was enough support from everyone to
keep the team moving forward. Team Vittoria upheld its
responsibilities to the team and lead the pelaton to Westfield
Shopping Town in Newcastle to drop off a limited edition plaque to
the coffee store inside Westfield.

The team settled down for espresso's before firing up a massive hill
to start our journey to Gosford. Thankfully the weather held off and
we had a brisk and beautiful morning to start our ride. On entering
Gosford, a number of camera crews were strategically positioned along
our path to capture the team in flight. One of these crews included
the tv network from NBN who filmed an interview with cougar, patches
and some of the Tour de Cure pelaton. This aired that night on the
NBN nightly news at 6pm. Its actually been incredible how much media
this tour has generated. That night at dinner in Gosford our chief
talker Dani Lombard, bought along our tear sheet book which contained
only the newspaper clippings from the last few months of the tour. It
weighed as much as the Encyclopedia Brittanica and would have been at
least 4 inches in depth. It is incredible how much interest this
event has generated with newspapers, tv stations and radio stations.
There wasn't a day that went by where we weren't speaking with some
of the local or national news teams regarding the event, our progress
or the amount of money that had been raised.

We got to Gosford mid afternoon and everybody had some free time to
be able to dedicate to a hospital visit. The community events have
been at the core of the Tour de Cure's activities throughout the trip
down the coast. Whether it was bbq's, cocktail parties or dinners
with the community each afternoon and evening, the Tour de Cure team
have been out and about meeting the locals, the charity support
groups, and raising more money to put towards the tour.

Once the visit to hospital was done, everyone had some brief time off
before congregating for a terrific dinner at the hotel. The Quality
Inn at the Willows gave us their conference facility where Drew
McAllister set the room alight with a live performance of along for
the ride. After a few speeches and presentations the team settled
down together to dance, sing and relax before the final stage into
Sydney. This also included what can only be said was a pretty average
rendition by the entire Tour de Cure team, of Drew's song. There was
no doubt there were mixed emotions in the room as people contemplated
the end of what's been an incredible experience for everyone.

Day 8 - Big Kahuna for Ella Bache

2007-06-04T04:35:00.000-07:00

Today was a monster! 4 degree morning start with 160km start on the menu from Taree to Newcastle.

First of all, a 1km to the local Vittoria Coffee shop, Raw Sugar, for some coffee and breakfast kindly donated by the owners. It should be noted that our catering van, Comfort Inn Marco Polo and Comfort Inn City Centre provided full breakfast and coffee not 10 minutes earlier. This didn't stop the crew getting stuck in again.

Anyways... on to the ride. We had one sick rider in the name of Craig "Choppy" Cairnduff who was looking at tackling the 160km with raging flu. Like a total stud he dosed up on all manner of medication and hit the road.

The route was mainly focused on the Pacific Hwy with rolling hills, strong headwinds and dodgy road shoulders to contend with. The TdC crew staunchly punched along incident free until Andrew 'Max' Walker veered off the incorrect exit ramp and went from leading the bunch to chasing to get back on.

We were all rocking along until hitting an 8km climb at Buladelah that split the bunch and saw many of the riders digging deep. Once this challenge was meet another 40km was tackled and lunch at Karuah was ready to be nailed. The catering girls knocked out a superb Mexican feast that was scoffed by the riders in the sun. Followed up with chocolate bread and butter pudding - but that's ok because we'd already done 117kms.

Not long after lunch with tired legs we tackled the last portion of the ride to Newcastle via Stockton. Some of the friskier riders fired up for the daily sprint, with the vague finish line being the Stockton ferry. Positions were strategically being planned 20 kilometers out but the break was initiated by Team Lexus - Denver being the decoy lead out man who lured team Ella Bache's Adam into the chase - some 5kms too early. Much confusion ensued with the early jump but line honours went to Rick 'The Champ' Horvat. The Stockton ferry gave a well earned break to some weary legs. Once back on land it wasn't long until we were able to de-bike at our gorgeous accommodation, Noah's on the Beach.

After a couple of hours rest, we were treated to an awesome dinner reception at Quality Hotel NOAH'S On the Beach with the local Newcastle Prostate group and a few family and friends. Although the star guest of the night was Drew McAlister. He treated us to a live performance of the Tour de Cure theme song, "Along for the ride". After dinner category jerseys were awarded with much laughter to the following:
Attitude: Yellow Myer/Camp Quality to Gary Bertwistle
Support: Pink New Idea/NBCF to Denver Bevan
Guts: Blue Pratt Foundation/Prostate Cancer Foundation to Craig Cairnduff
Focus: Polka Dot The Intelligent Investor/KOM to Steve Johnson

A long day done and dusted.

Posted by Team Ella Bache.

Update on Team Vittoria

2007-06-03T21:44:00.000-07:00

It was a welcome respite from highways when the Tour de Cure rolled into Sails Resort in Port Macquarie. After a gruelling 170kms on the road, the team were very happy to see the front door of the beautiful Quality Resort Sails.

After devouring a couple of buckets of snakes, red frogs and chocolates, the guys unpacked the trucks, restocked the Powerade and headed inside to put their feet up.
It was a incredible feat for the majority of the Tour De Cure pack who had set a personal best on the road of 170kms. There were some very testing stretches of road on the highway, dealing with truck drivers, road debris and some pretty average roads. Everybody arrived in great spirits and in fact the pace in the last 5kms to the resort topped well over 35kms per hour!

That night there were celebrations all around and the team unwound ready for their rest day. Quality Resort Sails Port Macquarie is the ideal spot to rest, only metres from the beach, the surrounds are just what we needed to rest. The Team Vittoria squad were up early and on the bikes to head out for a loosener around the beaches of Port Macquarie. The ride took in some picturesque beach scenery and went for about 40mins, up and down some hills that helped work out the knots and lactic acid from the legs. The small squad then return backed to the resort to enjoy an incredible breakfast put on by Canadian Kitchens. Leesa and Mel put on a brilliant spread of Nasi Goren, eggs, mueslis and fresh juices.

Once breakfast was devoured, Team Vittoria got back on the bikes and rode back down to the beach to Café Pernod to present the owner with a limited addition Café Vittoria Plaque. The owner was well aware of the Tour and was excited to see us and shouted us raisin toast and coffees on the beach. Once the pack devoured the raisin toast and Vittoria coffees we headed back to the resort for a function on the lagoon with Camp Quality, Prostate Cancer and Breast Cancer. Once again the pink ladies of the breast dragon boat team gave us a wonderful display and our own Couger (Geoff Coomes) did a training session with the guys to share the fine art of Dragon Boating. After the charity BBQ fundraiser we headed back to Sails Resort for some down time before the girls from Canadian Kitchens once again treated us to a festive feast over a BBQ. Lessa and Mel have really looked after the team and kept the energy high with a perfect mix of high carb healthy food. (the chocolate mousse and chocolate espresso cake were a treat!)

The whole afternoon was free time and most of the riders took advantage of the massages by the pool. Rob, our physio, was there to welcome the riders to her house of pain. With two guest physios who sat in to assist with the long line of bodies that needed a tune up.

Undoubtedly the highlight of the Tour so far has been the people we have met and the stories they’ve shared. Not many of the 23 riders knew what it was like to deal with Cancer or in fact be a part of a family that is hit like a freight train when a diagnosis of leukaemia or a cancer is announced. The stories, the people, the passion and the friendship has touched each and everyone of the riders.

Coming through Kempsey a lady saw the passing pelaton, saw the logo, went home, googled Tour de Cure and got onto our website and gave Cougar a call. She then asked if she could walk up to our lunch place and give a donation. On arrival she introduced her son Jordan and shared a story of her Aunty who had died weeks earlier. She said she didn’t have much and handed over $5 and said that’s all she had, but she would like to make a donation. Stories like this have not only touched the riders but it slams you in the face like a headwind up a hill to try and understand what its like to deal with this beast. I could fill 50 blogs with stories like this that have been recounted to us by the local communitites up and down the coast. The media, the charities and the people we have met on the side of the road have created an experience for riders that could not have been comprehended when we left Brisbane. For Cougar and I to see our dream come true and have the priviledge of being part of these stories with the other 21 riders, is something to be proud of.

Our logistics team have been incredible in keeping the team going. It was a harrowing day in the cars yesterday for Eric, Dave, Sam and Ross. Trucks, road works and 170kms made it tough for the guys, but like true professionals they never lost their focus, their smile or sight of the pelaton. Sunday we head to Taree for a 100km trek down the coast.

More from Team Vittoria soon. Until then raise the espresso and keep the donations coming.

Team Dencorub wins day 6 sprint

2007-06-03T03:09:00.000-07:00

Joined for the day by guest rider Disco Stu, we rolled out at 9am from beautiful Port Macquarie faced with another day in paradise. Families and friends that had joined us for the weekend gave us a huge send-off, partly making up for being in the bar when we arrived on the Friday afternoon.

The first few hours took in some gorgeous scenery but the road was narrow and tough and morning tea was welcomed by all.

Muffins and coffee were served in a picturesque park in Laurieton and from there we made our way back towards the Pacific Hwy. Good communication ensured the group made it through a tough patch of road before the hwy opened up to duel carriageway and the pace was wound up to more than 35kmh for the last 25km. Team Decorub's Tricky Ricky took the sprint over Adam Pounani with Old Man Cougar (Geoff Coombes) well off the pace. Apart from King of the Mountain pair DC and Wonderboy Alex, who decided they'd ride the last 60km in top gear only, the whole peloton was riding strongly and the 95km ride passed in a flash.

We were greeted by the local Prostate Cancer, Breast Cancer and Camp Quality representatives in Taree and enjoyed a nice lunch on the river. The afternoon was taken up with a visit to the local hospital, where we handed out a few gifts, lifted some spirits and hotfooted it home to avoid the rapidly approaching storm.

A couple of the lads devoured a 21-piece box of KFC (uuurghhh) and watched the footy before sprucing up for dinner at the Manning River Hotel. We were once again joined by some wonderful people from the three cancer foundations we're supporting, and were supposed to follow it up with a game of poker. Loey was looking forward to fleecing everyone but 8pm has become standard bedtime and the only person left to fleece was DC, slowly making his way to the bottom of his 5th bottle of red for the weekend (he's still carving the rest of us up but Wonderboy Alex leads their one-on-one sprint challenge 9-7 – DC informs us he's 'taught the kid too much' but we reckon if he got off the drink it'd make a bit of a difference).

A huge day awaits us into Newcastle tomorrow. Based on the program so far, the 174km stage as indicated on the website should be somewhere between 20 and 300km. We're all flying though and itching to knock another challenge over. Come and see us at Noah's if you're in the area.

The Intelligent Investor Polka Dot jersey was awarded to Marsha for his focus during the ride.

The Pratt Foundation Blue Jersey was awarded to Mark Star for his gutsy performance over a number of days. He was all strength today after a couple of tough ones earlier in the week.

Lear Jet Mal Heath was the undisputed winner of the The New Idea Pink Jersey for his support within the peloton and because he'll look funny in hot pink.

Finally, Max Walker won the Myer Yellow Jersey for his positive attitude on the ride. He certainly showed a positive attitude towards Brooke, who added a 'special touch' to tonight's prize.

Yours forever, Stevie J and Tricky Ricky for the Decorub Team.

Day 6. Resting in Style and Luxury

2007-06-02T06:11:00.000-07:00

Day 6
Rest day in Port Macquarie

Now you would have thought that 175km on the bike would have been enough reason for the TDC Riders to sleep in and enjoy a day off at the magnificent Quality Resort Sails Port Macquarie. That and a hang over from a long night of celebrating the previous days effort could not hold 6 TDC Riders from sliding in to their lycra (smelling fruity fresh thanks to Con’s Dencorub team) at 6.30am and doing a short 25km roll to test out the legs.
The 6 HARD CORE TDC Riders (DC + Wonderboy, Rickster, Patches, M#A#S#H and Cougar) put their aches and pains aside to enjoy a Vittoria coffee at Purno’s Café at Flynn’s beach with Purno himself! It was a beautiful place to enjoy a coffee and tell stories about the previous day.

Leesa and Melissa our Catering Queen’s had a special treat in store for the TDC Crew on our rest day. The girls had been planning a lavish breakfast and Lunch (feels like we never stop eating) to refuel our bodies and spoil our taste buds.
Our TDC Nutrition expert Allan from Recover Sports would have been horrified when he saw the lavish rashes of bacon, Hollandaise sauce and more rashes of bacon………………yep we ate for an army and loved every last bite.

A short stroll to the Village Green after breakfast to meet with the local Camp Quality support group was a nice stretch for the tired legs. Even nicer was the masseuse offering to give TDC Riders a free massage. You have never seen so many men and woman line up for a massage, almost pushing each other out the way to be first.
It was great to see our Camp Quality friend Nicole at the Village Green.

The Dragons abreast Ladies from Port Macquarie paddled their Dragon Boat from up Hastings River (14km which equals 2hrs) to take some of the TDR Riders for yet another Dragon Boat ride. Some might say this was my way of getting in some training for the Nationals but it really is a nice way to meet some of the Breast Cancer survivors and see the local water ways. A quick lesson and we hit the water, taking a couple of Camp Quality kids out to enjoy the fun in the sun.
I (Geoff) stayed on after we dropped the others back and had a 1hr training session with the Pink ladies taking them through some drills we do in the National team. The ladies did it with ease and by the end of the session we had worked on their starts, stroke and seat positions. All I can say is look out to the other Dragons Abreast as these girls are hot to trot!

We have been blessed with magnificent weather for the last few days and I hope I don’t jinx it now by publishing this before the end of our 6th day. With the sun beating down on us we had three massage tables working overdrive on the deck beside the pool overlooking the mighty Hastings river for much of the afternoon. Life’s tough I hear you mumble as you read this. Good Food, Massages, Luxury Accommodation…………….sure is going to be tough going back to work next week.

A quick bike check/clean and we are ready for another day on the Road to finding a Cure. We head off tomorrow bound for Taree. The TDC Riders + family have enjoyed a wonderful stay at the Quality Resort Sails Port Macquarie in its idyllic settings. Thanks for having us.

We are on the home stretch........................look out Sydney and look out $400k.

Cheers

Geoff

Day 5.....Our longest Day!

2007-06-02T06:03:00.000-07:00

Coffs Harbour to Port Macquarie 175 km’s

Day five opened with a stunning sunrise and an easy spin in crisp conditions to Sawtell for a sensational breakfast at the Surf Club Café with the Coff’s cycling locals. It was a truly superb setting and the highlight was meeting the charismatic Marco and his antique woollen jersey with newspaper lining………old school!

Leaving Sawtell we rejoined the Pacific Highway and the heavy traffic. We enjoyed some varied road conditions en route to Macksville with extensive road works on the way. The ladies from the local Breast Cancer Support Group had prepared a delicious morning tea for us and this was enjoyed on the river bank as we road into town. The food was so amazing that many of the team wrapped up the various slices in foil to augment our Gu for en route nourishment.

We next broke our ride for lunch at East Kempsey. Whilst there Geoff received a call from a woman who had seen us ride by and got Geoff phone number off the Tour De Cure website. On hearing that we were taking lunch in her own town she raced down to catch up with us and make a donation. Her generosity struck a cord with the TDC team and was a fine example of the community support that we have enjoyed on our journey down the North Coast. On leaving our lunch spot we were assisted by the local Police who stopped traffic to allow the TDC Peleton and support vehicles to cross the Highway.

Shortly after lunch (60km later) we turned onto a secondary road and had some much more relaxed cycling through beautiful country for the rest of the day’s ride into Port Macquarie.

Day 5’s long ride in testing road and traffic conditions saw the TDC riders and safety/support crew perform brilliantly. Dave and Eric once again in the lead car dictating the route, calling the hazards and trying to cause as little disruption to heavy traffic flow. Robyn, another amazing effort driving the sweep car protecting our backs whilst making concise professional calls on the 2 way describing overtaking traffic like an experienced Air traffic controller. The riders worked smoothly calling countless hazards and road debris, changing from single file to two abreast as road conditions frequently changed. The efficiency of the pack saw us achieve an average speed of approx 31km/h for the day. “Hard core Euro Cool” was the call from Dave Cottee and for those that don't know DC this was one hell of a compliment

Sails Resort Port Macquarie was a welcome respite from a long day in the saddle. We enjoyed a wonderful meal at Spinnaker’s on the wharf taking in a beautiful sunset over the pool looking out over the Hasting River…thank you Walter for hosting our team!

Category Jerseys

Pink ‘New Idea’ jersey was awarded to Geoff C for his unflagging support in ensuring that all TDC’ers “look the business” and perhaps inspiring leadership our longest day

Craig Cairnduff received the Intelligent Investor Polka Dot jersey for focus on making the distance in style. Craig was so ‘In the Zone’ that at one stage he was heard to say “Can’t talk…. pedalling”. It was rumoured that a strong supporting factor to Craig’s worthy win is that he is the captain of Team Sydney City Lexus who once again were the powerhouse of the Peleton.

The YELLOW Myer jersey for outstanding attitude went to Kate Cosgrove for brilliance in being Kate and maintaining morale, drive and safety in the middle of the pack.

The BLUE Pratt Foundation jersey for ‘Guts’ was won by Dave Lo who had bravely gambled his self esteem and reputation at last night’s award ceremony whilst shamelessly lobbying the selection committee for “any jersey, just give me a bloody jersey”. There was also some talk of a very impressive display of determination and courage in completing the day’s solid ride in fine style and surpassing the 160 km milestone.

Signed:
Marty and Geoff from Team Lexus..........the team that worked hard on the front all day!

Tour de Cure - It All Starts Tomorrow!!

2007-06-01T18:10:00.000-07:00

Hi everyone!

In February I sent many of you a note - letting you know of an adventure I had signed up for called Tour de Cure, where a group of guys and girls were going to get together and ride from Brisbane to Sydney to raise money for three Cancer Charities.... It seems like ages since that note! At that stage, I was bemoaning the early morning training sessions, my struggle to get fit quickly, being carried into air-conditioned service stations with heat exhaustion and the like...

Well, a lot can happen in three months - both personally and for the tour! Here's a quick summary... (actually, on reflection, it's not that quick!!)

For me:

The early morning training sessions continued - sometimes 4-5 days per week! To give you a flavour of an average day.... The alarm goes at 4am, and it's always the greatest temptation to roll over and concede that only the maddest of madmen would contemplate getting up at that hour of the day! And the madness continues, as you don the lycra, force food into your mouth, and pedal off into the night! Yes, by any definition, it's still night-time at 4.30am!! In recent times I've had a riding partner on the first part of the route. But up until then it was just me and my lycra, pedaling through the weird pre-dawn of Kings Cross, en route to the north shore to meet the rest of the team... The people are mostly friendly though, and I've had many girls ask me if I wanted a "date" as I cycled past... They're obviously impressed by the improving fitness levels they've been witnessing over the past couple of months...

From there it's cross the Harbour Bridge and into Maiseys at Neutral Bay for the first coffee of the morning! Adam, our barista there, knows all the orders by heart now, and he's working on remembering our names! The banter is pretty animated for 5am - but I generally find that I'm still in wake-up mode, and am more subdued than the rest... Plus - I know that Spit Hill is looming once the coffees are finished - and that thought seems to invade my subconscious and override any potential frivolity!

On the bikes again, and it's a bit of a race down Spit Hill, and up the other side... No-one ever claims it's a race, but unofficially speaking, if you're leading and you look back twice or more to see who's following, then "it's on!!" And there's enough A-Type personalities in the pack to make sure the hill is always keenly contested! I have only made it up first once... And it was a day when there were only three of us riding! I was careful not to look back at all - fearing that I would signal something to the two people behind... I quietly (well, as quietly as you can, when your lungs and quads are exploding in unison) went about the climb, and was rewarded with a view at the top which, for the first time ever, did not involve other people's lycra'ed butts...

We then try to pick up a bigger pack of cyclists heading north from Manly... Depending on which day it is, their speed varies... My favourite day is Wednesday, when they're having a "light spin". This means I can keep up! On other days, I still get dropped off the back... Which I really don't mind that much - as it's better than being yelled at (it happens) if you're not going fast enough!

Around Warriewood / Newport (and sometimes Church Point) the Tour de Cure guys turn for home, and head back along the coast towards Manly... It's about now that the sun starts to creep up over the ocean, and you start to feel like it's really really worthwhile getting out of bed. It's hard to describe some of the sunrises we have seen lately! Suffice to say that for a month or so, every day was different and increasingly more spectacular than the last!

One more coffee in Manly, and then back to the city where I get to my office by 8am - and still beat most people to work (though doubtless they're more productive in the afternoons, when I'm trying to pick the lock to the door of the sick bay so I can crawl in for a nap...)

-------------------------------------

And here I am on the morning before the ride starts, feeling nervous and excited in equal measure! The last few weeks have been "mental" in terms of workload and travel, and I'm wishing I could have done more training to build on the hard work of the past few months (did I just say that!?). But I'm hoping I have done enough to get me over the line!! Anyway, the bags are packed, and the legs are freshly shaved - so there's not much more I can do, except get the flight to Brisbane this afternoon and startpedaling tomorrow!!

Without sounding OTT, this past few months have been quite a special time for me - largely because of my involvement with TDC. Not only have I got the benefit of losing weight, and being much much fitter than I ever have been. But I have got so much out of the involvement with the team and seeing the direct benefit of the work we are doing. To give an example, at one of our breakfasts in Sydney, we had a young cancer patient come in to talk to us. He's 15, and has an inoperable tumour in his brain which is also causing him to become blind. And his goal is to become a comedian!! He got up with Gretel Killeen in front of the audience, and performed some stand-up for us! If that's not inspiring, I don't know what is!!

I wanted to say a huge thank you to everyone who has supported me to make this goal a reality over the past few months. To all my friends who have so generously donated money to my cause - a massive thank you!! Your generosity is overwhelming and totally humbling. I have reached my goal of raising more than $10,000 through all of your support!!

If you have pledged support - the on-line payment system is now up and running!!

Two special notes of thanks!

To my family - who have all been "shaking the can" on my behalf - thank you so much for all of your efforts! You know how much I appreciate it!!

And to David Bayes at Choice Hotels. Thank you so much for all your incredible support!! Choice Hotels have provided us with all our accommodation for the trip - an incredible gift to us which means we can give more money directly to the Charities!

Many others have asked me to re-send the link to the website, which I will do below...

www.tourdecure.com.au

To donate, just click on "the team" tab, and then on my head!

Tour de Cure Day 4 – Ella Bache leads the ride from Grafton to Coffs Harbour

2007-06-01T04:04:00.000-07:00

It was the dedicated few: Max, Geoff, Lemo, Ian, Steve and Josh who rose an hour earlier than necessary to enjoy the spectacular Clarence River in a rowing boat. The 6am effort was generously rewarded with a Grafton Rowing Club medal, which Josh proudly displayed all through breakfast.

The Ella Bache team was proudly represented at the 8am roll call with Flick in her blue Pratt Foundation/Prostate Cancer jersey and Adam in the pink New Idea/Breast Cancer jersey. The peloton rolled out at 8.15am to a big wave from our great hosts at Quality Inn. The boys at the front set a fast pace during the undulating ride to our morning tea break at Glenreagh.

Cougar’s flat tyre and Steve’s broken spoken kept the King of the Mountain boys busy at the end of the break. From Glenreagh we continued our speedy pace through to Nana Glen (Russell Crowe’s home town) where we were waved and cheered by the local primary school kiddies.

First race of the day

A day on the road isn’t enough without a good sprint and as much as the Ella Bache team takes it to the boys, the three girls just don’t quite have the pace to race. Adam was our sole representative on the quiet country lane chosen en route to Coffs. But with Lemo all over the road leading to the finish line (a manoeuvre he was disqualified for) it was the outside racers, Cougar and Steve who lunged for the line. After a brief debate from the multiple roadside judges, Cougar was given the blue ribbon.

The country sprint did little to tire the legs and the peloton continued on through the countryside weaving its way up to the stunning rainforests outside Coffs Harbour. Thankfully, we took the time to marvel at the amazing ghost gums. (This is a route we can definitely recommend into Coffs Harbour).

For those fearless enough to take on the downhill at the end of the rainforest it was apparently a race to the bottom. Thanks to Graham and Lucy (local Coffs Harbour riders) who manned the bottom of the hill and pulled us up in time to avoid the Pacific Highway traffic. After navigating our way over the 4-lane highway we gave the TV crew a wave at the top of the Big Banana hill (it had to be at the very top of the hill too!) before the final little bit into the centre of town.

Amazing Coffs Harbour reception

The Coffs Harbour community came out in force and we were given a celebrity reception as we rolled on in to the main street. Four criterion races kept the lunch crowd entertained and the donations flowing. C-grade was won when Max sped to the lead with just over a lap to go. Lemo punched it out to take the B-grade race. He then decided that wasn’t enough and backed up for A-grade. But it was serious stuff as the boys hooned up and down the tight strip, Adam strategically placing himself in third position. Despite Cougar’s overabundant competitive nature a local lad, who we later found out to be the regional A-grade champion, took line honours. Not to be outdone, the whole Tour de Cure team hit the start line for the final race of the day, which was marvellously commentated by Sam (everyone got a plug). The pup of the team, Alex, raced away to win. His prize? A kiss from Elle - that’s Elle the seal at the Pet Porpoise pool (our next destination). We refuelled with the best meal of the tour to date, thanks to the ladies from Canadian Kitchens, before heading off to get Alex his kiss.

Christian from Camp Quality, his family and local members of the Breast Cancer support group joined us at the Pet Porpoise Pool – great to have so many involved. Luckily we were all able to get a kiss from Elle who puckered up her lips and gave us all a fishy kiss before we were treated to a spectacular dolphin display from Bucky, Zippy, Calamity and baby Bella. However, the star of the show was our Rickster who serenaded us and got the dolphins dancing—an act that sealed him the blue jersey for the day. We all said goodbye to Christian after Geoff presented him with some Tour de Cure goodies. We then quickly found our Quality Inn City Centre accommodation and changed into our cocktail attire (black Tour de Cure shirts) for the first event, ever, to be held on the Coffs Harbour jetty.

Despite the rather chilly temperatures the team and local supporters enjoyed hors d’oeuvres and cocktails under a full moon. Jessica and her dad (Camp Quality), Bruce (the local Prostate Cancer Foundation support group) and Brenda (the Breast Cancer support group) all shared their stories with us and reminded us of why this ride is so important. A very big thank you to Gretel Hogbin for organising such a special night.

With a big day coming up the team needed a bit of a top up to the lovely pier nibbles. A raucous dinner followed (at a location never to be disclosed) before we were all shuttled back to bed where most of us fell asleep, exhausted from a wonderful afternoon in Coffs Harbour.

A very big thank you to our Coffs Harbour team member, Ian Hogbin, and his family for organising all the superb events to promote Tour de Cure and our three cancer charities.

Jersey winners for the day

Focus: The Intelligent Investor’s KOM polka dot jersey – Sam for her awesome and continuous focus on keeping us all organised and the Tour de Cure train on track.

Guts: Blue Pratt Foundation/Prostate Cancer Foundation jersey – Rickster for his awesome work around the peloton, taking on A-grade in his first ever bike race and, of course, singing in front of a crowd and four dolphins.

Support: Pink New Idea/Breast Cancer Foundation jersey – Leesa and Mel for their wonderful meals and going beyond their call of duty with turkey sandwiches at the end of the day in the car park.

Attitude: Yellow Myer/Camp Quality jersey – Ian. The support he rallied in the Coffs Harbour community was an outstanding example of Tour de Cure attitude.

Written by the Ella Bache team: Kate, Flick, Jacinta & Adam

PCFA Cheers TDC Team!

2007-06-01T01:05:00.000-07:00

Dear TDC Team,

You are doing the best job and we can not thank you all for your efforts

For all the blue jersey winners – go hard – you have shown you have the guts (and balls- great to see Flick getting it )

Checking the website every day – keep up the blogs if you are not too tired team.

So from all of us here at PCFA – keep going

Remember team Lance Armstrong said

“Pain is temporary. It may last a minute, or an hour, or a day, or a year, but eventually it will subside and something else will take its place. If I quit, however, it lasts forever.”

Keep going the end is in sight – and it all looks good from here.

Wendy Farrow
NSW State Manager & Andrew Giles, CEO
Prostate Cancer Foundation

Day 3 - On The Road with Team Vittoria

2007-05-30T18:13:00.000-07:00

It was a pretty full on start to the day for Team Vittoria. Mark Starr, aka Marky Mark, left the Comfort Inn All Seasons to go to Cafe Vittoria and present its owner Ben with a limited edition box of special Vittoria coffee beans. A local haunt for many of the cyclists in Ballina, Ben was really appreciative of the gift. Marky Mark then returned to the Comfort Inn All Seasons to enjoy some more Vittoria Coffee and an excellent pancake breakfast with Leesa and Mel from Canadian Kitchens. These guys sure put on a great spread, and don't we love it!

After consuming many espressos and our pancakes, the pelaton hit the road, only to see Team Vittoria quickly take charge of the pack. Once again Team Vittoria carried Sydney City Lexus for the first 30kms at a blistering pace, that even scared the cattle on the side of the road! Lead by Stifler and Patches, the front of the pelaton was in great shape as it briskly averaged 33kms/hr heading through the cane fields of Ballina. Marky Mark had the centre of the pelaton well under control and naturally the 2 Vittoria Coffee mechanics, DC and Wonder Boy Alex, took a firm hold of proceedings at the back of the pack. Thankfully it was a day that wasn't marred by too many punches and the boys were given a bit of respite as they were brought up the rear of the pelaton.

As we passed the 30km mark, the smallest man in the pelaton known as Pantani (Adam Elias) showed great courage and guts to break the wind (a cycling term that has no reference to bodily functions) for the rest of the team. This small man put in some incredible surges as he continued to power ahead, reminicent of his stint at the front of the pelaton on Day 2. Team Vittoria had to once again concentrate and lead the delicate pelaton through some extreme conditions of road works, gravel and broken glass. But it seemed everyone was secure in the knowledge that Team Vittoria was in control.

After riding for close on an hour and a half, the posse hit a terrific rest spot on the banks of the Richmond River in Woodbyne (dubbed Woodstock by the guys). This was a superb location as selected by our logistics crew Dave and Eric. These guys are masters of knowing what we need. After muffins, coffee and a quick live cross on air to ParadiseFM, the team once again hit the road. We went from the cane fields of Ballina into mainland Australia bush for a flat stage towards lunch.

As we turned off the highway the pace quickly picked up and the pelaton burst apart with surges, attacks and an all out sprint for lunch. Four riders quickly broke clear of the pack - Stifler, Cougar, Tricky and Patches broke away by a large margin and then settled down to battle out the bragging rights over lunch. Although the jury is still out and we're waiting for the photos to be developed, Stifler raised his arms in dubilation as he believes he's got the judges decision. This wouldn't really surprise anybody given the fact that he is a Team Vittoria rider. Cougar was left to lick his wounds in 2nd, with Tricky and Patches dead heating for the podium position of 3rd.

Once the pelaton regrouped we had a spectacular lunch put on by the Treasure Chest Dragon Boat team of Dragon's Abreast. The spread was put on in their club house at Maclean withthe special guest being Councillor John. John gave a very impressive speech and welcomed the riders with open arms and proceeded to hand Sambo a very large cheque on behalf of the Clarence Valley Council. Most of the pelaton then stripped down to their shirts and sat on the bank of the river to take in some lunch and a well earned rest. After a couple of Vittoria Coffees the pack were back on the road and crossing some very rickety bridges that once again took us toward the cane fields.

Our own Cougar (Geoff Coombes) was a special guest at lunch, particularly once the ladies found out he's not only the best looking guy in the pelaton, but he's also an Australian Dragonboat representative in 2007. Geoff then gave a quick tutorial on the finer arts of Dragonboat racing which was appreciated by all.

After a half hour ride, the pack came to the Clarence River Dairy. This was a particularly special time for the guys as the deck hand's grandfather had actually died of Cancer on that day. Although a somber note, it just gave the pelaton more drive to do what needed to be done to finish another special day in the Tour de Cure 2007.

Team Vittoria took a firm hold on the pelaton as we drove towards Grafton. DC emerged from the back of the pack to issue instructions to the pelaton on how we could instigate the Team Vittoria base line. All pelaton members were participants in this event as the speed picked up and we cruised as a team towards Grafton. There were special shout outs to Flick (Felicity) who was awesome on the front, taking the pack home.

As we hit the down town area of Grafton, Paris (Con Athans) took over the role left by Marcel, in throwing himself into roundabouts to stop traffic for the pelaton - it must be an ethnic thing, as our Greek adonis bravely combatted peak hour traffic of both the cars in Grafton!

It was a welcome sight for the pack as we hit our Quality Inn City Centre in downtown Grafton. Most riders jumping in the pool full kit and all! There wasn't even time to take off their jersey and nicks. The Tiger beers flowed as did the music and conversation as the pack re-checked bikes, did the washing, washed the trucks and unwound before going to dinner at the Senior Citizen's Centre, 2 blocks from the hotel. Team Vittoria have had a big day in guiding the pack, winning the sprint and taking out the yellow jersey with Stifler, for talking up a storm and having the right attitude throughout the day. The Team Vittoria mechanics then took hold of the hardware and finely tuned the pack's gear for day 4.

Jersey winners:
Yellow Jersey for Attitude - Stifler
Pink Jersey for Support - Pantani (Adam)
Blue Jersey for Guts - Flick (Felicity)
Polkadot Jersey for focus - Eric & Dave, our team logistics managers.

The comment of the day came from Leer Jet for the Boost Mobile Team, who was overheard saying that his team was really starting to gel. Noone's quite sure whether they're getting along really well, or if it has something to do with lubrication.... we'll give them the benefit of the doubt on that one!

Many thanks to Max who has worked tirelessly worked to download and perfect our photo gallery, and also to Dani who's working tirelessly back home to keep the PR machine rolling along on the road.

More from Team Vittoria on Day 4 - so stay tuned!

DESPERATELY MISSING YOU!

2007-05-30T18:06:00.000-07:00

To my darling Tour de Cure team members, Eric, Dave, Sam & Robyn included.

I miss you TERRIBLY and read the blogs feverishly each morning. Where is the one from last night? WHERE!? I HATE being out of the loop!

I am so proud of how well you are all doing and continue to work hard from Sydney to get as much word out there about the Tour as possible.

Today we had a ripper little article in the ESSENTIAL section of the SMH so pick it up if you can in town!

Also had ABC Mid North Coast do a little interview with moi on your ride in to coffs, and am expecting TV and Print media to greet you on your arrival.

Hope you all did your hair and makeup!

Good luck, keep riding well, and can't wait to see ya'll in Gosford. Stay safe and keep rattling them tins!

xx Dani
PR to the stars (e.g. YOU)

On The Road with Team Vittoria

2007-05-29T18:17:00.000-07:00

Very eventful day on the road today between Tweed Heads and Ballina.
Highlights of the day included Marcia's 4 blowouts, Alex having to change 14 flats, torrential rain through Byron, and Dragon boating and lunch from the Dragon Boat team at Lennox Head. The ladies put on a real home made lunch that only mums could have bettered and everybody chowed down after putting in a solid day of almost 120kms.

And just to set the record straight (by rider reply)regarding washing, you didn't see us do it, you can't prove anything, we've got nothing to do with it!! We're not sure how it happened but it wasn't us.......but in all seriousness, Denver, you're socks are in room 6!

Stay Tuned for more exciting events from the Vittoria Team live from the road of the Tour De Cure!

TDC breaks the drought

2007-05-29T14:37:00.002-07:00

The Tour de Cure Breaks the North Coast Drought………..

Day 2 of the Tour de Cure
Tweed Heads – Ballina
121km
Weather Conditions:
Intermittent showers……..change that………..down pour in Byron Bay

After leaving our sensational accommodation at Quality Resort Twin Towns at Tweed Heads and being wished all the best by the local law enforcement, Joel and Jules borrowed their guns and quickly set the Tour De Cure underway.

The group quickly found day 2 legs and once again Team Sydney City Lexus were controlling the bunch, pace was similar to the Tour De France. The other teams on tour were once again in awe of their ability and strength.

LOTS AND LOTS of hills followed yet the Peleton continued to surge and mountains became molehills, the words of young Jay “never give up” certainly helped. Surely this terrain could throw more at the tour. As we weaved our way the scenary was inspiring and we continued to think about our Vittoria coffee stop at Brunswick Heads.
The great breakfast by Canadian kitchens (Mel and Leesa) and the fantastic location chosen by our support crew (Eric and David).

The tour then forged its way to Lake Ainsworth at Lennox Head.
A mad sprint down the beach at Lennox head brought us in to experience the cream of north Coast hospitality.
The towns finest LADIES (Dragon Boats Abreast) produced a meal fit for a king, making their finest dishes turning on a spread reminiscent of Christmas holidays of old.

Showing the Tour de Cure how to paddle a Dragon Boat on their Tea Tree brown lake was a great experience for all the TDC.

A wonderful donation from the Ladies was appreciated and put towards our growing total.

See picture of Beautifully adorned Pink Dragon

Cold Beers at Ballina as we watched the Outriggers paddle past in their Be A Man shirts
A welcome committee from the Ballina council and The Prostate Cancer Foundation brought the team home in front of the picturesque Richmond River.

Patani (aka Adam Elias) lead the TDC peleton in arguably the toughest conditions of the day. Our smallest rider showed courage and determination leading a weary and strung out group through the hills of Bryon and Ballina. Thanks Buddy………..!!

Our PR Princess Dani Lombard continued to preach the Tour de cure to the World. Radio, print and the internet are buzzing with the movement and momentum of the Tour de Cure. In it’s first year the PR in unprecedented for a Charity bike ride!

King of the Mountain (Our Sensational Support Crew) changed an unprecedented 14 flat tyres in the wet and dirty conditions. Their support was invaluable today and we would not have been on time for any of our engagements today without their help.

Lemo and Scabs (aka Patches) outsourcing the laundry duties…………….Only these 2 could get away with giving the Choice Hotels Propertier babe in arm on the shoulder, the dirty, smelly,

Special mention to the Sandbar restaurant in Ballina for opening especially for TDC and providing an absolutely fantastic dining experience.

Category Jersey Awards
New Idea Pink Jersey for Support = Josh Mcbride for outstanding work supporting the riders at the back of the peleton………….No Worries Meg that debt is now repaid
The Pratt foundation Blue Jersey = Marty for his Guts leading the TDC through some treacherous conditions
Myer Yellow Jersey = Denver for his attitude
The Intelligent Investor Polka Dot Jersey = Alex for his support (14 flat tyres, 4 blown out tyres,

Rock star receptions

2007-05-28T03:39:00.001-07:00

The start of the Tour de Cure has finally come. Already enough water has flown under the bridge to solve Brisbane’s water crisis. What a day!

By 7:15am we’d already been up, breakfasted and ridden 17km to Myer at Queen St Mall ready for the ‘start’. The crowd were fed fruit skewers and yoghurt while cold bacon tormented them and us alike. The bbq organisers forgot the gas bottles, a slight oversight but one guest-MC Duncan Armstrong took in his stride. Once the gas arrived and the smell of bacon and egg rolls wafted down the mall, the crowd tripled in size, helping raise awareness for this wonderful cause and making us question the allocation of funds – heart disease anyone?

By 9:30 Gary and Geoff had spoken to Kerri Ann, the gun was fired and we were on our way, led by olympic triathlete Maxine Seear and soon to be world champion road cyclist Lorian Graham.

Crowds line the streets

With Brisbane local Marcel ‘Buddha’ Bengtson directing traffic like High Tower, we made our way out of town. Some of us stared wide-eyed as Con’s own barmy army lined the streets. But we hadn’t seen anything yet.

John Paul College, the school Con’s two children attend, turned on a reception the likes of which we’d never seen before. Marching bands and cheerleaders led us to thousands of youngsters high-fiving as we rolled through the school. The Tour de Cure means a lot to many people. When the children line the streets you realise how much everyone appreciates what we're doing and, just as importantly, the things we've already done.

Next stop was Movie World for lunch just as the rain started to fall. A big thanks to the crew at this Gold Coast theme park for their gifts to Jay - Camp Quality representative, cancer sufferer and supported of the Tour de Cure.

Dog launches kamikaze attack

Who could possible have it in for this wonderful cause? It’s hard to imagine but they’re out there … be afraid. Not long after the fuel stop (gourmet sandwiches, fresh fruit, apple crumble and caramel sauce) a dog, reputedly trained in the caves of Afganistan, launched itself at us from the back of a speeding ute (headed in the other direction). Fortunately for us, his physics left a little to be desired and the dog landed a metre or so short and tumbled down the road (on a serious note, we do hope the poor dog is ok. If you’re the owner, let us know).

We cranked the speed up after that and, as the odometer for this 105km stage ticked past 110 and 120, the formerly boisterous crew became silent. The big question the peleton was afraid to ask was: how were these stages measured? Will the supposedly 173km Taree-Newcastle stage be the same percentage out? Only time will tell.

Roger from the Prostate Cancer Foundation organised us a sterling reception and meal at the Twin Towns Services Club. It was happily devoured by all and, as we lodge our blog, everyone has retired for a well-earned rest.

Today’s Jersey winners

The Intelligent Investor Polka Dot Jersey for focus went to Dave Cottee for his relentless efforts to keep everything in order at the back of the pack.

New Idea Pink Jersey for support went to Con Athens for his support, and those near to him, of this wonderful event.

Myer Yellow Jersey for attitude went to the taskmaster Robin. In addition to loosening a few of the lads’ muscles up before the day started she was, as they say, everywhere today.

Pratt Foundation Blue Jersey for guts goes to Garry ‘Scab’ Bertwhistle for riding with stitches in his leg and arm. Great effort Scab, you’ve raised the roof that far you’ve lifted it clean off.

Signing off, Rick, Steve and Ian ‘that’ll do, does anyone read these blog things anyway’ Hogbin.

'Along For The Ride' Promo Video

2007-05-25T23:40:00.000-07:00

... is now on YouTube! Click here to view it.

Update: You can now view the full-length clip here.

Good luck from NBCF!

2007-05-25T19:06:00.000-07:00

Hi Everyone

On behalf of the team here at the National Breast Cancer Foundation I would like to wish all of the Tour de Curers good luck as they set off on their big adventure on Monday.

I would also like to say a big thank you to the cyclists and all of the team invovled for all of their hard work. I hope you know how wonderful we think you all are!
It has just been amazing watching this all come together from that very first meeting with Geoff and Sam. Your enthusiasm and dedication has inspired us all and, obviously, so many around you. We have been in awe at the amount of reach this event has had and the many people that you have touched (Dani, fantastic job with the media coverage as well).

Our thoughts are with you. We look forward to following the ride and will be at the 'welcome home' event with bells on.

Safe travelling! We will be with you every pedal of the way (........from the comfort of our cushy chairs...)

Renée HampsonCommunity Relations Officer
National Breast Cancer Foundation

Good luck from the PCFA

2007-05-25T19:05:00.000-07:00

To all of our dear Tour de Cure Friends

The time now looms for your glorious ride and we shall be with you – all the way.
Just to think it was less than a year ago that Geoff first spoke to us about this dream.
Back then its seemed great but there was so much to do – but it has just been like a Field of Dreams

…..“if I build it they will come”

And so Tour de Cure has been built – and you have all come together and given so much of your time and your energy.
And you have helped us reach so many people with some vital messages about cancer – and what people can do to help.

Last year, as my brother, Kensit, was going through his battle with cancer I read up on Lance Armstrong – this is from him.

"I don't have any more bad days. I have good days and I have great days.
Cancer no longer consumes my life, my thoughts, or my behavior.
If I have a tough week, all I have to do is sit back and reflect on what I went through, and look at my son, and things don't bother me anymore.

When you almost lose your life to cancer, and then win the Tour de France, and then become a father, it grows you up fast.
Before, all of my questions were directed toward the "me," as in "Why me?" or, "What are my chances?"

But now I've started looking at other people."
Lance Armstrong

They were words I kept in mind when we lost my wonderful brother aged 50 in September last year.

Its just one of the reasons that I consider myself so lucky to be working here for the Prostate Cancer Foundation,
to be helping men and their families fight cancer, and to have the fortune to be to be working with inspirational people like yourselves.

So from all of us here at the Prostate Cancer Foundation of Australia, we wish you a great ride !!!!!!!

Cheers and best wishes,

Wendy Farrow
NSW State Manager
Prostate Cancer Foundation of Australia

Reaching Primary Schools

2007-05-23T01:00:00.000-07:00

This week saw Kate at two primary schools helping to spread the Tour de Cure message - firstly to Sydney Grammar and then joining me at Artarmon Public School. The enthusiasm of the kids, (not to mention the teachers) their interest in what we're doing and achieving is so motivating.

They were fascinated by our bike kits and our bikes and their questions did not stop. Kate covered her fiance's, Stu's, Year 4 class at Grammar, and together we covered the APS primary school assembly then a Year 2 class followed by all 3 kindergarten classes. Phew! But it really was a privilege and a lot of fun to speak to the kids and be a small part of their busy day's learning.

We have arranged for Camp Quality to present their fabulous puppet show to the kids of APS next month to help the students understand more about kids with cancer.

I wonder if one or two of the kids we met this week might join Tour de Cure 2030? If they work on their dreams to become reality, that may be a safe bet.
Learjet

Our Beautiful Maddie

2007-05-16T15:40:00.000-07:00

Hi

Just wanted to say what a wonderful group of people you are.

We are friends of Craig Cairnduff's and cancer took our baby daughter Maddie at the age of
15mths.

Over dinner, he told us of your cause and how much time & effort you are all unselfishly
putting in.

We watched our daughter for six long months, go through the most horrendous treatment,
all in vain and held her in our arms as she took her very last breath. It has changed our lives
forever and it comforting to see all of you trying to raise the much needed funds to find a cure
for all of these terrible cancers.

Craig told me that after his visit to the children's hospital, getting up at 4am to train is
not so hard. It is a very hard life indeed living in a hospital helplessly watching your child suffer.

People like you all are my inspiration to keep going, it is not until you go through something
like this that you meet the most wonderful people like yourselves and all of the doctor's and
nurses.

We will be watching your progress and will ask our angel in heaven to make your journey a
safe and profitable one.

Thanks to you all & Good luck to you all.

Danielle & David Vine

Kaitlyn's 8th Birthday

2007-05-16T15:35:00.000-07:00

Kaitlyn had a wonderful 8th Birthday. I have emailed you a beautiful couple of photos, she had a sleep over on friday night with some of her freinds, her camp quality companion came up for dinner on the saturday night, and she compiled a cd with all the songs that her and kaitlyn share and enjoy together, it is so cute.

Sunday we had all the family up for coffee and cake (and party food) in the morning. So she had a big weekend!!! 1st photo of the girls on the sleepover (they did a facial) second one, with her cake. Thanks Heaps Love you all Yvette

New Idea Rides for a Cure

2007-05-14T05:01:00.000-07:00

Dani has been getting amazing press coverage for the team and here is a great article in New Idea's May 2007 edition on the Tour de Cure, outlining what it's all about, the road map and photos and some pretty handsome riders decked out in TDC kit.

And whilst the photographers have been out and about in parks, on roads, at The Vault, at breakfast functions and in hospitals taking shots of the TDC team, the odd budding artist has been taking time out to put oil to canvas, or texta to paper, to create their own TDC images.

Below, 7 yo Olivia Heath, depicts some of the TDC team riding skills in her latest work. Would make a fun gift card!

Armstrong on the Road for Cancer!

2007-05-14T00:37:00.000-07:00

The Tour de Cure has it's very own Armstrong taking up the fight against Cancer. Australian Swimming champion Duncan Armstrong will join the Tour de Cure riders on the first leg from Brisbane to the Gold Coast.

'I’m privileged to be involved with Tour de Cure . Anyone who has been very sick understands the pain and anxiety of feeling dreadful, now multiply that by 1000 and you might have an idea of one single day in the life of a person battling cancer. There are thousands of courageous men, women, and children taking the battle to cancer every day. So it’s up to the rest of us to roll up our sleeves and do the hard work of funding research for a cure. The Tour de Cure is an opportunity to put our healthy bodies to work for people in need of a cure from cancer. As one talented youngster who is in the fight of his life has stated, “I’ve got cancer, but it hasn’t got me!” Isn’t the health of this true Aussie champion worth riding a few hundred kilometers for?

Come and say G'day to Duncan and the TDC team on May 28th in the Queen Street Mall in Brisbane.

TDC, Community Spirit and Zoe

2007-05-08T18:58:00.000-07:00

The Tour de Cure stall was presented at last Saturday's Artarmon Fair on the lower north shore in Sydney with our promotion moving out into the community; face-to-face. The stand, designed by Mark Starr, attracted plenty of interest with mannequins displaying the spanking brand new TDC jerseys (and the jerseys look fantastic!), the charities' materials, our sponsors and plenty of other goodies. Two bikes, one adult road bike and one kid's mountain bike on wind trainers provided a fun focal point, plus a large plasma screen with the TDC powerpoint show and Drew McAlister's 'Along for the Ride' pumping out, with plenty of cycling training shots - all added to the festive atmosphere.

The day provided a wonderful opportunity to chat to families and people in the community about Tour de Cure in detail, about the charities and the sponsors' great support. Donations were flowing, with more pledges to follow.

The TDC team and their families made a big effort to ensure the stall was a success and thanks for all the support from Geoff Coombes, Kate Cosgrove, Denver Bevan, Eric Cairnduff and wife Joan, Alex Cairnduff and daughter Sophie, Josh McBride and g/f Meg, Natalia Heath with kids Nicola, Olivia and Lachlan, Natalia's uncle and my parents, and Lance Creed. Lance supplied the generator, managed to override some technical glitches and was invaluable support in bump in and bump out.

But the Gold Star for community spirit goes to 8 year old Artarmon girl, Zoe, who attended the TDC stall. Zoe came to the Fair with $5 to spend and after she heard what TDC was all about, she said she really didn't need those other things on sale and donated all her fair money to Tour de Cure.

Learjet