Let the Tour begin

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

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

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

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

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

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

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.