Staying clean and dry at the Otway

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

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.

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

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

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

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

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.