Bathurst NSW Road Ride Suggestion...(Visiting)

Hi
On Sat 8/4/06 I will be at Bathurst, & wondering if anyone could suggest where I may do a road ride of say 90--110kM.If any rides include lots of steepish hills maybe a little shorter distance would suit.
I am staying near the squash courts( not that I know where they are yet) & would be leaving from there.
On Sunday I will probably go on a short casual ride as a few grogs on Sat night are never good for any intensity.
Bye

Hi there
I'm from lovely Bathurst. Hills hey??? Can't escape them here. But is very beautiful and if you email me privately, I will let you know some lovely areas to ride or put you in contact with more experienced riders. Beware, it will be quite cool here, especially in the early mornings. Why not join us on a ride on Saturday morning? We do about 30 - 40 km and then have a nice coffee/breakfast at the information centre. Then if you like you can go and do some more kms. We meet at the Bathurst Police Station, opposite Cityfit and RSL in Rankin St at 7.00am.
Regards, Sam

Hi Sam
Thanks for the offer but I was not planing on an early start, more like 8.30 / 9.00.
Good tip re hills & temperature so I shall keep those in mind.
Thanks Again Al.

Hi Al,
Just been thinking about road rides that would be good around here up to 90km. I'm not sure where you are from, but the weather here has suddenly got rather cold. Last night was -1 and will get to about 24 degrees in the afternoon. So, expect wide temp fluctuations. Hopefully it won't be that cold when you arrive.
The roads here are not as good as Sydney, so it may be a bit rougher. Cat heads can be a problem, I had one a few weeks ago. If you don't have tyre liners, bring some tubes.

A couple of nice rides:
To Sofala (45km) and back - 90km. Sofala is an old gold mining town - you can go gold panning if you want to - gold is still found there.
It's a little bit hilly, but fun. If you wish to go this way, you turn left into Gilmore St, at the first lights over the bridge going towards Sydney. And just keep cycling.

Another nice ride is to Blayney (about 37) and back - about 80km return. It is advisable *not* to go the usual way to Blayney (Blayney RD) - there is an extremely steep hill with no shoulder and it can be rather dangerous because it is very busy of semi's and cars use the road.
Instead, go to Blayney via Newbridge. This way you head out to Perthville, then onto Georges Plains and then you turn right at the sign to Newbridge and this will bring you into Blayney more safely. If you wish you can go a little further out of Blayney to see the wind farm (Teletubbie land according to our 4 yr old). There is also a indoor heated pool which is very nice.

The information centre has good maps.
Good luck
Regards, Sam.

Many thanks to Sam, good suggestion re Sofala, definately flat at Wattle Flat, easy riding through that little town. Further details when I have more time Bye

Description of my Saturday ride:-

Left our motel adjacent the Panthers Leagues Club at 8.30 am. Heading into the virtual unknown (I had driven to Bathurst via Sofala from Mudgee around 7 years ago) with a backpack of survival goodies i.e. fold up tire, 2 tubes, chain connecting links, short piece of chain, chain tool, allen keys, 2 screw drivers, etc, etc…. maybe paranoia or just good sense, don’t know. One thing for sure, I felt more confident carrying these goods, as when riding at home I am basically always in a mobile phone area with plenty of options should the need arise for a “pick up”. Anyway for the record, I had no mechanical problems at all.

Gilmore Rd starts off smooth, flat, & with a shoulder. The road soon starts to narrow & wind its way over a few rolling hills, followed by more rolling hills, followed by……..The road surface is generally rougher than I usually ride, but quite acceptable with no major bumps or potholes.

Around 35 ks in I come across a sign, Steep Climb 4 kl( I think). After grinding away at about 12 kph I reach the flat area of the aptly named Wattle Flat, another couple of ks pass before I find myself descending at a great rate. I’m a bit of a gutless wonder when it comes to descending, especially over an unknown not so smooth surface, so I catch as much wind as possible & brake a little keeping a speed of 62 kph. I detect a steeper section as I approach the intersection to Sofala, this part sticks in my mind, will this be to steep for me to ride up?

Well, here I am, Sofala, 46.5 ks 1 hour 38, 28.3 k av. After one lap of town I stop at the picnic table at the main intersection, I eat a muffin, empty my drink bottle & look up at the hill which I had descended 5 min earlier, realising that bar getting a lift, I somehow had to go back up the daunting climb. Visually it appears steeper & longer than the hill the other side of Wattle Flat. Anyway time to ride.

Not long into the climb I’m down to 9 kph, cadence about 60, thinking much lower spin & I may need to bail out. Looking ahead I think maybe I’m on the steepest part. I change to 30/19 & leave the saddle, 30 or 40 metres on I’m back seated & in 30/25 again. Cruising again at 11/ 12 kph. Several times I leave the saddle for short relieving muscle changes. Hey, that really works, some thing that I learnt from reading the forum. Wattle Flat again, time for another feed, bacon & egg roll at the take away. 15 min break than time to roll.

I realised I was slightly wind assisted on the way out, but hoping (wishing actually) that it would not increase to much for the home leg. Looking at the lean on the weeds at the side of the road my wishing did not help. By the time I approach Bathurst it is blowing hard into my face. Finally I turn into William St, arriving at the motel, 94 ks, 3 hours 35 riding time, average battered down to 26.2 kph. Pleased with the effort, another ride for the diary.

Sunday is a better day weather wise, sunny & virtually windless. Would a Bathurst trip be complete without a ride around Mt Panorama race track, don’t think so. Only went the way the race cars go, now that has some steep pinches, out of the saddle in the 30/25 for the steepest. I believe the reverse way is steeper still. Maybe next time.