Sydney to the Gong

[Duckling]

Rider #1630 and start time of 6.15am

All the better to beat any sea breeze which can start building from 9am in my experience of 4 'gong rides.

I'm hoping to complete in 3hrs or better which I hope I've done enough work for and if I can get into a group that isn't moving too fast for me and the weather is good..... so many ifs !! But the hills of Galston Gorge and Bobbin Head can only have helped
I think the technology I've gained in my new vehicle (Giant OCR)will probably give me 10 mins over the vehicle I used in the past (Repco Superlite).

Can anyone please offer a lift back to northern Sydney after the event ???

 

[mikesbytes]

and a start time of 645. Bugger thats early

If you can make it from Penrith, do a 6.15am start time. They don't actually check the times when you start.

 

[tzedragon]

Nice ride.

I did some serious hills on Saturday in Bathurst. My brother says they are uglier than the Nat Park ones, but who knows...

I am feeling much more confident now.

This will be my first Gong Ride. (Trevs Treadly Team Bathurst)
Belly's Bus leaves Bathurst at 4am on Sunday morning, apparently it isn't the only group of riders as Winning Edge may also have organised a bus.
I'm Rider No. 9254 starting at 7:30am but we will all start when we get off the bus and unload the bikes.

We rode from the cop shop to the start of the bridal track last Saturday. If these are some of the serious hills then thank you for boosting my confidence too!.

I am learning alot here, especially about pre ride prep and the ride itself.
Thx to all.

 

[sogood]

Checked the ride info. I note the trains will stop at St Peters on the way back to Sydney. While in the CityRail timetable, there's no info on this, only specific times for the early morning service to St Peters at approx 15mins intervals.

Can people who has used this service confirm that the train will stop at St Peters? Also, what's the frequency of service? I note regular Sun service interval is about hourly. Thanks.

 

[mikesbytes]

Checked the ride info. I note the trains will stop at St Peters on the way back to Sydney. While in the CityRail timetable, there's no info on this, only specific times for the early morning service to St Peters at approx 15mins intervals.

Can people who has used this service confirm that the train will stop at St Peters? Also, what's the frequency of service? I note regular Sun service interval is about hourly. Thanks.

Macdonald town station is also very close. And its not that far from Redfern either.

 

[sogood]

Thanks Mike. I am trying to decide where I should leave my car in the morning. St Peters probably still makes sense.

 

[geoffs]

Thanks Mike. I am trying to decide where I should leave my car in the morning. St Peters probably still makes sense.

We will be riding to the start as it's only about 15mins away from where we live. Our start time is 6.45 but we'll get there at 6.30. Look out for a big orange Co-Motion tandem with S&S couplers. We should be quick on the flats and downhills, not so good on the ups.
We've lent our orange Santana to some friends of our who will be riding with us so we should be easy to spot.

Cheers

Geoff

 

[sogood]

We will be riding to the start as it's only about 15mins away from where we live. Our start time is 6.45 but we'll get there at 6.30. Look out for a big orange Co-Motion tandem with S&S couplers. We should be quick on the flats and downhills, not so good on the ups.
We've lent our orange Santana to some friends of our who will be riding with us so we should be easy to spot.

Didn't think the start is that close from where you are. Will definitely look out for you guys. What do you guys do for the return trip? You can't fit a tandem on a train can you?

Anyway, 95km will be a record for a one day ride and I am not going to push it until I am more accustomed... Maybe by next year I'll be able to do a return ride like what Mike is planning.

 

[geoffs]

Didn't think the start is that close from where you are. Will definitely look out for you guys. What do you guys do for the return trip? You can't fit a tandem on a train can you?

Anyway, 95km will be a record for a one day ride and I am not going to push it until I am more accustomed... Maybe by next year I'll be able to do a return ride like what Mike is planning.

It's just over 7 kms from our house the ride shouldn't take to long.
We will be catching the train back. The tandems will fit ok on the train. There will be at least 10 this year that I know of including a Co-motion triplet.
My main concern is the amount of paint that will be damaged. I used to leave a van parked at Coledale the night before and then ride back to pick it up but I don't own a van anymore.

If you can do the Waterfall ride with DHCC, you'll be fine. Just pace yourself.

Riding back next year? sounds like a good challenge

Cheers

Geoff

 

[mikesbytes]

Didn't think the start is that close from where you are. Will definitely look out for you guys. What do you guys do for the return trip? You can't fit a tandem on a train can you?

Anyway, 95km will be a record for a one day ride and I am not going to push it until I am more accustomed... Maybe by next year I'll be able to do a return ride like what Mike is planning.

I'm double booked, so no gong ride for me. Last Saturday's ride was tough enough anyway. DM77 is riding back (I think).

 

[mikesbytes]

If you can do the Waterfall ride with DHCC, you'll be fine. Just pace yourself.

Riding back next year? sounds like a good challenge

Cheers

Geoff

Actually some of the clubs must be riding at the same time as the gong ride on their regular training rides.

 

[sogood]

We will be catching the train back. The tandems will fit ok on the train. There will be at least 10 this year that I know of including a Co-motion triplet.
My main concern is the amount of paint that will be damaged. I used to leave a van parked at Coledale the night before and then ride back to pick it up but I don't own a van anymore.

Thought about that luxuary option of taking a car down but the logistics was just too much. Yes, I also wondered how the bikes will be transported on those trains. Do we push them into the cabins or will we be forced to stack bikes and damage paintwork?

Just read the weather forecast... Shower or thunderstorm for Sun. Ouch!

 

[46kgToDate]

This will be my first Gong Ride. (Trevs Treadly Team Bathurst)
Belly's Bus leaves Bathurst at 4am on Sunday morning, apparently it isn't the only group of riders as Winning Edge may also have organised a bus.
I'm Rider No. 9254 starting at 7:30am but we will all start when we get off the bus and unload the bikes.

We rode from the cop shop to the start of the bridal track last Saturday. If these are some of the serious hills then thank you for boosting my confidence too!.

I am learning alot here, especially about pre ride prep and the ride itself.
Thx to all.

Not sure where the Bridal Track is in Bathurst but we went on three loops out of Perthville when I was u that way:
two thirds of the way up Mt Rockley,
then up to the quarry,
then up cow flat road.
Mind you it was a perfect day until about 9am when the wind got up.
All climbs were initally gradual 3-4 k's, then short lifts up with false flats of another 2-3 k's then between 500m to 1k of real kick ups, the climbing was maybe 30 k out of the 97k we rode. The second hardest climb was like the ride out of the National Park on the Gong ride. I rode that last weekend: Bald Hill. Reasonably fresh - I had only done about 20k fairly fast before I went up. Taking it steady and keeping the wheels turning at a manageable pace I did not go down to the lowest gearing before I got to the top.

If you are riding around Bathurst with the groups up there you'll kill it.

 

[46kgToDate]

Is anyone going from Strathfield to the start?

 

[Night_owl]

I just got my Ride details in the post and my number is #1866.

My start time is 7.15am which seems a good time to start the ride.
I'll have a 25Km ride from Dee Why to get to Sydney Park. Since I'll be on the road early, I'll be able to ride on all the main roads, so it should be a "fast" ride in.

I'm just hoping that the weather report isn't right. Rain on the day would not be a good thing.

 

[sogood]

I'm just hoping that the weather report isn't right. Rain on the day would not be a good thing.

BOM's forecast seemed to be taking wild swings over the last week. Sun has been forecasted from fine to thunderstorm. Yes, rain and wind would be dangerous for those major descents and hill-tops. I am keeping my fingers crossed. I note that the organizers has the option of terminating the event early.

 

[Night_owl]

I've reckon I've worked out a good plan for Sunday.

Get all my gear ready the night before.
Set my alarm clock to wake me up at 4.45am.
Have breakfast at 5am
Leave the house at 5.30am
Arrive in Sydney Park around 7am
Have some morning tea.
Leave Sydney Park at 7.15am
Stop to have lunch at Bald hill Lookout
Arrive at Wollongong by 12.15.
Train back to city
Ferry trip to Manly
Ride 7.5Km home.
Then eat dinner and sleep.

I'm not going to bother stopping at Loftus for morning tea. There'll be food in my jersey pockets to snack on. I'm pretty sure that the muffins can't be that special.

I'll give the lunch stop a miss too. I'd rather enjoy eating lunch (bought from home) after the climb out of the national park. That way, I'll have the extra motivation to climb the hill.

Of course, this all depends on how the weather turns out.

 

[scotty72]

Just read the weather forecast... Shower or thunderstorm for Sun. Ouch!

Come on, toughen up
If it rains, you get wet; cycling is an outdoor sport.

Scotty

 

[sogood]

Come on, toughen up
If it rains, you get wet; cycling is an outdoor sport.

When I want to get wet, I usually prefer a hot shower or a soak in the swimming pool.

 

[matagi]

When I want to get wet, I usually prefer a hot shower or a soak in the swimming pool.

I prefer to lie back in a nice deep bathtub for a soak.

Not keen on the prospect of a shortened course, however. Especially given we have a 90 minute drive from the wilds of the Central Coast to Sydney Park.