Sydney Sping Cycle 2009

A 50km ride and an early start for 6 happy bunnies on a fabulous adventure!

The Ride Stats

Bunnies on board - Collette, Amanda, Lou, Tor, Janine and Annette

Distance covered - 50km

Cycling time - ~4 hours 30 min

Heart rate - 112 (average) 163 (max)

Calories burnt - ~1432

Stacks - 1

Bravery award - Collette :)

Wind factor - Gale force!!!

Scenery - Amazing :)

Non-bunny riders - ~ 12,000

The annual Sydney Spring Cycle had 6 biker bunnies rocking up to the start at North Sydney. What an adventure and so much fun to ride through the streets of Sydney with roads closed and lanes devoted to bicycles only :)

Polly Dolly Amanda bunny wraps up our ride:

Well the day (or should I say ridiculously early start to the day – a 4:45 rise) started with two alarms blaring in my ears. I didn't want to be late to pick up Tor and seeing as I am a sergeant major about time it would not have looked good.

Jumped out of bed raring to go – wolfed down some toast and coffee and headed out the door – helmet, food and warm clothes in hand! Picked up Tor and then raced up to Kariong to pick up Annette – drama with bike on bike rack and so ended up taking off her wheel and putting it in Paul's ute - easy drive to Wahroonga except my tummy was rumbling already!

Unloaded bikes and then Lou's key snapped in the lock of her boot – not a good omen.

Oh dear - key's broken, what to do, what to do....?

Get on the train and I realize I have bought Georgie's helmet which is way to small and gives me major headaches – oh poo!

Morning smiles on Wahroonga platform :)

And we’re off – get to the start line and meet Collette – millions of cyclists around – make our way to the start line and it’s freezing cold! Cycle cycle cycle – watch out for uncoordinated people and those with no spatial concept – concentrate concentrate.

Biker Bunnies at the start!

Over the Harbour Bridge – fantastic experience except it was blowing a gale and it was ice cold – back of Star City – wind everywhere to the point that my bike skidded from underneath me and blew me right and then left – shit I think I am going to fall but my amazing skills save me and I carry on pedaling. Fear had now entered my heart – as I am such a light delicate creature I fear for my safety along the trip! Ha ha!

Cycling over the Sydney harbour bridge :)

Everybody was in high spirits and as usual Annette and I have a laughter attack and cannot stop at one point – we were travelling along a section of the road where cars were allowed and Annette as usual forgot they existed. We were in the middle of an animated conversation when I say to Annette CAR to which she replies "oh really they don't" I say CAR she replies "Are you serious" I say CARRRRRRRRRRR and she again replies "that doesn't seem right" ANNETTE THERE IS A CAR BEHIND YOU!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! "Oh a car" she replies innocently and moves off the road.

Collette commented on how in the whole ten or so years I have known her we have never done anything sober together – how terrible! We couldn't think of things to say each other so I gave her a hash cookie and everything was fine.

Our second rest stop, which was all about sustenance and posing with food.... until Amanda said:

THERE'S A DOG RUNNING UP BEHIND YOU ANNETTE!!!!

At one stage Collette and I had somehow cycled ahead of the group and so pulled over to wait for them – Annette comes cycling along in the distance and gasps – sorry about that my heart stopped and the others stopped to help me – oh my god! – what do you mean – how are you?? – why are you ahead if your heart stops??? – "it was only my monitor!" – Only Annette could be so casual about her hear stopping!!!!!!!!!!!

Here comes Lou-bunny with Tor just behind

Comparing and smearing on sunscreen

Bunny t-shirts!! :)

Collette and Lou finding some shade

There were lots of wee stops along the way and lots of prangs and stacks (and I think Janine had a few mishaps) but poor Collette topped the day with a huge fall and lots of blood – only to be saved by two policemen – which is why I think she fell in the first place.

Annette Lou and I hit the finish line and Annette says ok we have more lap to go – no we don't we are finished and she would only believe us when another cycle read her pedometer counter to her!!!!!!!!!!

Are you SURE we've done 50k??

50km piece of cake except I wish there were not so many bloody bike riders to contend with – they ruined the day – only joking! Then Janine, Tor and Collette come over the line and we realize Collette is hurt and what we think is blood and dust but it was Florence Nightingale’s (aka Tor) benadine and fancy first aid (which I thought was Lou's job but she obviously delegated it to the nurse) – poor Collette – Annette and I made her reenact her fall so we could take photos and then we hobbled off to first aid!

BUNNY DOWN!!

Collette performing a reconstruction!

Crash Evidence on helmet!

Collette being patched up

Final laugh of the day came on the train on the way back to Wahroonga when Lou went into the wardrobe like Mr Bean and turned into a deep sea diver!!!!!!

Bunny on day-release with snorkelling friend

Tired and weary I got home and collapsed but with good energy and ready for our next adventure – hopefully the 90km Woolongong ride...

Amanda :)

All up it was a fantabulous ride! Plenty of laughs and a great experience :)

A few things picked up from Netti-bunny's saddle:

• The Wind!!! Oh that wind was strong; in parts it really did feel like I was going to get blown off my bike. Little did it help when I glanced sideways to see bunny Amanda letting go (one hand) of her handlebar to WAVE at the cameraman poised on the harbour bridge, while wobbling terribly in the sudden gust "photo opportunity - HERE I COME!!" Luckily she stayed firm on her bike and the wind chooffed off to blow at someone else.
  
  
• Janine managed to turn several 'near-stacks' into elegant sideswipes, leaving awed onlookers (including myself) in her wake. Let's face it; stopping and starting at traffic lights on a HILL, when you've got lots of other bikers to look at and get distracted by... does pose a unique set of obstacles, yet bunny-Janine wheeled her magic and got to the end on a breeze :)
  
  
• Tory Tor rode with an interesting clanking sound coming from one of her pedals... we decided that it was simply a case of "Crank up the stereo" (i.e. not a sound warranting further investigation just now....) luckily her trusty bike hung in there to the end. Tor rode happily the whole way with her contagious and delightful enthusiasm :)
  
  
• Amanda who initially had been concerned about the 50km distance, simply blitzed the Sydney ride, even to the point of complaining to volunteers and policemen at traffic lights... "Oh these bloody red lights!! They're stopping my groove... I'd be at Homebush already if it wasn't for all these stops and starts" She did complain with a smile on her face though :)
  
  
• Collette got pulled up near the start by a police man (this girl likes men in uniform ;) ) for running a red light. He let her off though, as she smiled her "But I was scared of getting left behind" smile. She sought the men in uniform again as she dived off her bike (no it wasn't deliberate), and two policemen attended to her straight away (and fixed her bike up), while nurse Tor applied iodine to the nasty wounds. What a brave bunny this girl is!
  
  
• Lou-bunny rode like a pro with her 'snorkel kit' and plaits flapping in the wind. A champion not only at riding, but at quickly assessing and reporting wee-stop facilities reporting back before others have even dismounted their bikes: "THIS ONE'S A NO-GO IT'S FLOOODED!!!" Onwards and upwards with side-glances at trees, even little bushes that may be of use where other facilities fail :) As our registered 'First-Aid Officer' Lou provided ample support and suggestions when my 'heart stopped' and would no doubt have performed surgery on Collette, if she had been close enough when 'bunny down' incident happened (at the start of our ride, Lou EXCITEDLY told us that she has a scalpel!!....).
   

We did it!!! :)

Thanks for all the laughs and for a great adventure!!!