Biker Bunnies

Spring Cycle 2011 - part 2

2011-10-24T11:41:00.000+11:00

Well well well!

A 4am start is not ideal for a Sunday morning by anyone's standards – least of all mine. I knew that I couldn’t start the day without breakfast, a coffee and a shower so up I got in the dark. It was surprisingly warm and this bode for a good start to the day. I picked Tor up at 5.15AM but made her cut her finger open whilst she rummaged for her phone in her bag – twas only me texting her that I was outside – poor poppett. All smiles she came out in her bunny attire and we set off on our smiley way – tired but excited at what lay ahead. MMMMMMmmmm as I write that I realise how mad it sounds at 5.20am but hey gotta get your kicks from somewhere.

The drive to Wahroonga was quick and easy as was the train ride to North Sydney (even though two silly bunnies managed to get lost on a bridge – and the station was literally two minutes away from the car park – I blame it on lack of sleep rather than sheer stupidity – ha ha :)).
We got to the starting line and literally we were off – cameras flashing as we zoomed by with our ears flowing in the wind. Careering down through North Sydney is always exuberating as you pick up speed before getting onto the Harbour Bridge which never ceases to excite me. The sheer thrill of cycling over the bridge into an empty CBD is hard to beat (now you know I am lying!).

Black Beauty loves cruising and she is damned good at it but on the downhill run she leaves everyone behind so I reined her in in the Botanical gardens only to be told by a serious cyclist that I had chosen an inappropriate place to stop – not my fault he doesn’t look up when he is cycling and he hunts in a pack like a wolf (and he is hungry like the wolf). This unnerved me and I nearly stacked it getting back on the track with the other bunnies – that would have been rather embarrassing.

It is amazing what a pair of bunny ears can do – people either love it and smile and comment or they look at you like you are some kind of twat that has just crawled out of a dark hole in the earth – most people commented as Netty as told you and one told me that I was too beautiful – blushing I said now don’t be silly – surely you are not talking about me? And he wasn’t because he actually said that I was the ODD one out – imagine that ME? Why because I had matching socks – that should mean that I am NOT the odd one. Obviously the other bunnies had brainwashed him along the way to lose sight of what was normal in this world.

A few near misses, caused mainly by children and older men saw us all reaching the last 10 kms going – are we nearly there yet? Feet numb from the cleats Netty and I stopped to take our shoes off and a delicious young policeman stopped to check we were ok and even asked Netty is she wanted a foot massage which she declined (whilst Lou stood there looking beautiful and trying to muster in on massage offer :).

A very slow and painful last 10kms (because we actually thought the last 10 kms started at the 30km mark) saw us all cycle in happy and tired ready for the train trip and a beckoning lunch at Wahroonga. What a great way to finish an almost awesome day (it would have been better if Lou had packed a picnic and a sauv blanc). Thank you bunnies for the fun and laughter had on the way especially Lou and her shadow Mr Clawhead!

Amanda :)

Spring Cycle 2011

2011-10-22T16:06:00.004+11:00

Sunday 16th October
This year's Spring Cycle was attended by 4 enthusiastic bunnies: Tor, Lou, Amanda and Annette. After a (very) early early morning rise - we zoomed down the freeway in a semi-awake state, to catch the train from Wahroonga to North Sydney where the ride begins...

The Ride...
Bikes unloaded, bunny-ears at the ready, and stripy socks on (all mismatched except for Amanda's elegant purple stripes), we made it on time without missing the train (although Lou and I went up on the wrong railway bridge, and had a slight déja vu of a train-missing tantrum some time back... not wanting a repeat performance from yours truly, we quickly found our way to the station entrance and all was good).

The weather was absolutely fabulous on this fine Spring Sunday morning! The 55km classic ride took us over the harbour bridge (always such a thrill to ride across this majestic and beautiful bridge), and then we went on a scenic ride through The Botanical Gardens, which was a new exciting change to the route. We coasted through some absolutely gorgeous parts of Sydney; passing the Art Gallery was a treat, as was riding down Macquarie Street right in the CBD. Riding a bike is such a fantastic way to explore one of the most beautiful cities in the world! Oh I could rave on about the scenes, but I'd probably bore you to tears, and with my sense of location I'd be leading you on a wild-goose chase across the city (not remembering names of places....), but I assure you it was very nice.

The Hills....
Just after the shorter ride (16km city ride) ended, the hills started :) Lillyfield (I think) dished up a few surprise hills, which had quite a number of riders off their bikes and walking. Amanda (who secretly loves hills but says she hates them), was adamant there were a lot more hills this year compared to last.. still she cruised on up every one of the hills without getting off her bike! A nice thing about the hills was that the field spread out, with a lot of riders slowing almost to a halt... and there would suddenly be enough space around to push on and up to the top - and then you get to fly down with ears flapping in the wind! :) It did get a little tricky at times though - like on the hairpin turn going up Anzac bridge, when the rider just in front of me decided to stop and get off his bike without any warning - ouch! No bunny stacks this year thankfully - we all arrived at the end with smiles and well pedalled legs. Tired, but very happy and satisfied, we caught the train back to Wahroonga where we had delicious coffee and lunch, before making our way home.

The Bunnies...
This year boasted a dress-up competition, with prizes for the best outfit... We didn't enter in the competition, but give us an excuse to dress-up and we'll take it :) Our bunny ears drew lots of comments along the way... and also made it oh so easy for us to spot each other in the crowd (with 14,000 riders this year, getting lost wasn't on my wishlist). Lou sported her pink 'floppy ears', Amanda had her ears pointing up all prim and proper - obviously matching her purple socks, Tor swished along in happy yellow ears, and then there were my newly spray-painted black and red ears (still oozing paint-fumes). We got everything from "Hugh Hefner coming through, coming through!" - to kids calling out from the side of the road: "Look at the Bunnies mummy..." High-fiving a line of kids standing on the side of the road, would have to go down as my coordination feat of the day (managing to not crash into the little mites, or fall off my bike is a success). One guy even took note of our mismatched socks and told Amanda that her socks were wrong because they matched :D Not seeing ANY other dressed-up rider (maybe we rode too early..) we awarded ourselves the prize of best dressed bunnies in this year's event :)

The Stats...
Bunnies on board - Lou Tor Amanda Annette
Distance cycled - 55km
Time (including stops) - 5 hours
Calories - 2405
Heart rate - 127 (average) 171 (max)

The Photos...

The 55km classic ride map

Bunny Lou on the train...

another semi-awake bunny...

Bunny ears & feather boa - rearing to go!

Going across the Harbour Bridge

Lou doesn't miss a chance to pose for the camera...

Here comes bunny Tor - feathers et all...

Through the Botanical Gardens

Go fast ears swishing by...

... and who notices the camera..?

South end of the Harbour Bridge

Looking up the top of Anzac Bridge

Bunnies coming up the bridge

Posing at the waterfront rest-stop...

Tor and Amanda all smiles...

Sun-screen, water and check those ears...

10 km to go...

Sunny bunnies nearly at the end...

We did it!

One tired bunny going home...

Annette :)

Winter rides 2011

2011-08-27T16:41:00.000+10:00

The weather has been a bit all over the place with a mix of rain rain rain and some absolutely gorgeous sunny winter days thrown in to lift our spirits. We have done a number of bunny rides and in between these I've been cruising up and down the old Pacific Hwy on my own (looking for bellbirds....) when the weather has been kind... So it's about time I update this blog with a few photos.

I've been thinking a fun project on bicycle would be to take photos of interesting signs... there are plenty about the place, just have to find a way to psyche myself into actually stopping to take the photo.

The Spring Cycle is just around the corner (early bird registrations end in 2 days!!!) so get your entry in and come on an adventure - they have changed the route this year to include the Botanic Gardens and a few more exciting places - so it's well worth the experience if just for the sight-seeing. :)

Amanda and I have traversed along the Gosford - Woy Woy track a number of times; stopping off for coffee at the Gnostic in Woy Woy, giving us a chance to giggle and collect ourselves before completing the second half of the ride. It's funny how the wind always seem to change on this ride - you ride into the wind no matter which way your are going! One morning we did a cruisy ride from Mingara up to The Entrance and back. The ride itself was lovely - taking us along the bike path for most of the way - however, the start to our adventure was quite dramatic with magpies out in full force attacking anyone with a bike helmet! Luckily resourceful Amanda had plastic ties in her car which we fitted to our helmets! I figure it's ever so much better looking like someone who communicates with aliens, than lying flat on the ground after a successful magpie missile connects with your head!

In the school holidays Tor & I walked with our kids riding their bikes from Long Jetty up to The Entrance and back. It was a fabulous day out and even though we weren't riding we still got to walk at a fast pace with all the 'little' people on 2 wheels :)

This morning Janine and I rode from Gosford Gallery to Woy Woy and back where we had a coffee and another admiring look at the Mad Potters Tea Party (love your work ladies!!!). It wasn't quite as sunny as we'd hoped but still a lovely ride with just one incident with an angry lady and her lead-less dog... Everyone else along the way (and there were a lot of people out for a morning ride or stroll) were all very civil and pleasant.

Here are a few of the photos from the latest rides:

Coffee spot no:1 in Woy Woy :)

Mirror surface at the Woy Woy jetty

Reception appears a little hazy....

Yippeee! Made it half-way :)

View over bushland and Gosford from the lookout on Kariong hill

Looking forward to more rides and SPRING which is just around the corner.

Annette :)

The Century Challenge 2011

2011-05-16T17:27:00.005+10:00

Hello all :)

A beautiful sunny Sunday provided a perfect day for the Century Challenge 2011 (compared to last year's rainy conditions), and I did feel quite excited in my half-awake state as I signed the registration papers at Mount Penang to enter the 110km challenge. Sadly neither Tor or Amanda could make it, but I'm hoping that more bunnies will be enticed to brave these mad and gruelling hills next year.

This is by far the hardest long ride I've done - with NO flat section along the way; undulation while lovely and inspiring in the beginning - turns to sheer pain towards the end: your legs scream in protest and you have to pretend you can't hear them in order to get to the finish line. I believe a trance-like state of denial helps too... ;) "that's not a hill, it's just the earth turning slowly and I'm actually riding on a flat surface".

To give some idea of the 'undulating' ride - here's the topography & map of the route:

This is a fantastic ride though; the scenery is amazing and the Erina Rotary club (who organise the ride and raise money for Coast Shelter) do a great job in putting on the event - the best for any charity ride I've done: You cycle along remote country roads and arrive at rest stops with friendly marshals providing home-made chocolate cake, fruit, water and.... snakes :) If this doesn't get your spirits up to continue, I don't know what would... :)

You could probably count the mountain bike riders (in the 110k challenge) on one, or maybe two hands. The big bulk of the riders were all jazzed up on their road bikes and zoomed off into the morning sun (not to be seen again, I might add ;)) - which allowed us slower paced riders to enjoy the scenery without any hustling & bustling... It can get lonely out there on the remote roads though, and so it was very exciting to find a like-minded friend at the first rest stop (while digging into the newly arrived chocolate cake). Maddy (solo champion rider) and I - braved the second half of the ride together, with jelly-beans for fuel and sheer determination to get us to the finish line where we were greeted by our very own cheer squad of patiently waiting partners...

Stage 1
The start of the ride takes you up Wisemans Ferry Rd (undulating up-hill) to the Peats Ridge Rd turn-off. Morning sun and still quite chilly in the air (cold feet...). Luckily I'd put on quite a few layers, thinking I could take some off as it got warmer in the day - as it turned out, the chill in the air stayed with us and I was glad to be rugged up for the whole ride. Wisemans Ferry Rd has quite a few potholes and chomped up edges, so you need to keep an eye on where you're going... Once you get onto Peats Ridge road, the surface is more reliable, and there is even a shoulder safe enough to cruise along...

Stage 2
Ride down Peats Ridge road to the Calga U-turn bay, where you cross the road and cycle back up to the first rest stop near the Peats Ridge road & George Downs drive intersection. The return trip from the U-turn bay is definitely more up than down, which made that lovely chocolate cake all the more welcome! This rest stop provided us with 2 route choices: 1) Be sensible and take the 65km shortcut - or... 2) Keep going on the century challenge route... Being die-hard (or foolish), we prevailed and soldiered on towards stage 3...

Stage 3
Probably the hardest stage of the ride - the road narrows quite a bit, to a winding and quite hilly country road - which you're sharing with a surprising amount of non-cycling traffic: there were countless motorbikes blaring past us and 4-wheel drives - where some found it hard to gauge how much room (if any) they should leave between their car and the cyclists! Not too well-read-up on the map situation, I was blissfully unaware of the turnaround point and called out YAY!!! 20km too early (this was just before the hideously steep 10km ride DOWN to Mangrove dam followed by the 10km back up again)! Without the support of the marshals at the rest stop at the bottom of the hill, there is no way my champion fellow rider and I would have made that leg of the ride.

Stage 4
From the top at Kulnura we were told it was 40 km to the finish line - and so we set our determination dial to maximum, and put our heads down for the home run. A jelly-bean boost stop at the 16km to go mark gave us the much needed energy to complete the challenge. Getting to that finish line practically had me in tears: exhausted & exhilarated with a certificate and lucky rider prize to top it all off! Am I mad enough to do it again? - Definitely :)

Ride stats:
Distance cycled - 106.6km
Speed - 56.1 km/h (max) 18.1km/h (average)
Time cycling - 5 hours 47 minutes
Total time - 7 hours 14 minutes
Calories - 3946 (!)
Heart rate - 172 (max) 137 (average)

Friendly marshal showing us the way...

... and posing with champion rider

16km to go

Jelly-beans DO work!

A very happy bunny at the finish line

We did it!

Happy riding to all of you - and definitely book this one in for next year!

Annette :)

Gossie Wossie ride-wrap

2011-04-18T11:08:00.002+10:00

Hello all!
It has been a while since we posted anything about our adventures here - I think it's fair to say that life has been very busy with not much time to record "life as it happens". We have however managed a number of rides along our well-trodden path to Woy Woy (where they have fabulous coffee) - and before these photos become too outdated I thought I'd pop them up here:

January & February rides

In January and February the weather was mostly warm to hot and balmy & so we braved the heat with a swimming treat at the end of most rides. Our Bi-athlon training consisted of a speedy ride to Woy Woy, a coffee with lots of laughs and then a wind-in-face return trip to West Gosford where we jumped in the pool for a nice refreshing swim.

The Woy Woy cycle bridge with Tor & Amanda shooting off into the distance.

Safe girls pose with their helmets on...

Chillaxing with a coffee at the Gnostic café

Tor posing on the waterfront near Point Clare

Fashionista bunny in her hi-vis-vest

This bunny looks like she's going to fall in the water...

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Mini Bunny rides

Ben got a brand new bike for his birthday (which means he no longer needs to ride with his knees touching his ears...) We've had exciting sunny adventures riding around the parks and local streets where Ben has discovered the joy of flying through lots of gears:

A 110 km challenge!

Before I go I want to remind you all of an exciting challenge coming up in just a few weeks time:

The Erina Rotary Club is organizing the Mt Penang century challenge on the

15th of May. The date has been changed from the 1st to the 15th so hopefully you can make it :) There are 2 main routes to choose from and also a kids challenge around the Mt Penang Parklands. Have a look at the website and be inspired:

http://www.centurychallenge.com.au/

Hoping you're all well and happy and I look forward to riding with you again very soon!

Annette :)

End 2010 Ride Wrap-up

2011-01-06T20:04:00.000+11:00

Here's a little wrap-up of our latest adventures in 2010... Hope you enjoy the slightly belated photos, and hope to see you on lots of exciting escapades in 2011!

The Gossie - Wossie rides...

Amanda & I went on a few of these leisurely adventures in the last few months of the year. Armed with a good dose of humour, lots of silly laughs and a few hysterics; we cruised along the beautiful waterfront spanning the distance between Gosford and Woy Woy. In Woy Woy we stop for that delicious coffee before returning back the same way.

The stretch of road from just past Truscott & almost all the way to the Woy Woy bridge (not sure if that's the name... but it is a bridge and you can see Woy Woy 'towering' just after it :) ) offers a fabulous sprinting tempter to the ride. We mostly forget to record the exact time we leave Gosford, but always marvel at the 35+km/hour clocked along this stretch, believing we MUST have done it in record time...

Our last ride had an extra treat thrown in at the end: Amanda came up with the great idea that we should finish off with a swim in Gosford pool! Oh that blue, blue water and the sun shining from the blue sky! It was blissful and although I still had the ride up the hill before I could call it a day, it was a fabulous way to 'end' a ride. We could almost call ourselves tri-athletes (a bit of running around in the parking area would have sealed the deal for sure...) after our mixed workout.

Posing at Gosford pool...

It's hotting up... time to get out the sun-screen!

Which way to Woy Woy??

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Tuggerah - Long Jetty - Entrance Adventure

At the end of November bunnies Tor, Amanda & Annette went for a slightly longer bike ride. It was a nice warm day (plenty of water needed) - just perfect for a ride with friends :)

Amazingly we all managed to meet up without anyone getting seriously lost... I caught the train to Tuggerah station planning to meet the girls at the start of the cycleway - but Tor & Amanda (who started from Tor's house in Forries) got to the end before my train got in & so they cruised down into seedy swampland for a hair-raising detour into the desolate forgotten side of Tuggerah. Quick back-track pedalling had them swing out onto Wyong road just behind me... unfortunately though, traffic drowned their excited yelling and obviously I didn't see them... so we all caught up at the Chittaway pub (& had a few beers before continuing in our dreams...).

The ride was lovely - weaving along the waterway on the cycle path to Long Jetty & then all the way up to the Entrance where we stopped for coffee. Fuelled on coffee we rode back the same way & continued on to Tor's house in Forresters beach where we all drank lots of water, after which, Amanda picked up her car & I waved bye to the lovely bunnies and rode on home.

Someone at the back really wants to be in the photo...

Tor & Amanda near Long Jetty

This coffee bunny's got attitude :)

I am So allowed another coffee - my iPhone says I can!

It wasn't me...

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Mini Bunny Rides...

The kids and I have been on a few little rides close to home, checking out the horses and ducks across the road & riding to the local library. Ben is definitely due for a bigger bike: at the moment he's riding with his knees up near his ears poor kid, funny how they grow so quickly!

We went on one sunny adventure which involved a mix of road, pathway, roadworks and even some lovely scenery thrown in for good measure. Crossing the Pacific Hwy was precarious to say the least, with roadworks and a new crossing to contend with and lots of traffic. Once we got to the other side things quietened down and even the ducks came out to say hello...

Crossing the Hwy...

Cruising down the bike path :)

Apart from a bunch of solo rides this concludes our rides for 2010.

Happy riding to all of you in 2011!

Annette :)

Happy New Year 2011

2011-01-05T04:31:00.000+11:00

Welcome to our new look Biking Blog!

The Biker Bunnies needed a facelift and with a new year it definitely seemed like a good time :) Things have been a bit quiet here on the blog for a while, although we have been on a number of rides since the Spring Cycle... Pre-Christmas madness meant that work ended up being too busy to find time to put the photos up here... so next post will be a summary of a few of our latest escapades :)

Hope you're all well and looking forward to another adventurous year on 2 wheels!

Annette :)

Spring Cycle 2010

2010-10-25T00:53:00.071+11:00

The Spring Cycle event was yet again attended by the Biker Bunnies. Sunday 17th October dished up a beautifully sunny morning, where we jostled with more than 10,000 other enthusiastic early-birds on two wheels, and made our way from North Sydney to Homebush along the back streets of Sydney.

There was talk (prior to the ride) of there being a collision of sorts with the coronation taking place on the same day (North Sydney in particular, expected to be visited by many), I thought we may be able to get through crowds swiftly by dressing as bunny-eared nuns - luckily we didn't, (a long black flowing outfit would most definitely have resulted in a tangled mess well before the harbour bridge) because, as it turned out the coronation supporters were not quite as early out of the sack as the spring cycle attendees...

EDIT: Oh dear... after being picked up (ever so correctly) by both Amanda and Lost in Space, I'm adding this correction to the coronation that never was.... *cough* it was a canonization - NOT a coronation! So to all of you who are busy waving your new Aussie monarchy gadgets about -you need to put them back in the draw this minute! :D

Our bicycle morning passed through some wonderful scenery where we managed all sorts of interesting observations, which you'll find in Amanda's ride update below:

Statistics

Bunnies on board - Amanda, Noey, Tor, Matt & Annette

Meeting place - Wahroonga station 5:55am (train to North Sydney)

Start - 6:50am

Finish - 10:20am onwards

Distance - 53km

Speed - 18km/h average 44km/h max

Calories - 1761

Heart rate - 128 average 170 max

Weather - Lovely!

I seriously think there is something wrong with me lately – fancy getting up at 4.15 am to go on a bike ride! But oh what a beautiful day it turned out to be. Matt and I greeted Noelle at 5am in the dark and set off on our merry way to Wahroonga to meet up with Tori labori and Netty poletti. Along the way, cold and dark we spotted a sleeping drunk and lots of youngsters spilling out of the Woodport – those were the days when we had not a care in the world!

Matt drove which was rather refreshing for me on these morning hikes and we met the girls and managed to get to the train station with a few minutes to spare. Noelle discovered that we hadn't put her wheel on properly (trust me – must stop using the bunny in distress and learn how things work) and I am not sure if it was mechanic Annette or Tor who fixed it. In actual fact neither did because when we got to North Sydney Noelle went straight to the biker mechanic. Poor Collette couldn't join us today, after planning for months how to come and get James babysit. It all fell through at the last minute so this ride was for you Collette.

We got to the starting line and the weather was getting warmer, we cycled over the harbour bridge half together half not – but as usual it is an exhilarating experience and I think this is one of my favourite rides. Nobody seemed to be dressed up except us with our bunny ears and we experienced all sorts of comments:

Easter bunny – but it’s not Easter.
Go the Rabbidohs (as if).
Playboy bunnies – unfortunately for us it was said by an older creepy guy who invited Annette and I back to his Playboy mansion at Woy Woy – yuk and he actually told me to take off my clothes at the end of the ride (whilst he was drinking a beer) – he also cycled behind us a bit of the way staring at our pert bottoms – well Annette’s is pert mine, is a bit flabby.
Bunnies on heat (or something similar).
Lots of comments on how people loved our ears.
One guy cycled behind me saying, "got up this morning and did my check – bike, helmut, drink bottle etc but I knew there was something I forgot – damn – it was my bunny ears" – he kept saying this which made me laugh for a little while.

Matt cycled most of the way with a bunch of weird girls giggling and Noelle who hadn't cycled in over a year put her head down and achieved a fantastic ride in fantastic time. Well done to all of the girls and the BOY and I look forward to next year – YES including YOU NOELLE! (big hand pointing at you).

Photos:

Sunscreen & Bunny-ear adjustments on the train

All lined up at the start in North Sydney

Sun shining on 'team leader'

Bunny Tor crossing the harbour bridge

... & here come Noey & Amanda

First snack stop at Pyrmont

Looking for goodies in the bag...

Bunny ears galore...

Cruising into Bray's reserve for a pick-me-up Voltaren

Doing fabulously!

Bunny Banana & Matt on a Mission

We did it!

Matt at the finish!

2 silly sprinters cross the finish line (again...)

Matt & Amanda across the finish line

Wave to the crowd!

We did it!! Fabulous Tor & Noey cross the line

A kiss for the champion

Wearing that medal & a silly grin...

All smiles on the train back to Wahroonga

Need that coffee NOW!

Favourite part of the ride – riding over the harbour bridge

Least favourite – getting up in the dark

Most disgusting – a young boy with snot hanging from his nose spread across his cheek

Funniest – riding past the punters being kicked out of the pubs with their bleary eyes as they realise it is morning (7.30am) and the seeing a bunch of mad women in bunny ears cycle past

The train trip home was rather hilarious as Matt led us all the way to the end of the train just so he could get the carriage to himself and then we all giggled until we reached Wahroonga for our lunch at our fave little café...

All up it was a fabulous experience and a great ride - leaving that bit earlier certainly made for a 'smoother' ride compared to last year's jostling for space on the road :) - Getting the GOLD medal at the end was definitely an exciting finale - especially after racing Amanda to the finish line in true Tour de France style (I think we got a tad carried away screaming down the final stretch, but it was so much fun it was impossible to resist)! Well done to all of you and look forward to our next ride.

Amanda & Annette :)

Mt Penang Cycling Muster

2010-09-26T17:59:00.003+10:00

Sunday 19th September Mt Penang Cycling Muster
What a fabulous day we had at the Mt Penang Cycling muster - offered for free to us by the same group who organised the bicycle confidence workshop last October: Northern Sydney Central Coast Area Health Service.

A few quick stats

Attending Bunnies: Amanda, Diane & Annette
Total attendees: 30+
Meeting Place: Mt Penang Parklands
Muster workshop duration: 9am - 12 noon
Cycling distance: 8km (approx - including to & from event)
Calories burnt: 525
Heart rate: 158 max 92 average

The muster congregated opposite the Waterfall café near Mt Penang Gardens - at 9am on this slightly overcast Sunday morning.

Diane and Annette & cycled to the event (just across the road from home...), and Amanda drove up the hill to meet us with a bag full of laughs and slight dose of disorganisation: She'd arrived without her wallet and registration papers... but then absent-minds seemed to flourish; as I fell out of bed with less than 30 minutes to get ready; sent a "what are you wearing" text to Amanda before dashing out to my bike with my son holding my half-eaten banana and unlocking my bike for me... Diane left one of her registration forms at home as well, but was too excited to worry about it as she'd just cycled across the Central Coast highway to get to the event... We were all most eager to get started! During our check-in we were welcomed, ticked off the list and also got a brand new bright yellow hi-vis vest with reflector tape and the slogan "Get Back on Your Bike" on the back! Feeling spoilt and highly visible we waited for the introduction talk on the grass...

Introduction time...

Stage 1
The muster attendees were split into 3 groups (advanced, intermediate and beginners), somehow we landed ourselves in the advanced group and started our 'gears, hills & hand-signals run' by almost falling off our bikes (all excitement, no focus...). Our instructor had us weave between orange cones, cycle in single-file and give clear "this is what I intend to do signals" to our fellow riders, which prompted much laughing from a few silly bunnies in the group. After failing to react to the "Passing" signal (last weekend during the Newcastle to Dungog ride), I did my best to over-compensate, while Diane braved signalling right-hand turns & Amanda cycled along in pro-style (being clipped in et all).

After a few safe laps around the duck pond it was time to go further a-field and take on the big hill. By this time Amanda was getting worried "Is it like Kariong hill....?" she asked... I'd cycled through the grounds on a number of occasions but couldn't for the life of me remember what the hill was like, so I hesitated... which instantly confirmed the hill as very long and very steep. Little did it help that, Diane, who was riding her "Amsterdam special" bicycle, was told she wouldn't make it up the hill without gears and so had to wait at the top while the rest of the group careered down the hill in a spaced out fashion. Turns out the hill was neither very long nor very steep, but it was still a fun part of the exercise (and in hind-sight we figured that "Amsterdam special" would have made it as well). With 45minutes gone it was time to make our way back to the muster area for stage two...

Bunnies in new hi-vis vests...

Stage 2

Stage two was all about technical riding skills. Our instructor took us to the roundabout and showed us how to take fast corners (approach the roundabout at high speed, lean on the outside leg as you veer around the bend without losing balance or hitting anyone within a 50m radius...). This was a new skill for many of us and it was very exciting to feel that (although there's still room to perfect the technique) it actually makes a huge difference! Both Amanda and I agreed that we'd been leaning on the wrong leg before today, so this was a welcome addition to things we need to practice.

After our 'cornering practice' it was time to move on to group riding skills... We lined up in single-file and set off with our instructor at the front. We practised changing leader, pointing out debris on the road, signalling where to go and when to stop. There were quite a few laughs along the way as we 'lost' part of the group and then became a bit over-enthusiastic in 'pointing out' things along the way. After single-file riding it was time for a trial run of two-abreast "bunch riding". Our instructor, who was very informative and helpful, talked about the speeds you can reach when riding in a group like this and how professional riders will protect their 'sprinters' in the middle of the group so they are 'fresh' for the run to the finish line. With no lack of imagination - we felt highly peletonish as we zoomed yet another lap around the duck pond before meeting up at the muster area for stage three of our workshop morning.

Note the Amsterdam special vintage bike

Stage 3
Stage three was all about bicycle maintenance... Our instructor showed us how to fit our seat height, how to use a plomb to see if your seat is too far forward or too far back (or just right...). He then talked us through a list of maintenance checks:

Keeping the chain nicely oiled (but not too greasy)
Adjusting the breaks
Adjusting the gears
Checking the tyre pressure (and using the pump to put more air in)
Helmet adjustment

As the other two groups came back, one lady performed a stunt trick: Her back tyre exploded with a monumental BANG!! We all jumped and some of us screamed... then the instructors assessed the situation thinking this may be a perfect opportunity to demonstrate fixing a flat... alas the whole tyre was split to bits, so fixing the inner-tube was put on hold - so instead we were told that this incident demonstrated only too clearly how hazardous it can be to use Petrol Station Pumps - a definite no-no as the pressure cannot be trusted...

The workshop concluded with a photo shoot near the Mt Penang Gardens and most of us stayed for a cup of coffee and a chat in the Waterfall café. On top of our fashionable hi-vis vests we also received a water bottle, a hand-towel and a entry pass to the gardens. As this workshop was a lot more practical compared to the first one we attended, we walked away feeling that we'd learnt new things, had a great time and been given lots of great hints (and treats) to try out in the near future - our instructors were friendly, positive & professional and provided us with a really good experience.

Couldn't resist the mirror photo...

Bicycle muster group shot at the end...

Happy riding all and thanks for a great day!
Annette, Amanda & Diane :)

Newcastle to Dungog 90km

2010-09-14T22:03:00.004+10:00

A 90km charity ride from Nobbys beach in Newcastle to the main street in Dungog...

Ride Stats:
Bunnies on board: Amanda & Annette
Distance cycled: 90km
Depart Newcastle: 6:45 am
Arrive Dungog: 12:30 pm
Time cycling: 5 hours 5 min
Total time: 5 hours 45 min
Calories burnt: 3000
Heart Rate: 164 max 132 average
Speed: 46.8km/h max 19km/h average

Before we dive into the tale of the adventure itself; here's a quick look at the map (and the elevation) of the ride to Dungog:

The Map:

Here's Amanda to take you through the first 50 kms of our ride:

The first hurdle for me was to work out how to get up at 3.15 am to go on a bike ride. I know I enjoy riding but to me that was a tad ridiculous … so rather than catch the 4.20am train I decided to drive which gave me until 4am to sleep (normally my bed time on the weekend), a much better alternative. Having been proofing and editing for most of Thursday and Friday afternoon I knew I would be tired so luckily for me I fell asleep by 9.30 – had a fairly good night's sleep and awoke ready for a challenge. Drove to Tuggerah in the dark to pick up Annette and went to the wrong side of the train station so poor bunny was cold and tired and had to come over to meet me. We attach Netti’s bike to the bike rack and set off on our merry way. We soon discovered that we both had chronic tooth pain and were acting tough to keep the pain at bay. Laughing all along the freeway we missed our turn-off to Newcastle and managed to find our way to Nobbys Beach by 6.05 am (God knows how, because neither of us knew where we going – especially Annette who happily told me she had worked in Newcastle for ten years and was sure she could direct us – NEVER listen to her directions!) – it was actually quite beautiful at this time of the morning & Netti and I prepared ourselves for mounds and mounds of riders, as they were expecting 500 but only 150 registered... We soon discovered how out of place we were when:

Annette was riding, wait for it – a mountain bike and
I was riding, God forbid, a kind of hybrid road bike and
We were not appropriately attired.

In the car park a couple pulled up two bays beside us and refused to look at us or even smile and lots more road bikers did the same. I cannot believe how snobby and unfriendly they were. We had prepared ourselves for this but didn’t actually expect so much snobbery!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Then a rather delicious man in a BMW pulled up opposite, got his bike gear ready and came over and asked if we were ok (either we looked so out of place or he fancied a bit of hanky panky) – I replied that we were fine so far and he said just to take it one step at a time – maybe he thought we couldn’t do it – WELL WE PROVED THEM ALL WRONG!

So off we trundle with our new shoes and pedals to the starting line and we discover that instead of five groups as promised there were only three and to be honest there only needed to be two groups – US and THEM. There were only about 7 people there who were not serious road racers and this made US rather nervous. These two ladies who were lining up next to us standing there all rather jolly and thinking the same thing, and... (as we found out when we met up with them for coffee in Dungog) disappointed at the lack of 'ribbons' on bikes! I spoke with one inspirational man who had just finished a night shift at Hunter Hospital and was doing the ride on his own. So we discovered there were at least three nice chatty people who we did see a little along the way and a man with the number 70 kept passing us and nodding and he even smiled at me at the café in Dungog.

I also found out that when a cyclist is trying to pass Annette and shouts ‘passing’ she stays in her spot (or goes into the middle of the lane) and makes them nearly get hit by a car on the freeway as they try and get around her.

So now to the ride – the first 50km were absolutely awesome – lots of speed and small hills along the freeway and Annette and I managed to ride together all the way. We passed a lot of racers sat on the side of the road fixing punctures or tightening their seats and I even smiled and asked one guy if he needed any help – me who can’t even put my chain on! He looked at me as if to say – you are not even on a road bike (I just pulled a face full of disdain then).

At the rest stop

We stopped at around 48km for a drink, a banana and a wee and Annette left me in the toilet talking to myself while she stood outside laughing. There was a young girl waiting and I thought we were all alone so I was rambling on about crap and telling Annette she didn’t even have the decency to answer me … blah blah blah. I was feeling really good at this stage and was even considering going to a party that night but then our ride on the freeway came to an end and we turned off on to BUCKETS WAY – the beginning of my HELL! Before we did that, we cycled past my inspirational night shift man and Annette said that she said to him that ‘if the coffee hadn’t set in she would meet him for a quickie’ – we both nearly fell off our bikes laughing.

Amanda :)

BUCKETS WAY and over to Annette

What a beautiful undulating road it was - Buckets way... Truly the first 20 or so kilometres were very similar to the terrain we cycle around the coast (undulating....), and even though Amanda may have forgotten; she did exclaim with glee "Oh we know this!" as we embarked on the first few gentle hills - though this was before the road turned to craters, potholes, bigger hills and and an edge shot to bits...

The scenic road...

As we left Buckets way and turned on to Limeburners Creek Road, pedalling further and further into a deserted countryside; the road followed suit and literally fell apart before our eyes. Worst was careering downhill full speed with no way of avoiding the many dips and bumps along the way - We screamed our way down the biggest hills (small part exhilaration - big part sheer terror!), somehow Lady Luck got us through with no stacks.

The mysterious clanking sound was back in my pedals, but thankfully it was random and didn't have the feel of 'this bike will self-destruct in 3 - 2 - 1... BANG!' about it, so I kept pedalling and managed to block out the sound most of the time... and then Amanda brought out her bag of jelly-beans!! We cycled up and down hills comparing favourite colours (white are the best, followed closely by, orange, yellow, blue, red, black, purple and even green...).

Biker Bunny endorsing jellybeans

more free product placement...

Cycling along we marvelled at how easy it was to clip in and out of our new pedals. Considering how little time we'd had to get used to the pedals and shoes, we were doing FINE! Numb toes was the only little glitch on the clipless horizon, which we remedied by stopping, taking off our shoes and lying flat on our backs on the deserted country road (although Amanda wasn't quite flat on her back thanks to the 2 water bottles in her back pocket...) - Just as we were getting ready to do some serious cloud watching.... deserted country road decides to dish up a CAR out of nowhere... So to avoid ending up completely flat; we clambered up, got back in our shoes and braved the road again, with toes feeling slightly happier.

Made it to the top of yet another hill!

The bumpy road...

...the beautiful countryside we rode through

We waved and said hello to the many lovely volunteers, who were spaced out along the way offering encouragement and showing us where to go. As we chatted with two very nice volunteers at the 18km to go mark; Amanda raised her concern about the number of 'serious' riders dumping their rubbish along the way: energy food & gel wrappers, water bottles, bananas and even a pair long pants (!) Desperate weight minimisation (if that's what it was) seems a tad over the top; especially on a charity bike ride and particularly as cycling is supposed to be environmentally friendly... NOT COOL! We all agreed and went on to brave the next hill...

If you eat enough jelly-beans you hallucinate and see things up trees - like big Goannas! No that wasn't a hallucination - I actually spotted one and slammed on my breaks to take a photo, realized I was still clipped into my pedals and nearly hit the road in stand-still mode... somehow I got out of my pedals & even managed to capture the goanna as he looked down and waved from the tree.

A waving goanna...

We were stared at by cows, horses and goats (Amanda even tried to race a few in her delirious state towards the end...) as we clanked, pedalled and laughed our way along the deserted country road getting closer to Dungog with every pedal stroke. At one point we cycled past a big ute with a shady guy in a big hat standing beside the road (and a couple of 'touristy' looking people next to him), Amanda and I both looked at each other and said "Wolf Creek!!" pedalling off at speeds we didn't know we were capable of! A good imagination is sometimes useful if it helps you trick your body :D.

Amanda's chain fell off at one point; damsel in distress signals travel fast through the bush as she'd barely stepped off her bike before Mr Fixit arrived in his ute (not wolf creek man!) popped the chain on, and had her back on her bike in no time at all! The biggest hill of all was saved for last - it wound it's way up, up and further up into the clouds. Someone reported seeing a black snake on this hill, others went into complete delirium, while others again just pedalled on telling themselves that the top of the hill is just around that bend, or no just around the next bend.... oh bugger, maybe the NEXT bend then!! Although it was steep, the scenery was quite beautiful... and from the top we had the rewarding ride into Dungog: another mad downhill run followed by the flat cruise into town.

Only 4 km to go!

We made it into Dungog just before 12:30 (well before the 1:30 cut-off time...) and cycled down the main street on our very last legs looking for the balloons, fanfares and big sign "YOU MADE IT", only to find out (by one of the friendly volunteers, who did come up to us and give us the 'well done!' we so wanted to hear), that the 'serious' racers had had their BBQ and packed up and left... Feeling slightly forgotten, however soon turned into a treat when the friendly volunteer guy had a chat with the 'sag-wagon' driver Bill, who offered us a lift back to Newcastle (saved us waiting for the train)! We had coffee in Dungog with Bill and the two lovely ladies we'd met at the start, and then a very happy chatty lift back to Nobbys beach in Newcastle.

We made it!!!

...coffee in Dungog with Bill & the girls

By this time Amanda must have forgotten about not taking directions from me (or she was trying to give me a second chance..) somehow I had us weaving down the long way instead of the F3 and am now formally banned from giving directions - poor Amanda!

It was a fabulous ride and although tired at the end it was definitely worth every minute!
Stay safe and happy cycling

Annette :)

Loop the Lake

2010-08-23T21:46:00.005+10:00

The Ride in Stats...
Loop the Lake - Long Jetty - Toukley - Tuggerah - Long Jetty

Bunnies on Board - Amanda & Annette
Distance cycled - 45km
Time cycling - 2 hours 34 min
Time it actually took to loop the lake - 3 hours 55 min!
Calories burnt - 1363
Heart rate - Max: 173 Average: 110
Speed - Max: 38.5 km/h Average: 17.2 km/h

Back in the Southern part of the world, after 5 weeks of sneaking away from the winter chills, it was a treat to embark on a new riding adventure with bunny Amanda. As we've just registered to go in the 90km Newcastle to Dungog ride (in less than 3 weeks time) we decided, on this fine sunny Friday morning, to do a slightly longer ride than the Gosford to WoyWoy cruise to help us 'get ready for the big one...'

We met in the carpark at Long Jetty and unloaded our bikes. I showed Amanda a new mad gadget I found online... the Dog-Off.. This funny little thing is a training device, completely harmless to both humans and animals, designed to train pet dogs who bark (I know, I know - I don't have a dog!)... Anyway, the gadget features an ultrasonic beeper (inaudible to humans, but dogs can hear it) and a loud alarm to alert people (help) and scare off an attacking dog - this was the bit got my attention, as I have nightmares about being chased by dogs whilst cycling through semi-isolated areas on my own... The online description said it was particularly useful for cyclists, meter-readers & early morning walkers... So as we laughed our heads off and pondered how this novel thing would work, I stuffed it in my bag and we got ready to leave the carpark.

Amanda showing of her iPhone case at the start

Our first pitstop was just up the road where we tried to pump Amanda's tyres with a service station pump designed for anything but Black Beauty's skinny wheels.Failing to put even a smidgeon of air in her tyres, she decided to brave the land of softish wheels, and so we continued towards The Entrance and beyond. It actually was truly wonderful, the weather was perfect and the undulating terrain toward Toukley is blissful to cycle, it really is...

There's a big bridge at Toukley (with amazing, windy views from the top...), but this bunny decided the ultimate photo opportunity was before the bridge and the ultimate views... this meant that we had two photo stops with very little space in between. Getting a bit too excited about taking photos, we almost ended up with a drowned camera, but luckily Amanda stopped me from placing the camera on the bridge railing to take a 'group photo' - it would most definitely have blown off and landed in the drink!

Pre-bridge photo opportunity...

Amanda near Toukley bridge

Two bunnies ON the bridge...

... and the view from the now famous bridge

Cycling through Toukley was exciting; water was clearly visible on both sides between the houses on either side of the main street which made the scenery quite spectacular! We cruised on up a steep hill where poor Amanda was pushed to the limit as she didn't want to stop half way up the hill in full view of a domestic argument taking place on the other side of the road. Time to catch that breath and find a cycle shop where Amanda finally got some air in her tyres. She will tell you she gained a foot in height, as she zoomed down the road towards H.C. Anderson land and Wyong.

Along the cycleway (an absolutely lovely stretch of separate cycleway between Wyong and Tuggerah) we almost collided with a car - parked, doors open, right in the middle of the pathway - I made some comment as I swerved around the car, only to get past the car... and see a dad with a kid that obviously had brought the car to a stop with a session of unpredicted projectile vomiting! Oh dear I thought, let's hope they didn't hear me as it was clear they had well enough on their plate already.

Amanda found an unexpected helper coming up onto Wyong road, where the hilly finish had a supportive passenger in a car wind down their window and yell: "You can do it! You can do it!" We continued in happy spirits all the way to the cycle path along the lake at Chittaway bay, where we parked our bums on a bench for a quick snack and a breather.... There were a couple of dogs barking and just out of curiosity I aimed the Dog-off gadget in their general direction and pushed the silent button to see what would happen - they stopped barking! We decided we'd leave while we could still believe it was the gadget that did it (Amanda already seeing her furry friend at home wearing this little gem around her neck...). We gritted down and cruised the last 10 or so km back to the Long Jetty carpark to make it a 45k ride with a delicious coffee waiting around the corner (where we seriously thought we would fall asleep and have to be carried off the premises).

Pelicans posing along the cycleway

Cruising along the last bit of cycleway

On the way home I dropped my bike in for a service (a mysterious clunking sound in the pedals...) and it looks as though I (in my not so clear-headed state) asked the helpful bike shop man to fit some cleats as well... oh dear, next post may well be more adventurous than I care to think of...

Fabulous to be back riding and hope to have more bunnies back on board too!

Annette :)

... and from bunny Amanda's saddle:

What a morning … Annette has covered most things but I shall just add my tuppence worth

I was so looking forward to this ride as I hadn’t seen or ridden with Netti for over 6 weeks and I was itching for an adventure..

First photo of the day...

Whilst we were trying to pump up my tyres I noticed that my back wheel was out of alignment so Annette and I clashed bicycle helmets on numerous occasions whilst we try to realign the wheel – this means that I had been cycling with a dodgy wheel for two weeks how funny!

A few things that caught my notice – mainly the ride through Toukley was one of the scariest cycling moments I have experienced and of all places to happen it had to be on a hill when I was tired. Annette was already up the top of the hill before I had got a quarter of the way up and as I looked up I saw this young lad running across the road and head towards a young girl who screamed about 4-5 times – you f**** C*** - unfortunately for me I had just stopped pedaling out of sheer exhaustion but this certainly got me going again. There were old ladies lined up on their balconies watching and one old lady walking looked at me and tutted as if to say “here we go again”. Sad that that was part of their daily life!

Safely out of Toukley we headed along the freeway (I think) and pulled up to some traffic lights – Annette ahead and me close behind. On the side of the road was the black guy from the herbal essence ad (well that’s who he reminded me of) and he was cruising down the road with his headphones in. He looked up and saw Annette, stopped and mumbled mmmmmmm and then looked at me stopped and mumbled mmmmmmmmmmmmm. What a pleasant young man I thought.

My final point is when I was cycling in the wrong gear up the underpass and I was pulling an atrocious face full of agony when a young lad wound his window down and shouted ‘ you can do – a little bit harder and you will be there” – he could quite easily have taken the mick out of me in a nasty way.

Anyway that is the end of our 45km ride, we are still preparing for our big 90km one from Newcastle to Dungog and even thinking about cleats and bike shoes. Gosh we do take this seriously!!!!!

Amanda :)

Update from the North

2010-07-24T00:21:00.001+10:00

Over the last few weeks I've had the pleasure and joy to ride around the Swedish countryside on a borrowed bicycle (thanks to my sister-in-law who kindly and bravely has let me use her bike). It really has been wonderful to jump on a bike in the middle of all the busy things one does while travelling around. Trips to beaches, and general exploration (read getting lost) escapades into the summery countryside. I won't bore you with all the details of the 350km I've clocked up so far, but a few interesting things may be fun to add:

Cycle on the 'right' side of the road (not left) - this was very tricky in the beginning especially for someone as un-coordinated with left and right as I am... I had one very close shave with a lady on a bike (on a cycle path mind you) where I practically ran the poor thing down trying to decide which side I had to pass her on.
Cars really do leave room for cyclists - I've marvelled at cars (and trucks) giving me so much room when they overtake that they're actually driving on the wrong side of the road! Calls for a friendly wave each time :)
Bikes - lots of people ride them - they ride to work, to school, to the shops - which means every public place is full of bicycle stands. Kids on bikes, old ladies on bikes - they really are everywhere :)

One road I've travelled a fair bit is a long flat 25km stretch of country road (destination: red farmhouse by the forest where my husband was born). On one hand the flat road gives a fabulous opportunity to take in the surroundings, but then there is the WIND (no hiding from a strong wind on a flat open road...).Riding to the farm generally involves a steady head wind (buckle down and pedal hard), while the trip back to town is a blow-in experience and delightfully zippy ride :)

pretty narrow shoulder here...

photo opportunity on the long straight road

Must say it was delightful to read about Amanda and Matt's ride the other week! Hope you're all well and I look forward to more bunny rides in a very short time indeed!

Annette :)

Gossie to The Woy with Matt

2010-07-10T12:28:00.009+10:00

Well, this started at rather a fast pace with Matt steaming ahead and me thinking had I done the right thing. Matt can only do everything at one pace and that is FAST!!!!! We made it to Woy Woy for coffee in a smashing 35 minutes and I, with no breath, panting and near to death had a double shot coffee. The ride out was uneventful as we were going so bloody fast and I did race Matt a bit of the way, I must admit.

The bike ride back was an extremely eventful event with swearing and a near death experience for my poor husband. Firstly, little ole me was actually on the footpath cycling when some idiot shouted 'BIKE WANKERS' - mmmm how pleasant. When I told Jake this he laughed and said it could be an INBETWEENERS take off i.e. BUS WANKERS.

Then, when Matt and I were doing a little 'see who can cruise the furthest down the hill' by Point Clare something rather dramatic and scary happened. Matt nearly had a head on collision with another cyclist. The idiot came out of the train station and without looking cycled straight into the path of Matt speeding down the hill. Quick thinking Matt slammed on his brakes and skidded in the gravel narrowly missing the idiot who didn't even flinch, look up or say sorry. So I shouted out 'Bloody Idiot' and he just cylced off in his own world. So not only do we have to look out for mad car drivers, selfish pedestrians but now mad cyclists.

Anyway, time to sign off, Annette I hope you are continuing your cycling and ready to tackle a biggun on your return. Miss your company - see you soon!

Commuter Challenge 2010

2010-07-01T01:11:00.001+10:00

Hello all Biker Bunnies :)

This is a quick little update post with an incentive for you all...
A little while back I got this email from Bicycle NSW with a link to register for the 2010 Commuter Challenge... I thought it could be a fun thing to try - and so I registered, received my e-logbook and started filling in rides...
Once I'd clocked up the 500km I emailed my handy-dandy logbook back to the organisers and thought that would be it until maybe they'd let us know at the end of the year how many people had completed the challenge...

I hadn't read the fine print so the rewards at the end came as a complete surprise to me: First a certificate arrived in the mail, well that was pretty exciting I thought and sent off an email telling the organisers so. Then a week later, a GOLD medal arrived in the post! Being my first gold medal ever, I must admit I was pretty chuffed :)

So... you all have plenty of time to jump on board - the challenge goes until December this year, and if you break it into weeks - 500km isn't all that much (you'll be surprised!) Over 20 weeks you'd only need to do 25km per week. Right, enough of me being pushy - but I will pop the link here for anyone who'd like to register, and if anyone wants to see the gold medal, I'll be wearing it every day from now on :D

2010 Bicycle Commuter Challenge link

Bunny Amanda and I have been on a few adventure rides, where our latest one took us down to Ettalong (extending our Gossie to WoyWoy return ride). It was a lovely ride with coffee at Gnostic on the way back and loads of laughs along the way. Time has been cramped of late so no ride update here on that one as yet I'm afraid.

Over the next few weeks I hope to post some ride updates from the northern hemisphere, as this bunny is going travelling...

Do stay safe and well all, and happy riding!

Annette :)

Cruising to Woy Woy

2010-05-31T01:12:00.004+10:00

Another adventure along our well travelled path to Woy Woy, narrated by bunny Amanda; enjoy :)

The Ride Stats

Bunnies on board: Amanda and Annettte
Meeting place: Near Adcock Park
Distance cycled: 28.2km
Time spent cycling: 1 hour 40 min
Total adventure time: 2 hours 10 min
Calories burnt: 895
Heart rate: 119 average 173 max
Speed: 16.1 km/h average 47.6 km/h max

Being caged up in the rain certainly made Annette and I somewhat keen to get back on our bikes – even though Annette had just completed the 100km challenge. With somewhat dubious weather, as soon as we saw a break in the clouds we jumped on our bikes and set off on a gentle ride to Woy Woy and back. We passed lots of happy cyclists along the way and had a couple of laughs as Annette and I put tissue paper in our ears to try and stop the wind from giving us headaches, but Annette had to take them out because she felt like she was cycling underwater. We came across a large amount of dog poo on the path which set Annette off on a rave about ‘why didn’t they just let their dogs shit in their lounges and how rude they were.’ It WAS rather a large poo!

The detrimental tissues in ears

At our usual coffee stop at Gnostic Manna, we run into Ann Maree and some rather unusual characters. While ordering coffee Annette gets into a funny conversation with a cyclist:

Cyclist comes to a halt on the pavement and asks Annette "How are you feeling?".... "Good Good" she replies, whereby cyclist exclaims: "Well I'm feeling GREAT now that I've STOPPED!"
Then we see a large array of weirdo’s. First of all, a man dressed in full on ski-like attire starts chatting to Annette’s new cycle friend whilst he smokes a cigarette and looks like he should have a set of skis in his hand, an old man walks past in two pairs of jeans, which has Annette staring in amazement whilst he stares back at her and then a little old lady with a 10 foot turban on her head rambles past. It was almost like we were in a movie script for Jumanji or something ... vey funny indeed!

On our way home we cycled past a lady walking her dog (off the lead) and Annette disappeared into the distance as I shouted ‘The dog is not interested in you … it is not even looking at you’ – poor Annette really doesn’t like dogs which makes it difficult for me because I am not that comfortable with them either and I have to chase her every time at jaw breaking speeds. At the underpass we also passed a couple of lads who shouted ‘oooh it is slippery down here’

Then when we reached our departure point we had a giggle whilst we both tried to mount our bikes whilst pushing off with one leg and cocking the other one over the saddle … sounds rude especially since we had also been talking about places to route our bikes (but we meant root).

Unfortunately we didn’t go into another world today but once we have worked out our time frames, fantasy land here we come.

In the sun-glass world...

Amanda :)

Century Challenge

2010-05-24T22:09:00.006+10:00

A sole bunny ventures out on a 100k ride....

This bicycle event (which I found out about from Bunny Tor), is organised by the Rotary club, and starts pretty much right on my doorstep. Sadly none of our other bunnies were able to attend..., but being so close and tempting, I decided to give it a go and see where it landed me:

The Ride Stats:

Meeting place: Mt Penang 7:15 am (cold)
Start time: ~8:10 am
Finish time: ~1:30pm
Active cycling time: 5 hours 42 min (including to and from event)
Total time: 6 hours 13 min
Calories burnt: 3723
Heart rate: 145 average 174 max
Speed: 18km/hour average 53km/hour max

I got to the event registration with time to spare and had my BLUE number pinned to the back of my vest by a very helpful and encouraging volunteer. Everyone mad enough to sign up for the 100k ride wore blue numbers, while the slightly more sane riders sported a red number on their back.... I wandered around for a bit and watched other riders getting organised, there was an air of flurry and excitement - further enhanced because the PA system didn't arrive, and the organisers were forced to convey their instructions multiple times by moving about the crowd with a megaphone :) One happy bloke next to me summed up the barely audible instructions in one line: Basically Don't fall of your bike and you'll be fine!...

Just after 8:00 am the 100k riders were ready to set off (with the 40k riders due to follow at around 8:30); I'd placed myself waaaaay back in the pack, where I was able to take in the view of the more serious riders up front, hustling and bustling for a good starting position. We coasted through the park-lands and turned right into Kangoo road from where the riders spread out as everyone settled into their own pace. I quickly became aware that most of the 100k riders were men - and very, very few were riding anything other than skinny-wheeled road racing bikes... Oh dear I thought, one in a million - here I come :D

Even though my first observations had me slightly worried (sunset would arrive with me still out there pedalling to reach that elusive destination - with every other rider finished, packed up and off to enjoy a relaxing evening...), I soon discovered that although the fast and serious riders would have eaten me for breakfast, there were still lots of friendly riders (who didn't bare their teeth at me) to tag along with; making it a very enjoyable ride all round :)

The Map...

The yellow stars on the map are my banana - snake stops :)

The flashing red lights...
Some of the riders sported a flashing back light; this is such an amazingly visible gadget! However, few beat the rider I seemed to be following for most of the ride: He had a red helmet light, a red light on the back of his jacket, and.... a red light on the back of his bike - 3 red lights in a vertical line, encouraging me to pedal on... towards the end I was positively hallucinating over these 3 jumping lights, but very happy to have them in view :)

The clonking gears...
With about 65km to go, my gears started playing up - making it near impossible to get into top gear. Although annoying it didn't put a stop to the adventure - at the next drink stop a very helpful "mature" guy brought out his handy dandy multi-tool and loosened one of the derailleur screws: "Just a half-turn should do it". It didn't quite fix the problem, though I was most thankful for his effort, and soon worked out a way of tricking the gears to shift: Juggle, juggle - get into 2 - 6, then: push and hold the left gear lever (trying to get it into 3rd), while at the same time shifting into 7 on the right lever... Bit un-technical, but it worked!

The long and undulating road...
Having ridden most of these roads before (being close to home et all), I knew it was a feast in undulation - the road travels up and down, up and down and back up again, in a steady variation of sorts. The scenery is beautiful (even though it rained for a bit of the ride). The difference on this day was that there were over 500 other cyclists on the road and a bunch of happy volunteers (braving the rain) with big waving hands showing us where to go.

The hills...
My "You can get up this hill" pep-talk started with the usual: "Pass that next road marker... and then pass the next one 50 metres up.... and the next one 50 metres up... and then you've only got 3 more to go...." But nearing the end of 100km it was more like: "Pass that tree (1 metre up) and now the next tree... (half a metre up) and..... the next bloody tree..." My muscles were positively screaming - but then somehow there was this exhilarating reward - once reaching the top of the hill, energy seemed to return and I felt like flying again :)

The volunteer treats...
There were a number of drink and food stops along the way - I stopped at the one at the top of Peats Ridge road and again just passed the Kulnura store. What a delight it was to roll up to a table laden with a big box of bananas, chocolate cake and... SNAKES! One rider told me he'd worked out that he could go 5km on a snake - this is where I asked how far we had to go (38km) and so I stuffed 8 snakes in my back pocket - it worked a treat!! The ever so positive and friendly volunteers also brought a smile to my face and definitely helped as a happy encouragement.

The finish...
The last leg of the ride was a detour down to Somersby falls... I didn't stop to take in the scenery at the falls, but I did stop and chat to the lovely volunteer ladies at the bottom of the hill before braving the last hill of the day. They were kindly warning riders of the slippery road, and told me about the two guys who'd already decked it in the bend going way too fast on their "really skinny wheels"... I psyched myself up with the last snake, grit my teeth, asked the lovely ladies to wish me luck and... worked my way to the top of the hill. After that I felt I was officially on the home run - watching the trip metre on the bike computer click over to 100km actually had me in tears! Seeing Bo and the kids past the finish line - welcoming me back, was very emotional indeed - I'd done it! And although I could barely walk, it was an exhilarating feeling!

Reaching the finish line :)

This is definitely a ride I will repeat and hope to entice you bunnies into coming along! :)
Safe and happy riding to all of you!

Annette :)

Norah Head return

2010-05-10T14:24:00.002+10:00

After a few so called 'convalescing' rides to Woy Woy, Amanda comes up with a delicious offer: Ride to Norah Head light house (from Duffy's oval in Terrigal) and back again. I thought this was a fabulous idea as the road up that way is gloriously undulating and the scenery is positively beautiful! For those of you who haven't yet ridden along the road north of the Entrance, you really must come on a ride; most of the way has a generous shoulder and although there are some hills you can maintain a nice steady pace because the road goes DOWN as well as UP :)

The Ride Stats
Friday 7th May 2010

Bunnies on board - Amanda and Annette
Meeting place - Duffy's Oval Terrigal
Distance cycled - 58km
Time cycling - 3 hours 10 minutes
Total adventure time - 4 hours 15 minutes
Speed - Maximum: 40.9km/h Average: 18.1km/h
Heart rate - Maximum: 168 Average: 121
Calories burnt - 1650

The Map

Friday dished up a lovely Autumn morning; sun shining from blue skies and a road waiting to be explored. Despite that we both had lingering colds we were excited, and so we set off with determination and glee written on our faces.

The first killer hill comes at the top of Ocean View road, it takes you by surprise as it sort of stages up in 3 levels - the last bit up to the roundabout being quite steep - if you're in the wrong gear it pretty much turns into a case of get off your bike or roll backwards...It is a short hill though, and straight after (once you cross the busy road at the roundabout) you land on the oh so smooth bike path which takes you all the way down to the Tumbi Rd roundabout - definitely a reward section of the ride :)

We meandered along, laughing at all sorts of things - and managed to get on to the bike track at Long Jetty without any major obstacles. Riding along the path way we spotted a cop car parked inconspicuously by the side of the pathway (naturally it was waiting for Amanda... and I, being her 'police-escort', was supposed to deliver her to the car without causing too much of a kurfuffle... ), failing my mission we stopped by THE Long Jetty.... and took some photos - whereby the next alert to my failed mission cycled past in the shape of 2 cops on mountain-bikes. I decided that I would play vague and continue the ride with my "escortee".

The Long Jetty at Long Jetty...

Lovely water views :)

Cops on bicycles disappearing in the distance

Gung ho Amanda rearing to continue riding

Having officially become deserters of an undefined mission (elaborate at your leisure), we reached The Entrance in shorter time than expected (even though we did have quite a few short stops along the way). We had a group meeting to decide on where to go from here... Lingering colds played a part in the possibility of turning around and making it a shorter ride, yet the road beyond the Entrance bridge beckoned to us and we soldiered on towards Soldiers Beach...

I could rave about the road (Amanda will say I'm MAD) as it is a truly lovely stretch, but instead of boring you with the details I'll just say COME for a ride; you're bound to love it! :)

Central Coast Hwy at Magenta

Isn't Magenta just a lovely name for a place?

We made it all the way up to the lighthouse at Norah Head, with amazing views and a fruit and sesame snap snack as our halfway reward. While we were admiring the view and thinking about booking a weekend in the lighthouse accommodation; I realised that time was going to be short getting back in time for my son's school assembly presentation... ouch!

Blissful ocean seen through trees at Norah head

The lighthouse

The lighthouse obscured by a bunny

Amanda in front of the lighthouse accommodation.

Return trip was slightly rushed, yet still very enjoyable. Poor Amanda looked quite exhausted as we neared the end of our adventure, yet she deserves a big pat on the back for enduring close to 60 km after 2 months of recuperating (with only a few shorter rides up her sleeve) from her back injury - well done bunny!.

I made it home - unloaded bike and walked (stumbled) up to the school, getting there at the tail end of the assembly item which was lucky, good and a happy ending to a lovely day out :)

Safe and happy riding to all of you!

Annette :)

Gossie to Woy Woy

2010-04-30T12:17:00.013+10:00

Friday morning bike ride

Oh what fun
Thought bunny Dollikins
As she jumped out of bed with glee

The weather man said ‘possibly some showers’
But not enough to dampen the spirits of the Friday bike rider

So in her car she jumped, with Black Beauty safely in the boot
Off to Gossie to meet rider Netti Poletti

Mmmmm the clouds look grey
But hey
Haven’t ridden in a while
And don’t want to be a party pooper

So out comes Black Beauty and the red riding jacket
And off I ride
To meet Netti Poletti
Otherwise known as The Terminator

Ting Ting Ting Ting goes my bell
Ting Ting Ting Ting
As I try to cycle past two pedestrians
Deaf to the sound of the tolling bell

Then out in the distance
I saw someone just like me
In fact if I had two ponytails
It could have indeed been me

Sporting matching attire
We laughed and laughed
As we both realized
We were biking twins

Both in red jackets
Black pants and long black tops
We cycled along laughing at our display

Of matching wardrobe 'oh what a faux pas'

'Coffee break' shouts Netti
As we pull up at the Bay
'Yummy' shouts Dolly
As she wishes the clouds away

Then it came from nowhere
The drip drip drip
Of the eternal rain drop
Wetting our bikes and dampening our hearts

Laughter follows
As Netti grunts a reply
Oh I Know……..

If only you were there

The rain decided to continue
So we jumped on our bikes
And drenched and cold
We reached our destination

Silly biker bunnies
That is no way
To get over
The flu and an ear infection

Best get a cuppa tea
Or another coffee
Into ya
As they say in OZ

Amanda the rain Gnome

Red Jacket two

Amanda :)

and... just a quick note from the other soaked bike rider...
Our Riding Stats...

Distance cycled ~ 28.2 km
Maximum Speed - 55.3 km/h (that would be down Kariong Hill ;) )
Average Speed - 18 km/h
Time Cycling - 1 hour 34 min
Total Adventure Time - 2 hours 30 min
Calories burnt - 932
Heart Rate - 118 average 174 max
Weather - very wet second half

Wouldn't it be great if sunnies came with little windscreen wipers? Auto-sensory things that wiped your vision clear from splashing raindrops and blurring vision. Uhming and ahring about which was better (sunnies off = eyes full of water and can't see a thing... sunnies on = no water in eyes, but still can't see much), I opted for a bit of both and somehow found my way home. Despite the rain it was a lovely ride - we laughed a lot and Amanda got to use her bell twice as much as she decided mine (not really working) sounded like it was drunk.

Here's an exciting link for anyone up for a challenge: Ride 500km before the end of the year and you can win stuff and get a certificate! Simply register and record your rides :)

Bicycle NSW Commuter Challenge
Register here

Happy riding all and stay safe
Annette :)

My First Annette Free Blog Post - EVER!

2010-04-23T12:34:00.005+10:00

Annette is tied up in the office whilst I take over the computer and her well organised office and I reorganise the world as created by the biker bunnies (not according to Garp) ..... I am very excited about my new adventure into a world created whilst my feet are firmly on the ground (Annettes are in the air flaying around trying to escape the coils of my well tied Granny knots) ...sipping coffee and eating chocolate cake ..... I hope you will support me in my mutiny................xxxxx (evil laugh ha ha haaaaaaaaaaaaaa)

Friday stroll to Woy Woy

2010-04-12T21:59:00.003+10:00

The Ride
Gosford to WoyWoy return - 26th April 2010

Bunnies on board: Amanda and Annette
Meeting place: Gosford pool
Distance cycled: Amanda: 24km Annette 33km
Speed: 16 km/h average 45 km/h max
Time riding: 2 hours 20 min
Time it took us all up: 3 hours 30 min
Calories burnt: 1213
Heart rate: 115 average 173 max

With bunny-Amanda still in recovery mode with her ligament-outed back, we met up on this fine Friday morning to ride to Woy Woy and back... We had arranged to meet by the pool at Gosford and I was happily on my way to our meeting place when suddenly out of the blue, I was YELLED at: A guy waiting at the lights on the other side of the road decided to vent his morning anger at me as I road past in the opposite direction... He threw in a few F***-ing for good measure (where one was referring to some idiot and the other was referring to some road...)... Although it wasn't nice to be yelled at, I can see the similarity with the kid in the sandpit yelling "GET OUT OF MY WAY" to the cat up a tree 50m away... There are a few (not many - truly most people on the road are ever so nice) so called motorists who need to take a good look at how they behave on the roads... a tonne of metal is a strange thing to hide in, while directing your anger at people you've never met... Yes... driving can be frustrating - there's roadworks, delays and the general stress of getting to places on time. But if you think about the real risk involved in doing something stupid - and not getting there at all: Is it really worth it??

Anyways, with that little debacle way behind me, I found myself at the pool with time to spare, and waited for bunny Amanda by the fence... Low and behold my surprise when I spot an orange flouro vest zipping around the pathway at the back of the pool! Quick! jump on bike and catch up - silly me, I was waiting in the wrong spot :) I caught up with my fellow rider just by the boat ramp and got to admire her new and very exciting bike! Black Beauty is very flash indeed and oh so suits our fashionista bunny! We set off on our merry way, chattering all the way to the bridge - and beyond... for with her new bike bunny Amanda can come out of the closet and happily embrace her secret love of hills!

We kept up a nice pace along the pathway, there were a few people out walking which we said hi to, my bell had stopped working so I did the loud HI, Hello and SORRY, while Amanda rang her bell double time... The sun was out and it was a fabulous morning to be riding. So fabulous that we were both overcome (as you too would be...) by a compulsion to YODEL & YOHOO riding through the railway tunnel at Point Clare. Meeting Mr Serious biker halfway into the tunnel was such a contrast that we ended up in stitches laughing our heads off... we honestly don't strive for this half-mad image, it just happens... ;)

Once we'd passed Point Claire we zipped out into the bike lane on Brisbane Water road, where we stretched our legs and picked up the pace sitting on about 24km/h all the way into Woy Woy. Ahh the wind in our hair and the water views - just lovely!

Getting to our half-way coffee stop at the Gnostic café had us bumping into a gang of 'senior' bike riders, all out on a Friday adventure. Amanda had properly dismounted to cross the road, whilst I was sort of straddling and trying to walk half-dismounted (bit indecisive there...) and at the same time attempting to smile, wave and say hello to the above-mentioned gang of riders.... It's a wonder I didn't lose my balance completely and fall over! We had our coffee (which was divine) sitting outside with a fabulous view... across the street, where Amanda had spotted this dress she simply just HAD to try on....(the short story to that adventure is that yes the colours were fabulous, but the cut was a disaster... and it all ended with this little voice calling for help from the change cubicle and both of us making a quick exit, leaving the shop girl to fold a pile of bedspreads which I'd been looking at... oh dear!)

Waiting for coffee...

Mad...? oh no not me!

We started on our home-run with all going smoothly. A quick water stop on the side of Brisbane Water road provided a photo opportunity, where I managed to capture that elusive bunny...

Catch me if you can!

Water..... ahhh :)

One happy biker bunny

Everything was going ever so smoothly until my phone rang... I'm never good at finding things in my bag (even when off my bike), so to try and get the stupid phone out of the bag before it stopped ringing had me swearing at the phone while emptying my bag on the side of the road... Naturally I didn't find the phone in time and proceeded to tell Amanda what a stupid phone it is, that despite me extending the time it rings for - it still makes sure it stays hidden for those extra couple of rings... However the person who had to listen to my little sermon about phones wasn't Amanda at all, but some innocent bike rider who in the corner of my eye was posing as Amanda... I laughed and said sorry and hopped back on my bike to find Amanda laughing her head off down the road, with her camera ready...

Phone safely put away and smile back on...

Somehow we managed one last incident just as we were parting ways (I continued up Kariong hill, while Amanda rode down past Adcock park and back to the pool)... Excitedly I was telling Amanda about my very first karate lesson and hopped off my bike to show her one of the moves, I think I asked her to hold her arms up and then I flailed my own arms in something supposed to resemble a 'block'. Who should ride past just as I'm performing the most vicious karate chop on the most innocent bike rider ever...??? The 'senior' gang of bike riders chose the perfect moment to appear out of nowhere! So... with our mad image intact we said our goodbyes and continued on our laughing merry ways.

Happy safe riding all and hope ride soon again!
Annette :)

And...... bunny Amanda has a few lines to add:

Annette has the ride well and truly summed up except I may add that when we sat down for coffee two notable things occurred:

A vintage stationwagon pulled up next to us and out of the car climbed five old people all in their 70s and 80s having a quick coffee before they went on the ferry to Palm Beach. They were a chatty lot and even told us we had had long enough for our coffee and should jump on our bikes and keep riding – they were all jolly cute
The dress looked absolutely stunning on the model (as always) and I in my delusion state thought it would look just as good on me, so after coffee we mosey on over and I get the dress of the manikin and run into the changing room all excited about such a find. However after trying for a couple of minutes I realized there was no zip so yanked it over my head and squeezed into it – silly really because I had to then try and get it off. Now I was in my trainers and I did have my bike pants on underneath but I looked absolutely hideous, more so than at the Hunter Valley, and that is saying something. I really did look like a homeless person this time. SO after laughing hysterically at myself I had to get Annette to come in and help me get it off because try as I might I really couldn’t get it over my head. After a bit of yanking and fear that I may rip the bloody thing, Annette showed me the trophy dress in her hand all safe and sound. Then the shop assistant showed me a similar patterned dress kinda A line with a biker back top half which looked even worse on me…… so we left the shop dejected but ready for our ride home.

And I also have to add, that when Annette was karate chopping me we weren’t just laughing – we were hysterical to the point that Annette nearly fell off her bike…. All in all another mad adventure with The Terminator!

Amanda :)

Amanda and Black Beauty

2010-03-17T13:55:00.000+11:00

It was with much joy I received Amanda's email about her virgin ride on her new bike... News that her back is on the mend and she's getting back in the saddle is fabulous - read and enjoy and hope to ride with ALL you happy bunnies soon again! :)

The Ride
Mingara to The Entrance and back

Riding distance ~ 18km
Bunny on board - Amanda
Bike on road - Black Beauty

Well Black Beauty has been most patient waiting for her injured owner to feel confident enough (and get the go ahead from the physio) to go for a ride!

Today was the day and I must say I was jolly well looking forward to it. I bought Black Beauty about 3 weeks ago and pretty much injured my back the day before I picked her up. Listening to the words of my physio ‘ok you can go on a ride but only a flat one’ I decided to park at Mingara and ride to the bike track and then to The Entrance and back. It was a glorious morning, the sun was shining and there was a crisp breeze to keep me cool. I rode safely there and back and Black Beauty did me proud for her first ride – she socializes very well, doesn’t rear up at other riders and even picks up speed on the flat – something Gertrude didn’t do very well.

Black Beauty in her resplendent glory

Posing seductively...

So girls although I cannot ride long distances and up hills yet I am back on track for anyone who wants short flat rides!

Amanda

Gear Up Girl

2010-03-11T13:34:00.002+11:00

The Gear Up Girl ride from Cronulla to Homebush, runs on the weekend closest to the International Womens' Day (8th March) and supports the Children's Oncology Foundation. The ride itself is 55km long and was held for the third time this year, with lots of happy bike riders weaving their way up through the back streets and park lands of Sydney. 3 of our biker-bunnies made it down to the ride, sadly a number of our friends were injured and had to sit at home with drooping bunny ears, although we definitely had you all in our thoughts along the way! Hopefully we'll all make it down next year - it truly is a magnificent ride!

The Ride stats
Bunnies on board - Tor, Vickie and Annette
Rise and shine - Hideously early - 4:45am from Vickie's house!
Ride start time - ~ 7:45-8:00 am Cronulla
Distance cycled - 55km + 7km back into Homebush after the ride
Speed - 17 km/h (average) 42 km/h (max)
Time cycling - 3 hours 20 minutes
Total time (start to finish) - 3 hours 40 minutes
Add-on ride time - 35 minutes
Total Calories burnt - 1829
Heart rate - 129 (average) 176 (max)
Stops along the way - 3
Weather - Brilliant! no rain, just lovely weather!
Attire - Bunny ears (Tor & Annette)

The trip down to Cronulla turned into a luxury ride thanks to Vickie and her husband Gerard, who drove us all the way down (THANK YOU :)). Our bikes travelled on the the back of the car (sitting on the most snazzy looking bike rack!) and we arrived in Cronulla with time for a coffee before the start, what more could you wish for?

Once we had unloaded the bikes and put Vickie's wheel back on her bike, we lined up: first in the toilet queue, then in the start queue... The sun was rising and the clouds looked as though they weren't planning to dump bucket-loads on our heads, so with a dose of caffeine running though our veins we were ready to go! Bunny-ears firmly strapped to 2 helmets (Tor's and mine... Vickie decided she would steer clear of the bunny ears for today, so she'd be able to talk us out of any trouble we may find ourselves in...), the ride had begun...!

Vickie and the very cool bike rack

Bright and cheery Tor

The Cronulla start

We cycled through the back streets and along some absolutely beautiful bike paths, which took us through parklands and along the waterfront at Botany Bay. I saw parts of Sydney I've never seen before, and discovering these hidden pockets from the saddle, was a lovely experience!

We did have a laugh at the (small) number of guys who forced their way into this all GIRL ride... only so that they could go "PLING PLING" and overtake as many girls as possible, elbowing their way past with an air of importance and arrogance. There weren't many of these creatures, and in fairness I came across one or two guys who'd sort of been 'pulled' into the group on their morning ride, so pretty much had no choice but to ride with us for a while, ...but the ones who obviously sought out the ride just to do an elbow display; left us with raised eyebrows and a small laugh :D Imagine if us girls had gate-crashed an all boys ride..!

As we rode along the waterfront at Botany Bay we watched several jumbo jets take-off and land, the landing strip was just across the water, in full view - it's amazing we managed to stay on our bikes with all the Ohhhs and Ahhhs!

3 bunnies cruising down near Botany

And this champion was worried about finishing...!?

Happy bunny :)

There were bicycles in all shapes and sizes along the way: retro bikes, road bikes, mountain bikes, hybrid bikes and custom bikes. It was fun to ride along in a group, especially once we got out of the initial bottle-neck and the pace picked up a bit - everyone was very friendly!

At rest stop number 2; the two bunny-ears took friendly to a new level by delving into the lion's den and posing with two police bikers. These guys rode the whole way on their very cool police mountain-bikes. We didn't see them make any arrests (nor did we see them attending to any unfortunate stacks, which some of us witnessed in the Spring Cycle, when 2 Policemen rushed to Collette's assistance when she flew over the handlebars), but we did see them riding along smiling and waving, so we grovelled for a fan photo and here it is:

Cops and Bunnies...

We met up at each rest stop and Vickie made sure that the facilities were tested and rated accordingly. They all pretty much lived up to her expectations, apart from the last one, which was wanting slightly due to having run out of paper...

Nearing the end of the ride we rode through the wetlands surrounding Homebush bay, this is where the lucky frog resides (the one who saved the wetlands when they were building the Olympic stadium), I didn't see him, but I'm sure he's very happy as it is a lovely area!

On the home run

Here comes Bunny Tor!

Vickie nearing the finish line!

We got to the Homebush Bay finish, and received a bag of goodies - and an oh so refreshing cup of Cranberry Juice! Then we hung around for a short while listening to the over-enthusiastic Jazzband from Sydney Uni..., before we hopped back on our bikes and rode into Homebush where Vickie's car was waiting for us.

We did it! :)

Thanks for an amazing ride girls, it was a hoot and I hope we can all do it again next year!
Happy riding!

Annette :)

Extreme cyclists!

2010-03-05T22:19:00.002+11:00

Us Aussies really can't complain about the weather conditions... no matter how bad, wet, windy or anything they get... As I'm sitting here on the eve of going down to Cronulla for the Gear Up Girl ride tomorrow (with weather forecast predicting rain, thunder storms and windy conditions), I thought I'd share these photos with you...

Sweden is a small country way up north.... they get a lot of snow there - yet they still ride bikes; all year! One of our happy blog followers lives there and rides her bike every day: after seeing these photos, Greta is officially an HONORARY Biker Bunny! And we've run out of excuses for bad weather :)

First you have to FIND your bike...

Then you may need to brush some snow off

Built for speed...

   Here comes Greta, swishing through the snow...

...and a basket full of snow

   Workplace bike racks... they all ride!

   And here's the bike path!

Hope you enjoy these as much as I do, having ridden in snow and ice I know it's not the easiest conditions to stay upright in (although you can be lucky with soft landings...). Thumbs up to our northern bunny and keep enjoying your cycling wherever you are!

Annette :)

Adcock Park to Terrigal

2010-03-05T21:57:00.004+11:00

A few weeks ago bunny Amanda and I went on a ride down Terrigal drive and back... Unfortunately there's been a slight lapse in posting time, but I thought I would remedy this on the eve of the gear up girl cycle (I know... I should be in bed :D ).... so here it is:

The Ride Stats
Adcock park to Terrigal and back - 17th Feb 2010

Bunnies on board: Amanda and Annette
Meeting place: Adcock Park
Distance cycled: Amanda: 30km Annette 40km
Speed: 16.9 average 58.7 (wow!) max
Time riding: 2 hours 20 min
Time it took us all up: 4 hours 15 min
Calories burnt: 1557
Heart rate: 118 average 175 max

We met up on this slightly overcast but lovely morning and set sail for... not the safe bike path, nor the toilets (which bunny Amanda initially voted for), but... straight across the hwy to the nearest bike shop! The look of Amanda's new groovy bike gloves had such an effect on me that I simply just had to have a pair - there and then!) Somehow safely across the road and in the shop - I soon found myself the owner of a pair of very comfy groovy gloves (which I incindentally tried on 'up-side-down' before the helpful guy in the shop brought it to my attention that the comfy grip part should be on the under side (doh!)). So... with these new very comfortable and great gripping gloves, we set off again.

Amanda was sporting Matt's (yellow) bike for the day - and the thrill of riding a different (faster) bike made her all inspired to BUY a new bike! She pondered this idea longingly for a while, comparing bikes left right and centre as we coasted up the back of York street in East Gosford (this was just after the delayed toilet stop by the sailing club), when suddenly I realized that my bell had come unstuck and was no longer working... Oh what luck to find ourselves just outside the bike shop at the top of York street! As Amanda longingly eyed the bikes; the friendly guy in the shop ran in and out of the shop with bell parts and screw drivers, and in no time at all had me fitted up with a working bell - absolutely free :) (Amanda says I flashed body-bits to the guy - but honestly, if I had, he would have been too shocked to fix my bell!).

So on we rode - to... (you guessed it) BIKE SHOP number 3! This time it was partly on the pretext that I would find a stand for my bike (which I didn't), but I think Amanda really wanted to look at the bikes, which she did... and got the full run-down on models, colours, suspension, speed.... somewhere along the line though, the guy in the shop veered off track and started talking about STACKS and INJURIES!!!! (maybe a topic to steer away from when selling bikes), despite the horror stories there were definitely some very nice bikes in the shop, so bunny-Amanda came away with dreamy eyes and plans galore.

Having completed our run of bike shops for one day, we rode on to tackle Terrigal drive. It gets a tad squeezy in a few parts - best to check traffic before plunging down the hill, but most of the way it's a great 'undulating' ride. Wind in hair, lots to laugh at, and bike-gloves to infuse handlebar comfort - how much better can it get?

Stopped for a few mad photos along the way - and then when we arrived in Terrigal we had a lovely coffee by the ocean, before returning back the same way.

Amanda being silly at the top of Terrigal Dr

Behave miss Amanda!

The view coming into Terrigal!

The other view...

Our bikes at the half-way mark

Our ride back took us around to Erina Heights and the back of East Gosford with some lovely scenery and more hills for Amanda to swear at, yet conquer in such style I often think she fibs the bit about 'not liking hills' :)

We parted ways just off Adcock park, where Amanda went up Racecourse rd to pick up her car, and I cycled on back up Kariong hill. Arrived home after yet another inspiring and happy adventure.

Happy cycling bunnies and hope to ride soon with you all!

Annette

.... and 3 weeks after our ride - at last: here's bunny-Amanda's entertaining post - enjoy!

This is rather a late addition to the Biker Bunnies blog and I must admit the ride is a bit hazy! So hazy in fact that I have had to read Annette’s account to even remember the ride!!!!!! I put my car in for a service on Mann’s Road and begged Nissan to not have it all day as I simply couldn’t ride for that long. I cycled past the hospital and waved to Matt before meeting Annette at Adcock Park for a quick game of netball and then we were on our way – or so I thought! Annette seeing my new fandangled gloves decided that she simply needed a pair too, so within two minutes of being on our bikes we had stopped at the bike shop. Annette entirely happy with her purchase then tried to get a bike stand, whilst I checked our new bikes - mmmmmm very interesting indeed! Alas for poor netti there were no bike stands to fit her bike so we set sail again. This time we travelled less than 5 minutes before I decided (I was doing a Lou here) Loo being the operative word that I needed a rest break.

Again, we set sail and within 5 minutes Annette’s bell broke and so we stopped at another bike shop in Gosford and a very nice gentleman indeed fitted one for free!

I have just realized that Annette has written about our bike stops but this really was quite funny because then we stopped at my bike shop hoping for a stand but alas not available. It was here that I fell in love with what is now my Black Beauty (aptly named by Tor) and still sitting under my house waiting for her master to ride her!

We finally set off with coffee in our mind and rode to Terrigal – this is quite a challenging ride but a jolly satisfying one as there are a lot of undulating hills and you can certainly pick up speed (which as Annette said – we were a tad cautious after the discussion in the bike shop).

I got back to discover that my car needed 4 new tyres, new brakes and a new fan belt – all in all a very expensive day for me!

Cant wait to set sail with Black Beauty!!!!!!!!!!!

Amanda :)

The Mountains of Somersby

2010-02-12T11:19:00.007+11:00

The Ride Stats
Bunnies on Board - Amanda and Annette
Distance cycled - 27km
Time cycling - 1 hour 46min
Total time - 3 hours 14 minutes*
*that's about 1 hour spent just laughing!
Speed - 15.1 (average) 62.7 (max)
Heart rate - 114 (average) 168 (max)
Calories burnt - 1101
Near Kidnaps ~ 3
Weather - Hot and sunny

Our Wednesday adventure around Somersby is delightfully narrated by Amanda - enjoy!

Well what a day! Driving up Kariong Hill I had my reservations about riding around the back streets of Somersby and I know why now – bloody hilly or should I say mountainous roads with no end in sight. This ride though truly was lots of fun and even though I hate hills I did deep down enjoy this one.

Amanda ready to take-off!

I arrived at Annette’s at 9.15 and she politely asked me in for a coffee which I declined – coffee before a bike ride is not a good start to the day (well not that close to the bike ride anyway). After admiring her bike rack and then being given some oil for my chain we then had to decide which ride to do. As usual I opted for the easiest one and as usual Annette completely ignores me and picked the hardest one. So I am sure Annette will map the route but we basically went down the Old Pacific Highway towards the reptile park (I think)!

After riding for less than 10 minutes we saw a drug deal happening – well you know it is our vivid imagination but here is how we saw it …. FACT 1 – there were 3 men in shirts and ties (and pants of course) in an overgrown field of grass with one car– they looked very dodgy so here is our account of a short film that we made up from this one little prompt. FACT 2 – my chain did come off at the bottom of the hill as I tried to go into the lowest gear imaginable...

Shady things do happen...

Annette actually looks like a policewoman on her bike – blue bike, blue helmet and oh so professional … I was being escorted by a female police officer and as we rode past the drug deal the men saw us and we tried to pretend we hadn't seen anything. Knowing that we couldn’t go very fast they let us cycle off and so we thought we were safe. We get to the first hill and Annette as usual cycles off way into the distance leaving me lagging miles behind. (FACT my chain came off at the bottom of the first steep hill). As Annette disappears from view the men drive past and bundle me into their boot leaving my bike on the roadside and they take me to an old factory at Somersby. Annette completely oblivious to this thinks she hears me shouting I’m fine and waits at the top. Ten minutes have passed and Annette decides to investigate further – she cycles down the hill and sees my bike lying on the road and panics for a moment.
Generally being a cool headed female she decides to do some investigation and puts two and two together pretty quickly and realizes that the 3 men must have kidnapped me. So off goes policewoman Annette scouting the factories around Somersby, knowing that it had to be in this direction as she had not seen anything pass her on the road. She eventually comes across a dodgy warehouse and sees me (after she puts on her glasses) tied up and being tortured with all things pertaining to bikes such as loose chains, spokes, tyres, brakes and water bottles etc.

‘What did you see?” as they beat me with a pump and poked me with spokes ‘Nothing’ shouted I. Annette had to think fast (unusual really) and so she cycled in with water bottles blazing, kicked two of the men over and brought wooden pallets crashing down on them– she jumped off her bike and pushed the other one over before quickly untying me and riding off with me on the back of her seat...

Obviously that is not what happened but we did see about 8 old people riding soft top MG’s and Jags on a beautiful day out looking jolly posh and smiling and waving at us as we pedalled along!

After that we cycled along mountains and down wonderful speedy roads all the way to Somersby Falls with the only mishap being Annette nearly falling off her bike as she mistook a blade of grass for a bird!

Somersby Falls is actually a beautiful spot and I was most impressed even if I did have to ride back up that hill! When we arrived there were two rangers having lunch at the picnic table (both in their 50’s or 60’s) – poor chaps we ruined their tranquility with our incessant laughter. They asked us not to tread on a piece of sandstone that they had just set so we politely obliged and climbed over the pole and sat on the rocks where we laughed and chatted happily and loudly. Photos were taken and off we set on our merry way!

The serene falls...

...the beautiful rocks...

... butt-in to obscure the serenity!

Amanda taking in the falls

... Showing off the picnic rangers :)

Trying to blend in with serenity...

Amanda cruising onwards and upwards!

Now if I don't calm down this will turn into an epic blog of ginormous proportions so from here on in I shall just bullet point:

After leaving the falls Annette decided that we would take the longest route with only one hill what she failed to say was ‘there was one hill after another after another’
We cycled down the Old Pacific Highway over the bridge gathering momentum and lots of lovely speed – I screamed with joy whilst Annette kept screaming AMANDA!!!!!!!!!! I thought she too was enjoying the downhill ride
OMG – I turn around and realize that she is actually trying to get me to stop and I am half way down the biggest hill of the ride – I ask if we can keep going and get home another way but realize that would add about another 3 hours onto our trip
Turning around I reluctantly start cycling back up the hill that I once loved so much
Actually that is a fib – I get off and start walking, and then up the hill cycles this hyperfit lone road cyclist – he stops to ask if I am ok and has a short chat with me about how bloody good looking I am and did I want a quickie in the bush – No thanks I reply – bit hot!!!!!!!!!!
Annette, up ahead, knew that she wanted to challenge him so her legs start pedaling as fast as they can but he catches her pretty quick and again makes polite conversation

THIS way Amanda!!

Scary view from bridge where Amanda almost lost her water bottle!

Arriving at the top of the last big hill of the day :)

That is about all that happened to us today – not much I know but hey we can’t always have a Disney adventure! And that my dearest biker bunnies is the end of our adventure – well it ended when we got back to Annette’s for a much needed glass of water and she sported her relaxing attire for me!

Casual yes, but highly fashionable!

Amanda:)

The Map

And before we close on this adventure - a short summary from Annette's saddle... :)

As Amanda's covered our ride in a most entertaining way I'll just wrap up with a few moments along the way... While my aforementioned fellow cyclist was recovering from her nearly lost chain at the top of Chivers road, a rattly old dump-truck blundered past us on the corner. Amanda said.... "He waved"... so I waved back (as you do....) Then it hit me: this was the 'reckie' guy for those shady types we'd spotted earlier - waving had just put us in straight in the kidnap frame!

The plot thickened (as you know) and we rode on... We thought we might catch up with the MG drivers at the falls (lovely place for a picnic), hoping these jolly drivers could pose as our rescuers if needed - alas it wasn't to be. However, we did have the Rangers watching our every move (or step as it were,... in particular one step...), so going down to the falls proved to be a great diffuser of danger after all. :)

The next part of the ride was all about the blazing heat and endurance; after settling on a Pacific Hwy detour, I was slightly apprehensive about how Amanda would react to the big hill - I think I may have stretched the hill to make it count as one (that's both directions of up, down and then up again) - We cruised through the back of the Reptile park, all going well and happy.... We swung onto the Pacific Hwy in the middle of a downhill section, on an obscuring bend... I held my breath.. (you can't see the hill until you've passed the bend)... and then - Amanda looked up on cue and screamed!

Having made it to the top, naturally there's a happy joy in swishing down the other side... although on this decent I was half-panicked screaming my lungs out - trying in vain to get the attention of the yodelling (legs stretched out to the side of her pedals) cyclist zooming down ahead of me (I was thinking about the 'not happy Jan' moment we'd undoubtedly have if she made it to the very bottom of the hill, as I'd promised that there was only one (well maybe two) hills left on our ride... :) )! Finally my yelling filtered through, and we crossed the road to return slightly past our intended turn-around point. As the hill ahead dawned on my fellow adventurer, she tried to create a flat road out of thin air, which would magically take us through the bush, back to where we needed to go. No harm in trying... and magic does happen :) But after a short moment, she took one look at the hill, gritted her teeth and cruised to the top (managing social chit-chat with the guy who'd most likely heard all our the yodelling and yelling on his way up from the bottom, and... almost throwing her water bottle off the F3 bridge in a freak moment of "I don't know what my arms are doing!").

As usual, fresh air and bunnies on bikes had us laughing up most of our calories, add to that a large dose of insane imagination (bound to have you in tears), we somehow managed to reach our destination in an exhausted yet very pleased frame of mind.

Happy cycling bunnies - and looking forward to our next adventure!

Annette :)

Brooklyn Thunder

2010-02-11T01:18:00.008+11:00

The Ride Stats

Location - Kariong to Brooklyn return
Distance covered - 71km
Riding time - 3 hours 50 minutes
Total time - 4 hours 36 minutes
Weather - Extreme!
Calories burnt - 2433
Speed - 18.3km/h (average) 48.5km/h (max)
Heart rate 143 (average) 219 (max)*
*lightning interference most likely, otherwise I'd probably
have needed an ambulance... I'd say 174 would be closer to max :)

I don't tend to write about solo rides here, (as riding on my own tends to mean less to talk about and fewer laughs and silly, happy, crazy incidents...). But every now and then a ride crops up begging to be posted. How to memorise son's 10th birthday when mum in question's seemilngly hell-bent on an alternative anniversary of her own? :D

Initially Bunny-Amanda and I had planned to go for a ride, but we ended up cancelling late the evening before (bring a bucket-syndrome)... and then there was the weather forecast (oh but they can be wrong!). Despite cancellation and the weather report, I got it into my head that I could get up and go for a short ride in the morning just to clear my head. (Doh!) So, with blinkers on and the morning weather looking oh, so promising, I set off...

I cycled down the old Pacific Hwy with fresh air, bell-bird twitters, and feeling better than I had expected. There are definite hills along this way, but the road sort of stages in nice sections where you feel you can really challenge yourself and then get that wow feeling as you cruise... t'is the undulation bunnies :)!
And I thought: Oh why not ride all the way to Brooklyn and back making it a long ride... !

I passed a section where they were doing roadworks and had the privilege of being waved through by a most enthusiastic lollipop-man. Then I rode through Mt White and passed a guy who'd just crossed the road to turn around at his half-way mark - he'd stopped on the side for a rest and so I said G'day and smiled as I passed him (it's not often I get to pass someone on a road-bike... so ignoring the fact that he was standing still..., I felt quite speedy as I cruised past ;) ).

Cycle cycle cycle - up hills, down hills. As I was climbing yet another hill, the road-bike guy I'd passed earlier caught up with me... and it turned out to be my step-uncle! :) What a lovely surprise! (and yes I do need glasses!) Super fit and fast, he hung back and rode with me down to Brooklyn before speeding off to his destination further down the road. Definitely a case of "Fancy meeting you here".

I rode into Brooklyn, bought some water and snacked on cashews, sultanas and almonds before turning around and starting the journey back home...

Suddenly the overcast, slightly sun-spotted weather opted for a complete turn-around. Overcast became a dark, dark angry looking sky, with massive clouds starting to spit rain; I could hear thunder as I rode up the first long hill towards Mt White, with a little scared voice jumping around in my head: "Its definitely getting closer!!!"

Quickly I found myself riding in a full-on thunderstorm with torrential rain! I tend to be the sort of person who cowers away from windows when the bad storms hit. Adjusting to the idea that I was in fact flailing around in the middle of a massive thunder storm posing as a bloody lightning rod! ... not the easiest task on hand, especially when on a mountain renowned for all the lightning strikes it attracts!

It was seriously freaky, I rode along singing (I don't know why, but I do resort to very loud singing whenever I'm panicked - maybe it's like turning up the stereo in a car that's about to cark it...), screaming and swearing (always works) for the last 20km!

Each flash I would count and pedal and then scream when the bang hit. There was nowhere to hide and no traffic around, and I had to psyche myself up to super-woman speed each time I went under a power-line, not to mention crossing the bridge over the F3 - where I felt like I wasn't only the highest point around, but an easy target begging to be hit...! Oh there were times when I seriously thought of just lying down on the road and crying - but somehow kept pedalling through droves and floods of water and thinking of that hopeful hot shower at the end...

Finally, I arrived home in a very sorry soaked state of complete shock... My legs were shaking and my eyes hurt from all the lightning flashes.... Ouch! But I made it, and the delayed euphoria of being alive kept me going all weekend!

Annette :)

1st Bunny-ride for 2010

2010-01-25T16:22:00.003+11:00

The Ride
18th January 2010 - Gosford Pool to Umina return

Stats
Distance cycled - 50.2km
Speed - 16.5 km/h average 50.7 km/h max
Heart rate - 113 average 170 max
Calories burnt - 1440
Time - 4 hours 19 min incl stops

... and here's the adventure seen from the saddle of bunny Amanda:

An interesting article prompted me to write about our last bike ride from Gosford Pool to Umina Beach and back –

Extract:
"...It seems to have escaped the attention of a lot of bicycle riders that it is a shared path for pedestrians and cyclists. It has also escaped their attention (to put it politely) that pedestrians do not have eyes in the back of their heads…"

I had a chuckle at this because we were cycling along this very path when an older lady (who I may add was right in the centre of the path) shouted at Annette ‘Would you like to cycle over me’ – Annette as usual was totally oblivious to this and had no idea the comment was aimed at her. Whilst I admit cyclists do (sometimes) need to be more conscious of pedestrians the same can be said of pedestrians who think they can take up the whole path and expect us wonderful health fanatics to veer into the grass and wave politely at them as if they were royalty………… there, I have had my whinge – now its all over!!!!!!!!!

This was actually a delicious ride, perfect weather and perfect company – Lou as usual up for a pose wherever she could and Annette laughing her merry way around the track. I surprisingly had a hangover and was not feeling to hot when I started but after a dodgy start I was raring to go (especially at the end when I discovered I had burnt 1000 calories).

Our first giggle of the day started when Lou told us that she wanted to go to the toilet even before we had started riding and that she wanted to go to the bike shop and get a stand on her bike. ‘No way’ I screeched – it will take hours and I was on a time limit. Dejectedly she cycled past the bike shop dreaming of her missed chance.

Posing bunny on our first stop

... more posing :)

Bunny Amanda in Woy Woy

Shortly after, Annette and I chuckled at the most intense cyclist we have ever seen – about 50 years of age with his lips tightly pursed and his eyebrows furrowed doing about 10kms – at least he was giving it a go!

Then we cycled along the beautiful Brisbane Waters to the end of Umina Beach where Annette and Lou both leaned their bikes up against the showers (no stand see) making it virtually impossible for any beach goer to have a shower.

We've reached our half-way mark

Note the bike having a shower...

3 beach bunnies

Acting like little pigs we stuffed our faces and then headed off to Woy Woy for coffee where Lou once again not missing a shopping opportunity headed over to ‘maybe do a little shop’. Annette couldn’t decide whether she wanted coffee here because last time we came, a little child had pooed in the toilets and you could smell it outside – too funny!!!!!!!! And no funny smells this time!

Posing coffee drinkers...

Back on our bikes and off home where I stopped every five minutes to see if I had got my dream job as Web Author at Sanitarium but alas I did not get the phone call til later in the afternoon and it was negative!

The beautiful waterfront ride!

Start gearing up for the 50km cycle from Cronulla to Homebush in the Go Girl Challenge March 6

Amanda :)

Holiday Wrap

2010-01-25T15:23:00.002+11:00

Well bunnies... it's been a while since our last post, what with school holidays and the silly season throwing all sorts of time-juggling challenges into the mix. Although we haven't quite managed to maintain our weekly bunny rides, I've done a few (shorter) solo rides, and we've also had some exciting adventures with mini riders, so I thought I'd quickly update you on these before plunging into our exciting new year of riding....

Adcock Park to Point Clare return
This ride was a true adventure! 8 kids and 4 mums met up at Adcock Park on a slightly overcast (becoming HOT) January Friday morning. Having managed the feat of wrangling 12 bicycles out of 4 cars we set off in (impressive) single file, cruising down the pathway from Adcock park. The short "close to traffic" stretch across the bridge and down past the RSL, had one of our mini-bikers miffed, as the fence decided to have a lend of her handlebars (how very rude indeed)!! It was quickly decided (by mini-biker) that it was all the bike's fault... so bike ended up in the corner of shame, padlocked to the fence, while mini-biker got the escalated and more comfortable position riding on the back of mum's bike....

Once we were on the waterfront pathway, all was going very cruisy and quite speedy until the first stack of the day landed our next mini-biker on her nose... Luckily mum had brought pain-killers (chocolate gold coins definitely work!) which saw our brave little champion back in the saddle sporting 2 band-aids and a smile, ready to conquer the rest of the ride. We rode on past Point Clare to the most perfect picnic spot, where we took a break and had our snacks before pedalling back the same way.

On the way back there was another stop thrown in at the play ground in West Gosford, before it was time to cruise on back to the starting point. Once back at Adcock park we snuck on to the velodrome for a few laps to wrap up our adventure. All up it was a success with kids managing beautifully and the weather (although quite hot at the end) holding up nicely.

Riding Stats:
Distance Covered - 13 km
Maximum Speed - 34.5 km/h
Average Speed - 11.3 km/h
Active Riding Time - 1 hour 5min
Adventure Total Time - 3 hours 35 min
Calories Burnt - 570
Heart Rate - 85 average 166 max
Band-Aids - 2
Sunscreen - Plenty

Well done to all of you! :)
----------------------

Velo Ride in Adcock Park

A sunny Saturday afternoon, the kids and I took our bikes down to the velodrome where we rode around and around.... and around :) It was a thrill! The surface is great to ride on and can be a perfect training-course when you just want to zone out and do something different to undulating hills and flats. Kids loved it and set up a pit stop at the beginning of the lap (with water bottles secured to the fence for refreshment). There was ample commentating of the event, which could be heard all the way around the track...
"... putting in that extra pedal power as I come up behind one of the track champions... will I make it past? The crowd is looking... legs are hurting... the ULTIMATE pedal technique is going to get me past.... Oh look there's a bird! I think it's watching, yes it is! Oh maybe it's going to do the long-jump... you know some birds are very good at the long-jump! I can see the pit stop coming up.... I swerve, I dodge.... skid to a stop.... grab my drink bottle.... PERFECT!...."

We finished off our lap-adventure by hanging and stretching on the poles rigged up just outside the velodrome, happy to do a repeat performance of this one any time :)

Riding Stats:
Distance Covered - 16 km
Maximum Speed - 31.5 km/h
Average Speed - 21.5 km/h
Active Riding Time - 45 min
Adventure Total Time - 1 hours 15 min
Calories Burnt - 533
Heart Rate - 129 average 169 max

:)

Toukley Lakes 61km

2009-12-11T17:22:00.008+11:00

The Ride Stats

Bunnies on board - Amanda and Annette
Meeting point - Rotary park, Long Jetty
Distance cycled - 61 km
Average speed - 18.6 km/hour
Maximum speed - 45.1 km/hour
Time - including stops - 4 hours 30 min
Active riding time - 3 hours 15 min
Calories burnt - 1465
Delirious outbursts - countless!

The Young Inventors started me thinking – I needed two water bottle holders in order to ride further than 40 kms so I tied a water bottle holder to my bike and devised a cunning plan – a plan so cunning that even black adder would fall for it – black adder being Annette – a 60 km bike ride! A 60km bike ride that even the people that lived in the 60 km bike ride world would be proud to do!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Background music do do do do do do….that is supposed to be like Jaws, but as usual anything musical evades me!

Getting ready to ride...

Anyway, Annette and I set off on a 61km bike ride with hills that undulated, rose but never fell and peaked when you thought you could go no further. The trip was sooooooo long that it is difficult to tell the whole story – suffice to say I will tell you the highlights:

Following Annette to our meeting destination
Meeting Annette at our meeting destination
Planning our 61km trip
Starting with all the joys of spring
The large person that kept following us and making Annette pedal faster
The lovely undulating hills on the ride
The bloody horrible never ending hills and trust me it was full of them
I nearly became Stacker Bunny as Annette and I pulled over past Lake Munmorah to check directions – I braked but the pavement wasn’t there and I only used the front break causing my back wheel to arch and I couldn’t put my foot down and so I pulled my inner thigh muscle and then narrowly missed a railing with my head and bruised my legs quite badly (edit: see photo below!)
Shortly after that being encouraged by one very handsome young man “GO GIRLS” and go we did after that along the Pacific Highway and up those bloody hills
A police car screeching out of control as it reached speeds of over 120kms (and I know that because I was doing 100km) – Annette said it was lunchtime and they were on their way to McDonalds based on her experience in Bondi
The bus driver who didn’t want to pull over at the bus stop (even though we were sitting in it and looked like we were waiting for a bus) and then got the poops because we didn’t drag our bikes on his bus – go figure!
The FUNNIEST moment was whilst sitting at the bus stop – Annette decided she wanted to do a wee and so was considering going behind the bus stop (this is on the Pacific Highway so very busy main road) when she suddenly remembered (after I gently prompted her to look at her attire) that she had an all-in-one bike suit on and she would have to squat naked!!!!! Imagine the drama that would unfold as untold car accidents one after the other happened whilst drivers trying to get a good look at the naked cyclist and then imagine our leader being jailed for Indecent Exposure!!!!!!!
Hopetoun – a bloody fairyland – miniature horses and log cabins – I felt like I was in the gingerbread house and Hans Christian Anderson was going to tell me a story!
Twilight – so much noise in the country that I was waiting for a vampire to whisk me away and if it looked anything like Edward I would gladly have gone – by this stage I was getting very tired
The real bike track along Wyong Road and I am talking REAL – the best bloody bike track either of us have ever seen
The lake
Singing happy birthday along the lake (out of tune)
The end!
Goodbye Annette I love you! And I must say that Annette now has a new name THE TERMINATOR – you can never catch her or get rid of her – no matter how hard I pedaled I nearly reached her every time and then she would just put a little more effort in and away she went out of my grasp once again. So raise your glasses to the new POSITIVE TERMINATOR!!!!!

But the most embarrassing part of the day was when I decided to go for a quick swim and Annette took a photo of me!

Amanda :) x

and... from 'terminator's' saddle:

Oh it was such a fabulous ride! We laughed lots (you really must come on this ride, it's hilarious!), the countryside dishes up all sorts of delicious variation... whereby yours truly at some point managed to coin the phrase: It is the trickyness of Undulation that does it...

Photo-opportunity on the Entrance bridge

Magenta girl riding the undulating hills

Precarious photo in Lake Munmorah carpark

Amanda turned into 'Magenta girl', when we cycled through Magenta :) She had her aptly coloured fashion towel tied to her handlebars for all to see, going up and down the east-coast hills. The weather was good for riding, a few raindrops fell at one stage, but they were only a welcome cooling assistance from the elements. Overcast and nice fresh air saw us happily and madly powering around the lakes... There's so much to see on a bike, taking in the scenery and laughing at all sorts of silly things as one powers into oblivion, it really is a fabulous way to spend ones time! :)

One can also, I have learnt, measure distance in Dentist terms... Hmm you say? Oh it's definitely true! The amount of times Amanda used the word "Dentist" in conjunction with how far we had cycled, and how far we had to go, was truly fascinating... Then at one point, we almost took a wrong turn (which would have shortened our ride!) and again, the Dentist saved us! We were back on track in no time, following that map to a T... (stands for Tooth). I say, we live and learn :) (Amanda says; her dentist lives up there, but I think she's just being silly...).

Loitering at a busstop...

Me..catch bus? No I'm on day-release (again)

Most of the way had amazingly good cyclepath or shoulder, the only real shocker was riding through the main street of Wyong, where apart from the footpath (which was not a fabulous option as we even in our wildest dreams couldn't pass for 'under 12' - and with all the police cars hanging about...), there was really only the dive in and take the lane option, which we handled with elbows out and determination! As Amanda noted, we then discovered THE bike path of bike paths... riding from Wyong to Tuggerah along a fenced off 2-way super-duper pathway! Such bliss! All bike paths should be like this one!

Amanda cruising down the Pacific Hwy

Best bike path ever!

And then we reached the lake...

By now Amanda was delirious, bursting into song and almost dance at the thought of us soon reaching our destination. We cruised along this familiar pathway and only stopped to capture a few final photos...

Are we there yet?...

Yipeee! I DID it!!

And a Yodelling finish from the other one...

Thank you for a fantastic ride Amanda! You're a hoot of a bunny to ride with :)

A happy call to all bunnies to join us on a repeat of this ride (look at the map below) or any ride, come on... you know you want to!

Hugs to you all and stay well and safe!

Annette :)

The Map

Undulating hills to Terrigal

2009-12-06T15:02:00.004+11:00

The Ride Stats

Time and date - 4th December 9:20am
Meeting place - Gosford Gallery
Distance covered - 16.2 km
Calories burnt - 620
Active riding time: 1 hour 40 min
Speed - Maximum: 47.6 km/hour Average: 16 km/hour
Hills - Many :)
Behaviour - Most angelic :D

Now... enjoy Amanda (seen the light) Dolly's serene account of our latest adventure:

Well I must say I awoke to the beautiful sounds of bats shrieking on their way home from their evening forage for fruit. What a wonderful bright and cheery morning it was going to be. I jumped out of bed full of the joys of spring, did the usual school run and met Annette at the gallery. Oh how delightful it was to see her smiling face cycling towards me – I could tell we were going to have an adventure.

We decided to do a shorter ride than normal (given the Christmas time constraints) and so we set off on a ‘shorty but a hilly’ as they say in the land of love. Our route took us along the wonderful nature strip down the Central Coast Highway where we heard birds twitter and cars glide past, past Karalta shops where a stray balloon hit me in the face (oh how we laughed at that one), up to the beginning of Terrigal Drive where we saw THE MOST BUFF MAN on the planet. In awe, Annette and I stared in amazement and decided he was one scary cyclist (who I may add did not even have a helmut on – not advisable for us law-abiding bunnies) – we debated asking him to be our cycling bodyguard but decided he was way too scary!!!!!

Along the beautiful undulating hills of Terrigal Drive with nothing but anticipation in our bones, I made it to the top without stopping and indeed followed my positive bunny with her infectious smile with great delight. We then turned along Serpentine Road and stopped for a giggle before we headed back down The Entrance Road. This is quite a delicious ride along here as one can certainly pick up lots of speed. Then along the back of Springfield where I made it up two hills that I had previously walked up so I must be improving – I was still way behind my wonderful leader but the inspiration emanating from her very bones left me with nothing but praise.

Cruising the Entrance road

Then on the home straight towards the gallery where we plonked down our beautiful bums and had a delicious cup of coffee, made by very friendly staff with love.

Bunny on dubious day release

Annette had zinc all over her face and kept pulling insane faces (she actually was on day release) unlike me in the Hunter where I was only play acting. We laughed our heads off for nigh on an hour and then I waved farewell to my positive leader who cycled off into the sun up Kariong Hill. Myself, I chose the easier option of driving home but next time I shall cycle from school.

Have a wonderful Christmas my great friends and fellow cyclists and may the love be with you

Amanda :)

And here's a short "off the record" view from Nettibunny's saddle:

It was indeed a most pleasurable ride, with undulating hills, a few hysterics along the way and absolutely wonderful weather to keep our spirits up the entire way.

The balloon incident was hilarious - attention attracting balloons strung up outside a shop near the Erina roundabout decided to go awol as Amanda cycled past; they veered off their predictable path and WHACK! caught Amanda fair and square on the head! This meant we were still in fits of laughter when we reached the intersection at the top of the hill and spotted Mr Beef on bike. "DID YOU SEE THAT???" (with dropped jaws et all), was all we could say as we doubled over yet again.

A bit of laughter goes a long way (as they say); as does breathing in the serene early summer air (which you will no doubt conclude has had a most interesting effect on bunny Amanda...). I did manage to capture a roadworks shot of her, complimenting her flouro vest. This is also where we dreamt up the look of her soon to be bunny-on-vest logo; I won't spoil it by telling you just yet - but promise it will be a hoot!

Road worker bunny

In true fashionista-bunny style, Amanda declined parking our beautiful sweaty bums at Body-Fuel in East Gosford (chic café alert); "helmet hair - no can do baby!" and so we rode back to the safe haven of the tucked away café at the gallery.

Bikes and bunnies at the end

I'm already looking forward to riding again, and want to thank all of you delightful bunnies for the past year of adventurous riding!

Annette :)

Cruise to Umina

2009-12-06T14:16:00.007+11:00

The Ride Stats

Time and date - 26th November 9:00am
Meeting place - Adcock park
Distance covered dolly-bunny - 38 km
Distance covered netti-bunny - 45.5km
Calories burnt - 1408 (total)
Active riding time ~ 2 and a half hours
Average speed - 16.3 km/hour
Maximum speed - 36.5 km/hour

After the hot weekend of the Hunter ride it was blissful to meet up with bunny Amanda on a slightly overcast morning. We set off in our bright flouro-vests meandering down the bike path towards Woy Woy. Cruising down the familiar road we felt the morning breeze and our confidence rising as this was sure to be an obstacle free adventure.

Low and behold we still managed to dish up a few dramatic moments...

Having successfully mounted the bicycle computer (with help from Bo) - the exciting gadget 4 bunnies took away from the workshop in October, stats were now being recorded left, right and centre with average & maximum speed, distance, riding time & odometer added to the heart rate and calorie counting... It's a wonder I stayed on my bike at all!

First up was Netti-bunny entering the throws of foot-cramp-city (again). Slightly panicked I dumped my bike in the hands of Amanda, took my shoe off and jumped around on one leg at the top of Brisbane Water Drive, an entertaining sight no doubt for passing motorists and innocent walkers. Luckily the cramp decided to leave pretty quickly, so we were able to mount our bikes and choof off again towards new and exciting places.

Cruisy Amanda

We made it through Woy Woy without any more hazards, and followed the bike path along the water - ohhing and ahhing at the beautiful views... until we passed this particularly stinky part (sewer and bird poo) of the pathway and decided promptly that we would not, afterall, covet to live just there...

A few innovative twists and turns later we found ourselves at the half-way mark with a lovely view over the southern end of Umina Beach. We stopped and had a few fruity (sugary) treats and took some photos.... and then Amanda said " How many calories have we burnt now?" Stat-queen looks down to discover that I had forgotten to start the heart rate monitor!! Oh well, being a stat-queen allows some innovativeness, so a quick double-up of the figures (all except average and maximum heartrate, which would have meant serious trouble) ensured we had all our stats intact :)

Beach bunnies

We cycled back a slightly different way (avoid the stinky part) to Woy Woy, where we chilled out with a nice coffee and a few laughs, before making our way back to the RSL turn-off in West Gosford. We waved merry good-byes and each went to conquer our last hill of the day: Amanda slugged off towards the Brian McGowan bridge to finish her ride by the pool, and I ventured on back up Kariong hill to colapse at home.

Time for coffee and a laugh

Bunny Awards

2009-11-23T23:49:00.004+11:00

With so much fun and adventure packed into our rides this year, bunny Amanda and I decided it would be fitting to hand out awards at our Hunter Valley weekend. Lots of laughs were had in both creating the award certificates (& key rings) and during the ceremony itself.

The Awards

In addition to our bunny awards we also handed out honorary awards to our non-riding friends and bunny-awards to our riding bunnies at home:

Well done to all of you; and hope to see you on lots of happy cycling adventures in the near future :)

Hell-bunnies and a Road Angel

2009-11-23T22:29:00.003+11:00

The Ride Stats
Bunnies on board - Lou and Annette
Intended distance - 65 km from Awaba to Broke
Covered distance - 27 km (Lou) 45km (Annette)
Water consumed - HEAPS (5-6 litres)
Heart rate - average 123 max 182
Time - including stops - 6 hours 10 min (Annette)
Calories burnt - 2483 (Annette)

Weather forecasts were predicting record heatwave temperatures, but these two hell-bunnies decided to be undeterred by nature and conquer the hell-ride we'd creatively thought up months ago.
So with our spouses declaring us barking MAD – we arranged to set off from Gosford train station early Friday morning, for a leisurely train ride to Awaba; start-point of the ride.

Both bunnies arrived well on time for the train, but with one bunny waiting at the front of the station and the other at the back entrance... there was little time left once we realized our debacle. Frantic running up and down stairs, buying tickets in a flurry and dashing down to the platform, only to realise we were on the wrong platform! We tore back up the stairs and had a fabulous view of OUR train leaving... Unfortunately this event unleashed a (somewhat embarrassing) tantrum from yours truly; foot-stamping, yelling, unruly language et all...

We missed the train tantrum...

Oh noooo...

RUN Lou RUN!!!

Luckily tanti-time was short-lived and we consoled ourselves with prep and pep talk while waiting for the next train to arrive. Lou-bunny was suffering a slight hang-over (Berocca cure on board), but kept her spirits up as we ate our breakfast on the train.

We got off the train at Awaba and stepped out into an already HOT day at 8:30 in the morning. Braving the initial heat shock, we saddled up and left the station. The first part of the ride took us up to Cessnock road and on to Palmers road where we crossed the bridge over the F3 freeway. A few short stops to consult our many maps (we definitely didn't want to get lost on this ride), making sure we were on the right track (which luckily we were :) ), we then continued on towards Freemans drive.

This is where we covered the HILLY part of the ride! There were quite a few hills thrown at us, the biggest of them being very similar to Kariong hill... It just kept going UP and UP and UP, with the demoralising feeling of trucks passing and SLOWING down past the bend in front of us... informing us that it was going to get even steeper before we reached the top. We got there though, and realised that our water supplies would need topping up soon with the temperature quickly creeping up towards 40 degrees. We stopped at a servo near Brunkerville and took on board several fresh bottles of water. Lou's handy-dandy bicycle basket proved (yet again) to be a fantastic receptacle for all sorts of on-board luggage; 4 water bottles and her backpack sitting nicely in the basket with room to spare! Where my own bag-strapping contraption proved (as always) to be a slightly hazardous companion, purely due to my failure to remember closing zips and fastening straps after each stop...

Posing bunny on our first stop

2 MAD and HOT hell-bunnies

Stopping for water in Brunkerville

By the time we passed Mt Vincent and headed onto Lake Rd, poor bunny Lou started to hit the proverbial WALL... She had been feeling slightly off-colour since the start of the ride, and with the relentless heat things quickly went from bad to worse. Her heart rate monitor was threatening to pack things in and go home (if Lou didn't), shade was playing hide-and-seek, water didn't seem to help... and finally Lou stopped, got off her bike and wandered aimlessly into the trees on the side of the road looking for SHADE!!! Naturally I was worried (this is not hell-bunny Lou's normal behaviour), and tried to establish how bad things were (ambulance, helicopter air-lift, taxi, food???); we rested for a while and Lou decided she was right to go again, although she said she wasn't quite tip-top... We ventured a bit further along the long HOT road with Lou's heart rate climbing way too fast for comfort. In an almost dazed state she crossed the road to flop down in a shady spot under some trees announcing that the heat had beaten her. We then sent an emergency message to Road-Angel Amanda, requesting immediate pick-up!

Freemans Drive with heavy traffic

It's getting harder and hotter...

Ouch! an ant BIT me!!

Little shade and 40+ degrees!

Brave bunny-Lou soldiers on

As Amanda bunny was driving to our destination (a frivolous girls' weekend in the Hunter Valley) she would be passing our way in a few hours time and would be able to pick up heat-struck bunny number 1. After some food and more water, Lou decided she'd try to make it into Cessnock (roughly 15km from where we were), and we tentatively set off again with Lou leading the way. SUN, HEAT, more HEAT and finally a long slow climbing hill to Kearsley (about 10km from Cessnock)... Poor bunny Lou looked as if she would faint!! We stopped at a servo with lovely people who quickly got Lou sat down with ice water, splice ice-cream and more water "No no don't pay now – OHH you do look PALE! In this HEAT...!!! Sit down here love..." After a short bunny-conference, we decided that Lou would be well looked after with cups of tea and a well-deserved rest; waiting in air-conditioned comfort for Amanda to arrive, and I would continue the ride...

Smack into the proverbial wall

Crawling towards Kearsley

Lou coming up the hill into Kearsley

So... pig-headed bunny number 1 continued her ride... Initially I felt fine (even made the mistake of comparing myself to a lizard when earlier telling Lou that "the heat doesn't really affect me"), it was hot but I got through Cessnock and out onto Wine Country road without any trouble. By now the temperature had just past 43 degrees and the HOT westerly wind was blowing straight in my face and I was slowly starting to wonder what on earth I was doing...!!! I drank plenty of water and even crossed the road to stand under a sprinkler to cool down. Stops were definitely becoming more frequent as I would eye the road ahead looking for SHADE, any SHADE (which incidentally there was very little of...)! By the time I reached Pokolbin I was feeling so exhausted I parked myself on a verandah at a wine, cheese, café and mixed shop complex with two 1 ½ litre bottles of water and a splice ice-cream (somehow firmly planted in my mind as REALLY GOOD STUFF by Lou :) ). As I sat there with sweat, ice-cream and grime pouring down my face and arms, a Dutch student of sports medicine came up and said hello. He was kind enough to not comment on my outward appearance, instead choosing the ultimate pep comment: "Respect man!" (this can also be translated to "You are friggin Barking MAD" which I naturally chose not to hear :) ). After resting, I continued on to Broke Road, although by now I was really starting to feel pure exhaustion taking over; my arms felt COLD – not hot... and my vision was sorely focussed on seeking out shade ahead. Road Angel Amanda could not have passed me at a better moment: A beep from behind and there she was, with Lou-bunny safely on board, packed in with Tor and Lou Hopley! "Do you want a lift?" Oh Thank you! :)

An exhausted bunny

A pretty tired bike too...

With 45 km completed on the hottest day ever in November, it was time to call it a day and thank my lucky stars that Road Angel Amanda arrived when she did :) The last 20km of the journey were completed in air-conditioned comfort watching the bumpy hilly road ahead thinking "There's NO WAY I could have ridden this now" It was an adventure, and I'm glad we did it – even if we didn't complete the full distance. This ride feels like a good lesson in learning to hear when the body is yelling "ENOUGH", and I'm glad we had the help to stop when we needed to.

So... after a shower, a jump in the pool and a nap, it was time to enjoy our wonderful weekend in the Hunter Valley.

Thanks for an impressive effort bunny-Lou and thanks for saving us bunny-Amanda!!

Looking forward to our next (less hot) adventure already!

The Map

Annette :)

The brave wet riders

2009-11-06T23:05:00.003+11:00

Bunny Amanda's account of a very adventurous ride:

Mmmmmmmmm company aside I am not sure whether I enjoyed today's bike ride or not? Tor and I arranged to go on a short 30-40 km plus ride whilst Pam could babysit Loddie so there was really no going back. This was the first day Tor and I had ridden together (apart from Sydney) so we were both really looking forward to it. Rain Rain go away come back another day or as Tor kept saying ‘It will clear up in a minute' or ‘Blue Sky over there' – right so why were we always cycling under a black bucketing rain cloud???????

I left my car at the iBar and cycled to Tor's, by the time I reached there I was literally soaked. Not thinking it could get any worse, we set off on our merry way up the steepest of hills and around the back of the Entrance Road through bush or should I just say mini lakes and out onto the road. Whilst cycling through the bush Tor proceeded to tell me about the huge python she jumped over whilst trying to protect her children and nearly having her leg bitten off – I kid you not ask Tor!!!!!!!! (I may also add here that we should be called the Rebel Bunnies because we cycled along a path that specifically stated ‘Bushwalkers only'!! Let them try and stop us)!!!!!!

Panic set in but I couldn't cycle very fast because it was so bloody wet and I really didn't want to put my foot in a muddy puddle. Some time later we emerged from the bush beaten and bruised but elated at reaching the other end. Rain was coming down so heavy now that I thought for one brief minute that it was hail stoning. We took shelter under a tree but alas it was not really shelter just another way of getting wet. Shivering and shaking we decided to brave the rain and cycled into The Entrance where for a brief five minutes it stopped raining and we felt the warmth of something I believe is called the sun on our backs.

That was it – the rest of the way home we were literally attacked by sheets of rain straight into our eyes. We stopped for shelter at the shops but realized that it was never going to stop so cycled on in the now cold rain. At one point I couldn't see I had so much water flooding into my eyes (and I am seriously not exaggerating).

Tor with a constant smile on her face, me with madness in my eyes cycled through puddles as deep as the Nile screaming Yahoo we are bloody mad!!!!!!!!! Some puddles were warm, some were ice cold but they all made us laugh as waterfalls came out of our shoes and we sat in puddles of cold water in our knickers ( I didn't have any knickers on as I was wearing my bike pants but they weighed 150 kilos by the end of it)

Two hours of cycling in the heavy rain and then we hit Wamberal Road where we could smell the coffee at the iBar – I put my bike in the car whilst poor Tor braved the café, drenched, flat headed and still with that by now mad smile on her face. Then we met Noelle and sat under a blanky like little ole ladies sipping our coffee and shivering.

When we cycled through the golf club the oldies commented on how mad we were cycling in the rain to which Tor replied rather valiantly ‘well you're playing golf' and we got beeped a couple of times by young lads who thought we looked hot – little did they realize we were cold! No I think they beeped us to make sure that we realized we were MAD STARK RAVING MAD!

I DO NOT ADVISE ANYONE DO THIS!

Amanda :)

And... here's bunny Tor's first post on our blog (hooray!):

Well... what can I say...... Amanda has described our lovely wet bike ride so very well. I did enjoy it, very much in fact - but as you know I am a bit weird like that. I had been longing to go on a ride with any of the bunnies for such a long time, so there was NO WAY a bit of rain was going to stop me! I was pleasantly surprised when Amanda still agreed to come along, even more suprised when she turned up in my driveway soaking wet! Off we went, and it did look like the weather might clear up, but, no matter how hard we peddled that big black cloud was over us most of the way. It was a most joyous ride, as I could hear Amanda laughing most of the way, especially as we peddled through puddles that were nearly up to our knees!!!! We are sooooooooooo extreme! We even went off road for a little while and got mud on our faces... we are just so cool!

It was lovely however to chill out at the ibar under our blankie (aka dog towell) with the lovely noeybella for company. The only problem being that then I had to bike home again, via the primary school to change home readers. I did look a bit of a state, in an extreme bunny sort of way, but when I saw my son at primary school he just looked at me, in an embarrassed sort of way as if he didn't want to acknowledge me! I can't understand why? Yes stark raving mad and probably a tad irresponssible but lots of fun..... and a rather good work out..... and amazingly, we didn't pick up a single leech in the wet bush!

Tor :)

and... the Photos to prove it:

Very soaked feet...

...and drenched knee

Amanda soaked all over

Wet & cold bunny Tor

Happy smiling Tor :)

A recovering bunny :)

2009-11-06T22:50:00.000+11:00

Terribly sorry about the lapse in biking posts of late...

I have been temporarily prevented from going on 2 wheel adventures by an annoying bad back made worse by a silly bout of bronchitis. Thankfully though, now that the bronchitis is evicted, my dear physio reckons that my back is on the road to mending and I can't wait!!!!! :)

I did go on a short solo ride a week ago to test my wings (also known as impatience), and although the ride itself went really well, I sorely paid for it afterwards and have been told to exercise my non-existent skills in PATIENCE :)

At first 'glance', it may seem that ligaments have very little to do with bike-riding, yet I've recently understood that they are a CRUCIAL part of bike-riding (and any other chosen activity) as these semi-stretchy control freaks of our bones work overtime at keeping our bone structure intact while we stretch and carry on in all sorts of strange and interesting moves. Now that I know what they are and what they do... (there is some excitement in learning new things I must say), I'm waiting for my frazzled one to heal up and pop me back on the road very very soon :)

In the mean time I must say it's been ever so wonderful to read about Amanda's last solo ride and the one I'm just about to post... where bunnies Amanda and Tor delve into the deep and dark realms of the bush. I'm so glad you're sharing your adventures and look forward to our next ride with a big smile :)

Annette :)

Amanda's solo bunny ride

2009-10-23T15:22:00.000+11:00

I swallowed a fly

Oh no not I....

Indeed I did! What a great start to my solo ride. The fact that I left my water bottle on my car and drove off leaving the bottle to rattle down my drive, unbeknownst to me until I had already set off on my solo cycle.

Oh never mind I thought as I cycled along merrily, I can always buy one at the little shop on the way. I decided to as fast as I could considering I hadn’t ridden for nigh on three weeks. Talking to myself I pushed myself harder and harder and then I did it – I swallowed a FLY!!!!!!!!!!!! It got stuck in my throat and I couldn’t do anything but swallow – yuk and no water to wash the nutritious meal down with either. I pulled over at the shop, fly in throat and delved into my pouch to discover that I only had 50cents – I did for one brief moment consider going into the shop and asking if I could get some tap water for 50cents but couldn’t be bothered getting off my bike only to be kicked out of the shop.

There were lots of merry cyclers on the path today and each and every one gave the nod or a big hearty smile. Got to Woy Woy in record time for a solo cyclist – 35 minutes and then continued on to the Peninsular Leisure Centre – what a pleasant ride it was even if I was dehydrating. It got so bad that I stopped at the toilets and took a sip of water (from the tap not the toilet bowl).

On the way home I passed a photographer taking a photo of yes you guessed it Belinda Neale on a bike – well she was standing with the bike I don’t know if she could actually ride it and the Major Chris Holstein was standing beside her. Now if Lou had been with us she would no doubt have stopped, pushed her breasts out and somehow got in the photo. But not I – I am the shy type so I cycled past chuckling at the unbelievable photo this would make.

And that is about it for my little adventure except for the last lap when suffering from severe dehydration I saw Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon in the woods!

Lesson to be learnt – NEVER GO ANYWHERE WITHOUT WATER!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Amanda :)

A Free Bicycle Workshop

2009-10-11T14:24:00.005+11:00

The Event

Bunnies on board - Lou, Amanda, Diane & Annette

Meeting place - Ourimbah, CARES facility

Time - 9:30 am - 12:30pm

Weather - Overcast with some drizzle

Distance cycled ~ 1km...

Today's event was the much anticipated workshop provided by Central Coast & North Sydney Area Health. We rocked up with our bikes to find an amazingly "cute" facility: traffic lights, a roundabout, intersections & road signs galore – all backing onto the bush with bellbirds singing at the top of their voices :) (They also run a great program for school kids here!).

There were quite a few exclamations of WOW! as we parked our bikes outside the main building, where we had the introduction and theory component of the workshop... The co-ordinator Nigel, introduced himself and talked a little about the reasons for setting up these 'cycling confidence workshops', before handing over to our workshop instructor – Allan.

Allan talked about state and council goals for improving cycling safety and participation around the country. He also talked about his previous work within Gosford council and gave us general advice on helmets, what to wear and different types of bikes.

Lou ticked almost every box as the prepared and road-ready cyclist, and was asked to stand up and demonstrate not only her outfit (great for cycling) but also her fancy basket, with both water-bottle and sunscreen onboard! :) Amanda got to stand up and demonstrate her helmet (she even performed a most graceful bend forward, to show that her helmet remained on her head :) ), and as she is our fashionista bunny, she also got to show off her very flash reversable cycling jacket :)

So 2 of our biker bunnies (sporting slightly redder faces) were now offially introduced to the entire group. A group which consisted of mostly women and a few happy guys of varying age and cycling confidence. Although we didn't really have time to get to know each other in the short time, it was great to see the level of enthusiasm in the group: everyone seemed keen about cycling and finding ways to gain more on-road confidence.

A 'mature' couple had brought their fancy 'fold-up-bikes' to the workshop, and the man demonstrated how quickly he could fold the bike into a small package: Janine, you'll love this: Not only does the bike itself fold up to almost "carry-on" luggage size, BUT the PEDALS fold up as well, meaning

that this bike is perfect if you want to push it along and not get jabbed by protruding pedals each and every step you take ;)

With all these demonstrations, Diane (my mum), quickly removed the disintegrating foam pads in her purple helmet just in time to show off her 'older-style' helmet, naturally a perfect colour match to her vintage purple bike, which also received quite a bit of attention on the day :)

By the time our instructor picked up my heavily modified blue bag, attempting to introduce it as 'the latest in bag technology' oh ok, maybe not quite... ;) I had to stop him, fearing that he'd discover all the chopped off straps half-way through the sales-pitch, with inevitable occy-strap tangle to follow...

We had a quick coffee break and by now we were getting excited about trying out the outdoor facility, wriggling slightly in our seats and looking at those clouds outside moving closer and closer...

Then... Lou pipes up: "Ehhhmmmmmnm – are we going to learn how to fix a puncture???" Who could deny such a request? Our instructor dived into descriptions of the latest puncture fixing gadgets (slime, air canisters, inner-tubes pre-lined with slime, other types of inner-tubes and valves, patches, allen-keys, levers, wrenches and more) while a guy in our group went off to get his handy-dandy floor pump, which enabled the demonstration to finish with a fully pumped tyre at the end :)

Finally we appeared to have covered all the theory aspects of the workshop and we moved outside to try out the bicycle riding facility! Rain was just starting to spit, but thankfully it moved away pretty quickly :) We practiced riding in an anti-clockwise pattern around the COLA (Covered Outdoor Learning Area :D ) and Diane, who will happily signal right-hand turns, was thrown in at the deep-end with only left-hand turns on the menu! She managed gallantly though, and we all seemed to pass the first practical test.

Then we got to extend our riding practice by riding past Nigel, who was sitting in a car unable to decide if he was coming or going, & kept swinging his door open into our path! Admittedly we giggled quite a lot, though we're very aware of the 'door-zone' danger in the 'real' world and did our best to not get caught by Nigel's door :)

After the door-zone hazard, we moved onto the actual traffic area of the facility and got to practice riding through the roundabout (Lou can now navigate a roundabout with her eyes closed), stop and start at traffic lights and navigate the speed humps and other cyclists along the way.

One of the ladies in our group had an unfortunate, but elegant topple-stack in the middle of the roundabout! (I almost called out "Bunny DOWN!! Bunny DOWN!!!" But managed to contain myself as Allan ran to her rescue; luckily she was fine, and only needed to pop her chain back on before she was ride-ready again :)

Diane on her 'vintage' bike stopped at a red light

Amanda on good behaviour with our instructor

Waving at the traffic lights ;)

bunny-Diane cruising around the course

Summing up:)

This was a great workshop, especially as council and area health have provided these workshops free as an incentive to get people out cycling more for fun and fitness. Gear Up Girl also run an annual workshop (I think it's once a year, around July-August), a more hands-on workshop covering bike maintenance and practical skills. Maybe this would be fun to do at some stage??? :)

Information - We received lots of valuable and interesting information, including cycle maps, clubs, websites and events on the coast.
Technical Know-how - We covered "fix a flat", "bike-locking", clothing, and necessary onboard tools
Practical - Personally I would have liked to have spent more time outside, but we still got to practice the "power position" for that cruisy start, "left, right and stop hand-signals" and avoiding the "door-zone".
Goodies - We also received a cool backpack with lots of great information, a fabulous cookbook and a way-cool cycling computer which will help us clock up those kms! Talk about a great incentive! :)

All up: A fun morning, which no-doubt will lead to more exciting adventures on our bikes :)