It’s too far and too hard, John Henry was told when he contemplating joining the famous Ride Around the Bays. In 2006, the year he turned 70, he decided to ignore the naysayers. He hasn’t looked back since, except to see where his mates are.
By John Henry
IT’S 3am and I’m awake already. The dawn of the big day, or it soon will be. I might as well get going; I won’t sleep any more. First a cup of tea while I check all the bits and pieces.
The weather report is very important. It could not be better, a warm and sunny day and, best of all, a light northerly wind with an afternoon sea breeze. It means the wind will be on our backs most of the day. I dress accordingly but take a light jacket as the day will be cold before the sun rises.
I make a thermos of coffee for a hit before the start, mix two bottles of energy drink, take one of water, mix some dried fruit and chopped up energy bars, and take a couple of energy gels for emergencies.
Second wind: John Henry found his stamina improving as he got older.
I check the bike lights, puncture repair tool, two spare tubes for the tyres, and put the bike in the car. A moderate breakfast (fruit, rice, and two boiled eggs). Now I can wake the chauffeur for a lift into Alexandra Gardens, a short trip from East Malvern at this time of day.
We arrive at the drop-off zone at about 5.15am. I can relax now and hit the coffee. I wave goodbye to my chauffeur and go for a ride. The road signs are still being put in place. My start is at 6am, when it will just be getting light. All the people riding 200 and 210 kilometres start together but are grouped according to the average speed expected for the day: fastest off first. I’m in the 25-30km/h group so I’m about half way back in the queue. I find my starting zone and wait. Alexandra Avenue is filling up now with thousands of brightly attired people with bikes and lots of corporate uniforms: BHP, Westpac, NAB, Portfolio Partners. Many companies have more than 100 cyclists in their teams.
My riding partners for the day find me (mobile phones are very useful) and time passes very quickly looking at the bikes and studying the fashions. At 6am we hear in the distance the starter’s voice, no doubt telling everyone to “stop at red lights”, obey the traffic rules”, “obey police instructions”, and “have a good time”.
It’s 6.15am before we begin to move, and then only at walking pace for the first half kilometre or so, funnelling from the whole width of Alexandra Avenue into one lane in City Road that has been fenced off for us. It takes forever to get down City Road because of the numerous traffic lights and the huge queue of bikes. Finally the speed begins to wind up as we (the anticlockwise Geelong-first people) turn into Ingles Street and head for the Westgate Bridge.
At last, the bridge. Now I can warm up on the surprisingly long climb to the top. No one is stopping on the top to take photos – they say it’s a $500 fine. Down the other side and off along the freeway. Now we are really on our way.
*******************
That was 2007, my second “Around the Bay in a Day”. The 2007 event was a memorable day for the weather; and it was the year of my best time. On October 21 I will try to do it all again.
Some 2700 riders rode in the first Around the Bay in a Day event in 1993, so this year will be the 20th event. It’s an event in which cyclists (of all ages) endeavour to ride from Melbourne to Queenscliff or Melbourne to Sorrento, cross the water at the heads by the ferry and ride back on the other side to Melbourne, making a total distance of 210 kilometres.
The Bicycle Victoria annual event soon became very popular but ferry capacity limited the number who could ride the whole way round to about 4000 in each direction. So a number of associated rides were introduced. These include Sorrento and return (200kms), Queenscliff and return (210kms) and for those not so keen to do the whole distance, a 100-km ride from Sorrento, a 50-km ride, and this year a 20-km ride. Last year some 16,000 people took part and 20,000 are expected this year. About 400 volunteers marshal the roads, give out lunches, organise the queue for the ferries and so on.
In 1994 the event became a charity ride, Bicycle Victoria entering a partnership with the Smith Family to raise funds to support disadvantaged students. This year the target is $1.2 million. In 2007 the ride expanded into the Melbourne Cycling Festival, involving a whole weekend of cycling-related activities in the Alexandra Gardens. It is now one of Melbourne’s three biggest sporting events.
In 2005 I wanted to do the ride but was put off by those who said it was too dangerous and too difficult. In 2006, the year I turned 70, I decided I had to have a go and I have not missed a year since. I did need to train, to improve fitness and get used to riding long distances. As you get older you lose strength but you seem to be able to regain stamina, so there is no bar to doing an event like this. It just takes a bit longer. The young ones can do the ride in about seven or eight hours, I take about 12 now. Of that, the wait for a ferry and the trip across takes about two hours during which we have lunch. Toilet trucks, drinking water and lunches are provided. In 2006 the oldest person to go all the way round was 75. She was escorted by her sons and finished after dark, but she did have a long lunch at the Sorrento pub and several coffee stops.
The 2006 ride was the ride that hooked me into cycling events. It was a hard ride, but I enjoyed it. I met many other cyclists along the way, people of all ages. I made up my mind then that I would keep doing it for as long as I can. Cycling is a great recreation. It is not bone-crunching, it is aerobic, and it can be undertaken by nearly anyone of nearly any age, with the right bike.
John Henry lives at Inverloch. He’s keen to meet others in the region – beginners or otherwise – who would like to get together for rides. Email John Henry or phone 5674 3941. If you would like to support him in his ride on October 21, visit Around the Bay. All donations go to The Smith Family and are tax-deductible.
On the trails in Bass Coast
A GREAT place to start is the Bass Coast Rail Trail, which runs between Wonthaggi and Kilcunda, and on to Anderson. Riding from Wonthaggi to Kilcunda, with a stop for coffee or lunch at Kilcunda, and back to Wonthaggi (or the other way around) is about 32 kilometres and a very pleasant day out. There are entry points at the Lower Powlett Road, Dalyston, and the Mouth of the Powlett Road for those wanting a shorter ride.
From Kilcunda to Anderson there is a bit of a hill climb because the trail does not follow the original rail alignment over the old trestle bridge on the Anderson side of Kilcunda. You get to see the remains of the Kilcunda coal mine, one of Victoria’s first.
The Great Southern Rail Trail is also within reach, a short drive from Wonthaggi. It runs between Leongatha and Foster, and can be best accessed from Leongatha, Koonwarra, Meeniyan and Fish Creek.
IT’S 3am and I’m awake already. The dawn of the big day, or it soon will be. I might as well get going; I won’t sleep any more. First a cup of tea while I check all the bits and pieces.
The weather report is very important. It could not be better, a warm and sunny day and, best of all, a light northerly wind with an afternoon sea breeze. It means the wind will be on our backs most of the day. I dress accordingly but take a light jacket as the day will be cold before the sun rises.
I make a thermos of coffee for a hit before the start, mix two bottles of energy drink, take one of water, mix some dried fruit and chopped up energy bars, and take a couple of energy gels for emergencies.
Second wind: John Henry found his stamina improving as he got older.
I check the bike lights, puncture repair tool, two spare tubes for the tyres, and put the bike in the car. A moderate breakfast (fruit, rice, and two boiled eggs). Now I can wake the chauffeur for a lift into Alexandra Gardens, a short trip from East Malvern at this time of day.
We arrive at the drop-off zone at about 5.15am. I can relax now and hit the coffee. I wave goodbye to my chauffeur and go for a ride. The road signs are still being put in place. My start is at 6am, when it will just be getting light. All the people riding 200 and 210 kilometres start together but are grouped according to the average speed expected for the day: fastest off first. I’m in the 25-30km/h group so I’m about half way back in the queue. I find my starting zone and wait. Alexandra Avenue is filling up now with thousands of brightly attired people with bikes and lots of corporate uniforms: BHP, Westpac, NAB, Portfolio Partners. Many companies have more than 100 cyclists in their teams.
My riding partners for the day find me (mobile phones are very useful) and time passes very quickly looking at the bikes and studying the fashions. At 6am we hear in the distance the starter’s voice, no doubt telling everyone to “stop at red lights”, obey the traffic rules”, “obey police instructions”, and “have a good time”.
It’s 6.15am before we begin to move, and then only at walking pace for the first half kilometre or so, funnelling from the whole width of Alexandra Avenue into one lane in City Road that has been fenced off for us. It takes forever to get down City Road because of the numerous traffic lights and the huge queue of bikes. Finally the speed begins to wind up as we (the anticlockwise Geelong-first people) turn into Ingles Street and head for the Westgate Bridge.
At last, the bridge. Now I can warm up on the surprisingly long climb to the top. No one is stopping on the top to take photos – they say it’s a $500 fine. Down the other side and off along the freeway. Now we are really on our way.
*******************
That was 2007, my second “Around the Bay in a Day”. The 2007 event was a memorable day for the weather; and it was the year of my best time. On October 21 I will try to do it all again.
Some 2700 riders rode in the first Around the Bay in a Day event in 1993, so this year will be the 20th event. It’s an event in which cyclists (of all ages) endeavour to ride from Melbourne to Queenscliff or Melbourne to Sorrento, cross the water at the heads by the ferry and ride back on the other side to Melbourne, making a total distance of 210 kilometres.
The Bicycle Victoria annual event soon became very popular but ferry capacity limited the number who could ride the whole way round to about 4000 in each direction. So a number of associated rides were introduced. These include Sorrento and return (200kms), Queenscliff and return (210kms) and for those not so keen to do the whole distance, a 100-km ride from Sorrento, a 50-km ride, and this year a 20-km ride. Last year some 16,000 people took part and 20,000 are expected this year. About 400 volunteers marshal the roads, give out lunches, organise the queue for the ferries and so on.
In 1994 the event became a charity ride, Bicycle Victoria entering a partnership with the Smith Family to raise funds to support disadvantaged students. This year the target is $1.2 million. In 2007 the ride expanded into the Melbourne Cycling Festival, involving a whole weekend of cycling-related activities in the Alexandra Gardens. It is now one of Melbourne’s three biggest sporting events.
In 2005 I wanted to do the ride but was put off by those who said it was too dangerous and too difficult. In 2006, the year I turned 70, I decided I had to have a go and I have not missed a year since. I did need to train, to improve fitness and get used to riding long distances. As you get older you lose strength but you seem to be able to regain stamina, so there is no bar to doing an event like this. It just takes a bit longer. The young ones can do the ride in about seven or eight hours, I take about 12 now. Of that, the wait for a ferry and the trip across takes about two hours during which we have lunch. Toilet trucks, drinking water and lunches are provided. In 2006 the oldest person to go all the way round was 75. She was escorted by her sons and finished after dark, but she did have a long lunch at the Sorrento pub and several coffee stops.
The 2006 ride was the ride that hooked me into cycling events. It was a hard ride, but I enjoyed it. I met many other cyclists along the way, people of all ages. I made up my mind then that I would keep doing it for as long as I can. Cycling is a great recreation. It is not bone-crunching, it is aerobic, and it can be undertaken by nearly anyone of nearly any age, with the right bike.
John Henry lives at Inverloch. He’s keen to meet others in the region – beginners or otherwise – who would like to get together for rides. Email John Henry or phone 5674 3941. If you would like to support him in his ride on October 21, visit Around the Bay. All donations go to The Smith Family and are tax-deductible.
On the trails in Bass Coast
A GREAT place to start is the Bass Coast Rail Trail, which runs between Wonthaggi and Kilcunda, and on to Anderson. Riding from Wonthaggi to Kilcunda, with a stop for coffee or lunch at Kilcunda, and back to Wonthaggi (or the other way around) is about 32 kilometres and a very pleasant day out. There are entry points at the Lower Powlett Road, Dalyston, and the Mouth of the Powlett Road for those wanting a shorter ride.
From Kilcunda to Anderson there is a bit of a hill climb because the trail does not follow the original rail alignment over the old trestle bridge on the Anderson side of Kilcunda. You get to see the remains of the Kilcunda coal mine, one of Victoria’s first.
The Great Southern Rail Trail is also within reach, a short drive from Wonthaggi. It runs between Leongatha and Foster, and can be best accessed from Leongatha, Koonwarra, Meeniyan and Fish Creek.