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Track evening fundraiser

...and the survey says "Wow, that's steep!" was the most popular comment afterseeing the track are the Darebin International Sports Centre. I mean we've all seen track racing on television at the Olympics, or even on Cycling Central on a Sunday, but we certainly weren't prepared for the reality that hit us. 

Forty-two degree banks at either end left those who gathered gasping and questioning the laws of physics as they contemplated riding atop of those very banks at some stage this evening. Fear was building.

A collection of Melbourne's finest individuals joined forces to help LAID Cycling regular, Mark Maiolo, raise funds for the Ride to Conquer Cancer. A worthwhile cause indeed with the added benefit of a lot of fun ahead.

Supercoach, Daryl from Cycling Victoria arrived albeit a tick late and he's early words weren't inspiring. If you stop pedalling; you'll get hurt. If you dont keep straight on the bank; you'll get hurt. He kept going and the palms grew sweaty with anxiety."I thought this was meant to be fun and safe" I heard one cyclist whisper.

Housekeeping done, and we all reached for the bikes they'd supplied us; Hillbrick Pista's which were great. Fifteen of us moved cautiously around the track slowly building confidence. A few braved souls took straight to the banks with Igor, Big Tim and Curtis looking right at home at the dizzying heights. The others were a little more conservative at first, but all eventually conquered the beast.

A one lap time trail from the starting gate was kicked off by event organiser Mark; posting a time of 25.94 seconds. The excitement of launching out of the gate was enough to make everyone feel the Olympian inside. Igor was the early leader with a time 24.07 until Curtis took off. Flying around the 250 metre circuit Curtis forgot to keep his head up coming to the line. He clipped the witches hats and went spinning and sliding across the floor leaving his mark and skin on the track. Amazingly though he took the fastest time at 23:38.

Not to be out done, two riders later Chito decided to end the fun for everyone. Once again riding with his head down Chito hit the starting gate as he approached the line taking out the gas bottle, but amazingly staying upright. The gate ruined, the remaining riders had to do it the old fashioned way - Daryl holding them up.

The two fastest riders were saved for last with the quiet and subdued Jake smashing out a lap of power defying his slight build, posting 22.58. Fast, but the hulking Tim put the power down hurting the Hillbrick as he screamed to a 21.89, taking the chocolates.

Next on the menu was the flying lap. A two lap 'warm up' to get to speed before unleashing all sorts of hurt on the last lap to record a time. Lap one was fine, but by lap two my legs were in lactic overload and by lap three they were crying along with my lungs and heart. I was not alone; everyone was feeling it this late in the session. Three riders stood out with sub 18 second times; Curtis, Igor and Tim with Tim once again taking the chocolates with 17.17 seconds. A very dominant performance.

The rest of the session was a free ride and a chance try new things as well as wind down the muscles. I, like others were on a high as the come try session came to an end.. I suggest if you get the chance to give it a go. Check the website for timetables: www.viv.cycling.org.au

It was a great evening and importantly Mark raised some funds for the ride.  The results are at the bottom of the photos. A big thanks for Amy Maiolo sacrificing her ride to capture some of the moments. See you at the track as a few of us have decided to take it up.

Amy's Gran Fondo 2012

Come on, don't deny it - we've all done it before: playing the "my bike is better than your bike" game at the start line of an event, eyeing off the calibre of contenders.  Today I resoundly lost this challenge as the quality of machines were reaching stratospheric levels.  Carbon bling everywhere!

The event was the 2012 Amy's Gran Fondo, organised by the Amy Gillett Foundation to raise road safety awareness for cyclists around Australia.  It's a 120km course starting in Lorne, heading west along the Great Ocean Road and back via the Otway Ranges from Skenes Creek to Deans Marsh.  All on closed roads with no traffic - it's an unmissable event.  It's also a feeder event for top finishers into the 2013 UCI World Cycling Tour.  Hence the bling bikes, deep dish wheels and race-ready riders everywhere!

Being surrounded by 4,000 eager riders raised the excitement levels, and we were all chomping at the bit to get underway.  Waves of 200 riders departed at 90 second intervals and in no time we were clipping in, heading off for 120 kilometres of amazing roads.  The first 1.5km were considered "neutral" before the official timing began.  The pace was still hectic as we found our legs and began forming groups of similar capacity.

We departed the canopy of trees and began our traverse of the Great Ocean Road, a stunning stretch of roadway winding along the rugged southern ocean coastline.  For a while we had company in the form of a helicopter hovering over the ocean at eye level, it really felt like we were in a stage of the Tour de France!

The first 38km were chewed up in good time and then the challenges began.  No opportunity to sit on someone's wheel and stay out of the wind as we trundled up Skenes Creek Road at whatever pace we could muster.  This was a 9.5km grind at around 6% all the way up.  I was aiming for a sub-38 minute time, with a 35 minute marker as my ultimate goal.  To have crossed the top of the climb at under 34 minutes was adequate vindication for all the work I've been doing lately, and brought a welcome sense of relief.

The next 50km of undulating roads were simply blissful.  We managed to form a decent group of about 15 riders who all worked together to keep the pace at a fast simmer, rather than tempestuous boil.  A few more energy gels later, we reached the base of the final ascent to Deans Marsh and we were all back into every-man-for-themselves mode.

I had previously ridden this section of road, and as such I knew that there were occasional moments of reprieve along the final 7 kilometres.  The legs felt quite good after 100km of non-stop riding and I attempted to leave nothing behind.  In no time I'd reached the top of the climb and the glorious finish marker, to which my left hamstring decided to celebrate with a massive cramp!

As I was stretching out the muscle, Matt of Climbing Cyclist fame called out so I stopped to exchange war stories and see how he went - obviously with all of his efforts lately he made it look easy, and his times reflected these efforts.  Good to see he was repping the LAID Cycling kit too!

The final neutral descent back to Lorne was blissful, and so was the hamburger which was devoured in record time - those guys in Lorne know how to put together a decent feed!

A few minutes after getting back to town, my official times were posted via the Subaru tracker iPhone app, and to see the clock stopped 3hr30 was a huge surprise.  I'd beaten my target time by 30 minutes and finished well within the top 25% of all finishers.  Unfortunately I just missed out on making the top 25% in my age group so there's no commemorative medal for this year - that'll be next year's goal.

Many thanks to all of the organisers and volunteers for the day - they created a wonderful atmosphere and the logistics to close 120km of roadways would have been immense.  I hope the work they've put in is returned to them tenfold, and that Australian roadways are made safer for all users as a result of their efforts.

Here's a bit of footage from my handlebar camera, before the batteries went flat http://youtube.com/watch?v=Yg5KlmeEBJs

Try (indoor) track cycling for a great cause!

Inspired by the track events at the Olympics? Want to do your bit for a good cause? Want to try something new?  

Home of the 2006 Commonwealth Games track cycling events, grace the boards of the Darebin International Sports Centre and emulate the greats; Hoy, Bailey, Pendleton and Meares. 

All profits will go to the Peter Mac Foundation raising funds for much-needed cancer research.

The following details are locked in:

Date: Friday 21 September, 4-6pm – I understand it’ll require 9-5’ers to take a few hours off work, it was the latest time I could arrange!

Location: Darebin International Sports Centre – 281 Darebin Road Thornbury

Cost: $30

Included: A track bike, a coach and two hours of riding fun

Spots are limited to 20 and are filling fast, so please reply with your contact details asap

Pass this on to any friends and family that would be interested, but we are capped at 20 participants so please hurry!

For those who are unable to attend and still want to contribute to the cause, any donation of any amount would be greatly appreciated via my fundraising page : http://ml12.conquercancer.org.au/goto/MarkMaiolo

Spectators are also more than welcome, and we will be continuing on with dinner and drinks at the Ivanhoe Hotel Vue Bar watching the AFL Preliminary Final afterwards.

to get involved email Mark Maiolo at: Mark.Maiolo@eb-services.com.au

Cyclocross at Darebin.....words arent enough!

I'm back

I need a holiday

I will personally be taking a short break from posting as a result of excessive demands elsewhere.........Keep riding and sending through stuff through and I'll  post other contributors stuff.

Getting laid in LA - Mark does Mulholland

Eating your way through Mexico is not the best preparation for a ride through the Californian hills.

Hola! It's Mark here, writing at y'all from my office desk in gloriously glum Melbourne.  I've been home for 48 hours, after three weeks of vacation through Cancun, Playa Del Carmen and Los Angeles.

My partner and I feasted our way through the Mexican resort towns, savouring the azure Caribbean waters and golden cervesas for two amazing weeks - obviously not the most ideal warm-up for the brilliant bike ride that SoCal Bike Tours had organised for me!  At least my legs were tanned and wouldn't look too bad in my fresh LAID kit.

So the day arrived, and I prepared myself with eager anticipation.  I was out the door and catching a bus from West Hollywood out to Malibu - a comfortable hour-long trip that took me past the grand mansions of Beverly Hills and the multitude of UCLA buildings and fraternity houses.  At the end of my trip I was presented with stunning views of the Pacific ocean and the famed Pacific Coast Highway.

The occasional group of cyclists sped past, mostly lycra-clad speed machines which further raised my anticipation for what was in store for me.  I was chomping at the bit by the time I walked into the Malibu Bluffs Park carpark and met with my hosts for the day.

"Hi I'm Alex, this is my wife Gloria, and our dog Fausto Coppi" Alex beamed at me with an outstretched hand, and I instantly knew I was in good company.  Gloria was equally warm and inviting, and welcomed me to a selection of gels, energy bars, bananas and gatorade which she had carefully set out next to the support vehicle - a near new Mercedes sedan, very nice!

Alex was busy preparing the bikes, raising saddles and ensuring brakes were aligned properly.  We assessed the best options for pedals which necessitated a quick change of cleats on my shoes before I jumped onto a very well maintained LaPierre Scandium running 9-speed dura-ace with FSA K-Wing and Fizik contact points.  A few laps around the carpark with a couple of position adjustments saw us ready to hit the road.

As we started rolling, Alex and I began to discuss possible route options.  We'd already chatted via email to determine a rough plan for the day, and now that we were rolling we could further confirm our intent.  The SoCal Bike Tour motto is "Your Ride. Your Pace. Your Miles. Hammer. Attack. BreakAway." and Alex allowed me every option - we could stay along the PCH and pound out the miles, or turn inland and hit the hills that Southern California is known for. 

As we warmed up and got a feel for these american roads, I got to know Alex a little better.  He was full of interesting anecdotes about cycling, growing up in the area and his experience with watching professional races - not only at the Amgen Tour of California, but also at the Tour de France where he dressed in full costume to support Lance during his comeback years.  I felt as though we could talk for hours, but the rolling undulations meant I was too busy taking deep breaths to talk too much!
 
After about 15 miles we pulled into a carpark where Gloria and Fausto were waiting for us.  We refilled water and food and I was presented with the option of hitting Mulholland Highway, and a 12 mile climb inland through the nearby valley into Malibu indian  territory.  The opportunity was too good to pass up so I turned right and headed towards the initial gentle incline away from the coast.  Alex packed up his bike and took to the passenger seat of the support car so I was left to my own devices to ride my own ride, my own pace and my own miles (hey, that should be their motto!).

Plenty can be said about Mulholland Highway, which would just be a repeat of all that you could google about the road.  All I could add as a non-local is that it's a breathtaking climb with vistas completely different to anything I've seen in Australia.  The views reminded me of my time spent hiking through Peru and the deep rifts of the Colca Canyon (albeit with less Condors and more squirrels).  Temperature variances were also very noticeable, getting some cool reprieve as I was sheltered through the valley, and having to pour water over my head as I crested the hill and faced the Californian sun full-on.

The mile markers alongside the road slowly ticked upwards : 4.33, 6.28, 7.74, 10.61 until I finally crested the climb and pulled over for a well-earned break.  All the while Alex and Gloria were leap-frogging me in their car, occasionally stopping to take photos or run alongside to pass a new bottle of water to me.  It was the closest I've ever felt to being a pro rider and I channelled my inner Levi Leipheimer whenever the road took a turn towards the sky.  Words of encouragement as I spun past them kept me going and subdued the ache in my thighs that only comes with a consistent grind along 6-10% gradients.

After the break, we took some roads that the Amgen tour used last year.  This was a technical 9 mile descent through some ancient lava fields and past "The Rock Store" - a very well known motorbike hangout that Jay Leno frequents regularly.  Although the Amgen riders use this loop in the opposite direction (i.e. upwards) it was great to get a feel of what the pros encounter during competition. I could just imagine thousands of fans alongside the highway cheering on their favourite athletes, busting lungs around each hairpin bend and sharp climb.

Before I knew it, we were back at Malibu Canyon road where I chose to jump in the car, rather than tackle heavier traffic and a relatively boring descent back to PCH.  This allowed Gloria to give me a history of the area, and some background to who this Mulholland fellow was (sidenote: he's the civil engineer who brought water to an otherwise arid Los Angeles, resulting in the creation of America's second-largest city).

It was with a bit of sadness that we said goodbye and copious thanks for a brilliant day in the saddle.  I offered to reciprocate the sentiments and take Alex and Gloria out along Beach Road whenever they decided to visit Australia - if you're reading this guys, the offer still stands!

For anyone interested visiting L.A. and is interested in heading out for a ride, I thoroughly recommend SoCal bike tours - check out their website at www.socalbiketours.com and get in touch with Alex to customise your tour.  Tell them I said hi!

New Tassie Circuit and launch event

Our beloved Tassie is fast becoming the producer of most of Australia's future greats in cycling with the likes of Porte and others staring overseas. The flow on affect of this is an increased spend on cycling infrastructure in the Apple Isle.

Glenorchy which is 15 minutes outside the centre of Hobart is the latest spot to benefit from increased funding as the local council and Sports and Recreation Tasmania splashed out on a new multi million dollar criterium circuit, the first in Tassie.

The circuit, Tolosa Park, meets UCI standards and is 800 metres long and is described as having gentle undulations with a single banked corner. 

The official opening event will take place on Saturday 3 March with $5,000 in prize money across all grades. So if you're in need of a get away I encourage you to hit this event and if you're a Tassie local cruise down and be part of history. The schedule is below: