Cycling paradise

Jungle outside my door

2012-02-18T17:56:00.001+10:00

I am sitting in my usual computing spot, and this is what I see. The fan is keeping things pleasant, and the smell of a mozzie coil (incense you burn to keep insects at bay) is sweet. Summer time, Saturday, sweet living.

other university bugs

2012-02-17T18:24:00.000+10:00

outside my office this morning (actually he/she hung around all day)

bugs are beautiful!

the runner

2012-02-16T18:14:00.000+10:00

This very unflattering self portrait is to commemorate the day the voice in my head told me that I am now a runner. Don't worry, I was listening to the podcast for day 3 of week six of the couch to 5K running program. I do feel kind of like a runner...

market day again

2012-02-15T18:16:00.000+10:00

I have been flat out, and the daily pic, while nice, went into the urgent but not important pile. You just have to do what you can.

I had one volunteer to help me with O-week marketing day. If I win a million dollars I am giving a bit chunk of it to him, I would have died today on my own

The smartest students were laying in wait to snag a bike before I even got set up. I was supposed to be in front of the shed but it was sunny and about a million degrees, so I moved to the shade. I sold a fair few helmets.

People schmoozed through the shed and signed up for lockers and shed access. They couldn't believe this is free. I even gave away locks for the lockers. This was an early shot. It was pandemonium all day.

Happy, grateful overseas students who think that JCU absolutely rocks, which of course it does.

I gave away about 120 water bottles, which all needed a JCU BUG sticker put on first, and all the pens (??100s) and many many maps with suggested routes to the uni from your street etc.etc. I have about 30 students who want to join the shed, do up an old bike and ride it away on the promise they will return it to me. I trust they all will too, because they were all really sweet.

Now if I could just get about 15 experienced bike mechanics together by Saturday... hmmmm

Well I need some dinner (no lunch break for me today!) and a nice lie down.

Saturday coffee ride

2012-02-11T20:03:00.002+10:00

RiverWay

2012-02-10T17:51:00.002+10:00

Mom running, Dad skateboarding with a passenger. We all love our RiverWay paths.

new bike racks

2012-02-09T17:31:00.000+10:00

These racks, made of recycled plastic and metal, appeared outside my office building today. Did we need them? Well the concrete is still wet and we have a customer!

New helmet cam. Someday I will learn to use my camera without frowning in concentration. Now I just have to figure out how to edit the video, or even how to get it to record when I want, and not just 'sometimes'.

working bee

2012-02-08T20:23:00.000+10:00

Time on this planet is our great gift, and giving our time to do good things is the very best way to enjoy it. And always feed your volunteers. Man do we need an army of workers to get these bikes going! What doesn't get done up by Wednesday, I'm letting students pick one and do it up themselves (with help) and it is theirs to keep for free. I think we'll have fun with that. With Thanks to Scott for the photo with me in it, nice leg!!

surprise!

2012-02-07T15:11:00.001+10:00

We had a JCU BUG meeting today at the shed, and when I arrived there was a surprise! A fancy new sign put up by the lovely people in facilities management. I was shocked, it is so big! Thanks heaps.

at work

2012-02-06T15:47:00.000+10:00

I had to step out to get a photo of my building for an annual report and while it looks nice out there is is 33 C - that is over 90 F. A cyclone moving away from us has hoovered up all the clouds.

pottering in the shed

2012-02-05T16:58:00.001+10:00

I think I know why men like sheds. It is soothing to be in a place with a purpose. I just swept, cleaned and tidied, but I enjoyed it. My Community Bike Shed, I am so tickled to have pulled this off.

... and because it is Sunday, got to have some blooms in the house

doesn't take a big arrangement to make me happy, although big can be pretty cool.

garden glimpses

2012-02-04T15:11:00.001+10:00

Cooktown orchids, they look like they are barely surviving your neglect, then they bloom

and this just in, news from our woeful rag The Townsville Bulletin about how much Mundingburrians (that would be us) love our neighbourhood. Good fun for all you come from aways http://www.townsvillebulletin.com.au/article/2012/02/04/303331_news.html

between storms

2012-02-03T17:10:00.000+10:00

Most days I get a fine commute because the rain ends about daybreak, starts up again about the time you are thinking about lunch (10 or 11 in my case ), and clears up again about when it is time to roll home. Yesterday didn't quite work out that way. This morning was better than most.

Persian carpet

2012-02-02T19:53:00.000+10:00

I was too tired to take an interesting photo today. I rode in the rain and wind, I worked cartographic miracles all day (and wrote aggro BUG emails to my senior management, *sigh* I used to be such a nice person). I rode home, changed shoes and ran in my cycling kit (hey, it was already sweaty) and took a picture of my lovely Persian carpet plant when I came through the gate. Then my boring shot got interesting, because I started googling to find the botanic name, and I have failed. It is a herbaceous perennial, loves a hard prune once a year, goes leggy when it blooms ( so I cut it back then) but I haven't found it. So there you go, I just took this lovely for granted and now I have to do some homework.

winner!

2012-02-01T17:58:00.000+10:00

Ok it isn't a photo, but this is my blog after all, I set the rules. Today I finished my first ever Endomondo challenge, and here is a rare sight, me in first place amongst the women, 86 overall out of 11757 participants. It is silly I know, but being in a challenge does help me get going early and ensures I get a good ride in every day. Winners are grinners!

bicycle liberation army

2012-01-31T20:05:00.001+10:00

with permission of course!

More bikes for students, and that was just ute load 1 of 3

my kind of revolution!

spider lilies

2012-01-30T18:44:00.000+10:00

the sun is setting

a cool breeze rises as little flower cages form

pop!

buying prawns

2012-01-29T16:49:00.003+10:00

Always better from the source.

project bike II

2012-01-28T15:12:00.000+10:00

UE-18 mixte (?)
suntour power shifters
suntour 7 GT group set
dia-compe brakes
sugino japan chain guard
vic seat made in taiwan
grips o.g.k. cm-75 made in japan
frame serial number 027205

Haven't figured out what year it is yet, as it has very different components from the bikes in the French, American, Canadian and Japanese catalogues online. I showed photos to a mate at coffee this morning, and he said his sister bought the same model in Townsville in 1979-1980, so that is something to look into. What fun! What a great bike!

Anybody with skillz in polishing up old bikes please feel free to chime in. I really seems to just need a good clean and oiling, but I would love to get it gleaming again, without damaging anything.

project bike

2012-01-27T13:29:00.002+10:00

A friend dropped off a bike for me yesterday. I just adore it. Needs a bit of work. Here is a teaser.

Aussie Day fun run

2012-01-26T09:58:00.005+10:00

Before

After

It wasn't the oxymoron I was expecting! Just 5kms, but it was my first time to run (jog) the whole thing. It really was very fun.

so it begins

2012-01-25T18:13:00.005+10:00

The river starts to flow after 110mm overnight. Morning ride is cool, and the sun breaks out. Life is sweet.

out running

2012-01-24T06:19:00.000+10:00

rainy season

2012-01-23T10:17:00.002+10:00

Finally a bit of steady rain in the forecast, but the railing I usually hang my gear on is not sheltered, so I have engineered a wet day alternative, at least until teaching starts up again...

cycling season

2012-01-22T18:41:00.004+10:00

The cycling season is officially under way with the completion of the Tour Down Under. Great result for us Aussies. I should have put the green jersey in the front of the pack!

coffee ride 3

2012-01-21T17:56:00.002+10:00

you will find there is a pattern to my life...

Saturday coffee ride....

What's new in the garden today...
I love these summer crocus, and they only bloom for a couple of days.

I was supposed to go out to the bike shed at the Uni to follow up on yesterdays post, but the Tour Down Under was live on TV, so that got the flick and I reclined on the couch for a really long time and watched the whole thing. Well I may have drifted off once or twice.

Then I felt guilty so I went for a run. Week 4 of C25K is really hard! My legs are now very sad.

So for Lily, we have a bikeshed at the uni and are creating a workshop within, and as many bikes as possible will be fixed up and sold to students for a nominal cost. I am also sourcing helmets to sell on campus at the uni shop, since you cannot legally ride without one. It will be a big deal, there will be photos.

bike salvage

2012-01-20T16:00:00.003+10:00

Spent a long, hot and dirty lunch hour salvaging abandoned bikes at the colleges. So many!! We are still not done! photo by Adam Connell.

pizza night!

2012-01-19T11:05:00.000+10:00

early bloom

2012-01-18T20:23:00.002+10:00

it seems early for a tumeric bloom, but we made a new patch with better light and lots of feed, and they look very happy indeed. Should be a bumper crop.

bananarama

2012-01-17T16:57:00.003+10:00

Scott bagging bunch number 5, a couple more bunches coming on. All this abundance, and he gets to put old inner tubes to good use, which soothes my guilty green soul. We get through a lot of tubes in a year!

on cycling and mortality

2012-01-16T19:29:00.004+10:00

A blogger I enjoy wrote about the dangers of cycling and it made me think. Actually there are stats to show that cycling isn't all that dangerous, but statistically it is pretty impossible that accidents will never happen.

Most days as I ride to the dam I pass this little sad spot where someone died. It doesn't matter how, that isn't the point. It is just very sad and poignant and reminds me to be as careful as I can for love of the people who love me.

Ride safe.

from the garden

2012-01-15T15:08:00.004+10:00

I call this lovely composition 'fresh cut flowers with bug zapper. OKatB will be rolling his eyes at my bad photography!

That was so lame I felt compelled to add another still life, "Sunday kitchen". We had to start pruning the lime yesterday... that is about half the tree done, we will continue when we run out of limes!

coffee ride, Pallarenda

2012-01-14T11:20:00.003+10:00

It is raining now, but the morning ride was magnificent.

'before' shot

2012-01-13T18:00:00.001+10:00

It is going to start raining tomorrow, so time to get a 'before' shot of the weir. With any luck the river will rise and start to flow in the next week or two! Bring on some wet and cooler weather.

another river shot (or 2)

2012-01-12T18:19:00.006+10:00

I almost didn't stop for this shot, but I have to confess that my days are filled with routine, sameness, and that is because I like it that way. By the end of the year I expect you will know my wee cycling world as well as I do, and that is the whole point.

This is a fantastic bridge. If I want, I can go from home and to the uni in 6 kms across this bridge, and the cycle lane is on both sides, although it is never very busy so I cheat and use the side with the nicest approaches. My photo is pretty poor, but the view to the Pinnacles is stunning. If I come home this way the light will be better and I will try again.

morning fang to the dam, then to work, 36 kms

afternoon fang up Angus Smith Drive and back home for 15 km

This is my usual daily routine. You may grow weary of seeing it, but then again, there is a lot to observe along here, and it changes as we go through our tropical seasons. Enjoy.

traffic jam ahead

2012-01-11T18:07:00.004+10:00

My daily commute, a recreational area and shared path

folks fooling around in boats

a veritable traffic jam of kids, scooters and dog walkers up ahead. explain to me again why people are in cars just a short distance away? The commute is the best part of my day.

ride relief

2012-01-10T10:44:00.001+10:00

Phew it is hot and I am giving the watering points along the riverway a real workout these days

black cockatoos in the gum tree

2012-01-09T18:02:00.003+10:00

A gathering at the bottom of my garden. The photo, of course, does them no justice. They are about my favorite Australian bird. Note also the remains of the big eagles nest at top right. The baby and his folks have left the nest (Junior is bigger than either of the folks, I swear). The cockatoos are big, about the size of a black backed gull (for all you Maritimers).

lazy Sunday

2012-01-08T17:00:00.004+10:00

Morning ride, hanging around, a bit of food shopping and then settle down in the air conditioning and watch the Australian National Champion men's elite road race. Heaven!

Bonus, I don't have to run til tomorrow. C25K week 3...

coffee ride

2012-01-07T09:55:00.002+10:00

Daybreak at the meeting place

lunch break

2012-01-06T16:27:00.003+10:00

Another unseasonally perfect day in Townsville. The wet season has gone walkabout.

When you go for a ride, and find yourself at your favorite fisho at lunchtime, you have earned a fish and salad sandwich. However, when you get home, you will feel obliged to do a run, followed by a shower, some quality kindle time in front of the fan, and a quick nap. Making the most of my op day.

my christmas dress

2012-01-05T17:52:00.003+10:00

It is a perfect fit, as advertised! Thanks Mae! I am loving that flirty hem.

who's a pretty bird?

2012-01-04T18:34:00.002+10:00

This curlew is usually admiring itself in the glass of the door when I arrive to work these days.

commute to work - rowers on the river

2012-01-03T17:18:00.000+10:00

project 365 etc

2012-01-02T17:46:00.005+10:00

I have a friend who did project 365 last year, taking a photo every day. I thought that sounded cool, but I haven't found an app for my phone that makes this easy. I could join the project 365 org website, but I have a blog already. So I will try to post a photo every day. Tell me to stop when you are stultified by my boring life!

I really need an easy and small camera to make 'photography from a bike for the very clumsy' a possibility. In the mean time I guess I will have to actually stop and use my phone. Not the best but safer for me.

So to get started here are some images from the last week or so that probably made it to facebook but not the blog.

Top of the range Christmas gift from my sister, who knows how very much I loved Rusty. I just adore it.

My sister sews. Like, seriously sews, which is why I have a closet full of fantastic and stylish dresses and another on the way.

If you want to know how much wine you get through in a year, try this idea from a neighbour of my Sister. Great garden edging, big guilt trip!!

What is a trip to Cairns without a visit to DFO for some bargains. The guys were amazed how cheap these Crocs were... wonder why?

We came back to Townsville and I dug out all the leftovers I had tossed in the freezer before we went away and ta da! Turkey pie! The best part of Christmas dinner.Now with the new year upon us there must be goals and challenges, so I joined one on Endomondo, and I am in 16th place, and I didn't even ride today! OK, so now I feel guilty, but I did run... week 2, day 1, C25K.

Here is command central, where all this blogging happens, and my nutritional needs are attended to : ) Here's to a great year of riding a lot, running a bit, taking photos and having fun.

happy new year!

2011-12-31T19:58:00.002+10:00

Well here I sit, wine in hand, and another year has gone. I am fairly hurtling towards old age, but at least I am doing it with good health and lots of fun. I had a 'poor year' from a kilometre accumulation point of view, but I did some gym and added some running and I am happy. I also raced a bit, and had some challenging experiences. I am most proud of my hilly, hard and didn't come last Charters Towers race. It wasn't much, but it made me pleased that I have a go and do my best.

So Happy 2012 everyone. There are fireworks exploding out of sight beyond Castle Hill right now, so it seems a good time to wish you all continued good health, much happiness, safe riding and respect on the roads.

Ride and have fun. Everything else will take care of itself pretty much.

solstice Christmas ride

2011-12-22T16:33:00.005+10:00

I didn't realise til today that the reason is got dark so late last night (like, after 7!) Is because the summer solstice was upon us! That means it was time for the annual Christmas bike ride and hot pot extravaganza!

A six o'clock start seemed like a good idea, but it was still very light and a bit too hot.

Champagne was required to keep the troops from over heating

I had cooked for a couple of days, so my favorite finger foods were all in evidence. Sadly my falafal were not up to scratch, but the pita bread, Nigella's delicious meat balls, my always excellent hummus and garlicy mint yogurt were excellent. There were also my special Indian"bits and bites", veggies, dip, cheese... as kids arrived chips appeared in bowls... party season food.

Mr and Mrs Clause were resplendent in Christmassy cycling kit. I was a bit aghast when Scott got me a fully red Nalini kit a few years back, but at Christmas I wear it with delight. The rest of the year it gets mixed up with other things. I retaliated with the elf jersey! Hopefully this won't make an appearance outside of Christmas, although the tactical advantage of showing up at a race in that jersey may be considerable.

Darkness finally fell and it was time to roll.

There were about 20 of us, a bit more with all the kids. We have to invite some young people and contemporaries with grandkids every year, since it seems that since this ride started all our own kids have grown up and moved on! As soon as they turn teen they are pretty much over riding with the folks, so we will have to cast further afield to get little ones soon.

We stopped to admire the displays along the way, making sure we were regrouped. There are not as many lights as years gone by, so it can be a bit of a noodle between stops.

There were people in cars doing the same thing, cruising to look at lights, and we kept meeting up, but everyone was really good about giving us room and not being in a hurry. The people who had light displays mostly came out to enjoy our appreciation of their work. We did a pretty good ride of almost 8kms around local streets

Then back home for a hot meal. Scott's justifiably famous red beans and rice, as well as other contributions of slow cooker butter chicken and a beef stew. Rum balls and rich cookies, then it was over for another year as people tricked out the door. A very nice Christmas tradition, and one which we will continue as long as we can. Merry tropical Christmas!!

in the mood

2011-12-18T18:32:00.003+10:00

Even after all these years in the tropics, I suffer a certain disconnection with Christmas. But then, if you are lucky, it rains, and the weather cools, and you have some energy again. Add a finish to the working year on the 16th of December, some fabulous light displays around the neighbourhood, and you start to get in the mood. Then a huge box of cookies arrives from my best ever German Cartography trainee (1999! Matthais we are getting old!) and I am excited about Christmas at last!!

Today we rode (der) and had breakfast with dear friends who are off to the wilds of Medicine Hat, Alberta for Christmas with their Daughter. We are always excited when Aussie friends are off to discover Canada, even if it is a bit of Canada we haven't been to ourselves. Should be very exotic for a couple of Queenslanders. My advice: wear mittens, not gloves, go to Tim Horton's donuts as often as you can stomach, eat just one serve of poutine, and have fun. Oh, and snowboarding is for young people, skiing is hard enough for somebody over 50 who has never seen snow.

So now that I am feeling Christmassy, I have tidied, and decorated, and baked, made the first batch of rum balls (with raisins marinated a full week in rum!), organised the Christmas lights bike ride extravaganza for Wednesday, made shopping lists... I am ready, bring on the party and lets enjoy the holidays!

Here is how it is done in the old country, I don't expect to find anything quite so full on as we cycle the neighbourhood on Wednesday:
http://www.thechronicleherald.ca/novascotia/43860-tripping-light-fantastic#.Tu2jyz69a_w.facebook

I am sorry you have to cut nd paste the link yourself, but "blogger says no" and there is no way to add a link this evening, *sigh*

A walk around the garden

2011-12-14T19:13:00.003+10:00

It is now summer, and so hot... I feel like a wrung out wet rag on my rides, so I just spin along and don't push it. I'm not going anywhere really. But the garden is loving the heat. Enjoy the pictures.

Hopefully the rain will come back and moderate the heat. But then again, it is the languid season, and I like that at Christmas.

going deep

2011-12-12T21:39:00.002+10:00

I was cruising through life as a rather careless and disengaged BUG President when I got an insistent invite to a cycling safety workshop in Brisbane. I like Brisbane alright, but not twice in two weeks, so I did the 'long day from hell' and flew out at 6am to return at 7:30 pm.

I guess I have to be a bit diplomatic here, because this is "a public forum" in that it is available to anyone who stumbles upon it, and part of the public record, but oh my, there are some interesting characters in cycling advocacy. I am really tired, but here is a bit of an impression of the day:

Australians are not Danes and no amount of wishing is going to transform our society so lets stop going there
Two Aussies walking will turn into a race. Two Aussies drinking will turn into a competition. Can we please just accept that sports cycling is the 'norm' here for most Aussies who get on a bike, even if it takes them a bit of time to find the inner mongrel. It is in there.
Transport and Main Roads get cycling, now be vigilant to make sure that your local council doesn't stuff up their good policy with silly local notions (I am on it)
Bicycle Queensland has no idea, at all, really
Townsville doesn't actually exist, nor does Toowoomba. apparently.
If you live in Queensland read this draft cycling strategy, and enjoy the bits that infer that certain things are all done, even though you probably haven't seen any evidence of it where you live, unless you live in Brisbane.

If I can get on a plane and have a look around and talk to people, why can't they? It is looking like a long year ahead. And I may have told some people to 'grow up' or even 'get fu**ed' I don't know, it was a hard day of not seeing eye to eye. I am filled with hope though, because for the most part, the important people get it, and the rest are background noise anyway.

work and all that...

2011-12-05T18:23:00.005+10:00

Having a blog sometimes makes you realise how very dull and ordinary life is. Ah well, here is an update of nothing much happening (which is a good thing, really).

Last week I attended a spatial data seminar which was really interesting and all that, but the venue gave me a dose of food poisoning. Now I'm not one to do things on the epic scale of Jill Homer - but I felt bad enough and it hurt my mileage. By mid-week I was sick enough to need a day off work but I had to fly to Brisbane for some meetings and another seminar, so I went and just got on with it.

The big noisy smoke. I thought it would be nice to be close to the train station. Trains are very noisy and keep you from sleeping, especially when you are getting up every few hours for other reasons.

The next day I had a couple of hours in the morning to do my thing, so I hired a city bike (I brought my own helmet) and had a fun noodle along the river. The bike was a roadies nightmare. It weighed about as much as I do, and had lots of clappy, slappy noises. However, it let my legs go round and filled my lungs with fresh air, and I felt better.

Big city coffee - OMG I wish I could get coffee this good in my little regional city. The bowl was a bit weird though.

And so to work. There are few photo ops like a 3D spatial seminar. We are deep geeks and we are proud of it. There were a number of really good presentations, but the last one of the day so dazzled me that I can hardly remember the rest. We are watching a real time exploration of raw Lidar data. Ant, you are the only one who has any idea what I am on about, hope you drop by.

The technology is developed by these guys: http://www.euclideon.com/

Ever wondered what it was like to attend a seminar where Bill Gates announced that he had an idea for an operating system? Or Mercator released a mathematical concept for plotting straight lines to navigate to a point? Well, I figure this was as big a game changer. Hold on all you mappers, we are in for some game changing turbulence!! Gawd I love my work.

I got home and collapsed and slept for about 14 hours, and now I am all better and I had a fantastic ride today. The rain has come, but it is following a night pattern so far, allowing a good effort in the morning, a scalding run home ahead of the storms at the end of the day, and a blissful cool evening with the sound of the rain and the frogs to keep you company. Life is sweet.

cat. six racer

2011-11-22T20:12:00.002+10:00

I lost a category six race today. That is a race that eventuates while you are commuting, oblivious to the intentions of your foe. I was limping home from one of those days at work that combine ill health with high workload, and I was just wanting to get there. I passed a kid on a BMX who was doing the usual cool three strokes and glide combo, and I guess it was all too much for him as a minute or so later he was passing me, with the biggest cheeky grin you ever saw.

I congratulated him heartily on his triumph of youth and fitness over age and expenditure. We both had a good laugh. I really must get some cards made up to hand out to the rare keener who takes me on, inviting them to a free round at the velodrome. This kid could be a contender!

camping weekend

2011-11-20T19:31:00.006+10:00

Well there is a life beyond cycling, and we camped this weekend with no bikes. we just didn't know if there was cycling in the park area and decided to hike instead.

We also didn't know if it was viable to try and sleep in the camper, since the sites were 'walk in' so we took the tent. We could have gotten the van close enough, but this was very nice. Our first use of the new tarp technology, photo taken between rain showers.
It rained hard in the night but we stayed totally dry, and as a bonus the tent stayed cool all day in the shade. We ate too much, hiked to some lovely spots...

We were not able to do the big hike of the weekend, down to the base of the falls and back, because it is still cyclone damaged and closed. I want to go back and do it when it reopens (assuming that it can be repaired). The cyclone damage was pretty epic in places.

So we hiked where the trails were open, and had a lot of fun and relaxation. My friend Leone was unable to resist a rainforest pool.

Nothing like the sound of running water, and knowing that surely there are no crocs up here, surely...

The eucalyptus were shedding their bark

and we came home to find that it seemed to be 'bark shedding weekend' everywhere

For those lucky enough to be occasional visitors to the Casa Edwards, look what has replaced the old box airconditioner in the guest room! An actual window that lets the breeze in! Looks great on the inside too.

We had a nice time, and of course saw lots of opportunities to ride the mountain bikes if only we had taken them and some better maps were available. Well I can get the maps sorted, and we are all keen to get back and ride a section of the 'Wet Tropics Great Walk' which is actually looking like being mostly old logging roads in very good nick and totally free of motorised traffic. Heaven!!

past and present

2011-11-14T14:48:00.005+10:00

As I was cycling this morning there was a stretch of road where tiny styrofoam beads had escaped from a load (or a stuffed toy I suppose). They blew up into my face and swirled and eddied around my wheels. It looked just like the sort of snow you get when it is real cold and dry, the land so frozen that snow can't stick so is free to drift and travel. How odd to have the memory of cold while the heat rises from the bitumen, the sun scalds my legs. I felt caught in a moment where the past and present met, a wrinkle in time.

30 years ago today was a frozen day, with blowing dry snow. It was a happy day, my wedding day. Today is my 30th wedding anniversary. Such a big number in such a short time!

We have been lucky, and the passage of time hasn't treated us too badly, although I never figured Scott would overtake me in the silver stakes. I knew he wouldn't lose his hair though!

So I am probably as fit as I was then, maybe fitter, which is kind of odd. Wish we'd ridden bikes back then, but our world was different and we did other things. We hiked and camped and looked at birds. We will do some of that this weekend, because not much has changed really, except we will take the mountain bikes, because you have to ride.

Happy Anniversary Scott!! 30 more years, easy.

Friday music

2011-11-11T20:11:00.002+10:00

Lots of bloggers put up music on Friday. I guess we are all kicking back and having a wine and planning the weekends rides. Dangerous, because you plan big things after a glass or two of red. Anyway, a favorite blogger put up a song, and it was so lovely I was moved to wonder what my favorite song was, what I would share as something very special.

It is a bit daunting to open up a window to your soul, as music appreciation will do. This is from a movie. I am not a movie buff, but I adored this one and have seen in maybe 4 times since 1982.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2hsmoo97CVA

thanks for the flowers

2011-11-06T18:24:00.002+10:00

Last evening we were out misbehaving at a pirate themed birthday party. Who knew we would get to a point in life where dear friends were turning 65 (!), we were still dressing up as pirates and still drinking too much champagne. I am not turfing my pirate hats any time soon. Indeed, I may have a crafty afternoon where I help all my friends make one too, as it isn't hard and you need one more often than you would think.

When the taxi brought us home (we are sensible grown ups, after all) we went to unlock the gate and found a bunch of cellophane wrapped fresh flowers wedged in the gate.

Dear GOD! I think to myself, did I double book? Invite someone over and totally forget? This is sadly not impossible, but I swear I have no recollection of any promised meals to students (a great weakness of mine).

I have checked my phone, facebook, email accounts... nothing, no messages or accusations. I guess I have a secret admirer. Well, thanks for the flowers, they are lovely and I am very grateful!

Cycling... I am finished with gym and ramping the kms up to normal. 221.97 kms this week, early meetings kept me in check. I am feeling strong, and finding that magic place where suffering is a pleasure. I lost 4cms off my waist, gained a kilo (lets hope that was muscle) and learned a lot about my body and how to push it.

Now I am ready, and I'm going to ride.

spring things

2011-10-22T17:57:00.005+10:00

Well there has been very little cycling in paradise, and that is a shame. I am officially finished my 20 hours of gym training, and while I am trim and strong, I have lost a ton of endurance. There is no substitute for time on the bike. I will start to ease in some longer rides this week, with the hope of building up to my former norm of 250kms a week by mid November.

I volunteer most years to be a client to a Sport and Exercise Science 3rd year student, and I take the task very seriously. That is why I had to step off the bike. I couldn't give up the gym because the student can't get a good result without me. Anyway, I really enjoy it, and this was the best student ever. He caused me pain, and nurtured my inner mongrel, and made me stronger.

I haven't a clue how long it takes to recover from over training, but I am sufficiently bored and frustrated to be over it. If I need a nap, I'll take a nap. Training is normal for me and I need to train. I want my life back, even if I end up sleeping through a fair bit of it.

The weather has been hot, then cool, dry and then unexpectedly wet. Spring is heading into summer on a twisty path. Summer is coming though, and the first taste of summer, local mango, is just around the corner. A few years ago we cut down the big mango in our yard because it took up a ton of space, produced very little fruit, and we had this in the parkland at the end of our street:

Mango is a common shade tree around the city, and I hope they are always there because they form an important part of "the commons". The fruit is there for the taking.

Just starting to blush, but green and hard so it isn't too damaged by the fall to the ground. Actually, Scott is such a good picker that he caught all but one as it fell.

We are not greedy, six is a good feed, and they will all be ready at once. Can't wait to make a mango salad, and just enjoy the ripe fruit as a decadent nosh eaten over the sink, juice dripping everywhere.

The financial world is going to hell in a handbasket they tell us, but at least I have food from my yard and my parks. All this for free. Makes me feel a bit safer.

Ride to Work Day fame

2011-10-13T17:16:00.003+10:00

Here is a better link to the news item with me rabbiting on about Ride to Work day again this year... it is on my own BUG site now

http://www.jcu.edu.au/soc/bug/ride_to_work.html

paying the price

2011-10-09T17:51:00.006+10:00

I have been very neglectful of the blog, sorry! I guess I should start with old news. The Corporate Tri was great fun and I achieved my goal of a sub 30 minute 16kms, so I am very happy!!!

Feeling chuffed, and thanks to my awesome team members. We totally rock!

I have been training with a student at JCU and I totally credit him with getting me up to strength after the trip overseas. Thanks very much Jason! After the tri we continued to train, and I continued to ride, and then I just crashed and burned. I often have a physical fall after a big deadline, but this was a hard fall indeed. I got on my bike to go to work, got about a km and realised that I was very ill indeed, so I turned back, wobbled home and slept til noon. I was planning a trip to Cairns to catch up with family, and figured we may as well go, since Scott drives and I sleep anyway.

Cyclone Yasi seems a long time ago, so in my fragile state it came as a bit of a shock to encounter the raw damage to the north of us. My yard is fine now, but not everyone is as lucky.

Road works in Cardwell, and the shock of seeing the sea where once there was a thick buffer of rainforest/beach vegetation.

OMG no wonder the Wompoo pigeon is still hanging around our yard. Rainforest isn't supposed to look like this. It should be a carpet of green, no trunks visible at all. I was gutted by the extent of the destruction.

We got to Cairns eventually (I hate driving) and I had a long weekend of recovery, lying around, cuddling small dogs and eating very well. I got a couple of rides in

To my families amusement I am happy to go nowhere for some time.

The orchids were blooming, the country was dry, and spring had sprung.

What a lovely break. Then it was back home, back on the bike and into the gym. I was trying hard to go softly, but a Doctors appointment confirmed all our suspicions, I am suffering from over-training, and I need to back off and recover. Everybody should be so lucky, to be sick from burning ambition. I have another training week, which I can't give up because my student trainer needs the hours for his assessment. I'll have to give up some long rides, which will wound my soul but help my body. I finally read Friel's "Cycling Past 50" this weekend, and every thing he warns against, I have done. All that should be avoided, I have embraced. Doh.

I feel like I am denied the chance to make hay while the sun shines, but I have to be good. At least summer bit today, and it is suddenly hot. I hope the languid season will slow me down a bit, but not too much!!

Other than the over training thing I am in very good nick. Cholesterol is fantastic, blood pressure good, various other health indicators top drawer. I have never had an imperative to be lazy before, wonder if I can pull it off?

keeping busy

2011-09-18T18:54:00.005+10:00

If your heart is aching you must not mope around the house, you must get amongst it and celebrate life. Luckily this was scheduled to be a big weekend. I wasn't supposed to race the Crit on Saturday, but there was a novice class I could jump on to in order to practice the hot dog course on the strand, so I gave it a go. I let all the keeners who were actually racing take off, and the I did my own thing as a training run. Good fun, but badly done. I have a hard time eating when I am grieving, so I did this 11:30 ish race after a roll out at 7 am on a 500 ml bidon of endura and a 300 ml box of up and go. OK, I am an idiot, and my body suffered.

Good race, badly photographed. If there is one thing you can note about life in the tropics, it is that the sun is very harsh and the shadows are very dark. If you are cowering in the shadows, you cannot photograph the sun. Lesson learned.

Go BoaB in the tribal Nova Scotian kit. Makes you want to strangle a cod and swill some rum.

That was Saturday, and I was saving myself for Sunday, the corporate triathlon where I was the cyclist on a keen women's corporate team. High expectations!!

I am grateful for the running I have been doing, the transition was better than last year. Scott clocked me at 28 minutes cycling. I am desperate for a sub 30 time, was the run fast enough? I have to wait and see the final results. So at the end it was all good with a coffee enjoyed with my boys. Sorry Patrick, you are outed. I love that he takes it for granted that we cycled home after, and that he can walk everywhere in the city he wants to go.

This Blog is about cycling, and I have embraced the challenge of sports cycling, but really, I am keen on bikes, and everybody cycling all the time. Go ride.

my heart aches

2011-09-16T18:53:00.002+10:00

Vale my Rusty. He was always the good dog, so he didn't get as much attention as Stanley, the bad dog. I am glad he lasted more than two years after Stanley died, because he got a chance to be top dog and sleep wherever he wanted, including right up close to me. He died well. Wednesday evening he was full of beans and playing ball, then he sickened in the night and the best Vet in the world visited the next day and it was done. 16 years old, riddled with cancer, he found joy in living til the last. I am so sad, I have not been without a dog for a very long time. The house and garden are so empty. We mourn his passing. He was 16.

happenings round here

2011-09-13T18:31:00.005+10:00

We have been pretty busy. Last Tuesday was Super Tuesday, an annual bike count in Australia, and Townsville was included for the first time. We were in! Scott registered after me but got his shirt in time for the day, and I didn't. Doh. It was waiting when I got home from work. So we stood on a corner from 7am til 9am and counted bikes, and were gratified to count quite a few. Hope I can get the data for a student project, it could be interesting. Hopefully we will have more volunteers next year and cover more territory, but really, we did well this year with 25 of 44 locations covered, and me away til mid August and unable to promote the event til I got back.

Then it was a busy week at work and another 4 gym sessions on top of riding. I have had to cut the kms way back because riding 35 kms before work, going to the gym for an hour and then eating lunch and staying awake all day is really hard. So Saturday I took a full rest day and slept in with Rusty. It was so windy before daybreak that there was no way I was riding. I need to weigh more to keep my bike from skidding around in high winds. Not group ride friendly!

In the afternoon I did ride over to a friends to get some bananas (that rich mans treat) and admire the orchids. These are all local natives:

Here is Bob sharing the (literal!) wealth and cutting me some bananas. I also got enough chopped banana for a batch of muffins to enjoy while these ripen.So Sunday I was raring to go for a ride, but it was one of those days. We got to the top of Hervey's Range and it was 5 degrees.

At least the bushfires hadn't reached the race venue.

I was driving support, and the race was delayed for more than an hour due to an "administrative oversight" (we all screw up sometimes). I thought I would fill the time with a roll, but the wind chill was about zero so I played the tropical flower card and didn't ride my favorite rolling road. *sigh* You always regret not riding.

My bike suffered the indignity of being a sign holder!

Permit fetched and ready to go.

After the race we had to hurry home because we were in cooking mode and it would take all day to get ready for a dinner party. Here is my friend Kiran admiring a rare feast of fish cakes, baked beans and both blueberry and apple pie!! Honestly, we were on the hop from 11 am to get this all cooked for a 7 pm dinner party.

I was delighted that my Aussie mates loved the food. Kiran doesn't count because she is a Bluenoser, so it was a given she would love it!

And so it goes and another busy week ahead, but there is always a glass of red and a beautiful sunset at the end of every day, and life is pretty sweet.

We are here

2011-09-04T18:46:00.005+10:00

We were exactly right here this morning, except the google marker was gone! It is Strand Ephemera once again, my favorite art exhibition. Saturday morning during coffee I was admiring the Google marker across the street and thinking about blogging the exhibition. Today was Fathers Day and a great chance to walk the Strand and take it all in, but Oh LA it was windy and the marker was gone. : ( Interesting to speculate where it is now! Here is a photo pinched from the ABC website:

It was a stunning morning, if insanely windy, and the less floaty exhibits all survived to be admired and photographed. I adore sand raking:

Loved the glass, life sized turtle hatchlings.

I collected bottle caps at work for ages to support this artwork. When I was done I took away the signs and containers, and someone put up replacements! Seems people love to save and recycle, so I must contact the artist and see if she wants the bags of lids in my office.

Look Out says this bicycle installation. Kids loved it.

It was incredibly sunny and bright, so I couldn't see what I was photographing. This is a terrible shot but what do you want for free.

Copper flying fish. My favorite!

After the Strand we visited my Vet and his lovely wife, who were putting on a concert of original music for family and friends. It was intensely personal and beautiful. I didn't take a photo. My vet made me cry with a song about an old dog. It was lovely.

Then we visited a friend in hospital, who feels fine but suffered a few blackouts, and is trapped like a rat in EMU. He figures it is like a long haul flight to nowhere. Tomorrow is brain scan day and we are hoping they find nothing but a brain!! I cut a bunch of flowers from the yard to cheer him up, and we all giggled and carried on like teenagers. Then it was a visit to a friend with orchids to give away:

These flowers have been in the family for 3 generations, and I am privileged to have some in my yard now and carry on the tradition. That is pretty special I think. Even more so because my Mother has the same plants in her greenhouse, but I had none of this variety until now. I may be moved to put an azalea in a pot too. How nice is this!

So how is the cycling going, since that is why this blog exists. Well, I am down on KMs a bit because I have started a personal training program. I like to volunteer to be a client for a Sports medicine student who needs to do a practical of 20 hours . My student this year is a peach. I'll have to get a photo up so you can all go "awww" he is really cute, his Mom must adore him. So my days are pretty full. The mens washroom symbols are gym sessions. Friday we did a fitness walk (the hiking symbol). Thursday night I thought I was no going to make it, but compression tights are a miracle and I fronted up Friday feeling pretty good.

cycling red, gym sessions pink and fitness walking purple.

This week I have 5 days of training. I am hoping to get the usual kms in if my body is able. It is a lot to add to an obsession which is an imperative. I think my trainer is starting to understand what cycling means to me. I hope I am going to be able to be 'normal' with the morning rides at least. Two weeks til the Corporate Tri and I am obsessing about a sub 30 minutes for 16 kms.

Plus, Magpie season will be here any minute.

Dam Tough Duathlon 2

2011-08-21T16:51:00.004+10:00

OMG I am so happy to be back in the land of sunny days! Blue on blue for the duathlon at the dam. Note the artistic inclusion of a finger over the lens. It was so bright I was shooting blind, with predictable results.

I did an ordinary ride at a poor speed (average 27.4 km/h), but considering I was very ill the previous evening and unable to eat much the following morning, plus my legs are toast with jet lag, I am pretty happy with that result.

I just did the ride (20kms) with a running partner (5 kms plus 2.5) but I had friends who did the whole thing. Here comes Graeme, who passed me on the final lap. But right behind him is Kiran, my gun runner who made up the time and powered in for an excellent result!

Love the "feet not touching the ground" photo!! Super!

So mighty Kiran finished with Macca and Graeme making up minutes of deficit on my part. What a star! Can't wait til the next time we race together again, she really inspires me.

coming back up to speed

2011-08-16T18:59:00.002+10:00

I have lost patience with jet lag. I can cope with fatigue and muzzy headedness, but my legs - my legs are lost. I am struggling. Failing. It is like bonking at km 1 and then soldiering on for the rest of the ride. Pathetic. Epic. Scary.

I have always felt the effects of air travel on my legs. I gave up my place on a professional association regional committee because I valued cycling more than my profession (in the physical sense). I don't know the cure, so I will just keep riding, and hoping it gets better.

Poor legs, poor me wanting to be super woman every day. Maybe tomorrow I will be better.

blue skies and racing

2011-08-14T18:32:00.005+10:00

After an epic journey of 37.5 hours I arrived to find the dry season had made it's mark on the land and brown is back in fashion. The view from the plane was so soft and lovely, hills and plains of beige blending into khaki and fluffy pockets of green, as tired as I was I could fly over the land for hours enjoying the beauty.

No time for that stuff however, the Gold Fever le Tour was on and I was late! So early to bed and very early to rise and drive out to Charters Towers for the start of the race.

Cold and a heavy ground mist.

D grade was the biggest grade with 23 racers on the start list. D grade was Masters D, Womens D and C. BoaB was easy to spot in Canadian kit.
I am driving in support of my favorite rider, and I am nervous as heck because my brain is still on the other side of the road! At the start of the race I figure my heart rate was higher than the riders as I white knuckled through the fog and left side navigation at full speed. I would have been better off riding!!

Waiting at the second drinks station, BoaB waved me off at the first, and we had an epic fail at the handover with the bottle hitting the ground and smashing at the second and last. DOH! we need to practice I guess.

Pass all the riders and sit in stressful truck traffic to line up at the finish line. Look at those blue skies! Fell the warm sun on your back! I love the dry tropics (with apologies to the wet Maritimes)
What is going on? The riders turn to do a lap on the Oak Valley circuit at the end of the race and we can't tell who is who!

Where is Scott? here? no...

here? not quite...

Yay!! Here he comes!! Safe and sound is all that matters to me.

What?? In the money? BONUS!! well done! (that is my hat by the way, no bloke would buy that hat) I am home, and happy, and I hit the wall at about 1 pm but tomorrow will be a sunny day and I will go for a ride!! I love my home and my cycling life!

50K Loop!

2011-08-09T01:11:00.005+10:00

I managed to catch a fair day for a turn around the 50 km loop with the Bluenoser. I was too busy hanging on for dear life as I rode a 50cm bike (2 cms bigger than my bike) to take pictures and while I managed OK, I was sore in a lot of places after 50 ks. Note to self, don't settle for a bike the wrong size, it really does matter.

My native guide. 2 years ago we did this ride on a perfect sunny day and saw no other cyclists. This time it was an iffy sort of a day (foggy, poor forecast) and there must have been 50 other riders. Fantastic to see.

Pit stop at the church, I seem to have really missed this shot.

I was there, proof positive

my Sister was on the loop while I was riding. She visited a nice gallery/garden and took fantastic photos, which are linked below

Yet another bowl of chowder. I don't think you can get sick of chowder but I am trying my best. The restaurant is Doris's, who we stopped to harass because she doesn't love cyclists. I figure if we all stop in and spend up she might come around.

If you are wondering why you would travel all the way to Nova Scotia for a bike ride, have a look at the photo album of my sister's shots. It is very lovely, the drivers are respectful and the food is good. Please come.

Carol's new toy

2011-08-09T01:02:00.004+10:00

Seeing as it is raining out, I may as well get lots of blogs up.

My sister has a new gardening toy, and on a recent fine evening she used it to load some topsoil into dad's truck to be used to top up the garden beds at the animal shelter:

Sure beats shovelling!!

farm markets

2011-08-09T00:52:00.004+10:00

I love farm markets, I wish we had a proper one in Townsville. I would seldom buy produce from the supermarket if I could get it from the source. Even non-local produce is cheap, check out the bananas!!

we can only dream

here is the new Wolfville market, open Saturdays and Wednesday evenings

fresh and local

wow, cool mushrooms

a photo for 'Just Peachy'!

There was a lot of hot food and local wine as well. I want a farm market!

dinner in Hall's Harbour

2011-08-06T09:39:00.004+10:00

If I was in Nova Scotia for just one day, I would still fit in a trip to the harbour for fresh lobster.

visiting the kids

2011-08-06T09:27:00.003+10:00

for Patrick, here are your cousins and their partners, enjoy:

he is Stephen, she is Angie.

I love the painting Angie did behind her

Wow, the kids all grown up and in their own home. We had a great visit.

after the road trip

2011-08-03T08:24:00.005+10:00

We had a family funeral to attend on Monday, which was sad but a lovely and gentle gathering of cousins and aunts and children and... well it was very nice and a proper celebration of a gentle life well lived. So I didn't get to the 50k Loop after all, maybe later.

We cruised the old neighbourhoods and saw my grandparents old house for sale

http://propertyguys.com/property/index/id/38872

It has been carved up but could be saved! Would make an excellent B&B I suppose, but it was just a big elegant home in its hey day.

And today we had chores to do. It kept thundering and raining so I didn't run (whimp!) and we bagged up "stuff" that needs to go for a renovation and put it in donation boxes. Then we took a back road and found this little fellow

who could not be shooed off the road because there were crushed cookies there!

So we threw a blanket over him and took him somewhere less exciting and safer.

We continued on the back ways, looking at farm sites and arrived at Sterling's at noon. A sign from God to heed the signs:

best. blueberry pie. ever. Carol had cherry/raspberry.

Then into Wolfville for a look around. I hadn't been to the Irving Centre yet, and wanted to check out the native gardens.

blueberry border:

very formal look with 2 types of blueberry and huckleberry (I think).

this bog garden was my favorite. Gardens aside, the building is famous for the elegant meeting place it offers students and staff:

Come on JCU, lift your game... ; )

road trip to PEI

2011-08-03T07:44:00.008+10:00

We did a road trip to PEI, and we opted for the ferry both ways because it is way less miles in the car so much greener

Pictou harbour

heading across the Straight

the birthplace of the committee which debated the formation of Canada.

CBD Charlottetown. Highrise free.

We went to the theater. I thought all these blokes were cyclists, but in person they didn't really have shaved legs.

The next night was a bit of a caleigh

and then we came back via...

the ferry again (the slow one this time)

and back through the once lovely Hamlet of Pictou, which I commend to anyone in Tasmania lobbying for a pulp mill.

photos from my sister's camera

2011-08-03T06:50:00.004+10:00

She is a better photographer than me, and I get to be in the photos for a change!

picasa album link, fingers crossed!

this is supposed to embed the album, let's see.

more of the sameish

2011-07-27T22:57:00.005+10:00

Busy people get bored easily, so I am working in the garden a lot because there is always lots to do. Some people find weeding a chore, I find it a balm for my soul. Now for photos:

for Scott, who has forgotten where the gooseberries are. These are now berry free.

Next week we can start on the blueberries

When I retire I want a giant, weed free vegetable garden too.

My parents grow a lot of their own food and I think it has contributed to their longevity. I should have tried peas again this (colder than average) winter in Townsville. doh.

Scarlet runner beans, my favorite! As good to eat as they are beautiful.

big broccoli for first picking

lots of fresh peas

there will be no shortage of cukes this year

summer squashes will be ready by the weekend

we need to eat more lettuce NOW

garden fresh produce as hodge-podge, with smoked haddock. I must get some local wine next time. Simply delicious, but simple food always is. What to cook tonight??

I have booked a bike to go ride the 50 k loop with the Bluenoser. Can't wait!

westward ho!

2011-07-27T06:38:00.002+10:00

There was a garden event at Bunchberry Nurseries in the western Valley, so I suprised my sister in law with an impromptu visit, since she lives just up the road.

When serious gardeners get together it is all hands on hips. My Sister in law is a superb natural gardener. I think there was a bit of plant envy going on!

Rural Nova Scotia architecture. So homey.

Myra, like any gardener, just sees the bits that need work. But there were also 3 or 4 lillies with the first bloom, and she was very excited to see them.

After all the garden touring we were late home, so I treated my Dad to fish, clams and chips. I don't eat much fried food, but this was worth dying for. Note the mega side salad on the left.

Another busy day!

gardening fanatics

2011-07-26T01:45:00.005+10:00

Being home reignites gardening madness in me, because everyone in my family is gardening mad. Why mow lawn when you can have this?

And who can resist buying plants when you go to the local farmers market and see this...

and these

cheap and large, healthy bedding plants. I can't buy stuff like this at any price, any place near my home, or I would!

I really must try lillies again. This would have been a good year in hindsight...

Then of course there is the local food:

I bought wax beans for supper, they were supurb.

needless to say I ate a sausage with sauerkraut, as you do.

OMG look at those prices and selection, I got smoked haddock. It smelled devine and will be dinner tomorrow.

I am charging my phone to get the next lot of photos transferred. There will be gardens and food!

summer in the maritimes

2011-07-23T04:00:00.006+10:00

Looks like a great time to visit the old country. Summer waited for me they tell me. Well it is sure nice now that I am here.

What's for lunch? My favorite!

Lobster sandwich and chowder from Stirling's in Grand Pre.

What to eat next? I wish I was a bigger eater! I'll have to come back again later...

Puttering around with my family and not doing much. We are gardening a lot, with the occasional break to visit a garden.

I have started a running program you can look at here. I wasn't expecting to enjoy it so much. Who knew. I am only a few days in and today was supposed to be a rest day, but I walked to town and back, which is 5kms of hill work, so not so restful. And why am I running? to counter this:

I am a Tim Horton's junkie, I admit it. And it is all so cheap! I should probably get a loyalty card of some sort.

My sister had to work today, so I was able to settle in with a pot of coffee and watch the Alpe d'Huez stage this morning. It is such a treat to not be nodding off because the cycling is on in the middle of the night. 9am is such a civilized hour! What a fantastic stage, but I got the jitters so bad watching Cadel have a mechanical I had to leap up and vacuum the house.

I am dying to go for a ride. I went to the bike shop and they had a road bike in my size. hmmmm...

meh-tastic V8 weekend

2011-07-10T16:47:00.005+10:00

The V8s are roaring and popping. Thousands of rev-heads are doing similar. Helicopters circle overhead. Military jets roar over the track. Talk about your Roman circus. So what do you do on an afternoon when excitement is so high? You sit on an upturned bucket for and hour or more and brush all the dirt off the turmeric harvest, sort out the growing stock into a big bucket (not shown) and package up the best and nicest to share.

The packages are about 400 grams each, and the bucket is maybe 3 kilos. I need to look at turmeric recipes, my repertoire is pretty limited in the face of such abundance! There will be no white rice eaten here for some time I suspect, it will be vivid and earthy and oh so good for you.

I took a rest day today, a guilty pleasure. I can't believe you are not supposed to ride yer guts out every day, 7/365, but rumor has it that a rest sometimes is a good thing. I know that my porcelain and stainless steel have benefited from the energy redirected into cleaning. However, the floor is not pristine (horrors!!) because I have a new Android phone. Man you can spend a LOT of time reading help files, setting up connections, reading about and installing apps and etc., etc., etc. I have turned into a great quivering mass of geeky goo, but I will have a new sports tracking app. to tell me how much I suck tomorrow!! whoot!

We are enjoying the Tour very much, although the recorder failed last night so I missed out on seeing 4 hours of the most interesting stage so far. Highlights just don't cut it. I have re-shuffled the deck on my fantasy team (SBS) and am looking forward to the long haul. Go Cadel! Please let the hard drive work tonight, I just cannot stay awake til 2 am!!

Additional: I just watched the end of the race on TV. Funny to see the overhead shots and hear the actual choppers at the same time. I guess I am cheezed off because last year we got a crit on the full track, along with a charity run and community bike ride. This year - zippo. Not happy!! I would have loved a race on my bike on the full track. It is WAY more exciting than doing it in a friggin' car! OOooh it is so cool how you can press that pedal with your toe whilst steering at the same time! Swoon!

Was gratifying to see the big boys slowing to 25 on the same corners that slow me to about the same speed. Now if I can just make 100+ on the straights...

special rides

2011-07-04T17:33:00.005+10:00

Last weeks race in Charter's Towers made me realise that we are not getting away to ride much, and since winter is a special time of year when you can actually ride in the middle of the day when you want to, you really must. So since it was the last long weekend for a long time (we get a 'show day' so you can go to your local exhibition, but ours is awful) I looked up while gardening and said "lets go for a special ride, someplace we don't normally go". Boab, being the perfect partner that he is, said "all right, lets drive to Woodstock and go behind Mt Elliot to Giru and back." So that is what we did.

Our Volkswagen van is perfect for a quick getaway with two bikes, thanks to Scott's clever modifications.

Turn right to go behind the mountain, then come back. 60 kms round trip. Pretty good headwind on the way out means a cruisey return, which is perfect!
The road surface was challenging for much of the ride, and whenever we hit smooth hotmix it was like heaven! We have to travel a fair way for a nice country road, and this was lovely. The cars were very polite and very few. They probably thought we were nuts.
We finished short of the mark due to roadworks ahead, but we made the transition from dry bush to rich sugarcane, so it felt suitably epic. I was pretty worried at this point about getting up a hill that saw me doing over 50kms/hr on the descent, but to my surprise, I made it OK!
What a fantastic day. 25C and clear blue skies, and now we have a tail wind! And I brought jelly beans!
What a pretty place, I would love to hike up into that rainforest sometime.

So this was the perfect way to spend a day off work. Stay up too late watching the Tour, sleep in, eat, garden, eat again, drive out to a nice cycle, come home, cook, eat, glass of wine. *sigh* why do people leave home? Home usually provides the perfect holiday.

Charters Towers race

2011-06-26T15:19:00.005+10:00

An early start, and on a morning that is finally warm enough to enjoy a nice ride we hop in the van and head west, watching in dismay as the temperature dropped steadily from 16 to 9C at the base of the Mingela Range. Great! There were roadworks that slowed us a lot, so not surprising that the Townsville riders held up proceedings and we didn't get started til after 8:30.

A Townsville rider kitted for the cold.

It was actually quite nice by the time we rolled out, but the legs were cold and it was hilly! I got dropped on only the second hill, but I managed to pass a young Woman from the Towers and stay ahead of her the rest of the race. I think I climbed more hills than I ever have at one go, but they were rolling and not too daunting. The worst part was a section where the gravel was loose and I actually slid sideways entering a turn. Amazing what a shot of terror does for the old legs though!

classic Outback racing shot!

Slightly over dressed by the finish, phew!

Speaking to the Gal who came in behind me, she said she stayed about 100m behind me the whole race. She would gain on the descents but I would 'power up the hills' and she would drop back. Well I never, me powering up hills!

So Scott won D grade on a sprint after getting dropped at one point but catching back up. I came 4th because a stronger rider flatted. It was great to meet some people from Charters Towers and I hope we go back soon. We may go back out there on our own (we can do secret hill training) because it was a beautiful ride with a fraction of the traffic we get around the city, and I really enjoyed that.

Thank heaven for compression tights after a race. My legs are shot!

...further to the rider down post, the rider is out of the hospital and gingerly made his way to the cafe Saturday. Still no firm diagnosis as to the cause of the crash.

High Tea

2011-06-24T18:17:00.004+10:00

I do have a life outside of work, cycling and the garden, really! On Sunday I attended a 'High Tea on the High Seas' to support the local Zonta Club, and it was about the girliest thing I have done for years. There was fashion:

But of course I am a "theme dresser" so the high seas gave me license to be a Pirate, because I love being a Pirate.

Couldn't resist a bloom from the hibiscus on the way out the door.
I like this picture because not only did I win a prize for the best outfit, but it reminds me that I am turning into an old woman, and that means I am winning! I love the slightly mad hair (but it is always like that)
I have had an poor week for riding. I ride everyday but I have retreated into survival mode. I am struggling with the low temperatures and I am really tired of snot, tears and a sore chapped face. Ah well, I'll do the coffee run tomorrow and Sunday we race! I am a bit nervous because I am racing a road I have never seen in Charters Towers, and the rain man doesn't like surprises. I have scrutinized the maps and photos, so I guess I'll be OK.

Arrr it's been a good week!

rider down

2011-06-19T20:49:00.002+10:00

Bugger. The sum of all fears. Thanks Stephen Gray for the photo. A rider went down because of a medical condition. Imagine hurtling along at 40 kms/hr + and having a stroke. I can imagine it.

The good news is that he is still in the ICU but recovering. Sounds hopeful and better that I had dared to wish for. This one of the real Gentlemen of the peleton. A graceful, kind and inclusive rider who encourages old ladies who decide to start racing at 50. We know that what we do is dangerous, but we don't expect the enemy to be lurking within.

out of the big ring

2011-06-13T16:56:00.006+10:00

News from my yard which is bigger than cycling!! We have another wompoo pigeon!! One is making wonderful low conversation, but we are yet to hear that iconic 'Wallack a Woo!' of the rain forest. When one started to hang out in the yard I was thrilled and sad, I wondered if this cyclone swept and lost rainforest bird would survive. Now I am hoping we have a pair that will stay and thrive. They are keeping our palms cleared of ripe fruit and look pretty sleek and healthy.

I was literally out of the big ring most of last week, because I pulled a muscle coming down a steep path on Castle hill called the goat track. I love that when I mentioned this on facebook I immediately got pictures of goats in the commercial area on the right hand side. Cheered me up.

somewhere up there I did myself damage

My recovery by the end of the week coincided with a spell of weather that was not very encouraging. I went to work Friday in normal kit and a wind vest, only to find that by 11 am when I had to ride across campus for a BUG photo op, the temperature had fallen dramatically and it was raining. I got home at the end of the day frozen (OK it was probably 14 0r 15) and already convinced I wasn't doing the Saturday 5:30 am coffee ride because the forecast was nasty. So as always happens when you make your mind up before bed time, even though it didn't rain I still stayed snug in bed, because it was what I had decided to do.

The day was cold, grey and windy and I started to lose hope for a weekend ride at all. Then mid-day Sunday we got normal winter back and the sun came out, the sky was blue and BoaB and I did a windy but wonderful ride out to the dam. Sun on our shoulders at last, I thought my heart would burst with joy.

I thought we would do a big ride today because it is still so nice, but we wandered into the back yard looking for the sun in the morning, and then got stuck into the gardening which ate up the whole day. There are a few big days left til we get things up to scratch. The big wet season just made everything go feral, so there is lots to be dug out, shared around, divided and relocated. I want to expand the tumeric empire, and find a place to let pumpkins roam. So much to do but the pleasure of working in the full sun without overheating is just amazing. Almost as good as cycling, with more culinary results! I guess the two are linked.

Congrats to my brother in law and nephew on Ottawa marathon results

Ya don't look happy here Chris, but then why would you?

On ya Wesley!! Looking great guys.

Cold tomorrow (10 degrees) but I have to ride. Thank heaven for commuting, no avoiding it! I have the fleecy things ready to go and I am actually looking forward to a nice long ride before work. It will be a misery of tears and mucus, cold mornings really knock me around, but as long as it is bright and sunny, I will be happy!!

not racing (again)

2011-05-29T20:03:00.002+10:00

I was thinking of racing. Ate pasta for dinner. Packed up the gear. Set the alarm. Got up, went to the race. Sighed with a bit of relief that we needed drivers worse than riders. So I drove.

Early morning mist against the ranges, and C grade going faster than I expected.

I don't find supporting a race easy. I don't drive much any more, so it isn't a 'no brainer' at all (not that it ever should be). I am mindful of the safety of the bunch. Sitting close enough to let traffic pass, but far enough back to have time to react to a crash. The radio crackles with complaints from truck drivers and caravan pullers. I want to snap at them to give these guys a break for 30 seconds for Chrissakes, but I leave the radio on the seat.

The first rider is spit out the back far too soon. I stick with him til I see D grade on the horizon, then pass and catch the main group. I don't know the course well, so it seems to take forever to the turnaround. Then the race really starts and riders are getting dropped, we are catching D graders, and it is getting complicated. A rider is spat out the back. I pass him knowing support and sweep are just behind. I check the rear view and he is fine. I check again and he is cartwheeling in a crash. WTF!

I slam on the brakes and look in disbelief at the rider prone on the open highway. I u-turn as fast as I can and go back, heart pounding. There hasn't been a single car either way since he went down, thank goodness for that! He is just a teenager, and confused, disoriented, and freaked out by the blood. I play the standard Mom card. You are fine, you are hardly bleeding. It is just scrapes, get in the car, have a tissue or 12.

I struggle to get the bike on the Thule carrier. I haven't practiced and it is too hard. Another car stops and helps me, then we are off the few kms to the finish. Hand him over to Mom and Dad and the race director, the full first aid kit. Lots of clucking. Hope he is just a bit bruised and recovers quickly (well, maybe a couple days off school as a reward).

So I didn't race but I did good. BoaB was second in D grade. I got a quick ride in to do an errand at the office, all good.

I could whinge about the cold all week, and the wind and my chapped face. But I won't because the Badger shames me. It isn't THAT cold, and I need to harden up.

And finally, a slice of life in north Queensland. When friends visit. We share a similar taste in shoes, but the traditional footwear is of course, none at all.

dam tough

2011-05-22T20:40:00.003+10:00

Today was the dam tough duathlon. Since the bike racing was in Mackay and I was home a duathlon at the dam for a good cause seemed like a good idea. Finding a runner is always easy (what is wrong with these people!!) and that left a 20 km ITT - basically - for a cyclist. Perfect.

We left home at 5am for a 6;30 start, which was a bit of a worry, since the sun rises at about 6:35 these days, and there are no lights out at the dam. BoaB pulled me along for the 18kms to the start into a headwind at a warm pace, and then we stood, and waited, while the race was late (a good thing!!) and I went from sweaty to chilled to shivering.

My runner (thanks Shannon!!) was great, and I got away in about the middle of the pack. I was hoping to do some catch and pass, but I only managed about 6 riders. My legs were baggage for the first 10 k, but the course was flat and familiar, so I just settled in and enjoyed the ride. BoaB passed me at about km 4.0 and then we saw each other regularly on a 5 km, turn, 5km, turn (repeat) course.

I really enjoyed it, but I was cheated of my 'thing', to manage a good sprint finish. I had to navigate a lot of turns to the end, a cameraman in a truck, and then the dreaded 'get off and run to the transition' finish. Hmmm. I think we came third of five teams (podium!!), most competitors were individuals.

It was a great event though. I won 4 months of gym membership, which I badly need to use with some intent. At this point my core needs more work than my cardio. I was a lovely morning. Getting started at 5 am and home by 10 am is a fantastic way to start Sunday. Then showers, food, puttering around the hose and garden and a kip in the afternoon is about as good as it gets.

And now a word about cycling and the Giro Italia. I am very disappointed with the media coverage of the Giro. Stage 13 of the race was so beautiful. Contador gave Venezuela’s José Rujano (Androni Giocattoli) the mighty gift of a stage win. He showed respect for the tenacious wee fellow, who hung from his wheel like a limpet, in the best way possible. It was a great moment in cycling, a sport I love because it is more than the fastest racer, it is respect for a racer with the most heart. Nobody has taken up that story though. While Contador has moved up a huge notch in my esteem for his gesture, it has been ignored by all the cycling press.

A great day and a sad day for the sport. A stunning gesture of respect drowned by the chatter of the cycling press. Watch the races, make your own judgments. The sport is greater than the reporting, but I guess we shouldn't be surprised by that.

the hills are aliiive...

2011-05-08T14:58:00.004+10:00

I didn't race today because it rained and we wimped out. Plus we never did get interest in a team (the wet weather saw only about a dozen show up). They went ahead and did ITT but it must have been lousy, I hear the road has some very rough bits. I promised myself a long bike ride, but it never stopped raining (it is still gently falling and it is cold enough you need socks!) So I finished the apron I started last night to wear as my costume to the Sing Along Sound of Music:

It does actually have stripes, but of course I couldn't find exactly the fabric I wanted, you never can. I looked at lots of images from the film, thought about it, bought a metre and a half of fabric and got stuck into it. My big sister will be amazed, we all thought the sewing gene had skipped over me, but I guess some things run deep.

Skirt from secondhand shop for $6.50, and I will wear it often because it is a nice cotton one. I think I have achieved Maria frumpyness! Now what to do about the hair... and no it will not get cut or dyed!!

homebody

2011-05-06T17:50:00.003+10:00

I have had nothing much to blog about. Just peaceful living and nice bike rides. I confess to sleeping in this morning, at 17 C I decided it was too cold to ride and the dog agreed as he snuggled down under the blanket. So since we are now living cyclone and earthquake free and there is 'no news' allow me to post some garden shots from this arvo, as I took a stroll around the garden with Rusty.

Sunset and things in bloom

The always reliable ground cover/bulb Caladium (variety unknown)

Tibouchina 'Alstonville', we once cut this down to knee high but it is back and blooming. It is actually more purple than the photo shows

Hibiscus variety unknown. The most pure orange colour, and really blooming up a storm since I broke down and sprayed it with rose spray, which is about as severe a form of chemical warfare as you can unleash, but really knocks aphids, thrips and fungis on the head.

Flowers in the house too, it is Mother's day this weekend after all, and I am a spoiled Mom (and wife)!

Hopefully I can find a team for the TTT on Sunday, if not I will solo the 20kms and hopefully do some sprints after. Happy weekending.

Anzac Day road trip

2011-04-25T18:11:00.005+10:00

A five day weekend is such a good idea I think we should do it more often. I love to be home, no place I would rather be. I have done some good rides, had a fabulous dinner with friends. I have cleaned and baked and done a lot of gardening. So yesterday when I friend put up some images on facebook of a near by goldrush town I have never visited I said to Boab, lets go.No mobile coverage in Ravenswood, but it does have Streetview, which is why I was excited to go!
The most classic outback architecture, got to love the full tin house.
There were chimneys everywhere, sole survivors of mills long gone.
And the architecture of the gold rush era! Devine! Nothing but decline has happened since it seems, even though there are active gold mines still. It seems those who still live in the community are pretty switched on though, and there was lots to see.

Sadly closed when we were there.
School of the Arts building, still the cultural hub of the community. I would go there for a play or concert just for the ambiance.
On the way home there was wildlife. Few fences, and the grass is sweetest on the road verge.

Goats! I absolutely adore goats!!

When we got home we did chores, because that is what people of a certain vintage do to fill their days. Some people cycle more than us, but they don't have a huge house of a quarter acre of jungle. We finally got a skip in so we could get rid of the dead, giant CRT. Not a small job.

We put it in the wheelbarrow, and BoaB rigged a rope that let me lower it as he eased it down the stairs. It all went well (a palm tree was lightly bruised) but I wished we had a Bluenoser in attendance, as I felt a bit inadequate.

Anyway, we got the beast down the stairs without strain or injury. I asked the dog to take photos but he fell asleep. The old TV is now in a huge skip with a lot of vegetation, the matching stand, and a sigh of relief. Still some weeding and mulching to go, but tomorrow is another holiday, so no pressure. A ride in the morning and a day of gardening - bliss!

getting back up to speed

2011-04-17T18:18:00.002+10:00

I had a good week, but it was harder than it used to be and I am very tired. Hopefully practice will make perfect and I'll get my groove back.

Having said that, I had a fantastic slow ride with a friend on Saturday where we chatted and reveled in a perfect morning. How lucky are we to be so fit and strong that we can do a ride that would scare some people and it is just nothing to us, just a doodle. Life is pretty sweet.

something to blog about

2011-04-16T20:33:00.003+10:00

Today at 3:30 ish in the afternoon we had an earthquake. I was sitting on the front deck just cracking a cycling magazine. We had a plumber installing fascia along one side of the house. He was making that hammer sound of putting in screws and the house started to shake. BoaB was in the

front yard and I hollered out (I am a loud person) what is Graeme doing?? He is making the house shake! So BoaB yells at Graeme, who stops and the house shakes more. Then the bushes in the yard start shaking and we know we are having an earthquake!

It was very strange to experience an earthquake in your own home. It lasted for a very long minute or so and I wondered about damage, and should I get off the deck. Our old dog was wondering what was happening, so I stayed with him and then it was over. Very strange though, and I have some research to do on the frequency of earthquakes here and what is going on re:crustal boundaries. I thought we were deep on a plate, not a boundary. Very interesting.

Just as I was relaxing because cyclone season is over.

you beauty

2011-04-10T18:54:00.005+10:00

I had a good day. Left home at 6:20 or so, which is a bit of a sleep in for the weekend. Rode to the V8 track for a criterion on the most beautiful fall morning. Fresh and clear, with dawn breaking as I rode the bikeway to the V8 track. You can tell it is fall because the air smells sweet. The puddles are drying up now that the rain has eased. A few days of dry and wind and the season has changed.

There was a big roll up for the race by our standards, over 40, with 12 in D grade. C and D started one minute apart, and raced 'together'. You can imagine my surprise when they called roll and I was placed in C grade! I contested the placing and was moved bace to D, where I OWN last place. We took off with the usual scatter that is the mark of a race where it is every man (or woman) for themselves. There is no plan, nobody (to my knowledge) builds an alliance before the race. We take off, and sort ourselves out on the fly. D grade is for individuals.

The guys were full of beans and took off at a fast pace from the start. I was still deciding if I was feeling well enough to race (is that Up'n Go going to make me throw up) as they steamed away, so I settled in to the usual ITT. A couple of laps in and I see a friend ahead, a newbie to racing, so I catch her and we start working together. This is a new experience for me, so I am happy for a chance to share the effort and try a team approach.

It was a magnificent morning. There was almost no wind, it was the easiest race on the track I have ever done. Nice as it was to share the effort, I kept thinking how nice it would have been on all the windy rides! We did well for a couple of old gals, one newby and one slowy.

I don't know why Simone is purple. I am number 00 because of the grade mix up. I am not fast, but then I have been sick, and I am old.... whatever, it was great fun and I had a blast.

I rode home on protesting legs, ate a quick breaky, did some shopping, got the veggie patches sorted (tropical fall is like spring back home) and puttered in the garden all afternoon. Such a wonderful, relaxing weekend.

Now I am going to pull a very rare late night and watch Paris Roubaix. I am excited. I hope tomorrow isn't too complicated at work. I had a guy contact me about a mapping issue on Thursday. It is complicated! Last night I dreamed about Cartesian coordinates all night, and I cycled in a strange 3D funk during the race. I guess I am a Cartographer, it isn't something you just turn off a 5pm. Looking forward to a long thinking ride to the dam in the morning.

Oh behave!

2011-04-07T19:00:00.003+10:00

I have tried very hard to be good this week. Last week I was quite ill so I took a day off the bike and then soldiered on. Saturday I lead out the coffee ride and inflicted some discomfort on the guys. Ha!

Wrong answer. This Sunday I was coshed up the side of the head (and several other places) and Monday I stayed in bed. Tuesday I couldn't get a doctors appointment so I rode to work and sweated it out. Wednesday the weather turned and it is cool, dry and perfect, and I have gritted my teeth and just commuted to work. It is killing me!

I have strategies for good behaviour.

1) Wear normal clothes. Groover would have liked my retro-ish fixie outfits of slim shorts (Zoic) and singlets, but you sure don't want to do 30+ kms in them.

2) Just water in the bidon. If you go too far you will suffer later

3) Second cup of coffee in the morning. Those of us who are the 'world's greatest employees' can't stand being late, so leave no time for a long ride.

4) Pay attention to the body. If you are sweating, you can tell if it is a good sweat or a bad one.

5) Listen to the legs. If they are sandbagging a slow commute, you are not well, don't push it.

So I have an op day tomorrow, and I will do a long gentle ride. Really. I won't bust a gut. I am much better and I want a longish ride. I'll behave.

I inhaled

2011-04-01T20:43:00.002+10:00

I am like the Rainman, I need consistency on my rides. But today I made a brave pact that I would take a new road up a hill because of construction. It was similar, but different. I had to navigate narrow sidewalks, and a standing start from a muddy driveway to a hill. It is steeper than the usual, and I swallowed my fear and bullied myself into knowing that I could do this, it is the same old hill but the topography is a bit different.

It was mentally hard, but my body thought it was easy. I need to conquer more small hills. I want to climb with confidence, and not fail. I am happy I started a new thing today.

just being

2011-03-27T18:16:00.003+10:00

I want to be a cyclist, but sometimes you have to be content with just being. I was ill much of the week, and I am feeling poorer for the experience. I wasn't up for a time trial and a road race today, so I just went for a ride. The time trial was up Hervey's Range, which I have never successfully climbed. It is only 4 kms of 9%, but is beyond me. I had a go, ahead of the field while they pffafed about with registration, but I remain defeated. So if you are going to fail, at least take photos.

The usually dry tropics enjoying the prolonged wet season provided by La Nina. The mountains are all rocky and shed water for ages. So special.

Sunrise over the coastal plain. Because I had stopped for a walk I could catch my breath, and hear the rainforest chorus at my back as I gazed across the (usually) dry plain to the Coral Sea.

Amazing vegetation. It is blooming marvelous after all the wet and I saw gullies that were artistically arranged with native plants. It was like the very best landscape artist had made the gardens, but then I do think nature is the designer most worthy of emulation. I saw native gardenias, and button flowers, a wisteria that is new to me (?) and the air was heavy with sweet molasses grass.

OK, so I failed (again) to climb I hill. It is still there and so am I. I'll try again soon. If only to fail again on a warm, fragrant morning with all of the best blooms of the monsoonal dry tropics spread before me. Life is sweet.

a busy weekend

2011-03-20T17:00:00.006+10:00

It was not supposed to be a busy weekend. But sometimes shit happens. Like the wing beat of a butterfly in the distant past, a small event casts a very long shadow.

Wednesday evening we were watching TV. We seldom watch TV but we like the New Inventors on ABC so we were watching that, and then inertia led to watching the next show because we like Adam Hill and hope his new show gets interesting soon.

The picture on our old CRT had gone distinctly hourglass shaped and weird, but I was insisting that we could still see what was happening, and we watched most of our TV on the internet anyway, so why buy a new TV. Then the picture sprang out to full normal size. "see, says I , it just needed a proper warming up period!" Then the smell of burning wires, and actual smoke rising from the TV signaled the end of CRT television at our house.

Thursday evening was a festive shopping trip with our son as advisor to look at new TVs. We had room in the old layout of the lounge for a 36cm TV. But such were the dazzling displays of larger and more useful and energy efficient TVs that I decided to rearrange the room to accommodate a 42in LED. For the environment of course.

So Saturday I empty the bookcases, because we are moving the room around.

So now my usual weekend cleaning regime is overtaken by rearrangement chaos. And I tell BoaB that I just need some time to vacuum the dirt and wash the walls. And I do that and we look around and he says, "well, we need to wash the ceilings too" Except they don't wash up that well so we need to repaint

And meanwhile I am looking at other walls in other rooms and you would think this house was occupied by ferals! So I share the ladder and scrub the walls in other rooms while we paint the TV room.

Day two and I am just staying out of the way thanks. While this is going on there is laundry to be done, and toilets to be scrubbed. Racing was canceled today (Sunday) because the roads have totally broken up, so I have all day and all my energy to deal with this. Well I cleaned and washed well beyond that room.

We managed to get things functional for cycling central at 5. Yes this is dusk in the tropics.

All surfaces washed and things starting to return to normal.

So this is the thing that destroyed my weekend, Too heavy for me and Boab to to lug downstairs, we will have to get a dumpster and a couple of blokes to dispose of it. And the wall behind? Stripped at last of the brackets and strips of a bookcase. Welcome to my new hobby. Wallpaper online. Bold and reto thanks!

wildlife rescue

2011-03-16T18:39:00.003+10:00

When I rolled out this morning it was looking promising for a decent ride. But before I even got to the end of my street I came across a poor, stunned and bedraggled female supurb fruit dove. I had never seen one before outside of books, so I stopped, planted myself in traffic to protect her and took my JCU polo out of the knapsac. I dropped it on her and scooped her up.

I confess I cried, I was so sad to see such a rare bird so far from home and in strife. This is a rainforest bird far from the rainforest, and I was sick with worry. I got her home and into a box, where she promptly fell asleep. I gave her some berries but she was too tired to care.

I called the local Wildlife Carers and someone came to my house and collected my wee girly. She would recuperate with a number of her own kind, and then be released. Hopefully there will be more fruit in the trees by then. I think she was just weak with hunger.

The government of Australia has given a lump sum to those of us who were affected by the cyclone. I took mine with glee, because I had a plan. I would spend it on things I value and that my taxes don't support. I have given a big chunk to the NQ Wildlife Care mob. Bless them all for doing such an important job out of the goodness of their hearts.

not just a road cyclist

2011-03-14T19:53:00.002+10:00

Since the cyclone we have had a lot of rain. The ground is soft and wet, but the council soldiers on removing fallen trees and debris, so now the parkway along the bike path is a sodden, mucky, stinking churned up mess, and the bikeway has no drainage from all the churned up mud along it and is a big smelly puddle. Where it is 'good' they have mowed, and left drifts of grass clippings which have decayed into an oily mass of slime. I am actually excited to see drifts of gravel, because at least they offer a bit of traction.

Too bad we don't have cyclocross here, I reckon I am trained up and ready to have a go.

feeling the hunger

2011-03-06T18:10:00.004+10:00

I have been on hold awhile. Yes I cycle a lot, but my 'training' has fallen right off. It is one thing to cycle, quite another to do it in anger. I need to get my groove back, so BoaB and I signed up for the start of the road racing season, a 10 km time trial along the foreshore of Pallarenda.

BoaB is in charge of paying the rego (that's him in blue TCC club kit). I never have cash, typical woman.

Notice how green it is, and how much fallen vegetation is still lying around on the ground. It was a fantastic roll up of 51 punters, a new record. We arrived at 6:30 after a good effort to the start of the race to stand around for an hour+ before the actual start. At least I was number 3 based on my sterling effort last year. BoaB was 4 because he didn't do the time trial last year, and I guess they figured it would be nice if we went together.

Legs were cold and leaden by the start. Not a fantastic effort on the 5 km outward leg, as the cross wind was a bit challenging. BoaB passed me before the turn (doh! that wasn't supposed to happen!) and then we turned into a serious headwind. I did my best but my legs just died. I am not as fit as this time last year, and the wind was a much bigger factor this year. Result, add one full minute+ to last years time. *sigh*

The good news is it is great to be back competing. I may be the slowest rider in the club, but I feel the excitement. It is good to have a go, good to think about trying harder. I feel a bit of hunger i didn't feel before, and this will improve my rides.

new and improved

2011-02-27T18:12:00.003+10:00

As if cleaning up after a big cyclone wasn't bad enough, we were at the demolition phase of a bathroom renovation when it struck. Our plumber/reno magician was dealing with disasters and getting ready to visit Canada (an activity I totally support) but in one day he did the deed, minus trims and fiddly bits.Here is a photo for my family who remember well the pine and yellow melamine symphony of what existed before. I went shopping for a more decorative bin and bits, but I failed in the attempt. Later baby. By the way, the walls are flat white coffee, not yellow. It was getting dark by the time I took this shot.

BoaB and I got the medicine cabinet up this arv. It was epic, fraught and my arms hurt. Looks bloody marvelous though.

We had a small ride for coffee this morning. Saturday standard was rained out. I am SO NOT OK to do the time trial next weekend. I will be old and slow and kind of fat but I'll do it anyway. The shame of it all. Ah well, let the racing season commence.