After I’ve been on a long ride I tend to stay off the bike for a bit. The combination of tiredness, the accumulated pain in my leg and just the desire to be a bit more comfortable usually means that it is a week or so before I pony up for another stint in the saddle.
However, this time has been a little different and it has been a combination of utter boredom (my wife is O/S visiting relatives), the glorious winter weather we are having on the east coast of Australia and, well, yes, the boredom. I’ve done a couple of runs up to the Pie Shop and a longer run last Friday. The first Pie Shop run was definitely inauspicious.
Not daring to be seen in public with the bike as dirty as it was when I got home I first undertook a major wash and clean up and, as expected, the bike came up bright and shining. But the Pie Shop was so crowded last Sunday that I didn’t even bother trying to get a coffee. In fact there were more people waiting to be served than I have ever seen there, the lineup at the counter stretching all the way to the end of the shop and several people deep. Back on the bike and home I came.
On Friday the forecast was again propitious so I decided I’d do a run up the Blue Mountains and visit some friends that we had made at West Leichhardt Station last year. I didn’t bother ringing to check to see if they were home as we have a standing invitation there and it was a great day for a ride anyway. In winter it is always fascinating to watch how the ambient temperature changes during the day and, as I expected, as I climbed up out of the coastal plain, the temperature dropped quite a few degrees. By the time I got to Springwood it was barely into double figures though the sunny day would have made you think otherwise if you happened to be indoors or in a car.
At the end of a little, dead-end road, Rudi and Anneke’s house is perched on the edge of the escarpment with a magnificent view, especially from the back verandah. Sadly I did not get to see it as their son informed me that neither of them were home. In fact, Rudi was out at Birdsville and Anneke was in Sydney shopping. The view outside their gate made for a great photo op so I saddled up and headed home, getting home before dark when it gets really cold. I never really like the Great Western Highway, I think it should be renamed the Great Western Speedway. Friday’s experience of it certainly reinforced that opinion.
However, I did get quite a giggle in the last leg of the trip on the Picton Road. Those of you who know it will know that there are only two types of drivers who use that road, the “I’ll stick to exactly 100 come what may” type and the “Out of my way, peons, I have places to be” type. Well, I’d sorted the traffic and was just in my own quiet little bubble; exactly where I like to be when I arrived at one of the overtaking lanes. I looked in my mirror and, suddenly, there was a whole glut of cars queued up behind me. I stayed left and a Hyundai van, a Toyota Camry (the “does my bum look big in this outfit” model) and a Subbie all pulled into the right lane and zapped me up the hill. As soon as they got by they all merged left (like they were all doing a synchronised driving thing) and a Toyota Kluger ranged up on the outside and blew us all stupid.
I’m no expert but I reckon he was doing at least $1:30. The lane closed off so I indicated and merged in front of a white Holden Colorado ute. The four “speedies” disappeared real quick and I was just trying to get back into my own bubble when I heard a police siren. I looked around, as you do, and, in my mirrors, the Colorado was lit up like a Christmas tree! Unmarked police car. I pulled left and he took off after the others. They three original passers also pulled over and I’m sure that all of those drivers were expecting that they were the target. Whoops! But they were the recipients of some good news (though they didn’t really deserve it). Sure enough the cop signalled the Kluger to the side and, as I passed, I saw the white face of the driver through his windscreen. Sucked in, dude, serves you right.
A good mate from up in the highlands (and fellow VFR’er) was planning to come down to the Pie Shop yesterday so we arranged to meet there. The weather was probably even better than the other day but, thankfully, I could get to the counter and I ordered a pie and a hot chocolate (in a take-away cup as it stays warmer for longer – it can get damn cold at the Pie Shop).
I had seen John Keogh getting set up part way up the Pass so I knew he’d be taking photos. Sadly, when we came back down there was no sign of him (well, his sign WAS there, but he didn’t appear to be). Never mind. Later last night it appeared, however, that he HAD been there after all and I had just failed to see him. I purchased this cracker of a shot from him late in the evening.
Nathan is a keen video fan so he videoed us heading down the Pass, which was fun. It IS speeded up, though so don’t get the idea that I go THAT fast down the mountain!
So, yes, I have been gallivanting but that is likely to come to a halt in 11 days when Helena returns and the realities of my existence make themselves known. Mmmm, I wonder if I can do some more riding before then? (By the way, the above should not be seen as an indication that I have been neglecting my domestic responsibilities because I haven’t been)