My bunch ride (translation: group ride) attendance since arriving in Canberra is unmatched, even by the most hardy. This isn’t necessarily something to be proud of from a performance standpoint. After a few weeks of bunch riding after arriving, my thought was, “How do these guys go so hard, so often?” There are group rides every day of the week, but just 4 de facto rides are recognized by the racers: Tuesday Hour of Power, Wednesday Morning Bunch, Friday Hour of Terror (which also has a simultaneous slower ride from the same location), and the Saturday Bakery Bunch. All start on the Southside at the Bike Shed sharply at 6 am, except for the Saturday ride which allows for a whopping 30 minutes of sleeping in. These rides are often followed up with extra K’s by the pros. On top of that, you can throw in the Wednesday evening Crits and you have at least 5 hard efforts (translation: cross-eyed pain worse than any induced in race or group ride I have experienced at home) during the week.
When I came to Canberra, I had no idea what my training was going to be like, or if I would even be able to get in much riding. I definitely wanted to do some races in Australia, but wasn’t sure what to expect. Upon seeing the number of bunch rides on the calendar, I decided I would commit to at least doing as many of these as I could. I figured I might as well take advantage of this since this is not a luxury I have at home. Using the same line of thought, I decided to do all of the crits simply because they were races I didn’t have to travel to.
In my first experience bunch riding, half-way through the Saturday ride I began thinking that the riding was rather soft. Everyone was riding 2-wide, deep in a conversation with their partner. There was no movement in the group and no one swapping off (translation: rotating, taking turns). My judgement was premature. As we turned off of a highway, all hell broke loose. Despite riding as fast as possible I was soon gapped and completely knackered (translation:blown, popped). Every one of the aforementioned rides included the same level of intensity. I was hooked! At home there is no opportunity to go out and get your ass kicked like that, and I was going to take full advantage.
As I began regularly attending the bunches, I eventually started realizing that I was one of the few who was showing up to every single ride during the week. There were still a handful of guys I started noting at every rider. I eventually recognized a pattern that some guys in good form would show up for every ride for a couple weeks then only come out a couple times a week, presumably when form wasn’t as good. After awhile, it was just one guy I kept seeing at every ride. Then, one day after at least 4 weeks of perfect attendance, he missed a couple. That made me the reigning champ of the Canberra Cinco, a self-titled contest that only I know about. This actually made me the loser, because I was never allowing for any recovery like the other smart riders that were building a selection of efforts into their training programs to allow for periods of excellent form. I was taking my fair share of turns at the front, but otherwise was mired in consistency and persistence. I didn’t really care because the riding was awesome!
I even showed up on New Year’s day to test the resolve of the locals and ended up doing the ride with one other bloke (translation: guy). This was a ride that has swelled to as many as about 100. On this same ride a few weeks ago we had a cloudburst that made both seeing and stopping impossible. Guys were still drilling it (especially me) and eventually I was gravelling behind the 3rd wheel only to look back and see no one behind me anymore. Unfortunately, I flatted and had to go home, right about the time we rode through a smallish pond across the road.
I absolutely love the mentality of Canberra cyclists, who turn themselves inside out on every single one of these rides. After the imaginary finish line at the end, everyone sits up and rolls together to a coffee shop for a recap of the ride and rating of the level of hardness. And this all happens before the work day proper begins, when we all disperse back through the city. The craziness of it all is made even more apparent as the 6 am starts are very dark now. Image 50-80 guys going crazy whacking it (translation: hammering or throwing-down) with tail lights flashing and headlights blaring. I asked someone once if they ever change the ride times for more light or warmth in the winter. The answer of course was, “no.”
I can definitely say the cycling with the boys and gals here has made me a much better rider. I’ve never had so many vicious efforts packed into training. All-in-all, I’ve put in many more kilometers (translation: miles) than I would have expected. One crazy fast week included over 700 k, and I took 2 days completely off the bike that week. I have no idea if this is going to translate to a jump in performance back home at races, but I don’t really care at this point. My primary goal was to enjoy riding in Australia and do some racing, and I’ve done that. I have had an experience like none other on my bike this “winter.” Most importantly, the experience has enhanced me greatly as a person.
I could come back home, sell my bikes, and be completely satisfied with my cycling “career.” The problem with that, is that I have a brand new bike already waiting for me to come home.
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