Well, the Office Services team and the Service Desk guys pulled the ol’ rabbit out of the hat and managed to pull off an almost seamless move again.  I must wonder if being so good at relocating staff is actually a good thing?  They’ve become so good the boffins seem to think we can keep doing this.  Maybe they should mess up a little bit?  Might make people think twice before deciding to move staff whole sale?

I shouldn’t complain too much.  My desk and PC were largely setup when I got in this morning.  Also, I don’t have to share with others.  I have lost my river-view window seat and can’t imagine getting that back, but I have a desk; with a blank wall…

So after 18 months in a nice new building, I’m back where I started.  At least I still have my bike rack and shower access; small joys in life.

Based on my experience and talking with other non-cycling motorist, I think there is a general lack of understanding as to what cyclists rights are.  In fact I’d say that most cyclists aren’t aware of the rules they are expected and/or required to follow.  Both sides are guilty of not following the rules and executing some truly bone-headed moves.

So why is it so hard for motorists and cyclists to just get along and play nice?

I don’t think there is any easy answer to the “play nice” question.  On both sides of the argument you’ll find a group of numpty’s (translation: idiots) who are hell bent on breaking every rule they can and believe they operate outside the laws of the land and the laws of physics.  These are the people who overtake on blind corners, run read lights, mount curbs, ignore stop signs, use the footpath when the road is blocked.  It doesn’t seem to matter if these people are riding a bike or driving a car (truck, motorcycle, etc…), they are simply Numpty’s!  They have no right to continue breathing, let alone form part of our society.  These people are down right dangerous.

The problem with Numpty’s, tother than them being everywhere, is that behind the wheel of a motor vehicle they are potentially deadly.  Those within the protective shell of another motor vehicle have a fair chance of surviving an encounter with these fools, but other more vulnerable road users (ie, cyclists) generally aren’t so lucky.  Even those Numpty’s on a bike that run red lights, stop signs, and routinely mount the curb are just as dangerous.  Either to themselves or any pedestrian who crosses their path.

OK, so that gets rid of one class of motorist/cyclist.  No matter what you tell these people, they will continue to do what they like and to the hell with everyone else.  It not worth the breath to try and educate these people.  The only thing you can do is hope you can avoid them and escape with your life/skin intact.

So onto the real purpose of this post…to discuss some of the rules of the road/land that everyone who rides a bike or drives a motor vehicle should be aware of when they encounter each other:

1. Cyclists are legally entitled to ride on the road unless the road is designated as off limits to cyclists (ie, Freeways and motorways).
2. In most states, it is illegal for a cyclist aged 12 years or older to ride on a footpath unless accompanying a minor (ie, a child under the age of 12).  Path suitable for cyclists are designated as such.  These paths are generally known as Bike Paths, Cycle Paths, or Shared Paths.
3. Cyclists have the option of using a Bike Path at parallels a road or not. They are not required to use this path unless it is illegal to ride on that section of road.
4. Cyclists *MUST* obey all of the normal road rules just like the driver of a motor vehicle.  The same penalties apply as a motorist for disobeying these rules.
5. Cyclists are legally entitled to ride 2-abreast and occupy a full lane of a roadway.  With large groups, this makes sense and ensures the group is more visible.  However, on single lane roads it is wiser to ride single file to allow other road users to easily overtake.
6. On roads with no wide shoulder it is best to avoid that road.  If avoidance is not an option, then it is recommended that cyclists ride at least 0.5m from the curb.  This is both legal an recommended by the various local authorities.
7. In Australia, it is *illegal* to ride a bicycle without wearing an approved crash helmet.
8. When in doubt, if the other party is bigger, they *ALWAYS* win!  In the case of a cyclist verses any other vehicle this is always the case.  You might be right, but you might also be dead.  Keep that in mind.

Ok, so that’s a fairly cyclist centric view of the rules of the road.  However, it is one that I don’t think many motorists are aware of.  Even some rules (the fact that it is illegal to ride on the footpath) is not widely known by most cyclists.

The WA Government (Transport WA) has published a wealth of information about cycling. Specifically, they have published an excellent brochure about “Cycling and the law”. This brochure is specifically for Western Australia, though many other states and territories have very similar rules. Please check with your local authority for specific regulation regarding cycling.

Transport WA have also published a significant amount of “Fact Sheets” that help answer a number of questions relating to cycling in general.  A great resource for anyone considering cycling.

I suppose the point of my post is simply this:

Ignorance is the primary blocker for motorists and cyclists to be able to successfully share the road.  This is an issue for all parties concerned.

The secondary issue is that of arrogance.  All parties seem to fixate on the fact they have a right to be on the road.  They seem to forget the key part of the message: Share.

So the next time you are out on the road and encounter a cyclist or motorist, remember to share the damn road:

1. Cyclists – remember you move slower than others on the road, so try and avoid hindering other road users from getting to their destination.  You might have to use a different route, ride single file, or even stop for a moment on the side of the road to allow cars to pass.  Oh, and don’t be tempted to ride on the footpath or run a red light!  Yes, it might upset your flow and training, or even delay you, but there’ll be a better chance you’ll get home alive!
2. Motorists – you’ve got more power, can go faster and are bigger.  Take a few moments to safely move around any cyclists you encounter.  It might delay you a little bit, but the cyclists will appreciate getting home alive and you won’t have to live with the reality that your impatience killed someone.

We all chose to travel on our public roads using various forms of transport.  Above all else we are all trying to achieve the same goal: to arrive at our destination alive.  Be safe, be smart, and be considerate of each other.

Andy leading the pack

For Clough, we only had one team registered and some of these riders were “ring-ins”. Even so, we expected a good solid ride with 6 riders registered. However, we only started with 4 riders. One pulled out the evening before due to medical reasons (investigations are currently underway to verify the validity of this), the other neglected to pack a vital piece of equipment; shoes! So two (2) riders down our team lined up in a rare break in the weather.

For the start the pace was fair. With a stiff tail wind it was hard to hold certain members back from putting the hammer down (ok, guilty as charged). Very quickly we overtook a number of teams. Our plan from the start was to take nice easy turns on the front setting the pace and find a rhythm that suits everyone. This actually seemed to be working well. Though one of our riders was struggling early, but after a quick review of his technique we managed to get things under control (spinning too fast and consuming too much energy too early).

So we travelled along at a nice pace until the turn for home. This was the point of the course where we now headed back into the wind and climbed a few hills. You could say it was at this point we were all questioning our wisdom of showing up. Not only did we have to work very hard to just move, but it was at this point mother nature spoke and dumped a massive amount of rain on us all. Visibility was reduced to mere meters. Oh the joy of cycling in winter!

The back stretch of the course was not an enjoyable part of the ride. Our team splintered and never recovered from this point. However, everyone soldiered on and managed to finish the ride; just not as a team. We now had 2 teams of 2. The front runners pushed the pace back up and took advantage of the windward leg. Even with only 2 riders we managed to overtake a number of large teams and left them in our wake.

On the final turn for home, our front “team” split again. The conditions weren’t much fun and I just wanted to get to the finish and off the bike. So I put the hammer down again and accelerated. As I had the timing band I figured at least we may get a fair time. Not exactly team work I know, but…

All alone riding into the wind. At least it wasn't raining at this point.

Even alone, riding in to a screaming gale I still managed to pass other teams and stragglers from other groups. Only a few teams had actually managed to stick together and there a number of riders sitting of the side of the road repairing punctures.

Our “team” finished with an official time of 3:23:40 for the 108km course; 4th overall. A good result, but unfortunately the rest of the team didn’t make it across the line until nearly 30 minutes later. Well done to the rest of the guys for sticking it out and finishing. I take my hat off to you guys for putting in an incredible effort. It was a *VERY* tough day on the bike. Many lesser souls wouldn’t have even got out of bed, let alone ride such a distance in some terrible conditions. Your smiles after crossing the line said it all though: “It was tough, but oh was it worth it”.

Results (Team 32):
http://www.bwa.org.au/file/A Distance.pdf

The wheel sets I’m look to part with to enable them to find a more productive home are:

1. Campagnolo EURUS Clinchers (2009). Asking price: AU$350.
2. Reynolds Assault Carbon Clinchers (2010). Asking Price: AU$560.

If you are interested, then please drop me an email  (shadow42iinetnetau?Subject=Wheel Sets for Sale)  .  I’m based in Perth, WA so if you’re interstate (or overseas) you’ll have to cover any postage costs.

First up, I’ll selling my Campagnolo EURUS Clincher (2009) wheels.  These were the original wheels on my bike, but since buying my Reynolds Assault’s then have hardly been used. These wheels are practically bullet-proof.  Anything short of being run over by a truck and these wheels will shrug of the event as though nothing happened.  In fact I suggest that pot-holes and cars get hurt more when introduced to a set of these wheels!

These wheels have a Campagnolo hub, so should fit any Campagnolo 10- or 11-speed group.  Original Quick-Release skewers included.  Asking price: AU$350.

Campagnolo EURUS Clinchers (2009).  Asking price: AU$350.

Next up are my Reynolds Assault Carbon Clinchers (2010).  Now it’s fair to say I’ve had some issues with these wheels.  However, others that ride Reynolds wheels have not reported any issues.  These don’t have any weight limit, but like any Carbon wheel I’d personally recommend you think carefully if you’re over 85kg (according to Reynolds these wheels are suitable to heavier riders, but I’d rather be cautious).  So if your a light-weight climber, then I’d be happy to recommend these wheels to you.  Both of these wheels were replaced under warranty in late-2010, so they are virtually new.  Probably about 2,000km in them.

These wheels are light (~1500g), fast (45mm Aero), and strong (only way you can break them is with an AXE!).  Also as these use traditional spokes you can repair and true them link any other wheel.  These wheels are best described as an all-round wheel.  They are light enough for climbing and deep enough for powering along the flats in a break.  They spin up well and the bearings are smooth.  On race day you can be assured they are the best wheel for the job.

These wheels have a Campagnolo hub, so should fit any Campagnolo 10- or 11-speed group. Original Quick-Release skewers included. Asking price: AU$560.

Reynolds Assault Carbon Clinchers (2010). Asking Price: AU$560.

So if you’re interested in a set of wheels for your bike and can’t stretch for some new ones, then feel free to drop me a line  (shadow42iinetnetau?Subject=Wheel Sets for Sale)  and I’ll see what we can do about a good set of second-hand ones.  You could even be looking for a replacement set for your training bike that are getting a little old and battered.

Oh and for those that are interested, my race wheels are a set of ZIPP 404 Tubulars.  As for my training wheels, well I’m not 100% certain yet what they will be.  It all depends on what I can build up on a spare set of hubs I have.  I’m hoping to build a set of Carbon Clinchers so I don’t have to keep changing my brake blocks, but it all depends on the budget.

So did I win or place well?  Nope, I finished #105 of 150.  Or 19th in my category of 27.  So not an exceptional result, but considering where I was a little over 3 years ago, I personally think this was incredible.  For those not keeping up, a little over 3 years ago riding just 5km was a challenge.  I was also considerably heavier than I am today.  So, in that light I’m very proud of my result.  Next year though I’m hoping to be much more competitive.  I just need to do more work on my hill climbing.  That’s where I lost it yesterday; everywhere else I was comfortably able to keep the pace.  It was just when the course climbed that I struggled.  Oh well, something to aim for…

Still here?  Oh, I suppose you want more detail about the event and what it was like to compete in a world class race and time trial?

OK, I’ll see what I can do at describing my experience.

First up, we have the Rottnest Island Time Trial.  This is an individual 20km time-trial around Rottnest Island.  Well it was actually only 18.6km, but you get the idea.  So the first challenge about this event that had to be tackled was: “How the hell am I going to get me and my bike to Rottnest Island in one piece?”.

This obstacle was actually much easier than I anticipated to solve: Rottnest Express.  Shortly after I’d paid for my UCI World Cycling Tour entry, Rottnest Express came on board as a sponsor.  These guys provided a free 2-way ferry ticket to all competitors.  Not only that, but they managed all the loading and unloading of our very expensive bikes.  Many of these machines are valued at over $10,000 and are the pride and joy of their owners.  Handing over our bikes to the care of the Rottnest Express crew was a nervous undertaking.  We shouldn’t have worried as these guys really knew their stuff and I don’t think one bike got as much as a scratch on it!  That said, I still packed mine in my SciCon Aero Comfort Plus travel bag.  Wasn’t really needed, but certainly gave me piece of mind.  Besides, I own the thing, so I might as well use it.  Best thing about this bag is all you need to do is remove the wheels and lock the bike to the steel support frame. Nothing else needs to me removed!

So bikes and competitors arrived on the Island in one piece.  After re-building our bikes (for those who packed them) and sorting out our numbers and timing chips, most of us heading out around the Island for a warm-up.  I’m glad I did as it gave me an idea of how undulating this course is and how tight some of the turns are.  I nearly over-cooked a turn on the warm-up, so knew to watch it during the actual event.

The organisers did a fantastic job and thanks to the Rottnest Island Authority who shut down the roads to the tour busses during the event.  None of us liked the idea of smacking into one of those at over 50km/h!  They did, however, allow tourists to be out on the course on mountain bikes.  Fortunately everyone was warned so there were no incidents involving these novice riders.  Most of them simply pulled off the side of the road to watch us zip past.  I recall taking a corner rather fast with some school kids sitting on the edge of the road near my exit point.  I think I left them about an inch or two (2) of space…

Thanks must go out to ATTA for managing all the timing of the event.  You guys did an exceptional job.  It’s great to know there are people out there who love what they do and can offer professional levels of support to an event such as this.

I certainly wasn’t;t the fastest on the day, but I wasn’t the slowest.  Doing a TT on a standard road bike did leave me with a slight disadvantage, but I still posted a respectable time.  38th overall and 8th in my category with a time of 30:25.  Not bad for a first time roadie.

I think this photo captures the day nicely (I think I’ll buy this one…):

Source: dcimages.org. © 2011 All Rights Reserved, Daniel Carson | dcimages | dotDXF.

So the Time Trial was done.  Based on those I spoke to it was a resounding success.  About the only negative was that there were only 71 competitors.  There was only one crash; Brian Walsh, who over-cooked a turn and stayed a little too long on his aero bars.  Other than a bruised ego, a snapped front fork, and some grazes he was fine.

Now it was time to return home and prepare for the Road Race, but before that I headed into Subiaco to pick up a new set of wheels; ZIPP 404 Tubulars…

Now I won’t go into too much about these wheels now, other than to say: OMG these would have to be the best wheels I’ve ever ridden!  They are simply unreal!  More on them later, after the gloss has worn off and I’ve had a chance to really ride them.

As these wheels were new and you never want to go into any race on un-tested wheels and new tires I took them out for a shake-down ride on the Friday.  It’s fair to say I possibly rode a little further than I’d planned for my last “training ride”, but I kept the intensity low and my heart rate down to around 130.  But I did get a good feeling for these wheels and what a difference tubulars make to the feel of a bike!

So race day…

I never seem to sleep solidly the night before a big event.  I sleep well enough, but always wake early.  This day was no exception.  The alarm was set for 5:30am, but I was awake at 5am.  Though as I’d done most of my prep the night before, I took my time to get out of bed.

5:30am and the alarm goes off.  Well time to get moving.  Marnie seems less than impressed at getting up so early on a Saturday morning, but is not complaining.  I can’t ask for someone more supportive of me and my cycling.  It’s a lot too ask of someone who doesn’t share the same passion, but she hates missing any of my events.  It’s one of the many reasons I love her.

Showers, dressed, breakfast, grab power gels and ware bottles, pack the car, and we’re off. 6:20am.  Not bad, this gives us 40 minutes to get to the city and prep for the race.

All kitted up and on the start line.  Damn this is going to be a tough ride.  At this stage all I was thinking about was staying with the pack as long as possible.  This I managed to do until lap 4 where I just couldn’t push myself any harder up Malcolm St.  However, the rest of the time I felt as though I was keeping pace easily.  This is good as now I know the key area I need to work on: hill climbing.  If I can improve this and be able to match the speed of other riders when the road starts climbing I think I’ll be in a much better position for next year.  Yep, I will be entering this event again and again and again for so long as Perth holds the rights to run it!

As for the race itself, I would have to say it was one of the most challenging, exciting, and exhilarating experiences of my life.  Not only was racing on a closed street circuit fantastic, but the crowds scattered along the course and the chalk writing on Spring St really made me, and other riders, feel like we were racing a PRO level event.  I know we weren’t, but for a few moment you could imagine you were.  For those who wimped out from the event this year, do yourself a favour and give this world class event a red-hot go next year.  It’s worth all the pain and agony just to finish.  Who cares if you get dropped, simply competing and finishing is worth it.

Here’s another photo that summarises the event for me (yep, I’ll be buying this one too…).  Thanks to dcimages.org for some magnificent photographs: 

Source: dcimages.org. © 2011 All Rights Reserved, Daniel Carson | dcimages | dotDXF.

Overall, the organisation and management of this event both on the day and pre-race were quite simply outstanding.  However, there is possibly one area that could be improved: safety and traffic management.

Rider safety for these types of events is difficult.  You’ve got a mixture of semi-PRO’s and rank amateurs racing in tight packs on a street circuit.  Crashes are all but inevitable.  I saw 3 first hand, the end results of 2 others and heard of a number of other crashes.  None of these, to my knowledge were serious, but still crashing at speed on a bike is never fun.  I’d say the majority of these incidents were due to rider inexperience more than anything else.  I think more could be done to educate riders that are involved in these types of events.  Things like how to hold your line, grabbing a bottle from a feed zone, calling out hazards, and no over lapping of wheels.  All of these contributed to one or another crash.  The worst one I saw was a fellow who took out a traffic bollard at speed on Mounts Bay Road.  The bollard’s were poorly placed IMHO (they just seemed to suddenly appear with no warning, but even so the lead riders should’ve called it.  I know it’s a race, but…

The final aspect of safety was that of traffic management.  By in-large, the traffic management was first rate, however there were a few incidents that could be learnt from.  The first being the lack of any marshal on the first lap directing traffic into Kings Park Ave.  The entire peloton and motorcycle support vehicle missed this turn on lap 1 forcing us to turn around after overshooting.  This lost valuable time and generally pissed the lead riders off.  This meant they had to fight their way back through the peloton and may have been a contributing factor to the rider vs bollard incident further down Mounts Bay Rd.  Secondly, if Thomas St had 2 lanes closed to traffic, why couldn’t the riders have at least an extra metre of road to race in?  This lack of space nearly caused another rider vs bollard incident.

One final comment about traffic management.  It would have been better to simply close off Mounts Bay Road to any through traffic.  I understand local residents require access, but surely a better solution could have been found than channelling this traffic across the Spring St intersection.  It would have better to allow traffic to drive back up Mounts Bay Road and exit via the lights at the freeway exit.  If the east bound lanes of Mounts Bay Road were split into 2 lanes for traffic each way, then there would have been less agro and delays caused to drivers waiting to get across at Spring St.  I know getting approval to shut down city streets for these events is difficult, but there are some lessons to be learnt here to make the event safer and less of an inconvenience for other road users.

All said and done though, this event is fantastic for both cycling in Perth and Australia.  I hope the event grows to become one of the must do events on the WA Cycling Calendars that attracts the best local, interstate, and international riders.

Congratulations BWA, CIC Events, Events Corp, the riders, the fans, the sponsors, and everyone else involved in creating a truly EPIC! cycling event.  Well done.  Truly, well done.

Update:
I found some more photo’s of me in various states of pain.

• Leading the charge
• Yep, this is hurting #1
• Yep, this is hurting #2
• The Blast Home

Not only are the materials (Carbon Fibre, Titanium, Composites, etc…) used to build bikes and components is evolving, but the technology used to drive and monitor the performance of rider and bike is also changing.  Of these it’s the monitoring technologies that are becoming ever more affordable and sort after by the cycling geeks.  GPS, heart rate monitoring, power meters; these are all within reach of your “weekend warrior”.  Well OK, power meters are still quite pricey, but that may be changing soon…MetriGear?

Today Garmin is one of leading manufacturers of GPS tracking and monitoring systems.  Some would say they are one of the pioneers.  This may not be true across all disciplines, but it certainly is in GPS enabled computers.  Garmin have set the standard that everyone else is racing to match.

So, how does this fit with STRAVA?

Quite simply, STRAVA is a web site dedicated to recording and viewing all those stats recorded by your Garmin device.  Sure there is Garmin’s own Garmin Connect (acquired from MotionBased?) and that’s quite a good service.  However, it’s a bit…well stale.  Let’s face it statistics are not very exciting except to those where these statistics mean anything.  And even then it’s not terribly exciting.

So how is STRAVA, which is analysing the same data, any different or better?

Well the one thing where STRAVA differs from Garmin Connect is its approach to sharing data.  STRAVA is all about seeing how you compare against your mates and others when riding similar routes.  You don’t even have to ride with someone else to know how you compare; the system does this analysis for you! 

Let’s face it all “weekend warriors” love to boast about their exploits.  After all isn’t that what the after-ride-coffee all about?  We all like to think that we are as good as the PRO’s.  We dress like them, own the same gear, and ride like them.  Well, we think we do in our minds, but our imagination and reality are a little divided on this argument.

So, back to this sharing of data.  Why would you want to do that?  Garmin Connect does that for you and does it for free* (you have to buy a Garmin device to get access to GC, so it’s not really free, just complementary).  That’s true, but STRAVA matches this against other riders who have ridden the same segment and then ranks you.  Showing someone a set of stats and explaining how you smashed it up a certain climb is nice, but it doesn’t really convey how much better you are than everyone else.  It just lame.  Sure, you only took 10mins on that climb, but is that good or not?

This is where STRAVA fills that hole.  It not only shows you that you made that climb in 10 minutes, but can even guess your power output, without a power meter.  Not only that it’ll show you (and the world) how well you did against others who’ve also ridden that same climb.  In this case it could show that you’re rank number one on this climb by more than 30 seconds.  Now THAT’S more boast worthy!

So now we have a platform for storing and analysing our stats.  We can also share this information with others and even compare how well, or badly, we are doing.  Sounds good, but still is it work paying for?  I mean the service does cost US$60 per year.  Well when I first signed up, I’d have to say, not really as it didn’t offer much more (some would say less), than what you could get from Garmin Connect.  But, the thing is the guys at STRAVA are not sitting still; they are constantly evolving the platform.  And this is being driven by their customers.  We are the ones providing the feedback as to where we want the system to go.  And it’s changing fast.

In the last few months STRAVA have launched an iPhone APP.  This means you can use the capabilities built into your iPhone to track and record your activities and load it straight into STRAVA.  You do need a paid account, but otherwise the APP is free.  This means you don’t even need a Garmin GPS computer!  Obviously the data being captured isn’t as comprehensive nor as accurate, but it’s good enough.

Other features such as the ability to embed ride data within a blog or link your activity on a web page/blog have been added as well as the ability to share ride data via email, Twitter, or FaceBook have been added.  Even the ability to create your own segments to be used for comparing against others has been added.  And now some of the PRO’s are uploading their data so you can compare yourself against them too!  This does course require a trip to Europe, but…

Boasting about your exploits at the coffee shop is one thing; backing those claims up is…well…priceless.

Finally, the main reason I prefer and highly recommend paying the money for STRAVA is it really does make analysing stats fun. And that’s the point right?

Disclaimer: I am in no way affiliated with STRAVA nor have I been paid to or received any form of benefit.  This is simply a review and my honest feedback of a system that I believe is really cool and just had to share my thoughts.

So, for me, watching TV, even with ads, is a relaxing past-time.  But, my pet *HATE* right at the moment is the “First Looks” campaign TEN is running to promote some of their shows.  I general, this is a cool idea and generally does give a little insight into the show.  This concept works well to whet the appetite for new show that are about to be released and/or just started to get a loyal fan base.  It’s all about the ratings really.  TEN just want to maximise the value proposition for perspective advertisers.  Great, fully support that as the more money they can get from advertisers, the better the programming.

However, there’s a point at which a “First Look” becomes anything but a “First Look” or “Sneak Peak”.  Last week I lost count of the number of times I watched the 2-5minute “First Look” for an upcoming episode of Glee.  I’ll accept that TEN are trying to promote a show that has very little in the way of solid story line, but is popular for the singing.  That’s all that makes Glee anything but trash; the singing.  I just wish they’d stop friggin’ lip-synching though…

Anyway, back to my point.

Channel TEN, please for the love of GOD, stop calling these 2-5min segments a “First Look”.  The first few (ie, 3-4) times you run it, I’ll accept it as being a first look.  But, by the 100th run I think you’re flogging a dead horse!  Keep the “First Look” concept, but mix it up with different shows.  Hell, even different segments of the same damn show would be nice!  The way thinks are anyone would think Glee is the ONLY show worth watching on TEN or is it tanking that bad??

Channel TEN drop the “First Look” concept or mix it up!

TEN. Seriously.

Losing or being separated from one of your kids!

This is what happened to one parent this morning on my commute to work.  As one of the bystanders I suddenly became involved in the welfare of a strangers young son.  Interesting start to the day to say the least…

So, here I was sitting on the train enjoying my book (well eBook on my iPad, but it’s still the same thing).  The train was fairly crowded, but not overly so.  One of the disabled seats next to me was still empty.  At Bayswater (or was it Maylands?) and young African lad (he was about 2 or 3) jumps up on the seat next to me to watch out the window.  He was leaning over me a bit as the doors slide back behind these seats and don’t provide a very big window behind them. My youngest son has the same fascination with trains, so I’m kinda used to this.

I glance towards him Mum who is standing nearby.  She looks like she’s about to tell him off, but I smile and shrug my shoulders indicating it’s OK, he’s just a boy and it doesn’t bother me.

The rest of the commute goes as it normally does.  My book is getting to an exciting bit, but I know I won’t be able to finish it before with get the the city.  Have you noticed that train rides into work are always faster than when going home??

Anyway, we pull into to McIver Station.  This is the one near Royal Perth Hospital.  At the last minute, the African lad’s Mum panics and calls to her son; she’s only just realised it’s their stop and have to get off.  The boy jumps down and follows his Mum, but without any urgency.  Like most kids, he’s unaware that the doors on the train don’t stay open long.

At this point the doors start to close.  Mum is off the train on the platform, but only just realises that her son isn’t with her.  Her son, concerned about the doors closing on him hesitates.  Mum, cries out and throws her bag into the gap to stop the doors closing.  Her bag, unfortunately, is only a simple store shopping bag with a few bottles in it, so has no effect.  Commuters standing need the door couldn’t stop the door fast enough either.  The Mum is frantically trying to open the door, but the train starts moving away from the platform.

At this point the young lad is starting to cry.  He realises his Mum is being taken away from him and he’s stuck on a train full of strangers.  Mum, what I can see of her, is one step short of a full blown panic attack.

Now the reason I indicated that the young lad was of African descent wasn’t to be racist, but more to paint the picture of what would have been going through the Mum’s mind.  In Africa, as I experienced first hand, things are so safe as we experience here is Australia.  So given her experience growing up in Africa I suspect she immediately feared the worst.

Fortunately we aren’t in Africa.  The next thing that happened was a lady near the boy immediately went to his aid to try and comfort the lad.  Everyone else seemed to be in some kind of shock and didn’t react.  At this point I jumped up and call for someone to get in touch with the driver by the emergency intercom.  After a few moments we managed to both find the intercom and contact the driver.  No-one else spoke up so I jumped straight in an explained to the driver that a young boy was stuck on the train with his Mum left on the platform.  The driver thought quickly and explained she’d contact the next station (Perth Central) and have some Train Official’s and Guards me us on the platform.

The young boy was still quite hysterical, but someone produced a giant chocolate Freddo Frog the boy.  It only took a few moments for the boy to realise what it was and that the people around him were going to look after him.  He accepted the Freddo Frog and calmed right down.  He was a brave lad I’ll give him that.

At the station, the young boy had collected a few Good Samaritans; me, a lady in her 40’s (the one who comforted him to start with), another one in her 50’s, and an fellow in his late 40’s (I think he was the one to produce the Freddo?).  We shepherded the lad into the centre of the platform and made sure he was OK and away from other commuters.  He was looking a little panicky, but otherwise calm.  We waited for the official’s to arrive to come to boys rescue.  Two Train Guards, both scary looking to a young lad, arrived after a few minutes and then a Train Official, a woman in her late 50’s.

At this point the Official asked what had happened.  I explained as best as I could recall, so did the other 2 lady’s.  The most I could recall was that the boy’s Mum was African descent, a large build and panicked that she’d nearly missed her stop.

At this point I left the boy with these people and hope that he made it back to his Mum (or she to him) without to much more fuss.  It will certainly be one train trip both of them won’t soon forget.

The only other thing about this event of note was how few people actually stepped in to offer assistance.  Most just stood around like Goldfish.  As a parent myself, I can imagine the fright and panic this Mum would have felt.  As such I couldn’t imagine not doing everything in my power to try to render assistance.  It’s just in my nature.  I can’t be a bystander, I have to help how and where I can.

Lesson to any parent’s on a training with children.  Keep them close and make sure you ALL get off the train together or stand in the door to stop it closing…

Hope the Train Driver doesn’t get too much of a bullocking for this.  It must be hard to see if all doors are clear in peak-hour as many commuters are both slow and don’t clear the doors quick enough.

More details can be found at the office UCI World Cycling Tour website.

I’ve also taken the time to map out the course route using Bikely to get a bit more of a detailed idea of the course.

Map Removed. Sorry about that.

Oh and the best part is that UCI will be awarding the coveted Rainbow Jersey to winners in each age category. Obviously this isn’t the same as the Pro’s Rainbow Jersey, but it’s as close as us amateurs can get!

UPDATE: REGISTRATIONS ARE NOW OPEN!

Now I’m sure your thinking that’s unusual, but certainly not strange as cogs do wear and often a tooth will break.  But, in this instance the cog didn’t just break a tooth it literally disintegrated!  Where once I had a complete 11s cassette, not I have a 10s one; the 14T cog is simply missing!

WTF?

Yep, that’s exactly what I thought. WTF?  How the hell does that happen?

I’ve done some searching on the InterWeb and can’t find any reference to a similar thing happening before.  Or at least no-one has blogged/posted anything about a similar event.  I’ve contacted the guys I bought this cassette off (Wiggle) to request a warranty replacement.  Hopefully I’ll get a response when the UK wakes up.

I’m also sending a quick message to Campagnolo (the cassette is a Record 11-23T) letting them know about this.  I know they’ll get some info via Wiggle, but I think this is such a strange event they should get a first hand report.  I expect they’ll file under “WTF?”.  I can just picture these Italian Engineers all scratching their heads trying to work out how something designed to take such extreme punishment and generally considered to most reliable part of a bike broke in such a way.

Note the 2 spacers and a larger than normal gap.

From a different angle. Notice that the spacing between the cogs is greater where the arrow is indicating.

A couple of “snake bites” caused when the cog broke/failed.

I’m still at a loss as to why/how this happened.  I maintain my bikes meticulously (just ask my partner).   The chain is new and the cassette shows very little wear (it’s less than 12 months old).  This is not the sort of thing you expect to happen to a high-end bike like mine.  In fact I’d never expect this type of thing to happen to any bike!  Those cogs are extremely strong steel.  They are designed to last and take a hell of a lot of punishment of many years.  Oh, and I know I’m a fairly powerful rider, but I’m not THAT powerful!  Hell the Pro’s would put out more than twice the power I can generate!

So let’s see how Wiggle and Campagnolo respond.  I know they’ll sort me out with little trouble.  I just wish I could see their faces as they try to comprehend what happened.  It’s a shame I couldn’t find the broken pieces.  They might have helped explain what happened.