September 2008

Day 6 started 20km out of Norseman, and it was a really hard day.  100km uphill into a headwind before Jack and Brendon got some downhill and the wind died off.  They ended up cycling from 6:00am to 6:15pm and only did 185km, which left them 30km short of Balladonia, both totally exhausted.

Then they found out that the 165km from Balladonia to Caiguna was not 165km as originally thought, but was actually 180km.  That makes it a 210km ride tomorrow to get back on track.

We’re hoping that they don’t get another headwind or they could be way behind.

~ Mel

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Hi, writing this from a campsite 15 kms north of Norseman, which is the start of the Nullarbor for us.

The day started a bit poorly with Jack waking up with a cold at 5 am.  We soon hit the road only to be confronted by strong headwinds.

Luckily we had Jack’s cousin Emily to share the load up the front as we battled for 100 kms into the headwind that just didn’t give up.

The hilly ride didn’t help and the uphills seemed so much longer than the downhills.

Rode Last 70 kms Standing Up

A fair bit of saddle soreness saw Jack ride the last 70 kms standing up to ease the pain.  The winds finally stopped and after a hard 8 1/2 hours in the saddle we’d covered just 170 kms to the campsite at 5.40 pm.

That’s 15 kms short of where we planned to be (in Norseman), but we plan to leave early tomorrow to make up the difference.

Ange has worked on Jack’s legs for hours and he’s exhausted but comfortable.

Everyone is in good spirits despite the tough day.

Jack and Brendon on the road to Norseman

The typical outback WA road

Jack at the end of the day

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Sunday September 14, 2008 – 5.40 pm

We’re here in Kalgoorlie after a 150 km plus day – resting up at Trevor’s house (Jack’s uncle), catching up on washing and buying food.

We have Sarah, a massuese, arriving shortly to give us both massage and Mel is off buying tons more food.

Roads Wide, Flat & Straight

The roads were the same as they’ve been – wide, flat and straight.  We started the morning with an easy 40 km ride for a quick breakfast.

Brendon and Jack dress up for a break

After that was a 70 km hike to Coolgardie (Coolgardie Day was today – the place was packed).

Coolgardie to Kalgoorlie was a 40 km flat ride, but was one of the toughest stretches yet as we had an almost constant flow of cars passing close at 110 km/hr.

As they race past about 50 cm away you have to be very mentally focused and not allow the fatigue to have you move the bike to the wrong spot.

We pick up Emily, Jack’s cousin, from Kalgoolie Airport in an hour or so and she is with us till Ceduna.  Em’s a PE teacher from Tasmania and will be riding most/all of the way to Ceduna.

Thanks Jules

We lose the wonderful, brilliant and just plain nice Julie Mason in the morning.  Jules has been a fantastic part of the team and we’re sorry to see her go.  Thanks for everything Jules – we love you!

Cheers

Brendon

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Another fantastic day – here’s the thing: life doesn’t get much better than zipping along outback Western Australia with your 15 yo son at 50 km/hr on bikes.

We’re having a ball – tired, but loving it!

The riding has been excellent – smooth roads with great visibility.  Our pace has been pretty good with an average of 30 kms most of the day.

The hills are long and very, very gradual – you don’t know you’re going p a hill.  And then you can roll 5 kms down!

We knocked off 140 kms today – 40 more than expected.  The plan is to get into Kalgoorlie a bit earlier than expected tomorrow as we have Trevor’s house (Mel’s brother, Jack’s uncle) to use.

Trev’s been great as part of the support team and is happily sitting in his camp chair, drinking a beer and reading the newspaper as I write!

Jack’s just had a 1 1/2 hr massage from Ange and is feeling terrific.  Spag Bolognaise for dinner tonight, Julie reckons it’s her speciality so the pressure is on her!

Spud is cooking by the fire and Mel is fussy about everyone (as you’d expect).

Jack enjoys Ange’s work

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Another terrific day with 177 kms churned out.

We planned on stopping at Walgoolan, but felt so good we ended up doing an extra 15 km to get to a better camping spot.

Jack is smashing me and doing more out the front than me.  Looking very strong and just keeps getting stronger.

Winds have been a bit fluky today with some headwinds, cross winds and a tail wind for just a while.

The support team are fantastic and are making everything as easy as possible.

The trucks are massive and the drivers are the best on the road – they give us a real wide berth and they’re talking about us on the truckie CB channel telling each other where we are and to keep an eye out.

Jack ready to roll Day 2

Cheers

Brendon

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A quick update from our first stop at Meckering.

We set off from the Indian Ocean with a bit of rain and a howling wind.  Channel 9 and Channel 10 came and did a story on the ride, so hopefully that will help Big Brothers Big Sisters awareness.

The camera crews followed us through to Perth taking footage – which was great because they held up traffic the whole way and made it very safe in the slippery conditions.

Out onto the highway and we flew – a great tailwind for much of the way had us averaging almost 40 km/hr for the last 45 kms of the 144 km!

We’ve set up camp for the night and about to tuck into some steaks.

At the start

Jack’s Angels (aka Support Team)

Jack at Meckering, WA

Jack’s looking strong, really going hard for the last 100 kms once we were clear of the traffic.

Update again asap.

Cheers

Brendon

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Jack and Brendon were interviewed by Nicole Dyer. Here’s the interview:

2008-09-11-abc-p2p-interview

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