1. Tell us about yourself?

Like the semi-professional LDF & eponymous Virgin, the decidedly amateur Dora was born in Johannesburg in the early ‘70s.

Shortly thereafter, motivated in equal measure by a distaste for apartheid and the lure of the wide brown land of opportunity, Dora’s hippy parents set sail for these fair shores and settled into a quiet existence on the Mid North Coast of NSW – a five acre bush block, 5km out of  town on the road  from Kempsey to Crescent Head.

2. What got you into cycling?

From the early days as a country kid there were bikes around. Typically battered but well-loved, these dragsters and later BMXes, were great liberators from the boredom.  All the best (and most dangerous) adventures were made possible by these faithful machines.

Behind YHC’s house, a long dirt track led to an old quarry which became a primary source of entertainment and escape. Hours were spent building jumps and circuits and sliding in gravel with increasing risk to limbs and skin as we egged each other on to ever more dangerous efforts.

3. How did you come to join the Easy Riders?

Years later YHC has a family of his own (wife Lana, kids Will (7) Rafael (5) & Abi (2) – the latter famous for indiscriminately assaulting other revellers with a golden reindeer at the ER Xmas party) and is settled on the North Shore of Sydney not far from Artarmon station. About six months ago, a career change found YHC again commuting to the CBD, riding some days, catching the train others.

YHC heard tell of a ‘bike bus’ populated primarily with MAMILS that ran down the Nth Shore line. Next day, slightly miffed at the delay, YHC was required to wait before crossing Tindale to catch the 7.05 to Wynyard as a long stream of Egg and Tomato clad warriors mounted on steeds of steel, alu and carbon flew past. Minutes later, crammed into the BOF cheek and jowl with the Muggles, YHC resolved to intercept the peloton and do his best to keep up. YHC has been doing the same most every day since.

From there it’s been brilliant fun getting slowly fitter and faster with no end of additional challenges to extend the 10km sprint from Artarmon to the CBD – early dashes up to Gordon for a full run in, Rhodes on a Friday, Fluffers, Flambies and, best of all, the sacred pilgrimage to the GG for Friday prayer.

4. Tell us about your bikes?

For the first few months YHC has been chugging around on an old but extremely reliable Trek 1000 purchased for $500 from a friend a few years ago.

Come Christmas, Santa found the name ‘Dora’ at the top of the ‘well behaved’ list and rewarded him with a Trek 5.2 which he’s been riding ever since.

However, ‘n+1’ syndrome has set in – these days YHC is often to be found with iPad in hand trawling through eBay listings of the sacred steel as well as annoying other members of the peloton with “is that steel?”, “Reynolds or Columbus?”, “really, what number?” and so on.

5. If you could ride anywhere in the world where would it be?

It’s a cliché but hopefully forgivable – France when the Tour is on.

6. Tell us a riding story:

Once upon a time, YHC was once driving home about 7pm through the backblocks of Sydney’s inner west (between Glebe and Fish Markets). Stopped at the lights with the sun setting in the west, YHC could see a cyclist coming from the right and a car coming from the left which was slowing to turn right across the path of the cyclist.

Perhaps assuming he’d been seen the cyclist continued to pump along at a fair clip through the intersection. The motorist slowed but then accelerated through the right hand turn and perfectly t-boned the cyclist sending him spinning into the air before crunching onto the road.

YHC flicked on the hazards and went to the assistance of the cyclist who was in shock and pretty banged up. At this point YHC observed his courier’s livery. True to form the first thing he wanted to know was “is my bike ok?” and took it badly when the mangled device was dragged into view.

To truly add insult to injury, the motorist then began berating and swearing at the bike courier for “not giving way”.

So the next few minutes YHC had his hands full trying to call Ambulance and Police, keep the patient still in case of spinal or other injury and intervene between him and the driver (who’s next move, once the severity of the incident was apparent, was to try to depart the scene before the constabulary arrived).

Said officials were there quickly and YHC was able to leave the situation in their capable hands after providing details and a short statement.

Next day YHC was at work in the city visiting a customer. Coming down in the lift the doors opened at another floor and in stepped a bike courier with a heavily grazed face and his arm in plaster. Sure enough it was him (what are the chances?) and we stopped and chatted on the ground floor. Turns out the bike was a complete write-off, the wrist was broken and he was still shaking off the mild concussion.

Never knew his name but is should be ‘Ken Hard.

7. Do you have any advice for the riders at the back of the ER peloton?

The jokes are funnier at the back.

8. Lastly, tell us something we don’t know about you.

When I was younger I lived in Japan for a year and for a few weeks I dated Nicole Kidman’s cousin (not at the same time).

1. Tell us a bit about yourself

I am a bean counter who likes to pretend I can ride a bike. I live in Wahroonga where all the aspiring MAMILS congregate. I am married to Megan, who has now accepted my addiction to cycling is not a passing phase and have two daughters who hate seeing their dad wear lycra.

2. What got you into cycling?

We moved buildings and I lost my permanent car spot in 2008. Best thing that happened to me. I hated catching the train to work. One day my boss Ashley Fenton told me I should try and find that bike track from Chatswood to the city as I may like it. My old Giant steelframe mountain bike ventured out one morning in January 2009, found this track and the rest is history.

3. How did you come to join the Easy Riders?

I mentioned to Peter McNamara who was doing some work with me I had started riding. He told me I should join the Easyriders as it was safer than riding alone. I got onto the email list and three months later took my first ride with the group after talking to Captain and Satnav by email.

4. Tell us about your bikes.

I own a trusted aluminium Argon 18 Plutonium which has survived two crashes and still does the commute well, the Pinarello FP7 which flies up hills as some have noted and still keep my 20 year old Giant Steelframe Mountain bike.

5. If you could ride anywhere in the world, where would it be?

I love riding the Adelaide Hills. Want to try a TDF stage one day but still think Adelaide Hills scenery is hard to beat (go Beebs).

Ravi at the Tour Down Under

6. Tell us a riding story.

Has to be my first ride with the Easyriders. The Argon was on a flatbar back then. Satnav said join the group at Gordon and he would hang back with me. He did. I had to push the bike up the Esses at Roseville on my first morning and by Boundary was finding it hard to stand up. It was a damp cold July morning as it had been raining. We got to the Artarmon path and I said to Satnav I knew the way go on. He still hung back so I decided to catch the group. I accelerated then had to brake suddenly along a grate. All I remember is the back wheel sliding from under me so I applied front wheel brakes and went over the handle bars. Satnav first on the scene got me to sit on a rock whilst he rang an ambulance. Up till then I had never broken a bone but I knew I had done just that. I was operated on that evening. Still have the titanium plate and six screws. Actually was too embarassed to feel any pain. I remember the Peppous and B2Bs coming through talking to Satnav as the ambos arrived then went gaga as they gave me the gas. Captain later named in the the ride report “Ravi the Grate”. A ride not to forget. Megan told me not to ride with the ERs again as for six months I was riding alone and nothing happened! Good thing I didn’t take her seriously…..

7. Do you have any advice for the riders at the back of the ER peloton?

My advice for riders at the back of the peloton is don’t try to get to the front as I will get left behind (I’m still at the back four years later). My philosophy is it is all about enjoying the ride and the company. I like a challenge but am not competing with anyone except myself to improve. I try to set small achievable goals and stick to them.

8. Lastly, tell us something we don’t know about you.

In my school years I was known as the “concert pianist” and harboured ambition of one day performing with the SSO. At uni I could not complete both my music and accounting studies and with 8 job offers from all the major accounting firms after finishing my economics degree I decided the money in music did not compensate the ambition. I failed my final music exams and have hardly touched a piano since.

1. Tell us a bit about yourself

Born and bred in Sydney too many years ago to remember, I settled in the sunny north shore after moving around Australia for University and work, I have 2 sensational teenage daughters, a caffeine addiction and should be a shareholder with Vic in the bitter and twisted!

2.  What got you into cycling?

I started riding as a kid. My old man was an Oncologist who also had a small old fashioned private practice doing home visits and having his patients come to our home. One of his patients, Jim, was a very keen cyclist having taken it up as a mid-life cancer survivor. At the time I had just got my first bike (at the age of 10 which I will come to later). Jim picked up the enthusiasm with which I attempted to throw my little legs over an ill-fitting 23” frame. He took me under his wing, got me riding a bit of distance, had a bike built for me by Jim Bundy (I still have the frame), introduced me into Northern Suburbs Amateur Cycling Cub and the rest is history.

Well it was history. A driver’s licence, University, job, mortgage and all those things that get in the way of cycling saw the bike relegated to the back of the garage where it stayed for 20 years. At the age of 40 odd, a hobbit size fella weighing in at 77kg was having trouble keeping up with his two athletic young daughters so things had to change. Thinking I was too precious to ride a bike on the road, I went out and bought myself a cheap mountain bike and began the long grind back to fitness. For the first few rides it was me that broke; then slowly but surely it was the bike that came out second best. Every ride resulted in hours of repair work to the point where I started riding a MTB on the road. That was the point where I realised my destiny and returned to road riding. A new carbon road bike became the newest member of the family, the same LeMond I ride today.

3. How did you come to join the Easy Riders?

Living in the Hobbit shire West of the Pacific Highway, I started commuting into the city through Brown’s Waterhole and Lane Cove National Park – which is still one of my favourite commutes.

With my bike tucked neatly beside my desk at work, I heard the too familiar sound of tick tick tick and saw another cyclist sneakily bringing their bike onto the floor. This unusual fella not only named his bike, he also called it a cappuccino pursuit vehicle. Yeah you guessed it – BUCKY was sitting at the other end of the floor and as cyclists do we introduced ourselves and realised that we shared a love of cycling, place of work and a postcode.

Bucky told me about this group he commutes with from Gordon most mornings and enthusiastically introduced me onto the ER email list. My productivity has never been the same – but the richness of friendships and support (on and off the bike) has never looked back. I became an occasional rider, then semi-regular and although not a ‘Nav-man there aren’t too many days when I can’t be seen sailing along the OTP.

4. Tell us about your bikes.

My commuter is a Gary Fisher Super Calibre 26” dual suspension mountain bike with fully knobby tyres. Why would anyone commute on anything else? Its ride position for the road is – inefficient at best. Everyone rolls past me downhill when I am madly spinning my biggest gear. You can hear the tyres coming a mile away – everyone knows who’s behind them. 5 days commuting on the MTB and I’m stuffed for the week. Occasionally it even gets ridden off road.

My roadie is a LeMond Versailles that has been my trusty companion over tens of thousands of kilometres. Pina envy has tempted me a few time to upgrade, so far I’ve stayed faithful to the old girl that has been through a life changing transformation with me  – so we will march on for many more years to come.

Before taking my 20 year break from cycling I had matching road and track bikes. They hung at the back of a garage unloved for many years. TSS joyously eyed them off and a project was set in motion. Beautifully restored they are now squeezed into a garage full of big boy’s toys.  They are a thing of beauty.

[Editors note: we need pictures here PD]

5. If you could ride anywhere in the world, where would it be?

Being a Peloton Sports rider, after each ride I attach myself to Veronika’s intravenous espresso machine in Bar Stelvio and look longingly at the picture of Stelvio Pass. One day I keep saying!!

6. Tell us a riding story.

Being the son of a Doctor who had spent much of his early medical career dealing with motorcycle and cyclist injuries, I was not allowed to have a bicycle. With much persistence I wore him down and at the age of 10 I got my first bike. There were many conditions that went with it and one of those was I couldn’t ride on the road. How he believed that I use to race a push bike competitively at state level without riding on the road is still a mystery. A parental blind eye I don’t doubt.

The ER older set will remember the train strikes of the 1980’s that brought Sydney traffic to a standstill. Unbeknown to my father I use to ride to school in the city from Hunter’s Hill. My father thought I was catching the ferry with my bike. Train strike or not, being an indestructible teenager I set off to school, riding between the lanes of traffic over the Gladesville Bridge and straight past a television news crew. I didn’t think anything more of it. That night, about to sit down to family dinner the ABC news came on. My father would always turn the television off as he had firm views on meal time etiquette. Because of the train strikes he unfortunately decided he would watch the first few minutes of the news and there in full glory at the very start of the news was me lane splitting through the traffic. I think it was about a month before I was allowed to even look at the bike again.

7. Do you have any advice for the riders at the back of the ER peloton?

Enjoy the ride and don’t worry whether you’re at the front or the back.

8. Lastly, tell us something we don’t know about you.

You mean other than having hairy feet and living underground? To add to my father’s woes of riding a push bike, I also ride a motorcycle. It’s not just a little one, it weighs more than three times my weight and puts an ear to ear grin on your face when you ride it with in the gusto the engineers designed it with. Alas, hours on the pushy meant it’s now been relegated to the back of the garage.