As newly (self-) appointed Press Secretary for our Spiritual Leader, Le Bullet, the Cycling Sadhu, it is incumbent upon me to chronicle his greatest deeds for the global audience and future generations. In this capacity I lay this short passage before you.
Last Friday, for reasons known only to himself, the Good Shepherd Saint Navigation spruiked the running of the first Flambie, seizing upon the opportunity to welcome pink-jersey aspirant, Sam, with a ‘slightly more challenging’ way home than the sacred OTP.
And so it was that, on a hot 32 deg, 95% humidity Friday afternoon, we turned right instead of the holy left at SHBN and in what can only be described as blasphemy we strayed from the Golden Path to the GG, that most sacred house of Friday afternoon fellowship & libation.
Had it not been for the spiritual credentials of two of our crew I would have truly feared for my mortal soul. Our small band of heretics assumed a formation of sorts and rolled out – new girl Sam (ride name pending, I vaguely remember Bullet trialling ‘Cadel’), Bullet, SatNav, YHC and a homeward bound Mavis completing the quintuple.
Through the back streets of Kirribilli, Neutral Bay, Mosman we weaved our merry way. No rush, a long weekend ahead, embracing the key tenet of OAFATSR. With lots to look at and chat about, and encountering many other cyclists in a similar mood, revelling in the holiday atmosphere.
Down Parriwi and over the bridge we picked up a couple of GOTFR tokens from a passing STA bus clearly in a Friday afternoon fluster. Up Mont Seaforth at a slow and steady clip then the sprint along Pittwater Rd, SatNav demonstrating great SS skills with a mix of high cadence, drafting and crouching for max speed, the pilgrims arrived at the base of Mt Doom.
A quick farewell to Mavis and YHC looked for signs of trepidation in the new recruit but was disappointed – Sam merely grinned, took firm hold the Specialized’s reins and got stuck into the climb.
North of Frenchs Forest the group split further with SatNav and Bullet continuing north, Sam and YHC turning our steeds’ heads west to cross the much feared Roseville Speedway. Taking the advice of the Good Doctor Watsford, we erred on the side of caution and prudence and pulled our mounts onto the footpath for a couple of kilometres of windy, root-infested, debri-strewn, overgrown concrete before making it onto the bridge bikepath – no improvement here with large gaps between segments and open to the northerly cross-wind. All up a true bone rattler and not be repeated by any who care for their rims.
After the bridge, back around, under, then up and out for a pinchy climb through the back streets of Castle Cove. Ciao to Sam, then a gallop on to Chatswood and back home to Artarmon for a hot shower and a cold beer. Total ride time about 2 hours and well past the previously agreed hour with the good lady requiring appropriate levels of genuflecting and contrition from YHC as penance.
A small price to pay for yet another great Easy Riders adventure. Thanks again to SatNav for the inspiration and guidance. Strongly recommend the Flambie to all – a great complement to the Fluffer – get one or two of these in before daylight savings comes to an end.
Cheers
Dora