#27-29 - The Katoomba Ride: 230km cycling to the Blue Mountains...

...now that really did get my knee in a frenzy. It's 115km from Bondi to Katoomba (each way), and you gain 1,000m in height.

I class the ride as marathon training. Especially after a week during which I didn't run AT ALL, though I did manage 700m of swimming on Monday. Last Friday's big run had really knocked it out of me, and then I got a bit lazy as well. On to the ride...

DAY 1, Saturday:

A 6am start and we were 70km's-down by breakfast time at 9:20am. This is the second time we've done this ride and we were following roughly the same route and schedule as last July's effort. Poached eggs and baked beans at the excellent cafe behind the "servo" (Oz for petrol station) in Glenbrook. A good start!

We had a great run out there. A crisp morning, ie bloody freezing. I had my stockings and Gore Tex on. And J had opted for full winter gloves. We've both discovered the joys of ear-warmers!

The route is through the City, then along the beautiful Parramatta Rd, then onto the hard shoulder of the M4 motorway at around Homebush. Even at 6:30 in the morning the traffic was building up and frenetically trying to catch orange lights. The P. Rd is not what I enjoy about cycling. The M4 is a big improvement. Still a few cars but we have our own space in the form of the hard shoulder with only the odd shreds of blown tyre, and dribs and drabs of spilled lorry-loads in our way. It's great that you're allowed to cycle on the motorways over here.

At the construction site which is the new flyover for the M7 we merged with two chicks and a guy cycling our way. We hooked up with them all the way to the base of the mountains which I really enjoyed. It's good for motivation and great for efficiency to get in even a mini-peloton (I steered clear of leading!). The girls were triathletes one of whom appeared to be in the national team.

Anyway, the final 5kms before getting to Glenbrook (167m altitude) is a killer. After 65km's of nearly-flat we got a sudden awakening on some very steep hills. But the thought of breakfast only minutes away spurred me on and got me to the menu. 3hrs 20mins to cover the first 70kms.

From Glenbrook onwards it's uphill all the way for 45kms. We stopped for the odd stretch but cycled past our intended coffee spot thinking there'd be another quite soon after. There wasn't for bloody ages, so the next decent stop wasn't until Wentworth Falls. We arrived at 12:30 my right knee now really feeling it after been put under some decent pressure for the last few hours. We found a spot in the sun outside a cafe and tucked into a pastry. At this point we really should've eaten more but we were now only 5kms from our destination so we held off. We also should've generally eaten more on the way up.

We now had hours before our clean clothes would be arriving in Katoomba. So, as if we hadn't already climbed enough hills, I suggested we make a small excursion to the actual waterfalls of Wentworth and then take a different route up to Katoomba via the back streets of Leura...

...Great views. But this final stretch really was the last straw. It was probably only a few more miles than the direct route, but we managed to lose a few joules of potential energy cruising down Megalong Rd, before having to gain the bloody stuff again up Megasteep Hill. At the top was our destination, 1'000m high, Katoomba Railway Station. I was nauseous and shaking. But wearing a big smile!

Off to the Flying Fox backpackers (youth hostel) for a shower. The perfect place to stay. Only $58 for a double. Bike and baby-friendly. And the piece de resistance...the log fire and comfy lounge.


We did the same ride last year. At that stage I'd only had my bike a few months and I distinctly remember thinking on numerous occasions on the way up, "never again. I'll get to the top, but there's no way I'll do this again". I'm happy to say on Saturday those thoughts didn't cross my mind at all. Fitness-wise I'm in good shape. The knee (tight ITB) was playing up big-time but fitness was never the problem.

And here's some credit where it's due: The road from Glenbrook to Katoomba is excellent for cycling. There's a decent cycle path most of the way and wherever the road has been upgraded the cycle path has been widened and properly marked out. A very rare pat on the back for the highways department! (On the way down it's nowhere near as good for some reason??)

DAY 2, Sunday:

We ate at Niagra which does great food but in that great Aussie tradition is lit-up like a supermarket. I had pork something-or-other which was fantastic. My tyre had deflated overnight so we piddled around with that for a while. I proudly (stupidly) boasted that it was only my second puncture since I bought the tyres over a year ago. One minute later the new innertube blew with a big bang as I'd not put the tyre back on right. The friendly proprietor Ross took our pic as "he doesn't get enough cyclists staying".

Men at work, outside the Flying Fox in Katoomba

Breakfast at Isobar didn't compare with the food the night before. And then it was off...down hill for the next 45km's! Wayheeeeeeyyyyy....

Our arses were badly bruised and tender! And my knee was bloody killing me. So we stopped at a servo for some stretching and Panadol and Nurofen before continuing a really good pace. The first 70km of the day - to the McDonalds on the freeway - we did in about 2 hours. J led all the way so I could slipstream him and reduce the pressure on the knee. That worked really well and meant we could keep the pace at the high 30's (Kmph). My first "Deli Choices" turkey and cranberry for lunch and I also made a good effort to keep my belly stocked up all day.

The final slog is a real slog. Really puts perspective on how enormous Sydney really is - or at least how sprawling the Western Suburbs are. We avoided Parramatta Rd by map-reading our way through the rabbit-warren back streets. It took us another 2.5hrs ridetime to do the second (45km) leg of the day.

Home just as darkness fell. A great trip.