THE GSR

Headwinds from hell

By EAT MORE LARD

December 20^th, 2016

IT’S ALL ABOUT PREPARATION

The Grand Southern Randonnée (GSR) is an Audax event that covers 1200km in 90 hours in the south west corner of Victoria. It runs every four years and is one of the flagship events of the Australia Audax calendar. I was supposed to be riding it this year but life rolled the dice and I lost. My riding companion, Mark Rigby, has kindly agreed to share his story of the event.

I have been a cyclist since the late 80’s including some racing and time trialling in Scotland in the early 90's but towards my late 20’s family/work/life got in the way of cycling and I did little through my 30’s. Finally when I hit forty, I had the classic mid-life moment, dusted off my original Reynolds 653 racer and got back on the bike, completing a complex training plan of 1000k in 10 weeks ahead of riding 200km Around the Bay. Since then, year on year, I have increased my kilometres and climbing. I've taken on plenty of fun rides including a number of Audax events, such as the Oppy 24hr TTT, some mixed terrain rides and a few Alpine Classics. I've ridden through the European Alps and even knocked off an Everesting to name just a few of my exploits since getting back on the bike.

The Great Southern Randonnee was an obvious one (to me) to tackle, based on the same format as Paris-Brest-Paris, the original 1200k in 90hours ultra endurance event. It has been in my mind since the last edition in 2012 so when it came around this year it was a must do. After the 2016 Oppy there was plenty of local interest from other riders I knew and eight put their entries in for the ride, with only one small hitch that none of us had yet qualified. After scanning of the Audax calendar for a suitable 600km qualifier we agreed on the relatively local Traverse of Central Victoria. It turned out to be a pretty grim wet ride from what I remember, with the addition of punctures and frayed heads, so I was surprised to read my initial comment on Strava:“I love riding bikes with these guys, they are the best, they give me shelter when needed, they push and support me mentally when I need it, they accept my wheel even if the pace drops and never question my judgement! As I said, love riding bikes with my friends!”

We now had seven confirmed entries, four for the Sunday 6pm start and three for the Monday 6am start (the Woodend Velos are know for their love of sleep so opted for the classic 3 night version). Unfortunately a few weeks out my closest riding mate (that's me - Ed) had to drop out due to the minor inconvenience of moving house on the same weekend as the GSR. Another of the original group was working seven days a week so it was now down to just two for the night start. I knew Marty was up for a fast ride so the realisation I was going to be flying solo increased my apprehension dramatically. I am a perfectly capable and confident solo rider and do a lot of solitary riding but suddenly the prospect of 1200km solo was a whole new level. A little more care in my preparation and studying of the course was taken to calm myself down.

All smiles at the start for Mark and Marty

The FIRST 26 hours

The 6pm starters had to complete the 200km Bellarine loop before returning to Anglesea and then heading out on the outbound leg to Port Fairy. The group rolled out at 6pm sharp with some good banter being passed around and plenty of roadside encouragement at the start and as we passed the pub. It didn’t take long for the riders to be spread thinly across the course as people found their rhythm. Marty disappeared up the first rise with the early pace setters and I pretty much knew that the next time I would see him would be somewhere on the road through the Grampians when the course turned for home and retraced the same route. There was also a realisation that the ride to the first few checkpoints would be the only time we would get a tailwind so the pace was high but social and I had a chance to chat to both familiar and out of state and overseas riders.

Into the checkpoint at Queenscliffe I was riding with a very experienced Audaxer, Kerri-Anne, who had already done this ride and many others serveral times. We rode together for a while until her partner Michael caught up with us. He had had a fall and was battered and bloody so I left them to patch Michael up, only later finding they had ridden to Geelong Hospital for stitches and the end of their ride. Into the long night I rode passing a few riders who had dropped off the pace considerably as the headwind started to bite. After a quick stop at the Kardinia 24 hour café, it was out the back of Geelong into some unexpected hills. The forecast storms had held off but the roads were wet and night was cold so I was happy to arrive back at Anglesea around 3am stopping for some coffee and food.

Thirty minutes later I headed out on the second leg of almost 300km to Port Fairy. The wind was full on in my face out to Lorne along the ocean. Ever time I rounded a headland, it battered me to the point where I was tensing up for each onslaught. Due to a few road closures on the Great Ocean Road the course had been re-routed inland this year so headwinds were replaced by climbs and rollers. As I climbed up and out of Lorne towards Deans Marsh I had my worst hallucinations ever on a night ride, I have always had a few problems on overnight rides and had a pretty rough time as this year’s Oppy, but on that long slow climb the head was so bad I was almost laughing at the images I was seeing - there was no end of sticks as snakes, ferns as kangaroos….and an elephant!? I was glad to be over the climb with the light started to come up as I dropped to Deans Marsh and back into the headwind. Having been solo for a while now I decided to just ride until a group came through so I could jump in and share the load and some company. I was very glad when the US contingent plus a couple of others came through helping us all to make good progress to Forrest and a well-earned food and coffee stop.

The group broke up after Forrest as the road rolled upwards and light rain had set in - it is a rain forest after all. Despite the rain, this section was a cracker, including the spectacular Turtons Track, a single lane sealed track that winds its way through the land of the giant ferns! The forest finally gave way and I was soon dropping back towards the ocean. Descending Lavers Hill we had been warned about road works but they were even worse than anticipated. The surface had been removed for a few kilometres and the road was a potted mess, wasting the opportunity for a speedy descent. The roads also got busier towards the Apostles with a few cars a little too distracted by the magnificent coastline! It was nice to see the Apostles in the late afternoon as the last time I rode this way is was the middle of the night and I could hear the ocean but not see it.

Port Campbell, unbeknown to me, is an iconic checkpoint run by Ronnie and his team, where the menu and service were as magical as the Shepherd's Pie. The final leg out to Port Fairy around the back of Warrnambool were pretty uneventful apart from the obligatory Garmin meltdown. I finally arrived at Port Fairy at 8pm about an hour slower than planned but I was pretty happy with my 26 hours after battling the wind for most of that time. I was actually feeling ok so it was time for a shower, food and a good 4.5 hours sleep before getting up and doing it all again.

The magnificent Great Ocean Road near the 12 (or is that now 7?) Apostles

Heading inland

It was an early shake at 2am, although some riders had left hours earlier with far less sleep. It took my 45 minutes to be up, dressed, fed and ready to roll. The road to Hamilton was a bit rough but the super moon was still high and the night was cool but not cold. As I arrived at Hamilton, the Velos were leaving to start their day, having spent the night there. I sat down for a second breakfast, getting back on the road some thirty minutes later. I made good progress through to Dunkeld where the Grampians loomed and revelled in the chance to hit the hills. The day was warming up, the wind was light and the spirits high. As I was descending into Halls Gap, Marty and Seb came towards me. We exchanged brief mutually supporting shouts as we passed in opposite directions.

The Velos were just leaving Halls Gap and, having ridden the entire day so far on my own, I decided a quick feed and chase was worth the company, catching them about ten kilometres outside Halls. We rolled turns through to Stawell and its turn around point at the same salubrious Subway/servo used in the Traverse qualifier. With little reason to linger, we were soon back into the now hot wind to Halls Gap. Everyone was feeling the day not least myself and I was paying for the earlier chase. Staying with the group really helped my spirits and boosted me back to Hamilton. I had considered pushing through but was fairly done at this stage. When I was offered a double room to myself in an empty cabin the decision was easy - time to stop, eat and sleep! I left the Velos to complete their second day down to Port Fairy.

THE RETURN

With some quick maths the night before I planned to roll at 2:30am to get to Port Fairy for 7am. The plan was to join the Velos before they left but I had not expected the rain and rising headwind. Luckily the Velos don’t rush their breakfasts and were still around when I arrived at 7:20am with time for a second breakfast before we headed out. The checkpoints today had some big gaps, or maybe we were just tired? With the first one at Port Campbell some 80kms away we decided to stop for coffee and cake in Warnambool before a longer stop at Port Campbell. Fatigue was kicking in all round.

Leaving Port Campball, we were officially back onto the Great Ocean Road, retracing our path back to Anglesea. Not only had we turned but so had the wind. That nasty westerly headwind had now turned to the east so that once again we had the headwind as a constant task master. Even so, the scenery was still spectacular and we had time for some pictures and rolling turns before hitting the climb back to Lavers Hill. The gradient dragged on and the roadworks and solid traffic were no fun but the checkpoint was very welcome and well stocked. Out of Lavers I now had "only" 130km to go. Suddenly I could smell the finish line. Out of the wind, we were back on the joyful track through the rain forest and then the fast paced downhill into Forrest for the last official stop before the finish.

By now it was dark. Everyone was supporting each other whilst suffering individually. Back up the Benwerrin climb over the Otway range to Lorne felt endless. My legs were empty and it was just a case of keeping the pedals turning over - left, right, left, right - until the road started heading down again. It was a fast and cold descent that left us shivering in Lorne for the final push to Anglesea. The moon was bright and the sound of the sea pounding in the darkness created a rather special atmosphere for the ride through to the finish (at least for me - the Velos still had to ride the Bellarine loop the following day).

As I rolled into the finish at Anglesea at 1am, I was one very happy rider, grabbing my final stamp for an elapsed ride time of 79 hours for the 1200km.

I can’t thank the Audax organisers and volunteers enough on this ride. You are all very special people! Thanks to the Velos - Sam, Jacque, and Brian - for letting me tag along and sharing the company of the ride. It was very much appreciated, gents!