Bicycle... bicylce... sounds like a title for a song?! Hang on. I thnk it is!

Well who would have thought?  A year ago I had ridden a bike only a handful of times since I left Primary School!  Then, finally giving in to that small nagging voice that kept telling me "You should be doing SOMETHING" to get fit, a friend of mine & I made a pact & started riding around Swan River 3 times a week... I still remember the first time we did it: when we finished I was so exhausted & was puffing so much that my friend Charly became very concerned for me and nervously asked "Are you OK?!"  I assured him I was... but I was lying!

Soon after that, Anke realised how imcompetent my cycling skills were & was secretly worried I was going to kill myself I think so she politely asked if I'd thought of doing a "cycling skills course" & even went looking for some for me. I felt silly doing booking in for cycling lessons (I mean, what is there to know? You jump on & start pedalling don't you?!) but we found a course run by Perth Integrerated Health (PIH) twice a week in Kings Park... & off I went. So now I was cycling 5 times a week! And I have to say, I learned HEAPS. The course was perfect... lessons on climbing, cornering, emergency stopping, looking behind, sprinting... all sorts. It was excellent.

So it wasn't long before I found myself buying lycra & becoming one of those bloody annoying types that "clack" into your favourite coffee place & destroy your peace & quiet in the mornings! But I was loving it... & it wasn't long before I realised that riding Anke's old hybrid wasn't going to cut it & I needed my very own piece of sexy coloured carbon fibre!  

So here we are year later... a 25kms ride around the river? Pfft! That's not a Ride! THIS is a ride! :-) 

Last weekend Anke & I completed the iconic "3 Dams Ride" together. It's a 146kms ride up in Hills which takes in Mundaring Weir, Canning Dam & Wungong Dams and returns to the start point in South Perth. As nervous as I was about even attempting it... we did great & completed it in 6 hours and 9 minutes.  And  having taken everyones advice to "take it easy at the start" we both felt strong at the end.