Travelling. Second stop: Yorkshire Dales.
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#yorkshiredales #Skipton #boltonabbey #fullenglishbreakfast #FullEnglish #travelphotography #BikesLeaningOnShit #ridebikesbehappy

When you find a waterfall to cool down at the end of a tough mountain bike ride in a hit summer day...

JFR = Just Funking Ride 🤙

#mtb #cycling #naturephotography #biketooter #mountains #nature #mountainbike #landscapephotography #canada #WaterfallWednesday #ridebikesbehappy

A nice scene from my morning commute today. #Canberra can really turn on the effects sometimes.
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#RideBikesBeHappy #RideCanberra #cycling #BikeTooter #CycleCanberra #BikeCanberra #mist #LakeBurleyGriffin #Merida

A big ride out south, towards Tidbinbilla, and I rode a couple of sections I've never done before - visiting the tracking station and a ride around the nature reserve.

It was a great ride on a beautiful autumn day here in the ACT - mist on the river and clinging to the high slopes, sunshine in a big, open sky and a light, cool breeze. It's good to be alive!
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#RideBikesBeHappy #RideCanberra #BikeCanberra #CycleCanberra #SpecializedRoubaix #SpecializedBikes #TidbinbillaNatureReserve #TidbinbillaTrackingStation #BikesLeaningOnShit #BikePhotography #cycling

Yesterday, two friends and I rode in the Snowy Classic - a 110km (1650m climbing), closed road event in Jindabyne in the Australian Snowy Mountains. It's a beautiful spot at this time of year, up and down hills and through some classic Australian country towns like Berridale and Dalgety.

This is the second year of the event and my second ride. The 110km is testing but not terribly difficult for me, except for a massive difficulty spike at the 82km mark in the form of a monstrous hill called Beloka - average gradient 9.4% but some sections are 20%!

From Cycling Australia: "Short, sharp and brutal, Beloka is one of Australia’s most feared and revered cycling climbs."

Last year, Beloka beat me (I got off and caught my breath and then got back on) and I was resigned to more of the same because it's tricky to train for such an incongruously difficult climb. However, with the Tasmania trip, a year's worth of consistent riding (150km / week) under my belt and a very generous helping of resolve, I did it!

It's a great ride and is very well run like all the Classics events. I'll be back again next year to re-test my mettle against Beloka.
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#cycling #RideBikesBeHappy #SpecializedBikes #SpecializedRoubaix #SnowyClassic #Beloka #Jindabyne #SnowyMountains

Tasmania Bike Tour - Launceston to Hobart - Notes & Observations

Three friends and I recently flew to Tasmania and embarked on an unsupported, 6 day, 510km ride from the northern city of Launceston, along the east coast, to the state's southern Hobart. We broke the riding up, a little unevenly, across the six days, depending on the accommodation availability. Large stretches of the coast are sparsely populated, so riding between population centres needed to be a factor.

It was a brilliant trip that, with a little tweaking, worked very well and gave us a good look at Tasmania, with some great riding and some fun stops. Below are my notes and observations for my own, future reference and possibly for others planning a similar trip.

Overall, the trip was 7 days:

* Land and set up on day 0
* Then ride days 1-6
* Leave late on day 7

I had planned to ride about 590km with 6600m of climbing but, for various reasons, we actually rode 510km and 6100m of elevation.

Accommodation was $2000 between the four of us, sharing rooms and even, on one occasion, beds!
Flights were normal cost and the bikes came in under the 23kg of checked in luggage allowed, so no extra baggage fees.

Bikes were packed into bike boxes which can be obtained at the airport (probably) or from local bike shops for free.

Things to consider: (see comments below)

#cycling #BikePacking #tasmania #RideBikesBeHappy #SpecializedBikes #SpecializedRoubaix #BikeTouring

It’s hard to stop on the bridge and enjoy the view if you’re in your car. #CommuteByBike
#BikeCommuting #Missoula #Montana #landscape #sunrise #ridebikesbehappy

Some race against time. Some race each other.
I race against my demons.

My world can be completely clouded by #anxiety, on the #bike it's still bright and colorful, always.
But sometimes getting on the bike just doesn't happen. I want to, but I can't seem to get there. I know those times don't last, but it still feels stupid knowing I'll feel better once I start riding again, I just can't. December... Yeah, not my time of year.
#cycling #BikeTooter #ridebikesbehappy #mentalhealth #cptsd