Latest News and Updates

Day Twenty Three : Clare to Adelaide 147km

The final day was here. There was some excitement, relief and also some sadness in the morning. At breakfast, I sat next to Des who was part of our team which also included Chris (Christine) and Rosie. Des said to me this is our last day and it is predominantly downhill, and we have a slight tail wind. If we saw a good stretch of downhill, he said he was going to open up and go for it. I said it sounds good to me. I told him I would be right behind you, but you will have to answer to the girls when we split the team up!

We started off at a casual pace as we warmed up, then this long stretch of downhill road was in front of us and Des broke away from the team. I was at the back and rode past Rosie and Chris and said I was going to catch Des. He really put his foot down. I had to ride at 50 km an hour to catch him. The rest of the morning, we sat on somewhere between 40 and 55 km an hour for the first until morning tea which was at the 50km mark. We rode in second behind Glenn, who was amazed to see us and asked what happened to girls. He asked if there was a mutiny in the team and created lots of laughs, especially when the girls finally turned up.

In the next stage, we were off to Gawler. Des and I told Chris and Rosie that we would see them in Gawler and order their coffees, so they didn’t have to wait. They didn’t buy the story but knew we were going to set our own pace, which we did. We rode past the triplets and the Lear Jets. Both teams have always been in front for the whole trip. We cranked up the speed to 50 km an hour which we managed to maintain or at least pretty close to that for the next 50 km. Glenn of course still managed to pass us but it took him a while to catch us.

It was an absolute blast. We were so far in front of everyone – it kind of felt like we were going to win a gold medal or something. There had always been a little bit of competitiveness between the teams but it was never talked about. This was a real adrenaline rush to come in second over two stages of 50 km each stage. Chris and Rosie turned up after a while and fortunately, I had just ordered their coffee which was lucky.

We had lunch at Café Cibo and that was the end of the fun as the next ride was down main North Road which has a speed limit of 110 km and lots of traffic lights so it was pretty hectic with cars flying past. I had forgotten about traffic lights and managed to fall off my bike when we stopped at a set of lights. I unclicked my right foot from the cleats and then leant over to the left, over-balanced and couldn’t release my left foot. It was like it was in slow motion. I could feel it happening and couldn’t do anything about it. I had ridden 2,800 km and then fell off at the traffic lights in Adelaide. It was very funny. I did get some sympathy from the others but I’m sure they were secretly laughing their heads off.

We continued down Main North Road, through the CBD then off to the Stamford Grand at Glenelg.

What an amazing feeling it was to finally make it. We all shook hands, hugged and gave each other high fives. It was a celebration of endurance, mental toughness and new friendships.

I have always wanted to be part of a club that wins a premiership where you have gone through a whole season of training, matches, ups and downs to come out victorious at the end with a common bond amongst the team. This trip has provided me with that feeling. I have friends in every state and territory in Australia and that is a fantastic part of a trip like this.

After the group photo, we checked into our rooms and changed for our celebration dinner downstairs at the Stamford Grand. It was a great night with lots of laughter, reminiscing and drinks. The night finished at around 12.30 am with a few of the hardcore members still kicking on which was Richard (the tour operator) Peter, James and myself. It was a great night at the end of a very rewarding trip.