Tweed Coast Treadly

Well I did manage to get on the bike today, just 12km checking both headlands to the South and North, but I was only very gently and sparsely sprinkled on. The weather prognosis is for more rain and a lot heavier, lucky we missed the mess that hit North Brisbane and the Sunshine Coast, although I sure noticed it from the passenger seat in the plane on the way home on Sunday!

Today the rear rack worked well as a spray reducer through todays puddles. Although it did nothing to ease my mind as I approached the Coast Road, Round Mountain Intersection. When I was about 100 meters away from the corner this pale blue late model ute suddenly appears turning out of the South bound traffic on the Coast Rd onto Round Mountain. The young male driver decided it was a good place to give himself a bit of an ego boost through the self administering of adrenalin by drifting sideways through the corner taking the whole width of the wet, greasy intersection. I felt luck to watch from a distance rather than be closer and directly involved!

Thought I should post a couple of entries as I have avoided doing it when there has been little difference in the day-to-day riding I’ve been doing of late. The trouble is that as time goes by things do seem to fade…..

Well as usual I have been riding after dark. But have also ventured out a few times on short outings during the day… An example of which was yesterday, down to Cabarita Cycles to get the treadly’s collapsed crank bearings replaced, Jeff put in sealed ones which should see it last through any more rain the weather decides to throws at us! 

I’ve gone on a couple of rides with Mark over the last few weeks. One at night up to the top of Cudgera Creek Road Hill, which is where I first started to notice the collapsing crank bearing, though I had no Idea what it was. The bearing was just a little play on the cranks as the peddle went past the top dead center of a cycle, so I will recognise it next time! That ride we checked out Hstings headland and Marks new toy he got for his birthday (a bike computer with altimeter) but it was showing we were at 80 meters above sea level but it can’t be more than 12. Needs setting. Anyway that was a quick ride up and back.

On Thursday I went for a ride back over to Bucks Lane in Palmvale to see what it was like riding up the hill at night.   Actually got to see a bit more than that as I met a nice chap who decided to drive swly behind me along the recently tarred section of Palm Vale Road to light my way, Thank-you David!   As it turned out I found out a bit of the history about Bucks Lane and that it is on private property but it would be cool to ride it when I liked. It seems that “Buck” was a local Indian immigrant banana farmer and etc

The ride was rounded off by riding towards Cudgera Creek via the gravel section of Reserve Creek Road. As I passed by the Merrama house I decided to speed down the hill towards the culvert/bridge at the bottom. To my shock I found out the road had become strewn with deep potholes with no route to avoid them, so it was ignore the brakes and just hang on and hope the treadly would find its own way through, over, in, etc Luckily it did, but it was a wake up call!

This sign has been placed on Marine Parade Kingscliff for a while now. It shows the true understanding of the local bicycle community needs by the local Tweed Council and it’s staff. Gee it’s great to see there is now a Dedicated Bike Path in Kingscliff!

Oh I see this must be another of those signs with a spelling mistake! make Dedicated into Designated and there might be some truth to the wording! There are no dedicated paths! There is only the shared on-road ones with cars etc or the off-road ones with pedestrians that I know about. Let me know if I am wrong!

Today was to see me up early and go for a  group ride with a few blokes from around here ( I had organised loosely with Cameron during the week), the Tweed Coast, but I woke at 5:30am and that was 1 ½ hours too early so I closed my eyes for a short nap until 7:00am but slept through until 8:15am Darn! So of course I missed out. There is always next Saturday.

Missing out, I organised with another riding mate to go for a cruise around the circuit later anyway. I rode the 7.5kms to his place and got him organised, he was trying to find his shorts, sunnies, water bottle and shoes (he had just moved his kit, with assistance from his better half, to a unused bird aviary and out of the laundry. So, of course, he could not locate anything in it’s new location 20 mins. later….).

We started out as a few drops of rain began to fall, it was ALL OK as it was just spitting and did not even wet the road surface. The rain held off long enough to get all the way round the circuit until we got to Hastings Point Headland where there was not one hut two separate weddings taking place. It is meant to be good-luck if it rains on your wedding day. So at least they have that. The clouds closed in and it even hailed for a bit while it was raining. Must be really lucky? I got home before it got heavy. But it looks like the Mango Season around here will be a failure again this year with the flowers getting wet  they will begin to rot before they set fruit.

So a cruise of 29.6 km and this is possibly the only time I will get on the bike this weekend with the Yoga and Meditation Seminar in Murwillumbah lasting all day tomorrow. Also I must get the lawns mowed this weekend. Which takes up to 6 hours and that is using a ride-on as well.

And a top up of the tanks water level.