Innisfail-Cairns record attempt. 23/24 June 2018

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singlespeedscott
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Re: Innisfail-Cairns record attempt. 23/24 June 2018

Postby singlespeedscott » Sun Jun 24, 2018 4:35 pm

Cracking effort mate. Well done.
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ironhanglider
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Re: Innisfail-Cairns record attempt. 23/24 June 2018

Postby ironhanglider » Sun Jun 24, 2018 5:40 pm

Well done ldr.

Cheers,

Cameron.

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Daus
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Re: Innisfail-Cairns record attempt. 23/24 June 2018

Postby Daus » Sun Jun 24, 2018 5:56 pm

Amazing just knew you could do it- waiting for the write up when you recover :D

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Re: Innisfail-Cairns record attempt. 23/24 June 2018

Postby bychosis » Sun Jun 24, 2018 7:22 pm

Well done. Been looking forward to this since I found the thread. Glad to see the efforts paid off, both training and beurocratic ;).
bychosis (bahy-koh-sis): A mental disorder of delusions indicating impaired contact with a reality of no bicycles.

RobertL
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Re: Innisfail-Cairns record attempt. 23/24 June 2018

Postby RobertL » Mon Jun 25, 2018 10:29 am

ldrcycles wrote:Just for you Robert, I got a pic of the mango when I turned around there to head back to the caravan park on this morning's ride.

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:D :D :D :D :D :D

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Re: Innisfail-Cairns record attempt. 23/24 June 2018

Postby RobertL » Mon Jun 25, 2018 10:30 am

By the way, Great Work!!!

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ldrcycles
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Re: Innisfail-Cairns record attempt. 23/24 June 2018

Postby ldrcycles » Mon Jun 25, 2018 7:39 pm

Thanks all, writing it up now that I finally have a connection again. The wifi here works about as well as the indicator on a typical North Queenslander's car!


Getting the sign for the support car ready the night before the ride-


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Last edited by ldrcycles on Sat Dec 01, 2018 11:29 pm, edited 1 time in total.
"I must be rather keen on cycling"- Sir Hubert Opperman.

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ldrcycles
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Re: Innisfail-Cairns record attempt. 23/24 June 2018

Postby ldrcycles » Mon Jun 25, 2018 10:51 pm

I woke up a few minutes before my 4:30 alarm, and lay in bed thinking for a moment. I wasn't as nervous as I had expected, but I was hardly relaxed. It was raining, but it was at least light rain, and there was a reasonable southerly blowing.

It took a little longer than expected to get everything in the cars and ready, so instead of rushing to make the planned 5:30 departure, we allowed a few extra minutes to be sure.

Mrs LDR got a video of the start, which describes it far better than my writing- https://www.facebook.com/LDRcycles/vide ... 43900/?t=0


I set off steadily, by the 4km mark I could feel my shoes filling with water, but it wasn't cold, and the road and tailwind had me spinning along well. The climbing through Waugh Pocket started 11kms in, and I concentrated on conserving my legs. I figured that even if I was behind record pace at Mirriwinni (the first checkpoint), I could pull it back on the flatter roads beyond.

I needn't have worried, we reached Mirriwinni at 37:49, 22 seconds ahead of record pace. My front light had failed, but the dawn light starting to appear, and the lights from the support vehicle would be sufficient.

My legs were nicely warmed up, and I got stuck into the job. At Babinda the advantage was 1:25. My brother came alongside in the support car to tell me I was 7 minutes up, to which I responded with a 4 letter expletive, and he replied "No not $#(AT)&, minutes!". It didn't sound right, and he later realised his miscalculation, but it was a fantastic confidence boost. I would desperately need that confidence to draw on later...

By Bellenden Ker it was up to 2:27. The tailwind had died off, but with that kind of time in hand, still air would be sufficient.

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From Deeral though, the road surface went to hell, bad corrugations sucking an alarming amount of speed. Within a few kms a headwind started to make itself felt too, and while I posted a 38.2kmh average from Innisfail to Fishery Falls, from there to Gordonvale it was just 34.9kmh. The advantage had slipped to 1:47.

I pinned my hopes on the better roads from Gordonvale onwards allowing the speed to pick up again, but with the rain and headwind persisting and my legs suffering, the speed just kept on slipping. On the final 1km rise at Mt Sheridan my average was only 32.6kmh. It was starting to look like it was over, I looked at the Garmin and couldn't see the how the distance and time it was showing could work.
I refused to let the thought get a foothold, and decided to just attack with everything I had after exiting the highway.

Advantage- 62 seconds.

Finally turning out of the headwind, and on a good surface, I went deep. There was no nervousness or fear left, just my legs. For 3.5kms, the average was over 42kmh.

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We had a fantastic run with the lights until...


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Mrs LDR and my brother were hysterical but I stayed calm. There is historical precedence, with one of Ivankovich's attempts being held up by a cane train, and the article clearly stating that such stoppages weren't to be counted. Luckily it was only a short passenger train, and we tore off the second the lights went out. I rounded the corner into Sheridan Street and collapsed in front of the post office, in tears and covered in grime.

The clock stopped at 2:22:27, a minute and 57 seconds ahead of the record. Even if the time waiting for the train was included, I would have been 31 seconds in front.


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It serves to reinforce just what an incredible achievement Noel Wheeler's time was. Even with better roads, 12kms less to travel, aerobars and 17 more gears, my average speed was a whopping 4.7kmh slower! Now yes, the weather conditions were wildly different, but still.


I rang Noel the next day to let him know, and it says a lot to the character of the man that he offered genuine congratulations to me for taking the title he had held for 23,702 days.


On our way back south we stopped at Innisfail to grab a copy of the local paper :D


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I feel sure that sooner or later some other nutcase will follow my lead, do all the crazy paperwork and push the record lower still, and I'd love to be there to congratulate them. That's the nature of records, you don't own them, you just look after them for a while.


That's about the end of this particular story, but there are plenty more to come. All thanks to some old newspaper clippings and persistence.
Life is a bit weird sometimes.
Last edited by ldrcycles on Sat Dec 01, 2018 11:44 pm, edited 1 time in total.
"I must be rather keen on cycling"- Sir Hubert Opperman.

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ldrcycles
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Re: Innisfail-Cairns record attempt. 23/24 June 2018

Postby ldrcycles » Mon Jun 25, 2018 10:56 pm

Forgot to add the Relive link- https://www.relive.cc/view/1657858497


It's been a LOOONG night, after a fair bit of time to get the wifi working I was a few sentences from finishing the post when I accidentally closed the tab, and lost the lot :roll: .
"I must be rather keen on cycling"- Sir Hubert Opperman.

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g-boaf
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Re: Innisfail-Cairns record attempt. 23/24 June 2018

Postby g-boaf » Tue Jun 26, 2018 12:36 pm

ldrcycles wrote:Thanks all, writing it up now that I finally have a connection again. The wifi here works about as well as the indicator on a typical North Queenslander's car!
Absolutely top effort - well done. :)

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ldrcycles
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Re: Innisfail-Cairns record attempt. 23/24 June 2018

Postby ldrcycles » Fri Jul 13, 2018 12:38 pm

I forgot to mention, I asked Noel for more details on the bike he used, and all he could say was that it was a "basic track bike" which he fitted with a freewheel and brake for the record ride. He did have it in his shed for many years until it was stolen :cry: .

I've also found that Tom Hodgson of Innisfail (who held the record for 14 years before Noel broke it) also set a record from Innisfail-Millaa Milla and back, shortly before joining the RAAF. He was discharged in 1945.
"I must be rather keen on cycling"- Sir Hubert Opperman.

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