Last Sunday 10 crazy collegians braved the elements and themselves to ride 210kms in a full circle around Port Phillip Bay via the ferry at Queenscliff.

We started out at 5:30am the day after the day after trophy night (which was a top night for all thanks Temma, Frenchie and Scooby!) by riding to the start line by the yarra. The start was a slow process but when we got the go-ahead we were quickly up and over the westgate and on our way to Werribee. I think it was about here that the singing started, with Perro leading a belting rendition of Livin' on a Prayer to the bemusement of all we were passing.
 
The headwind had made itself known by this point, a fact not lost on the riders being passed by our two-by-two five deep formation. By the time we stopped at the first rest stop outside of Werribee we had picked up a train of about 15 extra riders.
 
Out onto the Geelong Freeway the wind kept us down to about 22km/h and forced us to grind our way to Geelong. I had a couple of short goes at the front but most of the work was done by Jase and Heater with everyone else jumping up to give them a break. By the time we got to the BP at Little River I was amazed to see that the train we were leading had grown to about 50 riders. We kept on, which was about when the wind brought us some rain and hail and the singing had stopped (although not before a quite good go at Bohemian Rhapsody - head banging in helmets looks really funny!).
 
Turning off the freeway put the wind nearer our backs which offered some respite but the slog had taken its toll and we pulled into the Geelong rest stop. From this point on though, and because of our Coll-X Lycra designed by Dribbles, we had many questions about who we were and many thank-yous from those we had dragged with us which was a great feeling.
 
The ride from Geelong to Queenscliff was some of the best of the day with a tail-wind to help with the hills. We were met there by TJ (Tara) and Heater's parents and in the hour's wait we had for the ferry we had lunch... and then chips, dimmies and potato-cakes thoughtfully provided by Robbo.
 
The tail-wind and sun were waiting for us in Sorrento which made the ride to the foot of Mt Martha another enjoyable stage with all in good spirits. The climbing that starts at that point though reminded some of us how hard we had worked in the morning and we needed a couple of stops between Mt Martha and Frankston.
 
We were all familiar with the route home from here which made it a little easier I guess. At Mordialloc however, the wind had started to seed some doubt with the general fatigue some of us were feeling and we agreed to form up and plough on home Voltron-style. We also needed to make sure that Frenchie and Budgie weren't blown away in a gust from the bay.
 
It was late in the day that we all crossed the finish line. All of us felt a mixture of triumph, relief, and grattitude to the team mates that kept us going.
 
Together we had raised $1,671 for The Smith Family to help disadvantaged kids, Heater had raised two-thirds of that which was a massive contribution. My thanks and congratulations go to Heater, Kat (Heater's Sister), Jase, Budgie Raymond, Robbo, Perro, Waggas, Frenchie, and Bushy for a great ride and a great day.
 
Wooly