Lach's blog

Cold start. Pretty good crowd. A big gap between the start times for the 40-49 group and the 50-59 group, so a clear road ahead. Lost time on the leaders on the first hill at the station because they ride like maniacs... The view at the start of the fire trail down onto the plains right though to the CBD was the clearest I can recall for years. I nearly stopped to take it in. Nearly...

Hadn't been to Appin since one of the Bright Orange 8 hr events a few years ago, so thought I'd give this one a go.

St Albans is a magical place when there is a bit of morning fog around the river reaches, and so it was for the 2012 Convict 50.

Decided after doing the 100 last year that it would be my last at that distance - I can ride 100km, but I can't get motivated enough to train enough (or, in reality, get good enough to) feel like I can race for that distance.

Just back from a few days in Victoria. Some riding details:

Hadn't done the Fling in 2010, but from what I'd read about the course changes, was hoping I might get in around 3:30. Had some issues with my de-veined left leg swelling in the heat earlier in the week and my right knee playing up from a lot of walking on Tuesday, but after a gentle spin on Friday, all seemed OK by the time I headed off to Bundanoon on Saturday.

Incorporated the Bigfoot into a weekend road trip with a mate to watch the Panthers v Dragons at Wollongong on Friday night and a drive across through Goulburn, Crookwell, Boorowa and Eugowra on Saturday. Not the best pre-race regime I've ever put together, but a quiet night on Saturday after dinner at Parkes Leagues club meant a reasonably fresh start on Sunday morning.

Not a bad track there at Dargle. Plenty of interesting and challenging sniggle and plenty of sections to recover a bit in between. Still a little gluggy in places, but there was even a dusty section – haven’t seen dust around Sydney for months!

Seemed a slightly smaller crowd than Awaba a few weeks ago, but with the 12 hr on the day before, there were probably a few who opted for the 12 instead. Meant the track was well bedded in however.

Only did the 50 - but finished

As Fatboy said, it was a bit like Capital Punishment #1, without the rain and cold. Probably wouldn't have been too bad except for a reasonable amount of rain falling on Saturday night. The soft track / mud made a pretty flat course feel like it was uphill almost all the way. Even on the downhill fire trail bits the sticky brown clay made it feel like a skating rink in many places. Sniggle was generally sandy and not too bad, but you had to watch the wet roots and occasional puddle corners.

I'd only been to Awaba once before and had forgotten how much climbing there is there. Four laps in four hours + had me pretty well spent. Stacked on the first lap coming into the downhill left hand turn just before the cinderblock descent (wet, greasy, going too fast after finally getting past some people, slightly aged Kenda Small Block 8's) and lost my chain and a bit of confidence. Then at my "pace" it was a bit hard to keep a rhythm going once the faster riders started lapping, as there are so few spots for an easy pass.