Audax 1st May - Choose your posion, 200, 600 or 1000?

[psike]

Sat 1st of May sees three AUDAX rides - the Riverina Romp (with 600km or 1000km options) and the Dalton Dash (200km) all starting at 6am in Dickson. Rides are $5 for members, $10 for non-members - details all on the Audax Calendar: http://audax.org.au/public/index.php?op ... Itemid=176 You must register with the ride co-ordinator (listed on the calendar) before the ride.

Riverina Romp 600/1000
From Canberra to Junee, Wagga Wagga and beyond, the autumn colours will greet you. Rolling hills, open valleys, quiet roads. The westerlies may test you from time to time but they'll be your friend on the way back to Canberra.
Start: Dickson 6:00:00 AM

600km 6:00:00 AM Canberra-Gunning-Dalton-Yass-Young-Cootamundra-Junee-Wantabadgery-Gundagai-Harden-Yass-Hall.
1000km 6:00:00 AM Canberra-Gunning-Dalton-Yass-Young- Cootamundra-Junee-Wagga- Holbrook-Walwa-Holbrook-Culcairn- Mangoplah-Wagga-Junee- Wantabadgery-Gundagai-Harden-Yass- Canberra.

Dalton Dash 200
Accompany the Riverina Rompers as far as their first cafe stop at Yass, going via Gunning and Dalton. Return to Canberra via Dog Trap and Nanima roads.

Start: Dickson 6:00:00 AM

200km 6:00:00 AM Dickson-Sutton-Gundaroo-Gunning-Dalton-Jerrawa-Yass-Murrumbateman-Nanima-Dickson

What is Audax?
Audax rides are non-competitive long distance tours by bicycle, called "randonnees". The challenge of Audax is not in racing, but in riding at your own pace to finish within the time limit. Audax events are held in most parts of Australia, and you will be made very welcome when participating in rides when visiting other Regions. Rides are open to all reasonably fit riders - non-Audax members are most welcome to join our friendly and supportive participants...

Equipment
Participants must have a roadworthy bicycle, and comply with all road rules. For all rides which have the potential to involve riding after sunset, the following equipment is compulsory

(1) two independant front lights and two independent rear lights must be available for use (i.e attached to the bicycle or carried). One of each must be permanently fixed to the bicycle, or to a permanent attachment (eg a rack, but not a rack bag)

(2) At night or at times of low visibility at least one front light (of fixed beam) and one rear light must be illuminated a rear red reflector must be permanently fixed to the bicycle.

(3) A reflective vest ( or equivalent for a rider of a recumbent) must be carried and must be worn at night or at tiems of low visibility.

Brevet cards will not be issued until a lighting inspection has been done at the start of a ride and the result recorded. If the lighting rules are breached during a ride, the ride organiser must disqualify the rider. The lighting requirements apply if any part of the maximum permitted time for the ride is at night.

Participants provide all their own food, tools and spares on unsupported rides.

[HAKS]

I'll stick to my 100km thanks

[yyeric]

the Dalton 200 sounds like a very very tempting ride.

[mrgolf]

Yeah, I was thinking that too, but I dont have a reflective vest. My 1watt rear light is good enough for me... Small price to pay for a cool ride, though. Assume we need one for that Corin ride coming up???

[HAKS]

It only says you need that extra gear if you are to be riding after sunset. 200km starting at 6am, well you would hope to be done by 5.30pm

[mrgolf]

Really? I thought it was for the early start as well...

[psike]

Lights are needed for any ride which may be outside daylight hours - which means the 6am start requires lights/reflective wear.

The 150 - and you'd need to check - may be starting and finishing within daylight hours so would not need to meet that requirement, but you'd need to check with the organiser.

[mrgolf]

Thats cool. If I do any of them, it would be the 200, so I guess I can find a reflective vest if I have to. I am a bit concerned about the added weight of the vest, though...

[rockviewau]

ok, having a convo with the father in law, and we were trying to work out roughly how long it would take to do the 600 and 1000 options.....

any help would be appreciated

[s-s-a]

Limits for Audax rides of those distances...

600km = 40 hours
1000km = 75 hours

Rides are generally calculated at an overall average speed of 15km/h up to 600km, then 11.4km/h after that

From memory, 400km is considered quite a tricky distance because the time limit is 27h and it's pretty hard to do it without a significant chunk of night riding. OTOH 600km is possible (in summer at least) with mostly daylight riding if you can squeeze out 300km between dawn and dusk two days in a row.

Steph

[psike]

Steph is spot on. 400km is difficult, many people ride right through 20-22+ hours. In the last 400 from Canberra a few people realised they were too tired (wobbling on the bike with fatigue) so slept beside Lake George under space blankets - just a couple of hours rest to get through the lowest point of the night (2am-4am is tough). Many do their first 600 before completing a 400.

Remember in Audax talk of speed is elapsed time, not time-on-the-bike, so taking that two hours for a sleep comes at the expense of having to make up the time.

If you're interested in some real stats, there was a 1000km in Victoria this long weekend. The stats are mostly available in the google spreadsheet. Some of the completed riders (not all listed yet) started on 24/4 7:00am and finished 1015km on 26/4 19:07, elapsed time 60h7m at 16.88km/h. If you allowed 8 hours over the 3 days/2 nights of riding for rest/sleep/stops then the average bike time is 19.5km/h.

Russ.