Yesterday evening I had the pleasure of going for a ride after work with the local mountain bike club. The group meets at 5 and then heads out for a 1hr loop with fast, intermediate and slow groups splitting off to do an appropriate ride.
The ride didn’t start particularly well as I was running late due to problems assembling my back tyre after my puncture on the weekend (which it turned out was a multiple puncture when I inflated it the first time), but I made it to the meeting point at 5:07pm and was ready and raring to go.
The ride started well, a strong head wind and bright afternoon sun meant the going was tough and dusty but we prevailed and headed up “The Big Easy” for some spectacular views.
It was going down other side of “The Big Easy” that the problems started in earnest when I got noticeable flat following and altercation with a rock. 4minutes and I had patched the tyre, replaced it and was riding again. Though it seemed 500m was all the riding I would do again that day as puncture number two presented itself with a noticeable presence.
This time everyone go involved and we double checked the tyre for burrs and pinch points, then stretched a 26″ tube into my 29″ wheel to try to nurse it home. The tire went up…
The tyre stayed up…
But then I got on my bike and it went down, down and down. A dead flat!
Luckily we were close to town so I sent the guys on their way (thanks so much for sticking around and helping everyone) and started the walk home. I’m sure most people would be disappointed by this conclusion to a ride, but the spectacular sunset that followed as I walked by bike home-made everything worth it.
Guess how far I walked…
Again thanks to everyone who rode with me, helped me, and laughed with me yesterday! The camaraderie changed it from frustrating to comedic in the end!
Categories: Alice Springs
Tags: CARR, mountain biking, outdoors, photography
The Graceful Cyclists 
Wow, what great country to ride through. Some nice shots here.
Thanks mate. The landscape here really lends itself to photography so it suits my skill level.
You take some pretty good shots yourself.
many thanks… I’m liking the dryness of the terrain too. Dust better than mud, which we have more than our fair share of in these parts 🙂
It is great never having to check the forecast, that is for sure. We should do a location swap one day, I doubt there are many terrains more different except perhaps alpine forests.