Mid-February is the hottest time of the year in Ballarat.  My memories as a kid were of stinking hot days in the first few weeks of school.  The event announcer confirmed it at the start line as the reason why The Ballarat Classic is held at this time of year.

Well. No.  It was a bloody freezing, crisp morning at 6 degrees C.  Cold.    The trip up from Melbourne was filled with skepticism, but my wife, Kylie, still appeared keen for the run around the lake, whilst we boys were cycling; so I felt optimistic that the boys would take up the emotion and grow to love event cycling after this first foray.

The 28 km Fat Tyre Challenge on the Yarrowee River Trail (when did the Yarrowee Creek become a river!) seemed the perfect start to the love of event cycling that I could have picked for the lads.  Packed gravel path to the Gong Reservoir , not at all hilly (well not significantly), starting and ending from Lake Wendouree with cake, lollies and fruit to feast on mid way.  How much better could it get?

Well, at 6 degrees, a lot worse, as I was going to find out.  Kylie opted to stay in the car for while, waiting for it to warm up (ha!) , whilst the boys setup their hoodies under their helmet to stave off the cold.  We meandered to the start line opposite the Botanic Gardens.  There was a touch of excitement between the two of them, in spite of their trepidation about the weather.

“See you at the finish line” Matt(@ 17) brags at the start, as the announcer heralds us to ride off.  “Wait for us at the Gong, Matty” I counter. It would be good to chat and share the mid ride banter.  Anyway, its an out and back course, so we would cross paths somewhere along the track.  Matt enjoys the rush of the ride and was up on his bike at the front, I could see, preening like a peacock.   I stayed with Nick (@ 14), who enjoys the journey, looking forward to the opportunity to talk about some of the spots where I spent my childhood.  The pace was good around the lake and I was quietly chuffed.  As we hit the Macarthur St rise leading up to Lydiard St,  it got a bit harder, but I knew the downhill along Nolan St towards the back of the Eastern Oval would be a chance to crank up the pace.  Matt was nowhere to seen.  All good I thought.

As we hit the river (creek!) trail alongside Humffray St, I thought how good it would have been to have this path as a kid.  Nick was trailing a 100 metres or so behind,  I hoped, enjoying the space.   The path wound through the foot of Black Hill and further on, Nerrina, behind Brown Hill Progress Park and then turned towards the Gong Reservoir.  I stopped to wait for Nick as the ride turned towards the Gong. Luckily, as he missed the turn off and headed onto the longer (33, 40 and 50) km routes. That would have been interesting I thought. Not really made for our Sports bikes and a bit hillier to boot.  “Going the long way around”  I shouted.  “I saw it, Dad” was the reply. Ha. Teenage front.

A few sharp rises later, we were at the refreshment stand of the Gong.   I was expecting Matt to be munching into the feed on offer.  As he was nowhere to be found, I assumed he must have done what Nick had tried and missed the turnoff.  No worries, I thought, bit harder for him than he expected but it will be good for him.  He’ll just follow other riders and we’ll see him back at the Lake (how profound that thought would turn out to be).

After Nick eventually got over his shyness and hoed into the lollies on offer as well as some banana, we followed a loop around the Gong (maybe that was where we had missed Matt) and enjoyed the downhill trail into Brown Hill.  We came across quite a few riders coming the other way, so I was pleased that Nick had obviously kept up a good pace.

The ride back included an extended stint on Humffray St and the trudge back up Scott Pde/Nolan St before turning right into Lydiard.  At this stage, we were joining up with several other riders from the road rides on offer, noticing that  several were missing the turn off towards Scott Pde.  The bloke on the corner near Ballarat East Railway Station was obviously enjoying the social aspect of the day and forgetting the duties of directing the riders.  Waving to them whichever which way they went.  Oh well, its only Ballarat, who could get lost!

“Keep going Nick.  Low gear, high cadence.  You’ll be right” as we cycled up Lydiard St and turned left down Macarthur St.    With railway crossings and roundabouts to traverse on this quick downhill, this is one stretch to keep aware of the traffic.  I had no idea what Nick was thinking as he just dawdled through the  roundabout leading up to Wendouree Pde.   I mean, what happened to Look! Listen! Think!  “I don’t know, Dad” Gee.  Teenage mental blanks!

Turning right into Wendouree Pde, the weather turned nasty.  Sleet and hail.  I heard my name being called.    It was Kylie and I was in no mood for a family photo.  All I could think about was getting Nick to the line whilst he was still pedalling.   “Matt is lost” was the call.  Jeez, I was right about missing that turnoff, but being lost in the bush was taking it to another level.   “He’s in Howitt St”.  Slightly relieved but annoyed at the same time,  I thought to myself that if he’s old enough to jump the ride and not meet us at the Gong, he’s old enough to find his own way home.  I mean he has a phone hasn’t he, with GPS!   I didn’t imagine he’d make it to the top of Lydiard St all the way to the old cemetery.  Matt had been a victim of the sociable volunteer with the friendly wave.  A loop around McDonalds and a further miss of a turn at Macarthur St, he’d managed to ride an extra five km’s on the scenic route, following another rider on the course. Just not one that was in the event! 🙂

When Matt finally rolled in, looking so forlorn, even Nick didn’t give it to him for beating him home.   I was thinking “the hare and the tortoise” myself.  To top if off, the heavens opened up to absolutely complete the mood of the morning, leaving a very damp trip back to Melbourne.   However some valuable lessons were learnt.

• Always be aware of the course!
• Sometimes a wave is just a wave!
• Road rules are just as important in a cycling events as on other days!
• Never! And I mean, never, underestimate how cold Ballarat can get in summer!
• Even your younger brother can feel sorry for you sometimes!
• McDonalds Bakery Hill has some of the best photos of Ballarat in the mid to late 1800’s! If you haven’t seen them, do yourself a favour.

What other event could interest the boys in cycling?  The finish under the huge red blow up arch wasn’t the sense of achievement that I had imagined the boys were going to experience.   Any suggestions???