Over the last 6 weeks I have been privileged to participate in the Cycle to Work Challenge. I have been riding on and off to and from work but never had any real motivation to do it regularly, and it was always easier to make excuses and grab the car keys. But I thought no, this is a good opportunity and following a fairly ordinary health assessment my motivation increased.

Our team was made up of people from three buildings within the City of Stirling and prior to forming our little team I didn’t actually know any of them bar one. When the photograph was taken it was the first time I had met most of the group. I live in the old part of Hillarys and work to Scarborough approximately 14kms via cycle paths one-way. The trip via car is more or less a straight run down Marmion Ave with 7 sets of traffic lights between, and on a bad day that is 7 sets of red.
Whereas the ride as I found, hugs the coastline and more or less is a fairly decent bike path and it’s not a bad way to start your day at work. Along the way you encounter a range of humanity from fitness freaks on their morning run, to mothers with prams on power walks. A cheerful ring of the bell and a hello and most people are quite happy with the shared use of the path. But look to your right and there is the Indian Ocean in all its glory, complete with surfers and early morning swimmers around North Beach and people just enjoying the beach. To your left is the same snarl of morning traffic of commuters off to work and parents delivering offspring to institutions of higher learning along the way.

Eventually I reach work, where a quick freshen up and change of clothes and I join the rest of the working world, feeling well. Later on in the afternoon I will do the reverse journey on my trusty bike, this time with the southwester at my back pushing me onwards. Again there are smiles and nods from other path users; they too know that the working day is over.
We've enjoyed participating and I intend to continue after the challenge is over.
Happy Cycling. James N - Ride on Stirling - City of Stirling - Hillarys to Scarborough.

For Bike to Work day we thought we would drive to Kings Park and cycle through the park and then around the river to the Bell Tower. The first thing I noticed was the freeway had less cars for that time of morning. But as the traffic banked up we came to a stop around Karrinyup road. At least we did, but as I looked in my rear view mirror I was shocked to see the car behind still travelling at 80kph. I tried to pull over to the side lane expecting a crash in the left rear of the car. I don't know how but he just swerved at the last second to miss us by a centimetre. His racing partner just missed us too. Driving to work is just too dangerous. We wanted to abandon the car there and get on our bikes.

In Kings Park there were lots of cyclists as we enjoyed the peaceful ride through the bush. Along the river I kept looking for the dolphins that everyone has been talking about, but alas no dolphins. We chatted to other cyclists on the path and dodged the pedestrians. At the Bell Tower we met up with a few Challenge riders and stayed for Jaye Radisich's speech with about 70 other cyclists. We then used our bikes to inspect the city parks for the home Corporate Challenge Games. No Magpies but we did get swooped by a Wattle bird.

On the return trip to Kings Park we were cycling under the narrows and there they were. Not one dolphin but a pod of four dolhins regularly breaking the surface as they travelled up river. Not only were the cyclists out in great numbers but dolphins as well.
David & Janet M. Spring Bikers - IHF - Padbury.

Next Friday Morning, at 8:00am, if you are wearing lycra beware as the Bogans on Bikes will having their breakfast run from South Perth to Kengsington.
First we'll gather, then we'll eat and drink. Then we'll insult any bogans who go up the street for fancy lattes and so on. Next we'll hand out some well earned prizes, and can I just say now you'll may well be stunned by the quality of this gear. (I said may). Grand Finale -- we'll ride as a group to DEC, yobbo peleton style.  It'll be a picture daahhlings! All that flanalette in a group. A wobbly, uncoordinated group of bogans with matching nothing. On the way we'll be searching for large groups of lycra clad well dressed serious riders to embarrass, they need an example of how to dress down. And who better to show them than -- Bogans on Bikes.
Shane F - Bogans on Bikes - Dep Environment & Conservation. White Gum Valley to Kensington.

Inspired by Bogans on Bikes I decided to drape my new safety vest over the my bike after riding to work this week to help promote the message “one less car”. I later draped it on a chair in my office, where fellow staff have it as a visual reminder plus it is handy for my homeward trip. I have found that wearing the vest makes me more readily visible and is giving the environmental message to others while also reminding me why I am cycling instead, especially in less favourable conditions.

As TravelSmart Officer for the City of Gosnells I organised the vests for myself and other staff that ride to work. Cycling staff at the Thornlie Library were well pleased with their vests. I took these interesting photos of staff working with their vest on and waiting (with bike) in the library entrance for the local media to arrive and take a photo of library staff that rode to work regularly that were presented with the one less car vests on Bike to Work Day. We are hoping that the message inspires others to think about cycling more often, replacing short car trips and joining the local Gosnells Bicycle User Group – GO BUG.

Having the article and photograph in the local newspaper should inspire more people to cycle to work or to their local library. Females are being encouraged especially start cycling and GO BUG members have started meeting socially on Saturdays at the local coffee shop in Gosnells Town Centre. Nothing better than a coffee and a chat after a leisurely ride with friends. This has been a great way to get to know other cyclists in our community as all are welcome to join in. The vests certainly attracted attention at the library and have been noticed I am sure – by many as we are riding along as they are hard to miss. They are very easy to wear and stand out in dull conditions as you can see from this photo.

I noticed many more people riding on Bike to Work Day and even more pedestrians and cyclists said hello – due to my vest, because I have been riding more often and people are getting to know me or is my enjoyment of riding showing? It is so lovely riding through the City of Gosnells park and seeing the ducks and geese every day. Cycling is a great way of getting to know your neighbourhood more – I really encourage more people to try it.

GO BUG was launched officially in Bike Week 2007 and has grown from about 40 members then to about 140 now… Members keep in touch via regular emails, library flyers, social rides and getting out and cycling instead whenever they can to build a critical mass of cyclists.
Jillian W – GO BUG Cycle Team City of Gosnells – Gosnells to Gosnells.

Have been attending GO BUG newbies group on a Saturday morning for the last few weeks, organised by Jillian and guided by very experienced Shannon, we are getting around and discovering bike friendly roads and tracks. So for me back on bike after many, many years with confidence growing week by week. This week I am not house sitting but cat sitting ...in at night with a feed and out in morning with feed and a pamper.
Well last Sunday fitted a computer to my bike. NOW I know how far...very important when reporting Ks each week as well as how fast. All new to me. So now I bike it instead to cat pamper. First trip was 3.92Ks.
What I love too is being able to share with people who understand. Thank you Jillian and Shannon.
Anne D - GO BUG cycle team - City of Gosnells - Gosnells to Gosnells.

Challenge yourself, get up that little bit earlier and beat the traffic
You save on fuel costs and do your bit for the environment
Consider other cyclists and use your bell or CALL when passing
Love those early mornings, cycling is a great way to start the day
Initiate a ride and invite a friend today
Night ride on a balmy Perth evening with sea breeze on the tail, way to go
Go on, leave the car at home and CYCLE instead
Leanne R - ABA - ABA Automatic Gates - Lynwood to Booragoon.

I would like to thank the good Samaritan who helped me on National Bike to Work Day. I’ve only just started cycling again (after an absence of 12 months) and I made a special effort to get up early for the National Bike to Work Day. My journey to work consists of riding to Warwick train station (9km) and catching the train to Edgewater cycling the last 1km to work. I was 2/3 of the way on my journey to Warwick train and just crossed over the freeway at Erindale road, noticing the appalling state of the cycleway covered in broken glass. And then I heard the familiar a sound ….. I had a flat tyre.  Closer inspection revealed a 5mm piece of glass sticking out of the tread – and there was no guessing from where that had come from.
 
Silly me didn’t think that a thorn proof tyre would get a puncture so I didn’t have a spare tube, repair kit or pump (thorn proof does not equal glass proof!).  I had two options left to me and both involved walking – go home (5kms) and then drive to work, which defeats the whole purpose of the day,  or walk the remaining way to the train station and fix my bike when I got to work. It was only a minute or two before someone stopped and asked if I was okay. After explaining the flat tyre, he dug around his bag and said “I’ve got a spare tube!” He then proceeded to replace the punctured tube, pump the tyre up and went on his way to work. And while he was helping me, several other people rode past offering their assistance. So, thank you to the kind person who stopped and helped me, and all those other people who checked if we were okay. And from now on, I’m always going to carry a spare tube, repair kit and pump!
Rachel M - Woodvale Wobblers - Dep Environment & Conservation - Nollamara to Woodvale.

I've never seen so many cyclists on the road as I did this morning. They were everywhere!
Well done everyone.
Kathy S - Woodvale Wobblers - Dept of Environment & Conservation - Beldon to Woodvale.

I am a frequent cyclist to and from work. I live in Karrinyup and work at the City of Stirling, so have about 6Km to travel in each direction: Enough to get the heart and legs working, but not so much as to take a long time.

I am very fortunate because my journey takes me through the Lake Gwelup Reserve, which has an awesomely beautiful natural bush area – and a dual-use path. The City of Stirling has a total of 316 hA of natural bushland spread over 64 sites, plus 76 hA of lakes and wetlands spread over 26 sites. These areas serve as a wonderful showcase of WA natural bushland in the middle of the Perth metropolitan area. They are a wonderful way to get away from the concrete and bitumen jungle, if only for a few delightful moments. There is only one drawback – you definitely need to breathe through your nose rather than your mouth through these areas to avoid ingesting mouthfuls of flies and midges!
Peter B - CoS We Cycle - City of Stirling - Karinyup to Stirling.

This is the second time that I have participated in the Bike to Work Challenge. I first started regularly cycling 6 years ago and during this time have observed many interesting and different ways of enjoying bike riding. I like to ride to work to help save the environment (my small contribution), for fitness and also find that it helps unwind at the end of a busy days work. I notice from a lot of the stories sent in to Cycle Blog that riders are having problems with magpies, recently I was on a cycle tour and noticed riders having funny black antennae type arrangements coming out the top of the cycle helmets (cable ties), apparently these are guaranteed to deter magpies! Another tip after many months of flat tyre frustration was to put a slightly more expensive tyre on my bike (armadillo casing), these tyres have been fantastic and in over 700 kms I have not experienced another flat tyre due to broken glass on the road or cycleways.

I was given a tip by an old experienced bike enthusiast. He reminded me to think why I was riding to work when riding conditions are less than perfect, e.g. riding into a howling south westerly. He said just ask yourself why you are doing it, e.g. environmental or fitness, and this will give you the motivation to keep your enthusiasm going.
Rosalee M - Fishheads - Fisheries Dept - Karinyup to Hillarys.

Parkwood Playgroup
I encouraged all members of my Monday Playgroup at Parkwood Playgroup to bring their bikes and trikes and to use the normal play time (their work!) as an opportunity to think about riding their bikes. They all used the 'learn to ride' track at the rear of the playgroup building and took off. Some kids did up to three laps, (1.5km's) the littlies (2years) did not quite have the legs for three laps, most doing two..17 of the potential 23 kids rode, those that didn't cant walk yet so that was a great response.
A great morning was had by all.
Barbara L - City of Perth Gold - Mount Pleasant to Perth.

My delight at finding my bike with a flat tyre yesterday after work was indescribable and realising I did not have a spare tube added more joy. But nevertheless, I got the hand pump out and pumped the tyre up and thought I’d give it a go to see how far I could get before pumping up again. Well it was a slow ride home with stops approximately every 5 minutes but I did it with plans to get my husband to fix up the tyre.

Once home I discovered there was not a spare tube and the shops were closed so bike riding was out for Tuesday. This was an unwanted surprise as I had planned to cycle to work the 5 days due to the trains being out of action. I had to put other plans in place.

I sprung out of bed Tuesday and decided to walk to work. Two hours and 5 minutes it took me to walk from Innaloo to the City. – Yes you are right - I am not a fast walker - but during the 2 hours with many cyclists zinging past me it gave me the opportunity to give a big plus for cycling.

I am off to the bike shop to purchase 2 spare tubes and to learn how to change a bike tyre, as the last time I attempted to change a tube I cut the old tube off and cut the new tube in half to fit onto the tyre (that was in my teen days!!) so I can continue to ride and not walk to walk.

Glad to be part of the Bike to Work Challenge 2007
Julie F - Calibre Technical - Innaloo to Perth.

October 10. Week 5 of biking to work. Every day brings something new. Today, having dodged most of a shower (and recalling two days ago being thoroughly showered before arriving at work, during showers of Biblical proportions) I was feeling quite pleased with myself, when in the final few 100 m of my trip I was met with a gauntlet of high-pressure, long-range retic sprayers, neatly crossing the trail. There was no way of avoiding them. Soaked again! Now, you might ask why those sprayers were on at all, given we’d just had more than 20 mm of rain two days before. And you might wonder who planned that installation, so as to directly hit whoever was on that trail. And who switched them on at that time of day anyway!? No matter. All in a days’ bike. What have I learned so far? Well, route choice is everything. My trip is about 10 km each way but I have found that the most direct route on the map is not always best. Longer is sometimes safer and nicer, so I now often go home on a longer, more relaxing route variation. There are many possible options even on a relatively short trip, and it’s worth experimenting. Expect the unexpected. Such as, several hundreds of metres of trail that you biked in the morning might be gone in the afternoon, dug up for resurfacing. Now there’s a nice strip of new red concrete, but for a while it was an obstacle. Be super, duper careful and defensive. Car drivers often drive with no regard for bikers and go through red lights, turn when not indicating, or don’t turn when they are. On the up-side, courteous behaviour also comes out and it’s nice when someone actually stops to let you cross. It’s good to be in touch with the outdoors (OK, downpours happen, but usually not). It’s great to smell the jasmine, citrus trees, and now the Indian bead trees. Maybe the odd whiff of diesel too, but overall…very nice. It’s good to arrive at work really awake and energized, with the blood flowing. Mostly the ride to and back from work is a great transition time…whatever headaches, frustrations or crazy stuff went on during the day, you know the ride home will be a real stress-beater. You’re in control on the bike, go at your own speed, smell the flowers and have fun.

This whole biking thing gets easier as you develop your system. Where everything goes, how to stash all that kit, the best way of locking up your bike, organizing your shower stuff…. and keeping track of your keys. My system broke down in week two when I found myself outside the Riverton shops one fine evening in the rapidly gathering dusk with a securely locked up bike….and me hunting far too long for my keys. After going through all my pockets and bags twice…and again, I realized I really did not have them. The shopping centre had officially closed ten minutes before, but I managed to sneak back in through the automatic doors as someone came out, buy a $5 Chinese mini hacksaw at Big W, and proceed to saw off one end of the locking cable to release my transport home. Interestingly, no-one asked what I was up to during this somewhat farcical procedure. Turned out I had left the keys on my desk at work. System breakdown! I got a replacement secondhand cable at the Canning markets for $2.

This morning I saw some pelicans, a white egret and grebe diving on the Canning river. The power-walking guy who I usually see near the footbridge was early. He was already heading back. The three ladies who walk together and I always pass under a big peppermint tree were bang on time. We said “morning!” as usual. I caught the lights crossing Manning Road quite well and the wait was short…and only one deaf-to-the-world person with their phones in, oblivious to my warning bell, in the strip in front of Curtin uni. Then came the unwanted powerwash of the retic sprinklers. No worries. My kit dried off nicely during the day, ready for the ride home. Wonder what’ll happen then?
Rob H - Donga Daze - Dept of Environment & Conservation - Parkwood to Kensington.

It all started when my doctor told me I had high blood presure (I've never had high blood presure before), and of course my wife is telling me I have to lose weight (and I have heard that before).

After ten years further up in the hills, we had moved down to Darlington and I thought now I could dust off the old tredley and take up riding to the train station in Midland, just 11km away.

Then along came the Bike to Work Challenge to give me added incentive.

Now I'm riding 2x11.5km four days a week, and making up for the fifth day with a ride up to Mundaring (another 2x11km) on the weekend, and occasionaly farther afield to Mt Helena and the Weir.

I'm riding mostly on the Heritage Railway Reserve and mountain bike tracks and while it is in the 'hills', the grades are steady and you dont have to worry about cars. The scenery is great and I've lost over 8kg already and I'm feeling fitter than I have in years.

Plenty of incentive to keep riding after the challenge is over.
Glenn H - BHP Psycholists - Darlington to Midland Railway station.

I planned an early start of Wednesday so I could beat the rush and drop by at the Belltower to pick up a BTW Challenge t-shirt. Everything started out okay with departure from home at just after 6.00am. This early departure meant I would have time to pick up a t-shirt, arrive at the office, get showered (18 levels in the building and only one shower!) and changed in time for an 8.30am meeting at a client's offices. I decided to take the most direct route to the city to ensure I had sufficient time.

Enjoying the ride and making good progress at around 8km I heard a tick.tick.tick coming from somewhere beneath me in time with the revolution of the wheels. Slowed down and the noise remained tick...tick...tick. Squeezed the brake levers to make sure it wasn't something rubbing on the brakes but still tick..tick..tick remained. 800m along and coming up to a roundabout where a couple of cars actually see me and give way. I am now thinking things are going well this morning. Going around the roundabout things feel a bit soft underneath me. I looked down and then realised what the tick.tick.tick had been as the rear tyre was deflating!

Into action fast; pull over, tip the bike over and whip off the back wheel to find out what had caused the puncture. I found the culprit easily as the air bubbles were escaping around the big chunk of glass embedded in the tyre. Whipped out the tyre levers and got the tube out. Decided to patch it rather than swap over with the spare tube. 15 minutes later I was back on my way.

Got to the Belltower and saw a queue waiting for the t-shirts. As I had 'lost' 15 minutes on my journey I was pressed for time and carried on straight to the office. I finally managed to catch up the 15 minutes by 10.00am but missed out on the BTW Challenge t-shirt. Never mind, there's always next year!
Harry L - X-Men - Xodus Group - Canning Vale to Perth.

I must admit when I first heard about the Spring Bike to work challenge I was pumped. I am a recent convert to cycling to work and I am now addicted to it and try and cycle when ever I can. I don't have a car and now heavily rely on my bike to get me from A to B be it getting to and from work, the gym, catch up with friends for coffee or a long ride along the river listening to my favourite tunes (at a volume where I am still aware of surrounding noises). I started out with the intention to ride now and again and see how I go..i bought a second hand bike off the work notice board - the bike made all the difference as I never had the bike like the one I am currently riding. I have always had a cheap KMart or equivalent bike, thick tyres and all the accessories that really weigh the bike down. the second hand bike that I bought and still ride on is so light and easy to ride (despite me being a bit too short for the bike) plus the tyres are ready for an overhaul which will probably cost me more than the bike is worth. But I love it and am very grateful to the previous owner for selling it to me because had a I bought another Kmart equivalent bike I may not have become addicted to cycling. Anyway as soon as the challenge started I had an unexpected trip to Holland for work which kind off took close to a week of my contribution of kms that week. But I promised myself that if we managed to get out of the negotiations early enough that I could hire a bike in Holland and make up my mileage. and that is what happened...thank goodness for "the Secret". My wish came true and better still my last night in Holland was spent in Amsterdam. As soon as I checked into the hotel mid afternoon I stormed to the concierge desk and asked if the hotel hired bicycles. the response was "only to our executive guest". I clearly wasn't an executive guest but I wasn't going to let that stop me. the concierge saw the twinkle in my eye and the desperation of wanting to feed my cycling crave so he ended up caving in and I managed to extend the hire to the next day as my flight was not until the following evening. So I cycled through Amsterdam, predominantly along the canals. the views are spectactular if your into colourful and sometimes lopsided buildings and canals, houseboats and lots and lots of bicycles. The bike traffic is amazing, the dutch loves their bikes and the main mode of transport in the middle of Amsterdam are definately bikes. Bikes rule there and cyclists can be quite aggressive I nearly had my hand taken off a few times when signalling before turning left or right. Anyway - I enjoyed cycling in a different country on a completely different bike with additional challenges to the ones I am used to back in Perth. It would be wonderful if Perth could follow in Holland's footsteps. In a way we already have as we have some great cycle paths set up around Perth and the suburbs. he key is to try and encourage more people to cycle. In Holland that is part of everyone's life. You cycle from A to B and perhaps to C and D. I say bring it on. I love it..I never thought that I would enjoy cycling THIS much but I do. Thanks to the bike to work breakfast lat year which was my incentive to take my new second hand bike out for its first ride to work. I haven't looked back since.
Ciao. Indra G - By-laws - Woodside -South Perth to Perth with a detour on the way home via causeway, East Perth and Burswood.

Having arrived home tonight, and telling the family of a new experience today, I had been swooped three times by a magpie, my 10 year daughter disappears into her bedroom for some time. The noise of paper being shuffled, drawing pens being arranged, the quiet clipping of scissors in action and the occasional laughter , eventually she returns excited with multiple solutions to my swooping magpie.
Option 1 - eyes on paper ‘springs’
Option 2 - eyes that stick up like frog’s eyes
Option 3 - eyes that are blood shot and angry
Not the most practical solution for a bike helmet given the recent rain we have had, but I will be trying them out when the warmer weather arrives. Apparently magpies won’t swoop you if you have eyes on the ‘back of your head’.

Now thumbs up to the people who spent some time this week-end, putting up additional signage for new riders giving directions to take to get to work. I personally estimated that the number of people of bikes this week due to the ‘train outage’ was an increase of at least 4 times, so those signs would have helped get the newbie’s safely and quickly to work. It was great to see a significant number of people using their bikes as an alternative to the trains.

Unfortunately, thumbs down to the individuals who used the dual-use path in Stirling for their private parking, causing several riders to veer back onto the road to overcome this obstacle. They eventually moved their cars when requested, but their lack of knowledge of the dual-use path was disappointing, as it took a lot of persuasion to convince them to free up the path.
Roland P – Terra Corpus – Team 1 – Duncraig to Perth.

We have had one team pull out of the Mountain Designs Bibbulmun Team Challenge 2007. We require one team of 4 people for Heat 5. The dates are Thurs Nov 1 to Sun Nov 4. As we are very keen to fill this team spot we are offering it at half the price - $1150 (normally $2300)!
Contact Steve at: events@bibbulmuntrack.org.au . Ph-9481 0551

I have teamed up with another team mate for a few early morning rides this year on the way to work. Coming from the South we have been extending the rides to include a lap around the river, under the Causeway, past Burswood Golf Course and over the railway bridge in East Perth then back to the Narrows and into the office. It has been good to see the day break over the river. Fiercely competitive we have been reduced the time on every attempt. Another ride we have been doing is the 10Km figure of 8 circuit around Kings Park. This is fantastic early in the morning as there are no cars about.
Regards, Glenn S - Brown Thunder - Transfield Worley - Booragoon to Perth.

My preparation for the Bike to Work Challenge didn’t get off to the best of starts. The week before the challenge found me on the ground on a roundabout after having been hit by a car. The bike was totaled with me sporting cuts and bruises only thankfully.
Whilst waiting for the cuts to heal and for the drivers insurance to replace my bike, I put together a slightly unusual single speed full suspension mountain bike with slick tyres based on what I had in the garage (since like many I never throw bike bits away, much to my wife’s frustration). The first week of the challenge found me still limping around so I tentatively tried a ride at the end of the week and found the legs still worked okay. After a few rides around the infamous roundabout to purge the demons wearing more high visibility clothing than a railway worker, I was back in the saddle for cycle commuting. Being from the UK I’m used to pretty poor cycling conditions so the cycle paths and weather here in Perth are a revelation to me. Each ride to and from work has allowed to explore paths I would normally miss out in the attempt to ‘get the K’s up’ for our team the X men. On week 4 the call I had been waiting for came though and a replacement bike was waiting for me down at the local bike shop. I bid a fond farewell to the singlespeed as I converted back to bike for my wife and I was back on the new bike by week 5, just in time for great prize giveaway!

Heed the warnings fellow cycle commuters and take it from me, roundabouts are not so magic!
Nigel U - X-Men - Xodus Group - Ardross to Perth.

Looking out the window at work it appeared as though the clouds were clearing up. I decided to ride home and began to cycle as fast as I could to avoid the rain. Within the first 4 minutes of the journey I ran into trouble. I felt something strike my back, I turned around and to my astonishment I was being attacked!!!.

Initially I thought someone had thrown something at me but when I looked back I saw a bird flying away. The animal then turned around for a second pass and flew straight passed my face at an incredible speed. I felt a bit uncomfortable about the situation although I knew that the bird could not possibly harm me. Again and again I was being swooped. In an attempt to scare it off I stopped my bike and waited for the bird to try its luck again, but it did not and instead chose to watch me from a tree. I then began to ride off and the cunning thing had another crack at me before flying away.

I continued on with my journey thinking that all my problems had been left far behind. Before I knew it the seemingly clear sky turned grey and it began pouring down. I rode 20 km’s in the cold blistering rain.

Although sometimes there are minor hiccups, cycling to work is incredibly fun and a lot can be gained from it. Just watch out for the traffic and the birds.
Elias Z - Young & the Restless - GHD - Padbury to Perth.
Elias wins a Cycle Instead T-shirt, & a bike bag with water bottle plus.

Last week was really bad (week two) bike wise. Between the weather, struggling to get out of bed and having a day off on Friday, I only got two rides in during the week and then to top it off I missed my usual Saturday ride (not happy Jan!)

But having the day off yesterday (Monday 1 October) I made up for it with a mate and rode 136km. 40km was in the hills where you are either going up or down (seemed like more of the up variety).

We rode 60 km flat first before the first ascent which is a nasty 4km straight up. After that the next 36km of climbs and descents were tough but a breeze compared to that first 4km's. The ride finished with the next 36km just trying to get home in an honourable time. I only had enough left in the tank when I got home to climb into a hot bath and think about the 24km ride into work the next morning and how it would seem like a walk in the park !
Tim H - City Gold - City of Perth - Success Hill to Perth.
Tim wins a Cycle Instead T-shirt, & a bike bag with water bottle plus.

Entomologist: one who studies insects, normally sartorially resplendent in Bermuda shorts, clutching a butterfly net and pursuing hapless insects. Rarely someone keen on athletics.

The Ped-ants break the mould, riding to work from north and south of the river to their secret Bug-command Centre in South Perth, studiously ignoring any bugs they see. Some have been riding to work for over 30 years, from the dark years before the coming of the cycle paths. Bravely cycling throughout the year, with bad weather no excuse, they also organise social bike-gatherings outside work with a BBQ in Kings Park the most recent excursion.

Some ped-ants have succumbed to lurid lycra, while the musty diehards stick with a motley assortment of aging T-shirts and shorts. No uniform streak with this lot!
Regards. Sonya B - Ped-ants - North and south of river to South Perth.
Sonya wins a pink Cycle Instead T-shirt, a bottle of Champagne plus bike bags.

The Bike to Work Challenge provided me with the motivation to 'get back on the bike' this year. Although I was a regular cyclist in 2006, my motivation to cycle into work was just not there in 2007. However, with the return of the Bike to Work Challenge, I dusted off the bike, and started peddling. For your amusement, I've attached a photo of my inaugural 2007 Bike to Work Challenge ride (notice the 2 bottles for a 5km journey!!). Despite a slow start to the competition, I am now averaging 9.4km/d. My goal is to average above 10km/d by the end of the Challenge - requiring me to cycle at least 11.6km/d for the rest of the challenge.

Anyway, I thought I'd share a few reasons why I cycle into work...
*With the onset of summer, I know get to see the sunrise every morning across the Narrows Bridge.
*I often see dolphins and other great marine life in the river when I cycle home at night.
*Flying past all the stationary freeway traffic (particularly with the railway shutdown on at the moment).
Kevin K - Cougars Art Federation - Woodside - South Perth to Perth.
Kevin wins a Cycle Instead T-shirt, & a bike bag with water bottle plus.

Lyle M on a borrowed mountain bike fresh from a lap round the block to get lunch.

A few words - Lyle has only 3.5ks to get to the office each day, so a sweat isn’t often generated, and is able to arrive in clothes ready to work. Lyle’s ride is not far enough or through a busy part of town for many people to throw playful insults at his pink bike of which he is very proud.

Lyle M - They're a Gero Mob - Dep Agriculture - Mt Tarcoola to Geraldton.
Lyle wins a Cycle Instead T-shirt, & a bike bag with water bottle plus.

Woke to a rain washed morning. Caught the Butcher Birds napping and got down the drive unmolested. Dolphins working the shallows along the Como foreshore with a screening flotilla of pelicans alert for fleeing fish. Glad I'm not a mullet just now. Rode a leisurely pace and reflected on the last 5 weeks preparing for the Red Sky Ride. Weight down 4 kilos, not a bad start. Ahead of the Training Schedule by 250km. Saturday ride, managed to keep with the bunch without protesting quads, managed to keep with Flex, Beevs and Towtruck after Iceman decided to lift the pace a little, through 40, 50 pushing 60kph along Reid Highway. Got up Hepburn Hill, slowly, but without feeling exhausted. Rode home after 132 km to complete the week's total of 434km. Got up Sunday without stiff sore legs!!

The Bike to Work Challenge as part of the Swan River Trust River Riders team provides me with the ideal recovery phase in the Red Sky Ride 5,800km Training Schedule. In March 2008 the Red Sky Riders will cycle the 750km from Perth to York, Narrogin, Kojunup, Bridgetown, Bunbury, Mandurah and back to Perth to raise $100,000 for Solariscare, a cancer patient support service.. Me, I'm the odd one out in the photo, they have nicknamed me Santa. We are dedicating the ride to the young niece of one of the Riders, Cary, who lost her battle with cancer on Sunday.

The Red Sky Ride website www.redskyride.com.au records our pain and progress in preparing for the ride and allows online donations to support our efforts.
Darryl 'Santa' M - bikers2beat - Dep Environment & Conservation - Riding to Kensington.
Darryl wins a Cycle Instead T-shirt, & champagne.

We will be giving away T-shirts and prizes to Bike to Work Challenge cyclists who meet us tomorrow morning (Wednesday, October 10). Just meet us west of the Bell Tower on your way to work. We will be giving away prizes to all participants that drop by on their way to work.

We will be there from around 5:45am to meet as many Cycle Instead in Spring Bike to Work Challenge riders that can drop by.

Since the cycle to work challenge has started I have been riding into work approximately 15 km a day (7.5 km each way) and have been really enjoying it. It is a great way to get the day started, well that is if I had not already been up for a 2 hour surf at 5 in the morning, which makes the ride a bit harder, but I am surviving. The worst part is when I get passed by people wearing all spandex and riding multi thousand dollar bikes...I try to keep up, and sometimes I do (usually they don't look to impressed with my efforts). Although I have had a bunch of rides with this one bloke who must be getting off work and going the same way home as me. Usually I pass him on loftus street bridge, but he catches up on the cycle path through Leederville, then we jockey back and forth (which makes for a really good ride, great exercise, and really makes you push yourself) all the way up main street going toward Hutton, where I turn off and give a waves and we thank each other for the great pursuit. So all in all cycling to work has been a great experience for me, and I hope it is the same for everyone else
Cheers. Joe R - Golder 1 - Osborne Park to West Perth.
Joe wins a Cycle Instead T-shirt & champagne.

Now that the mornings are a little warmer, the kids and I are getting into the groove of an early morning ride every now and then to kick the day off. While the ‘normal’ people are sleeping, we are lapping up the priceless sights of the Swan River, gift wrapped in the morning light with a surprise every now and then such as a pod of dolphins making it’s way upstream past Blackwall Reach.
Some lucky days I’ve even caught the same pod feeding under the Canning or Narrows Bridge later the same morning on the ride in to work – a good excuse to stop and catch your breath while you watch the show.
Regards, Paul H - I&E Systems - Attadale to East Perth.
Paul wins a Cycle Instead T-shirt, champagne a Bike Pack & a prize for the kids.

I'm quite jealous of the cyclists that get to ride along the river and see the dolphins swimming past, or cycle through the wildflowers in Kings Park. On my rides away from the river I do see the signs of spring as I ride by.
Ten fluffy ducklings by lake Joondalup. Magpies swooping on me in Karrinyup and Kingsley ( I think they feel threatened by red helmets the most). A baby Wattlebird unfortunately fallen out of its nest but I managed to get it back up in the tree to its parents. Blue tongue lizards crossing the cycle path, they do bite and don't let go.
One of the most amazing things I saw one spring was when I was cycling on the road past Lake Monger. I saw, out of the corner of my eye, a long neck tortoise at the base of a tree by the road. I cycled back to see the tortoise had dug a hole and was laying its eggs, slowly, one at a time.
But one of the most unbelievable things you see in spring is all those people stuck on the freeway getting nowhere slowly when they could be cycling free of all traffic snarls.
Send in your Spring stories to the cycle blog to win our prizes.
David M - Spring Bikers - IHF - Padbury to Anywhere.

Recognition goes to Lupo G for integrating cycling into life - riding to a restaurant after work with a change of clothes and dining with the family and in-laws one evening last week (a large collection of children may have helped keep him alert).
Lupo G - Double Butted - Woodside - Nedlands to Perth.
Lupo wins a Cycle Instead T-shirt plus champagne.

One of the best things about cycling to work in West Perth, from south of the river, is the excellent bike path. The other good thing is the variety of nature one can encounter.

Two weeks ago I saw a dolphin chasing fish in the shallows of Melville water. Another dolphin was playing a hundred meters further out; jumping a couple of meters out of the water and landing on it's back.

Again, this morning, a dolphin was having a feed in the shallows next to two pelicans.

The birds change with the seasons. Black swans rest in the same place every afternoon. Light poles along Kwinana Freeway become perches for the pelicans. An osprey often can be seen near the jetty in Como. Egrets, stilts, plovers and darters are also commonly encountered.

At the Narrows Interchange you can see the ducklings grow up over the course of a few weeks.
The only drawback to riding south is the seabreeze that howls in over Melville Water. But we do ride to keep fit, don't we?
Phil J - High Pressures - Bureau of Meteorology - Rossmoyne to West Perth.
Phil wins a Cycle Instead T-shirt plus champagne.

The Bogans on Bikes group have collectively done 2,520 kms after our third week. We've got 28 bogans with serious anti-lycra attitude. It's great to see so many bike racks full and so much draped flanellette.
Members of the Bogans on Bikes group have to take along an item of bogan-ness on each ride. So far we've had:
- VB undies and a beer in the drink holder
-f lanellette shirts
- puppetry of the p***s stubbie holder
- tank top
- Blundies, blue singlet and black shorts
 
A few in the team have made poor attempts at bogan items and have been told to try harder - even old t-shirts can be too classy for us. Team member Bogan4 is training for the Bussellton Triathalon. If you get to watch that race, look out for him - he'll be easy to spot, the bloke in front with the flanny over his lycra and a big smile on his face...
Shane F - Bogans on Bikes - Dep Environment & Conservation. Riding to Kensington.
Shane wins a Cycle Instead T-shirt plus a bottle of Champagne.

He reminded me of a kangaroo startled by oncoming headlights. It was the jogger that I had cycled past earlier. As I came swinging around the bend in the path, there he was, coming the other way. He yelped "aaagh" and threw his arms up in the air - a bit like the victim of a hold-up robbery. I wasn't sure if I should laugh or apologise (I did both !).

I wasn't travelling particularly fast (about 15 kmh, according to the cycle computer). But it was twilight and my sudden appearance was all the more unexpected because of the bend and the overgrown bushes alongside the path.

My bike light was probably the only warning that he had - though I had been able to hear his rhythmic pacing from several metres away. If he was wearing a heart monitor, you can bet there is a sudden spike in the readouts - just after 6:30pm.
Jo S - Loose Sprockets - Dept for Planning & Infra - Falcon to Mandurah

I came from Christmas Island, a tiny isolated island with only a handful of vehicles. So riding a bike was the only way of getting around. As a kid, I had to share a bike with my brother. The bike had no gear changes and was fitted with carrier/seat at the back wheel. It was quite common that I carried a load or passenger at the back whenever I used the bike.

Every time I push the bike pedals, my thought still takes me back to my childhood’s days of bitter sweet memories so much so that I am not sure if I love or hate cycling. I guess it is true, it’ is a fine line between love and hate.

I had been cycling to work for the past 4 years and still do not know the use of gears fully. To date the maximum gear change that I had ever made is three (3).

Despite of my love-hate feeling about cycling, I do know I will cycle on, no matter what, as it not only keeps me in check with my fitness but also it brings back the ‘good-old-days’, keeping me forever young.
Best regards, RiCkiE W - Seven Eighth - Thornlie to East Perth.
Rickie wins a Cycle Instead T-shirt plus a bottle of Champagne.

Before the first day: - Father Christmas brought a motorbike down the chimney last year, which meant my bicycle had been sitting in its corner like a neglected, lonely creature awaiting some attention for a good 10 or so months.

I signed up for the Bike To Work Challenge to get myself back into cycling again. To ensure that my pedals were fully intact and quick releases not too keen, I thought I would go for a test ride the day before I started cycling to work.

After about half an hour of wheeling around at a decent pace for an unfit novice, I was feeling quite chuffed. Not only was I riding into the wind without panting too hard, I was also taking (slight) inclines and the few hills around the area at faster-than-walking speed, and without dropping down to the first chain ring. Impressive for someone who hadn't grasped the concept of taking hills standing on pedals, and significantly, hadn't done any physical activity in a year.
........Or so I thought.
"I'm ready for this," I thought. "I'll be doing 30 kms a day without blinking before I know it."

There is a hill at the end of the road home, and powering (haha) up it, I was feeling like a real champion. The wind was blowing through my helmet vents, my entire body felt taut and invigorated, and I thought I would reward myself with a breather at the top of the hill.
Except....
The moment I dismounted, I almost blacked out. Had to sit on the curb for a while with my head between my knees to clear the spots in my vision. (So much for being a champion; I obviously had NO idea how unfit I was.)
Totally whipped, I had to drag the bike and wobbly self the last 10 metres home on foot.

Tour de France will have to wait...
Charlene W - HBOSA IT A-Team. - Maylands to East Perth.
Charlene wins a pink Cycle Instead T-shirt plus a bottle of Champagne.

Just wanted to write and tell you that the Bike to Work challenge has been great for us and not so much about biking to work, it’s been more fun around home! 

It seems getting on my bike to ride to Greenwood Station has been worth all the effort (and the cash spent getting the bike up to scratch again), not only has it made me feel good about myself, but has been a bit of motivation for my fiancé too...

It was insisted that he needed a new bike about two weekends ago after seeing me getting out and about; he now is off for quick rides after work as he can’t opt for riding to work when the work gear has to come too.  But its my successes this weekend that are definitely worth mentioning… this is a man who insists on driving everywhere or catching cabs and despises public transport… I not only got him to ride to the Grand Final Party at a friends place (no we didn’t ride home whilst drinking!) but on Monday when it came time to return the DVD’s – instead of driving the car, we both totted off on our bikes to the store and back, taking the scenic route along the lake of course!

I can’t believe how close most things are and how ‘not so difficult’ it is to ride… and as one of the movies we got out over the weekend was An Inconvenient Truth, we both have a new found motivation that is bigger than both of us!

My goal this week is the car is not coming out during light hours… I might even challenge a ride to cricket on Wednesday
Natalie S - BHPB Birds on Bikes - Edgewater to Greenwood Station.
Natalie wins a pink Cycle Instead T-shirt plus a bottle of Champagne.

The Albany Office of Department of Agriculture and Food has been in the Bike to Work Challenge for 4 years now. This year we have 5 teams; Aggie Girls, Agtraction, Famous Four, City Folk and Hobbits.

While it is very unlikely that any of our teams will win the Challenge, we do enjoy the more social aspects. This year we are planning a Breakfast on October 17 (National Ride to Work Day) which no doubt will include some high calorie fare to undo all the good of riding to work in the first place. Last year we had ham and cheese croissants and this year I am thinking BLTs of some description. Might have to add some fresh fruit to appease the guilt!

On October 19, we are hosting an Office Ride of approximately 20 kms (with afternoon tea at a coffee shop in Frenchmans Bay Road) to raise money for breast cancer. We are also asking UWA and the other Government Departments to join us. Last year we battled through gale-force head winds (even when you were on the flat, you still needed to be in the lowest gear) from the office on Albany Highway, through the port to Emu Point and back. We borrowed a pink tandem especially for the day – think pink! This year we have designed a gentler ride, hopefully designed to not scare people away.
Sally P - Aggie Girls - Dept Agriculture & Food - Albany.
Sally wins some Cycle Instead T-shirts for her teams plus a Bike pack & Champagne.

This is an account of my first time actually cycling to work (on 21/09/ 07).

I woke up on Friday at an earlier time than usual for me to prepare myself for an exciting day of cycling to work. Kissing my wife goodbye (she was taking the bus to work), I started on my ride. This was the first time in my life that I noticed the large amount of cars on the road! Being a newbie (and nervous), it took me a while to be comfortable enough to cross a double lane road. I was so envious of the cyclists who seemingly crossed the road with ease. After that, it wasn't so bad as all I had to do was ride on the wonderful cycling trail all the way to the city and copy what all the other cyclist did.

Reaching my workplace, I was completely lost. I didn't know where to park my bicycle or where to ride to. I guess a bit of preparation might have helped here. After cycling around the in basement carpark for a while, I finally found the bicycle facilities area. I parked my bicycle, locked it and took my shower. After I was completely soaking wet from my shower, I came to a realisation that I had forgotten to pack a towel! Scrounging around in my bag, I had to compromise and use my woollen pullover as a towel. Let me tell you, they don't absorb water very well. But after all that, I came out of the shower feeling refreshed, smelling good and ready for the world.

The ride home was a bit different. I was a bit more confident in myself on the way home. However, my confidence completely dissipated when an elderly man in a rickety red bike overtook me halfway during my ride. Reaching home with my confidence deflated, I crashed on my sofa totally exhausted.

At the end of it all though, I can honestly say that I did enjoy the ride to work and I hope to get fit enough in the future to be able to keep up with the elderly man in the rickety red bike!
Cheers. Steve T - Two Spare Tyres and a Flat - Woodside - Wembley to Perth.
Steve wins a Cycle Instead T-shirt, bottle of Champagne and a Bike Pack.

I am the "meanest" mother in whole wide world according to two of my children. Because I have to leave for work the same time as my children leave for school, they "unfortunately" also have to ride their bikes to school whether it's raining or not. I try to make a point of also riding to work in the rain rather than catching the train so they don't feel so hard done by, but I don't think they actually understand that (yet!). Maybe one day when they're grown up and see people riding to work they'll remember?
Cheers. Julie J - team bee it - HBOSA - Carine to East Perth
Julie wins a pink Cycle Instead T-shirt, a backpack plus a bottle of Champagne.

I was giving a presentation on how to save energy to my daughter's school class today, and thought it would be prudent to pass on some useful energy conversion factors to the Bike to Work challenge teams. Did you know that a jellybaby contains 37.5kJ of energy, and a packet of jellybabies contains the same energy as that required to drive one kilometer in a four cyclinder car? I told all the kids that if they rode their bikes to school, then they had the right to claim a packet of jellybabies from their parents. (Sorry if that was anyone's kid I spoke to but hey!).

I really enjoy the 15 min trip though King's Park to work of a morning - the wildflowers are out in full, and you can get away from the traffic fumes. I don't enjoy the trip home as much (ie Mount Street) but my head is winning the battle over my lungs, slowly but surely.

Just trying to ride a bit further every week - so the gut hanging over the lycra will "verily recedeth".
Cheers. Andy M - Two Spare Tyres and a Flat - Woodside - Shenton Park to Perth.

Andy wins a Cycle Instead T-shirt plus a packet of jelly babies.

Green and Yellow Cycle Instead T-shirts are also available. Just apply by sending in your stories for the Cycle Blog.

I'm looking forward to the sunny spring weather. I managed to get in a ride to work on Friday and got soaked. It was great to ride but I'd prefer not to get cold and wet. I work from home and can set my distances. I prefer to ride about an hour each day. The ride is only through the suburbs so I envy those of you who get to ride along the more scenic routes such as the Swan river foreshore. My new 'red' bike does go faster.
David M - Spring Bikers - IHF - Padbury to Padbury.

Women cyclists can win a pink Cycle Instead t-shirt. Just send in a story to the Cycle Blog. We also have Bike packs, Cycle Computers, Champgne and other prizes to give away. Send in a photo as well.

I work from home so I've got no excuse for not riding each day. I can set the distance I ride to suit me each day. I replace a car trip by riding to the post office to pick up the mail. My bike is a twenty year old Repco and its still great to ride.
Janet M - Spring Bikers - IHF - Padbury to Padbury.

I began last November 2006, cycling to/from work- Landsdale to Perth on most of my working days. I hadn't ridden in years. As my fitness improved so did my time. I now beat the bus in. The time it takes me to ride, shower, change in the hour is the same for just the bus trip and walk from the bus station. So, not only do I get fit, I look and feel better, I save on bus fares, and I can eat what I want to eat as I burn it off.

Only down side is the occasional bad weather, and the drivers who dislike cyclists. I have been shouted at and told that cyclists belong on the footpath. I wish I could have had a chat to the man yelling at me and tell him that it is dangerous for me to travel my high speeds on a footpath and that it is actually illegal for me to do so. I would have liked to have told him that I am able to have some of the road, but I need to dodge all the crap like glass that is on the side of the roads. And to the other man who wound down his window when I pulled up at some lights thinking he was going to ask me something and instead told me 'don't get killed, love.' Thanks for your thoughts.

Only last week I made a report of a car that passed me sooo close very slowly so as he could see how close he could get to me. I thought nothing of it until he passed me again 2 km's down the road but this time swerved to the left so as I was wedged between his car and the kerb. I was amazed at the length this man went to, in an attempt to make me fall off. Just leave us cyclists alone, or better still try it yourself.

Now that people are encouraged to cycle and there has been a huge increase in bike sales over the last 2 years, it is great that roads are being built bike friendly. There should be more. I try to use roads with shoulders, or back streets. But when it is dark, the use of main roads is required for lighting. Yes, I dislike daylight saving as it is dark in the mornings enough times of the year, and it gets too hot for the ride home in the arfternoons. I think there should be education on the media reminding road users of cyclists, like the 'look left, look right, look bike' old campaign. Was that one for motorbikes or cyclists? It would remind road users that cyclists too can have a piece of the bitumen.

Overall, I am not put off by some of my bad experiences, .. it only makes me more determined to ride more and to get more people on the roads. Also, lets see more girls ride!
Yours in cycling. Erika P - RiskCover Rollers - Landsdale to Perth
Erika wins a Cycle Instead Bike pack & a pink Cycle Instead T-shirt.

'Bogans on Bikes' is one of the largest teams in the Challenge. They have a strict recruitment criteria - any Lycra must be covered with a flannelette shirt.

Milan Vicentic one of their managers is pictured here, bringing out his inner bogan!

Milan V - Bogans on Bikes - Dep Environment & Conservation. Doubleview to Kensington
Milan wins a Cycle Instead Bike pack & a bike computer.

Win a Bicycle Computer, a Cycle Instead Pack, T-shirts and more.

Send in your Bike to work stories. There are prizes for those who submit stories as participants of the Cycle Instead in Spring Bike to Work Challenge. All you have to do is write to us about your ride to work, or tell us about a bicycle journey to replace a car trip.

The best entries will be rewarded with prizes such as a bicycle computer or a Cycle Instead Bike pack. Be elaborate with your prose or use your sharp wit to amuse us all. Just tell us about your rides, how you feel or what you see, how dangerous it is or how soothing a ride can be. Poetry and related cycling stories and tips are most welcome too.

Be quick because I want to give these prizes away soon. A Cycle Instead Bike pack includes a water bottle and t-shirt, I’ll even throw in a bottle of Champagne.

Include a photo with your musings on cycling to work.