Coleraine Pedalcars: promotion trip day 5

 

 

 

OzHPV embassy in Coleraine: promoting the OzHPV Challenge

Trisled Skyhawk rotomoulded pedal prix velomobile

Ta Da! The results.

Ace photographer Marlene

Ben from Trisled is given the Popemobile treatment in a safety car sponsored by Vickery Brothers, a local fertiliser supplier. Bec from Trisled did some of the presentations.

This one wasn't raced and I'm not sure it had the 4 wheels needed to qualify. It looks a bit like a Morgan

Some mobs like Grampians Gangster were just in it for fun.

What a ripper!

Balmoral College had 2 pedal prix hpv's this one multicoloured from lots of scrapes and old paint jobs.

#83 interior

Elite Class winners - they did the most laps overall

Possibly the most aero of all the cars, a very nice looking Trisled. Raced by an under17's team it was only 2 laps behind the overall winners.

After writing up the previous day's blog, I headed out to the site of the Coleraine Pedalcars event by bike, looked around a bit, then walked back to the hotel and came back with my car, folding table, bike parts, flyers and gazebo. It had been wet and windy, and was still windy, and the first half hour of setup was rescuing gazebos which had blown away in the wind. It was a good way to get to know my neighbours. Fortunately the Wecycle Gazebo is a solid old girl and I was able to peg it down, and put it up with a bit of help and no dramas.

Unfortunately about this time, I realised I'd lost my phone, so that distracted me somewhat for the rest of the day! It didn't turn up and I ended up replacing it the next day. We are very welded to our devices! That aside, the day went well. Gradually teams of riders and families started setting up tents and Pedalcars along McConachie Street, and soon the place was buzzing. I'd met Pedalcar organisers Chris and Clare Durst, and Trisled's Ben and Bec arrived, followed by my cousin Michael and his wife Rosemary, so I knew a few people there. I'd met ace photographer Marlene the day before as well.

With a camera as well as a phone I could keep on taking photos which was great. There were plenty of lively teams with Pedalcars varying from (Trisled) factory made to high end local factory made to shed made, and cute vintage. I was glad to have taken a photo of the results board, with that I could look at the car numbers in the photos and start to make sense of it all.

Late in the day when I was packing up, Jesse from team 23, (Odd Ball) tried out my bike and was quite impressed. It was a good day out. Coleraine is a small town and I saw half the people in town I'd met at the pub that night, they were there for the post race Pedalcar committee dinner. 

Jesse, successful test ride.

Back at the pub, the fake cow in the community centre can be seen through the drive-through bottleshop driveway.

 As a final note, here are some tips for not losing your phone / wallet / keys when riding a bicycle.

1. Never ride a recumbent bicycle! If you ride recumbent, normal pants and jacket pockets don't work, they are like an eject button for your beloved articles. If you have to ride a recumbent (ok, that's me), then try to do all of the below:

2. Try to wear a shirt with deep pockets. Its best if these can be buttoned up with a button or velcro at the top. These can stop phones slipping out at the top when you bend over.

3. Don't use pants pockets unless they are on the leg.

4. Jacket pockets that aren't high up must be zipped. If zips are broken or starting to get stuck in the fabric that surrounds them, replace or repair the zips or replace the jacket. 

5. Prioritise safety of self and articles over fashion, and don't (for example) turn a jacket or waistcoat inside out because it looks better if it compromises the safety of zips or pockets.

Promotion Trip Day 4

 

 

 

Today (Friday) has been my first full day of this trip based in Coleraine, and I started it by assembling the 2 bikes still stashed in the car (a Peugeot Mixte and my leaning trike) in the back yard of the Hotel. After breakfast & by prior arrangement, I delivered the Mixte to the Lions club for display in their window. The fixing and load carrying of this bike has been documented here and here, and as I didn't have much use for the bike I decided to donate it to OzHPV as a challenge prize. I'd seen the Lions Club windows before, and they seemed happy to promote local events. Among other things they run a free library book delivery service! Marlene and Jill happily accepted the bike in the middle of unwrapping calendars and accepting furniture donations.

 

After visiting the op shop and pop up bookshop (the original bookshop is still in disrepair following a car crash described here) and getting challenge flyers put up, I started off for Casterton along lower Hilgay Road. I wasn't confident about my route, and turned back to Coleraine before I reached Hilgay Lane.  Once in Coleraine I started off again, this time heading along the highway to the start of Sandford Road. Despite drizzle, this was quite pleasant riding and for the first half there were nicely sealed made roads and very little traffic. I saw Hilgay Lane (dirt road) to the left and though I might try it on the way back. The Sandford road route is straightforward and passes the Muntham Recreation Pavillion - there's not much else to Muntham that I could see - and then there are a few hills, some of which I walked up. 

 

Arriving in Casterton I had a huge lunch of a pie, cream muffin, hot chocolate and chocolate milk. I put up a flyer in the bakery, and was able to browse through the library and an op shop and get some money from the post office. Suitably rested and fed, I headed back - there was a bit more rain and more of a headwind but for the most part I was dry,warm and happy. A few bulls followed me along their fence for a while and a small stray dog also kept me company. I decided to reconnoiter Hilgay  lane as this ride was a research ride for the Challenge.

 

The dirt was ok, but a farmer on a quad bike who I had started chatting to warned me of a ford (creek crossing directly over the road) ahead. I had started out across the side of the ford, picking my way across rocks and was just about to get into parts where my feet might get wet, when the farmer offered me and the bike a lift across on the quad bike. We managed this ok with the bike spread across the back and me sitting on the back holding on. I took a few photos which ended up blurry because of a wrong camera setting. I need sticky tape over the "mode dial"!

 

The rest of the ride was uneventful, but I was buoyed by the assistance I'd received, and still wearing my Hilgay Lane mud, walked the length of the Coleraine shops dropping flyers at the IGA, West Pub, take away food shop and petrol service station. Job done for the day, I cleaned up at the hotel, had dinner and did computer stuff before heading for bed. 

 

from the pub backyard, a view through the drive-in bottleshop.

OzHPV promotion trip to Coleraine

 

 Hi

Early this week, I loaded up my small car with a large number of bicycles and a Gazebo, and headed west on a 5 day trip to publicise the OzHPV challenge in Coleraine. I'd already done some homework for this having visited Coleraine 4 times this year. A visit to the town late last year started the ball rolling!

 

On my previous visits I hadn't been any further west than Coleraine, but this time, after a 2 night stay in Aireys Inlet and dropping a kid's bike to my son's family, I have been all the way to Coonawarra in South Australia. First stop out of Aireys Inlet was Hamilton, where I met journalist Ciaran from the Hamilton Spectator for an interview and photo shoot about the Challenge. I was only just on time, and Ciaran got to witness me reconstituting the bike from its jumbled up state in the car. We walked to the Botanic gardens, and he filmed me riding and doing a quick promotion for the event. Back at the office we had a taped interview. Hopefully this will all lead to a few Hamilton mob coming to the challenge.

 

 

After lunch in Hamilton I drove to Casterton and dropped in on the newspaper there to discuss OzHPV Challenge advertising. I hadn't been there for at least 20 years! Then it was on to Coonawarra where my cousin lives on a farm. It was great to see Michael and Rosemary - once again it must have been at least 20 years. I was able to help out a bit too, mainly by log-splitting and log-stacking using a petrol driven log splitting machine based on a hydraulic ram. It was raining most of the day and the next day too.

 

After lunch the next day, I said my goodbyes and Rosemary led me back in to Penola and I was able to buy extra shoes and socks at the Op Shop there - I'd soaked my only pairs doing the log-splitting. Penola is a nice town and I hadn't been there for a long time.

 

Arriving back in Coleraine and there were lots of Pedalcar decorations in town. The timing of this trip deliberately coincides with the Coleraine Pedalcar event, and hopefully all my spruiking will reach likeminded people. I checked in to my Hotel and had a pretty early night. It was quiet enough that I could discuss the upcoming Challenge event with Matt the barman and a few (other besides me) oldtimers and hand out a few flyers. After I went upstairs there was noone in the bar and Matt resumed painting the walls and putting up ceiling panels. 

That's all for now, I'll start another post on Coleraine soon.