Marysville December 17

Has been about 6 years since i've made it to a Marysville ride, and after a crap week at work was very looking forward to some unwinding. I had put my name down and offered to do tailman for the day, so my day was already mapped out for on the bike. (and a fair bit of the time off the bike) I think Flipper had about 25 riders for the day and we were under way around 9.30, well most were, had to wait for a group of three to fuel up after the rest had left. My day had more laughs than hard work, with some very intersting styles and line choices to be observed. Most just needed a bike held or some advice, some needed more a bike removed so they could go again. Ted was having a good day, but after a few simple drops he wore himself out a bit. We did a track before lunch that had some good gullys with deep ruts and bog holes, so Ted promoted me to cheif ride-my-bike-througher. So i would jump on and jump the que and ride his bike through, then go walk back and get mine while Ted picked up his bike at the valea service. On the second or third one of these whilst i was walking back, i went cross country and the mud was to deep to walk. As i got to the end of the island, i said to Ted to walk this way as i stepped off into the clear creek. As my man parts on bum bag went straight under in the freezing water as it was up to my belly button. (insert squeal like girl here!!) Whilst waiting to ride my bike through, i got to see a back flipping Kato of Stu's putting on a show for the crowd. Shortly after this we found  the luch stop at the top of the saddle, and Mark lead Ted and others back to the cars. After luch we played some more and on some good hills, the first good climb looked very much like the D-day landings when i got there, and after a while Mark had looped around and then let the stuck riders they could come back down if they wanted. I let some people past and swept the hill, for Mark to lead us to some more hills. I didnt have to do to much, as on these narrow hills i was stuck at the back with everyone taking their ticket from the delli machine waiting for their call up for a go. The day flowed along well. Until the fuel issues for a few became and issue, and the fuel run back and forth became more regular than the milk run. All back at the cars just after 6, with 116k on the clock.
Thanks Flip and Mark for leading the day and to those who came, been a while since ive gone home sorer from laughing than riding..
Al

Thanks for the write-up Al. Glad it wasn't too boring for you back there!

Here's my take on the ride:

A long day, but a very enjoyable one! The weather was close to perfect, and whilst there was some dust, it was limited to the main fire trails. The tighter tracks still had a wet sheen in places, ready to catch out the unwary. It was a good turnout too, with 22 riders this month.

We had a quick regroup at the top of the first hill, and with no problems reported, it was straight back into the ride.

This outing covered many of the same tracks as last month, although they were made more technical due to the extra greasiness left by the recent rain. A quick loop around the Triangle warmed us up, and then it was across the bitumen and into the Dom Dom side of road.

Strickland Link Track apparently caused a few headaches - the small amount of added moisture made keeping your line on the rocks harder than last month. There was a bit of a delay whilst some of the group sorted out their attack strategies, and then it was back down via either Strickland Spur track for those wanting a challenge, or the fire trails for those that wanted a bit more of a cruise.

After a quick regroup at the bottom, it was straight into some tighter trails, and the extra dampness in the soil became very obvious when we tackled a couple of minor clay slopes that hadn’t been much of a drama last month. Bikes were going backwards down the hills even with the rear wheel spinning forwards, but a few helping hands had everyone at the top in no time. We were treated to an awesome new hill climb technique that seemed to combine a pivot turn with a loop out, which was hugely entertaining for the onlookers.

A few decided to head back to the cars after that track (hope it wasn’t because of the extra challenges), so Mark gave them an escort whilst the rest of us made our way to the lunch spot at Dom Dom Saddle.

After lunch, Mark took over the ride leader’s role, and we headed across the highway and into the Narbethong forest. There we were treated to some technical hill climbs and descents. I think those extra challenges are great, and help to improve your skills, so hopefully others enjoyed them too.

Then it was onto the tight rocky trail from last month, which created a few bottlenecks. Help was always at hand, so things were smoothed out fairly quickly.

Although we had done less than 85kms at that point, fuel was starting to become an issue for some, so we headed back to the cars via the Triangle tracks. Unfortunately, part way through the final tracks, a few bikes started running completely out of fuel, and the shuffle of petrol between tanks began.

I’m not sure how many k’s everyone else did, but with the extra running back and forth between empty bikes, I clocked up 125km for the day.

There were only a few people left when Phil and I made it back to the carpark, so I can only hope everyone enjoyed the day, and that you will all be back next month when Mark (or Phil) takes over the reins.

Thanks to Mark for leading the arvo part of the ride, and for all his ongoing support during the year with running them. A big thanks also to Al for being tailman all day.

And finally, thanks to everyone who has come on the rides with me over the past year – it has been a hoot!

 

What a cracker of a day. Mid 20's & sunny. Great to see so many people turn up for Peters last Marysville ride as leader. You've done a great job hosting this monthly ride, thank you.
We did the usual warm up tracks in the triangle  then headed over to the Dom Dom side to find some mud to play in.  Had a small issue with my bike disappearing from under me & landing in the scrub with me flat on my arse laughing. Plenty of help on hand to retrieve it which is handy. I believe someone caught it on video, if so feel free to post it.
The afternoon saw Mark take the lead as we headed over to the Narbethong side where we all had fun until it was time to start heading home. Mark had one last little treat in the form of a creek crossing. Some cruised through, some made it through wet from the knees down & some well may have hit the water a fraction to fast & went swimming. No damage done & plenty of entertainment for all.
Back to the cars around 6ish I think. Had a great time & exhausted.
Thanks Peter for putting on the Marysville rides for the past year or so. Hope all goes well with your sea change & can't wait for you to start up a monthly ride down that way. 
Thanks Mark for leading the arvo session & Al for running tailmain.

Thanks to Peter and Mark for an awesome day out on the bike. Thanks to Al for being tailman all day, it must've got dusty back there at times. adn't ridden Marysville before but definitely want to again, there really is a bit of everything out there. 

Thanks to Peter, Mark and Al for lead and tail duties.

I'd not been on the south side of Marysville before however I thoroughly enjoyed the hills, rocks and slippery sections. Strickland Spur was great fun (going up and down). I run "tubliss" with 5psi in the rear and had no trouble minimal trouble getting traction on the way up. 

It was an awesome day out! Here's a link to a few videos from the day:
www.dropbox.com/sh/wnof6ey2k4m93cf/AACyb...HQorOpH32SIYIfa?dl=0

A brilliant day of riding.
Thank you to the leaders and tailman.
Top job to all in the group for working together and making the day great.
Ride again soon!

Had another great day up in them hills. The weather was fantastic, and not very dusty until the late arvo. A great crew as usual, a few challenges and slippery conditions make it more fun, thanks to the organizers Pete and Mark and Al for tailman. Look forward to getting up there in the new year.