{"id":119,"date":"2016-05-15T20:00:49","date_gmt":"2016-05-15T20:00:49","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.longrides.bike\/?p=119"},"modified":"2017-07-13T06:48:35","modified_gmt":"2017-07-13T06:48:35","slug":"get-high-on-the-tablelands-15-may-2016","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/www.longrides.bike\/?page_id=119","title":{"rendered":"Get High On The Tablelands – 15 May 2016"},"content":{"rendered":"

Get High on the Tablelands was designed to be a different experience from the previous FNQ Audax <\/a>ride (Eight Tableland Towns on 17 April 2016), and it did not disappoint.\u00a0 Tackling the high country of the Tablelands, the course visited the highest gazetted road in Queensland, the highest town and the highest pub.\u00a0 And just to increase the challenge, the weather turned on its blustery best, leaving some riders in no doubt as to why Queensland\u2019s highest wind farm is located on (you guessed it) Windy Hill in Ravenshoe.\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

The final stats for the day were 49 riders registered and 45 starters. A really courageous effort, given how unappealing the weather looked in the wee, small hours of Sunday. \u00a0Once again, the weather gods were kind and it cleared (a bit) as\u00a0the day went on.<\/p>\n

\"062\"<\/a>The starting kilometres of the ride left everyone in no doubt as to\u00a0what was ahead with a leg-testing climb up the Herberton Range followed by a gentler uphill meander to the first Control at Longlands Gap.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>After the obligatory bananas and lollies, it was a short hop along for the\u00a0equally obligatory photo at the (curiously moss-free) Highest Gazetted Road in Queensland sign.<\/p>\n

\"096\"<\/a>The Popular Cafe in Ravenshoe lived up\u00a0to its name, with most riders feeling the need for coffee, cake and an extended break at Control 2. \u00a0The 100km riders then headed down the Kennedy Highway for Atherton, hoping that it would be all downhill to home. \u00a0(It wasn’t.)<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>There were 35 starters for the 100km, and EVERYONE MADE IT HOME !!!!!! \u00a0So I can now confess – it really was 110km. \u00a0Chris, Tate, Rob and Mark\u00a0finished\u00a0and were heading for coffee before I\u2019d returned to Atherton to set up the final Control. \u00a0There was then a run of smiling faces checking in over the next two or so hours, with riders thankful to be home and delighted at their achievements. \u00a0The coffee shop was buzzing with excitement as riders swapped stories and added caffeine to adrenaline.<\/p>\n

\"128\"<\/a>The Absolutely Audacious Award is shared by Glynis and Sandy, who finished\u00a0in 9hrs 11mins. \u00a0By the time most other riders were showered and relaxing at home (in Cairns), Glenys and Sandy rode back through the drizzle and wind to Atherton. \u00a0A truly gutsy effort by Glenys, who just refused to quit, and thanks to the wonderful supportive sister-in-law we\u2019d all like to have, Sandy, who stuck with her. \u00a0Well done to both of you.<\/p>\n

There were 10 starters in the 200km, and eight\u00a0completed the ride. \u00a0The other two are still wishing their mates had told them about the plan to switch to the 100km before the ride. \u00a0They were nursing tired legs from a mammoth effort the day before, but still managed 140km. \u00a0Well done to all.<\/p>\n

\"112\"<\/a>The 200km riders continued on from Ravenshoe through Millaa Millaa,\u00a0Lake Eacham, Peeramon and Malanda, visiting almost every known hill along the way. \u00a0First home was Donal in an amazing time of 8hrs10mins. \u00a0Given the wind, weather and terrain, I am in awe. \u00a0 Tribute must also be paid to his ingenuity for finding the perfect solution\u00a0to losing a Brevet card.
\n\"\"<\/a>The Still Smiling Award must go to Kathryn and Rory , who had a\u00a0slight geographical miscalculation almost within sight of Atherton, and put in an extra 10km for their troubles.<\/p>\n

Many thanks to our volunteers \u2013 Peter and Maureen (who came up from Cairns just to help and ran the Ravenshoe Control), Leanne (who manned the 200km Controls, drove all over the place, and waited around until the end), Malcom (a returning volunteer who \"098\"<\/a>helped on the 200km controls and wore a great cycling tshirt), Nola (my long-suffering mate who manned a 200km Control and is always helping me with some project or other), Mike (who took photos, manned Control 2, kept Kim company, and remembered to bring ALL the coffee making bits and pieces), Katie (who kept me company driving around and worked on the final control), Gary (who checked the lights again), Glynis and Sandy\"054\"<\/a> (who manned the registration desk, prior to doing their amazing ride). And thanks to Kim \u2013 who has been busy behind the scenes before, during and after the ride (what an amazing bloke).<\/p>\n

See you all on 22 October 2016 for the next ride – Atherton BikeFest Audax!! \u00a0A choice of 100km and 200km road rides visiting parts of the Tablelands you may have never seen before, or a 75km dirt ride including the Rail Trail and Channel Road (by special permission). \u00a0Then stick around for a weekend indulging in all things cycling at Atherton BikeFest.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Get High on the Tablelands was designed to be a different experience from the previous FNQ Audax ride (Eight Tableland Towns on 17 April 2016), and it did not disappoint.\u00a0 Tackling the high country of the Tablelands, the course visited the highest gazetted road in Queensland, the highest town and the highest pub.\u00a0 And just … Continue reading Get High On The Tablelands – 15 May 2016<\/span> →<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":107,"parent":0,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"footnotes":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.longrides.bike\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/pages\/119"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.longrides.bike\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/pages"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.longrides.bike\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/page"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.longrides.bike\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.longrides.bike\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=119"}],"version-history":[{"count":5,"href":"https:\/\/www.longrides.bike\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/pages\/119\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":20937,"href":"https:\/\/www.longrides.bike\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/pages\/119\/revisions\/20937"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.longrides.bike\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/107"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.longrides.bike\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=119"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}