Back in the saddle.

After a week of no riding due to a virus I finally got back on the bike today. It may have only been my commute to work but it felt good. (Well it felt good after it stopped feeling bad!) I do about 15km each way and it has formed an integral part of my training for the 24 hour race. The bicycle commute is quicker than the train, beats the heck out of sitting in traffic and is a great way to get fit.

I have entered in a 6 hour race on the 7th June as a warm up event to "The Big One" as I have now named it. The family is coming with me and it will be a great weekend of camping and general shenanigans mixed with a bit of bike riding. http://www.mtbgoldrush.com/ Looks like a great course and if you follow the link there is video of some of the course.

The boys are both very excited and this week they got new sleeping bags to make sure they are warm and toasty for the weekend. My chief mechanic for the race is Rohan, my 4 year old. He is quite handy with the spanners and loves helping out. I usually check his work just as a precaution....... Jack is definitely the team manager. His powers of strategic planning and negotiation should see him as either a politician or a premier league football coach in later life. Trying to win an arguement with him is like trying to win an arguement with myself. My mum says it's pay back. Of course then there is the engine room, Alison. She keeps us fed and watered and even listens with some interest to my musings on riding bikes, camping gear and all things outdoors. Alison loves camping too. I couldn't ask for a better partner in my crazy adventures.

So team Menzies is ready and raring for a big weekend. I will of course post some photos and a report after the race. Stay tuned as it should be quite a read!

24 hours for a good cause.

Well this is my first post on my new blog! The idea behind it is to share my thoughts and experiences as I train for a 24 hour mountain bike race at the end of June, 2009. A lot of my friends have said"You're nuts!" and well, they could be right. The idea of riding a bike offroad for 24 hours solid is daunting even for a bike mad nut like myself but the challenge appeals to me and hopefully the sense of achievement at the end will offset the sore backside and aching body at the finish line.




Enough about the race for now and some about the reason for this blog. Most people reading this blog will know that I have 2 wonderful children! Both boys, Jack and Rohan, and both very active and excited with life. What you may not know is that Jack had a rough start to life and spent some time in hospital from 3 months old to deal with it. He was diagnosed with a tumour on his neck just below the jaw line and had to have it surgically removed. That resulted in a series of other complications that as this blog goes along I will detail.

Jack was given the most amazing care while in hospital. He spent 5 weeks in the Intensive Care unit at Royal Childrens Hospital in Brisbane being cared for 24 hours a day by a dedicated and sensitive bunch of doctors and nurses. I could never thank them enough.












So what's it got to do with a bike race? Well, some of my friends and family have decided that they will sponsor me to do the race with all the proceeds going to "Working Wonders"http://www.workingwonders.com.au/ which is the fund raising foundation for the RCH. I am asking for pledges that will be payed directly to the foundation (I won't collect any money) and I will post them here. Kooky I know, but I figure anything I raise is still more than nothing. Thats it in a nutshell. Laps around a course on a mountain bike starting at midday on Saturday and finishing at midday on Sunday the following day. Sounds like fun huh!