2014 NOOSA SMIDDY CHALLENGE - FINAL DAY 4 REPORT

Noosa Century ride.

Please note that these stats for the day are off another riders Garmin as I did not ride today.

Distance: 164 km's
Ave speed: 27.8 km/h
Max Speed: 84km/h
Elevation climbed: 1508 metres
Ride time: 5:53:00
Min temp: 15 degrees
Max temp: 32.4 degrees

The final day of the Noosa Smiddy ride was a very different experience for me. You see I promised my body that as of 2014 I would treat it with a greater respect than I have in the past. Last year fatigue and annoying illnesses forced me to rethink my suicide mission of completing each and every Smiddy event on the calendar. A few years ago when we had just two events it was no big deal, but each year as we add events, culminating in eight Smiddy events last year, my body and mind insisted time out please! Hence this year's decision to gradually cut back. So the promise I made to myself and to a bunch of mates, just as insurance to remind me if I tried to change my mind, was to not do the final 160km day of riding in the Noosa Century.

The 6:00am start meant the Smiddy crew needed to be at the start by 5:30am to secure their position at the front of the thousand strong peloton. Alyssa and I were both not riding but still got up early to ride down with the crew and see them off. I had said nothing to the riders about not doing the last day and I got a few strange looks when I pulled off to the side with Alyssa when the starters whistle blew. It was a great starting system this year with the mass start being replaced with a staggered start of 100 riders every two minutes. Word got back to me that the Smiddy crew stayed in the lead right up until the first major climb at 30 kilometres, thanks mainly to the pulling power of a few Cyc's lads doing all the work out front. The Cyc's club is made up of many past and present Smiddy riders and like all Smiddy riders are powerhouses on the bike once they get through their chosen Smiddy event.

Phil Anderson, at 56 years of age, once again showed just what he is capable of doing when he releases the handbrake. For the past three days he was such a gentleman; always hanging back and helping out the riders and never being the first to the top of climbs and harder sections where the group might split up for a regrouping later on. He is a true champion and like all thoroughbreds the legs do the talking when it the time is right. Today was that time. With 20 kilometres to go Phil was in the lead group, as they approached a traffic light that turned red, half the group got through, a few ran the red light and were pulled over by a police car waiting to catch unsuspecting cyclists. Phil did the right thing and made us proud at Smiddy by electing to stop. Smiddy riders do the right thing! What this meant is that he lost the lead group so in his own words he said he just floated in at 40kmp/h with the second group. A nice float speed that pace...!

Alyssa and I stayed on after the riders had cleared out and cheered on the half marathoners doing the Noosa Half. Mainly because a good mate of mine was competing in Russell Wilson. We then joined Russell's wife Carol for breakfast in Hastings Street, before making our way out to Eumundi, which was the 100km point of the ride and where all the Smiddy road crew were decked out in their colourful wigs and variety of noise machines and screaming the house down, not just our guys, but for every person that passed by on their bikes. Jess, Claire, Wendy and Sammi-Jo were screaming machines, and with Garath, Andy, Alyssa and I, joining in with our manly voices (Alyssa has an army voice when she wants to turn it on) the riders could not help be uplifted and inspired to carry on due to our affectionate Smiddy madness. Or maybe they were just keen to get away from us? Regardless, it was a ton of fun, and it made me feel better about not riding. The loudest cheers were of course reserved for the Smiddy riders and what a surprise the road crew got to see the final 20 Noosa Smiddy riders all roll in together at that Eumundi stop. We were besides ourselves with excitement and they all stopped for a lengthy 20 minute break before carrying on to the finish, a further 60 kilometres away at Noosa.

Back at the RACV we waited patiently for all the riders to finish their final day of the Noosa Smiddy event and by 2:00pm all the guys and girls had finished, showered and were lounging around the resort settling in for a relaxing afternoon of eating, drinking and recapping the past four days of Smiddy adventures.

It was such a nice end to the ride and everyone seemed very happy and content in the fact that they had completed their first or second Noosa Smiddy Challenge. Many riders commented that they would be returning next year and bringing their mates along to experience the magic of this event. But I will let you in on a little secret; there is no magic to this event, it is the people that it attracts that creates the magic! Like every Smiddy event that I have had the utmost pleasure of attending, the riders and road crew that we attract, are just beautiful kind hearted individuals that care enough to do something for their fellow human beings.

We are just so grateful that they choose Smiddy and the Mater Foundation to unleash their kindness to. So as there will be no journal reading for this final night, as it is now 9:30pm and all but 15 have made their way home, all my newfound friends will be reading about their final day when they wake up tomorrow morning and log onto my site. To the Smiddy riders, our distinguished road crew, all your family members and all their supporters and donors; a huge heartfelt thank you not only from Smiling for Smiddy and the Mater Foundation, but from me personally. You guys have again succeeded, as many Smiddy riders have in the past, and will do so in the future, to move me in a way that continues to replenish the trust I have in human beings. You all need to hold your head up high with pride in what you have accomplished over the past four days, not just physically and mentally in finishing this tough event, but for the hope you give so many thousands of people out there that are going through their private battle with cancer.

Thank you again my Smiddy friends and please one day honour me with your presence by attending another Smiddy event soon. I can't wait to not only ride with you all again but to revel in the infectious laughter and positive energy that resonates from each and every one of you!

Take care.

Sharky

PS: My Spirit Award jersey today went to Dig In Dougy for his never give in attitude. Dougy lost his beautiful Uncle just 2 weeks ago and rode in memory of him. Nice work Doug and remember what I said mate about setting yourself anther immediate goal. The hard work is done, now revel in the rewards my friend.

And finally my Team Jersey award goes to Chris Geeves, our lead vehicle man. Chris has done so much for Smiddy over the years as a rider and as our driver. He never asks for anything, encourages his entire family to become involved in Smiddy; all 3 children are doing the Midi Smiddy, while his wife Bridgit always helps out as road crew and one day will do one of our events as a rider. Thank you Mr Gentle Geeves, you deserve this one mate!

2014 NOOSA SMIDDY CHALLENGE - DAY 3 REPORT

Noosa-Gympie`-Noosa

Statistics for the day:

Distance: 151 km's
Ave speed: 26 km/h
Max Speed: 87km/h
Elevation climbed: 1566 metres
Ride time: 5:46:00
Min temp: 15 degrees
Max temp: 31.2 degrees

Sharky's Blog Dedication
Today's blog I would like to dedicate to Mr David Smiddy. Unbeknown to anyone but sneaky Jess Ebelt, Smiddy coordinator extraordinaire, David, who lives in Auckland New Zealand, came over here for work next week in Brisbane, decided to arrive early and surprise the group. And what a lovely surprise it was and a real treat for all the riders and road crew. Thank you David, what a legend!

Perfect conditions, guest riders and finally a sleep in!
Well it may not have been the 7:00am start that I promised those riders on Friday, but the 6:30 rollout time in daylight was a whole lot better than yesterday's 5:45am start in the dark. The weather gods were once again kind to us as we were greeted with a picture perfect morning of 15 degrees, no wind and cloudless skies. Talk about hitting the jackpot with regards to the amazingly calm weather we have had for this event. Joining the team today was the founder of the Amy Gillett Foundation Simon Gillett. Simon was Amy's Husband back when she was tragically killed in that senseless accident in Germany in 2005. Simon and his team have campaigned for the rights of cyclists ever since he set up the foundation back in 2006. The Amy Gillett Foundation was instrumental in setting up the recent changes in Qld road rules legislation. Ironically Simon is good friends with the legendary Phil Anderson and just in case you don't know who Phil Anderson is, I am happy to inform you that he was the very first non-European cyclist in the eighties to wear the coveted yellow jersey in the Tour De France and got to wear it on 11 occasions. He finished as high as 5th in 1982 and in his career went on to win over 25 major cycling events around the world, including stage wins in the Tour De France and the Tour of Italy. To say the Smiddy riders were chuffed to ride with him these past three days would be a huge understatement. Phil is a true gentleman and one of the most modest champions you could ever hope to meet.

So for the rest of my day three reports you are going to be treated to a Sharky top ten list of highlights. As of this blog, the heading 'Lows' as in lowlight, does not exist. I was thinking, and while that did hurt my brain, I have decided that everything that happens during a Smiddy event is all a high regardless of the experience. It is called living; challenging oneself, pushing the extremes, all in the name of an excellent cause that one day may just save the life of someone that these guys and girls know. So without further ado here are my top ten highs from today.

Sharky's top 10 Highlights

1.How lucky are we to be living in a state where it is late April and still all that is required for riding is a short sleeve top and bottom? Once again we were greeted with picture perfect conditions of 15 to 31 degrees and we could not have been happier.

2.It would be remiss of me not to mention the work that Captain Kev and Gentle Geevsey do in keeping us, the riders, safe throughout many Smiddy events each year. These beautiful kind hearted -sometimes cranky and bossy- rear and lead car drivers are the salt of the Earth and I would do anything they asked of me, oh except to give up my girl, sorry she is taken boys. Although Kevvy once again had the pleasure of Alyssa's company today when after 100 kilometres her ITB knee war wound began to resurface. Kevvy could not have been happier! :)

3.Mike and Peter Dyer are the sons of the founders of Sealy Posturepedic and very generous with their sponsorship of Smiling for Smiddy and the Mater Foundation for four years now. They are super keen riders themselves and extremely fit. While Peter completed the first two days and had to pull out of today's ride due to gastro, Michael has been struck down by a mysterious virus that has wiped him of all his energy and has not been able to compete at all. Still Michael has stayed involved this weekend by helping out with road crew duties. Thank you Michael and Peter for your amazing support over the years, you should be proud to know that since Sealy began their sponsorship that Sealy has been responsible for raising close to half a million dollars for Smiling for Smiddy and the Mater Foundation to fund cancer research.

4.Today Mark Anthony came up to me just as we finished and was very emotional. Marky does it tough on any of these charity rides as he is not a natural athlete. He gets through each event on physical and mental toughness alone, but it hurts him immensely. Today he shared the story with me that Smiddy rider, Richard Gray, did not leave his side for the last 100 kilometres, helping and encouraging him through a day of suffering that was up there with how bad he felt many times while doing the French Alps Smiddy event last year. So nice work Richard, a true display of Smiddy spirit there my friend.

5.This highlight comes from road crew member Garath Thomas, who shared with me that his Grandfather of 82 years of age was enjoying reading these blogs, his very first experience of reading anything digital other than a newspaper or a book. Apparently he especially liked the fact that I paid out on Garath. So this one is for you Mr Grandfather Bob Hawes; In highlight number 7 you will see I have once again paid out on your most favourite Grandson.

6.Once again a huge thank you to our wonderful friendly massage ladies in Wendy and Sammy-Jo. Who have worked tirelessly on the riders each and every day. Love your work ladies and your caring nature. For those that aren't aware Sammy-Jo was given the nickname last year as 'The Ninja Assassin', for her ability to inflict teeth grinding pain on the riders. Anyone that has had Sammy-Jo begs for Wendy next please? The amazing thing about Sammy-Jo is that she weighs just 22kg, no exaggeration! And stands just 4ft 8" and is even stronger than Garath after his has consumed 4 Red Bulls straight and just done a set of 100 reps working his guns with a half kilogram dumbbell.

7.Jeremy Hanrahan made the mistake of telling me that he was thinking of shaving his legs for the very first time. At morning tea he was put on display in front of the entire crew and it was suggested that if each rider and road crew chipped in $20 each would he not only wax his legs, but do the bikini line as well? His answer was yes and everyone present agreed that it was worth $20 bucks out of their pocket to see Jeremy in extreme pain while lying there in his jocks! $800 was raised from this venture and our old mate is now walking very funny. And thanks to One Spar at the RACV resort for donating some wax when the girls ran out of the store brought stuff. On a side note one of his friends on Facebook said that he would not donate for the waxing but would give him $50 if he stopped wearing Croc sandles.

8.Riding with Phil Anderson. Do your research on this great champion. I am nearly the same age as Phil and I followed his career from start to finish. I know everytime Phil was within spitting distance of me I would attempt to dance on the pedals like Phil does, I would drink and eat when Phil did, when stopping and waiting for a regroup I would stand with one cleat on the rear wheel like Phil does, I would flex my calves, willing them to become larger like only Phil's calves can, but mainly I would look behind as if assessing the competition like Phil use to do when racing as a pro and try and mimic the square jaw intimidating look that only Phil could do back then. Yep I am happy to say I, We, were pretty chuffed to have Phil riding with us these past three days.

9.Today Duncan Flynn came up to me at the lunchtime stop at Kin Kin Park and thanked me and the team at Smiddy for the organisation of the Noosa Smiddy. He explained that he was having a great time and enjoyed the challenges the event had thrown at him. Thank you Duncan and all the other riders and road crew for your involvement, for without you guys there would be no Noosa Smiddy.

10.Christian Killeen I know works for us at Smiddy but I have to mention the guy's balls are made of brass. What he does in that peloton to keep us safe is a joy to watch. At one point on the road today he was stopping cars from coming up behind us on a bend as he knew there were cars coming the other way and a possible head on collision was imminent. Unbelievable they obeyed and he then waved them through. Nice work old mate.

Well as I have to wrap up this blog so that it can be read out I know with the guest speakers of Phil Anderson, Simon Gillett and a researcher from the Mater in Jim Howard that we are in for a treat tonight at the RACV function room.

Tomorrow the riders still have a final 160 kilometre ride to get through, the official Noosa Century ride which begins at 6am. The Smiddy crew have the privilege of leading out the entire Noosa Century ride, which attracts thousands of riders. I am telling you we have some pretty strong riders in the group and they get their chance tomorrow to show off their form. As once that gun signals the start it is a free-for-all and the Smiddy peloton is no-more until the third edition of Noosa Smiddy in 2015. Stay tuned for my final wrap up of tomorrow's happenings.

Spirit and Team work Jersey award winners.
Today's Team work jersey went to Richard Gray for his devotion to looking after his new best Smiddy friend Mark Anthony. The Spirit jersey was awarded to Alison Purvis from Townsville who has been doing it tough the past two days but is hanging in there.

Cheers.

Sharky

2014 NOOSA SMIDDY CHALLENGE - DAY TWO REPORT

Noosa-Montville-Noosa

Statistics for the day:

Distance: 145km
Ave speed: 26.4km/h
Max Speed: 97.3 km/h By Kurt Kratmann and Mark Anthony
Elevation climbed: 1538 metres
Ride time: 5:28:00
Min temp: 14 degrees
Max temp: 33.9 degrees

Welcome once again to my day two report from the annual Noosa Smiddy Challenge. Well a little bit of Smiddy history took place on what was another glorious day in paradise. As I sit here in my air conditioned room at the luxurious 4 star RACV resort, preparing to tell totally true tales of our day on the road, I find myself having a little extra time to reflect. You see ever since Smiling for Smiddy events began in 2006 I have never missed a day or a single solitary kilometre of riding in 9 years. Today my luck did not run out, it just took a slight detour. But more on that later...

Roll out and the sleep in that never happened
Before I go any further let me regress back to the start of the day, actually back to last night at our barbecue dinner that the RACV provided. First up it was a meal fit for a king and we had 40 kings and queens that totally earned that amazing feast after a long day on the road from Brisbane. Anyway the table I was gifted to sit at contained the legendary and all round nice guy, Phil Anderson, and a few cheeky trouble makers that I will not name, Harry, Jeff and Martin, whoops sorry did I just write that...? Who quizzed me on our leave time for today's ride? Well like any good founder I knew absolutely nothing and told them the news they so desperately needed to hear, that it was indeed a 7am roll out, which for a Smiddy event is a massive sleep in. All were happy and I was popular. Then Jess gets up after my journal reading and informs everyone that roll out was in fact at 5:45am. I was now a jester and my head was coming off!

A morning worth a million dollars
The early start was mandatory as we had a Anzac Day service to attend at Mapleton; 61 kilometres away and on top of a very large and pain inflicting mountain. So after Matt delivered a whispered safety brief in the driveway of the RACV, so as not to wake up any of the other residents, we were on the road right on time at 6:00am! That first 50 kilometre section of riding was one that you dream of happening and when it does you can't quite believe your luck. The road service was smooth, traffic very light, a nice crisp dewy taste to the air we were fortunate enough to breathe into our lungs, a skyline of subdued orange with a tint of golden pink as the sun began to make a most welcome appearance and the icing on the cake was the 30 magnificent golden warriors astride our trusty steads in perfect formation and floating through this nirvana of a morning as would a peloton of seasoned pro's that have raced together for a decade. Yes it was a very special morning indeed and we were on our way to pay our respects to the great Anzacs that gave us the freedom we enjoy today.

The climb up to Mapleton and the Anzac Day service
Now the last 10 kilometres was all up and except for the last kilometre up a 14% gradient it was actually an enjoyable climb. That last K sucked the life out of your legs and lungs and replaced it with concrete in your legs and asbestos into your lungs. That glorious morning I was boasting about before was replaced with a brutal sun that seemingly enjoyed physically melting your muscles before your eyes. Now without any exaggeration at all our heaviest sweaters in the peloton was a draw between Harry Nina and Dougy Clayton. Prior to the climb both lads weighed in at 75 and 82 kilograms. By the top they had been reduced to the weight of our most petite and lovely lady rider Paula Castle from Cairns, who is a touch under 50kg. True story and our deepest apologies to family and friends who may not recognise their love ones on their return home. Anyway our supportive road crew were at the top welcoming everyone in with much enthusiasm. I would like to point out how enjoyable it was to hear road crew legend Claire Schneider clap louder than a small flea. You see at roll out, this bubbly effervescent young lady, had to contain her excitement in
respect for people that actually have the hide to sleep in past 5:30am!

After all the riders arrived and added to the flowing stream of sweat whisking back down the mountain in great rivulets, there was no time to eat as the Anzac service was about to begin. Atop Mapleton about 200 people stood or sat through what was a beautiful, thoughtful, moving but extremely long lasting service. I knew it was long when one of the children in a small choir, who were singing a remembrance song, actually fainted. She was quickly attended to and the service wrapped up shortly after. The MC actually acknowledged and thanked us, the sporting group, for attending and a very kind lady donated $20 once she found out what we were raising money for, which was lovely and most appreciated by the group. The rush for the toilets and food was then on and 15 minutes later Kevvy blew the 5 minute whistle for roll out.

Razor Back descent provides light entertainment
From there we travelled 10 kilometres of seriously painful rolling hills up to Monteville and entered the infamous Razor Back descent. Prior to the descent a lady raced over and gave Kevvy a $20 donation. No details given but we think she may have been at the Anzac service. Anyway the Razor Back, with a name like that we expected, and received, a descent to rival the Dream World ride called 'The Drop'. Top speed recorded by Kurt Kratzmann and Mark Anthony was a staggering 97.3km/h. I am extremely happy to advise you readers that Kurt and Anthony are alive and kicking, although their hair definitely got messed up by the wind! My beautiful Fiancee has a fear of descents and opted to get in the car with Captain Kev, of which Kev was so pleased about that he did not wish to relent possession of my most favourite girl once the bottom was reached. On another note Rob Buick displayed amazing skill to stay upright when his rear tyre blew out while sitting on 60km/h. Nice work Rob and a change of cycling pants awaited him at the bottom! Pardon the pun...

Sharky getting soft in his middle age
Halfway down the descent I stopped to take photos of the group and accidentally dropped my bike while it was leaning up against me. Unbeknown to me I had bent the rear derailler. Our master mechanic and all round awesome most fun loving and bestest greatest sponsor in the world, Matty Mathew Hopper, noted that my derialler was bent and he would adjust it at lunch. Just 5 kilometres later, at the 90km mark, a sharp right turn up another ridiculously steep climb, I changed down to my easiest gear and the derailler ended up wedged into the spokes of my back wheel. My stop was instant and two riders, Bill Maddock, who works at the Mater and is one of the nicest blokes you could ever hope to meet, except for our mechanic Matty Matt Hopper of course, and the most elite athlete you could ever hope to meet in Tim Dalton, got to visually inspect the crack of my bottom as they narrowly missed it by less than an eyelash. Nice reflexes boys! Anyway the end result; irreparable on the road and I was out for the rest of today's ride. My first non finish in 9 years of Smiddy events. Kevvy was beside himself with excitement. For 8 years he has always said to me; "Sharky your time will come and when it does I will be there!" Think of an evil gnome promising to eat your ankles one bite at a time over a 24 hour period and that sums up the grin that Kevvy had on his face when I jumped into the van for the very first time. One of the boys noted I was soft as the front wheel stilled turned and why couldn't I just ride on the front wheel? On a side note thank you Matty Mathew Hopper for attempting to fix my bike, which as I write this is still underway. Such a nice bloke that Matty Mathew Hopper... Have I mentioned he is a top bloke?

Lunch and home for a shower and blog
After lunch at Muller Park at the South Maroochy River Crossing, I bid farewell to the peloton as they pushed off for the final 50km fling home. I was in the car with Garath and Andy who were showing me how hard it was for them doing road crew duties as the aircon only went as low as 18 degrees... I felt for them. I got back to the unit, ate and showered and started on the blog while waiting patiently for my new friends to arrive safely, which they did at 2:50pm and their looks of exhilaration mixed with fatigue and exhaustion was a look I knew and felt so well. Another world first happened today when I asked to do the huddle in the shade of the huge 3 carport garage. The privilege went to Rob Buick for his amazing fundraising efforts and for staying alive on that descent so that I could actually bestow this honour on him!

Tonight is a barbecue put on by a trusty and gorgeous -except for Garath- road crew, down by the Noosa River, where I will no doubt get bitten 1701 times by mosquitos and midges and all the riders and road crew will like me as they will be spared thanks to my supreme sacrifice.

Special jerseys for special people
Each night we have a team and spirit jersey that we hand out to those that go out of their way to help their fellow riders. Last night we were so excited by the food and the fact that we were treated to having in our midst one the greatest cyclists Australia has ever produced in Phil 'Skippy' Anderson. So those jerseys will be awarded tonight and handed the Spirit jersey to first Andy Loney, volunteer extraordinaire and one of the most helpful polite gentleman you will ever meet. And Wendy McQueen, the team jersey for her exquisite massage hands and friendly beautiful personality.

Today's team jersey went to Martin Millard for not only his really bad jokes and witty sarcasm, but for being the pushing machine when he single handedly got Dig In Doug Clayton up to Mapleton. Nice work old mate. And it would be remiss of me not to award the Spirit jersey to Matty Mathew Hopper for not only fixing my bike (hopefully) but for all the pushing he has done over the last 2 days.

We will see you tomorrow for blog number 3.

Take care.

Sharky

2014 NOOSA SMIDDY REPORT - DAY ONE

Brisbane to Noosa

Statistics for the day:

Distance: 162km
Ave speed: 26.1kph
Max Speed: 77.3kph
Elevation climbed: 1726mtrs
Ride time: 6:11:00
Min temp: 12 degrees
Max temp: 31.5degrees

Welcome to my first blog since the Noosa Triathlon back in October last year. In this ninth year of Smiddy events our first cab off the rank for 2014 is the Noosa Smiddy. This years event has attracted 28 male and 4 absolutely gorgeous stunning and incredibly beautiful females. One in particular, just may be my Fiancee Alyssa Coe, but as I can't be seen to be having favourites, I can't actually confirm this fact...

The roll out
So onto today's 162 kilometre ride from Brisbane to Noosa. Our departure point was from the UQ Aquatic Centre, who have been supporters of Smiddy events since 2006 up until the present day. A huge thank you to pool manager Jae Marr and staff for allowing us to use their facilities many times throughout the year. After a friendly welcome speech from Smiddy leader Matt 'Cant find my Wheel' Marshall and a safety brief from Christian 'Killer' Killeen, and with Mike Dyer given the honour of ringing the infamous Kevvy Cow Bell, the peloton rolled out at 6:15am and spent the next hour getting every possible red light out of Brisbane. I mentioned our run of red lights to the rider beside me and he, John Hartley, admitted that it was his fault... Something about being a magnet for red lights. While red lights were an annoyance for some, my old mate from Sydney, Mark Anthony, who completed the French Alps Smiddy Challenge last year, who actually detests anything uphill, was actually quite happy with anything red or downhill as it provided an opportunity for a nice rest.

Matt the mechanic
Meanwhile Matty Hopper, who is the owner of AvantiPlus Bikes in The Valley, and was kindly donating 4 days of his valuable time as our bike mechanic, was kept busy right from the get go. First up with a rider Ben Scully in the first 50 metres, who's electronic gears weren't working, and then Harry Nina at 10 kilometres in, suffered a faulty carbon seat post that kept slipping down to BMX proportions. Matt rides in the peloton along with the other riders and pulls up as mechanicals happen, allowing the rest of the riders to continue on. They then either ride back on if they are strong enough, or Kevy vans them and gets them back up to the peloton. Anyway I know Matt was kept busy all day and after the ride servicing bikes, so mate please know that all the riders are very appreciative of your support. Matt and his beautiful Wife Mel are sponsors of Smiddy and just maybe they may be at the dinner tonight when I read this out. Who knows? Anyway I would just like to say if all the riders rode Scott or Avanti bikes there would be no mechanicals! Boom! Sponsorship secured for 2015!

The two P's
Today Smiddy history was created when we actually stopped at a school, the Genesis Christian College at the 26 kilometre mark, not to deliver a sun-safe message, not to give an educational talk to the students about Smiddy and not for students to lather copious amounts of zinc onto our Smiddy rider's faces, which happens often on the Smiddy Challenge ride from Brisbane to Townsville. No, we were actually invited to stop there to pee. So without further adu, I would like to, on behalf of Smiling for Smiddy and the Mater Foundation, thank this wonderful school for allowing us this luxury. I do hope no riders abused their trust and did anything other than a number 1. A show of hands please if guilty? So that was the first P.
Now the second P involved a P Plater driver, who had an immense love for his horn. His angst towards our motley friendly and happy lot of Smiddy ambassadors was clearly shown as he proceeded to handle his horn in a very manly like fashion, applying firm pressure to it from the moment he entered into the slip stream of the back of the peloton, right up until 17 kilometres after he had passed us! Now while he demonstrated his immense maturity to us lowlifes out here riding and raising money that will one day actually save his life when he gets cancer, I must acknowledge the groups incredible restraint not to say anything or even give him the bird. And there you see is the difference between P Platers with no patience, and Smiddy riders who care enough about our cause and their fellow rider to not retaliate. I could not have been prouder of you lot!

Our road crew rock
No Smiddy event goes ahead or is successful without these amazing people that give up their time and even fundraising as well. Today our lead driver Mr Geevsey and rear driver Captain Kev kept us safe and sound from not only the P Platers but from the impatient motorists that hate being held up any longer than a nano second. Thank you Sammi Jo and Wendy for making yourselves available to massage the weary and very much appreciative riders. Thank you to Claire, Jess and Andy for all the running around you all do preparing food, (the morning tea and lunches were simply amazing) sorting rooms, getting our day bags, listening to our complaints about P Platers and for the hugs. And last but not least thank you to Garath for providing the wittiest humour and wickedest laugh of any human being on this planet. Oh yeh but you suck at finding my day bag mate! I have already mentioned Matt and what he is doing for the riders out on the road but thank you again my friend.

Lunch and the other Upper Wall
Our morning tea stop was at 62km's at Centenary Park Caboolture and the group was chomping at the bit to push off and get to the lunch stop at Kolora Park Palmwoods, especially Mark from Sydney, as we now know how much he loves climbing. You see, the talk of the day was the wall like climb that peaked out at 22% gradient up Kiel Mountain road. The only other climb that compares to this is the Upper Wall in Toowoomba, that the Midi riders get to do in May. This climb is not as long but just as nasty, so with full stomachs the climb began in earnest, gradual at first and even some downhills to lull the riders into a false sense of security, but around the next bend and you are greeted with a climb so ridiculously steep, that it would not have looked out of place at Dream World as the worlds highest roller coaster ramp. It was only short but heart rates maxed out in 30 seconds, riders fell off; good one Melissa, I, along with a dozen others, saw your glorious dismount and final resting place in the middle of the road (she was not hurt just wounded pride) some walked, some yelled obscenities, others phoned a friend for help and those that made it without walking were ordering trophies at the top via their iPhones to be collected in Noosa! Yep it was a tough mother and I hope I never see it ever again! On a side note the nasty side of me came out as I rode a little way back down to take photos of the riders walking. I am mentioning no names but if you friend me on Facebook I have uploaded the photos for all to see. But seriously, all jokes aside; it mattered not how you got to the top, the important thing was you got to the top. Oh and Marky I did spot you getting into the van with Kevy at the bottom. Nice move mate, keeping yourself fresh for the bigger climbs to come over the next 3 days. You are very wise!

Tailwind home and the first huddle
With the small Upper out of the way and a nice flat ride for the remaining 40 kilometres into Noosa and the last 20 with a tailwind, the group made excellent time to finish the days stage into the Noosa RACV Resort just before 3pm. I took the first huddle and told the group about my first ride in 2006 where just me and two mates tried to bring the huddle in to play, but with just 3 blokes it was just plain silly back then and my mates quickly tired and refused to hug me for the rest of the trip. But now it is firmly entrenched as a Smiddy tradition since 2007 and I got to hug my new 30 Smiddy riders and 8 road crew. Thank you crew for embracing it with the Smiddy spirit that I know you all possess.

I will be uploading photos from each day within the peloton to my Facebook site. Just search for Mark Sharky Smoothy and friend me if you wish to see them.

Until tomorrow.

Sharky