So...I landed about a week ago in Sydney city (in Surrey Hills now), and I'll be here for the next three months. I brought my bike, and am itchin to ride. I'm not too nuts about taking the train out to the Blues everytime I get the urge, but really want to ride, and will take what I can get. If anyone wants to take a chance on a new riding pardner, I'll buy the first post-ride round of beers! Adios - S

ps. I ride a rigid SS, so no crazy DH-type shuttle runs. Or not too many, at least!

So...I landed about a week ago in Sydney city (in Surrey Hills now), and I'll be here for the next three months. I brought my bike, and am itchin to ride. I'm not too nuts about taking the train out to the Blues everytime I get the urge, but really want to ride, and will take what I can get. If anyone wants to take a chance on a new riding pardner, I'll buy the first post-ride round of beers! Adios - S

ps. I ride a rigid SS, so no crazy DH-type shuttle runs. Or not too many, at least!

You should make it down to Tasmania for a ride... Its a great place to see too...

So you willing to come to the North shore??
But please go easy, I hear you SS'ers are fast:D And I am a younger.

Sdizzle
When did you say you would be heading up to sunny Brisbane??
Let me know and we will organise some riding up here for you.
Cheers
TR

anytime....

i'm planning a ride to the oakes either this saturday or next saturday????

interested?

i don't think there aren't many places to ride around where u r.....

manly dam aint too far

come on, surry hills is near central.. one train straight out to the blueys

my m8 used to do it all the time

anytime....


come on, surry hills is near central.. one train straight out to the blueys

my m8 used to do it all the time
Just make sure to check City Rails website before heading out to see if theres any trackwork scheduled. If theyre doing weekend trackwork they`ll have buses running instead of trains :eek:
Cheers

i'm planning a ride to the oakes either this saturday or next saturday????

interested?

Yep, definately. Why don't you email me at sdanielbullock AT hotmail DOT com? We can discuss it further. I've no obligations at all, so anytime is good. Thanks - Stefan

ok, it is confirmed... just checked with some ppl....

saturday oakes fire trail is good to go

train arrives in woodford 10:33am.... i'll be hoppin' on the train @ parramatta at 9:30am

if there are any train probs, then i can drive up...

at this point i know of 4 ppl coming...

myself with the VT3
collegue with her trek 4300
her husband with his iguana disc
a mate with an AC... and his buddy....

just check 131500.com.au for when the train leaves central

feel free to call me on the morning or night before to confirm it is happening

apparently my mate knows of some single track diversion a the end of the oakes

rob 0411663349 (optus) or 0404099874 (voda - only on during freetime)

OK. I'll be there. Meet you at the Woodford station? The timetable I just checked shows arrival at 10:31 am (not 10:33). I'll be on this:

<img src='http://gallery.consumerreview.com/webcrossing/images/IMG_0010(22).jpg'>

Adios - Stefan

nice ride!

i'll try to take the second carriage...

email me your mobile number, in case for some reason there is a hiccup

robalert@hotmail.com

Hi,

You can ride with us if you want.

You will find most Sydney offroad rides are pretty hilly so the Single is not the best option.

If you want to come out with us one Saturday morning we ride the Pennanthills area which has some nice fire trails and it is a 30-40 minute train ride up from the city. We usually ride for 3-4 hours with a coffee stop every saturday morning.

If you want you can borrow my old giant ranier. It is in good nick and has gears which are handy going up the step sections. It is a 21" though.

Drop me a message.

Hi,

You can ride with us if you want.

You will find most Sydney offroad rides are pretty hilly so the Single is not the best option.

I'm out here from Colorado, damn near dead-smack in the mountains, and my SS is my only bike. I'm used to the hills - I'm skinny with long legs, and use long cranks and an easy gear. I've done day-rides with 4000 ft of climbing in them, and don't anticipate finding rides like that around here. We'll see though! :p I typically ride it with a Minute One up front, which saves the wrists a bit (and lets me go MUCH faster downhill), but didn't want to risk maintenance in a far off land.

If you want to come out with us one Saturday morning we ride the Pennanthills area which has some nice fire trails and it is a 30-40 minute train ride up from the city. We usually ride for 3-4 hours with a coffee stop every saturday morning.

If you want you can borrow my old giant ranier. It is in good nick and has gears which are handy going up the step sections. It is a 21" though.

Drop me a message.

Count on me for the following Saturday. I'm off to the Blues this week, but will certainly join you ten days out. Thanks for the invite, and I look forward to riding with you! S

Trevors on the ball, you need to catch the boat down to tassie!!

How do you find the surly fork?? Is it the 1 by 1 or instigator fork you've got there?

Having fun in Aus??

Cheers, Dave.

just got back

had a good ride.... finally worked out that there is something wrong with my swinger

stefan, thanks for a great time and sorry to be holding you back all the way

really enjoying chatting to you and learning from your wealth of info.....

like ur style :)

we met heaps of people on the way up, everyone was chatty and friendly

really good atmosphere on the oakes

busier than i expected though

here are some pics

and another one :)

Good stuff!! It's cool to put a face to the names!!

*wishing I could jump on that damn boat and come over for a few weeks....*

Cheers, Dave.

Hi check your private messages for my email address.

Plan to leave Pennant hills station at around 7:06 or 7:36am on Saturday depending on which train you plan on catching.

See Timetable for trains from the city to pennant hills via strathfield

http://www.cityrail.info/timetable/ttable.jsp?line=nt&day=we&dir=dn&page=02

I am away mon/tue/wed so if you dont get a response from me that is why.

PS anyone else interested come too if you want - post me a private message with your email address. I will fill you in with an email on thursday night.

The ride is about 3-4 hours with a coffee stop at linfield - through mainly fire trails and a little bit of road riding(no cars) pennant hills / lane cove national park. Level of difficulty easy-medium; fitness level quite fit (but not iron men).

Regards.

the pennant hills ride is pretty good

u do coffee just near the 7thday adventist hospital off comenarra?

very BUMPY.... but good fun....

one day, when i am freer... i'll do the penno one with the local, we got lost in there a few times and noted that bikes were not welcome in some parts

don't worry about sdizzle keeping up.... he really flies... though getting air is his excuse to avoid bumps....

he has speed and skillz, and obviously i have none....

also, i learnt heaps riding with him

:cool:

Saturdays are always a good day to ride the Oakes, lots of people to chat with on the train and on the ride :)
Cheers

Hey SDizzle,

Welcome to Sydney. While the Oaks is perhaps the most popular mountain bike trail around Sydney and in particular it is not a bad ride as an up and back however I think it does not represent a good picture of the quality of riding around Sydney. The single track at the Glenbrook end used to be better before people started to cut straight through the switchbacks.

I have three recommendations for you. (not in any order)

1, Wisemans Ferry - Old Great North Road to Ten Mile Hollow, Mangrove Creek, Return (~60km). A mixture of more technical rocky trail, fast fire road and some good climbing. A blast to ride up and a blast to ride back down, however the only way to get there is by private transport.

2, Katoomba Narrow Neck out and back. While it is only short and the riding is not overly interesting but the scenery is well worth the effort. It offers a great view of the Blue Mountain around Katoomba. While there are other tracks that branches off at the end, they are either illegal or require some serious navigation.

3, Canberra – Singletrack city. There is nothing like it in Sydney. A chance to see our Capital too.

Enjoy,
Wayne

PS if you want more info just ask!

So...I landed about a week ago in Sydney city (in Surrey Hills now), and I'll be here for the next three months. I brought my bike, and am itchin to ride. I'm not too nuts about taking the train out to the Blues everytime I get the urge, but really want to ride, and will take what I can get. If anyone wants to take a chance on a new riding pardner, I'll buy the first post-ride round of beers! Adios - S

ps. I ride a rigid SS, so no crazy DH-type shuttle runs. Or not too many, at least!

If I live in Sydney, would like to come along, but I'm in VIC.

Anyone interested on doing the same thing "social ride" in VIC?

By-the-way, looks as though you people had a good time in NSW by just looking at the pics :D


cheers
My HangOut = www.hangmore.com.au

Welcome to Sydney. While the Oaks is perhaps the most popular mountain bike trail around Sydney and in particular it is not a bad ride as an up and back however I think it does not represent a good picture of the quality of riding around Sydney. The single track at the Glenbrook end used to be better before people started to cut straight through the switchbacks.

That's good news. Oakes was all the fun it was only because of the people I met on the way! It's like a highway through the woods... It was nice to get out on my bike, but fire roads are fire roads are fire roads. I'll look up the rides you mention; unfortunately, the only ones I can make will be those accessed by train (unless anyone wants to drive me!). I heard Canberra was awesome, laden with paved and unpaved bike trails, and am certainly dismayed by the general treatment of cyclists in Sydney City by motorists - you guys are worse than Chicago!

Thanks for the awesome ride on Saturday, and I look forward to riding with ya'll again soon. We took our time getting out of the park, and missed those who we said we'd join for coffee - sometime soon, I hope. (I don't think they'd ever heard of MTBR though!) Thanks to wotzinsertcorrectspellinghere especially - it was nice to meet you, and hope to see you soon. Want to join us in/around Pennant Hills this weekend? I'll wait for you if no one else will... :p

Adios - S

Low Rider - The Surly fork is the 1 x 1 model, and it's pretty nice. It's stiff as all hell, but I've no comparitive experience on other rigid forks. It's steel, and has some inherent give, but it's minimal at best; carbon bars help a lot (which I now have). The biggest thing about it is how short it is. With the Minute on my bike (nevermind the Z1 SL - pseudo-moto), my head angle is probably 67ish - with the Surly, it's 72ish. It's like an aggrandized BMX bike! You guys have you share of bumps out here, and I'm sort of wishing I'd brought the Minute along instead; rigid forks require sick amounts of concentration and pain tolerance! Big bumps are one thing, but chatter is another...

Hi, I've got Wednesday rostered off.

If you want to check out the Royal National park, thats where I'm planning on heading.

Give me a call at the shop if you interested, 9586 0138

Chris @ The Bike Shed

Hi, I've got Wednesday rostered off.

If you want to check out the Royal National park, thats where I'm planning on heading.

Give me a call at the shop if you interested, 9586 0138

Chris @ The Bike Shed

Where is that, in VIC or NSW?
I did a search and it came up as NSW Royal National park....lol

cheers

Stefan, thanks for the comments on the fork!

I was pretty sure it was a 1 x 1, because the instagators don't have any curve down the legs, the forks rake come from the joint at the top. (I think, don't quote me!!)? For somereason I'm looking forward to the fully rigid brain-rattling experience again.....

Cheers, Dave.

Instigators are also about 30 mm longer A - C, and KMs are about 30 mm longer than that. If you're replacing a sussy fork on a frame designed for a 5" travel fork, go whole hog for the KM - it's still about 50 mm shorter than a saggy Z1. I went from Z1 to 1 x 1 (about the same A - C as a SID), and it's a sick kind of scary at speed on any kind of hill. The Instigator would have been a much better choice for sure, but it weighs about 5 lbs (2 + kilos). The KM fork is a bit lighter and still damn near unbreakable, like most Surly gear. That said, if you're using a xc racing-type frame, the 1 x 1 is probably perfect.

Whatever the case, all of them will shake your teeth loose. Perhaps that's not the case with some of the more bling-y Kelly and Spicer forks, especially the Ti models, but I'd never be convinced of a sub-2 lb Ti fork, even less so for upwards of USD$200! Surly gear is cheap, heavy, and sturdy like no other.

Where is that, in VIC or NSW?
I did a search and it came up as NSW Royal National park....lol

cheers

The Royal National Park is in NSW. It is in southern Sydney, and basicly limits the urban sprawl down the coast towards wollongong.

From central Sydney the easiest way to get there is to catch the train south to Loftus (about 25 min) and ride another 5 min south in the bike lane next to the Princes Hway. The is also a council provided parking lot at Loftus oval.

I'll most probably be back there Sunday or Monday making my Id look bad ;)

For anyone interested in joining me call the shop on (02) 9586 0138 or e-mail me directly c_pratley @ hotmail. com to arange a time and how to identify ourselves.

Chris @ The Bike Shed

Yeah,

I think I remember you too. Riding up the steep concrete fire trail to Pennant hills park one Saturday I saw you on the VT and asked you what it was like. I was contemplating getting one and made some stupid coment like I wish I had the money to buy one.

PS - ended up getting a Jamis XLT2 which is great for me as it is quite big and I'm 6'6" tall. My backside has never been happier now that I have the rear suspention.

Stefan,

The fork is going to be on a 1 x 1 frame anyway...... I was just interested to hear your thoughts. I might end up with something a bit taller to slacken the headangle a bit, we'll see how it rides first though.

Cheers, Dave.