First ride up Mt Coot-tha!

Today Tim and I celebrated the last public holiday in Queensland before Christmas by cycling up Mt Coottha. It was my first time going up the mountain (glad I’d put my slicks on last night), and boy oh boy did I suck!

Haven’t been out on the bike since the May Day long weekend (when I also rode with Tim, but along the river into town and back), so my lack of fitness really showed going up the first bit past the quarry.

However, what really killed me were my sinuses – dripping taplike and not letting me get enough air in. Had to walk the last 1.5km to the ABC compound, but at least I kept moving.

From there it was a really nice undulation around to the summit proper, and then a bit of speed heading back down.Haven’t gone quite that fast on the bike before, and I was a little nervous, not knowing the turns or the road surface.

I’ll enjoy it a lot more next time we ride it. All up we were gone for 3 hours, going to have to work on shortening that time over the next 6-9 months so that when next year’s Bike Week comes around I can do the Coottha Challenge. A great ride, and a grand day for it.