Thread: 3 and 5 Dams Challenge WA

Today was the day of the 3 and 5 Dams Challenge here in WA. I completed the 3 Dams for the second time last year being my first time. I know Jaybo is a regular in the 5 Dams challenge. For those that don't know what it is its a cycling event here in WA that takes in 3 or 5 Dams in the Perth Hills. We start at Curtin Uni and ride out to Midland up Greenmount to Mundaring, head to Mundaring Weir then Canning Dam and Wungong Dam down to Armadale, back to the Freeway cycle path to Curtin Uni for the finish. The 5 Dams riders go in a slightly different order and include Churchman Brook and Serpentine Dam. The 3 Dams ride is 145km and according to my Strava over 1,800m of climbing. The 5 dams is around 250km and more climbing. I don't want to know how much. (237km and over 2,500m of climbing according to Jaybo's strava)

Last year was my first attempt and I was woefully unfit as I hadn't been riding much. I was ill-prepared, didn't have the right gearing and paid the price. It was my worst ever day in the saddle. This year I've got back on the bike riding to work everyday and have done over 1,000km each month. Today it showed. I wasn't the fastest out there but I was over 2 hours faster than last year and still had some fuel in the tank at the end. It was probably my best ever day in the saddle and every time I thought I was fatiguing I found a bit more and was able to push through it.

Some of the highlight of the day include coming down Albany Hwy into Armadale in a pack sitting on 65kmh and doing nearly 50kmh on the flat with a tailwind after 115km in the saddle

All in all I'm pretty happy with how the day went. Now I'm just waiting for the official results to see how I went even though it wasn't a race.

This reminds me of my very first "gentle" Sunday club run with our local bike racing club in the UK many moons ago. Off we went at about 0700hrs complete with small packs on our backs with a bit of grub to sustain us, target was a well known bike race where we'd sit at the top of a long long hill and watch the riders sprint for the honour of being the first up.
A great ride there, I was young and fit with a good new bike decked out with all the best Italian and French etc. gear. Full of enthusiasm. BUT 200 kays later I was so absolutely buggered my elder bro and his mate were pushing me up the slightest hill to home and bed where I slept for about a week!
All forgotten by the next weekend and I was back in the saddle for yet more fun on the bike.....
AlanH.

PS. Wish I could get on a bike and do it now but fell off the last time I tried.