A Bright’n’Sparkly adventure

Car packed and ready to roll with mandatory almond milk chai latte

Being the stereotypical Melbournian that I am, the road trip up to The Hurt Box training camp in Bright could not begin until I had stopped in at Prospect Espresso in Camberwell to pick up my extra hot almond milk chai latte, complete with instagram hashtags #soyalater #health #wellbeing. Yes, I do need therapy for a slight nut milk/green juice/baked eggs/vegetable/berry/99% dark choc obsession. Feel free to recommend any good therapists.

The sun was shining, ‘Ain’t no mountain high enough’ was blaring from the speakers, the windows were down, the wind was blowing in my hair, and four days of climbing mountains lay before me. Perfect. After my obligatory stop at Oxley Blueberry farm and arrival into Bright, The Master (aka Steggles or Dave Sturt or Supercoach) announced we were spinning the legs out… by riding up Buffalo. I did ascertain that this only mean a few km’s up the mountain by asking how much food I needed to pack – general rule of thumb is a banana per hour. Cycling kit was whacked on, no bananas packed and off we went into the sunset. All very civilized and picturesque.

River pit stop on Mt Buffalo. L-R: Jase, Han, Nicky, Harry and Steggles

Speed forward a mere 16hrs and my thoughts are revolving around staying alive, believing that I am completely crazy, staying upright and chanting the mantra ‘I am soooooooo hot right now’ while being unable to feel/control my hands/toes. And yes for all those smart people out there, I know I can’t usually feel the toes on my right foot but the lack of feeling extended to the toes on my left foot as well. We had managed to avoid the rain for the first 2.5hrs of our 110km Rosewhite/Towonga loop, and one could even suggest that the light drizzle going up the back side of Towonga was rather pleasant. However, the descent down Towonga into Bright, complete with torrential downpour and temperature reduction of 10 degrees, did not make for one happy little vegemite. The end of the world was definitely nigh. Naturally a warm shower, clean clothes, a hot cup of delicious liquorice tea (I will get you there one day Liam!), the trials and tribulations were soon forgotten and power personal bests (PBs) were being compared.

Speedy machine with new sock

While not warm, Day 2 was a marked improvement from Day 1 and saw both a time trial up the back of Towonga (7.5km climb), as well as a time trial on the Tour of Bright time trial course in the afternoon.  Both rides saw personal power PB’s set, mainly fuelled by caffeine to be honest. I believe though that the afternoon time trial speed was a direct result of my bright new orange sock. A camp is not complete without the obligatory BBQ and camp fire. Sunday evening saw all Hurtboxarians and fellow Informarians share a few yarns around the entrancing flame, enjoy some delicious eye fillet steak and gourmet salads, and munch on fresh strawberries for dessert.

Day 3 I had a score to settle with Mt Hotham. As some of you may remember, I had a little incident coming down Mt Hotham on Australia Day this year that resulted in a (small!) hip fracture. As such, I was adamant that I was staying on my bike and getting the better of the mountain. Tick for goal one. Even score for goal two – can’t say I got the better of Hotham during the last few km’s ascending towards the summit, but an overall power PB did soothe the ache in my shattered legs slightly. Next time it will definitely Hannah -1; Hotham – 0 .

All of the Hurtbox Crew and Inform Racing Team

Admittedly we did go up there for the cycling but it is always the people that make your experiences special and help to create the memories. I had an awesome time sharing a cabin at Pioneer Cottages (very friendly cycling accommodation in Bright) with Deb, Liam, Nicky and Jase. The laughs from a few conundrums involving meat-based protein powder (verdict still out on this one), to the classification of milk (almond, cow, human etc), as well as pesky birds eating hotel cookies when doors are left open, still bring chuckles while I am writing this post. Happy to share full details over coffee anytime. Having teammates and coaches who have your back 100% also enriched the camp experience. Some comments may have been passed up the peloton to the Master regarding ‘I will meet you at the top of Hotham’. Just as quickly came the stern retort, ‘Hannah will get back on’. All for one and one for all. Unfortunately I didn’t quite make it up Buffalo on Day 4 given some bone bruising from the cycling leg on the Stumpstinator, now all sorted thankfully, but did enjoy the meander home via the Bright Berry Farm, Miliwa Olive Store, Oxley Blueberry farm, and cherry-van on the side of the road.  There is nothing better than being able to support our local farmers and producers. Also very grateful for all the support from everyone while the Stumpstinator was causing grief, thank you!!

Post time trial effort with Coach Steggles, complete with brilliant photo bomb by Jase

Until next time,

Ride with a purpose, ride with a smile, ride in the moment,

Han