50km; Medium Ride/ moderate Pace/ Some Traffic/ Significant Hills

Starts: 10.00AM;Picton Railway Station carpark. Undulating ride on mainly quiet rural roads with some significant hills.Enjoy rural scenery and orchard country as the ride takes in the towns of Picton, Thirlmere, Bargo and Tahmoor. Lunch at the Bargo Hotel.

5 of us set out for a great ride. The weather was gorgeous and Wollondilly looked it’s best. The route was a figure 8 encompassing Picton, Thirlmere, Couridjah, Bargo, Tahmoor, Thirlmere and back to Picton.

We stopped for a scrumptious lunch at Le Jardin Cafe in the delightful new Tahmoor Garden Centre ( Bargo) and ended with a drink at the historic Imperial Hotel, Picton. As a mum and keen cyclist I found this a very pleasant way to spend Mother’s Day – Thanks Phil.

A crew of nine inspirational young adults will be cycling through Bargo on 3^rd of April 2010 with a mission to inspire youth to think about sustainable consumption in their everyday lives. On arrival in Bargo the bike riders will have covered 1200kms of their 1300km journey.

The Otesha Project (Australia): Cycling for Sustainability launches their East Coast Tour at the Sustainable Living Festival in Federation Square, Melbourne on the 19^th of February. The tour will take them to regional schools along the South East Coast of Victoria and up through the Sapphire Coast to Sydney.

Since 2000, The Otesha Project (Aus.) has pedaled across Australia educating youth and raising awareness about environmental sustainability and social justice issues. Otesha is the Swahili word for ‘reason to dream’ and is the underlining philosophy of the organisation. The Otesha crew combines theatre performance with interactive workshops to empower high school students to consider their life choices to ensure a positive and sustainable future.

Current consumption behaviours in Australia have far reaching consequences that are both unsustainable and inequitable. The negative impacts of these practices usually affect the most disempowered people in society, including young people who now face an uncertain future. For Rachael – tour coordinator – the experience of the bicycle tours is fulfilling on many different levels:

“I’m thrilled to be on tour bringing this important project to regional schools. These tours are the perfect way to inspire youth to be the change of the future. Also it’s just a great and fun experience shared by everyone involved.” she says.

The tour participants from all over Australia have spent the past six months working hard collectively to plan the tour and create the three interactive workshops focusing on some of the major sustainability issues concerning youth: Consumer Choices, Culture Jamming and Food. As well as the workshops the tour will also present their hilarious ‘Morning of Choices’ theatre performance, which encourages the audience to consider their own choices made during an average morning.

The Otesha Project (Australia) is seeking support from your community; any donations of food would be welcomed, and we’d love to engage with other sustainable community initiatives, so please contact Kate Tucker at info@otesha.org.au.

Notes to Editors:

• The Otesha Project (Australia): Cycling for Sustainably – reason to dream

• Currently seeking support as our 9 cycle team members come through your town:

East Coast Tour (19 February – 9 April).

• Contact:

• Email: info@otesha.org.au

• URL: www.otesha.org.au

A crew of nine inspirational young adults will be cycling through Bargo on 3^rd of April 2010 with a mission to inspire youth to think about sustainable consumption in their everyday lives. On arrival in Bargo the bike riders will have covered 1200kms of their 1300km journey.

The Otesha Project (Australia): Cycling for Sustainability launches their East Coast Tour at the Sustainable Living Festival in Federation Square, Melbourne on the 19^th of February. The tour will take them to regional schools along the South East Coast of Victoria and up through the Sapphire Coast to Sydney.

Since 2000, The Otesha Project (Aus.) has pedaled across Australia educating youth and raising awareness about environmental sustainability and social justice issues. Otesha is the Swahili word for ‘reason to dream’ and is the underlining philosophy of the organisation. The Otesha crew combines theatre performance with interactive workshops to empower high school students to consider their life choices to ensure a positive and sustainable future.

Current consumption behaviours in Australia have far reaching consequences that are both unsustainable and inequitable. The negative impacts of these practices usually affect the most disempowered people in society, including young people who now face an uncertain future. For Rachael – tour coordinator – the experience of the bicycle tours is fulfilling on many different levels:

“I’m thrilled to be on tour bringing this important project to regional schools. These tours are the perfect way to inspire youth to be the change of the future. Also it’s just a great and fun experience shared by everyone involved.” she says.

The tour participants from all over Australia have spent the past six months working hard collectively to plan the tour and create the three interactive workshops focusing on some of the major sustainability issues concerning youth: Consumer Choices, Culture Jamming and Food. As well as the workshops the tour will also present their hilarious ‘Morning of Choices’ theatre performance, which encourages the audience to consider their own choices made during an average morning.

The Otesha Project (Australia) is seeking support from your community; any donations of food would be welcomed, and we’d love to engage with other sustainable community initiatives, so please contact Kate Tucker at info@otesha.org.au.

Notes to Editors:

• The Otesha Project (Australia): Cycling for Sustainably – reason to dream

• Currently seeking support as our 9 cycle team members come through your town:

East Coast Tour (19 February – 9 April).

• Contact:

• Email: info@otesha.org.au

• URL: www.otesha.org.au

If anyone can help these girls with donations of either money or food they would be extremely grateful!

As usual this is a gorgeous ride with wonderful scenery. Matt rode his electric assist bike (see blog) which gives him the ability to keep up,  read – thrash us, on the hills. I always have trouble keeping to my diet when we visit the cake shop at Cobbity!

Ride Leader – Phil Rylatt

38km, relaxed pace, some traffic, moderate hills, some cyclepaths, some unsealed roads.

Meet 845am at Rotary Cowpasture Reserve Carpark, Camden Valley Way, Camden (see map) for a 9.am start

A medium circuit ride with a few hills, undulating, mostly quiet country roads with great views of the district. Stop at Cobbitty for coffee and cakes. Highlight is the Brownhill Loop Road (hard packed unsealed section suitable for road bikes)

View from May Farm Rd to Mt. Hunter

Call to confirm, Phil: Ph: 8795 0546 or email
View Highlights of Camden Ride in a larger map

Cancelled due to rain – We will reschedule this one soon

We open the BARBUG year with a Picnic to Nepean Dam.

Meet at Rest A While Reserve Bargo (near station) at 9.30am

Some traffic, quiet roads.

An easy ride out to the Nepean Dam. Here we will sizzle a sausage while Jim and Phil teach us how to:

• correctly set up your bike
• change a tyre
• clean your bike and oil the chain

When our bikes are pristine and happy, we will do a short ride to the entrance of Avon Dam before heading home.
Make sure you bring along a tyre changing kit that includes tyre-levers.

For the more experienced riders a challenging ride to the Avon Dam can also be included.

Call to confirm Sally: 46841444 or email.

Recently a BARBUG member was attacked by a very determined maggie. Twice he swooped, forcefully hitting her helmet. On the third attempt he penetrated the helmet with his foot and got stuck! Poor Janette, here she was trying to stay upright on her bike with a claw scratching her scalp and a very agro magpie flapping furiously above her head! She managed to stop her bike, undo her helmet and throw it to the ground, thus dislodging the angry bird. A very frightening experience for both parties!

After a little internet research I have come up with 2 very informative videos on solutions to this Spring avian problem.

If anyone has any other ideas, we would be delighted to know.

The return ride amazes even more as the road seems to plunge forever downward towards the Nepean Ford. You can only think to yourself, “Did I really ride all that way up?” Then, the climb back  to the entrance gates,  although it is not as hard as the ride up to Avon, on tired legs, seems to never end!

For more information go to: http://www.sca.nsw.gov.au/recreation/upper-nepean-dams

John, Alan, Gina and Jim on Avon Dam Wall

The Nepean Ford

How lucky we are to have these terrific riding opportunities in the Wollondilly Shire. There is something for everyone, no matter what level of fitness.

This was a terrific ride, perfect weather, wonderful scenery and great company! The Brownlow Loop is a  lane winding  through lush fields, past a picket fenced historic farm, complete with an old barn and thatched sheds. The lane is shaded by a very English style hedgerow. You really feel you have been transported to Merry England!

This ride also passes through a very Aussie rural landscape of large horse and cattle grazing properties as well as market gardens. Coffee and cake at Cobbity before heading back to Camden.

Old Bridge on Brownloww Loop

Barn

Thatched Sheds

38km, relaxed pace, some traffic, moderate hills, some cyclepaths, some unsealed roads.

Meet 845am at Rotary Cowpasture Reserve Carpark, Camden Valley Way, Camden (see map) for a 9.am start

A medium circuit ride with a few hills, undulating, mostly quiet country roads with great views of the district. Stop at Cobbitty for coffee and cakes. Highlight is the Brownhill Loop Road (hard packed unsealed section)

Call to confirm, Phil: Ph: 8795 0546 or email
View Highlights of Camden Ride in a larger map

This was a great ride. Perfect weather, interesting scenery, particularly through Belimba Park. A huge lunch at The Oaks Hotel was a great finish

Meet at carpark on the corner of Burragorang and Barkers Lodge Rd (opposite primary school) at 10.00am

A scenic, return ride on quiet roads exploring Oakdale and  surrounding areas

Suitable for most riders,  includes undulating hills and a long easy climb, but nothing major.

Distance – 50k,  pace – medium, some traffic

Call  (46841444) or email Sally to confirm.

Everyone is welcone to our regular Sunday rides. We meet at 9am most Sundays, usually at Rest A While Reserve, Bargo, near the railway station.

I advise you to contact me first, because occasionally this plan varies and we might meet elsewhere.

Call Sally (46841444) or email me from the contact page.

Bargo Bike Rack