Commuting from Avoca Beach

[wayne1966]

Hi there,

Does anybody else on here commute (by bike of course) from Avoca to Gosford station ?

I never see any other riders on the road. Admitedly I do travel at wierd hours (because I work in Sydney).

It is a lonely ride and I'd love to ride alongside somebody else.

Around 5am, but with a little bit of flexibility.

The roads here are very poor, so my commute is a hard tail MTB, not the road bike.

Cheers.

[wannie]

Wayne, I regularly commute from Avoca - but up to Tuggerah Business Park, not to Gosford Station. But I am more curious about your statement on the roads. I live near the  Ridgway - Cape Three Points Rd intersection, so very regularly use Ridgway, The Round Drive (past the school - never the other way!), Cape Three Points and, of course, Avoca Drive - all on a road bike. If riding to Gosford, I use either Avoca Drive or Cullens Rd  and have never felt the need to ditch the roadie.

Granted, the western half of The Round Drive (ie. fire station to Laird Drv) is shocking, but if you can avoid that stretch I wouldn't have said the roads in Avoca and en route to Gosford are bad - which way do you go?

[Chelsea]

I've done it the other way from gosford to kincumber and back at night, Its ok but I don't like doing it so very late at night for me it's a bit scary riding thru kincumber at 11:30pm.
Thru the day no problem is a great ride with some little climbs

[wayne1966]

I live on The Round Drive near Chapman Cres and I ride down past the fire station, then Avoca Dve all the way to Central Coast Highway.

The Round Drive is falling apart, but that's not the only problem.

Narrow road shoulders without streetlights in the dark are too dangerous on a road bike for mine.

Downhill near the crematorium at 40k + on a 15cm shoulder that is not level.

Of course my bike handling skills are nothing like they were 15 years ago, although they are getting much better on the MTB which is ideal for kerb jumping, etc

Cheers

[wayne1966]

I've done it the other way from gosford to kincumber and back at night, Its ok but I don't like doing it so very late at night for me it's a bit scary riding thru kincumber at 11:30pm.
Thru the day no problem is a great ride with some little climbs

Why so late, Chelsea ? Are you riding home from work at that time ?

[Chelsea]

Hi yea I work out there, but the company I work for changed my shifts around cause they said that it's to dangerious for me out  late on a bike. I agree
now I work to the bus time table that means on Saturdays I work when everyone is racing lol

[Matt]

Its a great area to do a training ride by day - my preferred is out from Bensville, down past Erina High, past TP, climb out through Terrigal, down through Avoca, climbing out the back way to Copa, down Cullen's drive turn up to Macmasters, up the Hill and through Bouddi Nationa Park, down Wards Hill Rd and home - with an option to go down through Kilcare to Wagstaff and back if you havent had enough hills.

A hard but beautiful ride about the same length of the coffee ride without the fumes, danger and abuse.  Maybe we should do it one Sunday morning, starting at Fountain Plaza or TP eh?

[Stu Eddy]

Downhill near the crematorium at 40k + on a 15cm shoulder that is not level.

Cheers

Granted the shoulder is very narrow in that location but 60kph is pretty easy there. The extra bit of speed gets you safely out into the traffic lane away from the shoulder until just past the theatre restaurant.

At least this section of road is the next on the agenda for road widening if the state government doesn't go broke first !

[wayne1966]

Granted the shoulder is very narrow in that location but 60kph is pretty easy there. The extra bit of speed gets you safely out into the traffic lane away from the shoulder until just past the theatre restaurant.

Yes that's true, Stu, but I'm still in the process of regaining my cycle legs after 15 years, so my control of the bike isn't what it used to be. I ride the brakes down there at this stage.

[Chelsea]

Just get in the drops and grip the top tube with your knees works everytime

[Stu Eddy]

Granted the shoulder is very narrow in that location but 60kph is pretty easy there. The extra bit of speed gets you safely out into the traffic lane away from the shoulder until just past the theatre restaurant.

Yes that's true, Stu, but I'm still in the process of regaining my cycle legs after 15 years, so my control of the bike isn't what it used to be. I ride the brakes down there at this stage.

Surely it's just like riding a bike 

[wayne1966]

Granted the shoulder is very narrow in that location but 60kph is pretty easy there. The extra bit of speed gets you safely out into the traffic lane away from the shoulder until just past the theatre restaurant.

Yes that's true, Stu, but I'm still in the process of regaining my cycle legs after 15 years, so my control of the bike isn't what it used to be. I ride the brakes down there at this stage.

Yes, I had a go at it this morning, but still on the MTB. 60km was no problem through there.

[Chelsea]

You picked a great day to start, it was so cold this morning my hands froze to my bars !!

[wayne1966]

Yes, it was cold, but I left home a bit later so it had warmed up a bit by then.

[Chelsea]

Haha it got colder where I was