Yesterday afternoon I worked on the entrance gate for the Wangaratta Cycling Club who were holding their track carnival. It was a pretty warm afternoon and although I wasn't really doing much, by the end of the Juniors I was stuffed and ready to head home for a BBQ and a quiet beer on the verandah. Before I left I took a few photos of the Juniors going around and I'll post the best of them. 

I reckon this will be my last blog post for 2011 unless I get some divine inspiration at the last minute before midnight, so to anybody reading Happy New Year, I hope it's a healthy,happy and prosperous one for all.

It appears that after the Tour of Bright I am suffering from some form of riding hangover. Talk of the Audax Alpine Classic 200km makes me feel like going on a cruise or the thought of riding 3 hill repeats of Mt Donna Buang with some of the captains crew, had me heading for the flat,busy and over lycra'd Beach Road with another few members of the crew who didn't want to go climbing either. For a country boy who rides mainly on deserted  country roads I would suggest Beach Road is the  exact opposite of my regular riding experience.It's certainly nice to have some company and to check out so many cyclists on the one road outside of an organised event,this surely must be a very unique experience anywhere in the world. For me it's nice to visit and have the experience but I'm glad it's not my usual training ground as it's far to busy for me and a little dangerous I reckon. It would be pretty easy to get taken out by inexperienced riders from what I saw not to mention cars flying past your right leg. I must confess to being pretty happy with all the options for a coffee and I had to venture in to the famous Cafe Racer just to soak up a little of the Urban Cycling scene. Not much different to home really but multiply the riders by a few thousand and the bling factor too.
In the afternoon I had the chance to venture into DISC to have a look at some Junior racing where a couple of local lads from Wangaratta were competing. I had a chat with Dean McDonald who filled me in on some of he rules and how things worked. Dean's son Thomas was racing as well as Tomarsh Loki from Wangaratta whom I have often raced with on the road.I had never been to a Velodrome before and found it very interesting. The steepness of the banks at each end of the track are what really stood out for me. I would love to have a ride on the timber track to feel what it's like. I don't think track racing is something I want to do myself but certainly from a spectators point of view it is very exciting. I'll add a few of the images I took below.The other exciting news  is that my 2012 Cycling Photography Calendar has been sent out by courier from the printers on Friday so should be arriving in Wangaratta early next week. Already more than half of the Calendars  have been sold so I'm hoping I have enough for everyone who is yet to purchase one. They will be available to purchase at West End Bike Hub as well as directly from me.