The family holiday shortly after the worlds in Wollongong was cut short by an infected finger and subsequent surgery and hospital stay, but the day before things turned sour I enjoyed a fantastic ride on Queensland’s Sunshine Coast.
– A blog and video by Rob Arnold
The video that goes with this story (below) is a little of a what-I-did-on-holidays feature, with plenty of arbitrary comments as I enjoyed my only ride while away with the family for a week. Before the finger infection went from bad to nasty, it was possible to get a taste of the bike path network on the Sunshine Coast.
Setting off from our base for a week at Sunshine Beach, I had only a rough idea of where I was going to go and no plan other than to stretch the legs on my bike after a brief hiatus from riding.
With a slight breeze blowing from the south, I followed my usual approach: into the wind for the out leg so that I’d enjoy the tailwind on the return to our lodgings.
Travel over the period of the pandemic was limited and this was only my second interstate trip in over two years but I’ve been to the Sunshine Coast before and know it to be an ideal climate for cycling. In October it is usually glorious spring weather and last week we were fortunate that the rain that inundated much of NSW didn’t impact us.
The Sunshine Coast lived up to its name and I enjoyed clear skies and mild temperatures for one of my first short-sleeve rides of the season.
At the start of the video, I try to keep my destination secret (which was a largely futile exercise as the YouTube title gives it away before you even click play) but many Australians would recognise the region. It is, after all, an obvious holiday mecca.
It’s also worth noting that it was an “unprecedented collaboration from Mayors across South East Queensland that formed the foundations of the Brisbane 2032 proposal”, and so we can begin to consider where the road and MTB events of the 2032 Games will be contested. Don’t be surprised if there’s plenty more cycling activity to come to the Sunshine Coast in the years ahead; as well as great weather, it also offers loads of scenery and a wealth of stunning locations to ride a bike.
An NRS event was taking place nearby where we went on holiday but there was no intention of interrupting any family activities to attend a bike race. Instead, we spent time on the beach and exploring the glorious National Parks nearby.
Even though I’d end up spending a few nights in hospital (after what I’m happy to say was a successful surgery) we had enough time in Queensland to have some fun family adventures also get some rest… but the one bike ride I did have gave me a good lay of the land.
As is often the case in the #StoryOfMyRide video series, there was no script and or any preconceptions of where I’d go and what I’d see during an out-and-back loop that eventually took me along the David Low Way and associated bike paths down to Alexandra Headland before the return to Sunshine Beach to the north.
Click ‘Play’ and see what I did on holiday. It was a fantastic ride and I’m looking forward to more just like it once my injury heals.
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It is a long video and one I very much enjoyed making. If you choose to watch it all, I hope you like it. And, of course, if you have any questions be sure to leave a comment on YouTube or get in touch via any of RIDE’s social media portals.
– Rob
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