I had heard much about cycling up Mount Cootha and today was that day for actually completing the big ride. We opted to meet at 7:30am for departure from The Regatta in order to avoid the heat that was guaranteed if we left any later. I haven’t done any cycling on a mountain before whatsoever, either uphill or downhill, so I knew it was definitely going to be challenge.
I was taken up the front way of Mount Cootha since I was told it was the easier way for climbing and I really had no idea what I was in for. I do not have any record of how long it took us to get up to the top, but let�s just say it was definitely the most difficult ride that I have completed. I was in my lowest gear for most of the climb, and was riding out of my seat a fair bit to get more leverage. I was somewhat comforted by watching a number of other cyclists cycling just as slowly as me, with one of them even turning around, no doubt, too exhausted from the climb.
We finally reached the top of the mountain where we took a much needed rest, as I was completely out of breath. Going down the mountain was definitely worth the climb, as we flew down in a few minutes and reached a maximum speed over 65km/hour. At the bottom of the mountain, I was presented the choice of either going up the mountain again (this time the back way) and a single river loop, or to continue the descend and do a double river loop around Brisbane. I probably made the wrong choice (or more naive) and foolishly decided to go for the first option.
A fantastic weekend ride that went for just over two and a half hours and totalled almost 60k! Somehow I don�t think I�ll be going for a big ride tomorrow.
