The serious boys and girls were out today – cycling around that other bay – Port Phillip Bay.  (Riders entering the Indented Head Rest Area – 120km down, 130 to go.)

Distances available varied.  The easiest were a Family Ride of 20km and a 50km ride that included a ride over West Gate Bridge.  Then there were several 100km options, a 135 km ride starting at Geelong, the Classic Around the Bay of 210 km and, finally, the challenge of 250km in a day, taking in a loop around the Bellarine Peninsula through Drysdale, Portarlington, Indented Head and St Leonards, including just a few undulations to get those legs working.

Most of the cyclists on the 250km route were ultra fit and ultra serious – millions of dollars worth of top end carbon fibre passed before our eyes, as well as a few beloved treadlies.

This old Raleigh folder was ‘the best’, with 3 speed Sturmy Archer internal rear hub, it beat the single speed this rider rode in 2012.  It was 9:46AM and he was cruising with only 130km to go.

Not all were quite so serious.  One of the more colourful riders

This single speed cutie may seem a little eccentric – but it carried this gent from Geelong to Queenscliff via Portarlington and back to Geelong – a distance of around 90km.

In all, at least 14,000 cyclists participated over all the rides.  The 250 route was limited, as far as I know, to 2,000 people, and sold out.  I find this wording from the Around the Bay website a little interesting:

‘The 250km ride starts in Alexandra Gardens and travels anti-clockwise around the bay through the Belarine Peninsula to Queenscliff where the ferry then transports riders to Sorrento before making its way back to Melbourne, to the finish line in Alexandra Gardens.’  (This is one amazing ferry!)

Riders came from all over Australia and abroad.

This trio came from Canberra and were looking fit and ready for anything after 120km.

Can’t get enough of a good thing?  A sense of deja vous

They rolled in at around 10:50AM looking cool and relaxed.  Their faces looked familiar.  ‘This is our second time through,’ one said.

Not content with 250 km in a day, they’d decided to ride an extra Bellarine Peninsula loop to give a total of 300km.  Bravo!

Congratulations to all the riders, and the hundreds of support volunteers without whom this sort of ride wouldn’t be possible.

Keep those pedals turning.