Day 10 – Jindabyne to Canberra – 185km (2,000m vertical)
Apologies that this is late….I was going through a lot of emotion and sheer exhaustion last night so here it is 24hrs later.
When it comes to experiences in life, you always remember the extremes. Leaving Jindabyne at 5.45am on Sunday morning was the coldest I have ever been on a bike. It was -6 and 6 of us were on the front of the bunch for the first 60km out of Jindy to Cooma and it was bitterly cold. Now I have experienced -30 before – having spent January in Telluride but at least I had the gear for it. No matter what anyone tells you, Lycra is NOT warm and it does not matter how many layers of lycra you have on, it will not make a difference. There was not a lot of chat as we rolled out – everyone was doing their best to preserve energy and warmth – I even reverted to shaking my hands wildly on some of the small pinches on route – this was challenging as everyone though they were hand signals…until a few started doing the same. First stop was Cooma and we were still no warmer and no where to warm up. I chugged down a hot chocolate and sat on my bike urging others to do the same so we could get moving again. This was our last day on TDC 2013 and it was an extreme start…
Today was a day about getting the job done and slogging out a final 185km. There were no schools to visit, no sponsors to meet – there was just the big event that evening with family and friends. It was that single focus on peoples minds that kept the train chugging along despite the elements. We all starting talking about who we were looking forward to meeting.
As the day progressed, the sun did its best to streak through the clouds and we soldiered on through Bredbo and onto our lunch stop 130km out (50km short of Canberra). It was at this stage, we were a little warmer and the excitement and anticipation of meeting our loved ones was becoming very real…the mood in the peloton starting lifting and getting more buoyant. 20km out of Canberra and the mood was quite electric – this was amplified by the fact we were wearing our pink jerseys for the final day (our special jerseys recognising $10m raised by TDC since its inception). This final stretch (downhill I might add) was back on my Domane as Simon Thomas who had kindly lent be his Specialised wanted to roll in with the team. He had been sick for a couple of days and helped me out when my bottom bracket blew up on the Trek. I started reflecting on what an amazing holistic experience I had been through – others felt the same.
Both Pelotons regrouped in Canberra, some 2 km from the finish where our family and friends were waiting. We combined teams and rode as 60 – one big PINK brigade through the Houses of Parliament and through the Capital streets to Commonwealth Park. I had been led to believe by my wife that only her and Lucas could make it. I could not believe it when riding through the crowds at the finish that standing on the line were both boys, my parents, my inlaws, our dear friend who is undergoing treatment for breast cancer, some parents of other close friends in Sydney and Lindy. I was the last rider of 60 and Lindy was a little concerned my achilles had not held out and I was in the SAG wagon. No fear Pills, I would have crawled over the finish.
Once off the bike, I was overcome with emotion and could not stop shivering and crying for joy. I hugged my family, friends and every rider and support friend I had made such good bonds with over the past 10 days. I have never felt so elated, excited, fulfilled and exhausted. Something in my mind was saying Gareth – you’ve done it and just that one subconscious message from my brain led to a comfort and sudden tiredness washing all over my body. It was a surreal experience and the happiness flowed.
Lindy had booked an awesome apartment nearby (I say that as it was a nice change from bunking down with 5 blokes in a cabin with one bathroom) and we had a celebratory drink with our friend. It was great to see her there – Lindy had hinted earlier that she could not make it – however it had all been part of her master plan to surprise me. It certainly did and I mentioned to her she had been my inspiration for driving through pain many a time on the road, just the sheer strength of will and positive attitude she had taken in going through chemo. She is also interested in riding – I’m thinking Signature Tour 2014…
The evening dinner was outstanding with early cuts of the Sunrise doc and awards and presentation well led by Chairman Mal, a man who himself is inspirational in completing all 7 Signature Tours. One small surprise for Lindy when Max was auctioning some TDC carbon wheels which I decided to bid on last minute and win…they were for Lindy however she has given me a strong indication that Diamonds and not Carbon is going to be a better fit for her.
So the Tour is a wrap and we now look forward to the next few months celebrating with friends, family and fellow TDCers. I will be back in 2014 – I now feel part of an amazing family who I will treasure for life. The next few months I will be looking to inspire others to join me….
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