Sawtell Ramble

Sunday February 10 2008.

What a beautiful day for a bike ride. Clear sky and a breeze from the SE. My first ride as leader. I was as nervous as a kitten at a dog show. But I knew I was among friends.

Confusion over which cafe to start at was soon sorted out and about a dozen riders had breakfast at Annabells with a discount I found out about later! I couldn't resist the French toast at Split!

The ride started only 10 mins late thanks to John disappearing at 9 am after asking to say a few words before leaving. A few people joined us after a little while bringing the total number to 34. Ian Scott joined me at the front and Max took up the tailgate position on his recumbent. After stopping a few times to allow the tail to catch up we arrived at Garden Mania for a comfort stop. Then on to Lindsays road to the highway underpass and up to Lyons road. Down Lyons road I discover another cycle path that suddenly ends! Back to Sawtell and a well earned coffee and snack.

Everyone made it back in one piece and enjoyed themselves. Thanks to John, Ian and Max for their help and thanks to everyone who come up to me with words of encouragement and appreciation. What a load of great people you meet on a bike. Special congratulations to Greg and the others who are new to cycling and did the 16 km with great effort and in good spirit.

I might even lead another ride one day!

Rob Peddie

What do we want? New shirts...

BUG BLOG headquarters has received some correspondence - as follows:

"Could the new BUG shirts be fast tracked please as we have been talking about shirts for at least 2 years. Whatever the group comes up with, I want one! One of my existing shirts has a hole in it and the other one hopelessly faded and shapeless.... My size is M and I wear long sleeves." Kay.

As many of the BUG members know, the BUG has been talking new shirts for a while now. (Longer than I realised actually, if it's been two years!). The good news is, there has been significant progress. Ian did a lot of research into pricing through various suppliers, and we are have now made the decision to get the shirts done through Hot Designs, who offer the best pricing for a relatively small order of shirts. (Including no set-up fee).

At the October meeting Ian advised that Hot Designs can do long sleeve shirts. A price chart was obtained from them – the more shirts ordered, the lower the cost. 21 – 30 shirts cost $79.50 each. Dale provided feedback from member survey about shirts. Following discussion about shirt design and logo it was decided to work around the current logo and change the shirt design.

A few members went away and worked on designs or ideas for designs.

Here is an excerpt from the December '07 meeting minutes:
Considerable discussion ensued about the designs submitted to date and it was agreed that all had merit. John discussed the graphic design idea and US Internet angle. After much discussion it was decided that Rick’s concept was the one that should be pursued, though more brightness was required. Thanks were expressed for the work of Wendy, Jim and John’s designer (Julie Mozsny).
Plan: Wally to ask Rick to provide variation ideas that could be viewed pre the February meeting.

I gather Rick has done some work on this and so perhaps we could arrange to post them here on the blog for comment (and to at least show that we are nearly there!)

So, hopefully, Kay, we'll be seeing new shirts soon. Given the outlay involved per shirt, and the intention for them to last for quite a few years, we want to be happy with the design.

BUGs in WA

I wanted to know what was happening in WA regarding Bicycle User Groups so I googled “BUGs in WA”. Here in NSW BUGs enjoy good relationships with their communities. I don’t know what those cyclists in WA have been up to but it seems like BUGs are being blamed for everything over there. There are people working to destroy BUGS in that state. BUGs are being treated as pests! “No more BUGs” is the slogan you hear. Another is “Keep the BUGs away”. If a BUG is bothering you in WA there is a whole list of people in the phone book ready to come round and deal with them!

BUGs have apparently been particularly annoying in summertime. People are arming themselves with repellent sprays to ward them off. Capsicum spray I suppose. People are finding BUGs in their backyard even. Some BUGs have been found sucking sap from trees would you believe! One person reported BUGs in their hamster’s food! (Cycling does make you hungry!). Brochures have headlines like,”Look out for this BUG!” with close up photos. There is hope though because now there are Super BUGs which they will probably just have to live with.
Most horrifying is people casually discussing on website forums how to get squashed BUGs off their car (or out of the radiator) with the merits of kerosene, vinegar and industrial strength chemicals being argued. What will soften them up and make them easier to remove they ask! Without damaging the paint! What about really baked on ones? And so on. One person said that for those really well baked on BUGs, the best way is to rehydrate them for a few hours and the BUGs should eventually get nice and squidgy and you can wipe them off.

People are being encouraged to report BUGs to the council via a hotline. Apparently some BUGs have been attacking trees. Some BUGs have been biting people. Another BUG has been threatening bee colonies, BedBUG has been ruining peoples sleep, FireBUG been destroying the forests, StinkBUG is on the nose, GreenvegetableBUG is causing major problems, LitterBUG is being cracked down on. There’s CrusaderBUG (probably knocks on your door). Then there is NastyBUG. And KillerBUG. They apparently creep around the house and threaten pets and children. BUGs are being blamed for interfering with computers. One place claims to have the world’s most terrifying BUGs!

Some are considered friendly BUGs that people don’t mind. Apparently they have been helping to control the bad BUGs. GoodBUG is one of these. BookBUG has a lot of support. TravelBUG also has a good image. There is the popular LoveBUG. And BeneficialBUG is OK. “HelpfulBUGs boost wine yield” (or was that consumption) said one headline. (No mention of coffee!)
Some people are arguing that we have evolved to have a tolerance to BUGs. In fact it is good to be exposed to them and that BUGs are important. “Bring back the BUGs,” some experts say. There is even a goodBUGs.org.au website. Another site urges people to be gentle with BUGs if you find them in the water. Some uni people are trying to culture BUGs. But some people are trying to get BUGs to eat other BUGs would you believe?

Well, are the BUGs the bunny for that state’s problems?

No wonder BNSW says that.... Riding in WA was certainly a terrific experience. However if you do decide to go make sure you’re prepared!

Rusty Wheeler
CHBUG Research Officer