Climbing mountains for the Smiddy Challenge
Riding your bicycle through the French Pyrenees might sound like a lovely way to spend a holiday, but when you add in the incentive of raising money for cancer research it just became a challenge. Katrina Cousins shares her experience in the saddle.
The Pyrenees is my second Smiddy Challenge. The first being the iconic Smiddy brisbane to Townsville Challenge ride last year which raises funds for cancer research. This epic ride began over six years ago with Mark ‘Sharky’ Smoothy challenging himself and two other friends to do the ride in eight days and remember a lost mate – Adam Smiddy. Smiddy was only 26 years old when he succumbed to melanoma.
I first heard about the iconic Smiddy challenge in 2008 when I moved to Queensland. I had recently completed the Melbourne bay in day (210km) and the Great Ottways (150km) on a newly purchased road bike, so I thought I wasn’t a bad rider.
However, doing 1600km in eight days sounded like lunancy (although inspirational). Ironically, in 2010 I decided to take up triathlon training a bit more seriously and began training with the UQ Triads. Little did I know that Sharky was the head coach and Adam Smiddy used to train with the club. Sharky asked if i wanted to do the Townsville Challenge and there was no hestitstion. I had an unbelievable experience with the Townsville challenge – riding about 200km a day with 46 amazing riders and sharing the laughter, sweat, pain and sore arses. After the ride I planned to give myself a break from non stop training and enjoy my spare time. The next month I signed up for the Pyrenees Challenge.
This is the first year that the Smiddy Charity has undertaken an overseas challenge. Only made possible with the vision of Sharky, Rowan Foster and Embrace Sports. These nutters, I mean guys, came up with five tough days of riding which included the some of the same Cols (mountains) that are in the Tour de France. I had trained hard and hadn’t lost too much of the bike fitness that I gained in the Townsville Challenge, even undertaken five days riding in the Snowys with Michael Milton’s awesome bike tour and incorporated Ironman training. But this Pyrenees Challenge was just what it promised to be – a challenge.
I can’t begin to describe how incredible this challenge was nor can I capture all the crazy moments quite like Sharky. Like Pete riding the Tourmalet on an old clunker as his bike was lost in transit, Michael falling off and rolling into a bush also shared by a wild boar, Jimmy riding most of the ride in pain due to ITB, completing 3900m of climbing in one day, riding nine hours in 38 degrees. But, in a Smiddy peloton it feels like anything is possible.
For me, this challenge (in particular the Tourmalet climb) was one the hardest things I have ever done, but I always managed to dig deep and draw on the strength I get from my friends, family and fellow riders. The Smiddy Challenges might not be for the faint hearted, but it is for people with a heart and also determination to achieve something for people who suffer from cancer. The Challenge of the Cols reminded me of the challenges that cancer patients must endure. Yet at the end of the day we can get off the bike whilst cancer sufferers have no such luxury.
Please take the time to check out the Smiddy charity and if you want to make a difference then please donate here.
Safe riding, KatPanda Balls
(my nickname grows with each Smiddy Challenge)
When not on her bike Katrina Cousins is an environmental consultant. She enjoys a glass of red wine and as a proud Victorian her love of The Bombers has not diminished despite living in Queensland for some time.
Read more about Australia’s Sporting Spirit in our featured forum.
