THE FUSE IS LIT.
I'm not a curious man, but that text message from Graham Grant (GG) had me intrigued. Two hours later I found myself seated at Blackbird Espresso, coffee in-hand, listening with fascination to his insane plan.
As if cycling from Cairns to Cooktown via the coastal road wasn't enough (having endured it three times in the past fifteen-years myself), GG's proposed route included: Kuranda Range, Black Mountain Road, Bump Track and CREB Track ... which then re-joined the coastal road North of Wujal Wujal. With an estimated distance of 260km, and about 4,000m of climbing (Mt Kosciuszko is 2,228m), it was destined to be an EPIC adventure.
Oh, did I mention GG wanted to ride the entire route in one day on cyclocross bikes?
Agreeing to accompanying GG on his little project was Bart Duraj, Dominic Hoyal and Duncan Murray; all accomplished cyclists, in whom GG had great confidence. Pain shared is pain halved (or so the saying goes). Not being one to miss a great story, I too agreed to co-pilot a support vehicle with Nathan Jones (Bicycle Centre Cairns). Also along for the ride (so to speak) were Wade Lewis and Glen Jacobs; eager to capture the torture and torment on-film for the world to see and shake their heads in disbelief.
GG also wanted to use the ride to raise awareness for R U OK? and their dedication to suicide prevention; one day of suffering on the bike was a small contribution to those suffering every day!
The date was set: Saturday 6 August 2016. An estimated time of arrival into Cooktown was noted as "before sunset if everything goes according to plan".
When do things ever go according to plan?
Stay tuned for the next installment of the BOOM CX Classic ...
