Sunday Short'n'Fat to Planting

Early start, meeting 8.05 at Steve's, so after a bit of a night I wasn't feeling 100% but hauled ass across to his place on the Fat and arrived to find Tony, Wazza, Wayno and Steve.  Followed shortly by Pete and Matt (on Pete's 575).  Off we treadled through Radley, Marshall, and through to the Heathcote Cut and under the motorway and at a cracking pace set by Wayno round the tow path round the back of Ferrymead to meet Andy and Jenna at the bridge.

Up St Andrews and Steve was suffering badly, not doing well.  We all waited for him a few times as we progressed up the hill. Marama, then Major Hornbrook all the way.  Up through the park and up Clearview and Ridgeview to the Upper Major.  Steve had had enough and headed down to the Planting, to bail from that too.  Poor fella.  We all boled on up Britten to the top, and then took the trail around the top of it.  Once back at the trees, I 'adjusted my suspension', let a few psis out of my tires, then off we headed back down at a fun bouncy pace, me really enjoying the fat bike.  On down past the stile and then tucked into the wee singletrack down from here, then over the fence and down Ridgeview into the steep wee zig zag to Mt Pleasant Rd, then my tires screamed as we flew down to Craigieburn Pl - reaching 56 kph.

Into the McCormacks zig zags, walking the first steps then overcooking a couple of corners (especially the 2nd to last one cos I thought the previous had been the last one) and on down, careful on the new bridges down here with their tight little knob-ends, and meeting a few walkers and dogs on the way down, surprising a couple of them...  lots of friendly apologies, but no too much disharmony, then bombing down the last stretch, reaching a scorching 51 kph.

Finally, around the McCormacks bay onto the Causeway, and winding up the speed behind Pete, my big SUV tires screaming on the tarmac.  Still had a heap of time before the planting, so at Ferrymead bridge back onto the Tow Path and we bombed around this, ducking out between some buildings across the road from Waterman Place, into the back of Charlesworth and so many trees did we plant and sausages did I eat.

At 12 o'clock, I needed to get going, so hightailed it straight down Linwood, home...

All up pretty much 30kms and amazingly just about 500m climbed.  Not bad for a fatty.  Managed to get 3 metres below sea level too!