Family fun cycle around Lake Macquarie with the Rotary Club of Warners Bay
FAQ
What time is the start?
You can start from whatever time you like in the morning. The ‘official’ start is at 7.30am. We would prefer if all cyclists start between 7am and 9am.
Where is the start?
Belmont South, Speers Point or Morisset however you can join the ride at any point around the lake if you want to. You can decide on the day if you like.
Do I have to sign in on the day?
No.
I would like to ride the ## distance course, who do I tell?
You don’t need to let us know where you will start from.
Where can I shower or swim after the ride?
The council provide a complimentary entry to Speers Point Pool for riders, take your ride bib as an ‘entry docket’.
Is that like a tandem bike sort of attachment or a trailer? The police request that we do not allow riders to have any trailers on their bikes as they ride the course but it is ok to have tandem type bikes so long as it is save and no wider than a normal bike. Ultimately it is up to you as the parent or guardian if you take a young rider with you. You are best placed to make a decision on the riding confidence of your son and what his road experience entails. The main requirement is that we do not have under 16yr riding by themselves on the roads at the southern end of lake macquarie because there is hardly any road shoulders or only skinny ones, the traffic is quite fast and potentially dangerous compared to the northern end of the lake.
I did the whole thing three years ago with my daughter on a trailer bike. It’s a long way and in hindsight it seemed a bit foolish screaming down hills at speed with a trailer bike..
We were pretty well practiced with the trailer bike as we used to use it to get to school and had several mishaps. At lower speed. The main problem is the child gets bored and starts riding no-hands or goofing off. Kids need time for this but you need to communicate the times to hang on.
From a traffic perspective the trailer bike is fine but a bit intimidating for others.
we will have mobile eftpos facility at speers point park for on the day registrations. i think you can pay with credit card via paypal without actually creating a paypal account if you want to.
The council does not want people camping in Speers Point Park however there are a few caravan parks and camp grounds within riding distance of the start points:
Hi, will there be enough parking around Speers Point Park? I am planning on driving up from Sydney on the day, as opposed to staying overnight the night before.
Parking right next to the swimming pool and park is limited and tends to fill up fast. However, there are blocks of streets with space to park, plus the road along the creek has room for hundreds of cars and since everyone has their bikes its no problem to park a few hundred metres away. So, in short, yes, there is plenty of parking but the earlier you arrive the closer you can park to the starting point.
Loop the Lake will go ahead even if it is raining. It is up to each cyclist to decide on the day about the conditions and what they are comfortable to ride in. It doesn’t look like we will be flooded in Newcastle in the same way that southern NSW is. Hopefully it fines up on the day.
I ordered a t-shirt with my entry, will this also be posted with my race number? As there is only one week to go, what happens if the race numbers are not sent?
Sorry, I’ve left it to the last minute this year. What time can I pickup my number on the day? I need to get away as early as possible being old , fat and slow I need every advantage I can get.
6:30am is the earliest we are promising to have people ready at the registration desk. if we get organised before then great but most of our volunteers will not be there till 6am and need to get organised and briefed.
At registration, I will pick up my T-shirt? What will I do with it then? Take it back to my car, or wear it? Perhaps I could pick it up after the ride?
I have recently entered online. I have only got my paypal receipt and no email confirmation.
How can I confirm my entry details and where can I pick up my number?
You will receive your ride number in the mail. We make the paypal receipt the ‘official receipt’ since it is sometimes that case that people will make more than one entry but only pay on one of them so that than sending out a receipt for every entry just the paypal receipt is used. if you do not get your ride number in the mail then you can collect one on the day.
I got a letter from Jeremy Dawes, the President of the Rotary Club of Warners Bay. Apart from feeling special, I also felt confused because in the letter he states the official start time is 7am, which contradicts the official start time of 7.30 at the top of this page. Could you please clarify which it is? I don’t want to miss the mayor of Lake Macquarie, standing on a scaffold, starting me off on the ride.
There is an official ‘waving off / start’ at 7:30am, sorry if we have 7am on the page but it really is ok for you to start earlier or later than the waving off. I’ve posted this on the homepage now but I’ll put it here as well.
The official start is at 7:30am but IT IS NOT A RACE so please start when you are ready, definitely no later than 9am. It is impractical for 2000+ cyclists to leave Speers Point all at once without creating traffic congestion so we are fine with you leaving when you want to, you do not have to sign in or tell us you are going or anything like that, just get going as soon as you are ready, we recommend starting between 6:30 and 8:30am. If you start earlier or later than that you may find that support volunteers and services are packing up or not available depending on how fast you are riding.
I was out riding a portion of the course (Pacific Highway – Montefiore Street – to Belmont) and there’s heaps of debris on the side of the road – branches, nails, wire and metal plate. The metal plate sliced a hole straight through my tyre and inner tube. A warning for people to carry an emergency tyre boot – just in case.
Yep, very good reminder to everyone to carry suitable spares and repair kit. This exactly why we have been so incredibly grateful to have the services of Advance Sweepers http://www.advancesweepers.com.au/ in going around the course the night before to clean up as much junk as possible. Unfortunately the state government aren’t interested in cleaning the highway for us and the council won’t touch it because its a state government responsibility to manage the highway.
I have just booked online for my wife and myself but she is starting from Morrisset and I am starting from Speers pt, where do we pick up our bibs and ride numbers?
What is the exact street address for the Lakeside Park Recreation Reserve at Belmont South? GPS doesn’t have anything listed and neither does Google. Is this the correct name?
We don’t have a policy of giving refunds. If we started giving refunds to everyone for random reasons we would have people asking for refunds if it rained or if they had a headache or whatever issue they might have so, no, we have already factored in paying for your lunch, your muffin, ride number, your share of the fruit and the cost of providing all the other things on the ride. Loop the Lake is not run as a business venture, the money is paid out to charities and community projects and it pays all the bills for essentials that we can’t get donations of, consider it a donation.
Can my 7year old son do the 50km on a tag a long connected to my bike
Is that like a tandem bike sort of attachment or a trailer? The police request that we do not allow riders to have any trailers on their bikes as they ride the course but it is ok to have tandem type bikes so long as it is save and no wider than a normal bike. Ultimately it is up to you as the parent or guardian if you take a young rider with you. You are best placed to make a decision on the riding confidence of your son and what his road experience entails. The main requirement is that we do not have under 16yr riding by themselves on the roads at the southern end of lake macquarie because there is hardly any road shoulders or only skinny ones, the traffic is quite fast and potentially dangerous compared to the northern end of the lake.
I did the whole thing three years ago with my daughter on a trailer bike. It’s a long way and in hindsight it seemed a bit foolish screaming down hills at speed with a trailer bike..
We were pretty well practiced with the trailer bike as we used to use it to get to school and had several mishaps. At lower speed. The main problem is the child gets bored and starts riding no-hands or goofing off. Kids need time for this but you need to communicate the times to hang on.
From a traffic perspective the trailer bike is fine but a bit intimidating for others.
thank you will ride the 85k do not have a paypal acc ,can i just pay by visa card
we will have mobile eftpos facility at speers point park for on the day registrations. i think you can pay with credit card via paypal without actually creating a paypal account if you want to.
When will our race numbers be posted out?
at the end of february
Ho do I enter for this event? I would like to register my 12 year old son also
the entry form is on the homepage
http://www.loopthelake.com.au/
Are there camping facilities?
The council does not want people camping in Speers Point Park however there are a few caravan parks and camp grounds within riding distance of the start points:
http://www.lakemacholidayparks.com.au/
The closest to Speers Point would be Teralba, http://www.visitlakemac.com.au/accom_result1/teralba-lakeside-caravan-park/
Hi, will there be enough parking around Speers Point Park? I am planning on driving up from Sydney on the day, as opposed to staying overnight the night before.
Parking right next to the swimming pool and park is limited and tends to fill up fast. However, there are blocks of streets with space to park, plus the road along the creek has room for hundreds of cars and since everyone has their bikes its no problem to park a few hundred metres away. So, in short, yes, there is plenty of parking but the earlier you arrive the closer you can park to the starting point.
What day do the online entries close???
We will have online entries available up until the night before loop the lake.
However, if you enter after february then you will have to pickup your bib on the day.
Will the trains be offering reduced/free transport for cyclists as in previous years?
The train fares are the usual fees charged. Fortunately we are not having to pay cityrail anything for the additional carriages.
I live in NZ and I have entered, I see you post the numbers out to us, will it get to me in time? If not can I get a number on the day?
Please come and collect some from the registration desk on the day. thank you
What time is the earliest and latest you can start?
How are you timed?
You can start when you are ready. Marshalls will not be on the course before 6:45am though. We do not time the riders.
What happens in the event of rain or severe weather? Will the ride still run as planned?
Loop the Lake will go ahead even if it is raining. It is up to each cyclist to decide on the day about the conditions and what they are comfortable to ride in. It doesn’t look like we will be flooded in Newcastle in the same way that southern NSW is. Hopefully it fines up on the day.
I ordered a t-shirt with my entry, will this also be posted with my race number? As there is only one week to go, what happens if the race numbers are not sent?
Cheers,
Tony
Tshirts are not posted. They are available for collection from speers point at the registration desk.
if you do not receive your ride number you can collect one on the day.
I will be turning up on my bike can we pick them up after the ride?
You can collect tshirts at completion of the ride.
Thanks for organising this great event.
Sorry, I’ve left it to the last minute this year. What time can I pickup my number on the day? I need to get away as early as possible being old , fat and slow I need every advantage I can get.
Thanks
Tony
6:30am is the earliest we are promising to have people ready at the registration desk. if we get organised before then great but most of our volunteers will not be there till 6am and need to get organised and briefed.
How can you get from Speers Point to Morriset after the ride?
You could ride or catch a train from teralba station to morisset station.
At registration, I will pick up my T-shirt? What will I do with it then? Take it back to my car, or wear it? Perhaps I could pick it up after the ride?
You can pick it up after the ride if you want.
Could you please tell me if the route is sealed surface?
Yes, the route is all on local roads of varying sizes, quality and pavement type.
I have recently entered online. I have only got my paypal receipt and no email confirmation.
How can I confirm my entry details and where can I pick up my number?
You will receive your ride number in the mail. We make the paypal receipt the ‘official receipt’ since it is sometimes that case that people will make more than one entry but only pay on one of them so that than sending out a receipt for every entry just the paypal receipt is used. if you do not get your ride number in the mail then you can collect one on the day.
And where and when can we pick up our ride numbers?
I got a letter from Jeremy Dawes, the President of the Rotary Club of Warners Bay. Apart from feeling special, I also felt confused because in the letter he states the official start time is 7am, which contradicts the official start time of 7.30 at the top of this page. Could you please clarify which it is? I don’t want to miss the mayor of Lake Macquarie, standing on a scaffold, starting me off on the ride.
There is an official ‘waving off / start’ at 7:30am, sorry if we have 7am on the page but it really is ok for you to start earlier or later than the waving off. I’ve posted this on the homepage now but I’ll put it here as well.
The official start is at 7:30am but IT IS NOT A RACE so please start when you are ready, definitely no later than 9am. It is impractical for 2000+ cyclists to leave Speers Point all at once without creating traffic congestion so we are fine with you leaving when you want to, you do not have to sign in or tell us you are going or anything like that, just get going as soon as you are ready, we recommend starting between 6:30 and 8:30am. If you start earlier or later than that you may find that support volunteers and services are packing up or not available depending on how fast you are riding.
I was out riding a portion of the course (Pacific Highway – Montefiore Street – to Belmont) and there’s heaps of debris on the side of the road – branches, nails, wire and metal plate. The metal plate sliced a hole straight through my tyre and inner tube. A warning for people to carry an emergency tyre boot – just in case.
Yep, very good reminder to everyone to carry suitable spares and repair kit. This exactly why we have been so incredibly grateful to have the services of Advance Sweepers http://www.advancesweepers.com.au/ in going around the course the night before to clean up as much junk as possible. Unfortunately the state government aren’t interested in cleaning the highway for us and the council won’t touch it because its a state government responsibility to manage the highway.
I have just booked online for my wife and myself but she is starting from Morrisset and I am starting from Speers pt, where do we pick up our bibs and ride numbers?
You can pickup your numbers from either start point.
Thank You
What is the exact street address for the Lakeside Park Recreation Reserve at Belmont South? GPS doesn’t have anything listed and neither does Google. Is this the correct name?
Here is the street view: http://goo.gl/maps/9tNK1
It’s approx opposite the Lakeview Motor Inn. Put 749 Pacific Highway, Belmont into the GPS and you will find it.
Great, thank you!
Hi guys, is there any way of getting my money back? Something came up a couple days ago and I can’t ride on the day.
We don’t have a policy of giving refunds. If we started giving refunds to everyone for random reasons we would have people asking for refunds if it rained or if they had a headache or whatever issue they might have so, no, we have already factored in paying for your lunch, your muffin, ride number, your share of the fruit and the cost of providing all the other things on the ride. Loop the Lake is not run as a business venture, the money is paid out to charities and community projects and it pays all the bills for essentials that we can’t get donations of, consider it a donation.