Tour de Tasmanie (TDT)

Ride Start Date:

Tour de Tasmanie Gran Turismo (TdT GT)

An Audax Tasmania 9 day Gran Turismo Super Randonnée Series with 1500 kilometres of beautiful scenery which showcases the Tasmanian coast and mountains.

The hill grinding odyssey commences in Hobart with a coastal ride to Freycinet Peninsula before heading inland towards the Central Plateau. Next is a complete circumnavigation of Great Lake then returning to the east coast before looping back west to Launceston. The final 600km distance will take riders to Strahan on the west coast, through Queenstown and a part of the Tasmanian Wilderness World Heritage Area to Derwent Bridge. A gentle descent towards Hobart finishes off the grand tour.

With 17,000 metres of ascent and 17,000 metres of descent this GT super series will be a serious test of endurance.

There are a number of things you’ll need to do before the ride:

The TDT GT will be held from 16-26 February 2019. In the mean time, planning is underway and the key dates are shown below.

  • 16 Feb 5.30pm Rider Brief, La Mensa Italian Restaurant, 93 Salamanca Place, Battery Point.
  • 17 Feb 5.30am-5.50am Overnight control luggage loading. The Whaler, 39 Salamanca Place, Battery Point 7004.
  • 17 Feb 5.50am Final rider brief.
  • 17 Feb 6am 200km Ride Start, The Whaler, Battery Point. 7.30pm Finish Overnight Control: Freycinet Peninsula. 
  • 18 Feb Day Off: Freycinet Peninsula.
  • 19 Feb 5am 300km Ride Start, Freycinet Peninsula. 1am 20 Feb Finish Overnight Control: Deloraine. 
  • 20 Feb Day Off: Deloraine.
  • 21 Feb 5am 400km Ride Start, Deloraine, Overnight Control: Launceston. 
  • 22 Feb 8am 400km Ride Finish, Overnight Control: Launceston
  • 23 Feb Day Off: Launceston. National Penny Farthing Championships, 10am-4pm, Evandale.
  • 24 Feb 5am 600km Ride Start, Launceston. Overnight Control: Queenstown.
  • 25 Feb 9pm 600km Ride Finish, The Whaler, Battery Point.
  • 26 Feb 10am After ride breakfast, Tavern 42 Degrees South (T42), Elizabeth St Pier. Breakfast Menu

Riders shall require a qualifying ride between 1st May 2018 to 31st January 2019 of either:

  • A 600Km (or greater) Audax Australia ride (or international ACP/BRM/LRM) ,
  • Or an Audax Australia 600km Permanent, subject to prior Ride Organiser approval.

As well as Lighting requirements, you are required to wear reflective clothing – see the Audax reflective garments guidelines for details.

You should make sure that you’re equipped with clothing for a variety of weather conditions – weather can be highly variable and change rapidly. See the Weather page for further details of expected weather in November.

Remember the old adage – “There’s no  such thing as bad weather; only bad clothing.”

In Victoria all cyclists are required by law to wear a helmet.

See https://www.vicroads.vic.gov.au/safety-and-road-rules/cyclist-safety/wearing-a-bicycle-helmet.

Lights are required on your bicycle for this event. You will not be allowed to start the event if your lights are not appropriate. See the ride schedule for times when lighting checks are operating.

Lights must comply with the Audax Australia lighting requirements. It is entirely your responsibility to ensure that your bike complies with the requirements.

Lights must also comply with Victorian Road Rules.

In general, the requirements are:

  • You must have 2 separate, independently mounted, front lights (preferably which operate in steady mode)
  • You must have 2 separate, independently mounted, rear lights (preferably which operate in flashing mode)
  • You must have a rear reflector mounted on your bike which complies with Victorian road rules

However, you are strongly advised to check the detailed requirements in the link above.

A pre-ride dinner will be held at the Anglesea Hotel on 13 November at 4:00pm prior to the 1200km evening start at 6:00pm. See the dinner menu here.

After the ride, there will also be an organised breakfast at the Anglesea Hotel on 18 November at 8:00am. The breakfast menu is here.

Please indicate on the registration form if you would like to join us for the dinner.

Victoria will be in late spring in November, and typically the weather will be fine and warm – it can be a wonderful time of year to ride with great conditions. But it’s important to be aware that the ride includes a wide variety of landscapes from winding coastal roads to the hills of the Grampians, and that the weather can go through several extremes in a short period of time.

In general, prevailing winds will be from the west to southwest. You will need to be prepared to face strong winds (particularly on the exposed parts of the coastal Great Ocean Road), sudden squalls, extreme cold if the wind swings to the south and brings cold air from the Southern Ocean, or even extreme heat if the wind swings northerly and brings in hot air from the red centre of Australia.

Temperatures can reach into the high 30’s (centigrade) during the day on the coast – as high as 100F – or be as low as freezing (0C, 32F) overnight in the Grampians. Melbourne is well known for having 4 seasons in one day, so do make sure that you’re well prepared.

Anglesea

(data from Bureau of Meteorology’s data for Airey’s Inlet)

Daily average maximum temperature is approximately 20C, but can be as low as 12C or as high as 37C. Notably both of these records were set within a fortnight of each other, which indicates how variable the weather really can be.

Daily average minimum temperature is around 11C but has been as low as 4C.

Average rainfall for November is 60mm, with around 11 days with rain.

Port Fairy

(data from Bureau of Meteorology’s data for Port Fairy AWS)

Daily average maximum temperature is approximately 20C, but can be as low as 12C or as high as 38C.

Daily average minimum temperature is around 11C but has been as low as 2C.

Average rainfall for November is 45mm, with around 11 days with rain.

Halls Gap and Stawell

(data from Bureau of Meteorology’s data for Hamilton Airport and Stawell Aerodrome)

As you travel through the Grampians, the weather will be changeable. Daily average maximums are between 21C and 24C, but maximums may be as low as 9C and it has reached 41C in Stawell before in November.

Daily average minimums are around 8-10C, but again it may drop considerably lower and frosts are not unknown with lowest minimums around 0C.

Average rainfall for November is 44mm, Stawell has only 7 days of rain, but Hamilton is higher with an average of 12.

Ride Entry

Sign-up: CLOSED 25 January 2019
Ride Fee: $950AUD. 1st instalment $300, August 2018. 2nd instalment $650, November 2018.
Please Note: 1st instalment of $300 is NON REFUNDABLE. This is due to some compulsory accommodation fees already paid for by Audax Tasmania.

Entry Includes

  • Printable Maps & Cue sheets from this website.
  • GPX Track files (for most GPS) from this website.
  • Luggage support between overnight controls, max 15kg bag.
  • Overnight accommodation (all) 8 nights.
  • 4 Evening meals and (all) 8 breakfasts will be provided at (all) 4 overnight ride controls.
  • Basic snacks and water at intermediary controls.
  • Volunteer support at all overnight controls and at all intermediary controls.
  • Emergency transport in the event of mechanical breakdown or minor injury.
  • After ride breakfast, Tavern 42 Degrees South (T42).

Is there a limit on the number of riders who can enter?

Yes, the event limit (constrained by the sleeping/eating facilities at the overnight controls) is 30.

Will there be a wait list if the rider limit is reached?

Yes, a wait list will be established.

What if I have to cancel?

Check the Terms and Conditions when entering for the event.  The schedule for reimbursements will be clearly outlined.

TdT GT Route 2019

  • 200km Hobart – Coles Bay
  • 300km V2 Coles Bay – Deloraine
  • 400km Deloraine – Launceston
  • 600km Launceston – Hobart

GPX Track 2019 downloads for most GPS (no Cue sheet pop-ups, no WAYPOINTS, just the line on the map)

TCX Course 2019 downloads Garmin GPS only. Only for those that know what they are getting into, suggest you have the GPX Track files as backup

Ride-With-GPS Cue Sheets, please print if you require hard copies