I know a secret…..

I’ve just spent the last few days driving around the Snowy Mountains, finalising the course for the Smiling for Smiddy Challenge Snowies ride. Now I can’t wait for March 2025 to get here!

While I’m officially sworn to secrecy, this ride is going to be a cracker. You know you’re on a winner when one of the local riders tells you that day one of the event is one of the prettiest one day rides he has ever done!! The natural beauty on this ride is spectacular. It’s not surprising because we’ll spend almost all of this ride in the Kosciuszko National Park – the largest national park in NSW.

So here’s a little breakdown day by day of what I’m looking forward to.  I’ll add a disclaimer here that this is accurate as of May 2024 and that things may change as the event draws nearer. If things do change, I’ll update this post but for the absolute latest always check with Team Smiddy. 

Day 1 -Soon after we kick off, we’ll enter the Western Fall of the Kosciuszko National Park Main Range. This is the steepest part of the Snowy Mountains which will make for some awesome cycling. On this day we’ll start at 1000m of altitude, reach a high point of almost 1600m and then give most of that away, finishing at an altitude of only 300m. Let’s just say there are some ups and downs on this one (around 2800m of climbing in around 120km of riding) as we ride through mountain ash forests and pure Australian high country. 

We’ll also travel across the Tumut Pond Reservoir wall – part of the man-made landscapes of the Snowy Hydro Scheme.

Day 2 – Mark this one down as the Queen Stage of the event. We’ll travel along the Alpine Way Scenic Drive, winding our way up (and I do mean up!) through the beautiful alpine forests of the southern Kosciuszko National Park to finish at Thredbo Alpine Hotel. I can promise you that this is a day on the bike that you will talk about for a long time.  While a ride of less than 80 km sounds like an easy ride, today we ramp up the difficulty by adding almost 3000m of climbing into the mix!!! 

There’s a reason they call this event the “Challenge Snowies” – today is no walk in the park, with this as our final climb.

While you should definitely pack your climbing legs for this day, don’t be intimidated.  If you prepare well, finishing the day in good shape is totally achievable. There’s also no need to hurry, you can sit back, relax and do a little reconnaissance today as the final climb is so good the team at Smiddy HQ have it on the agenda for Day 3 (not a joke). Today’s a day built for Smiddy teamwork, spirit and mateship as we make our way up the final climb. I can’t wait to hear the tall tales by the fire in the bar tonight. 

Day 3 – Today is a choose-your-own-adventure type of day. We’re on the doorstep of the summit of Mt Kosciuszko – it’s just a chairlift ride and 13 km round trip to the roof of Australia. If your legs are a little tired from the last two days there’s a smorgasbord of no-bike activities you can choose from or you can choose to simply rest and recharge for the final two days of the ride.

For those who are keen to ride, we’ll retrace our tracks from Day 2 with a leisurely descent to Tom Groggin campground. We’ll have a little rest at the campground and then it’s back up to Thredbo. Today’s a chance for the stronger riders to stretch their legs on a HC climb, while for those who may have struggled on day 2, it’s a chance to show this mountain who’s the boss. I’ll ride this one just for the sheer pleasure of it, probably nattering away to anybody who’ll listen, or who’s unfortunate enough to ride beside me. We plan to have the riding finished before lunch, leaving the rest of the day free for alpine adventures or afternoon naps.

Mark today down as a little over 50 km of riding and a little over 1600m of climbing. Also, mark today down for even taller stories in the bar tonight as we come together to talk about all of our on and off-bike adventures.

Day 4 – Today it’s pretty simple – down, up, eat, down and done. We’ll roll out from Thredbo, and for 30 km head down the hill towards Jindabyne. At the bottom of this first descent, we’ll turn left and climb until the road ends at Charlotte’s Pass. When we get there, we will have covered around 70 km and be at an altitude of 1840m. Our road crew will be waiting for us with hot chocolate and all types of yummy food. 

This is another day that will be burned into your memory banks. It’s a beautiful climb, easier than those we covered on days 1, 2 and 3 but at almost 30km long, it’s not to be underestimated. It’s also amazing countryside as we roll up to and through high alpine plains and ride past ski resort after ski resort.

After we refuel at the top, we’ll descend back towards Jindabyne at our own pace. Once all of the down is done, we’ll regroup and ride the final  15 km or so to our hotel by the lake at Jindabyne. By the time we arrive at the hotel, we would have covered around 115 km and climbed a little over 2200m. You will be ready for some rehydration and tall story telling!!

Day 5 – one word Beloka. While there’s 120 km of riding and 1800m of climbing on the dance card today, I can almost guarantee that Col de Beloka will be the 3 km that is the most anticipated and talked about section on this day. I would say that this one is a little “pinchy”. The key to success is pacing, go steady on the first steep section, recover on the middle “easy” section (600m at 6-7%) and be ready to go again when the road tilts up towards the summit. 

The remaining 117 km of the day is just built for peleton riding.  There are a few ups and downs, but this is “chatty country” a chance to sit in the peleton with 30 or so new and old friends as we tick off the kilometres towards our final finish line. For the eagle-eyed, we did spot a zebra when we drove the course, so be on the lookout for that (true story).

So that’s a wrap. Five days of absolutely awesome riding through some of Australia’s most iconic scenery. At the time of writing, there were still some places available. What are you waiting for? Head on over the the Challenge Snowies page and register. 

Who’s in? Let me know in the comments below