AS the sun rose in Bendigo on Tuesday, thousands made their way in to work, a group of cyclists stopped for a morning coffee and Australia had a new leader.

Politics isn’t usually a topic of conversation among the five cyclists, but as they sat down at the Green Olive on Bath Lane it was impossible not to mention.

“I didn’t like the way Tony Abbott walked,” one joked.

Their conversation went beyond just former prime minister Tony Abbott’s unusual gait, or his replacement Malcolm Turnbull’s wealth beyond measure.

One cyclist commented that they backed Abbott right from the start, because “any cyclist must be a decent bloke”.

“But I think he lost his way,” he said.

“He had a mandate, but he went a bit too far.”

They all agreed Turnbull was probably the right choice, even if it took another knifed prime minister to get him to the job.

“He’s more of a diplomatic kind of bloke, he knows how to say what people want to hear,” another said.

The conversation among the cyclists was likely repeated across Bendigo as people woke to the news of Tony Abbott’s demise.

But for most, life went on. Few wanted to take the time to talk to the Bendigo Advertiser about the country’s fifth leader in five years.

La Trobe University Bendigo honorary associate of politics Ian Tulloch said undecided voters might be more inclined to vote for the Liberal Party with Turnbull as leader.

But even with a more “palatable” option, he said the Labor Party wouldn’t be worrying too much about its hold on Bendigo.

“In Bendigo, Lisa Chesters is not going to be too worried about it,” Mr Tulloch said.

“Given the turmoil in government, there’s no way that Turnbull’s ascension is going to result in Labor voters voting for the Liberals.”

Prominent Liberal Party members have expressed their support for the new prime minister, with some expecting the change will help them claim Bendigo.

But others found Turnbull an unacceptable option.

Bendigo Liberal Party stalwart Peter Wiseman summed up the views of some in the party.

Within moments of Turnbull’s victory he had posted an image of his destroyed Liberal Party membership card on Twitter, before sending a 1200-word email to party members with his reasons for quitting.

In a piece that drew heavily on recent blogs by Andrew Bolt, Mr Wiseman wrote that he “cannot stomach the disloyalty and pompous self-aggrandising of Turnbull”.

“Sadly the embarrassment which was Rudd/Gillard/Rudd has been replaced by Turnbull/Abbott/Turnbull with Julie Bishop playing the role of Bill Shorten,” Mr Wiseman wrote.

“So that's it. It's been an exhilarating ride and I thank you for your friendship and support during the past few years.”

Back at the Green Olive on Bath Lane, the five cyclists rose to continue on their morning ride. They offered some final advice for Australia’s leaders.

“We just want them to run the bloody country.”