Things have been pretty busy lately, both at work and on the biking front, doing prep work for this year’s Nth Island 1600 in October. My big job in that area right now has been fine-tuning a route, then preparing the Rider’s Guide, which was all but done except for the sample checkpoint photos, (although it did have streetview photos in there for now)… So a plan evolved.
I decided to have a big weekend away, riding both the NI1600 and the NI800 back to back to get all the photos in one hit. The plan was to leave home at about 0800 on the Friday morning, get to Turangi by 1130, then continue straight into one ride (thinking that it might be best to do the 800 first), have a sleep overnight, then start the 1600 and continue straight home Sunday. That would be 1100+ Friday and 1900+ Saturday-Sunday ….but alas the best laid plans of mice and men!? The weather for Friday was looking like crap, so the plan altered and I dropped the 800 and worked Friday, but would leave home at 0800 Saturday morning and go straight into the 1600. Then the plan evolved further as it occurred to me that, “Who (in their right mind) would have ever done a continuous return trip the full length of the North Island?” (that’s about 1100km each way). Steve and I did Cape Reinga to Wellington in 12 hours on the 2009 Southern Cross, so this would just be the next step!? I’ve never been a Boy Scout, but I packed a bag with overnight gear anyway and hit the road just before 0800 with several options. a) to complete the NI1600 within 24 hours, which would get me all the CP pix and free me up to be a volunteer in October. b) ride from Wellington to Cape Reinga in back in one hit. …Oh yes, and did I mention that the route would include a scoot around the Kawhia Harbour! …just for good measure! Sedate and easy was the plan ….but the best laid plans of mice and men!? I hit the Plimmerton roundabout, transitioning from 50-60 kph to 100kph in a wonderful state of lean, then cruised up the two lanes within the allowable limits, passing a few cars and trucks as I passed Whenuatapu, where I noted a car and ute in front of me and some bogan in a big Holden or Ford, gaining on my rear. I figured I didn’t want him passing me and it would be quite good to get by the other two before Pukerua Bay and then the 80kph zone, so I tweaked it a bit. I hauled in the ute as we hit the single lane but he left me plenty of room, so I slid past, then the same thing happened with the car ….and then the bogan turned his lovely array of lights on!!! FFS! Talk about shit Trev! …well, not really …I just had that big sinking feeling and considered what a dickhead I was. *Sigh* …Apparently I hit 117kph and a quick bit of mental arithmetic figured that was worth about 35 points, on top of the 55 I was already sitting on. Hmmm…90 points and my licence was hanging by a thread. The man asked if the bike was mine, had my licence and was on the phone or radio or whatever, but I was still plugged up and helmeted so I couldn’t really hear what was going on, then he returned the licence, made some comment about obviously being experienced on the big truck and gave me a warning about being more considerate to the lesser mortals stuck in their cars!!!!!????? Well bugger me! I was gob-smacked! I can only assume that he had followed me for a bit, observing the generally sedate mode, then the unconventional but legal passing manoeuvers …and he was a senior man and not a young wannabe in search of a good quota? So I got off …but I did lose about 50 places in the queue! And so my quest resumed. I took the most sedate and easy riding route up SH1, arriving in Turangi at 1130 and because the bike was only down one bar when I left home, I still had three bars to go, so decided to continue to Taumarunui to fill on BP98 and get a discount. More easy riding and I activated the Glympse at Taumarunui, sending it to Hitcher, James and Ann (I didn’t have Mike’s number). More easy riding and I was pulling into Te Kuiti BP Truckstop to take the first CP pic, and now my ride was going to be fun, once I turned off to go past Waitomo. And so it was. I had a great time as I made my way past Te Anga to my next stop, which was the Kinohaku Hall at the start of the Kawhia Harbour. Pic taken, relief sought, snack snacked and water gulped and I continued. …and it was marvelous, even if I did encounter more than my fair share of March Roadworks. In no time at all I was around the harbour, heading in toward Otorohanga, then onto SH39, through Ngaruawahia and rejoining SH1 at Rangiriri for the trudge up the Auckland motorway to my next stop at BP Orewa. This has been timed to be a manned CP and will pull the ride away from the toll road, and according to my research, it was time to don the wets. Because of grabbing the extra 70 km to Taumaranui on the last fuel stop, I also didn’t need to fill so cruised on to Wellsford and that would make it an easy haul to Kaitaia. So another stop at Wellsford and I tried to reset the Glympse for another 4 hour stint but it wouldn’t oblige, so that was that. …and it was still dry …and I was cooking a bit, but I didn’t take the skivvy off because it would be night soon and get cold …yeah right! So on-on through Whangarei, Kawakawa, onto SH10 and up to the next CP at BP Kaeo. It was supposed to be dark by now, but I hadn’t accounted for the differential between Wellington and Northland, or the 1½ Hrs earlier than normal start, so it was dull, but still in dusk mode. …and although I’d encountered sporadic bursts of precipitation, it still wasn’t raining …suited me! Photo taken and more snacking etc, and I was on my way again. I’d been this way at about midnight on the 2007 GC, albeit in the other direction, and it was delightful to note that at times I was riding along the coast, although it was getting a bit dark to see at this time and I was soon heading north from Awanui on SH1 again. It was around this time that I straight-lined as I approached a massive wet slick section that encompassed the full width of the road and was about 10-15mtrs long. Holy Shit, I thought, as the front wheel, attired with brand new T30 did a shimmy on me! ..and I was just starting to like these tyres! The rear has been on for a few thousand Km, but the front was just fitted a couple of weeks ago and I shit myself on the first corner when it felt like the rear was going to step out. That was most disconcerting and it took a bit before I realized that the contour on the front was more vee-shaped than the Z8’s I’ve been running and that was resulting in the bike being keener to drop into the corners. I’m used to that now, but to feel the front do a left-right slide as I’m dead-vertical and heading dead-straight was NOT a nice feeling! …especially when the roads I’m riding are littered with exceptionally wide sections of slick wet tar! Oh well, get over it and focus on the job in hand. It was now dark, more wet than dry and I had a new problem as well. The glare from the road signs was so bad that I was often having to dip my lights …for bloody road signs! The upside being, one generally couldn’t see the slicks! A bit over an hour on SH1 and I was pulling onto the carpark at the ‘end of the road’. I half-pie (or should that be ½п) expected to see the odd freedom-camper parked up there, but it was totally deserted, and totally black with not a single light anywhere. That made it marginal to get a photo of the archway and there wasn’t even a light in the dunnys, but fortunately I carry a couple of LED torches, so I didn’t have any issues seeking relief …and I was over halfway (825 into the 1633km and 1150+ km total …and about 11hours into the 1600 and 14.5hrs all up on the bike)…and I was heading for Kaitaia. It still wasn’t raining badly but the weather was getting worse so more care was required and the pace reduced. I got to Kaitaia Mobil, filled, took the CP photo, fluffed around cleaning the visor etc and set out for the Mangamuka Gorge. It’s been a few years and it was just dry enough to enjoy a reasonably spirited pace and then I was into uncharted territory as I turned off from Kaikohe to take the road via Twin Bridges and the next CP. But the combination of weather, roads and marginal vision in the conditions had my average speed closer to 90 than 100 kph. Not a problem though as long as one keeps progressing at a steady pace. When I departed from Wellington in the morning, the GPS ETA (for Turangi) was 0645 (plus stops), but I was shaving more time off the ETA than I was expending at the stops, so by the time I got to Orewa, the ETA was down to 0604, however, I was now back to about 0640 and gradually losing, or barely holding time on the road. This was compounded by the combination of requiring more time at the stops to stave off the effects of fatigue (thanks to the 3½ hrs tacked on to the start) and the weather requiring more time spent on visor etc. This is just a fact of life that one lives with in the world of Distance Riding, and the key is not to get silly and try to make the time up. After all, I had 24 hours to do the 1600, so time wasn’t an issue …and I just plodded on. Twin Bridges proved to be another lightless black, damp hole but I managed a pic and made my way back to SH1 just south of Whangarei, then back down to Wellsford, where I took the turn towards Hellensville, but turned onto Peak Rd to cut down to the next CP at Z Kumeu. After that it was more motorway riding to the last CP and fuelstop at BP Bombay before hitting the last 280km for the 1600. By the time I left there, my ETA was out to 0748 and I determined that I was back to easy riding and would try to get to Turangi by 0730, for a 20 hour time on the 1000miler. This did two things because the fatigue was getting worse. It dragged me back into ‘the zone’ whereby one’s heightened focus helps stave off the effects of fatigue, and setting and monitoring the goal and progress also kept the brain occupied and more alert. The weather was much drier through here as well so my motorway scoot back to Rangiriri was steady, the fang down Te Ohaki and Hakarimata Rds was rapid, then the trek back down SH39, over to Te Awamutu and onto Kihikihi was steady. More steady through Waipapa Rd to Whakamaru and it was getting lighter and quicker down the Western Lake road and voila, I was back at Z Turangi by 0730 to photograph the odo and the bike in front of the sign. Decision Time: I had now done about 1967km in 23½ hours. I was buggered. Would I stop or continue? Being a drongo from wayback, I had a goal and I knew I could do it …and I could be home before lunch. I wouldn’t need gas until Bulls, but my new plan was for longer and more frequent stops, so the ride would now become a series of short hops, with decisions made on the fly. It was still only 13̊, so the first plan was to stop at Waiouru to remove the wets, then Taihape for fuel. The skies were clear by Waiouru, but the temp was only up to 14°, the heated grips were still on, so I continued and the plan changed to remove the wets at Taihape. By Taihape the temp was still down and I didn’t need gas, …and I felt OK so I shifted the stop to Hunterville. Hunterville came and went and the plan was now a definite fuel etc stop at BP Bulls. …and I pulled in there pretty shattered. I took plenty of time filling then peeling the wets off, snacking, drinking and finally, struggling to throw the leg back over because my rear inner thighs were feeling the effects of 26 hours on the seat …but otherwise I actually felt pretty good as I seemed to be bouncing into a second wind. …so from here on in it was easy going and I felt quite alert. This was probably thanks to the traffic and having plenty to occupy one’s mind doing the normal stuff and by 1132 I was hauling my sorry arse up the drive! I put the bike away in the garage, unpacked and dragged myself up the steps to collapse on the couch. …and that was my day pretty much done. I had a snack to accompany the most delicious nespresso coffee, exhaled and felt pretty smug. I’d just ridden to Cape Reinga in back, with the Kawhia Harbour thrown in for good measure. I’d only done 2267km and it had taken me 27.5hrs …but I’d just ridden from one end of the island to the other…and back! …and I’d just completed my 2nd 1000 miler for the year! …and my 10th in total! I had a moving time of 25:15 for a moving average of 90kph and an overall average of 82kph. The top speed was a little higher than expected …but that must have been a blip, or an aberration because the GPS has been playing up lately!!?? Bugger me! I relaxed, dozed a little, watched TV and finally went to bed at 2130 to watch some more TV, then awoke out of a coma at 0300 to turn the TV off, then got wrenched out of a coma at 0600 to turn the alarm off, then drifted out of the slumber at 0735. …and I still felt pretty good but the worst part was …now I couldn’t tell anybody until after the NI1600 in October …except of course a few non-bikey type mates and family that wouldn’t have a clue and would just think I’m a dumb bastard anyway! Whilst reveling in my smugness, I recalled that while riding in the middle of the night…??....Ok, at about 3 in the morning, as I was frolicking through the drizzle, carefully picking my lines through the abundance of slick, deadly macadam which was conspiring with the blinding road signs to try to put me on my arse, a question randomly popped into my mind. “What the hell are you doing this for?” As quick as a flash, certainly in no more than half a heartbeat and perhaps as quick as a quarter of a wrist pulse, the answer manifested, “Because no one else, or not many if any will have!” There was probably another retort that got lost in translation or buried under the myriad of activity being dealt with, that would have gone something like, “But why would they want to!!??” A day or two later when talking to a mate, he asked, “Would you do it again?” and once again, the answer just slipped off the tongue, “Umm…Yeah….but in good weather as I’d like to do it in under 24hours!!” Bugger Me! Us Distance Rider bikers are a sorry arsed lot!
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After eight C1KC's (Capital 1,000 Km Cruise) the NZ Distance Riders have now picked it up, added another route option and 2015 sees the inception of the 1KC with north (out of Hamilton) and south (out of Wellington) options. The format is still pretty much the same but the change has doubled the number of punters wanting to participate, which in turn does wonders for the fundraising aspect. Even though I organise the ride, I can't be there on the day this year as we have a wedding to go to in Sydney and although I tried all sorts of dirty tricks to get out of it, at the end of the day...I know what's good for me. Not a problem though, I just went for a scoot yesterday to ensure the southern track was safe for the riders. Saturday night saw us in bed early to be up before the sparrows fart, ie a 0400 rugby game to watch. Fortunately it wasn't in vain with the AB's winning and after having a shower at half time, I just needed to kit-up and prep the bike afterwards, finally leaving home at 0630. I had half a tank on board so decided I wouldn't fill until Woodville or thereabouts. It was a looking to be a great day but the 11° when leaving home was soon down to 5° and I was feeling the pinch as I'd removed the wet layer from the jacket and only had a T-shirt underneath and summer gloves on, so I flicked on the grips and figured I could put up with it as it should come up again soon enough. Besides, the mission had started and I didn't have time to get a scivvy from the top-box. 0650 saw me passing by Caltex Rimurtuka and effectively starting the 1,015km, and as I embarked on the hill I was treated to a bit of sunstrike, but I had a great cage-free ride up to the summit, only to catch up to a convoy right at the top. The last car was great and eased over within a few corners of catching them, but the next couple seemed to fancy themselves and hogged the centreline...*sigh*, Riding through the Wai'rapa was a real treat with cloudless skies, although a few more degrees than 8-11 would have been nice and I was soon slipping off the Bideford road and onto Route 52, which is in pretty good condition at the moment, and I arrived at Alfredton at 0806, snapped my pic, sought relief from the cold squeeze and sent a 4 hour 'Glympse' to Ann, Brett and James. (found out later that the one to Ann failed???) Within a few minutes I was back on the road and heading on Pa Valley Rd towards Pahiatua. That road is a bit rougher than I recall but it opens up as you make way and, as I was skirting Pahiatua to emerge at SH2 from the Pongaroa road, I assessed my fuel range and figured I could easily make Feilding, which would give me a bit more flexibility for my next stop and could be the difference between making Havelock Nth, or having to fill in Taupo, so decision made I went through the gorge to Ashhurst then diverted via Bunnythorpe to the BP Connect for some 98 and the few extra km it would give me. I arrived at 0900, but my overall average at this point was only 86kph, so I managed to fill, snack and swig and be out again in 6 minutes to minimise the loss and now was just a short scoot up to Rangiwahia, enjoying the few curly km on the north side of Kimbolton for the fourth time in the last couple of months. My stop at the Rangiwahia Hall to get a pic of the memorial was just over a minute and I was now on my way through to SH1 at Mangaweka, on through Taihape to Turangi, then off SH41 to Kuratau and up the Western Access. My first glimpse of Ruapehu was on the Rangiwahia Rd and I don't recall ever noticing that before, but it was spectacular with the stark white backdrop to the green hills. Then on the Desert Rd where there wasn't a cloud in the sky in any direction. The mountains completing the picture (if I'd stopped to take one), but on the northern side, especially of Ngauruhoe, there were big blobs on the summit and brown speckled staining all the way down that side. I wasn't too interested to take a closer look though as I had a date at Tihoi and it was around this time that the music from my GPS choked. In trying to get it sorted the GPS locked up and I had to reboot it, the music came back briefly, then stopped again and eventually, I had to proceed without it, in my cone of silence. The good flowy roads through this section finally saw my overall average push through to 91kph by the time I reached Tihoi and I was back on the road in a minute-forty, turning off to cut across past Kinloch to Poihipi Rd. As I rolled down the hill into Taupo, I decided to stay on the main road rather than cut around the back and I was amazed at the number of people everywhere....but then again, it was a long weekend. It was pretty slow through here with all the traffic but I was soon on the Napier-Taupo Rd and where there was little traffic and some more free riding. By the time I got to my Hedgeley Rd turnoff at Eskdale, my overall average was up to 93kph and as I approached the turnoff, I realised that the GPS was still on track but Karen wasn't talking to me. A quick fiddle and it shit itself altogether so I continued to Seafield Rd, then paused at the intersection to reset it again, which worked well enough to get me through to the Puketapu Tavern. It's been some years since I lasted pootled over these roads and I was reminded how delightful they are. I arrived at the Tavern at 1333 with the average down to 91 and I was surprised at how packed it was. There were plenty of bikes there and masses of cars but I just needed to use their conveniences, then with the temperature up at 22°, once back at the bike, I took the liner out of my jacket. As I was sorting myself out the phone rang, so I answered it but couldn't hear a thing, then realised I was still connected to the Sena so I had to whip my helmet on so I could chat to Ann. That done I sent another 4 hour Glympse, then got ready and back on my way. I'd been stopped for 11 minutes and that had the average down to 89, then as I hit the road, you guessed it, my GPS shit itself again! Fortunately, I had designed the route so I was quite familiar with it, but apart from route instructions on the way, the GPS is very handy for recording the journey so I continued over to the G.A.S at Pakowhai and did more resetting, then filled the bike again. With just under 400km to go, I was going to get home easily from here, but between the fill and mucking around with the GPS, I had wasted 11 minutes and the overall average was now down to 87kph...damn. At least the GPS was going again, albeit without any sound, but I was familiar with these roads and that wasn't a problem. I had now flicked the GoPro on, was back into fang mode and enjoying the scoot to the next checkpoint on Kahuranki Rd and beyond. This time the photostop was down to 50sec and I just had two to go. Kahuranaki Rd is reasonably narrow, but one can make good progress and after Elsthorpe it opens up a bit in width and with sweepier corners. Then the top part of Route 52 from Waipuk' is really easy riding with a nice wide road and big curves, however, being ¾ through the ride, although I was making good progress, picking up the average has become difficult and by the time I had arrived at Taumatawhakatangihangakoauauotamateaturipukakapiki- maungahoronukupokaiwhenuakitanatahu, the overall average was still languishing at 88kph, but a sub-minute stop didn't lose any time. I was now getting onto the roads that of all the ride, these required the most respect as one can never be too sure of their condition through to the Weber turnoff. By that time the GPS packed up altogether so I had no music, no rolling or overall average to assess my progress and no ETA to gauge my predicted time on the road. I've been riding with the GPS for 4 years and I now found how much I tend to use it as I was now thrust back into the past. It also made me realise how I had embarked on this ride with no means of back-up whatsoever (ie Map Book) and thank God it was a ride I had no need of navigation aids...and I was down to the last 200km to go.
The ride now was easy going as I slipped out to SH2 at Dannevirke and down to the last checkpoint at Woodville (the Catholic Church on the main road in). From here my quickest option would be through the gorge, and down to SH1 via Shannon, but I opted to stay on SH2 for the better ride home, which was a bit dumb considering my butt was burning by this time and I was feeling somewhat uncomfortable. It was easy riding though and what do you know, as I was passing by Claireville, my GPS decided to wake up and Karen joined me once more. The ride over the hill was dreary with a big queue of cars on the decent slowly making their way past a cyclist and I finally got home at 1838, just over 12 hours on the road for 1,065km and just under 11½ hours for the 1,000+km. I was reasonably satisfied with that since the thought of a +4km tolerance for the weekend was generally in the back of my mind...at least, on the main highways anyway. Perhaps next time I'll take my time and enjoy the scenery!? Another TT done and dusted and it was a beauty! After the frustrations of last year I took a slightly different approach this year, ….but then Mike Hyde has constantly evolved the concept of his ride so each year is different anyway and this time swung back to a ride where one could easily get their required points, then ride where they liked to stack up the km's. I didn't do that though! I looked at the layout of the checkpoints and my plan morphed through about 10 stages until I finally had a route that picked up almost all of the checkpoints apart from the gravelly ones and a couple that weren't convenient, it had early check-ins then further riding that meant there was no time pressure to get to the end (apart from trying to get plenty of sleep) and on the Sunday it had a 200km buffer of scooting over to Akaraoa just because we could. I started out with Steve (& his V-Strom) as my riding buddy, then we got joined by Woody )on his Z1000) and then later in the piece, Chris (on his Multistrada) joined us for his first TT2000. As per usual, I tried to plan the route to the nth degree, starting with the route in MapSource, then laying out the CP's and points on a spreadsheet with leg km's, total km's, working out potential fuel stops based on Woody's maxed out 300km range and finally assigning leg times from MapSource plus 2minutes per CP photo stop, 10minutes per fuelstop, 30minutes for lunch on Saturday and approx an hour to check-in to the cabins each evening and have dinner. I finally loaded the route into the GPS unit, noted the km's and route time from there, calculated the moving average and applied that to the spreadsheet to then have a fast time. (The unit comes up with a faster time than MapSource and it tends to be more accurate to my riding) (I also expected that the faster unit times would still be conservative.....yeah right!!) By compiling all this info, the route would get tweeked until we finally had a plan....Oh yes, and as I went, I also discovered the exact locations of the two Mystery checkpoints. Mystery 2 was easy as that was Moa statue constructed of wire, so I googled the image which linked to an old Stuff article that revealed the name of the sculptor and the farmer that commissioned it (on his farm and it's general location) The white pages identified his address, then a scoot along streetview revealed the statue about 300 metres from his gate! Voila, it was in the plan. I discarded Mystery 1 early in the piece because it was 3km from the end of the seal and there were no clues to start a search, but one tends to revisit these things and one evening it suddenly clicked that behind the two dunnies in a paddock was a bridge with a river running under it!! That prompted a scan of MapSource and Google Maps which identified that there were only two gravel CP's that went anywhere near a river at 3km from the end of the seal, Klondyke and Highview, but Klondyke passed by a loop in the river where Highview crossed it. Sure enough, zooming in at 3km along the Highview track on Google Maps did indicate there were two wee dots that had to be the dunnies! Entries were registered, ferries booked, accommodation booked for two, and it was big enough for three, then expanded for four, the bike was serviced, re-shod with a new set of Z8's, Sena S20's were purchased all round, the route loaded to GPS's and we were ready to go....on the 0230 sailing of the Arahura on Thursday morning. Thurs 19 – Day 1 After grabbing a couple of hours kip, I was up at midnight, scrubbed and geared up and as the bike was already packed, I was soon on the road to fill the bike, then check-in at the ferry terminal. Chris arrived shortly after so we paired up our Senas, then Woody turned up but Steve didn't arrive until almost time to board. We chatted for awhile before grabbing another hour plus of nap and we were on the road out of Picton before 0540. The temp started out at about 12° but hit 9° before Spring Creek and didn't really rise much as we made our way north in the dark. I had a wee moment as we hit the roadworks through the Dashwood pass and I suddenly found myself on gravel, so probably not a great time to be on intercom but I'm sure my choice of expletives would have alerted the boys to what lay ahead. Nothing untoward happened though and an hour or so later, as we made our way up the Kaikoura coast, we were treated to a lovely sunrise when the sun sneaked out of the sea with a pink glow all around it, then as we turned toward the Kaikouras through Clarence, the whole mountain range was covered with the same pink glow for a bit. I recall thinking that at least the temp would start to rise with the sun but shortly after we turned inland on SH70, the temp bottomed out at 7° and hardly went above 9° all the way through to our first fuel stop in Culverden. At this point we had travelled 262km at an average of 90kph and we got there at 0832, filled, had a play to try and improve the intermittent connection we were experiencing with the Senas and we finally got back on the road at 0906. We made our way out to Waipara, on to Amberley, then turn inland again to take SH72 via Oxford to Geraldine for lunch and the next fuel stop. This was an easy scoot, managing an average of 95kph, and we passed Dreds and his two mates through here, so they paused to say gidday before we went in for our feed. A bit over an hour later we had filled and were back on the road, then realised what a good idea it had been to take the inland route because once we got to Timaru, the traffic was diabolical. We were being diverted for roadworks (or perhaps a big accident) and we were constantly leap-frogging through long lines of cars and trucks. The traffic did ease from around Waimate though and we got to the holiday park at 1555, having had a relaxing day in the saddle. We checked in, scrubbed up, sorted our stuff, went a feed and settled in for the night.,..and that was day 1. 89 moving average; 765km; Fri 20 – Day 2 We didn't start until midday so we enjoyed a sleep in with plans to check-out by 1000 (managing to leave by 0930), finding a cafe for brunch before filling and registering at McIver & Vietch. We met Topher outside the cafe and Bandit Rider in it, as well as a couple of Blenheim Ulys (who didn't manage to finish the ride after she had a close encounter with a sheep) and got to the start at about 1100 to mingle and chew the fat. At this point we discovered that Mike Hyde wasn't well and couldn't make it, but all went off to plan anyway. We were briefed, collected our T-Shirts, which I quickly clipped into my shorts-hanger that I'd duct-taped into the lid of the top box for quick photo CP turnrounds, and after waiting for Woody to be already to go....then take his helmet off to put his earplugs in, we got underway for our first checkpoint at Aramoana at right on 1200. This was always going to be a slow start but we did alright to make our way through the traffic as well as passing a few other bikes on the way over. I was surprised to find that we only passed two or three bikes on their way out and half a dozen at the CP. There were another 10 – 15 that followed us in and a few more that we passed on the way out, so it would seem that not that many riders opted to grab these points? I'd never been there though and enjoyed the ride, then back to Port Chalmers and especially heading out to SH1 at Waitati....then from Palmerston where we turned onto the pig route and the pace lifted to a km-eating steady speed. We caught Dreds and his mates before Palmerston, slotted in behind them, then got caught by one or two others, so we had quite a wee train as we made our way to CP3, being the Macraes Gold Mine. Shucks....that's one big hole in the ground!....not to mention the huge pile of tailings sitting on top of it. It's amazing because I rode that road back in 2011, but between the fog, the sunstrike and the pace I don't recall seeing a thing of it....not to mention the other great scenery. From Macraes, it was onto CP4 at Hyde then over to Ranfurly and CP5 at Idaburn, but we were treated to a smirk as we approached Ranfurly when Dreds and co took to Bypass Rd (a gravel jobby) and I commented to Woody, "Did you see that, those pricks hit that gravel and they didn't flinch, they didn't falter and they didn't miss a beat!" I had assumed they were off to some dark-side CP but then got another surprise when they popped out just ahead of us again 6.7km later (them having done 5.6km) and I thought, "Huh, Gary, (who was leading us at the time) you haven't been going fast enough!" (We'd only averaged 103kph). They eased off a bit on the 16km to the Ida Valley turnoff, so I slipped past and the others followed because we did want to pick up 10 minutes on our schedule to add the Mystery 1 CP to our haul. We grabbed our photo of the dry dam, scooted past Chatto Creek and up to the Clyde Dam for CP5, then back to Clyde for gas. (what a quaint little town) Then we lit out for the Roxburgh Dam, CP6, and the ride along Conroys Rd was quite a treat with plenty of corners and views. From Roxburgh we had quite a cluster of relatively close CP's starting with Mystery 2 on Moa Flat Rd, Wilden, Edievale, Switzers, Mystery 1, Heriot, Kelso and Waikaka, before heading to our check-in at the Gore Cabins, at which time (being 1745) we were a quarter hour behind schedule. The ride plan had our departure on Part 2 at between 1850 – 1945, and after getting dithered around at the Kebab place, Woody & I scoffed down a couple of foot long Subs, while Steve & Chris went for a McCafe and whatever, with us getting back on schedule by heading out of town at 1853. Our 226km outing started with a quick scoot east out to Kaiwera, then back to Gore to head north-west on SH94 for Manderville, where we had to photograph an old train next to a community hall, then a hall in the middle of nowhere at Wendonside. That road had a somewhat out of the way 6km long straight which inspired Chris to check his speed on....but that's all I have to say about that! Our track from there briefly linked back onto SH94, then we took a link road across to SH6 to bypass Lumsden and down through Dipton to photograph a War Memorial, that like many in the Sth Island (and CP's on this trip) are tucked away on side roads out in the WopWops. We finished the day going down SH6 to Winton, across SH96, turning off before Mataura to collect the last CP for the day at Waimumu, where the route guides had a picture of the church, but noted the hall as the CP.....so we took both and were back in Gore and refueled by 2130 (8 minutes ahead of schedule) We finished the day with a scrub, then chewed the fat over a few wines before hitting the sack at about 2300, 89 moving average; 452km + 226km = 679km Sat 21 – Day 3 At this point we already had 38,000 of our required 50,000 points and Saturday's plan called for collecting another 36,500 points and 1,114km. I arose before the alarm went off at 0500, geared-up, re-packed, put a bit of air in the tyres and we were on the move by 0605 heading south for the first three CP's at Menzies Ferry, Mataura Island and Bluff. I had Chris behind me and his headlights were bloody bright so I turned my mirrors down and got on with the job, only to find that 4km down SH1, Chris was pulling alongside because his were the only lights there!! Turned out that Woody had pulled out of the motorcamp and followed the wrong bike in the wrong direction until the chap pulled into his residence.....then Woody decided to use his GPS! We had returned 2.7km when they came into view, so we turned and took off again. By 0722 we had collected the first two CP's, then cut across to come back out on SH1 by Tiwai Point and cruised down to Bluff to take a pic of a big chain sculpture, pissed around a little and we were still a minute ahead of schedule when we headed for our first fuel stop at Riverton. It amazes me how so many petrol stations have been shut in the Nth Island, but most little settlements in the deep south seem to have retained their pumps by going to card operated Allied, G.A.S. or McKeowns stations. The downside for four dumb Welly boys, was that the card pump wanted a $ limit entered, but we wanted to fill, so Woody dials up $25, but only draws off about $16, so we put the rest in Chris' machine and thought stuff it. I could get to the next planned stop and Kingston while Steve and Chris should have made Manapouri, so we hit the road with the plan for Steve and Chris to fill at the next available fuel. That turned out to be Tuatapere. Before that we had to collect a pic of the surfer statue at Colac Bay, where I led us onto the grass to get close. When I put the stand down it was a bit soft, so I moved the bike forward onto the wooden curb around the statue, took my photo, plus the spare of the group, then saw Steve trying to hold his bike up while he took his photo so I stepped in to assist. I should have gone to Spec Savers though because right then, Woody's bike fell over!! Oh dear, it took both of us to pick the poor wee thing up but the upside was that the grass was so soft that nothing got broken....and then we went on to Tuatapere. What a joke! We arrived at the servo (that didn't feature on the NZ Open Souce Maps) and it turned out to be open, manned by three people, but still on cards! Sheesh, dumbarse city boys still want fills so ask how to get around it and all we get is a tirade from the Arsehole Owner. What an absolute prat! Hardcase though because it turns out that you dial in your max amount, but it only charges you for what you take, so the boys filled and we moved on for Orawia, Clifden and Manapouri......but what a twat the prick that owns the Tuatapere servo is!!! The faffing around over fuel had cost us time though and by the time we were moving on from Orawia, we were 12minutes behind, same at Clifden and down to 7 minutes down at Manapouri. Averaging 100kph across to Mossburn pulled in another 5 minutes and at that point I was down to 2 bars on the fuel but hadn't been taking note so I wasn't sure where I stood for the 60km up to Kingston...and I didn't want to put 91 in the ST, so I said to Steve, "You take the lead and I'll draught." We made more good time averaging 104kph, while my economy picked up 0.2km/Ltr and didn't go on reserve until about 5km out of Kingston. It was interesting to see the new cycleway through here, complete with large swing-bridges. In fact, it wasn't until I saw the swing-bridges and wondered what they were for that I noticed the cycleway. It's hard enough to cycle on the highway, but why any one would want to do all that cycling on gravel behooves me? We were a minute ahead of time out of the 'Flyer' CP, then a minute behind out of the fill....and it was time to....'Let the Games Begin!' We were now at the bottom of Lake Wakatipu and were about to embark on the best riding of the weekend. It was only 12km up to the next CP, being the Devil's Staircase lookout and we did that in 7 minutes, departing on schedule, but Steve left while I waited for Woody and Chris to get back on the road, then when they were moving, I lit out like a scolded cat! ....and what a delightful wee fang that was!....didn't do much for my economy but!! We were scheduled to have lunch in Frankton, but the road in was choked and we got split up as we filtered past the traffic. I had a moment here when a boy-racer pillock saw me coming and veered across to the centreline....so I just took the gap behind him to nip around the inside but the prick swung back across on top of me as I passed....and he threw in a few expletives for good measure. I Had plenty of room though and after tossing the ST out of his way, I was soon well up the queue, through the round-about and waiting for the others by the BP, but everything was busy and Steve missed the stop, so we continued on to see what we could find along the way. The next CP was Coronet Peak and we saw nothing before that so that was the next stop...after some more magnificent fanging. I've been up Coronet Peak a couple of times but it's always had plenty of grit lying around.....but not this time. It was pretty clean so I had a blast as the ST is such a delight to throw around on roads like that. After losing a bit of time fluffing around in Frankton then taking a couple of extra minutes taking in the views from the Peak, we were now 20minutes ahead of schedule with lunch still to be had, and we decided to get that late, at the Cromwell fuel stop. But first we had to go to Cardrona and that meant up and down the Devil's Staircase and Crown Range! We shuffled around past Arrowtown and then I hit my straps again. Another huge blast was had all the way to Cardrona. The way back was a little more sedate and we stopped for a photo-op at one of the lookouts. I did manage to scrape a boot on one of the hairpins near the bottom and then we struck a huge queue. There was several km of cars just not moving so we shuffled up the centre-line and it soon became apparent that there had been a big accident. When we got near the front of the queue, a chap was out of his car and it transpired that he had been there for an hour, but traffic was moving as they had let them through from the other side and we didn't have to wait long before we were moving again, had passed a few cars ahead of us and were making our way to food, fuel and the next CP in Cromwell. We arrived at 1411 and enjoyed an extended stop, heading over the bridge out of town 48 minutes later (20 minutes behind schedule). It wasn't a worry though as we only had two more CP's to collect at Lindis Pass and Elephant Hill, before checking into the Top 10 at Timaru. It was easy riding over this leg, up to Omarama, out to Kurow and on to Timaru and I was starting to feel the effects of all the fanging through here as the straighter roads required less focus and I slipped out of the zone. We maintained a good average though and by the time we were pulling out of Elephant Hill, we were back to 6minutes off schedule and it was the same when we arrived at the Holiday Park. It was hard case because Woody and Chris were stoked to be in and finished so early....until I reminded them that we had another 200km to do! Watching Woody's mouth drop was joy to behold for an arsehole like myself and when he said, "You don't have a very good poker face!" I just replied with, "Read the book!" as my smirk transformed to a fill blown grin! I did sort of soften the blow though by adding, "We have got the Akaroa buffer tomorrow and you could stop now, but you'd have to go to Akaroa tomorrow." So they relented and after a little discussion, we opted to go straight out to get it over with, then enjoy a relaxed dinner when we got back. And so it was that we had fueled and were on the scoot again at 1832, 31km out to Totara Valley by 1852, on to Burkes Pass by 1921, across to Sherwood Downs by 1953, then back into town and fueled up by 2048. Rain had threatened most of the way around but we were only subjected to a bit of drizzle and settling down for a feed at the Lone Star by 2100. By the time we came out at 2220 though, it was absolutly pissing down. Once back at the cabin, I let the boys off the hook and said they could sleep in until 0600 and we'd have a more relaxed ride on Sunday...after all, we already had 74,500 points and 1802km 919km + 204km = 1123km Sun 22 – Day 4 I arose before 0600 and after a liesurly prep, we were on the road just before 0700. It wasn't raining but it was glopomy and we were kitted up in wets. We only had 5 CP's to collect and took a relatively sedate pace getting to Woodbury (War Memorial), but the pace did creep up a bit along the straight Arundel-Rakaia Gorge Road, but we eased off a bit as we made our way in on the wet, narrow road to the Stone cottage at Hakatere Corner and then around to the Doc Sign at Sharplin Falls. That rotten Mike Hyde....he said the Doc Sign was in a carpark and the road was sealed!! It was stuck in the middle of extremely thick bush down a horrid gravel road! OK, the gravel was only 504 metres...but that's over 1km return and we were treated to more Southern Hospitality. Shortly after we had turned onto the darkside we met a massive 4WD coming out and he was followed by Biggo and his mate Ed. I shuffled across the greasy slick rut and into the thick slippery mud that was the verge and still the prick came at me without flinching. He held his line like he owned the road....which he did because he was the biggest son-of-a-bitch in the valley, and as he passed me, with his window down and I was in a frantic state, I exclaimed, "Ignorant Cunt!!!" I guess I was at a loss for words but it did seem to sum the situation up rather succinctly. Phil explained later the the poor wee pet had flagged them down and he was rather cross that all these rotten nasty bikers were invading his turf. From here we had to get across SH1 and over to Pendarves and that meant negotiating Thompsons Track, which has a 21.6km straight between kinks. The trees and power poles disappeared into a point, so consequently the pace crept up a little along the way. We made it to the hall at Pendarves then into the mobil at Rakaia for fuel and extended 25minute coffee stop and now had our required km's with just the one CP to go at Brookside, but for good measure and to avoid all the awful traffic on SH1, we got our pic and continued out through Coes Ford to SH75 by Motukarara before turning for home via Taitap' and Halswell, arriving at Hampton Honda at 1141. What a great ride! We checked in, had a sausage sizzle, mingled and chatted and there weren't too many left wen we headed for 219 On Johns at about 1300. We checked in, scrubbed up, had a coffee, fluffed around and went out for chinese at about 1730, resupplied with a couple of wines and retired to the cabins. 91 Moving average; 328km; Arrival at Finish – 1141hrs = 2130km & 81,500 points (2156km on the odometer) Mon 23 – Day 5 Time to head for home and I was up around 0700, repacked the bike and we were filling at Z Belfast by 0830. I'd done my share of lead so slotted in at the rear as Steve led us up SH1 at a sedate pace....that was until we were up the road from Parnassus and I felt an urge come on. Suddenly I found myself in the overtaking lane and there were some odd comments filtering through the Sena....like those other guys knew what I was up to!!?? Well I guess they did because I was rocking and grooving to squeeze a final fang out of the trip, although a sign mentioning new seal did put a slight restrainer on it, but I was soon on the coast road and had a big grin on my face....and slotted back into the rear again. We stopped for a snack and fuel in Kaikoura (but the Pepper Steak pie at Rakaia was way better), went for another coffee stop in Picton before lining up for the ferry and finally got off the boat in Welly at 1740. 89 moving average; 326km = 3210km 64617km on the bike....and it needs a jolly good clean. It was a great trip and we had a good team. The Senas took the ride to a new level....when they worked....but that was more to do with ignorant finger trouble on our part rather than the equipment and we seemed to be getting better at it by the end of the trip. We'll have to work on that. The route was a great offering by Mike and it was much easier to get the required km's this year, although it would seem not so much for the northern starters. I was expecting to ride at a more sedate pace and one of these days, I will have to visit the deep south to actually take in some of the scenes and towns. As for real rides, that's pretty much it until the NI1600 October but there's plenty of planning and work to do to get that organised! Life can be really rough sometimes. Another day in the saddle started just after 0500, a quick scrub, kit-up, the bike and car were already packed and we were on the road to Caltex Rimutaka by 0545 for the start of the 8th Capital 1.000km Cruise. We pulled in to the forecourt a little earlier than usual, at 0610, and there were already more than half a dozen punters eagerly awaiting to check-in and depart, so I gassed up then assisted Ann to get her table and chair set-up, the rider list and strips of yellow and black (Resene) tape ready. The tape is to tie to the rear of the bikes to make it easy for riders to identify each other as Capital Cruisers whilst on the road, and by 0620 the first riders had been checked in and were departing. We had 64 entries this year, but two had to withdraw, then two late entries had us with a starting line up of 64, although 66 donations toward the cause (buying Christmas presents for children with Muscular Dystrophy in the lower North Island), not to mention another couple of donations from non-riders, plus sponsorship from Protecta Insurance, so we are on track to go near $1,000 this year. Of the 64, 6 were starting from Taumaranui, 10 from Masterton and the rest from Wellington (including 2 from Wanganui and 4 from Palmy) and they all trickled in and scooted off until 0650, when there were just 3 to come. One was James, who I knew would be a definite because he wanted to have a good test of his new ST1300, so Ann tried ringing the others to see what was up. James turned up about then, one had had a late night and the other we just had a name as she had paid online but hadn't contacted me so I didn't have any info....so add 2 DNS's to the mix. I had no set plan for the ride, apart from the usual start last and after the frenetic pace we enjoyed on the NI1600, I was figuring I would enjoy a relatively sedate pace, maybe catch up with a few of the Ulybods and ride with them......Yeah right! James arriving late put paid to that idea!! We departed from Caltex Rimutaka at 0708 and straight away the scene was set for the day as James had obviously warmed up, getting down from Ohau, and he set out like a scolded cat.....or perhaps he was the Great Dane chasing the scolded cat and I was the poor sap that happened to be holding the other end of the leash. Some might say I could have just let him go....but fat chance! Why on earth would I let the chance of a jolly good spirited fang go to waste?! I had the GoPro mounted, the GPS programmed and music rocking, I was snug with the liner in my jacket, the heated grips were on (it was only about 4°), the blue skies were crystal clear with sun rising and the promise of a good dose of sun-strike.....and we attacked the hill like the charge of the Light Brigade (but without the guns bit). I'd thought, "New bike, he'll be taking it easy to just get used to it", but not James. At departure, the GPS had predicted our finishing ETA at 1938, but by the time we got to Mauriceville at 0801, the ETA was down to 1920, we had passed two riders on the road and two more were still at the CP, pics were snacked and we lit out like our tails were on fire...?......still on fire! I love the Mauriceville-Kaiparoro road and we had a ball, but then we got back to SH2 and had to behave ourselves!!....well sort of behave?...and we settled back to a sort of spirited pace. We caught our next rider out of Pahiatua and followed him via the Gorge to Ashhurst, but he took the low road via Bunnythorpe, whereas my preference is to avoid 50kph zones wherever possible, and as I had just assumed the lead for the next section to Stratford, we took Colyton Rd across to Fielding to get on the Halcombe road. There's nothing special about the Halcombe road but it is another one that I find delightful as the sweeping curves take one over the rolling countryside. A non-C1KC rider pulled onto the road at Halcombe and he dragged us to the back of what appeared to be a train of 10 or 12 C1KC bikes and we caught them on SH1....but their leader had missed the turn onto Makirikiri Rd and they were just getting sorted as we slipped through unimpeded.....that was bloody gentlemenly of them! We were still following our 'new friend' at this stage and he seemed to have a bee-in-his-bonnet that he didn't want us in front of him and since he was setting such a cracking pace, we were quite happy to follow, so it wasn't surprising that we caught another group of 5 or 6 bikes before SH3. That led to a cluster at the junction, so I just kept left and scooted to the front, arriving right on queue to take a wide arc with the first couple of bikes out of the blocks. Another easy pass. We settled back to sort-of-spirited, passed the next couple and caught Dave on his VTR and followed him to Wangas, but when he stayed on '3 passed the Springvale Park, I nipped to the other side of the park, shot up Parsons and Parkes Rds....and pulled out right behind Dave on SH3. It's not a shortcut as such, but it does avoid a set of lights and traffic and can usually get a jump, but on this occasion, he obviously got the lights and we copped a few interruptions. We passed Dave going up the passing lane out of Kai Iwi, hoofed it along the recommended bypass around Hawera and arrived at Z Stratford at 1055...the ETA was now down to 1857. Z Stratford was both a CP and the first of our two fuel stops and there was no way that the pace we were on would get us to Taumaranui as, with only 360km done, I was already down to 2 bars. We enjoyed a leisurely 15 minute break fueling, snacking and so on, then hit the road with James back in front so I could get some more video footage. The skies were now overcast (although no threat of rain), the temp was hovering between 10-14° and the Forgotten Highway was quite a treat, but perish the thought of doing it in the wet as a lot of the road is very slick. James maintained a relatively brisk pace and we enjoyed the hell out of the 3 saddles leading into Whangamomona, where we arrived at 1155, then paused for a couple of minutes for James to remove a layer as the temp was starting to climb. We then galloped over the Tahora Saddle and I took the lead shortly after that, having to wait for a flock of sheep, then campervans to clear the Hobbit Hole before we hit the gravel. The first half of the Tangarakau Gorge was pretty thick with sharp looking gravel, so the pace was sedate through there, then the second half was much better, but we got stuck behind a campervan who didn't want to pull over so we (and the bikes) were sucking up dust for a bit and it eventually took a bit of tooting before the prat moved across enough for us to slip past. Back on the seal and the temp shot up to 18°, so I was pulling the vent zips on my jacket but with the liners still in, I was starting to stew, but rather than stop, I just kept the pace on to try to get to Taumaranui by 1300 and in the end, we pulled into the BP at 1305, to meet up with Jim and give him the certs, badges and prizes for the northern starters. First thing I did was whip the liner out, then we grazed on bananas and nut bars, went down the road to the JDZ Carriages to photo the CP, then finally got back on the road at 1322....with Chris in tow. At this point we'd got the ETA back to 1900, only to push it back out with the stops, so no more gain there. That was surprising as I thought we would have made good gains through the Forgotten Hiway. We were now on SH4 with James back in front and the boring stint down to Raetihi before taking on the Para's. I wasn't sure on the Km's and whether or not we'd make Hunterville, so planned to fuel in Raetihi, but as we approached, I realised we had plenty for the 150'ish km to Hunterville, so we carried on. The scoot down the Para's was the usual delight (averaging 103kph) I took the lead at Upokongaro and we had negotiated Kaimatira Rd and through Fordell to the Whangaehu River Bridge CP by 1508. About 300km to go, some narrow roads and I was expecting to meet oncoming northern starters anytime. We had a cruisy 7 minute stop here then got onto the Fordell-Hunterville road proper and it is in very good condition at the present time. All the same, between the potential for loose stuff, wayward critters and oncoming nutty bikers on the narrow passage, we proceded with due care. This road is quite beautiful at this time of year with a mix of flat and hilly farmland, scrubby Whangaehu Valley backcountry, then some areas where the road passes by trees or through wooded areas. ....all very nice if you're not on a mission! We rolled into the BP in Hunterville at 1539, gassed up and rolled out at 1548, made our way up to the Vinegar Hill turnoff and over to the next CP in Kimbolton before hitting the Apiti Loop. We passed the first of the Northerners (Topher) just before turning off and took even more care on the unmarked road around through Umutoi before getting to the last CP of the day, being the Piripiri Bridge over the Pohangina River. We got there at 1648, dithered for a bit while Chris contemplated an issue with his rear brake and he decided to let it cool off a bit rather than continue immediately so James and I hit the home leg....a quick scoot to Ashhurst, then sedate riding back to the Parrot 'n Jigger in Lower Hutt. James pulled off at Ohau to collect his daughter for the evenings fireworks display in Wellington but I kept going, enjoyed one last fang over the Parkak' hill and got to the PnJ at 1655, doing 1,010km in just over 11¾hrs on the road for an overall average of 86kph and 10:44 moving time for a moving average of 94kph. There were already 6 or 8 riders in, enjoying a drink and a snack and I settled in to assist Ann process the rest as they arrived...we were there until 2300! It was a good route, albeit a bit slower than the last couple of years with the technical bits through the Forgotten Hiway, Fordell and Apiti. Fortunately the great weather made the riding easier and the majority had a great day. It did transpire however that there were 3 offs, 3 breakdowns and about 4 DNF's for various reasons....so it was a tough day. Bloody typical bikers though....Monie who offed and broke a collar bone within 20km of home was only worried she wouldn't get her badge!!!?? Many thanks to James for making the day a bit more exciting, all the other riders for your contributions...and for assisting those in need. (A couple not getting home until 0230....'cos they really wanted their badges). Protecta for coming to the party with a generous sponsorship and Ann for running the start and finish so efficiently. The bike now has 55,025 km on it and I'm off a 0500 tomorrow to visit Robert Taylor in New Plymouth for a customised suspension....another 700km day. Three years between rides is a bit of a stretch, and I might be a bit biased, but God damn it, I enjoyed the shit out of the North Island 1600!! The last few blogs have outlined the prep' and the weekend before the big event had me in a bit of a panic to fix the stebel horn because I new BrianH was going to be scrutineering the bikes and if he can pick up, that the rear tyre on a Beemer has been fitted back to front, he was sure as hell going to pick up that my horn was neither squeeking nor parping. What a mission! I thought it was the switch contacts but stripping and disemboweling that proved fruitless so next thing the belly pan, lower cowl, inner cowl and right fairing had to be removed and a jumper lead from battery to horn had me jumping out of my skin.....bugger, I had a dud relay. Bike was booked for a service on Monday so old squeeker refitted, fairing replaced and Sunday saw an aux outlet fitted into the topbox so I could recharge the GoPro and remote whilst on the go. Monday saw a new Z8 replacing the 1/3 worn PR4, a new air cleaner to try to improve the economy and a super WoF ….and a new relay which I fitted that night and I was all good to go. Bike was packed Thursday night and after pissing around a bit getting ready on Friday morning, I finally got away from home at 0843, and rode out of BP J'ville at 0858.....yipeee! I was off on an adventure. The usual droll, boring, crap riding saw me exit from Levin with an average of 81kph, but now I had clear roads ahead and could wind up into GC mode (hmmm....I can't really call it GC mode any more but NI16 mode doesn't sound right ...so...) into GC mode and I had a date and a mission to get to Turangi by midday. Easy-peasy you might say, 312'ish km in 3 hours should be a doddle, but no, why would I go up SH1 when the Para's were just along a bit and I had 350km to do, so I cracked on. By 1023 I was slipping onto Speedy and Fagan Roads to bypass Sanson and the average was up to 92kph, then at 1052 I was negotiating Warrengate Rd for 96kph and I finally got onto SH4 at 1057, still averaging at 96kph.....Let the games begin!! Brilliant weather, mint empty Para's, I was warmed up and I was in biker heaven! WooHoo, next thing you know I was in Raetihi by 1143 for a 105kph average up the Para's and 98kph overall and I finally arrived at the Turangi cabins at 1228...that was near enough to midday and I was soon checking-in (queensize bed doesn't leave much room in a cabin) and setting up the hall for the arrivals of all the punters. Ann arrived in the car shortly after me and the rest of Friday was spent getting the bike scrutineered, shopping for the perishables for the weekend's menu, taking a few photos and chatting with other riders as they arrived. We went off for dinner at the truckstop after 1700, arriving back at the hall at just before 1900 to put up the map and start issuing the Rider's Guides. It was a bit strange to be missing out on the excitement and apprehension associated with the unveiling of the route and having to plan and familiarise oneself with it, but it was sort of fun to see all the other poor bastards struggling with it! …....and that was day 1. Day 2 dawned crisp and clear and we dragged ourselves out of the pit at about 0700, I scrubbed and dressed casually (ie out of any bike gear and with jandals), breaked fast, I packed the bike and setup the GoPro and GPS, faffed around chatting with other riders and went off to fill-up and check the tyres at about 1100. Basically, it's always the same and killing time until the start is a pain in the arse, but I finally kitted up just before 1230, the briefing was briefed and the four of us (Mr & Mrs Hitcher, XP@ and myself) hit the road to man the 1st Checkpoint at Z Waiouru. (One of the changes we made to how this event was run was to introduce a combination of manned and photo CP's, with more of them to leave little room for shortcutting and this one ensured a rider couldn't take the easier Napier-Taupo road). James & I finally departed a few minutes after Brett & Jane at 1247 and we enjoyed a quicker than moderate pace over the Desert Road arriving at Z Waiouru at 1323 and the 1st riders started coming through within 10 minutes. We should have been on our way by 1350, but alas, it transpired that a rider had had brake-pad issues and he was ½ hour late starting so Brett & Jane got on the way while James and I waited. My initial plan was to leave Waiouru shortly after the last rider through, then try to work our way through some of the slower riders and capture them on the GoPro....but that wasn't going to happen now so when James and I finally got away at 1409, we had plenty of time to make up and that set the tone for our ride. I led out at a rather brisk pace, but fortunately, James seemed to be hanging back a little so sanity prevailed and we settled into 'spirited ride' instead of 'outright fang'. It was hard not to let rip through here because the weather was great and the road mint and the Gentle Annie is such a great ride. It's like going back in time to the days when shearing sheds littered the landscape and there were cattle in some if the paddocks but they weren't the udder kind. It's also a great mixture of landscape with rolling hill country, speckled with small flat valleys and some rugged bush and forest.....and the road!!....it's mostly corners with a few straight bits to allow one to catch their breath!.....150km of mostly corners!! We managed to catch the Hitchers and were surprised to see a half dozen bikes at Kahukuranui Marae (Omahu/Fernhill), we took our pix and pulled out after a couple of other guys but they kept going straight (towards Hastings) when we hooked off to stay on SH50. I tooted but I guess they needed gas and that was two more we'd passed. SH50 is more good riding. It hasn't got much by way of corners though so the pace seemed to creep up a little and I don't know how but the average through here appeared to be 113kph??? Must have been an error in the GPS and the pace didn't fall off a lot on SH2 either. SH2 from Napier down to Masterton is pretty good riding whereby it's not totally straight but one can make really good time, which is aided by the fact that there's not quite the volume of traffic as elsewhere. We took the bypass just before Woodville and scooted down through the Wairarapa, catching more riders (Dredsy-Mark/Whatastoner and his mate) going into Pahiatua (where the BanditRider was filling), but XP@ didn't think he'd make Masterton so we gassed in Eketahuna and slipped behind those we'd just passed. The skies to the south were looking extremely gloomy at this point and James suggested we don our wets, but I pointed out that we were heading more east and it was clear there. It was an unusually quick fill, taking only about 4 minutes, and we were soon taking the turnoff onto Faulkners Rd to take the diversion through Mauriceville for CP3. I love that road too! Apparently, back in the day, the Mauriceville-Kaiparoro Rd used to be SH2 and although it's a minor country road, it's always mint, clean and a bloody good fang as one returns to Welly from a ride. There's only 4km difference and when you take the turn the ETA on the GPS jumps about 10minutes, but by the time we get back to SH2, we've usually only lost about 2 minutes.....and had a blast......so On On. Through Masterton, out past Te Ore Ore and on to CP4 at Wainuioru School (more spirited pace) then around the Water Towers and through Gladstone. I did stop at this point to put our wets on, because it really looked crappy to the south now and lucky because as we turned to cross to Ponatahi Rd, the heavens opened and it absolutely pissed down. We caught Dredsy and his mate again and hello, no sooner were we pulling into Martinborough than the rain stopped and the skies cleared. That was good so now we could open the taps for the scoot down to Ngawi. We encountered the first returning rider (IanF) before the turnoff and a quick calc estimated we were only about 40 minutes behind. More good riding and by the time we pulled into CP5, we were about half-way in the field on the road, 554km into the ride, it was 1915 and all was good in the world. Within 3 minutes we were back on the road to head over the Hill (the Rimutakas) and CP6 at the Caltex. It was dark by now and just after we had filled and checked in, Steve rolled up after going home to put the liners in his pants and he joined us for the rest of the ride. We pulled out of Caltex Rimutaka at 2041 and by the time we got to Pauatahanui I seemed to have 6 or 8 bikes behind me, but after endeavouring to achieve a 'spirited-no-brakes-ride' over the Paekak' Hill, we were down to four (I did have to jab the brakes a couple of times but!).....and now we had to endure SH1 up to Sanson! More of Friday riding, bypassing Sanson & Wanganui, although we did need to stop in Bulls for Steve to top-up, then a brief photostop at the Upok' Tavern for CP7 and it was up the Para's. It was about this time I started to struggle a wee bit. The temp had dropped significantly, I was getting cold and a bit of fatigue was starting to set-in, probably enhanced by the brisk start, and I was finding I was having difficulty with vision and picking lines. It slowed me down a bit and we only managed to average 93kph up the Para's this time and I was squirming in my jacket to keep warm, I had the heated grips on and keeping a close eye on the temp gauge as dipped to 3°! (I seem to have a dread for black-ice these days & nights.) We pulled into Z Turangi at 0034, 1,014km into the ride, I started filling when Ann strolled over and said, "You’re 4 minutes late!!" I was a bit tired and just looked at her a bit gobsmacked, but I guess she didn't see that as I still had my helmet on. As it transpired, James had been using his wee 'Ap' to check us through the CP's, as well uploading the pix to facebook. From that, Gremlin was able to estimate our pace and arrival at Turangi for Ann......and hence, my fatigue induced reduction in pace had us there 4 minutes late!! Yeah right...it should have been at least 7-10 minutes so get with the programme Gremmy! I thought we'd spent about half an hour resting up at Turangi, but as it turned out, it was only 24 minutes when we followed the Hydes and their 4 man group out. Our 4th man had done a runner as soon as he had filled, but Pete joined us, so we were still a foursome as well. We scooted around Lake Taupo, took the bypass, then headed for Reparoa. We had been warned of roadworks along there and I found them!.....I was still doing 120+ at the time and I shit myself. There were a couple of cars coming the other way and one minute I was cruising along, then the next thing you know, I spotted that the colour of the road was about to change, 1+1 clicked and like I said, I shit myself. Sensitive guy that I am, I was concerned that I might flick a few stones up at the cars, but of more concern was as the bike transitioned from hard pack to looser, thicker crap and the front gave a bit of a shimmy, but I was quickly back on hardpack.....only to transition to even thicker, looser crap and the front shimmied even more and the back started to twitch in response as well. I was just about to kiss my arse goodbye when I transitioned back to hardpack, then back onto the seal, the heartrate settled and we were back on track. The next BHM moment occurred on that road as well when we rocked up behind a big truck and one moment he veered off to the left, saved and settled, then the next he veered across in front of me, to the right, saved that and settled. I was a bit confused as to whether he was falling asleep or just trying to intimidate me, so when a passing opportunity presented I booted down to three and gave it death to get past him as quick as possible. We were soon back on SH5, then turning onto SH38 and heading for Murupara. It was 0157 by now and we took the opportunity to maintain our quickish pace, arriving at Kopuriki Rd at 0215, took our pix, pissed around for 8 minutes, then headed for Awakeri. The going got harder for me through here because the road was narrower and humpier, so I would find myself rising with a black hole in front of me and I'd have no idea if the road was still straight, or about to swing right or left, then I'd peak over the hump and all would be revealed as the front of the bike dipped and the lights came back to the road. Consequently, I found myself hovering around the centre line and prepared to swing either way. Not really good form but we made it through and pulled into Z Awakeri at 0304....and I was frigging freezing. We took our pix, I went for a stroll to see a man about a dog, then I stripped off my jacket to add another layer underneath and we headed out after another 15 minute break, but we were back on SH2 now, so the going was easier and we were soon heading into Tauranga when the dickhead that was leading took the Welcome Bay Rd. In my defence, I will just say that it was shorter and our mission was to do a minimum distance for the ride!!?? Out of Tauranga and staying on SH2 to Waihi, we got there at 0446, still freezing, still very tired, but still making progress. We filled snacked and rested for 33 minutes before embarking on the last two legs and the 250km run home. (Pete left earlier than us though) I felt much better after the break, enjoyed the run through the Karangahake Gorge and life was much easier for me after that as the roads straightened out through Paeroa, down to Matamata and the skies had lightened up by the time we crossed SH1 and scooted down Lake Karapiro to the Puketurua Hall at the junction of Pearson and Old Taupo Roads. A mere 6 minutes and we were heading for Whakamaru and down the western lake road for Kurutau. It's easy to keep a steady pace through there and we were soon turning onto SH41 and into Turangi, pulling up at 0758. What a relief. The GPS was saying we had maintained a rolling average of 100kph doing 1613km in 16hrs 9mins road time and correcting for our CP duties at Waiouru, we managed the trip in 18.5hrs. We always expected it to be a 'fast' (easy flowing) route but it was still a good ride with the right mix of twisties and highway riding. I felt OK but apparently the eyes looked like pissholes in the snow and I had made hard work of the night sections....We had a ball but!!! Photos were taken of odometers, we checked in, had a hearty feed, shared lies, some went for naps, but I just laid back and watched as the rest of the field came in, finally going for a snooze between about 3 and 5...or maybe 6, in the afternoon. Then went back to the hall for another feed and to socialise over a few beers. ......and so the inaugural North Island 1600 had been smoked.......but we still had to clean-up and get home. Sunday night saw me thrust into a coma whereby I could have been sleeping on a bed of nails and I would have got a good kip. We awoke and arose about 0630 to start preparing breakfast and we'd been fed, cleaned up the hall, checked out and were pulling out of the holiday camp at 1003. Stretch was leaving as we were so he joined James and myself, dawdling over the Desert Road. Unfortunately a dawdle was a little too sedate for Stretch, so he passed us and had soon invoked a car to turn on theri lights and hang a uee. Naturally, I pulled over immediately but she didn’t want me, so James and I continued to Taihape for our fuel and coffee stop. Stretch pulled in a bit later and I couldn’t believe he’d got pinged when he had a car in front of him and two bikes behind!? *Sigh*....oh well, thems the breaks and the vagaries of life. We continued on and because I had to go via Palmy to return some serving dishes to Robert Harris cafe on the square, James & I turned off at Mangaweka to take Rangiwahia Rd....and what a wee peach that is right now. By Kimbolton, all the cobwebs had been blown out and we settled back to our sedate pootle through Feilding and into the square, where we enjoyed another coffee with Barney, then headed for home, finally pulling into the office at 1403. What an adventure it’s been. James dragged four of us together about a year ago and things have slowly fallen into place. We nearly pulled the pin due to lack of entries at one point, but stuck with it and although the field was a little light on entries, we budgeted conservatively and should make it through OK. The feedback has been positive and the other nutters like ourselves, that just want to get on their bikes and stay on them all night, seem happy to have a big ride back on the calendar. There were heaps of volunteers to help make it run smoothly and a big thanks to them all. I enjoyed the hell out of it. I just have to get through the Capital 1,000 km Cruise next month, the TT2000 in Feb, and then we can start looking at something for next year. And finally, I’d just like to share an wee anecdote for any that are considering the next NI16. You may recall mention earlier of tyres being fitted back to front and buggered brake pads, why, there was even one silly prat that turned up without a current WoF (but no more shall be said about that.....aye James). Anyway pads and tyres and 30 minute delays was same guy and that would be enough to rattle ones wits. We’re prepping to leave Waiouru and Beemer Boy says, “It’s just down to Vinegar Hill from here aye?” I look at James and James looks at me and I turn to the chap and say, “Yeah...Nah, that should be Spooners Hill Rd and it’s about 15km down the road.” And away he goes with us following a minute or two later. After installing his pads (and forgetting to pay for fuel) Beemer Boy ends up tacking on to our rear out of Paaekak’ and whilst stopped at BP Bulls he asks, “It’s just up to Turangi from here aye?” to which I reply, “Yeah....nah, that should be Wanganui and the Para’s, perhaps you should stick with us.” Which he duly did until sprinting from the blocks after filling at Turangi. One might think that that was the end of it, but no, there’s more! I mentioned that we got in at 0800 and awaited the return of others, but when asking of Beemer Boy, there had been no report, until late in the morning I heard reports of someone calling from.....Napier.....&/or Whakatane....or maybe that should have been Gisborne, because our man Beemer Boy had ended up going through Waikarimoana!!!! Technically he didn’t complete the ride, but he did manage 1944km not completing....as opposed to my corner cutting 1613km. We were obviously too slow so he streaked ahead....and came in 4 or 5 hours after!!! The moral of the story is that in this type of riding, faster isn’t always faster.....and planning and preparation is everything! With the New Zealand endurance riding scene down to just two real rides, (The Chatto Creek 1,000 miler and the TT2000 – 2000Km in 48 hours) since I haven't sampled the CC, it's pretty easy for me to say I've just completed the best endurance ride on the NZ riding calendar!! That's not to say that it was the best ride I've been on and definitely not the best TT I've done, but as always with this type of riding, it was different, it was challenging, I rode a shitload of new roads for me, we got shone on, we got cooked, we got pissed on, we hit the verge of hypothermia, we got delayed, we pissed around, we pissed each other off, we had a good laugh, we looked after each other, we got lost, ….and we found ourselves!!!.....oh yes, and as I was riding lead pretty much all weekend, I had some wicked fangs!! As with all walks of life, endurance riders are a funny breed and there's no one 'type' of rider that does this stuff. In talking to other punters at the event, there were those that just wing-it and see what happens, those that do a moderate amount of planning, and then there's anal pricks like me that plan down to the minutest details and try to organise their ride to the minute...but we all get there in the end. Well, almost all! My ride started back in August when the TT website went live with the Checkpoints and I quickly came up with a raw concept, then sat on it until after the C1KC (Capital 1,000Km Cruise) was done and dusted. At that point I tweeked and refined the plan, identifying the accommodation stops, booking them and ferry sailings for my riding buddy Steve and myself, and registered for the ride. Then I spent many more hours drilling into MapSource and Google Maps removing any nasty gravel sections, estimating minimum and maximum ride times minimising time and maximising Km's, identifying CP's based on Points per Km and Points per Minute to then identify the best potential drops with cutoff times. By this time Steve and I had been joined by Woody and Ken, I prepared and printed CP booklets with spreadsheet printouts and we were on the plan to do 280Km Friday, 1200Km Saturday and 800+Km Sunday, collecting 44,200 points along the way. I must say that I felt this ride was going to be more challenging than the 2011 ride when I did gold with Jantar, completing 1550Km Saturday and 1350Km Sunday …. but I had planned well......but the best laid plans! As the countdown rolled into the last week I kept watch on the rain forecasts (which were all at odds with each other) and things weren't looking great, but I have new cordura pants and jacket, with all the other trusty gear and it wouldn't be too much of a problem. Then Friday rolled around, I was down at the Bluebridge but 0645, met up with others as they boarded shortly after me and we settled down for an extremely smooth crossing, arriving at Picton to have a sidewalk lunch in a balmy 26º, before checking into our cabin, settling in and killing time before kitting up to head over to Woodbourne, arriving at about 1615....by then the temp had cracked 31º. We mingled until 1745, got briefed, picked up our T-shirts (which I clipped by the shoulders on to the trouser hanger duct taped into the lid of my topbox), then hit the road for Onamalutu and Top Valley on the Northern side of the Wairau River before heading back through Renwick and to the Waihopai Dam and Netherwood on the South side. From there it was back to Picton, over to Oyster Bay, back through Picton, around to Momorangi Bay on Queen Charlotte Dve, then back to Picton for fuel, a beer then bed. When Steve and I do this type of riding we switch into GC-mode (Grand Challenge) whereby we dial up a steady pace around 110’ish kph, minimise stops and although we don't go fast as such, we don't slow down much either to ride as efficiently and economically as our pace will allow. By the 2nd stop, I figured we had problems because we were on a 'light' pace but Ken mentioned he was struggling with the glare and sunscreen in his eyes, plus the stops were way over the allotted 2 minutes. *sigh* ...she'll be right but! I hadn't been up the North side of the river or over to Oyster Bay since the mid 80's, I'd never been out to Waihopai and, having found the road was clean on the way out, I enjoyed a wicked fang on the return from Momorangi. I'd opted to do that CP on Friday night as the out and return added 28Km to the night, then the scoot around Spring Creek on Saturday morning added another 50Km to the tally for no extra time. We hit the sack at about midnight and arose at 0430 to get on the road before 0510. The weather on Saturday was supposed to close in so we bought the 0600 start forward to make up predicted lost time and elected to drop Elaine Bay to generate a time buffer and depending on how things went, we could pick up the points and Km's by adding in the faster Kohaihai CP if things went well....but the best laid plans!! We enjoyed an easy ride around to Canvastown, the Pelorus Bridge, then out to Penzance, which turned out to be a sweet one. Another new road for me, which claimed two TT'ers...and nearly claimed me! We pootled out there, took our pics then headed back but I had one of those brain fades...? or perhaps more correctly, a rush off blood to the head and I took off like a scolded cat, pushing towards my limits through the forest, then out onto the dairy flats. As I came onto the flats, three TT'ers were heading out and I was a little distracted as I waved....then just about shit myself! As soon as the 3rd biker shot past me, a bloody great dairy cow, or three, immediately strolled from a gate and across the road in front of me, about 50 metres ahead and from my right! Holy shit! I hit the picks with all the best linked ABS stopping power an ST has to offer, the front dipped and the dreamy front cow must have caught a glimpse of the lights as I closed to within 20 metres, rapidly transitioning from warp to impulse speed, but still on a perfectly timed collision course with no viable escape routes on offer. You could say I was toast, but with 15 metres to go the old girl swung her head away from me, jumped her front around to the right and tried to break into a stumbling run along the side of the road, although only managing two or three steps before I was past and out of danger. At that point I thanked my lucky stars, felt sorry for the poor prick that ended up with that adrenalin loaded, curdled syrup on their cornies and promptly started to analyse the situation. These cows were stragglers from a herd that were crossing (but controlled by the farmer) on our way out. I hadn't noticed any movement due to the other bikes, the soothing whine of an ST isn't exactly going to scare the bejeezers out of any beast and the cows timing was perfect.....and I guess it just wasn't my time!? I pulled up at the junction and started to don my wets for the anticipated and approaching weather ahead as I waited for the others. Pity about that because they decided to do the same, but we ended up not needing them and just wasted more time. In fact, we were losing time to a couple two-up on another ST! I settled back down and we pootled on to Peppin Island, Rabbit Island, then on to Upper Moutere on our way to our 1st fuel stop at Motueka. I still had half a tank but took the top up just to be sociable and not make Woody feel bad about riding his Kermidly Z1000, and by the time we pulled out it was 0940 and we had spent 20 minutes on our 10 minute fuel stop! Aww, she'll be right, I hear you say...we've got plenty of time since we dumped Elaine Bay! More delightful new roads for me as we scooted over to Marahau (actually, I really had a bloody great fang and had already taken my pic before the others got there), then pootled out to Riwaka Resurgence, (??), before embarking on the statutory rip roaring fang that is required whenever heading over the Takaka Hill! Or at least it was a rip snorter until hitting the Pea Souper fog just before the summit the most of the way down the other side. Another short wait then it was on more new roads to the Anatoki Salmon farm, through Takaka to Farewell Spit, back to a cemetery in the back of beyond at some place called Bainham, then back to Mot' for a snack and more fuel, …...but we only wasted 35 minutes on lunch and 17 minutes on the 10 minute fuel stop this time!....it's really good to have the best laid plans!!! We were into easy cruising now as we slipped back down the Mot' Valley to Orinoco, then on to St Arnaud. By this time we had been on the road for 11 hours, but had only managed 675Km (which should have been 750 if we had done Elaine Bay) .....and we had blown the hour and a half buffer that had given us! At this point Ken was starting to feel the effects and considering pulling the plug, so another quick modification was required. We had huge excesses of points so we decided to dump Lake Rotoroa, Seddonville and Tauranga Bay, then if we got to Greymouth early enough, we could take out the first three CP's for Sunday morning to create a bit more buffer there......but the best laid plans!!!! Our dithering and replanning only took 6 minutes on that 2 minute stop before we were scooting out to Kawatiri and on to Murchison where I thought it prudent to take an unscheduled 20 minute drink stop before pushing on to Hawks Crag, then more fuel at Westport, which only took 9 of the allocated 10 minutes, so we were obviously starting to crack on and make up time!! Then we only had a short scoot to pick up Denniston, Grand Canyon and Stockton Mine before getting onto the home straight......but the best laid plans!!!!! We were soon turning off at Waimangaroa and taking it easy up the hill to Denniston, I had Ken behind me but was quite focused on the road ahead, because the last time Steve & I had gone up there, there was loose crap all over the road, so I was taking care. I pulled up at the junction at the top to regroup, then Ken pulled up beside me and said, “I lost the other two right at the bottom and I tried flashing you, but you didn't see.” Bugger!! We waited 4 minutes, then I said, we're here now, we'll take our pic then go look. Sure enough, 1-2 Km up, Woody had managed to lose the back end on some loose crap in a tight left hander, the back spun out and it had gone down, breaking the clutch lever. By this time Steve was part way to jury rigging a repair with tie-wraps (or zip ties if you prefer), but the 2nd one couldn't handle the pressure and was slipping through the locking mechanism, so I grabbed a couple of mine, which were a little better, but not quite up to it. Throughout the time we were there, Woody was trying to make contact with some of his local compadres, but to no avail, and meantime, Steve had given the clutch situation more thought and figured that a bit of classic No8 wire might do the trick, so while he and Ken went in search of a scrap of wire around a fence or pylon, I went back to Waimangaroa in search of a coat hanger. I cruised back to the junction because I had noted some kind of garage there, but the prospects didn't look good, and although there were a few cars parked up at various houses, there was no sign of life and it was like riding through a ghost town, until I spotted two young chaps chatting in the front garden, so I pulled over and strode in. They looked a bit baffled to be receiving a visitor, but after a quick outline of the situation, they were soon shuffling through the garage, but with no luck, then into the house, soon returning with the wire coathanger that we were to be hanging our dreams on (not to mention our badges). I got back to discover that Steve & Ken had also been lucky enough to find an ideal length of wire by a pylon....but there was just no bending it, so the hanger was soon unraveled, pruned, shaped, slipped into place, twisted tight, tested......and voila, Woody was back in action, but I packed the rest of the wire.... just in case. Another scoot was made to the summit for more pics and we were back on the road to Grand Canyon and Stockton mine having only lost an hour and a half and lucky to be on the road again at all....it was 2015 but! …And getting on for dusk. More pics taken and as we started to head back through Westport, it was starting to drizzle and I had to pull over to sort out the visor as I couldn't see too well. The others kitted up with wets but I just put my winter weight Spidi gloves on and relied on the new DirRider jacket to do its thing. *sigh* We hit the road again at 2128 in the pitch blackness and within a few Km’s I knew this leg was going to be tough. The road was wet, the drizzle came and went and was just enough to be a nuisance, but occasionally it would be interspersed with a jolly good dump, I’m not the happiest of campers when having to pick clean lines through the proliferation of slick patches in the wet these days, and then there was Woody to think about with his jury-rigged clutch, so I didn’t want him to be having to use that more than necessary….and of course, by this time we were all starting to feel the effects of a long day. Well! The first thing I discovered was that my new jacket is actually a Not-So-DriRider Jacket!? It has zipped vents right up each sleeve, down the centre section on each side at the back and a couple of large sections that can tuck away on the front. It was described to me as, “Waterproof, plus it has a separate waterproof liner, plus the padded thermal liner.” And of course, I didn’t bring the thermal liner, but I did bring the waterproof liner….but I hadn’t put it in!! I figured the zips must have been really high tech jobbies to be waterproof, but of course the outer jacket is just shower proof. Fortunately though, ST riders don’t need a lot of protection because the bike takes most of the sting out of any weather, so on the really heavy downpours, I just managed to feel a few dribbles coming in around my shoulders…..and I could live with that until Punakaiki!? Punakaiki was a long time coming with a lot of effort and concentration required though. I generally struggled to achieve more than 80kph thanks to the dismal conditions and poor vision, which was a bit sad because I love that road, but we finally made it to the CP and I was able to take a marginal pic, then put my trusty Warehouse over-jacket and RainOff gloves on, so that fixed both the damp and thermal issues I was starting to have to deal with. We got back on the road and just to finish things off for the day, we had about 5Km of very gritty, loose new seal to contend with before Runanga, before finally getting to the Greymouth 24Hr Z at 1109, where we gassed up for the morning, then looked for a feed, which we had to settle for a pie at the Caltex down the road, made it to the Top 10 and by this time I was so shattered, I just collapsed onto the bunk. That was a bloody nuisance because I didn’t have the energy to download the data from the GPS and clean it out for the next day or download the video footage from the GoPro to free up space on the card, and charge the camera and remote batteries….so Sunday would be videoless. The other damn nuisance was that earlier in the day a casual chat had me setting the phone alarm for 0430, and we finally decided on 0530!!!....doh!! I ended up arising around 0500 in order to give myself plenty of time to repack my panniers and set up for the day. It had really pissed down during the night but was back to an intermittent drizzly, dismal day with the temp at about 16º (when it would finally become day), ….and a few more hours kip would have been very nice thank you. We finally got on the road at 0607 and within a few minutes, my trusty GPS was telling me that I had arrived at Boddytown…..but alas there was no Doc sign to photograph and I hadn’t noticed one over the preceding 200metres, so I went a little further up the road before turning back and was about to turn around again, when I noticed a ‘Town Sign’ stating Boddytown, and it was reflective so it made a much better camera target in the pitch black morn’. Pic taken and we shuffled along Marsden Rd to Rutherglen Rd, turned left for Dunganville and I was soon leading us astray!! Well to be absolutely correct, that dastardly rotten Mike Hyde (reknowned author of the Twisting Throttle series of books) was really to blame and my culpability was only in my knowledge that I knew he was a dastardly devil who couldn’t be trusted with GPS co-ordinates….but I obviously hadn’t checked thoroughly enough when comparing his GPS position on google maps and streetview. If we had been scooting along in the daylight, it wouldn’t have been a problem because one couldn’t miss the checkpoint that was really 5-6Km earlier than what my GPS said….and I might add, 5-6 gravelly Km’s!! Oh well, we only lost half an hour, or maybe a little bit more….but the best laid plans!!!!!! Anyway, speaking of losing time, with everyone kitted up in their wets (except me just riding with my Spidi Gloves again) I saw the writing on the wall, that my 2 minute CP photo stops were about to become very extended sociable affairs between Ken’s very chatty nature and Woody’s very particular, careful and precise actions and with not a lot of fat left in the barrel, I couldn’t afford to have that if I didn’t want an asterix beside my name. (that would indicate on the result sheet that we were overstayers, or overtimers, or something like that), so at Dungeon-ville, I said, “stay on your bikes, I’ll take the photos for all of us!” But when Woody relayed that message to Ken, when we got to Shantytown, he responded with, “Oh no, I’ll take my photos.” To which I think my eyes probably just rolled back into my head somewhere as I was probably thinking to myself, “Ooohhh F….F….S….s!!” as I was waiting, tapping some unmusical tune on my tank while he put his gloves, etc back on and wasted yet another minute of two… Hehehe… ! On-on and coming onto 0700 we were just getting back through Greymouth and onto Dobson, but the time gods hadn’t finished with me yet! As we were exiting town, the GPS was wanting me to keep left, but I knew where I was going and that I needed to stay right, take the 2nd exit from the roundabout and head along the south bank of the river….easy! Yeah right, I confused poor Kate, then she was telling me to go across the river…or somewhere to get back on track so I tentatively went onto the bridge, got a wee way out, paused, then hung a u-ee and scooted back to the desired track. Kate caught up and got back on track eventually and we only lost a few more of those very precious seconds. Dobson done, we crossed the river, did Blackball, then had a slightly extended stop at the Pike River memorial as we checked out all the effort that had gone into it before rolling on to Waiuta. This next stop was a hoot and one could only get this in the south island. We flicked off the main road onto a very narrow lane (which was still open and easy going), but then there was 6Km of hardpack gravel. Not a problem I thought when I planned the route, hardpack is easy, even on an ST. Yes well, it had been pissing down all night and the hardpack was some sort of greasy clay so very soon I was feeling the front going one way and the rear the other, so much care and restraint was needed, but we got there in the end. (The end was a hundred year old deserted mining settlement in the back of beyond). While there, I had to remove the pinlock from my visor because it was giving me all sorts of grief with fogging and getting water on the inside. From here on we were onto the Lewis Pass and flowy roads through Reefton to Italian Creek, back through Reefton to Blacks Point, then down to GAS Lewis Pass at Springs Juncton. Through this stretch the temp dropped to 6º, which after the 28-31 we had been enjoying on Friday, then 23-26 on Saturday, it was bloody cold. Prior to leaving in the morning, I had reluctantly put on a scivvy, plus I was wearing my wets, but I still had to squirm about in my jacket to try to brush off the cold. I wasn't wearing the RainOffs because of having to get on and off the bike and use the camera so they were wet and I had been using the heated grips...and cranked them up to 2nd, but as soon as we got to Springs Junction I had to throw on another scivvy and wets trousers before gassing up. We'd been humming and Hahing whether to keep or drop Hanmer and at this point, we'd lost a bit of time so I decided to drop it. The next sections were good though because soon after getting back on the road, the clouds cleared, the roads dried, the temp started to climb back into double figures and we were skipping along at a better pace. We collected Marble Hill and Glynn Wye first before a pause in Waiau, then over Leader Rd to SH1 and over the Hunderlees to Goose Bay, before returning over the Hunderlees and down to Cheviot for fuel and a snack. I had a ball through here because once again, being in the front, I caught a break through the traffic, then seemed to time it right each time I caught the next car or truck and just flew through to Goose Bay, getting my wets off....well almost all off, just as the others arrived. Lunch was quick and easy, then it was straight out to Gore Bay, coming back in at Dommet before heading on to Greta Valley for the out and return to Motunau Beach. At this point I knew we were getting tight for time so I announced to the others that I was bailing on the rest of the CP's (ie Scargill, Balcairn, Lyttleton, Charteris Bay and Charring Cross) to just focus on the 3000 points on offer at Port Levy. They agreed so we hit the road on our final mission....but the best laid plans!!!!!!! My plan was that Woody would need more gas before the finish, so while he (and the others) were topping up at Z Belfast, I would nip down the road to check-in at 219 On Johns so we could return whenever we wanted and wouldn't have to rush away after the finish. That would have been a good plan if anyone was in attendance at the office so I left empty handed! Then I hadn't really accounted for the roadworks and really slow traffic through Christchurch and on to Lyttleton, and figured we had time to take that CP because we were there. And most of all I hadn't accounted for the heavens to open up, initially with some spectacular forked lightning....right where we needed to crest over the hills between Charteris Bay and Port Levy!! That slowed me down somewhat and it was with great concern, reservations and trepidation that I continued ...putting life and limb on the line for the cause.....and the badge of course!! Steve & I got separated from Ken & Woody through the last bit, then I got down to the monument at Port Levy to find I was alone, then Ken & Woody showed up but no Steve??? We were on the ropes for time by now and couldn't wait so we shot back up the hill to find Steve waiting at the top with two other riders, so I told him to join them and we'd meet him back at Hamptons. Then as we climbed the hill for Charteris Bay, I paused to look back to ensure that Steve was with the other chaps climbing out of Port Levy, but I could only see two headlights, so I told Ken & Woody (who both had GPS's) to carry on and I'd wait for Steve to ensure he didn't get lost. Fortunately though, as they got a bit closer, I could see there were three bikes so I bolted….over a road awash with riverlets of water and more slick patches than you could shake a stick at! It was depressing to have to ride right past the Charteris Bay CP (twice) without picking it up and then I couldn't remember if it would be quicker to take Gebbies Pass or Dyers Pass, as it's been over 20 years since I lived in Christchurch and closer to 40 since this area was my playground.....so I foolishly opted for Dyers!? What a bugger because it might have been a close call but the traffic coming in was thick and slow. We made it in the end though, a smidgen late, a little worse for wear, a lot frustrated with some poor decision making on my part, and even more frustrating on my part for some poor planning because I was so knackered the night before that I hadn't even reviewed our position, I had no idea of what our points talley was or what we needed and as it turned out, if we hadn't gone for Port Levy, we would have been short! Well short!
Another thing I did wrong was that I had programmed the ride around the way Steve and I ride then took on two endurance-riding novices but didn't change the plan thinking that, “She'll be right, there's plenty of fat so we can drop this and this and that and still be OK!” But I got more depressed every time I had to let one slip away and in hindsight, I should have reprogrammed the ride to a bare basics with add-ons, because then it would have been OK to ride to the plan, or a boost to pick-up any extras. We made it though, dumped our photos, scoffed a sizzled sausage or two, mingled and traded lies with the other punters. Then slipped away for some pizza and a few reds...and a well deserved kip. Monday dawned another beautiful day where Ken was up and away early for a southern tour while the rest of us relaxed and slowly prepped to head north. At this point I found the Sunday GPS Tracklog had gone to archive in the unit….but didn’t quite make it!! (and that’s why I tend to clear the unit each day). Bother! We got away around 1100 on a cruisy ride, stopped for a casual lunch in Kaikoura, a nice cuppa in Picton then an easy cruise across the straits to get home at around 2300. Once back, I went to retrieve Saturday’s Video footage from my 500Gb portable drive, only to find it had crashed, wanted to be formatted and all the data on it was lost!! That’s alright though. Let’s face it, I had the best laid plans! Another bloody marvelous day.....Bloody Marvelous!! Prep for this year's C1KC started straight after last year's one, when, although I had a couple of potential routes, I was doodling on MapSource (as you do) to see just how far we could get from Wellington, ...without doing an out and return, ...and still be a reasonably interesting route to ride. I was hoping to touch Tauranga but had to settle for Rotorua-Putaruru, so I ran the options past my old Wgtn Uly Ride Committee buddies, we settled on the two potential options and forgot about it. In mid August I pulled the stuff out again, revisited the route options, this time including STJim from Hamilton, settled on the Rotorua option with a Northern start at Putaruru, emailed a heads-up to all the previously registered 1000Km Cruisers, started threads on KB & the Uly forums...had three entries within 24 hours, about a dozen within a week and ended up with 64, comprising of 35 bikes out of Wellington, 9 (2 with pillions) from Masterton, 2 from Wanganui & 6 from Palmy (all joining the Wellington start but finishing at home) and 10 starting from Putararu and riding in the reverse direction. (for those that can't help themselves on the math thing...yes that adds up to 61 bikes, but for 1,000Km, the pillions probably have to be harder arses than the riders and therefore are recognised with equal status, earning certificates and badges). Organising this ride doesn't seem to take a lot of effort as it's pretty much regurgitate the same old stuff, but leading up to the ride I probably did spend the best part of a couple of days, getting the Ride Instructions done, tweeking the briefing, compiling pictures of the CP's (all of which are emailed to the Registered Riders a week before the event), then a day or so before, printing all the certificates and packaging them with the badges and year bars in pre-loved C4 envelopes. Then finally the day before the ride, emailing out start lists for Masterton and Putaruru, printing a list for Ann (in Wgtn) and myself, drawing the prizes (this year, compliments of Boyle Kawasaki in Wgtn), packing up the car and bike....and that's it....except I couldn't find the finisher list for Putaruru and my list so needed to print them again in the morning!! Alarm went off at 0500 Saturday and we were up and at 'em and out the door at 0540....but as it is with computers, mine didn't want to know me so I didn't get to Caltex Rimutaka until 0620 and was surprized to see a big crowd of bikes all 'taped-up' (we issue yellow & black tape to tie on the back of the bikes to easily identfy each other on the road) and ready to go. So a bit of a blur gassing up, taping up, fitting GPS and Go-Pro, meeting some of the riders ...and it was really great to see Mike, who has done all 6 previous C1KC's but could ride this year due to health reasons, but still came over from the Kapiti Coast to see us off. As usual, I waited until the last rider had left and we had checked that a missing starter wasn't coming (3 non-starters this year...thanks for the donations anyway) before I set off at 0658, into the gloomy mist surrounding the Rimutakas and, as usual for this ride, I had no set plan...apart from ensuring there are no stragglers, and/or everyone is teamed up and making progress. So, my casual start had my average at 93kph by the bottom of the hill, dropping to 86 by the summit, where I had caught Gav, bottoming out at 71 before the bridge and back to 73 in Featherston. Then I stuck behind Gav until just before the turnoff for the Track. By this time the average was up to 87kph, I knew Gav has done Mega miles solo on his Interstate, so he was OK solo.....and I was feeling a little frisky!! The Track was OK, but it is a road I treat with the utmost respect because one is never quite sure what the surface is going to be like, and on this occasion it was OK...not great but I made good time and caught up with Hitcher and Jane on the decent and in to the first CP, a photo of the bike at Aokautere School. I waited a couple of minutes for Gav to arrive in which time I came up with a short term plan, I would try to catch up to Hitcher and Jane by the Kimbolton CP, then film them though some of the curly parts of Rangwahia Rd....yes well....the best laid plans. (Little did I know they were pausing in Feilding). So I rolled into Kimbolton, surprized to see no Bandit & Z1000, but instead 2 cruisers, an old CBR and a Beemer and thinking, 'hmmm, that's a crisper pace and stop than I expected from the Hitchers?', so taking little more than a minute, I was on my way again. At this point, it was 0914, I was 198Km into the ride and the total average was back to 86 with the stops. I still figured I'd catch the Hitchers and/or enjoy a briskish ride over a nice road!!....and I did! (not the Hitchers, but the nice ride over the nice road) Around Ruahine I spotted a couple of bikes ahead and thought I had caught my prey....but it just turned out to be Menie & Yod!! Oh well, I filmed them anyway, passed some of the Northern starters, caught Bandit Rider waiting at SH1 and I slotted behind them through Taihape, Waiouru and over the Desert Rd. By the this time, the weather was brilliant blue skies with the magnificent vista of Ruapehu and Ngarahoe, so prior to Waiouru, I flicked the Go-Pro on to catch a 10 sec burst of the scene....but dumbarse that I am, I turned off the Remote, but failed to stop the camera, so 30+ minutes later, when I decided to catch another short burst....yes well....I now have 30 minutes of boring straight SH1, albeit on an incredible day and with menies arse in front of me all the way....but, it did mean that I ended up with evidence of the Popo delaying a pretty red cruiser with yellow tape tied to it's rear! More footage scored through the curly sections and more stunning vista as we crested to view Lake Taupo, then I pulled out of the group to fuel in Turangi. Normally I would make it to Rotorua on a tank, but my 'fresh' pace wasn't very friendly for my economy and with the Taupo bypass meaning I would have to divert to Wairakei, and with the knowledge I could still get to Raetihi from here, I opted to fill up...and I desperately needed a 'natural break'. By this time (1048), I was 355Km into the ride and the Palmy boys had dragged my total average back to 93kph...so a new plan formed!! I kicked into GC mode and decided to 'crack on' and 8 minutes later, fueled, watered and snacked I got back on the road. Now enjoying a 'spirited pace' I embarked on the pleasant ride around Lake Taupo....bloody nice road and bloody spectacular to be riding along the banks of the lake in 21°, virtually no wind, brilliant clear skies and very little traffic (so a bit more footage) and I was soon taking the turn-off for Reparoa. I opted for the deviation because I felt safer to push the boundaries of the allowable limits through here...and I hadn't done it since 2007, so I was soon (1213hrs) stopping at the Skyline centre in Rotorua for CP photo #3, total average back up to 92kph, 487Km done, and most importantly, my eta back in Wellington had dropped from 1900 to 1630'ish. I pulled into the stop to find Biggo and his two mates on 109's there and 2 minutes later I eased into the traffic a little behind them, however I passed them as they appeared to be checking the route instructions at the turnoff in Ngongataha, so they slotted in behind me, naturally thinking, 'this is the man to follow, he'll know the route off by heart'! That was quite a reasonable assumption on their part, however, I had to deliver the certs & badges to the Okoroire Pub for the northern starters!...Oh dear, I didn't want to lead these guys astray (an extra 10Km or so) and fortunately we had to stop for a lollipop man at some roadworks so I tried to portray the message to Biggo. Fortunately they continued on the right track and I arrived at Okoroire at 1242, 531Km done and just over half way. I handed the package over the bar, relieved myself (again), snacked, swilled, kit back on and off again…only losing 7 minutes, but enough to drop the average from 92 to 90 kph. Nice wee roads around here and I was soon back on track, passing a couple of Masterton riders out of Putaruru and taking a pic of the Puketurua Hall. 1308hrs, 558Km done and average at 90kph....and a minute and half later I was enjoying Old Taupo Rd....and that's what the CP at the hall was for, to ensure riders had to take this road rather than just scoot down SH1. Now the fun began, the fast lightly patrolled roads down to Whakamaru and around the western lake. I passed a few more riders gassing at Whakamaru, then caught back up to Biggo and the 2 cruisers with a Bandit in tow about half way down the lake. I seemed to be doing a similar speed to them, catching up by increments through any curly bits, finally latching onto their tail about 20Km from Kuratau. It was quite nice to be into a group and I was more than happy to slot on the back, but as ever, I was thinking of the road ahead and figured, 'Nah, I want an unencumbered crack at the 2 saddles between Kuratau and Tokaanu on SH41 and the lovely Te Ponanga Saddle on SH47, so when we reached a couple of long straight sections, I took the opportunity to cruise past the Bandit and one of the 109's, then passed the other 109 and Biggo coming out of the junction. *Sigh*....bike heaven!!....SH41 and next to no traffic on a magnificent day! After a jolly good fang, I settled back down to business and cruised through to Raetihi, arriving at 1537, 776Km done, and a total average of 95kph, with the eta down to 1810. I was half-pai expecting to possibly meet northen starters here, but 10 minutes later, fueled, relieved, watered, snacked and Go-Pro lens de-bugged, I was back on my way.....Mmmmm......the Paras!! And what a Para's!! More bloody great brilliant riding!! I was now aiming to get the ETA down to 1800 for an 11 hour ride, but it was really strange, for some reason, my GPS only graced me with 2minutes!!?? Hell, I wasn't caning it, but I was going 'comfortable quick' with easy acceleration and minimal braking, a bit of chop to 4th for 65-75 corners and 3rd for tighter ones. I will admit that the economy was under 15Km/Ltr through here and I did average 105kph...but please!!...two miserable bloody minutes!! It just isn't fair! FFS...90Km at 100kph is 54 minutes and 90Km at 105kph is 51.4 minutes.....ooooh shit.....I wasn't going fast enough!! Oh well, I was back to reality now, or at least, I was after bypassing Wanganui via Kaimatira Rd and Fordell and it was steady-as-she-goes, boring, crap riding down a horrid, boring, straight, SH1 chock full of traffic. This would bugger my ETA you say, but not so!....Just as my Garmin 660 seems to know intuitively what speed I tend to do down the Paras, it also seems to know that I tend not to linger in traffic down SH1, so at 1608 I was pulling into the Parrot 'n Jigger with a slightly uncomfortable butt and bloody relieved grin on my face....then I guess that turned to a quizzical expression because there were no other bikes there!! I walked into the bar to see Ann, all set up and reading her Kindle. She looked up, her mouth dropped, and she said, “What are you doing here?....Johnny, you've been speeding! You left last!” What could I say? Rapidly racking brain for answers...'No, I didn't have to stop much...Bloody big tanked ST's', nah...'Where are the others?...they must have been going slow', nah...oh dear, I just looked a bit sheepish and stunned mulletish and said, “I don't know, why aren't they here yet?” Hehehe....Bloody GC Mode, does it all the time. It's not about speed, just minimal stops and constant grazing! ….and pushing the allowable limits!.....but just a little bit! What a ride! I had concerns at the start that the route included a bit too much State Highway riding, but it was fine. It was relatively open and therefore quick for any uninitiated endurance riders but it contained enough curves for experienced rider to still enjoy it. As always, (so far) we managed to throw in a few roads that many have never ventured on and it was wonderful to hear feedback from experienced Rusty Riders that they enjoyed the ride and route. (That's a bit of a problem too because I do have a few unused routes, but I'm running out) about half the Wellington starters were in by 1930 and the last, but two got in at 2145. The other two had phoned in to advise they would be late and would email there pix in. I managed to do 1051Km (with the wee excursion to Okoroire) in 11hrs 10min, being 10hr 40 min moving time for a moving average of 99kph and 30minutes stopped time for a total average of 87kph. I took 72 minutes of video footage and that's going to be bugger to edit, but there should be some good stuff in there and,...as I said at the start, I had a bloody marvelous time. I didn't feel totally comfortable at times and put that down to a lack of ride fitness for 'endurance type' riding....so I guess I need to do more Km's!! Many thanks to: the 60 other souls that embarked on the ride with me Jim Galt for handling the Putaruru Start & David Coy the Okoroire finish Glen Morgan for handling the Masterton start Ann, Ron Meiklen & Steve Klaui for controlling the masses at the Wellington start and Ann for being there at the finish. Boyle Kawasaki for the spot prizes (and my boss at Affiliated Insurance Brokers for the certs and my time) The feedback has been great, I hope the rest of you enjoyed it as much as I did!...oh yes...and we should have raised about $700 to buy Christmas presents for kiddies with Muscular Dystrophy. (That ride's on the 6-8 December and will be another blog). I don't think I was supposed to do the TT this year (again!!....I missed last year due to hip, conditioning & ping problems). Steve and I were all booked when he managed to get taken out by a 4WD on the Molesworth... “Oh well”, I thought, “No one to share the cost, but she'll-be-right, I'll just do it myself!”... but not so! After my wee altercation with black ice last year, she-who-must-be-obeyed advised, “Like Hell! You're not doing a ride like that by yourself!”, so I advertised for another riding buddy. Time passed with no takers, I was getting desperate and about to invite one of my imaginary friends when Trevor stepped up to the plate....whew, that was close. Then Ann's dad got crook. His health had been deteriorating for awhile and two weeks out from the TT, he ended up in hospital and it was a case of, “He might last days or months but we can't do anything for him”, so he went home to finish his days in familiar surroundings with his family around him. Old Wattie was a good bugger and he died on the Thursday morning (when I was pretty much packed to go the next day)......*sigh* I thought....but not so. When advising Mike Hyde (the author of the Twisting Throttle series of books and organiser of the TT2000), he said, “Do it next week!” Bloody marvellous....the Interislander were happy with that and so were the nice people at 219OnJohn's in Chch and the Seal Colony Top 10 in Westport...We were on!! All my prep (and there was lots of it) wasn't to be wasted. After spending much time selecting a route from the multitude of options, an overnight stop point had been identified and accommodation booked, fuel stops were programmed in for Steve's 350Km 'Busa range, then adjusted for Trevor's 250Km Stelvio range, booklets compiled for our checkpoint details, printed in the order they occurred, (compliments of my boss at AIB), spreadsheet prepared, breaking down the Km's between CP's, the time per leg, stopped time and ETA....hmmm a bit of a long day Saturday??....another spreadsheet for an alternative to drop 90Km (Rainbow) on Saturday and add 100Km (Mt John) on Sunday, route dropped to the GPS and checked, gear prepped, new front tyre obtained.....and so on. Day 1: Come Friday the 1st of Autumn at 0700'ish, we were checking in and queuing-up to board the Kaitake on a splendid Wellington morning. There were 'Classic' events on because there were heaps of old (70's type) bikes aboard as well as lots of Corvettes. We tied-down the bikes, parked ourselves in the cafeteria, waited for the queue to disappear before getting a feed, then watched another queue form as we waited for fresh bacon to come, we relaxed and chatted and at 1140 we were rolling out of Picton for a sedate cruise down SH1 to Christchurch, pausing for fuel in Kaikoura, noticing how many rivers were dry along the way and just enjoying the ride, arriving at the camp ground at 1640...exactly 4 hours to do the first 329Km of the weekend. We settled into the cabin (which I might add was able to be upgraded from a single cabin to a two room chalet with the change of weeks), then waited for Mike to turn up at 1750 with our T-shirts (these are required for the CP photos) and at 1802 we embarked on our quest to do 2,000Km in 48hours. The first wee jaunt was to flit over to Okains Bay, on Banks Peninsular, to grab the 5,000 points on offer. The original plan was to do this on Saturday morning, but by throwing it in on Friday night and finishing by 1800 on Sunday meant we were still completing within 48 hours but could do so with a nice cruisy Sunday ride. I haven't ridden over those parts since 1974, so it was pretty much new ground (although the blessings of age mean that two weeks between rides and every one is over new ground...which is quite handy when living in Wellington with only two routes in and out). Once again, there was no hurry so it was more relaxed cruising.... until I got to Little River and some little brain explosion occurred.....but....in my defence, although there were a couple of transgressions into ticketable territory, “I did not exceed the allowable limits...officer!”....I really like roads like that!! With cobwebs removed from the brain, we idled down to the Stoney Beach CP (which isn't a beach at all, and not really that stoney either...in fact it should have been called Grassy Corner) then stopped for pix of Okains Bay from the top of the hill as we made our way out, then picked-up a couple of extra CP's (that Mike had missed) at Taitapu and Halswell, allocating ourselves 1,000 & 500 points respectively....although the results indicate that Mike couldn't see his error!! Oh well, we stopped at a supermarket for some fruit and snacks, then grabbed a feed of pizza, finally getting back to the camp ground at 2226 for a well earned rest before our early start. Friday to Okains – GPS Stats 119kph Max Speed 68kph Moving Average 54kph Overall Average 3hrs Moving Time 205km Day 2: I'd set the alarm for 0515 but opened my eyes at 0505 to find Trevor was already up, so I arose, scrubbed, packed the bike and we were on the road at 0553. We had 29 CP photos to collect and I had only allowed 1 minute per stop but it soon became apparent that our stops were taking 2-3 minutes? Damn, that would add between a half and one hour to the day!! It wasn't too much of a problem though as we had the alternative route and in the early hours we just applied a little extra briskness to the pace to claw back the odd minute here or there and soon had West Eyerton, Bennetts, Ashley, Broomfield, Hawarden, Medbury and the 1st fuel stop for Trev at Culverden in the bag. It was then onto Rotherham and over the Inland Route, picking up a pic at The Doone on the way to Kaikoura. These roads were all pretty straight and unpatrolled in the early hours of a Saturday, although we showed much restraint and just pootled (plus a little). I’ve done the Inland Route a few times and as per usual, there was the odd spot of loose stuff, but that road is a delight to ride and although we weren’t ‘fanging’ it, we managed to pick-up a few more minutes on the ETA, then slipped down to the Esplanade for the Kaikoura CP, pootled on to Kekerengu and at Ward we re-ward-ed ourselves with a 15 minute snack break….that was dumb. We were now in the dreaded domain of the Tasman Enforcers, so extra care was taken as we made our way to a combined fuel stop in Blenheim before embarking on more straight (boring) roads to Woodbourne, 20’something Km’s up the Wairau Valley, back to Rapaura, then on to Picton. Picton was designated as our 30 minute lunch stop, so we went to Subway, arriving there at 1227, which was pretty good as our hardcore time had us there at 1204 and our easy time was 1301, so we were right where we wanted to be and half way between…..and the foot long sub was delightful. On-On and we were soon embarking on the cursed Queen Charlotte Drive. I had decided to include this in the route as it’s been about 5 years since I last did it, normally preferring the easier riding, 27Km longer but same-road-time squirt around through Spring Creek to Havelock. I must say that with no real time constraints, we struck it with minimal traffic and there was a bit of loose crap but that is always expected, so it was rather pleasant and we had soon picked-up Havelock, Rai Valley, had a good scoot over the Whangamoas to Wakapuaka, on to Marsden then Trev fueled again at Z Richmond. I had been leading for most of the way as I was more familiar with the plan and the roads as we nipped out to pick-up Tasman, then enjoyed a jolly good fang over the Takaka Hill, (because it was there!.....and because we had to come back over it to get to the next CP). This was our ‘D’ time to decide whether to drop Rainbow or not, based on if we were there by 1600 and as I arrived there at 1601 we opted for the longer Saturday and easier Sunday. Trev led back, we both fueled in Motueka and it was after this that we started to lose time….sort of! Since riding through the secondary roads of the Inland Route and picking up plenty of time on the GPS ETA, I expected to do the same on the back roads of the Mot’ Valley, but not so. I guess I was a little remiss in my planning here as I omitted to check closely and by rights, I should have taken the Mot’ Valley Hiway from Ngatimoti to Dovedale, but the Thorpe-Orinoco Rd was one I hadn’t tried, it didn’t appear to be gravel on MapSource …so I took it! What a dumb bastard! It was gravel! A liberal coating of reasonable thick loose shit on the straight sections….or very corrugated gnarly hardpack through the curly bits….my poor ST’s suspension took a hammering!! The upside was, my GPS obviously knew it was crap so I didn’t loose any time on the ETA. Once out of that crap, we made our way out to the Mot Valley Hiway, picked up Tapawera and Kohatu, then made our way down Tophouse Rd to get Rainbow. This being a back country minor road and with time slipping on, we took the pace a half a notch above ‘allowable’ through here, but there were a few pieces of newly repaired road and just after we were exiting from one of these, we encountered one of ‘those’ cars coming the other way. A wave of dread swept over me as my foot had already started to caress the brake before my eyes could glance down to see that I was still only doing 100 (indicated – which is about 95kph)….whew!! Who would ever want to complain about a few roadworks slowing them down? So it was an uninterrupted On-On down to the Wairau Valley Hiway and over to the Wairau-Hanmer Springs Hydro Rd. What a load of crap that was. I’ve ridden better goat-tracks. Narrow as hell, heaps of fords (half of which had flowing water), stock wandering about, dim sections of beech forest and bloody great 4WD’s coming the other way…..OK,… one 4WD!...and I considered I was ‘scooting’ but I failed to pick up any time!! But we got the1000 point pic and now only had 3 to go. We made our way back out (and all the stock had disappeared), we flitted through St Arnaud and onto the long straight roads back to SH6 and the run into Murchison, for the all-but-one CP and more fuel for Trev. At this point we were going and doing bloody well because our hardcore time had us at 1827, our pootle time was 2034 and it was still only 1950...but…not too far out of Murchison (on the way in) I had managed to have an encounter with a curmudgeonly little fellow wearing yellow and black stripes. The little bastard flew in through my open visor, lodging in the snug space between my right temple and helmet (I presume also on the inside of my balaclava). I didn’t know what hit me, but the little prick obviously took exception to being prodded by a bloody great gloved finger…so he/she/it drilled his/her/its arse into the nearest bit of skin it could find…..Bloody hell!!! That smarts and elicited a response whereby the bloody great gloved finger and thumb found the little bastard (by luck) and it was only mere chance that I happened to see the stripy body and some goo bounce off the tank when I flicked it free. It was rather uncomfortable and I don’t carry any anti-histamines in the 1st Aid Kit, so I scanned the shelves in the Murchison Servo, but to no avail. Oh well, give it a rub….no stop aggravating it….bugger, give it a squeeze in case any poison can be ejected….and put up with it …ya woos! I must say though, I was brave enough to think through the pain and ring through to the Westport Top 10 to advise that we were about an hour and a half out so they would leave the key out. 120 Km to go and one CP at Misty Hills!...how bad could that be? We were soon romping (at a nice sedate pace) through the fan-bloody-tastic Upper Buller Gorge! It was coming on dusk but we made good time to Inangahua, then took Brown Creek Rd down to Misty Hills. I say Misty Hills…but what a load of toss that is. Misty Hills is just a sign on a farm gate/fence (a bit like The Doone – except that’s a sign on a letterbox and a farm gate) and the bloody sign got swept away in the recent floods. Luckily, I had been somewhat pedantic about GPS CP locations in my prep, and took time to familiarize myself with many of the locations via Google Maps Streetview, so we landed right on the button. It was dark by now so I took a couple of pix with the flash and we were back on our way…only 62Km of Lower Buller Gorge between us and Westport. A doddle, one could say, or a pieced of piss...Yeah right! We had now been on the road for about 15 hours, it was dark, (and the night was as black as the hobs of hell – whatever they look like), we started to encounter some misty drizzle (enough to be a nuisance), I was tiring (probably enhanced by the bloody good fang over the Whanganoas and Takaka Hill…and back) my right temple was burning and I started to struggle. To compound that, something had happened to the bike’s suspension because it seemed like I was sitting (ie eye level) was about 8 feet off the ground….bloody weird! So our 40 minute fang into Westport took more like an hour and there was no fuel and nothing open except a whole lot of pubs which didn’t appear to sell food…except for one. We managed to get a feed of steak, figured we could both get to Greymouth in the morning, got to the motor camp at about 2230, settled in, I had a shower, made a quick call then collapsed into a coma until the alarm went off at 0530. Saturday to Westport – GPS Stats 123kph Max Speed 81kph Moving Average 68kph Overall Average 13:04 Moving Time 1061km 13-25°C Day 3: We had decided that we would start a little earlier to give us time for a relaxed breakfast with the fuel stop in Greymouth, but with my dilly-dallying about (scrubbing myself, packing, topping-up tyre pressures on the bikes, cleaning visor etc) it was 0638 by the time we hit the road with Trev leading down SH6. It was still pre-dawn, but just light enough to see it was going to be a spectacular day with not a cloud in sight, (but that was all to change) and with the GPS ETA at about 1530, we only had 16 CP's to collect with our predicted stopped time at around an hour and extending that allowance on the CP's to 2 or 3 minutes, it was still going to be easy to be in by 1800. By halfway down the coast though, the clear skies had clagged over and the alps ahead of us had disappeared into the clouds and rain. It would be a nuisance if I had to stop to put the wets on, but although the road was often wet, we seemed to miss any rain and managed to get to Greymouth OK for a quick fuel-up on both bikes, then a nice big coffee and hot cross bun for me at the McCafe. By the time I led out for Arthurs pass, we were pretty much on schedule. Coming down SH6, I had found myself taking careful lines to avoid the tar slicks, but Trevor didn't seem to be phased by them on the Stelvio, the weather briefly looked liked clearing, but by the time we started to climb out of Otira, the weather had closed in and we were riding through a mixture of wet roads, misty rain and cloud. This caused me to slow and take care on the lines, so Trev scooted past and lead up to Arthurs, where I expected to find it clearing as we descended...but not so. It got worse! The rain was light and it was OK to still ride with the visor up, but by the time it got bad enough to drop the visor, moisture had got into the pinlock and I could only see through the bottom half, so I had to keep it at half mast. As we got down on the flat and approached Sheffield, the situation got worse whereby I was virtually looking through the thin strip of visor between the pinlock and the edge, but I persisted as we were nearly at our stop and I'd be able to sort it while Trev fueled. Sure enough, removing the pinlock insert fixed my problem, but the 95 pump was out of action, so Trev had to settle for $20 of 91, which would get him to Geraldine after we had collected the CP's at Sheffield, Hororata, Mt Sommers and Ruapuna. We both fueled at Geraldine as that would get me home and Trevor to Timaru, then walked across to the subway for lunch before continuing. Our next section took us along a mix of more straight Canterbury roads as well as some quite nice rolling Countryside to Ashwick Flat, then back down to Hazelburn. From there we were heading to Sutherlands and encountered another gravel road, which I normally avoid but couldn’t be bothered to take the time to check alternatives, so just rocked on in. It was straight, about 1Km long and relatively easy going...but there was a bloody great deep, rocky ford near the end....shit, bother and blast. I paused for a moment scanning for a route through and it was a deepish pool (possibly up to 60cm deep in the middle) so that was out and it had shallows on both sides with the left (outlet side) looking better, but tracking off would have me dropped into crap, so I opted for the right which had larger rocks but looked a safer prospect....yeah right! As Trevor would tell the story, I entered the water at a steady pace, the front wheel got pivoted on large rocks and the bike went down with me stepping off and the engine dying. I picked it up, he got his socks wet coming to my rescue, the bike wouldn't start, we dragged the 360’ish Kgs of bike most of the way out (up the bloody great steep mountain pass of a bank), the bike still wouldn't start, Trevor got his bike through on the left side, then my bike did start and we had lost 4 minutes.....but there's no evidence that any of this happened...so it's probably just lies!! What fool would take an ST1300 down a gravel road and then be doubly stupid enough to take on a ford with it??? Pfft....some people!! We soon had Sutherlands and Cave, then on to Mt Horrible, down to Southburn, over to Blue Cliffs, over, in and out of Esk Valley, (where I missed the opportunity to take another gravel shortcut!!) up to Otipua, then out to Timaru, picking up a CP and Trevor's last fuel stop. This section had a lot of double backs and loops taking in opposite ends of the same road ...I was totally confused and the GPS wasn't too sure either, so on two occasions, I had to manually input and overwrite the next CP...but we got there in the end and were down to the last two CP's and looking to get in at 1735. We continued through Timaru, scooted out to Milford, got back to SH1, where we got overtaken by an idiot riding a Harley (I guess that's not really that strange – it was a straight road loaded with other vehicles after all) made our way through Ashburton and Rakaia, crossing the river then getting the last CP at Mead, leaving there at 1702 for home, but when we got there (at 1734) of course we still had 12.5Km to go because I hadn't thought to change my finish point from Hampton Honda to the motor camp!! Bugger, that short hop took another 20 minutes but we still got in at 1754, prior to our 1800 target and completed our 2000 (plus a little bit) Kms in 48hours. We checked back in to the motor camp, advised Mike that we were back, then I downloaded the pix and tracklogs to a stick to make it easier for him. He turned up and was followed shortly after by Gremlin, who was back in town after his week's tour with Toto, so we chatted for a bit, finally collapsing at about 2300. Sunday to Chch –GPS Stats 132kph Max Speed 90kph Moving Average 70kph Overall Average 09:04 Moving Time 816km 11-20°C Day 4:
During the ride, Trevor’s bike had been running a little rough, sometimes missing a bit, but settling to a situation where it wouldn’t pull over 5,000rpm. It still got along alright but did mean that some of his overtaking required a bit of a slingshot. On Monday morning he made a couple of calls and after cleaning up the bikes a bit, checking and topping-up the tyres, then packing, we went into town to have his bike checked by Motorcycles Downunder (the Guzzi dealership) They cleared one issue but it seemed apparent that one of the plug leads was breaking down so we were to continue to ‘limp’ home, departing at 1143, pausing for fuel at Z Shirley on the way out, then having a late brunch at Pukeko Junction (Leithfield) once we were clear of the city traffic. Trevor did ask for fries with his Bacon & Egg quichie-pie, only to find they only did healthy stuff. He led all the way back and the sedate pace (not much less than Friday) but without the heavy headwind led me to amusing myself by concentrating on getting the economy up. This turned out to be a bit disconcerting for Trev as I would get stuck in traffic, then take several minutes to slowly make up the separation….or just go off into a daydream, then realize I had slipped back a bit. I did have one wee moment where I swung wide to avoid a big slick patch through a right hand sweeper, then found myself drifting towards the shoulder, the heartrate rose and I had to divert my eyes through the corner to bring the bike back on track…..followed by murmerings like, ‘dickhead’, ‘FFS!! wake-up fool’. We had a pause for gas at Ward and finally arrived in Picton at 1635, so we made our way down to the terminal, checked-in and waited to board the ferry at around 1815. Monday to Wgtn – GPS Stats 127kph Max Speed 89kph Moving Average 66kph Overall Average 03:50 Moving Time 340+km 16-23°C I finally got home before 2200, reasonably shagged. We’d had a great weekend doing over 2800Km for the 4 days. Many thanks to Mike for allowing us to defer the ride, with him going out of his way to see us off and back in. The effort he must put in to identify the CP’s, do the website etc, etc must be huge. We had a ball and I will no doubt be back again for a No4. (Perhaps I should also see about doing a deferred run on my abandoned 5 Compass Points Run??) The fifth Capital 1,000Km Cruise is now done and dusted with 36 bikes starting and 36 finishing. (one with a hardy pillion). The route was an easy choice this year as it was rumoured last year that the Gentle Annie (Taihape – Napier Road) was to be sealed, so I prepared a route (along with a reserve) then once I saw from Banditrider’s Blog in July that this had been completed, I was soon on Mapsource to sort the finer details, finally coming up with a wee doozy that took in our new favourite road as well as one of our old favourites, the Forgotten World Highway. “Of course this is a ‘free-flowing’ route” I argued to our panel....who must have all been full of Tui at the time. Oh yes....Steve & I had to test ride the road with the Hitchers and Dave....and then I had to follow that up with an out and return from Napier.....just to be sure! The rest of the organising was pretty cruisy, with an initial email being sent to all registered riders from the previous rides, threads placed on the KB and Uly forums, the poster was tweeked, printed and posted in the Wellington and Masterton bike shops, the Parrot ‘n Jigger OK’d to be the finish point, registrations taken, year bars eventually ordered, sponsored prizes obtained from NAC Insurance and certificates printed. The only real change this year was to accept a $15 donation at the time of registration and the badges were then free on completion of the ride. The week leading up to the ride was a little anxious as the weather forecasts looked marginal, then dismal, then bloody great and finally not too bad. My personal prep for the ride included a grand Challenge (900Km Friday & 1600Km Saturday) to finish the conditioning programme, then transfer all the kit from the red to the new black ST to make it ready for the eventualities that can arise on big rides into the back-of-beyond. (GPS mount, 1st Aid Kit, puncture repair stuff etc) The alarm went off at 0500 Saturday morning, we were up an away at 0530 to be at the Caltex Rimutaka by 0600 to fill the bike and set up. I was surprised at how light it was at 0530 because in previous years it has been still dark after 0600, but it was a fresh 9º and when I arrived Gremlin was already there after riding down from Auckland(.....bloody nutter!!) and he and Steve were helping Ann set up the table. By 0615, I was fuelled and ready, riders were arriving to check-in and leaving when they were ready. We were greeting and chatting and by 0650, most had departed, but I waited for the last rider not to turn up and hit the road at 0706, a bit behind Gremlin, then Leber on the T’Bird. I figured there was no hurry to catch the big cruiser because I’d soon be with him on the hill, but got quite a surprise to find when I did catch-up, it was a big square arsed adventure bike I was following.....hmmmm....yes, well I did know those big boys can go in the right hands! We puttered up SH2, catching a Yellow Duc and followed him to Eketahuna, then upped the pace a notch through Pahiatua and around Woodville, via Bluff & Jacksons Rds, to Oringi, and onto Dannevirke. As we went up through Waipuk’ & Waipawa, I was surprised to see Gremlin standing on the pegs and sliding onto the back seat after only 200Km....then I realised that for him, it was actually about 900Km already! I was soon riding at a rather spirited pace in an effort to keep up along Pourere & River Rds. It wasn’t that Gremlin had sped up exactly...it was just that he never slowed down any and he was rocking along the centre of the left lane while I was taking a somewhat shorter, straighter line through to the first checkpoint at the Patangata Tavern, arriving at 0946 doing the 244Km at 91kph, the temp was coming up through 14º, the roads were sweet and life was good. After only two minutes we had snapped pics and I had found a quiet spot to relieve myself before attacking Middle rd to the next checkpoint, 31Km down at the junction of School & Mt Erin Rds....another spirited burst from Mr G, and we were there in 20 minutes, averaging 92kph. Another two minute stop and we were on our way again, cutting across Bridge Pa to Fernhill and onto the Gentle Annie. I was a little concerned about the economy on the new bike as my economy was only 16.5Km/Ltr at this point and figured it would be close, but at least I had the option that, if I hit reserve before Spooners Hill Rd, I could divert into Taihape and after that, I would be good to make Waiouru. Once again, Gremlin maintained a pace that was sedate (within the allowable limits) but spirited in the context of a curly road as we pressed on, considerate for roadworks and loose grit with little time to appreciate the splendor of our surroundings as we were in ‘the zone’. The temp rose through 18º and I briefly thought that perhaps I should have removed the jacket liner, but we were climbing to the central plateau so I knew it wouldn’t last and just loosened the collar and dropped the screen slightly until it slipped back under 14º again. We passed a few riders through here and it didn’t seem long before we were at the Taihape turn-off and I still had 2 bars on the gauge, so we pressed on for Waiouru with the gauge dropping to the last bar about half a Km from the turn onto SH1. It indicated 73Km remaining in the tank, which I figured would be more like 40Km, but that was heaps as we only had about 17Km to go. I tucked in behind Gremlin anyway and we were soon taking a pic of the checkpoint at the Army Museum at 1203 before popping along to the Shell for gas lunch, having done the 162Km in 1:49 at an average of 89kph. Since Gremlin was now 1100+Km into his ride, we made this a relaxed stop for nearly 45minutes with many of the riders we had passed along the way, coming and going, then we finally got back on the road at 1247 with Hawkeye in tow again (he had ridden with us off and on to this point). We had to pause at Ohakune for Gremlin to fix a ‘wardrobe malfunction’ so I took the opportunity of adding a special mystery checkpoint by taking a pic of the bike in front of the black carrot, then we picked up Leber as he paused to decide if Raetihi was on the way to Taumaranui, realised not, and slotted in behind us. We were soon flitting over the bridge and embarking on the Forgotten World Highway, but the weather at this point was looking marginal and the road was wet. This road is a brilliant ride.....but not in the wet!! It has a proliferation of slick patches and I say patches because some extend right across the width of the road, so much care was required to pick lines that would provide some traction, or ride in such a way as to minimise the side-loads by straight lining across the marginal patch. It didn’t seem to bother Gremlin much, but I had assumed the lead now and was resorting to using ‘all’ the road, wherever I could, picking a line, using a camber, straightening across a slick...anything to minimise the possibility of stepping out. Also, I wasn’t totally confident in the wet grip of Bridgstone 020’s on the black, although, to be honest I was pretty happy with how they had been performing so far and the only time they did step-out was minor. I had planned to pause to pay respects at the spot where grub had died a few years ago and we caught a group a few Km before that, so we just sat behind them and peeled of when we got to the spot where a cross had been attached to the fence. I could see Steve was still ahead of us as we were tying yellow & black tape to the C1KC bikes to make it easy to identify each other on the road and he had torn some off and tied it to the fence. I took a couple of pics and we moved on as hawkeye & Leber pulled in. 5Km down the road and we were into the Tangarakau Gorge, which is gravel, so I thought I shouldn’t hold up the big GSA in case Gremlin was succumbing to any of his dark urges and I waved him through. This did raise the pace a notch and we were soon back behind the group of 5.....no, make that passing them! It was yee haa....up and over the Tahora Saddle and roll into Whangamomona for the last checkpoint. It was now 1506 and we had done the 192Km at a reduced rate of 83kph, thanks to the marginal conditions and we were only stopped for 5minutes before moving on. I resumed the lead again and it was bloody great because the roads were pretty much dry from here on so although I was a little wary, we enjoyed a nice pace over the Whangamomona and Pohokura Saddles, then onto easier riding as we approached Stratford and turned south on SH3. I tried to stay within the allowable limits as we trudged down through the ‘Naki, took the bypass around Hawera from Eltham to Makoia, and although we didn’t need to fuel in Whanganui, I figured Gremlin could use the stop....after all, he was 1500Km into his ride now so another decent pause would be nice and he certainly looked a bit fresher 25 minutes later. Gremlin lead out again from here, since we were riding through an enforcement ally (albeit at a very sedate and legal pace and not in need of the services of his trusty array of electronics), and by 1950 we had enjoyed one last wee fang over the Paekak’ Hill Rd behind James and Rayma and were pulling into the Parrot & Jigger. Bloody marvellous, we had enjoyed our 1003Km daylight ride (although a little further for the Gremlin) and could relax a trade lies over a drink and feed. Dougie had been in since 1800 and the last riders came in at 2230, so there was a fair spread on time (and Km’s for some), but all riders got back safely and with smiles to collect their badges, certificates and for some, prizes. The ride included 2 starters from Palmerston North, 4 from Napier, 5 from Masterton and 25 from Wellington, with 1 coming back from Kabul to do the ride and 2 down from Auckland and Whangarei. All seem to go smoothly (although the route didn’t quite meet the ‘free flowing’ criteria to have everyone back by 2030-2130....although not too far off), the riders enjoyed the ride and a bit of socialising over a drink and feed afterwards. Many thanks to all as we have raised nearly $450 to go towards purchasing presents for the Ulysses MD Riders to buy presents for children with Muscular Dystrophy.
Thanks also to NAC for sponsoring the spot prizes, the Parrot & Jigger for providing easy spot to park with watchful eyes over the machinery and Ann for her assistance checking the riders out and in. Here’s to good weather, good roads and good mates! The new Black has 4416Km on it and it’s bloody tight compared to the smooth Red.....but I’m sure it’s nothing a few Km’s won’t fix! Getting There and The Extension Being the 25th GC (Grand Challenge – 1,000miles in 24 hours), the anniversary event was marked with a 900Km extension on the Friday, to make the event up to a 2,500Km Long Weekend. As soon as the event was promoted I registered my interest and must have got in pretty quick as I was surprised a couple of months ago, when I got my registration pack in the mail, to see that I was #1. Also, as per the 20th GC, a video was being made of this event. Having done this event five times before, I am pretty well prepared, the bike is always ready for a ride, it had its 120,000 Km service on 26/9, which included a new front tyre (Bridgestone 023), then after having rear tyre problems, it received a new rear on 10/10. I had also bought a new ST in October, but with only 3300Km on it, I thought I’d keep the red to do this job before trying to sell it. One change to my GC preparation this year was that I bought a GPS at the beginning of the year, so I tried programming previous routes into it from the old Ride Instructions. I did a couple and it took over 2hours for each route, so I ended up having to take the laptop as well!!....lucky I’ve got an ST with lots of luggage capacity! My other prep consisted of a few rides, starting with a 700Km Butt Burner and building up to include a bit of night riding as well. So, apart from that, it was just a matter of pulling my GC check-list, ensuring I had everything I needed, pack the night before, give Ann a kiss and a hug on Thursday morning and say, “I’m just off for a ride! I’ll be back in 5...... (days)!” The weather forecast for Thursday was dismal, so I arranged to meet Steve at BP Mana at midday to ride straight up SH1, it was an uneventful trip, except for the part where we were too early arriving in Levin and Steve didn’t stop to wait for James (Transalp). (I seem to be making a habit of leaving him behind?) We arrived at 1515, checked into our cabins, got the bikes scrutineered (with no problems), settled in, went to fill the bikes and had a coffee in town, walked down for a feed at the Truck-Stop and later that evening, found out what Friday’s route would be, so went off to plan for that, loading it into the GPS and organising fuel stops. As it turned out, it was a very informal affair in that we could leave whenever we wanted and just had to collect three Electronic Till Receipts along the way. There were 37 starters for the extension and IanF woke me when he started at 0330 in the morning....I figured....‘he must want to get back for lunch?’ Apart from that, I slept reasonably well, arising on Friday at 0600, scrubbed up, had a feed and we rolled out at 0746. Mike (ST) had left a bit earlier, as had James who was kitted out to video other riders on the road with forward and rear facing cameras mounted on the side of his bike, but as it was wet, and Steve and I were in no hurry, I led out at a sedate pace, over the Ponanga Saddle to National Park and down the Parapara’s to our first checkpoint in Whanganui. The weather forecast for Thursday was dismal, so I arranged to meet Steve at BP Mana at midday to ride straight up SH1, it was an uneventful trip, except for the part where we were too early arriving in Levin and Steve didn’t stop to wait for James (Transalp). (I seem to be making a habit of leaving him behind?) We arrived at 1515, checked into our cabins, got the bikes scrutineered (with no problems), settled in, went to fill the bikes and had a coffee in town, walked down for a feed at the Truck-Stop and later that evening, found out what Friday’s route would be, so went off to plan for that, loading it into the GPS and organising fuel stops. As it turned out, it was a very informal affair in that we could leave whenever we wanted and just had to collect three Electronic Till Receipts along the way. There were 37 starters for the extension and IanF woke me when he started at 0330 in the morning....I figured....‘he must want to get back for lunch?’ Apart from that, I slept reasonably well, arising on Friday at 0600, scrubbed up, had a feed and we rolled out at 0746. Mike (ST) had left a bit earlier, as had James who was kitted out to video other riders on the road with forward and rear facing cameras mounted on the side of his bike, but as it was wet, and Steve and I were in no hurry, I led out at a sedate pace, over the Ponanga Saddle to National Park and down the Parapara’s to our first checkpoint in Whanganui. Between James causing a rush of blood to our heads and the temp jumping at least 6° through here, all of a sudden I found myself expiring, so a quick change of plans and we stopped in Mokau for lunch and to strip off the ‘wets’. We arrived there at 1246, doing the 145Km at an average of 95kph. It was rather pleasant having a snack then relaxing in the sun for a bit before moving on at 1322, with Steve in the lead and we now had the Awakino Gorge to look forward to. There was a bit of traffic on the road and as we were preparing to leave, Toto passed through on his Hornet and we had him in our sights. He was getting along pretty well, albeit a little more casual on his passing than us and this was OK as we slipped up the coast, but as soon as we embarked on the gorge, still stuck behind a truck, I was concerned about not maximising the enjoyment of the road, so as soon as Toto & Steve seemed to hesitate on a passing opportunity, I was in like a robbers dog and took it for them. I did have to apologise to Toto later, but ……nah….I’m just an arsehole! Between James causing a rush of blood to our heads and the temp jumping at least 6° through here, all of a sudden I found myself expiring, so a quick change of plans and we stopped in Mokau for lunch and to strip off the ‘wets’. We arrived there at 1246, doing the 145Km at an average of 95kph. It was rather pleasant having a snack then relaxing in the sun for a bit before moving on at 1322, with Steve in the lead and we now had the Awakino Gorge to look forward to. There was a bit of traffic on the road and as we were preparing to leave, Toto passed through on his Hornet and we had him in our sights. He was getting along pretty well, albeit a little more casual on his passing than us and this was OK as we slipped up the coast, but as soon as we embarked on the gorge, still stuck behind a truck, I was concerned about not maximising the enjoyment of the road, so as soon as Toto & Steve seemed to hesitate on a passing opportunity, I was in like a robbers dog and took it for them. I did have to apologise to Toto later, but ……nah….I’m just an arsehole! It was all easy riding…..except for the bit where I was daydreaming, listening to the music and suddenly found myself having to make a decision of, left to Atiamuri, or right to go over the dam. Damn…..I stayed left and hit the piks, taking Steve with me while Mike cruised past thinking, “Bloody idiots!” (James had swapped to film another group from Paeroa). We scooted down ’32 and arrived at Turangi at 1831, doing the last 231Km at an average of 101kph. It was an easy ride and pleasant day in the end. The GPS had me a couple of K’s short of the 900 (I must have been taking short lines through the corners), while my speedo said 910Km and Steves said 933Km….go figure. The Total Avg for the day was 83kph and Moving Avg was 97kph, which was easy enough on our sedate pace. After all, we still had 1600Km to embark on the next day. We checked in, had a good Rusty Feed, chatted, then looked at the GC route. …..Whew! easy Navigation but gnarly!....so I headed off to programme the GPS for the next day, before chilling out, chatting with other riders and discussing fuel options with Steve, finally hitting the sack at about 2230. The GC and Getting Home The decent ride on Friday helped to get a good night’s sleep and I was up by 0600 again, scrub-up, breakfast, then prep the gear and go over the fuel stops again. We were surprised how dead it seemed at the Turangi Cabins as usually, the place is littered with bikes and there are heaps of people about, tinkering and chewing the fat, but this year it was very quiet and it turned out, there were only 67 starters for the main event. We had been pre-warned a month or so out, that the start had been brought forward from 1500 to 1300 due to fuel shortages on the route, so we pretty much expected a foray onto the East Cape and sure enough, that was what we got. The other odd thing was, that usually Saturday drags as we ‘hurry-up and wait’ to start, but this year, with the 2 hours less, the morning seemed to be busy prep’ing and it flew past….all of sudden I seemed to be rushing to kit up, get to the briefing and took my place in the start queue with a minute or so to spare. Steve, Mike and I were last out the gate, getting separated from the others by waiting for some traffic to pass and by the time we got onto SH1 to head for Taupo, the others were gone. The weather had been most pleasant all morning, but no sooner had we gone a few K’s out of Turangi and we hit intermittent showers, some quite heavy and as we came down into Waitahanui, the weather out over the Napier-Taupo Rd looked very bleak, so we pulled over to put the ‘wets’ on. Dumb idea! Not only did we lose a few minutes, but before long, we were back in brilliant sunshine and the temp shot up, causing me to get a little uncomfortable. About this time, we caught up to CameramanJames and of course, with his shenanigans, our pleasant sedate pace became rather brisk with us cranking up through some sweepers for the camera. We had a ball, but I’ll wait until I see the footage before getting excited about it!? We were having a ball anyway….and then I had a wee moment. As I pushed the 023’s through a corner I had one of those uncomfortable squirmy moments which felt like I was rolling on a flat tyre!!?? My first thoughts were that the rear had punctured and I couldn’t believe my run of bad luck was continuing, as that would most likely mean the end to my day. I wiggled the handle bars to twitch the rear to see what it felt like…inconclusive….so I pulled over to look and kick the tyre (as you do) and it was as hard as a rock….well, as hard as thick rubber can be, loaded with 42psi. Hmmm…I carried on, albeit a little wary and my confidence to push the boundaries dashed. (Oh yes…and I did get my picture taken by a parked van, but it was alright because he got my good side….the front!) Luckily CameramanJames found others to prey on and Steve and I got back to our moderate pootle mode, running down SH5 to the coast and turning left for Wairoa on SH2. More sweet roads, but our plan was to ride moderately, with plenty of stops, and hopefully come in fresh…so we exercised restraint. We pulled into Shell Wairoa for Steve to top-up at 1544 (doing the 274Km at an avg of 101kph) and I was approached for an interview from Tess (film crew). I thought afterwards, “That didn’t really come out right!” but we were probably back on the road within 5 minutes and I was cursing because I’d forgotten to take my wets off. Steve led out again (he would lead during the day and I’d do the night with the better lights on the ST), it was more good riding up to our next fuel stop in Gisborne and although I didn’t feel totally comfortable with the rear, it wasn’t causing any real concern, then as we dropped down into Gissy, I thought I should probably pass as I had the GPS set to take us to the servo. I didn’t bother though and sure enough, when we got to the first turn off at Matawhero, Steve carried on while I took the turn. It’s a bit longer but not much 50kph, so I was already filling when he pulled in with some others. (I pulled in at 1649 so we were making quite good time doing the 98Km from Wairoa at 102kph and our total avg so far was 98kph) From here we were on to the first checkpoint at Tokomaru Bay, departing at 1705 after a leisurely 15minute stop. We had split from Mike early in the ride when we stopped before Taupo to put the wets on, then passed him on the Napier-Taupo where he was putting his on, then he passed us when Steve was filling in Wairoa and he left before us from Gissy. At this time we’d picked up another rider though (Manu on a Blackbird), then caught and followed a Beemer rider. He in turn caught then followed a cage that was fanging along just off the pace we were doing, so we were happy tag along. It was more pretty easy riding through to this point and we did the 90Km from Gissy at 94kph. After 5 minutes, Steve and I got away again, a few minutes behind Mike and from here around to Opotiki wasn’t as easy going. I don’t know if it was due to riding off the pace or what, but we both had come to the conclusion that we had ‘lost our mojo’! For me I had lost a bit of confidence with the new 023 rear due to the occasional squirm and Steve just seemed unable to settle into a groove, so we were both happy to putter along....and of course, our mojo took a big hit when the ST and ‘Busa got passed by a big Suzuki Cruiser!! Steve did pop off the road for a breather whilst going around the Cape as there were quite a lot of spots where the road had subsided (one way or the other) leaving some drop-offs or bumps in the region of 3-6”. Steve hit a bump whilst engaging a very tight left hander. As usual, I was right up his date and it was severe enough to bounce him off the seat causing his feet to disengage from the pegs. Not a great look when one is keen to apply pressure to the brakes…and can’t find a foot, or free some fingers to use. Anyway, as I eased around the corner, look of disbelief on my dial, I saw Steve bounce, straighten, (WTF), brakes….back wheel locks (puff of dust and crap from loose shit), thoughts to the effect of, “Oh crap……I hope nothing’s coming…..is he going to ease it around?…..is he going to stop?…..Oh fuck! not again!! That’s a 3’ drop there Steve….and there’s a fence………………bugger he’s gone…..ooooh! nicely popped there Steve……..Holy Shit! He’s parked it......Hell, how are we going to get it back up on the road?....(looks around for somewhere safe to park the bike)…….Ooooh, nice one Steve! (he just rode it back up the bank!!) We exchanged notes, wiped brows and moved on! As we descended down the coast it got dark and that was time for the ST to move to the front and light the way as we continued to press on to Opotiki for fuel and the 2nd checkpoint. We finally arrived at 2059 and had a reasonable stop here, snacking, cleaning visors and so on. We were off the pace though doing the 237Km leg at an avg of 85kph. We were back on the road at 2119, heading back to Gissy over the Waioeka Gorge. I was back in the lead and it wasn’t long before we were on a long straight with a car coming from the other direction… and it had very bright lights. I wasn’t sure that he had his lights on full so gave him the benefit of the doubt and didn’t flash him, but I just focused on the area to his left to try to protect my night vision. As we honed in on him, it appeared he wasn’t moving and then I got a hell of a fright when at the last minute I realised the road swung away to the right of the lights and they were actually floods mounted atop some sort of harvester in a paddock on the left of the road....Talk about getting sucked into the rocks by a siren!! I got over that and we had quite a good ride through the gorge as, after the East Cape road, this one seemed wide and the surface was pretty clean, although it was a very dark night. With the temp dropping back below 16° at night, I seemed to feel more comfortable on the rear tyre although we still kept to our sedate pace and just pootled along. Apart from that I don’t remember a great deal of the section until we approached Gissy and there were red & blue lights flashing in the distance, and as we got close we could see there were several of them with a cop on the road so we pulled up to learn there had been an accident ahead and we had to detour around it. Luckily the cop advised it was a cage and not a bike so we continued, happy in the knowledge it wasn’t a Rusty Rider as we headed to the next fuel top-up for Steve at Wairoa. We finally pulled up to the Shell Wairoa at 2355 having only averaged 86kph to Gissy, but lifted that to 89kph for the 232Km from Opotiki. With Steve gassed and me relieved again (yep….still the Dysentery Dog) we were ready to move onto the next checkpoint in Havelock……more pootling over good roads in the middle of the night and steady as she goes. We got a surprise though as we trundled through what we expected to be a ‘sleepy hollow’ at 0141 on a Sunday morning and it was buzzing with heaps of revellers and bright lights. We’d managed 86kph over this short 137Km leg. We enjoyed a 15minute stop here to loosen up and have a snack, departing at 0155 to head along Middle Rd through Patangata, coming out at Waipawa and stopping for more gas at Waipuk’. Mike and Manu were still a few minutes ahead, but we seemed to be catching them and finally did so as we turned back onto SH2. We tucked in behind for the next few Km and arrived in Waipuk’ at 0236. (57Km at 84kph) The four of us stuck together from here on, departing at 0248 for the next Checkpoint at Eketahuna. We did have to do a wee diversion through Takapau and Ormondville (to note some stupid sign for Red Metal), re-emerging on SH2 at Norsewood and once again, Steve and I were happy to tuck in behind the others. We hit some roadworks just before Woodville and as Manu and I were following along the same rut as Mike, we got led through a decent size pothole, seeing it coming with only enough time to think, ‘Oh shit!’ but not enough to react and avoid. I’d also put my wets back on in Havelock Nth, expecting to ride into bad weather (although they also were keeping me warmer) and we did hit some heavy rain through here, but it was short lived and cleared for the rest of the journey. We were checking into an empty G.A.S. stop at 0412, doing the 128Km at 91kph and it was starting to feel like we were getting on top of the ride with only 360’ish Km and about 4 hours to go. We continued on at 0422, with Mike and Manu still leading but once we got onto the road through Mangamaire and over the Track, I thought it was prudent to take the lead to give the Northerners something to follow, through what I assumed was unfamiliar territory. It was unfamiliar to all of us though because as we climbed and went over the Track itself, we were plunged into a real ‘Pea-Soup’ thick fog with what seemed like little more than 10-20metres visibility. I figured I had some idea of where the road was going and could maintain a reasonable pace, but when I was thinking I was coming into the tight right hander hairpin and it turned out to be a lefthander….well??!! We were soon out of it though, through Ashhurst and onto Feilding to get a top-up for Manu to get his Blackbird to Taihape. We rode into the BP at 0514 and were out again by 0520, with the plan to have another decent stop at the BP Taihape where we would get our last load of fuel for the ride. We were filling by 0615 and had a good relax because after the 900Km on Friday, our butts were starting to feel pretty tight. I had been standing on the pegs to stretch as we went through 50kph zones, but by this stage, in order to stand, I would have to rock back and forth a few times to get enough momentum to get me out of the seat. I was also shuffling up onto the back seat for a change of pressure on the butt, but in order to even do that, I would have to put my left hand onto the back seat to lift myself off the front seat. I had also started to yawn, so the rest was welcome. We got back on the road at 0648 and I felt alert and fresh again, we only had 200Km to go it was light and I had removed all the ‘wets’ (one of the reasons my butt was so sore). Mike led out again as I declared I had done my bit and we meandered through Waiouru, across SH49, then onto the Whangaehu Valley Road to take Fields Track across to Kakatahi on the Parapara road for the last checkpoint. It was quite funny to be riding on the single lane Fields Track and to see a sign, “Road Narrows”!! It is quite beautiful through here though and the road is in pretty good condition at the moment, so by 0743 we had descended and were getting the cards punched for the last time. I had set a target of 20 hours for the ride this time around, and I was feeling pretty good after the easy riding and frequent stops. As we were heading through Wairoa on the way to Gisborne, the GPS had been advising a finishing ETA of 0600, but that had steadily crept out and by the time I hopped back on the bike for the last squirt back to Turangi, the GPS was advising an ETA of 0859. “Damn!” I thought, I can’t go over the 20hours, so a bit of fun was required….and the roar as the ST took of from the CP ……was as squeaky & whiny as ever! I flew past Mike who had left moments before me as I settled into a nice brisk, but sub-fang pace. I was still generally riding within the ‘Allowable Limit’, occasionally edging over it on the way to Raetihi, then I eased back a notch. There had been a few slips through here and apparently one of them had come down as the lead rider was passing. It put him off his bike but he had been able to continue and by the time we came through, it had been cleared, but they had left a very greasy film of mud and gray papas clay on the surface. Care was therefore required and although the bike felt like it wanted to step out, care and a good line kept it on track…and me in the seat. In no time I was scooting past Lake Rotoaira, through Rangipo and back to the camp with Steve in tow (He caught up at National Park) and we checked in at 0854. We had completed the 1616Km in 19:54 with a Total Avg of 81kph and Moving Avg of 92. What had seemed a rather gnarly, tight course on first look at the map, hadn’t actually been that bad after all, although we had tackled it sedately and that obviously had a lot to do with not getting too fatigued. We chatted over our hearty Rusty Finishers Feed, relaxed and chatted more in the sun, wandered down to the loacal Chinese for another feed and generally chilled out and chatted until finally retiring at around 2130, at which time I’d been up for nearly 40hours….and that certainly ensured I got a good 8hours kip. Monday morning I was up again by 0600, packed, fed, fuelled and on the road for home by 0845. Steve was off to Napier, so we rode to the start of the Gentle Annie together, and the rest of the trip back to Wellington was a bit of an inconsequential blur down SH1, getting back to the office by 1216. It was another awesome weekend, organised with the usual Rusty Efficiency. The rides and the feeds were great, and I now have 6 GC’s under my belt. I managed to do just under 3200Km over the five days and the bike is 40Km short of needing its 126,000Km service….that’s not bad since it only had the 120,000Km service on 26/09/11. |
Old Blog?
These blogs were posted on the KiwiBiker forum but I decided it was time for a change. Archives
January 2017
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