Tuesday night Pleasantries.

Picked up as usual from work and we cruised Moorhouse and Ferry, up St Andrews and parked up top of Upper Major Hornbrook.  The boys were meeting up here at 6.30, giving us about an hour ahead of them.

Pushed off at 5.25 and hoofed it up the Britten Reserve, around the top then back along the road and up Broadleaf.  Into the descent down to Cavendish Saddle, then up the trail towards the gondola.  5.50pm as we went through the new(ish) gate here, then on up and over, both taking different routes lower down.  6pm at the Bridle Path, then the climb up the road to top of Castle Rock.

Sun had just come under the nor'west arch, and was shining through before it set.  Awesome light.  Into Castle descent, Nelson first, speedy speedy, no flats this time.  Good pace down and around, him dropping me on the climb over and then off round the road under the Gondola.  Climbing around and then into the Mt Pleasant singletrack up to the very top.

6.30 here, so rang Steve to see where they were, just starting out.  Lights on, we set off, intending on meeting them top of Britten, but Nelson suddenly noticed the top cap on his fork was missing!  He was splattered in oil, his bike was too, and we followed the oil trail back up the track to not far from the start and he found the offending piece.  No idea how it fits in there, wouldn't screw in or anything, so electrical tape to hold it in place.  Txtd Steve to say we were gonna bail.  Off we set again, bombing on down the descent, down into the Greenwood entrance, using it as an exit.  Thought we saw the boy's lights at the top of Britten from around here, but maybe not.

Decided to keep riding, so headed up the road and around past the bottom of Broadleaf and then at the cattlestop grabbed a new climbing trail just weed-killed into the hill (that I'd noticed the other end of earlier), and headed up this, first txting Steve that we were chasing.  Up the singletrack, again, and found the boys at the top.  Off in a strange order, but was good.  Steve first, then Wazza and me, then Wayne and Nelson and Robin.  Better bomb down here this time for me, following Wazza with his light leading me and also it fresh in my mind from previously.  Nelson led the way around the Greenwood exit then up the road again around, and back up Broadleaf.

Climb climb climb then descend descend descend.  Wazza got the better of me on one corner but I got him back on the next.  Fanged down around the hill, in the dark this time was trickier and couldn't see the undulations in the trail quite as well as before.  Flying down the last final bad-traction descent, through the little shortcut and wham! lights out for me...  Couldn't see a thing, and had to scrub off speed without knowing what I was riding over or whether I was even on the trail...  Managed to stop without incident before the stile and followed Nelson's light down the hill and onto the road.  Up the road through the cutting, and at the start to Britten, Wayne kindly lent me his light, on the handlebar.

Good spin round Britten and up over then down the main drag, troublesome seeing for me, light never seemed to be pointing in the right direction.  Finally back at the cars,8pm or so  Quick pint at the Twisted, and then home.

21 kms, with 690m altitude played with, all in an hour forty of riding time.