Met Nelson at McCormack's Bay and we headed up thru the lush spring growth - amazing how much the green veg has returned to the previously scorched earth of February (first time up here since then too). A lot of breathing heavily up the steeps and zigs, but cleaning it all (bar one over steer on the upper hairpins that let him get past me), and then we got it the top on Craigieburn Place and on up Mt Pleasant Rd. Up thru the little reserve then up the road to the Britten entrance, gate kindly held open for us by one of a massive group of riders... Up, back and forth on Britten, feeling quite good and leading the whole way, a few riders coming down. Around the front and pedal-strikey rocks to the cutting, over the fence and climbing around and up to Mt Pleasant aerials. Riding up the 4wd road was a couple of guys, one with a blanket draped over his bars. I had no idea what that was about. We got up to the top and there was a cluster of a few people. I didn't really click was was going on, but there was one very sorry looking guy and they were (I realised later) clustered around him. As we came down through the gate we held it open for a guy who was walking 2 bikes up. He told us the sorry looking guy had fallen, and suspected broken arm, possibly compound, elbow... yikes. He'd got his weight wrong, dislodged a rock and fallen a ways down.
Ride from here was (now, slightly more careful but still) a blast. Nice descent, bombing ever bombing, through all the way and down. Through some runners on the tussocks run (one of whom works here and said he recognised me but I was gone in a flash). We stopped eventually a little before the Gloomy Gulch, and it was nice to have a different lookout view for a change. Once recovered from the rapid descent, we got going, and this time was a lot fresher through the tricknical rocks at the gulch, and a good pump through before the fast rocky descent. Nice pop off the rock drop and around cruising then accelerating through and around. For the first time in, I think, forever, I pedalled through the first rocky up, juuust maintaining enough torque and balance to get through it no dabs! Amazing. Helps that I'd only done it a couple days before. Finishing touches out to the road with an audience at Evans quarry overlook.
Into the Captain. Leading again, and flowing well, all familiar from having only ridden it also 2 days before, cleaning all the usual rocks with aplomb and EVEN cleaning the techy tricky wee climb, for the first time in forever as well. Woohoo, that's a first for many many years. Smooth roll around to the first hairpin and straight through it to the gate (minding out for the big hidden hole on the right! immediately before). Great riding this old section again, second time in 3 days after >10 years off. What a blast. Even the smells are familiar. Nelson was rapt with it too. Good flow through, tho they've put a couple of bits of fencepost across the top of one rocky overdrop feature, making it a definite get off. Lower sections, flowing nicely, grass felt as if it'd grown even since Thursday night, and definitely fun riding down through the pines again and out the bottom. The stretch behind the gabions felt like the grass had grown there too... Finally, out the fence gap and onto the road for a smooth cruise, still with plenty of power, back to the cars.
Good circuit, 17 and a quarter kms, with 672 m climbed.
Off to Waitutu on Tuesday, so an enforced week off the bike, walking in the bush. Looks like it might be a bit wet. Yay.
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