Monday After-Dinner, Mint Stooge

Stooged about on the hill tonight. Nice wee hoon, not too high but some sweet climbs and fun descending.  

Up the walking path just above the road, over onto Tawhairanui, then back up the wheelchair track to the Info Centre, then down the back of that and up over the 19th.  At skidder I took the middle road across to the exit of Fenceline, explored down Flow-Rider but found it a tad double-black, pushed back up and hit Cool Runnings which was a bit of fun, tho not very jumpy cos I just dont know it anymore.  Out the bottom and up Uprooted, nice climb, checking out where it hits Razzas this time.  then over from Skidder and down the usual, into Heavenly Creatures for a very flowy and fun bash.  All the way down, with good speed.  Clamber, road, home.   

A smidge over 5 kms and a peaky little 188 m climbed

Saturday Arvo Vic Park Meander

Nelson came over in the afternoon and we headed up into the Park. 

Up the road, seeing Sophie's parents and little bro walking up Vic, quick chat, then onwards up the road.  My route around the top of the 19th and over to the skidder, then up the grunter guts climb, to the top of Vic. 

 Across to the edge of the trees and dropped down to the top of the black and double black lines, looking down Cowabungaitis and wondering...  Decided tho on original plan, upper fenceline.  I was untrusting of the slick but Nelson bombed off down ahead.  Around and across, looked into Roam (which got very mucky below the massive log drop), and Flow Rider, but dropped into Cool Runnings, wafting down with a brief sessioning of one step-up feature.  Then down all the way into the gulley.  Climb out, this time through Cool Runnings towards Rad^Sick, which is steep but maybe not as steep as the other way I went last time I ground out of there.  

At the 40fter we headed across into Ponos, which was very sloppy in places, especially where there was water and muck on redrock, sliiiccckk as.  Out to the 23fter, back up the 4wd climb.  Zig and Zag around and up to Skidder, then up the grunter guts following a mum & daughter(?) who were walking faster than me, but the same speed as Nelson.  

Then it was around a 'new' access to Sesame St, dropping down this, pop pop pop, and out through skidsville down Vic and into the 235, ducking under the tree and not too greasy til the wet spot in the oaks.  Clamber back up to the road and upwards, lo and behold, there's Sophies folks and bro again walking down.  Lolz all round.  Into the descent behind the houses, a little sloppy in one section but the rest good.  Back home.

A pretty steep sub-8 km, with only 336 m climbed.

Wednesday Evening Solo-loco

Out on my own tonight.  From home, down first and round Longhurst to Harry Ell Drive, up this steep bastard climb, then up the dirt track to the bottom of the Dog Park, skirted, then up Vic Park Drive.  Up from Skidder, ugh, cleaned, and up to top of Vic Park to hit the Traverse.  

Lots of pulling over to let riders through on this, tho on one climb I wasnt budging and tosspot arrogant dipshit had to stop to let me through.  He should have stopped further back to let me through and was so obviously expecting me to just get out of his way.  fuck him.  Good blast around, feeling pretty good, but ready for a break when I got to the top of FourPause where there was a dude waiting.  

He insisted I go first, so I dropped in, and had an awesome blaze down.  A group of girls were walking up and timed it perfectly to see me jumping the second to last jump, perfect air and landing.  Swoop on down through the landingstrip and then on through the cattlestop.  Bit of a detour here looking for that Rocky Ridge track, but no go, got lost in the tussocks so I just got back on the main drag and kept on going.  Started seeing more and more small groups of people, Orienteerers again, this time they were starting from the top of Huntsbury Ave, so I had a big audience as I descended like a wildthing down, and witnesses to my jumping prowess.  haha.  At the bottom, I hung a left and meandered around and climbed the way Nelson and me did on Saturday.  Slightly different route once up under the pylons, then stayed on trail all the way up, ugh climbing to the top of Huntsbury for a short rest at the start of Traverse.

Back along the Traverse, still holding a good pace, enjoying.  Pulled over a couple of times to let people through, or not, and cruised around to Vic.

Dropped down over the fence and down the fenceline, around into Upper Fenceline, enjoying the steepness and flow, longer than my memory had it, around and back into the trees, swooping around and back, down, bypassing a couple of DH tracks, and dropping into Cool Runnings, which I'd not done in ages.  The entrance is smooth as now.  Bomb bomb, swoop swoop, around and down and around and around and down, not making any of the doubles properly (speed must be so high for them!) and out the bottom.  Then, it was a section of fucking horrible climbing, getting better til about Rad^Sick, then last steep grund and up to Skidder.

Down the road from here, taking it nice and easy coasting, and into the upper dog park carpark, dropping int, swoopy swoop fun times, jump and across, climb, road climb, and into the last blast down behind the houses, blasting to the finish.

A veritable 15 kms, and 540 m climbed.