windy night hour spin

a beautiful wee ride last night... had to pick something up from my grandmother's so parked up on Takahe Drive, rode up into Vic Park, off the road, just on that trail kinda above the road up along past the dog exercise areas etc, then onto Harry Ell *ahem* walkway which goes from the carpark next to the dog exercise areas, then down the ziggers to dyers pass road track, up that to kiwi, up road to top of Worsleys, down marleys, up thomsons, down through the gums, and on down past rangerstation, then into the dog exercise area, across to the pine plantation, down the wee track on its edge, then down past the most eastern side of the top of cashmere housing, Latter's Spur track i believe its called and out onto Longhurst Tce, then back to Nainy's... lovely. lovely lovely lovely. very little tarmac, lots of dirt, full loop, 1 hour, only about 10 or 15 kms tho... fair bit of up. tricky technical up. niiiiiiiice to be out on the bike again, its what, over a week and a half.

and then dropped my bike off to me trusty mechanic and will pick it up sunday night with some Manitou Minute's on it, 130 mm travel, plush spv'ness. yeh!

off to Little Akalala this today, two nights of peninsula bliss.

no riding, well not much anyway...

its been a pretty sad couple of weeks... last ride posted was wharfdale and then capt thomas and evans with Monsieur Nelsonian, him trying out his PHAT ass 2.4 panaracers... seemed to do the trick. what with his innate fitness and his nice light ride he was no slower. since then, i cannot think of what ride i've done. yes, actually, the following saturday, so, two saturdays ago from now, i was allowed out for an hour, whilst O slept, so i ripped across town, shredded it up rapaki, huffed a bit cos i was tired and huffy and some schlep on a VT passed me, which peeved me, but, carried on up anyway, rode the slingletrack to the right, then just dropped straight onto the Farm Track, and there was the schlep, just starting out too on his downhill run. i bombed past him and never saw him again. he ate my dust. its all very well being fast up the hill on a plush ass full susser, but if ya aint got the balls to rip it on the down hill, whats the point in all that suspension?? huh?? tell me that?? eh? eh??? looked at my watch at the top, 13.41, then looked again once i was out on the road at the bottom, 13.45... hehe, less than 4 minutes top to bottom, we're talking pretty near 400 m altitude, and around 3 kms distance... average speed, huh, only 45 kph... still, theres a couple sections that are slower, so top speed generally is approaching 70, and its a rutty wee track... LOVE IT. that was a beautiful day too, over 20 degrees C, and the next day it froze, and started snowing.

i biked into town that monday morning of the snow, was fun. reminded me of Montana. havent ridden since, and i'm getting depressed for it.
had a job interview in wellington friday (for a job i didnt get), and now its wednesday... and i NEED a RIDE!!! i'm riding as fast as i can to and from work but its just not the same as hoofing it up the hill and blasting it down.
little akaloa this weekend, so still no riding. maybe tomorrow night.

one good thing tho, daylight savings on saturday, so nights will be oh so glorious, to ride withOUT the halogen babies. yay!!!

Coopers to Wharfdale and back out ViewHill

Well... Ended up being a solo musicked ride...nice clear day, nursing quite the hangover, drove out to coopers creek entrance to the oxford forest, end of whats known as mountain road, took the track to wharfdale track. crashed within the first 5 minutes, back wheel spin, right foot pedal down, failed to clip out, balance lost and over i went, down a bank of blackberry and gorse. fantastic way to start a ride, back of arms and my back all scratched up. then trail becomes unrideable in lots of bits. one section in cutover broom scrub just taller than handlebars and the path way narrower, puts on the brakes slowing progress, so mostly i walked the bike on its back wheel. had to do that a lot, and sometimes carry. but some riding. probably an hour to the Wharfdale track, then blissful singletrack riding, nice and clear, well groomed, lovely. the southfaces were damp with dripped mist and possibly rain the foothills collected that the plains didnt. the northfaces were all beautiful and dry. good progress, to the rocky outcrop bit, decided there i was tired and needed to head back. decided not to take the messy track back the way i'd come up, so rode out to viewhill carpark and down the road thru all the gates, back round woodstock rd, over the tawera bridge, round through tawera on rampaddock road and back up to the car.

tonight, Nelson and me drove to scumner and went up capt thomas and up the new evans track to top and back. the fog was fantastic. thick swirling, no visibility, getting soaked in mistiness. amazing. made for a ride of epic proportions even tho it was just a quick 3 or 4 hundred metre altitude jaunt. probably 8 kms to top and back down that... steady, middle ring climb all the way.

back to court tomorrow... JURY. silly silly boys.

lastride

quick spin round bottle lake, pre dark... first non lights ride end winter

then sunday, what the fook did we do? oooooohhh. yes, fathers day, most of us are dad's so we pooled some time, 10.30, quick spin round town. didnt get away from P's til well after eleven, spun along river to Vic Sq, then past fart's centre round hagley, up north hagley, sweeeeet little single up there, then to hospital, up lift in carpark down, to bridge remembrance andrew had a flat he re-tubed as we did lichfield carpark. c1 for coffee then home.

wednesday i rode to cannon cres, avoided humphrey's by singletracking on the slicked townKona across new wetland/dryland then devil's Elbow trail ... fast as slicks allowed, niiiice burst.

d.i.c townriding friday night... with the WHARFDALE planned for tomorrow a.m... who will ride with me? will it be a solo musicked ride, or wil i have some company?