Thursday, somewhat long...

Big ride for a weeknight tonight.  Nelson picked me up from home after work, and we cruised to McCormacks Bay.  Parked up and headed off up the road, then the singletrack.  He forgot his wee red flashy so went back for it, which was good, meant I could ride at my pace and not get too knackered too quickly.  I plodded away, and he said he could see me going through that first wee pinch at the end of the straight when he got onto the bottom end.  I moseyed on up, cleaning everything except the second hairpin, and he caught me when I stopped for air on the bridge. From here we headed up and hung a right, taking the trail around to Drayton, so's to show him where Joy's new house is.  Up Mt Pleasant Rd, then up Clearview etc, and then over the fence by the bath, and up the trails to the regular climb.  Nelson slowly but steadily increasing the gap.  At the top we headed around and out round below the rock out crop then back around onto the regular Britten Track.  Helluva wind on that west face.  Then up across the road and climbing up Mt Pleasant to the top for a snack out of the wind.

Into the descent, mildly sketchy, but kinda not too.  Rocks were all dry anyway, but the tires certainly pinged around a bit.  I had some good bits some not so good.  Bombed it down through the tussocks, a few wet spots, then onto Greenwood.  Nelson gapping me slowly for a start, then majorly lower down.  I had a couple of stops, one for the chain and one for my handlebar light plug, but otherwise a pretty good run down.  Not my fastest, whereas I reckon it might have been one of Nelson's fastest...

Onto Godley, my, haven't they cleaned that start up.  Not so much some of the later rock sections, which is fine.  Good run up here, tho my tiredness was showing and I seemed to lose balance a lot.  Not much wind this low.  Caught up with Nelson at the usual spot, and more break again then off down towards Livingston, fanging it.  Really smooth fast run down here, chopping and weaving all the way through to the bottom.  Good speed, good balance.  On the climb from Livingston I got way left behind and by the time I was coming around to where I could see Breeze Col, Nelson was already bombing out the bottom.  Otherwise I had a sweet run down here - it's so much wider and faster than it's been for years.  Sketchy as with the damp tires on the final cattlestop

Anda the Anaconda.  Good blast, nothing sketchy, just speed and balance.  Awesome jumps in places, and good railing of berms.  Tho, bottom few corners my handlebar light was out again.  Stopped to replug and Nelson was goneburger round the tail.  I took this a bit slower than usual, not sure why.  No bollocking, which was good, and a fast final blast down to the paddock. 

Then the greebly climb.  Ugh.  Did good for a while, but up around the tight corners (above where the walk track peels off left), I had to drop it down a couple gears and crawl...  Made the top in due time and we headed into Nicholson (where my MapMyRide gave up the ghost...).  Took a steep track down that joined the steep stuff we'd ridden last time, and it were certainly steep.  Down onto the path, a couple of steppy hairpins then onto the blasty wee alleyway between the houses out onto Whitewash Head and down onto the road and around the waterfront.  At Cave Rock there were tonnes and tonnes of people around, and cars parked randomly and people all looking at their phones...  POKEMON...  One person, referring to us, said "There's some real people doing real stuff..."  Haha.  Must have been 20 or 30 cars, and more arriving, and a hundred people?  Nuts...  Around the road and hauling ass back to the car, thankfully not along the Causeway. 

All up a couple hours riding, just about 26 kms, and nearly 900m climbed.  Big for a weeknight.. (Nelson's full course).