no ridesss

No rides since before field work trip, then Wellington for Sleafords...  Walked tho, for work...  (of which, days one, two and five were the same loop (only MMW'd day 2... copied out) around 10 kms each day, no tracks just markers, stopping for tracking tunnels, traps, and seed-fall: slipping, tripping, falling, trudging and lurching.

End of the month now and nothing expected tonight, so... meh

Wednesday Night Poached Shortness

Short local up and back taking in some dodgy walking tracks.  

Bit of mucking around first, but Nelson came to mine and we headed out at 6.40 and headed up into Vic Park the usual way, on the walking track to save the tires, then up over the top of the Info Centre then up over 19th and up the grunter.  We climbed around and hit Thompsons #1 down, then along the road and into #2, blitzing through the splecky water on the trail ("needs a drain at the top," i mentioned).  Bars missing the narrow trees we hoofed out onto the road and rolled down to the Pass.  Up the Summit, with a million Park bikers coming down towards us we climbed up to where the top Gov's Bay track drops over from opposite the Nun.  Grabbed a drink and snack bite here then we headed along the Coronation Reserve walking track, southside so greasy, little soft mud but damn slippery rocks too.  A few clambers up too-tech sections then nice rolling around and dropping down the other side.  Onto the trail that heads around the back to the Kiwi too, nicely nicely - only 2 too-tech bits.

Back up the road to top of Vic and in for the blast around over the jumps and then down through Brake Free, through the stile and left into the Gums, awesome pace all the way down through and out to Skidder, and into the newly re-formed "CAP This Way" trail, bermy back and forth down to Vic Park Rd.  Back up this and into the walking track below, across to Tawhairanui and into the 235 Dogparkcarpark blast.  Mucky as all F in the usual wetspot and then out to the exit for a final tire-clearing hoon down to home.

Only 8 and a quarter kilometres, with just over 300 m escalated.

Off to Slaughter Burn for the week on Friday...

Sunday Arvo Flow

Nice wee ride out on my lonesome. Up the usual ups, 19th, skidder, gruntsville, to the top of Vic, down around the two jumpies, then back up Worm to the Traverse across, beautiful sunny day out ahead.  Stopped for a wee break at the top of Fourpause/HuntsDH, then dived on in.  Nicely nicely, but a couple of massive hits made me wonder if my back tire was gonna pinch or something.  Wove my way down to the 4wd, meeting 3 dudes on 'normal' bikes having just climbed up.  The pace they were making made me initially think they were on ebikes, but nope.  Down to and finding my way onto Ali Express, zig and zag, very under-used - no real sign anyone's been on it for a long time.  Back onto the usual bylines dropping down.  Another massive thwack rear end, pinch?  no, phew - but something was definitely up.  Air Pressure, I now think.  Otherwise a nice flowy cruisey blitz down Old Skool.  Speed, and flow, coast, hang back, rest, dive in, rail, flow, break, rail, flow, rinse and repeat.  Eventually out the bottom, and back up into the climb.  

Grind grind grind.  Pushed up from Hospital, then rode and cleaned around to Texaco, then took a new route for me, over to the right, onto the walking track.  Walked, and then decided to ride a bit, enough flatish bits that it's not a bad climb.  Spotted/connected where we used to ride down here, further over than I thought, and eventually made my way to the Eastside Bush 4wd track, meandered up, walking some, that to Skidder.  Over 19th again, relaxing coast down road, and into 235 for some super flowy hero dirt, avoiding jump to muck, acorns, climb to dogpark and final blast down behind the houses, rear suspension in need of work.  

A pretty good 11.6 kms, and 490 m climbed

Wednesday Steep Locales

Short and steep ride tonight, in two one-sentence paragraphs.  

Up from home, over 19th usual, skidder, steep, through and up to a quick duck down Thompson #1 and back up road, then down around the Jumpies, bypassed the see-saw, but headed up the fenceline to top of Pedalfine, over the fence and dropped down Upper Fenceline track, skirting across top of Cool Runnings and up the 4wd tracks, getting somewhat confused as to where I was briefly but working it out and dropping down through Razzas, across the Rad to Sneaky Ridge, mumpity bump down the rocks and roots and nearly losing it in the acorns, leaping into Bridges or flow or whatever it's called out there, around into Nu Bridges, spotting lights and silhouettes ahead, catching and overtaking a guy scurrying out of my way on the last corner rock, rolling down to his buddies, confusing them, at Hospital, then up K2, around the Texaco jumps, up the horrible steeps and up around the steep bastards to Skidder again.  

From here, back up the steep to Brakefree and down through the usual gummies, over 19th again, tarmac coasting then 235, a bit damp, nearly losing it again in those acorns, and finally down through the lower exit, road and home. 

Cray cray steepies, 9 kms with 400 m climbed.