Rimutaka Hill/Kaitoke road condition - CRAP. Stay home! (27 November)

[MD]

Let me put it another way for Wellington riders thinking of a fun ride over the hill - don't bother, stay home and paint something so you can watch it dry.

How can a road in reasonably good nick suddenly deteriorate so much in a week since I last went over?
I went for what was supposed to be an enjoyable evening ride tonight but ended up wishing I had stayed home and scrubbed the gunk off the inside of the rubbish tin with my tongue.

They are resealing about 1500m of road between Te Marua and Kaitoke. Sports tyres, melting tar and tonnes of loose stones don't mix well. I was down to 20 kph and stones were flinging everywhere. Got home and found a few in my boots. My bike looks like it's got the measles with stones stuck to it.
So I pushed on to the hill. What a joke. What bends the sun hasn't melted into a slippery shiny black excuse for a road aren't worth looking for. Some bits aren't molten tar though. No they have been washed with a new detergent designed by the trucking industry from a unique blend of diesel and stock effluent.

I let a dual purpose whatever bike blitz on ahead of me showing off how well knobbles now work better on the Rimutaka Hill "sealed' (joke of the year) road than in the dirt.
Bloody hell, I've ridden it faster in torrential rain and strong winds!
If it doesn't improve I might have to cheer myself up by reading one of those KB depression threads.

[Trudes]

I know what you're saying!!
Decided to take a joy ride this morning and the joy stopped on the Kaitokes when I couldn't ball up the passing lane and then had to wait for the dude to turn his stop/go sign for about 10 mins. Then I ride through all the loose gravel flicking all over my clean bike (another waste of time!) with a twat in a van stuck up my arse, while I hoped I wouldn't arse off and get run over! And then yep, the hill wasn't too flash either with stones from them doing something up there all over every corner. Blah, I should've come to your house and help you lick the bin or watch some paint dry! (Moan over).

[Clivoris]

I can't believe that having a wee snooze in the sun turned out to be the best thing to do after work.

[merv]

Glad it wasn't like that on Sunday else I would have had to take a trail bike over.

[bistard]

I am going to the Rapa tommorrow with work in the the car,so will check out how bad it is & have a thinke whether I go for ride this weekend
By the way MD,how did you get a leave pass mid week,must have been the brownie points you were working on when I saw at The Museum of New Zealand on the weekend??

[bistard]

I can't believe that having a wee snooze in the sun turned out to be the best thing to do after work.

Clive,is that not what you do at work???

[Clivoris]

Clive,is that not what you do at work???

That is so true, but my wife makes me keep my pants on at home.

[bistard]

That is so true, but my wife makes me keep my pants on at home.

Clive,are you F*@king with my head again??

[James Deuce]

Thanks MD, that confirms what I thought on Monday morning at 7:15am. I wasn't pushing on or anything, but the bike sure was moving around.

We all knew this was going to happen when they did that shit job of resealing last year. They'll spread more grit this Summer than they did in Winter.

[Grub]

It sounds like the Wednesday night ride will probably have to go someplace else...

[Tony & Carolyn]

yeah went for a blat (well thought it would be) up the taka's tonight also...... after riding through road works up kaitoke hill 2nd gear felt like 3rd with all the tar/chip stuck to the tires. Did a couple of trips up an down the upper hutt side but got sick of holding my breath every time I crossed the nice wide diesel line that snakes it's way down the hill!!!! sooooo glad the weekend was fantastic...... weather , road an company

[MD]

By the way MD,how did you get a leave pass mid week,must have been the brownie points you were working on when I saw at The Museum of New Zealand on the weekend??

Yep. Couldn't get to the sprints but I've got me a time-out pass to go in search of some decent roads without traffic, without straights, without ... the list goes on.
I wont miss the local roads, that for sure.