Waitangi Day 2008: Wellington/HB North Range Rd ride pics here

[merv]

Waitangi Day turned out to be fine and lovely, just the sort of weather for all sorts of motorcycling adventures. Zukin suggested we meet at Woodville and do North range Rd. At the same time many were taking their road bikes out so the Welly team were also meeting the Manawatu team at Woodville.

While I love riding my road bike I love even more getting out on the gravel. Knowing it would be a long haul I left my 250's at home and borrowed Mrs merv's DR650SE.

We didn't get too may bites on the thread and after a few dropouts we were left with Zukin coming down from Napier, bart from Dannevirke, myself from Porirua and Frodo from Kapiti. A nice little foursome.

Me and Frodo arrived at Woodville to find Zukin already there talking to the road crew and that is where my photos start.

[merv]

So I was on the blue DR, Zukin on the red F650GS, bart on the yellow DRZ400 and Frodo on the silver Pegaso.

We left Woodville and headed up North Range Rd where, love them or hate them, you get real close up views of the windturbines. The lattice tower ones are the old ones the new ones are the huge white tube tower models.

[Aslan]

glad you all had a great time - great day for it - thanks for posting - cheers Aslan

[merv]

Once up on top of North Range Rd we saw a few adventurers heading the opposite direction. Only one (on the Triumph) stopped to say gidday and he said he was a KBer. All you dudes need to tell us who you were so we can put handles to the pics.

Yeah hi Aslan, we had a great time. You were missed of course.

This posting pics will take a while but I may as well finish them tonight eh!

[merv]

Here comes the Triumph and that's not our man Sels1.

bart kicked up a bit of dust.

Frodo says he's fitted a Power Commander to the Pegaso and he's got it running a whole lot sweeter. I would've thought the Yamaha engine would have been all sorted in the first place.

[GSVR]

I reacon Bonez went on the wrong ride. He would have been in his element doing North Range road on the CX.

Glad you had a good day. How many gates did you have to open ?

[merv]

The windturbines are big f-----s.

[NordieBoy]

Looks like a nice ride.
You should all be wearing your KB Adventure shirts with your names on the back

[merv]

The road is still fun with good views but its not as hard out as it was before it was used to put the turbines in.

The South end comes out at the top of the Pahiatua Track.

Nice shots of Zukin and Frodo in formation.

[merv]

Looks like a nice ride.
You should all be wearing your KB Adventure shirts with your names on the back

I was but it was under my jacket and Honda jersey while I was riding the DR. I wanted my name on the front but Spank didn't do it how I asked. I wanted it that way so you see you name with a jacket on but unzipped. I wore my Ulysses badge on the front to make up for it.

We headed off to Pahiatua and then Pongaroa for lunch. Some dude was there on an Ape road bike but he didn't have the courtesy to say hi to a bunch of dirt riders. Just high-tailed out when he saw us.

[merv]

The boys checked out the hard copy map while bart ate the cut lunch his Mrs sent him with. You see he brought his licker with him too. No drink driving I hope.

Then the Hitchers arrived right on cue on their ride to Akitio. Mrs Hitcher looks like she fits that F650GS like a glove - she should so have one of those before the gravel roads are all sealed over.

[merv]

bart left us at Pongaroa and the remaining three of us headed off to Mt Marchant over Puketoi and Pori Rds.

Those steps you were doing the building inspection on were they OK Zukin? Would they get their compliance certificate?

[merv]

The views on this circuit are great.

[merv]

At the end of Puketoi Rd is this Landcorp sign so I guess we all own part of thsi land as tax payers.

[merv]

You can see we stop a lot to look at stuff.

Once finished on Pori Rd we did Barton's Line and then Dagg's Rd to Bideford.