skelstar
19th April 2006, 16:10
While theres a myriad of easter trip reports out there, I thought I would jot down what happened on my own Easter Weekend for posterity sake.
Summary: Wgtn - Auck - Coro - Roto - E.Cape - Wgtn
A couple of months ago I was invited along on a East Cape trip for Easter 06 by KS19, motobob and MV Sienna.
Day One - Thursday - Wgtn 2 Auckland
Initially I was going to be riding up to Rotovegas to meet up with the group from Auckland on the Friday night, but decided that I wouldnt mind riding up to Auckland and hooking up with the Auck thurs night ride that Qkchk was organising. Good chance to meet some new KBers.
I woke predictably early on thurs morning and headed out into some chilly weather. A boring ride through to Wangas with the intention of riding the so far unridden Paraparas. A gas-up and I had a hard time riding through to Raetahi. Ive discovered recently that if Im cold my riding goes to shit.Not quite sure why but it does. At this stage its spitting a bit and Im clearly riding along the front that was coming through from the SW.
Further riding through N.Park, Tokaanu and up the western side of Lake Taupo. This is a fav road of mine as its quite fast and hasn't had any cops on it so far. Infact I havent seen a cop since Wangas (count=5 at that stage). I ride onto Tokoroa, Putaruru, Matamata and north to SH2 from there. OMG what a boring road, what was I thinking? A quick mis-interpretted txt to KS19 and Im heading up the east side of the Hunua Range to Kawakawa Bay (fun-ish) and Clevedon, Papakura (not fun), SthMW, Greenlane, Western Springs, sisters house. *Phew*. 750kms today.
A brief chat with sis and partner and Im off down the NW-MW to meet up with like minded KBers on Qkchk's thurs night ride. Im early of course, but meet NinjaNeil and many others (about 20?). After a quick briefing we were racing off into the dark vaguries of the back roads of Auckland. No sooner had the streetlights disappeared that I found myself nutting into a wet 45km/h corner after Dover. My first lesson in Auckland riding was learnt as THE MAN made several mid-corner adjustments infront of me: dont follow Dover into a wet corner, in the middle of the night, that you dont know anything about. Theres something for everyone there I think.
Despite the pine needles all over a corner which lead to Lazy7's demise, we made it some pub in Albany. A good yarn with Zed, Dover, Gareth and others and KS19 shows me the way to go home I'm tired and I want to go to bed. I had a little drink about an hour ago, And it's gone right to my head.
Got lost on Great North Road. Woops.
Day Two - Friday - Auckland 2 Rotorua
Theres a meeting for the ride through to Rotorua at McD's Greenlane and Im early. Again. Enigma was there much earlier though, and we are joined shortly after by Boomer, MV, KS19, motobob and Speedmedic and two mates (sorry, didnt catch names). Did I miss anyone? Apologies if I did. A short yak (like a Bison but smaller) and we are off through Howick and through to Kawakawa Bay (again). A greasy ride up through the twisties and a blast along the coast. My bike is a bit of a handfull at speed + headwind. My wrists were quite sore from holding onto the bars. Kopu gas up and we head up SH25A (I think) that runs to Whangamata.
Now I promised myself that I would have no 'oh shit' moments (OSM) on this trip. MV calls them 'poos coming' moments but I think she would change her mind if she met the bloke. So Im doing ok, Im not riding real hot but I find myself approaching a corner with my brakes locked up. Both of them apparently. I recover in a ditch the right way up, do a little victory dance and nut past MV giving a thumbs up :niceone: as she had kindly stopped to how I was. I wanted to get to our next stop before I started thinking about it too much. So much for my promise. Having said that, it was my last OSM of the trip.
These roads are sensational. Very quick and tight. Lots of fun.
Find the others (miraculously) in Whangamata and sit down for some lunch and reflection. Its hot. We depart after Speedm makes a repair to his tyre. The first time Ive seen ear-wax fix a hole in a tyre and Im impressed. The roads through to Waihi are good but Im nana-ring. We say goodbye to Enigma, Boomer and Speedm (bloody good to meet you guys) and head to Tauranga for the most boring part of the trip.:zzzz:
Pies Pa (sp?) is congested and twisty and enjoyed by most. Dinner in Vegas at an Italian Cafe (Ciccio?) and we retire to our luxury hotel. MV discusses the possiblity of riding our bikes into the lobby with the dim, witless grumpy staff...well one was cute, and is probably used to chubby Americans that have no concept of sarcasim.
Day Three - Saturday - Rotorua 2 Gisborne
A stunning morning and an earlyish start gets us through the gorges past Red and Blue lakes and through to Opotiki. I discover my Red Bull bottle has exploded in my tankbag and the others have discovered LB and her partner Hamish (both Welly KBers) at the cafe. I mop down my tank and camera (sh1t) and join the discussion. LB and H head off before us and we hit the road after them. These are some great roads. Best so far. There is a type of seal they are using that looks like its as loose-as, but is probably bombproof. Very difficult to tell sometimes and results in some very carefull riding in places.
So Im in the middle of a dodgy passing manoeuvre and notice LB with a camera standing at the lookout on the corner. I tip the bike over and try and look cool and fail miserably. Ill blame it on a loose chain. A brief stop at Katikati (I think) and we are off riding on possibly the best peice of road I have ever ridden on. Theres so few straights and Its so sustained that I have little time to look down at my GPS. I spot the rest about 1km ahead at the 3/4 mark so don't feel too bad about my progress. We break for gas and lunch at Te Araroa.
The second half of the Cape road is different. A bit faster maybe? The road has alot more of the bad seal and theres lots of washouts, uneven surfaces, and the odd drop-off. MV is keen as for us to ride out on the Tologa Bay wharf but it has been blocked off since she was there last. Pity. The roads through to Gissy were very fast from there on. A nice break from the tech challenging roads further north.
Once we have found our accomodation (Casa Blanca - very nice ta MV) we headed out for a curry. The boi-racers were in attendance doing laps of the city main street. How imaginative. We headed back to our motel for another chick-flick but the oldies didnt last long. We tucked them in and proceeded to wax-lyrical about the day's riding. Whenever MV heard one of the olds getting up for the toilet she would yell out "*insert name of drug that helps old people urinate here*". Very amusing.
Day Four - Sunday - Gisborne to Wellington
At this point I part company with the Aucklanders. Im heading down through to Wairoa, Napier, Wellington (via the Wairarapa), and the others will head through the Waioweka Gorge to Opotiki. KS19 and others will add their report after mine I believe.
I decide that I would have a crack at SH36 that runs inland from Gissy, through Tiniroto, and on to Wairoa. THe road is very twisty, tight and narrow, and probably not the best option. Better for later in the day when one is a bit more warmed up riding-wise. Would be interested to hear what the coastal route is like in comparison. At Wairoa I head out west on SH2 and ride what I consider the best road on the trip. Its a little less techn than the first half of the East Cape but has fast sweepers as well as tight twisties. The road surface is fantastic and the whole 120kms through to Napier is never boring. Ill be doing it again come track-day weekend I reckon.
I attend a five year-olds birthday party in Hastings. No idea who they were but I got to eat cake and drink fizzy. Onwards along SH50 that runs through Onga Onga and joins up with SH2 just Sth of Waipukurau. Mundane roads that were made interesting by baiting an Evo 9 :devil2:. Found a cop at the servo at Woodville that asked me where I was going. Was tempted to say 'no-where...where are you going?'. He wished me a safe ride as I hurriedly got out the servo before him. More boring riding through Masters and home over the wet Takas.
...and in the end
2300kms. Averaged ~600km/day. Loved it. Thanks to Keystone19 and MV for organising the weekend. Ta to motobob who helped me out when my credit card got wiped by my magnetic red-bull tankbag. I tell ya...my cash was running out so fast that I wasn't sure if my gas would get me home!
Where to next? North of Auckland soon after Taupo trackday. A couple of epic day trips maybe. A coro-loop ride (not shortcut). Maybe a longer Sth Isl trip in summer.
skelstar
Summary: Wgtn - Auck - Coro - Roto - E.Cape - Wgtn
A couple of months ago I was invited along on a East Cape trip for Easter 06 by KS19, motobob and MV Sienna.
Day One - Thursday - Wgtn 2 Auckland
Initially I was going to be riding up to Rotovegas to meet up with the group from Auckland on the Friday night, but decided that I wouldnt mind riding up to Auckland and hooking up with the Auck thurs night ride that Qkchk was organising. Good chance to meet some new KBers.
I woke predictably early on thurs morning and headed out into some chilly weather. A boring ride through to Wangas with the intention of riding the so far unridden Paraparas. A gas-up and I had a hard time riding through to Raetahi. Ive discovered recently that if Im cold my riding goes to shit.Not quite sure why but it does. At this stage its spitting a bit and Im clearly riding along the front that was coming through from the SW.
Further riding through N.Park, Tokaanu and up the western side of Lake Taupo. This is a fav road of mine as its quite fast and hasn't had any cops on it so far. Infact I havent seen a cop since Wangas (count=5 at that stage). I ride onto Tokoroa, Putaruru, Matamata and north to SH2 from there. OMG what a boring road, what was I thinking? A quick mis-interpretted txt to KS19 and Im heading up the east side of the Hunua Range to Kawakawa Bay (fun-ish) and Clevedon, Papakura (not fun), SthMW, Greenlane, Western Springs, sisters house. *Phew*. 750kms today.
A brief chat with sis and partner and Im off down the NW-MW to meet up with like minded KBers on Qkchk's thurs night ride. Im early of course, but meet NinjaNeil and many others (about 20?). After a quick briefing we were racing off into the dark vaguries of the back roads of Auckland. No sooner had the streetlights disappeared that I found myself nutting into a wet 45km/h corner after Dover. My first lesson in Auckland riding was learnt as THE MAN made several mid-corner adjustments infront of me: dont follow Dover into a wet corner, in the middle of the night, that you dont know anything about. Theres something for everyone there I think.
Despite the pine needles all over a corner which lead to Lazy7's demise, we made it some pub in Albany. A good yarn with Zed, Dover, Gareth and others and KS19 shows me the way to go home I'm tired and I want to go to bed. I had a little drink about an hour ago, And it's gone right to my head.
Got lost on Great North Road. Woops.
Day Two - Friday - Auckland 2 Rotorua
Theres a meeting for the ride through to Rotorua at McD's Greenlane and Im early. Again. Enigma was there much earlier though, and we are joined shortly after by Boomer, MV, KS19, motobob and Speedmedic and two mates (sorry, didnt catch names). Did I miss anyone? Apologies if I did. A short yak (like a Bison but smaller) and we are off through Howick and through to Kawakawa Bay (again). A greasy ride up through the twisties and a blast along the coast. My bike is a bit of a handfull at speed + headwind. My wrists were quite sore from holding onto the bars. Kopu gas up and we head up SH25A (I think) that runs to Whangamata.
Now I promised myself that I would have no 'oh shit' moments (OSM) on this trip. MV calls them 'poos coming' moments but I think she would change her mind if she met the bloke. So Im doing ok, Im not riding real hot but I find myself approaching a corner with my brakes locked up. Both of them apparently. I recover in a ditch the right way up, do a little victory dance and nut past MV giving a thumbs up :niceone: as she had kindly stopped to how I was. I wanted to get to our next stop before I started thinking about it too much. So much for my promise. Having said that, it was my last OSM of the trip.
These roads are sensational. Very quick and tight. Lots of fun.
Find the others (miraculously) in Whangamata and sit down for some lunch and reflection. Its hot. We depart after Speedm makes a repair to his tyre. The first time Ive seen ear-wax fix a hole in a tyre and Im impressed. The roads through to Waihi are good but Im nana-ring. We say goodbye to Enigma, Boomer and Speedm (bloody good to meet you guys) and head to Tauranga for the most boring part of the trip.:zzzz:
Pies Pa (sp?) is congested and twisty and enjoyed by most. Dinner in Vegas at an Italian Cafe (Ciccio?) and we retire to our luxury hotel. MV discusses the possiblity of riding our bikes into the lobby with the dim, witless grumpy staff...well one was cute, and is probably used to chubby Americans that have no concept of sarcasim.
Day Three - Saturday - Rotorua 2 Gisborne
A stunning morning and an earlyish start gets us through the gorges past Red and Blue lakes and through to Opotiki. I discover my Red Bull bottle has exploded in my tankbag and the others have discovered LB and her partner Hamish (both Welly KBers) at the cafe. I mop down my tank and camera (sh1t) and join the discussion. LB and H head off before us and we hit the road after them. These are some great roads. Best so far. There is a type of seal they are using that looks like its as loose-as, but is probably bombproof. Very difficult to tell sometimes and results in some very carefull riding in places.
So Im in the middle of a dodgy passing manoeuvre and notice LB with a camera standing at the lookout on the corner. I tip the bike over and try and look cool and fail miserably. Ill blame it on a loose chain. A brief stop at Katikati (I think) and we are off riding on possibly the best peice of road I have ever ridden on. Theres so few straights and Its so sustained that I have little time to look down at my GPS. I spot the rest about 1km ahead at the 3/4 mark so don't feel too bad about my progress. We break for gas and lunch at Te Araroa.
The second half of the Cape road is different. A bit faster maybe? The road has alot more of the bad seal and theres lots of washouts, uneven surfaces, and the odd drop-off. MV is keen as for us to ride out on the Tologa Bay wharf but it has been blocked off since she was there last. Pity. The roads through to Gissy were very fast from there on. A nice break from the tech challenging roads further north.
Once we have found our accomodation (Casa Blanca - very nice ta MV) we headed out for a curry. The boi-racers were in attendance doing laps of the city main street. How imaginative. We headed back to our motel for another chick-flick but the oldies didnt last long. We tucked them in and proceeded to wax-lyrical about the day's riding. Whenever MV heard one of the olds getting up for the toilet she would yell out "*insert name of drug that helps old people urinate here*". Very amusing.
Day Four - Sunday - Gisborne to Wellington
At this point I part company with the Aucklanders. Im heading down through to Wairoa, Napier, Wellington (via the Wairarapa), and the others will head through the Waioweka Gorge to Opotiki. KS19 and others will add their report after mine I believe.
I decide that I would have a crack at SH36 that runs inland from Gissy, through Tiniroto, and on to Wairoa. THe road is very twisty, tight and narrow, and probably not the best option. Better for later in the day when one is a bit more warmed up riding-wise. Would be interested to hear what the coastal route is like in comparison. At Wairoa I head out west on SH2 and ride what I consider the best road on the trip. Its a little less techn than the first half of the East Cape but has fast sweepers as well as tight twisties. The road surface is fantastic and the whole 120kms through to Napier is never boring. Ill be doing it again come track-day weekend I reckon.
I attend a five year-olds birthday party in Hastings. No idea who they were but I got to eat cake and drink fizzy. Onwards along SH50 that runs through Onga Onga and joins up with SH2 just Sth of Waipukurau. Mundane roads that were made interesting by baiting an Evo 9 :devil2:. Found a cop at the servo at Woodville that asked me where I was going. Was tempted to say 'no-where...where are you going?'. He wished me a safe ride as I hurriedly got out the servo before him. More boring riding through Masters and home over the wet Takas.
...and in the end
2300kms. Averaged ~600km/day. Loved it. Thanks to Keystone19 and MV for organising the weekend. Ta to motobob who helped me out when my credit card got wiped by my magnetic red-bull tankbag. I tell ya...my cash was running out so fast that I wasn't sure if my gas would get me home!
Where to next? North of Auckland soon after Taupo trackday. A couple of epic day trips maybe. A coro-loop ride (not shortcut). Maybe a longer Sth Isl trip in summer.
skelstar