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Hitcher
4th January 2005, 16:06
A new bike to ride and Mrs H with a day off? An overnighter to New Plymouth was in order!

We set off yesterday morning amidst ambivalent weather. We caught a light shower from the Mermaid House to Fisherman’s Table and another again at Tatum Park. These didn’t really wet anything but provided some entertainment in terms of how the air moves around the STX’s screen at highway speeds.

There were lots of bikes out enjoying summertime. We stopped for some lunch at the Bullseye Café (at Bulls) and the day had improved immeasurably by then. Triumphs and Harleys all over the place.

What traffic there was around was well behaved.

From Hawera we took the coastal highway. Mont Egmount was shrouded in cloud but the views out to sea were stunning!

We arrived in New Plymouth mid afternoon and met up with Blackbird Darrel and his lady Carol. The weather was amazing. The sea was flat calm (unusual for Taranaki) and we went from a stroll along the waterfront promenade.

Today we left earlyish to get Mrs H back to Wellington so she could start work at 3:00pm.

The weather through to Inglewood was a bit spitty, but the dark cloud slowly burned off the further south we travelled.

Central Taranaki was looking mighty fine and I had numerous attacks of nostalgia. There are some great biking roads in this area and some top-drawer folks too!

We stopped in Waverley for a stretch and a bunch of about seven riders we had passed twice (at Inglewood and Patea) stopped for a chat. They were Inglewood locals and were doing an “around the block” run, planning to take SH4 from Wanganui to Taumarunui and then Highway 43 from Taumarunui to the top of the Pohokura Saddle before cutting back through Matau to Inglewood. Jealous, I was…

Our lunch stop was the Bullseye Café once again. Mrs Shopkeeper (whose husband owns a Harley) said there had been heaps of riders through already that day. She estimated about 50 from the Rusty Nuts Big 5 0 rally. Apart from the Inglewood bunch we had only seen the odd ones or twos, so the 5 0 guys must have been well dispersed.

Apart from nearly getting cleaned up by a u-turning van outside a marae on the Foxton straights (the bastard did it deliberately too) we had an uneventful run home.

The STX goes magnificently and frugally. Fuel economy is almost identical to Mrs H’s Marauder – about 20-22kml. Without the benefit of an open-throated Neptune exhaust there’s not much to listen to, so I tend to short-shift and let the V4 do its thing, which it does effortlessly. I think I’ve found out how to hold it back to less than 140kmh as well (140-150kmh seems to be its “desired” state on the highway).

The pannier system worked well too for its first outing.

10,000km now up (1,200km since last Friday) so I need to find out what the service intervals are on these things. The rear Battlax looks like it should do at least 12,000km, which is encouraging.

Blakamin
4th January 2005, 16:18
Ahhh.... what a cool trip.... something about the way you put it makes me feel like I was there.......
might have to be getting a few nice rides myself soon...

MSTRS
4th January 2005, 16:26
And the video will be available when? :innocent:

StoneChucker
4th January 2005, 16:31
I take it then, Mrs H decided to ride as pillion? She was undecided the last I heard, something about needing to see if riding pillion long distance was a possibility, for an upcoming trip where you were hiring bikes?

I must have a look at your bike sometime, I managed to miss it the other day?...

k14
4th January 2005, 16:45
Why oh why didn't you say you were coming up here. Would have been able to meet up sometime. Oh well, next time I guess.

Sounds like you had a decent trip. Weather hasnt been too bad here for the last 2 days.

Hitcher
4th January 2005, 16:47
I take it then, Mrs H decided to ride as pillion? She was undecided the last I heard, something about needing to see if riding pillion long distance was a possibility, for an upcoming trip where you were hiring bikes?

I must have a look at your bike sometime, I managed to miss it the other day?...
Mrs H took her trusty Marauder.

Yes, we're off to the West Island in September. The plan is to hire a bike for two weeks and do a circuit of Victoria (up the coast through Gippsland, over the Snowy Mountains, down through Albury, Echuca, Ballarat and back around the south coast through Geelong to Melbourne). On the second day...

An STX was our preferred choice for a rental (that's why Mrs H suggested we take one for a test ride when we were at ANZA last week).

I'm sure the new ride would enjoy being "checked out" at some future time!

Pickle
4th January 2005, 17:01
Hi Hitcher

Going to Aussie in Sept over the Snowy Mountains is bloody cold, probably still snow. We did it in Oct last year and it was freezing.
Sounds like a good trip tho, you will enjoy the ride over the snowies and if you like wine check out the town of Rutherglen not far from Albury then there is the Great Ocean Rd returning you to Melbourne.

Blakamin
4th January 2005, 17:25
Ballarat??? BALLARAT????? why oh why would you want to go there????

say hi to my mum
and Geelong to Melbourne is a freeway these days... you'll wanna start further west to play on the great ocean road!!!

toads
4th January 2005, 18:18
wow you and mrs H are very inspiring, sounds like an awesome trip, and I'll be looking forward to reading your writeup when you do your big biking o/e