snodpete
3rd November 2008, 07:51
I've been reading KiwiBiker for months, impatiently awating the day I got a bike again almost 20 years after my first. In the '80s I had a Yammy XT250 - rode it to work in Marahau from Motueka...
So I hungrily read EVERY 'wot bike shud I get (sic)' post, researched GNs, Bandits and Hondas - TradeMe was my other friend. I bailed up every local I knew who rode and bored them with my new-found 'knowledge' and asked opinions on everything.
First bid was on a Bandit in Nelson - excitement grew as the auction neared closure, but cannier hands than mine were on keyboards somewhere (with bigger budgets) so missed that one. Then I found this strangely modern looking old (1988) bike called a Spada - for sale in Taupo... So far away, though fortuitously I was already booked to travel north in Oct, so it seemed doable. Bidding began and to be brief: I won!
As I was only going to the lower North Island, I Googled bike transporters and found BikeTranz - great to deal with and within days Spada was stored near Wellington waiting my trip. We passed going north and I had a quick look and ride: first impressions very good! I rode to the end of a cul-de-sac and got my bearings, nervously anticipating my first real ride which would be back into Wellington via the motorway when we returned the next week. The rest of our northern trip passed in a blur of small towns, wild weather, campgrounds, motels and bike shops where I geared up. Finally we were back in Kapiti, it was a beautiful Saturday afternoon and the road into Wellington flowed effortlessly under my 'new' 2 wheels. It was a buzz getting a wave from all the other bikers out on the first sunny weekend for ages (some of you might even be reading this - thanks)!
Caught the early morning ferry over a flat Cook Strait then rode via Queen Charlotte Drive to Nelson, then on via the Buller Gorge home. We live in a great motorcycling part of the country... when the weather is good! Now the plan is to get the 6L off my licence - booked to do 'R' in Dec, then a Defensive Driving course to fast-track my full. Am keen to try an adventure bike, though the Spada is fun to ride and growing on me. So that's me, partly fledged Kiwibiker! So far so good...
So I hungrily read EVERY 'wot bike shud I get (sic)' post, researched GNs, Bandits and Hondas - TradeMe was my other friend. I bailed up every local I knew who rode and bored them with my new-found 'knowledge' and asked opinions on everything.
First bid was on a Bandit in Nelson - excitement grew as the auction neared closure, but cannier hands than mine were on keyboards somewhere (with bigger budgets) so missed that one. Then I found this strangely modern looking old (1988) bike called a Spada - for sale in Taupo... So far away, though fortuitously I was already booked to travel north in Oct, so it seemed doable. Bidding began and to be brief: I won!
As I was only going to the lower North Island, I Googled bike transporters and found BikeTranz - great to deal with and within days Spada was stored near Wellington waiting my trip. We passed going north and I had a quick look and ride: first impressions very good! I rode to the end of a cul-de-sac and got my bearings, nervously anticipating my first real ride which would be back into Wellington via the motorway when we returned the next week. The rest of our northern trip passed in a blur of small towns, wild weather, campgrounds, motels and bike shops where I geared up. Finally we were back in Kapiti, it was a beautiful Saturday afternoon and the road into Wellington flowed effortlessly under my 'new' 2 wheels. It was a buzz getting a wave from all the other bikers out on the first sunny weekend for ages (some of you might even be reading this - thanks)!
Caught the early morning ferry over a flat Cook Strait then rode via Queen Charlotte Drive to Nelson, then on via the Buller Gorge home. We live in a great motorcycling part of the country... when the weather is good! Now the plan is to get the 6L off my licence - booked to do 'R' in Dec, then a Defensive Driving course to fast-track my full. Am keen to try an adventure bike, though the Spada is fun to ride and growing on me. So that's me, partly fledged Kiwibiker! So far so good...