Alexandra to Hamilton with something different on the way

[Jantar]

Wednesday

I was called into work 7:00 am wednesday morning because the amount of snow on the roads had prevented the guy who was due on shift to get through from Roxburgh. And this was the day I had intended heading north. With the wintery blast from the south, most mountain roads were closed for at least part of the day every day. Therefore I had decided to head north on Wednesday afetrnoon while there was still a window of opportunity to get through the Lindis Pass. Fortunately he did arrrive in time for me to finally get on the road at 2:30 pm. I knew I would be cutting it fine to get through both Lindis and Burkes Passes before dark but off I went anyway.

3:30 pm saw me deep in the Lindis and conditions weren't too bad all the snow had been cleared from the road and the ice was well gritted. The anti icing fluid that had been used in a few places was more slippery than the compacted snow and ice. Once I got to Omarama I had a choice: On through Tekapo and Burkes Pass, or down the Waitaki Valley to SH1. The sun was getting low in the west, but I figured I could still get through Burkes Pass before dark. What a great choice. At Tekapo there was 20 cm of virgin snow on the ground, and with a new Heindau K60 tyre on the rear I just to take one of side roads that hadn't been cleared and have a few minutes play.

Fresh snow is nothing to be scared of, just enjoyed. However playing around did cut into time and when the sun went below the mountains to the west I had to push on. It was just on dark when I arrived in fairlie and booked into the Gladstone Grand Hotel for the night. I can recommend this place to all bikers. A warm and comfortable room for $35, and a roast meal in the dining room for $14.50. I won't say how much I spent on beer though.

[Jantar]

On the road by 9:00 am for a nice cruisy ride to Geraldinefor fuel and breakfast. I cannot figure out how I can get a roast meal in a hotel for $14.50, but a full breakfast at a cafe costs $20.00; I made do with a pie and a fruit juice.

A strong tail wind all the way allowed me to get to Parnassus for my next fuel stop, then on to Kaikoura for lunch. There were some spectacular waves crashing into the Kaikoura coast, well worth a photo or two.





I made Picton in the early afternoon and imediately went to the ferry terminal to book the mid morning crossing friday, then checked into the Villa for the night.

[Jantar]

After getting out of the shower on friday morning I noticed a message flashing on my cell phone. It was the interislander informing me that my planned crossing had been cancelled (due to rough weather) and I was now booked on the early afternoon crossing. This interferred with my plans somewhat, but I figured I would still get into Wellington before the shops closed. At 2:00 pm we were still tied up to the wharf at Picton, and finally at 2:30 we cast off. Out in the strait it wasn't as rough as I expected, but there were a lot of people seasick, and in the cafe plates and cups were being tossed around and smashing. Instead of being able to buy fodd already prepared they were cooking to order as not many people felt like eating.



We finally docked at 6:30 pm, too late to visit any bike shops, and there was one I really did want to get to.

[Jantar]

9:20 am saw me outside Wellington Motorcycles where I had an appointment with Crasherfromwayback.

Bye bye VStrom


Crasher is a great guy to deal with and I was soon on my way on a TNAB (Technically Not A Bandit) GSX1250FA.

Hello TNAB


I was in two minds as to whether to stay a second night in Wellington, or to carry on north. The rain started falling, and the forecast was for ice that night on the Desert Road, so north it was. Only via the Naki rather than the Desert Road.

I went as far as Stratford, and the first pub I saw advertised Dinner, Bed & Breakfast for $70. Worth a try, but not the best place. Friendly staff, but not very warm, and the food is at the lower end of pub grub. Great crowd to watch the rugby with though.

[Gremlin]

I suppose you really wanted to visit that shop aye? Best you chat to Hitcher (if you haven't already) for farkling the TNAB... but I'm sure you'll have her run in, in no time.

FYI, another option for a crash pad (albeit Taupo) is the Stag Park Diner. Open 24/7 as a truck stop, it also has beds for $45 for a single and you can get food 24/7.

Enjoying the read

[Jantar]

Frost on the bike, frost on the roads, white everywhere, meant I made a late start from Stratford, but what scenery.

TNAB in taranaki


TNAB in King Country, looking back to Taranaki


Calm water compared to Cook Strait.


So I'm now in Hamilton for the next couple of weeks, and looking forward to another interesting ride home.

[Maha]

Those last two pics?...between Mokau and Awakino?...looks like it would have been a great ride through the gorge.

[Jantar]

Those last two pics?...between Mokau and Awakino?...looks like it would been a great ride through the gorge.

A beautiful ride through the gorge.

[tigertim20]

Nice write up mate, you got pretty much what i thought you would get, how does she ride?

[Crasherfromwayback]

Frost on the bike, frost on the roads, white everywhere, meant I made a late start from Stratford, but what scenery.

.

Beautiful pictures Malcolm, and thanks so much for doing business with Wellington Motorcycles/myself. We had some hiccups I know, and I appreciate your patience.

[scumdog]

Ripper write-up Malcolm, must have been an adventure getting to Fairlie!

And I like the look of your new bike - even if it ain't a Harley!

(Pete, yer slippin' in salesmanship..)

[nzspokes]

Enjoy the Bandit.

Heres where you buy bling for it, http://www.justbandits.com/shop/Defa...okiecheck=yes&

[Crasherfromwayback]

(Pete, yer slippin' in salesmanship..)

That's enough out of you mate! If I was to try and sell Malcolm a Harley that does what he likes...it'd be an XR1200 with a 20l fuel thank.

Then there'd be the luggage issue. Don't even ask about that!

[Jantar]

Nice write up mate, you got pretty much what i thought you would get, how does she ride?

I'll be able to answer that question after I get a few thousand Kms on it. So far it rides well. Three mods I can see needing in the future are:

A better seat, This one is OK for around 4 or 5 hours but needs something a bit wider for all day riding. There is a seat recovering kit available which includes thicker and wider foam, so its obviously a known issue among long distance riders;

Either 1 tooth up on the engine sprocket or 2 - 3 teeth down on the rear sprocket. This bike has torque to spare and can easily handle slightly higher gearing. It will also make the speedo more accurate;

A laminar lip for the screen or a larger screen with an uptilt. The airflow with the curent screen hits me too low in the chest and should be up about 10 cm.

[jellywrestler]

I cannot figure out how I can get a roast meal in a hotel for $14.50, but a full breakfast at a cafe costs $20.00

A warm and comfortable room for $35, and a roast meal in the dining room for $14.50. I won't say how much I spent on beer though.

Quite simple really to the top question. You walked out of there spending just $20 leaving the company to supply this product and make a profit on from this total; whereas in the other place while the Roast meal was $14.50 you spent considerably more with them and therefore they could recover the costs of providing those items and make a profit across your whole spend.... higher turnover and things like that.