Trials and Tribulations of a Learner on Auckland Motorways

[Ixion]

We used to ride our bikes off road where the Warehouse or whatever is now - it was a big hunk of land with tracks everywhere.It was vacant for years and I still saw guys riding there decades after I stopped do that.

All that area where the road goes now, the teacher's college or ATI or whatever it is now, the Warehouse place, was all scrub with tracks. I lived just round the corner, spent a lot of time there. Originally it was about the biggest blackberry patch in Auckland, we used to get bucketful upon bucketful every year. Mum made heaps of blackberry jam.

[Motu]

Oh yeah,I know about the blackberries....you can get in a long way on an out of control bike...boxthorn is 100 times worse.Our blackberry area as kids was what is now known as East Tamaki,it was all just gravel roads then,and all us cuzzies and Aunties would get in a Ford 10 (those E93As were huge!) A billy each and we set to work on the roadsides - ''you kids aren't eating any blackberries are you?'' - 'Nah,not us Aunty!'

[Ixion]

Oh yeah,I know about the blackberries....you can get in a long way on an out of control bike...boxthorn is 100 times worse.Our blackberry area as kids was what is now known as East Tamaki,it was all just gravel roads then,and all us cuzzies and Aunties would get in a Ford 10 (those E93As were huge!) A billy each and we set to work on the roadsides - ''you kids aren't eating any blackberries are you?'' - 'Nah,not us Aunty!'

Best I ever knew was 11 people (10 kids + driver) in an E93A. Admittedly some of them were toddlers.Four deep in the back , big kid, smaller kid on his knee, smaller still and toddler to top it off. It was long before seat belts or child seats were ever heard of . Much competition to be one of the kids in the passenger seat, cos you got the honour of holding the gear lever up to keep it in second gear, on account of E93As always jumping out of second. Those were simpler times. Odd isn't it, that people didn't kill themselves off like they do now, bikes or cars.

[Wellyman]

The Barry's Point is hard to get to. the best way is to ride/drive through downtown takapuna. it has a few better entries to barrys point.
WM

[LXS]

good idea wellyman, north shore is a biiig district.

I deliver electrical goods during the week, akl wide; the streets definately take a bit of getting used to. i.e. what road leads where, no right turns etc.

[Sniper]

Im so glad I don't have to live in Auckland.

[Smorg]

They're building the offramp to Barry's Pt Rd going south at present aren't they?

Its only a bus lane though

[Gremlin]

Had troubles again, yesterday (Monday).

Coming from Auck Uni, I wanted to go to City Motorcycle Spares in Crummer Rd (off Ponsonby Rd). This time I looked at the map real careful like

Figured out up Symonds, right into K Rd, right into Ponsonby, left into Crummer. Backup was right into Newton. Those that know the area know what's coming next.

Got to K Rd, no right turn. Sweet, I have a backup. Up to Newton Rd. NO RIGHT TURN Ended up going past Mt Eden M/C and round the roundabout (I seem to love these...) and then left into Newton. etc.

Then, later on I needed to go to Motomail. Instead of going straight from Symonds into New North Rd, I (for some unknown reason) decided to turn into Mt Eden Rd...

Again, round the roundabout and back to New North Rd...

How long is this road problem going to last??? Oh well... the more I do it, the better it seems to get... This is where a tank bag would probably be good and have the map book in the clear pocket... we'll see how bad it gets first tho

[InDeSkyz]

When I first moved up to auckland, I started to learn to drive in a manual car.
I just wanted to drive anywhere, didn't care, so long as I was driving.
So I would purposely get lost, make it into a game of sorts and try to find my way back home.
Worked a charm for learning roads around half of akl.