First time visitor to NZ - avoiding speeding fines

[FlyingTomato]

Thanks again guys for all your input - some sound advice and some comedy gold in there

Seems to me the takeaway lessons are to save the enthusiasm for the back roads and on those expect the unexpected round every corner.

I've recently done a fair bit of riding on the roads less travelled in Vietnam and the Philippines so I'm used to allowing for the fact that round the corner there might be unmarked road works, stray dogs, water buffalo - the only thing I never saw was traffic cops.

From what you guys say NZ should be great so long as I don't ride like a lunatic - which was never the intention.

[jellywrestler]

The approved speed for any corner is kmh == mph x 2 plus 10. : so, a sign signposted for 35kph can be ridden at 80mph or around 140.

I've found it's difficult to go more than 3x the indicated
corner speed, on the cliffhanger hillclimb I was going around the 35k corner at 120-130kph but that was using both sides of the road, in practice I managed to do 110kph on the left hand side around it, but that was using every 3mm of the side tread , in general I've found twice the signposted speed is easily achieved, but I like to have a margin of safety for the unexpected

you must have two cocks, no one could get that stupid tugging on just one of them

[Navy Boy]

Might do if he rides a Hippobike (Harley). I thought the article was really funny. Want a digital copy if I can find it on the PC?

Yes please BB!

[Blackbird]

Yes please BB!

Here you go Lee - the article which Pritch originally mentioned about a UK motorcycle journo touring NZ.

[Navy Boy]

Here you go Lee - the article which Pritch originally mentioned about a UK motorcycle journo touring NZ.

HaHa. I haven't read that for ages. I vaguely remember it from the first time around. A good answer to the OP's question me thinks.

[Temporary-Kiwi]

yes that was quite entertaining, I've never seen that before
sounds like the op wanted sensible reckoning about the conditions we motorcyclists experience in nz
that article will probably cause alarm in a certain portion of the public, but last year I did a 6,000 km 10 day blat around the south island b4 my wrist surgery, I rode at what I considered a fairly restrained pace yet still managed to get two tickets, plus my radar saved me from at least 3 others, and I got a couple of warning flashes from other cops, so I could have burned my 100 demerits easily in those 10 days, and that without doing any real speeding (i.e 160kph +)

[Ginge09]

If you're coming from the northern hemisphere to ride the South Island, don't ride a sports bike. Great roads in the summer, not so good down my way in the winter. A South Island ride on a sportsbike would be quick and dirty.

Get an adventure bike or enduro thingy and see the stuff the mainstream tourists don't see. It'll still be too quick for some of the better roads.

[Temporary-Kiwi]

I'd have to agree with above advice, my first tour of the Sri island in 2013 was on my hotted up xr650r, ii rode all over, tried to camp at all the major lakes, did a 3 day "down to the burt adventure ride", attended the burt monroe festival , explored the back country around Otago, rode the dunstan trail, Ben Nevis track, danseys pass, milford sound, malbourough sounds, farewell spit, had alot of good hoons on some great highways, , didnt get a single ticket either !

[Berries]

Hi folks. I'm 63 years old and have been riding bikes in the UK and Europe for 45 years. I'm thinking it's time that I came and checked out the fantastic roads on NZ South Island. However after a little Google research I'm concerned that I could run up thousands of dollars of speeding fines on my first day on the road.

Is it possible to ride a sports bike enthusiastically (I'm talking about Twisties/country roads - not towns/cities or main highways) or do I have to settle for hiring a Enfield Bullet ?

We've some great roads here in North Wales, many of which in my view have been ruined by the installation of speed cameras - but at least these are signposted and highly visible.

Any advice greatfully received.

Hmm. I started riding in and around Aberdeen in the late 80's. Complete idiot, don't know how I survived, yah de yah de yah. Never considered that I was really speeding unless I was doing three figures imperial and that is how we all rode. Came out to NZ in the 90's and my first thought in the bus heading down the south island was that SH1 looked good for a bike. Got a bike here, got very bored with SH1 very quickly.

It is not the same here. The scenery can be fucking fantastic, but it is just as good in many parts of the UK. In my personal opinion the chip seal road surfaces are shit here in comparison and the general standard of driving isn't that great. The lack of courtesy is the most noticeable thing but then I am thinking back to 80's/90's Britain. Went for a spin up the A68 the year before last and it was ruined by speed cameras.

The biggest difference here, at least in the south island, are that there are fuck all options if you want to get from A to B. You can take the direct route on a state highway and for a three or four hour trip there may be a decent alternative but generally there are way fewer options for picking a route. So you stick to the main highway where the Police tend to carry out their enforcement. Or get a bike with spokes if you are that way inclined. Weirdo.

My riding has changed significantly since I came over here. Some of that will be due to age and fear of losing my licence, but I rarely travel above instant ban speeds here which is 140km/h. Firstly, you stick out like a sore thumb at those speeds and secondly there are just so few riders out here that you can't blame that other group of riders that went past you ten minutes ago.

There are heaps (NZ term) of great roads out here where you can still give it laldie and bounce it off the rev limiter, but I really don't think I would travel this far to go banzai and wrap myself around a cow in the road. That's what France is for.

Being Welsh though, plenty of sheep to fuck. You'll fit right in.

[Ginge09]

The biggest difference here, at least in the south island, are that there are fuck all options if you want to get from A to B.

Yeah, he's right about that. But if you ditch the sports bike and stop thinking speed thoughts, You can do A to B via F and some other letters. Plus sheep.

Fly to Brisbane or Auckland, get rid of the jet lag then get an early morning flight to Christchurch. You'll be on a bike by late afternoon if you plan it right. Christchurch Airport - motel check in- bikeshop rental place- same motel- pack the bike - sleep -breakfast - road....

[Blackbird]

I totally agree with the posters about taking time to enjoy the scenery. You won't actually want to fang it in many places because the scenery is so breathtaking. Most posts have talked about speeding in the context of exceeding the open road speed limit and that's fair enough but watch yourself in the lower limits in towns and the like. On my last decent tour down there, we were warned by some locals about the Highway Patrol's habit of sitting round two right-angled corners on the entrance and exit to the west coast settlement of Ross inside the 50 k limit. A lot of people use the lower limit sign as the point to throttle off rather than hit it at the stated limit. Just a thought

[Swoop]

That article must have been written some time ago "12.5% tax"...?

Also "devishly fast"?
Journalism standards of the nz harold...

[Blackbird]

That article must have been written some time ago "12.5% tax"...?

Also "devishly fast"?
Journalism standards of the nz harold...

The date on my PDF scan says 2011 but I think it appeared in 2010.

Hahaha - you're hardly going to get anything erudite from a moto journalist. The two outstanding journos in that field, LJK Setwright and Dennis Jenkinson have long been buried and are probably spinning in their graves with respect to the tripe that's currently served up.

Bah, humbug.... showing my age and all that stuff....

[Temporary-Kiwi]

I finally remembered the title of that book- twisted throttle New Zealand - I used the info in this book on my first south island trip, I found it invaluable, it has a lot of great rides in the north island as well, shame i heard the author died of cancer a couple of years back, op might like to read that b4 touring nz

[FlyingTomato]

Here you go Lee - the article which Pritch originally mentioned about a UK motorcycle journo touring NZ.

HaHa. I haven't read that for ages. I vaguely remember it from the first time around. A good answer to the OP's question me thinks.

Yes , a perfect response and an enjoyable read. Cheers guys