Auckland-Wellington-Auckland on the new Bandit
Hi There
On Wednesday 27th, the day in Manurewa dawned overcast, with no rain - I had arranged a few weeks earlier to catch up with my good buddy Nigel, he was bringing his 3 month old Hayabusa up from Queenstown in advance of his shifting back to Auckland.
I was to meet him in Wellington, then the pair of us would haul ourselves back north to Auckland.
I departed Home about 9:15am, my destination that night was Palmy North.
Fired the Bandit up, and got on the road - took me about 30 mins to settle into the ride, went down SH1 to Glen Murray, crossed over the Waikato River and cruised thru to Huntly & Ngaruawahia. Stopped for a quick break/snack, then on I went...
Down SH39... this road is in such good condition at the moment, no roadworks to speak of, the weather was still a high overcast and dry, with rain threatening a bit further south (according to both what I could see, and what Mr Metservice had predicted).
The Bandit was well and truly in its groove by this stage, cornering beautifully, power was there when required, and a modest pace was being achieved.
Got to Otorohanga, topped up with gas at the friendly Caltex, quick leg stretch, then continued on through to Taumarunui via Te Kuiti/8 Mile Junction down SH4.
Saw a whole heap of bikers coming the other way throughout this leg, a lot (if not all) seemed to be coming back from the Wanganui Street races the day prior. Got to Mangatupoto and it had started to rain lightly at this point - wasnt sure how long it was going to last, so I stopped at the local school to put the wets on under shelter.
SH4 is another road in really good condition presently, and the Bandit & I were well settled into one unit, hitting the apexes, smoothly powering out, and the grin on my face could not be contained!
Got to Taumarunui, another leg stretch, phoned up my good mate who was with his family at a place called Omori on the Western shores of Lake Taupo.
Now, for those of you that have bot ridden SH41 from the Taumarunui End, this is such a great piece of road, the few smatterings of Roadworks, but there are some good tight twisties, combined with the odd bit of graceful sweeper to be taken here - the countryside here is a pleasure to ride through, as you climb and descend through the terrain to finally bring you to Lake Taupo.
Stopped for about 90 minutes, had a good lunch, then onto Turangi to top up with gas.
SH1 and the Desert Road beckoned...
I was very surprised at the Badits handing capabilities whilst navigating the 25km/h bends at the Rangipo end of the Desert Road, effortless would be the word - I was saying to myself "what a FANTASTIC purchase this bike has been!"
Riding alone down the Desert Road was just magic... It was cold, I looked to my right to see Snow Flurries dropping onto the lower slopes of Mt Ruapehu - the high wind warning signs were out, yet there was no real wind to speak of, and thankfully no rain...
I passed an Auckland Adventures mini bus on the side of the road about half-way, after being forced to take avoidance action to prevent being snarled up in the wreckage of this guy's back tyre - it had self-destructed and left its remains strewn throughout the south-bound lane.
That is just what happens sometimes I guess
Saw my 1st HP for the journey so far, this was surprising to me that I had not encountered any up to this point.
Stopped at Waiouru, phoned my friends in Palmy North for a weather update, it was suggested I keep my Wets on, and things were looking a little dodgy from a weather perspective.
After spotting a Japanese lady taking a picture of myself and the Bandit at the stop in Waiouru (not sure why she did that, but all was fine as far as I was concerned), I continued down SH1 - through Taihape/Mangaweka to Hunterville - I was officially entering the domain of the highest ticket-revenue Police District in NZ, so my expectation of encountering a few more HP was raised accordingly.
The Bandit, by this stage, was simply living up to its stunning reputation as a great Tourer - It was just aching to be ridden, and responded to every throttle blip I gave it, as if to say "yeah - I like that, bring it on!"
Quick stop at Hunterville (leg-stretch), got approached by a random chap with his kids.. "Hey there, where have you come from today?"
"Auckland, heading for Palmy, been a great ride so far!" I replied - he wished me a pleasant journey, and on he went to play with his kids at a playground.
It never ceases to amaze me the people that will just come up to you and have a chat, because you are on a bike and looking outwardly like you are having the time of your life! (which I was, of course!)
Continued on, looked to the south, and the sky had a menacing look about it - this was about to become a menacing reality about 10K north of Bulls...
The heavens opened, I instinctively eased back, there was a lot of road spray being kicked up by traffic, and the visibility was hampered as a result.
Saw my 2nd HP for the day about this time too - he was in a line of traffic heading north, but he didnt need to be concerned with me, as Wet-Weather riding technique was in effect.
I made my way thru Bulls/Sanson, then I made a turn a little early, and found myself in Fielding (I knew it was the next turn I should have taken LOL)
The rain was still coming down in bucketloads, so I took the opportunity to stop at a gas station to give the visor a clean, and to get a quick respite from the elements.
Made my way to Palmy Nth, got to my friends place, and you guessed it, it cleared up... A good meal was consumed, then bed... slept like a log.
Next day, I started the Bandit (it had spent its first night ever outside in the elements, poor thing) - she roared into life and sat there gurgling to me "So where are are we off to today? huh? huh?"
The weather was WINDY, and I mean 40 knot windy - I headed towards Wellington across the Manawatu floodplain, took some good gusts en-route to Fielding via SH56/SH57, and the wind eased up as I came down the coast towards Wellington.
The road south of Paekakariki along the coast is simply awesome - angry ocean on one side, steep terrain on the other - fantastic from a bike!
Got to the Wellinton Motorway, had a precautionary "finger-wave" from HP # 3 as I overtook a cage coming around a blind lefthander, he had a laser, but no front plate helped me here
Met up with my good mate in Welly, a few beers, a good scoff of Indian (Little India rocks), then it was bed.
Yesterday (Friday) - dawned clear, Nigel & I elected to depart around 8:30 and if all went to plan, we would be in Auckland later that afternoon.
Stopped at a friend's place at Foxton Beach for a coffee, then up SH1 to Waiouru.
At this point we met up with a chap on an early-90's vintage Kawasaki 1100 (I think)
He said the road through to Ohakune was just great, so we followed his advice, he tagged along with us, and we all had a blissful run through from Waiouru - AWESOME...
Lunch there, then along SH4 to Taumarunui.
By now, I was thinking to myself "If this bike was a woman, I would have married it by now" - it just got better and better, the further this journey continued - overtaking with ease, brilliant braking, hitting those apexes again, powering out... BLISS
So, after completing SH4/SH3 to Otorohanga/SH39 again (what a road), then the remainder of SH1 back to Auckland, the backside was starting to feel the effects of 1320KM since Wednesday.
The Bandit and I are a team, one entity when out riding, and I dont have a single regret having bought this machine - 3200KM in 3 weeks sort of says something I think
This trip was a great warm-up for the Sth Island trip scheduled Mid-Feb, I can tell this bike and I are going to enjoy it...
Yes - a long drawl, but its a brain-dump form my experiences over the last few days...
Cheers!
Reply With Quote
Originally Posted by Blairos
Karma ... Justice catches up eventually !! 
Bookmarks