Brass Monkey 07 - T.I.E Paturoa & friends(?)

**paturoa** · 6th June 2007, 19:52

Woke up too early just for a change!

Breakfast with Rosie and her mad cat. Headed off about 8:30 and right turn at Amberly for the inland route around chch. I've never seen so much cow shite on roads ever!!!!

As I was getting close to Mt Hutt it started to rain (some of the West Coast torrent made it over the alps). I ducked east away from the rain from what looking at the map now was thru Hororata. Gee there are only long straight roads there.

By the time I got to Geraldine the sky over the inland route was looking OK So I headed west. Some where close to Twizel I got passed by a low flying Aprilia that must have been doing over 140. But no a Southern Tax man anywhere - lucky luckly bastard.

By the time I got to Lindis Pass it was about 4:30 and starting to get dark and cold. It was a good road with only the shaded bits still wet.

Stopped at Cromwell for the night.

**paturoa** · 6th June 2007, 20:18

Woke up early again (spot the pattern!)

Went to the local supermarket and bought a large pack of fire starters - remember last year!

The trip from C to the site was raining about 90% of the time so was a slowish ride.

I stopped for breakfast at Alex and had a HUGE feed - best of the trip.

Thru to the site and rode down to where we camped last year. I looked at a couple of the people setting up their tents and one looked like warewolf. Sure enough, he came over to me and said hello. So I set up my tent next to theirs and hung up the KB flag and unpacked the mule just as it started to rain again.

The rest of the Adventure riders were packing up and heading off for a ride so I kept myself busy getting some more fire wood and drinking beer. Took me about 2 minutes to light the fire with just paper! The fire lighters never made it out of my pack.

With the rain on the short downhill to the site I saw 5 bins with people using their front brakes. One was a guy on a 1200 bandit, I only heard his crash and looked up to see his mrs bin hers imediately behind him.

There was a young guy on a cb250 riding up and down and hup and down and .. and faster each tme with a white helmit on his elbow. He never binned but I was expecting it. He eventualy headed off down a track towards the lake and couldn't back up the hill again. I don;t recall seeing him after that.

Over the next few hours I must have met about 30-40 Kbers and a few hangers on too. Several trips to the bonfire and a dozen cans later. Bloody awesome evening. The rain stopped about 7pm and by then the mud up by the bonfire was deep. About every 30 minutes someone whould hop on a honda 3 wheeler, start it up, do 10 doughnuts and turn it off again - not sure what the point to it was but it started to be a piss off after a few hours - until the git rode straight into our camp area. Ah one of us taking it for a ride.

**paturoa** · 6th June 2007, 20:22

and some more pics from Saturday

For a bunch of people having a great time the photos don't make it look that way - lol

**mbazza** · 6th June 2007, 20:39

Hi Paturoa,
Thanks for putting these pics up. If we are all having such fun why were we so glum? Cheers.

**paturoa** · 6th June 2007, 20:49

and here are some from Sunday morning - if you look realy carefuly in pic 1 you can see snow on them thar hills

**paturoa** · 6th June 2007, 20:52

Originally Posted by mbazza

Hi Paturoa,
Thanks for putting these pics up. If we are all having such fun why were we so glum? Cheers.

you look like you are praying in a couple of them - to the god of warmth?

**timg** · 6th June 2007, 22:55

Originally Posted by paturoa

and here are some from Sunday morning - if you look realy carefuly in pic 1 you can see snow on them thar hills

Hi Paturoa,
Great to meet you. Look forward to catching up next year if not before. Awesome stitched pic - really captures the site. Cheers, T.

**paturoa** · 7th June 2007, 18:36

hah - didn't wake up early.

Draged my self out of my sleeping bags (nice and toasty warm) and went to put my boots on and the zipper was hard to do up which was a bit unusual. I then went to unzip my tent and that was hard to do too - WTF?

Then the penny dropped all frozen...

So I crawled out of my tent at dawn and everything was coverred in frost. There were a few hardy soles already heading off on their bikes at that stage. Oh well not snow but bloody cold. I wandered around a bit and went for a slash. Came back and got my breakfast plate etc and headed off for a feed. On the way there I bumped into a very good friend who now lives in Te Anau. Picture someone in your mind who is close to hyperthermic (sp?) that was him. He said he froze overnight and was the coldest he has ever been at a BM (his 11th).

I forgot my breakfast ticket so trudged back to the tent and met my buddy for breakfast. One of the others he was camped with couldn't get his hard panniers open to get his plate, as the lock was frozen solid. I suggested water and then volunteered to piss on his bike for him to thaw the lock. After all it was a Triumph.

I'm still struggling to work out why he said no; then my buddy said that was really a good idea....

Anyway he had a water bottle in his tent and that did the trick.

Slap up breaky, toast, tomatoes, eggs couple of sausages and a couple of coffees later and my buddy was finaly warm.

By the time I got back to the tents half of them had already gone. Sorry I didn't get to say "ride safe", but you all did anyway.

The Mistress and I were the last to leave and as we were heading out the FMX guys were doing jumps.

We headed back towards Alex and she stopped the pub at Ophir.

So I contined on towards the Haast pass and a trip up the West coast. The road between Clyde and Cromwell still had a couple of ice patches on it as I soon discoverred. Then it was a pretty straight forward trip thru to Wanaka where I gassed up. There was an old biddy sitting in a car watching me put my gear on. I had my mirrored visor on so she didn;trealise i was wathcing her also. She was highly amused by how much gear I was wearing that she was laughing to herself (well I'm assuming that is what she was laughing at)

I was distracted by all of this and duly set off in the wrong direction. About 2ks the other side of wanaka there was a sign that I went WTF? and did a quick u turn.

It was a pretty uneventful ride, but with spectactular views right thru to the Haast itself and quite a few bike all going that way. I really enjoyed the dry road sweepers on both sides of the pass itself.

Petrol and an ice cream at Haast and I was off again up the coast which had lots of slippery wet corners where the road was shelterred. Brief stop to change visors as it was getting dark and overnight at Hokitika.

Biker friendly motel there too, they offerred , unprompted by me for me to put my bike in their locked garage. Very clean, tidy and goo location opposite the BP gas station just north of the round about. The Bella Vista.

**paturoa** · 7th June 2007, 18:50

some Sunday pics

**paturoa** · 7th June 2007, 18:55

and some more pics from Sunday

**doc** · 7th June 2007, 19:03

Got home today. Found this one of the easier monkey's. Don't think it would have been if the drizzle hadn't stopped. Mate who was with me packed everthing up as soon as he woke up and his tent was still dripping two days later , must have been the ice from the frosty morning. Sorry mean't to get down to meet you guy's, but didn't see Dangerous and his guzzi so didn't make too much effort. Next morning saw what was left of the KB'r group, but was still heaving my lungs out after trying to start mates harley with a flat battery. Wasn't in no condition for a conversation. Seems that we sort of mirrored Paturoa on the whole trip. Thought that it was good that the Rally organisers got the group booking discount on the ferry. The worst part for me was from Hamilton to Auckland today, got drenched. Who cares was on the home stretch didn't even stop to put on the wet weather gear.
Glad the the usual weather bomb is about to happen instead of last week.

**Ghost_Bullet** · 7th June 2007, 19:11

Originally Posted by doc

tent was still dripping two days later ...................

Yeah, I had similer, opened my tent when I got back to Rangiora and there was still ice flakes in it!!!

Great pics' paturoa

**doc** · 7th June 2007, 19:19

Got home today. Found this one of the easier monkey's. Don't think it would have been if the drizzle hadn't stopped. Mate who was with me packed everthing up as soon as he woke up and his tent was still dripping two days later , must have been the ice from the frosty morning. Sorry mean't to get down to meet you guy's, but didn't see Dangerous and his guzzi so didn't make too much effort. Next morning saw what was left of the KB'r group, but was still heaving my lungs out after trying to start mates harley with a flat battery. Wasn't in no condition for a conversation. Seems that we sort of mirrored Paturoa on the whole trip. Thought that it was good that the Rally organisers got the group booking discount on the ferry. The worst part for me was from Hamilton to Auckland today, got drenched. Who cares was on the home stretch didn't even stop to put on the wet weather gear.
Glad the the usual weather bomb is about to happen instead of last week.

**paturoa** · 7th June 2007, 20:14

Bugger woke up early again...

Still got up and had a hot shower and went to find breakfast - forgot the camera - The view along the beach was great - sort of rugged but not if you know what I mean.

H was really quiet on Monday morning, there was only one place open that I could see, so I walked into the bakery place and there was a couple of very second hand looking custard slices and that was about it ???? Why open?? Anyway the other side of the shop was a sit down cafe "sort" of a place so I had toast and flat white - not sure they would get a lot of return business on if they were on Pony road!

Headed off about 9ish for Blenheim and had a cruzy ride. Did the blackball road like warewolf suggested but unintentionaly cut it short by crossing the river short of Blackball, oh well. I was riding on high beam and several cages were flashing their lights at me - bloody good too. There was a rozzer coming the other way and he did it too, but it looked more like the double flash thing to warn me that there was a cop ahead. I gave him a nice wave to thank him for the warning.

I stopped at Reefton for lunch at the flash place after gassing up. I couldn't be shagged taking off all of my gear which was coverred with about 5mm of crap and as there were some outside tables I decided to eat there. I wandered inside and as I ordered the pancakes there was a woman sitting at one of the tables who was giving me the "I don't approve you being in here like that look" I musterred up my best smile and looked straight at her. When she caught my eye I gave her my best go f**K youself look, and she just turned away. The woman serving me could only just contained her laughter. (I had already told her that I wanted to eat outside)

Anyway the pile of pancakes coverred with soem sort of berry sauce was at least 12 cm high and about 15 round with a indecant amount of propper cream to boot. I stuffed myself, but couldn't eat it all. There was another bike (blue trumpy tiger) that pulled in to gass up as I was heading for lunch. They stopped for a chat. Nice bloke and his son from Nelson.

So I sat outside and scoffed till I eat no more and rolled over to the mule.

The next stretch thru to Blenheim was one of the best of the whole trip up the Wairau Valley. Bloody nice ride.

The pics are next to a river crossing somewhere along the valley.

Thru to the Picton from the last part of the valley was past miles of vineyards.

I got to Picton about 3pm and the ferry wasn't to 6pm - boredom!!!

Eventualy the sun went down and I went and joined the ferry queue and talked to a young army guy who was off to Waiouru for 3 weeks in the open. He had a K7 gixxer 750 and we had a good chat. Nice guy - prolly freezing his arse off as I write this.

Shayne, who I rode to the BM with last year (they guy who I offered to piss on his bike above) eventually turned up and his mates Neville and Biggles (not our Biggles) so I spent the ferry trip over with them. Biggles suggested the Paraparaumu motel for the overnight and I organised to meet Shayne in the morning and ride back to paradise together. We talked to some young guys who had just done a 3 day trials weekend at Kaikoura and had a great time. The trip from Welly to P was not worth mentioning - bugger I just mentioned it.

**Ruralman** · 7th June 2007, 21:24

Originally Posted by paturoa

and some more pics from Saturday

For a bunch of people having a great time the photos don't make it look that way - lol

They look glum because the Dunedin KB'rs hadn't arrived to brighten up the party yet!!!
Great to meet you and as others have said a great set of pics and commentary.