Who else is doing the Grand Challenge this year?

[Conquiztador]

Cant find where the start is and where the finish is. Or the route. Anyone know?

[Gremlin]

Nice. At least I know there will be one other, and a familiar face no less

Normally a third of entrants each year are GC virgins.

Cant find where the start is and where the finish is. Or the route. Anyone know?

Based (and starts and finishes) in Turangi. Route is unknown until late on Friday night (event starts Saturday afternoon). Expect it to be a pick of the best sealed goat tracks of the North Island.

Should get around to actually filling in my entry...

[Conquiztador]

Based (and starts and finishes) in Turangi.

Cool. Only 2 hours ride from Napier. Plan would be to ride up, ride the ride and ride home. Or is there a good party after worth staying for?

[Hitcher]

Or is there a good party after worth staying for?

ROFLcopter! Spoken like a true nube.

[Conquiztador]

ROFLcopter! Spoken like a true nube.

Your help was useless.

[Gremlin]

they provide a feed after, normally sit around talking Shit, swapping stories. The average virgin goes straight to bed. You've usually ridden for 20 or more hours continuously, it isn't auckland to wellington, and usually rains for the massive majority of the ride.

[Conquiztador]

they provide a feed after, normally sit around talking Shit, swapping stories. The average virgin goes straight to bed. You've usually ridden for 20 or more hours continuously, it isn't auckland to wellington, and usually rains for the massive majority of the ride.

Cheers Gremlin! (See Hitcher. That was all it took to please me.)

So it is back home to Napier then, no need to hang around after the feed.

[fergie]

entry sent in this am, first timer so will soak up all advice.

[Gremlin]

I would recommend newbies to long distance riding take the safer option and stay there Sunday night (if not Friday night as well). Until you have done it, you don't really have any idea how tired you are after the event. I told a newbie riding with us last year, watch, do some basic math at the beginning and then the end (things like calculating how many hours, how many km per hour roughly etc) He laughed. At the end of the event, he believed me. You really are that tired.

Last couple of years (when I started doing it), it was back roads through Porongahau, Wimbledon, then last year, the Paraparas, in the dead of the night, pissing with rain. Do not expect to do Auckland to Wellington down SH1 a couple of times. If a main route is part of the ride, expect the rest to decimate your average speed, being tight, twisty etc.

Know your bike (I get it checked over before the event, and explain what I am doing ride wise - the scrutineers will even have ball bearing turntables to check the bikes), trust your tyres (I prefer having just scrubbed tyres, maybe the weekend before, so I know they are balanced and they have maximum grooves) and know how to ride at night (sounds obvious, but I have seen it before). Coming from Auckland, we do about 2500km over the weekend (ride + commute) so it isn't a small amount.

Also think seriously about prep rides. The Ulysses will probably run a 500 miler again this year (was good last year) in the lead up, and I also head out on night rides around the Coro loop etc. Spare headlight bulb is handy, I had my low beam blow at 11.30pm during the GC 2009. Luckily its quick and easy to change and Te Kuiti was only 15 min away!

[fergie]

got my entry back today, start time for me is 3.12pm.. looking forward to it!

[banditrider]

got my entry back today, start time for me is 3.12pm.. looking forward to it!

Group 5 for me too!

[DEVVIL]

http://www.facebook.com/home.php?ref...01261019894994

[banditrider]

http://www.facebook.com/home.php?ref...01261019894994

Nice, but no pictures of a sensational neutron silver Connie...

[bryce]

start time 3;06 doing it no the GN again.was on time to finish in sided 20hr before the stater went ,so try to do it under 20 this time,missed last year due to work .a torch is good to take ,i had a spear bolb but no power so rode 1\2 desert rd to rotorua with it before the sun came up.the best thing i do is drink ,i take two camel packs and change at 500 miles so i do,nt drink it all at the start and end up stopping every 5 min the last 1\2 .i do,nt do any pre runs .last time i rode the GN to Levin and back 70ks or so .three years ago i did it on the TL and it was the first time on the bike in about three mouth. i stay friday so well rested and dieing to go for a ride by 3;00.the worsed thing i ever did was stop to long at 5am ,the next year i had an hour sleep at 5am wake up and finish feeling good.now your fuel range and plan [write it down ]so you do,nt have to thick on the ride.see ya their

[Gremlin]

Group 5 for me too!

righto, keep that fat tank outta my way

Group 5 for me as well (just got me starters ticket). If I remember rightly, I was 5 or 6 last year, colours for either side were up, but not mine, bit of confusion, then fuck it, we're off.

This is the first year I will do it solo, last 2 I did it with my boss.