Road trip, Auckland to Blenheim

[jrandom]

yeah its gonna be so much fun, just a qquick question, do you know a some sight seeing places on the way ? im googling some and made a small list here but just wanna know as much placecs as i can, becuz i dont do these long trips often, so dont wanna miss lots of placecs . cheers

OK. Best view you can ride to: Go through National Park, turn off at the signposted road to Whakapapa ski field, ride up the Bruce Rd onto Mt Ruapehu and gaze ye out upon the western half of the North Island. If you get up there in the morning on a clear day you'll be able to look across to Mt Taranaki.

http://goo.gl/maps/GNnF0

Then ride around to the southern side of the mountain and, from Ohakune, ride up the road to Turoa ski field and gaze out to the south.

http://goo.gl/maps/4j990

That's about as spectacular as the North Island gets. There's a lot of other good shit, of course, but you're not really going to be able to visit it easily on a one-day ride from Auckland to Wellington.

Once you're in Blenheim and have your wheels on the mainland, then the real fun will start every time you get a week off.

[jrandom]

If you really want to sight-see and generally make it a choice and leisurely trip down, PM me and I'll give you a Google Maps route link and a recommendation of where to stay on the way.

[Banditbandit]

Just forget all the advice here ... it's not a hard ride ... point the bike south and go - with as little luggage as possible .. tie this on the bike, not in a back pack ...

At Hamilton, turn left and go through Te Awamutu, Otorahanga, Te Kuiti, National Park ...

South of National Park hang a left and go to Waiouru (through Ohakune) ... then south down the main road .. south of Mangaweka turn left at Vinegar Hill and follow the road to Cheltenham, turn south and then left to Ashurst ... head towards the Manawatu Gorge, but just across the Manawatu River turn right towards Shannon and Levin .. follow this road as far south as you can, it will take you South of Levin before you have to turn right and get back on SH1.

There may be more scenic or more sprots bike fun routes .. but if this is your first time, this is probably one of the best ...

Have fun ... you wont' do that if you listen to us all .. we'll just fill your head with crap you will worry about ..

[oneofsix]

Just forget all the advice here ... it's not a hard ride ... point the bike south and go - with as little luggage as possible .. tie this on the bike, not in a back pack ...

At Hamilton, turn left and go through Te Awamutu, Otorahanga, Te Kuiti, National Park ...

South of National Park hang a left and go to Waiouru (through Ohakune) ... then south down the main road .. south of Mangaweka turn left at Vinegar Hill and follow the road to Cheltenham, turn south and then left to Ashurst ... head towards the Manawatu Gorge, but just across the Manawatu River turn right towards Shannon and Levin .. follow this road as far south as you can, it will take you South of Levin before you have to turn right and get back on SH1.

There may be more scenic or more sprots bike fun routes .. but if this is your first time, this is probably one of the best ...

Have fun ... you wont' do that if you listen to us all .. we'll just fill your head with crap you will worry about ..

Don't you mean turn right at Hamilton? I would suggest turning right at Ngaruawahia and missing Hamilton but as I don't ride those roads will leave the recommending to those that do. I know the time I headed north in the car and managed to go to the west of Hamilton coming out at Ngaruawahia i thought it was just brilliant.

[jrandom]

At Hamilton, turn left

Brilliant directions there, grasshopper.

[Banditbandit]

Don't you mean turn right at Hamilton?

Brilliant directions there, grasshopper.

Duh .. yeah of course ... I dunno ... I know where to go .. don't ask me to fucking explain it ... just follow along ... I'll turn in the coreect direction when I need to ...

[Old Steve]

Doesn't seem to matter how much pressure I've got on it. It's just curling it around the grip that does it. It's much worse in thicker winter weight gloves too. Never happens on the left hand as I ride with my fingers stretched out on the clutch lever.

Try rolling your right hand further over the throttle so your hand turns down at the wrist (kinda like the hand flick of a Honda rider - if you know what I mean). This eases the carpal tunnel, and I've found it stops pain developing in the right hand

[G4L4XY]

As someone who has done it (or at least Aux to Palmy) on the hyosung, take plenty breaks, keep a clear head. Aux to Hams is nothing, continuing to Wellington is a long long way if Hams is the farthest you've gone.
Go the right way otherwise that extends your already super long ride :P
Goodluck though it's a fun ride!

[Banditbandit]

Doesn't seem to matter how much pressure I've got on it. It's just curling it around the grip that does it. It's much worse in thicker winter weight gloves too. Never happens on the left hand as I ride with my fingers stretched out on the clutch lever.

Try doing the same thing with your right hand .. I often ride long distance with my fingers over the brake lever ... using the a slight pressure of my palm to hold the throttle on ... a small change in the angle of my arm changes the throttle ...

[tbs]

Try doing the same thing with your right hand .. I often ride long distance with my fingers over the brake lever ... using the a slight pressure of my palm to hold the throttle on ... a small change in the angle of my arm changes the throttle ...

I'll give it a crack again. I tried it once and it felt a bit weird... like I wasn't in full control. It's quite strange changing from my mountain bike to my motorbike and back. I use only my index finger on my mountain bike brake, and always ride with index fingers stretched out on either brake lever. On the motorbike I can't set it up right to do that. I use my middle two fingers on the front brake and the index finger stays wrapped around the throttle. It was a lot worse on my old 250 as I had to turn the throttle (to the stop) a lot more on the open road. also I couldn't rotate my levers down far enough to be easy to reach and comfortable. I had to bend my wrists backwards to get my fingers up onto the levers.

Anyone watch Billy Connelly's trip along Route 66? He was using one of those little cruise control clamps on his throttle and crashed his trike because of it getting in the way in an emergency. He swore never to use one again.

[Brett]

Seriously, what the fuck is this 'conditioned' nonsense? He's not proposing to bicycle there. Motorcycling = sit on bike, twist throttle. Fat cunts with asthma ride motorbikes quite successfully. You do not need to be Lance Armstrong.

Maybe it's the type of riding we were doing when I was younger...but I remember getting pretty tired forearms and hands after 500/600kms...both on the ZXR250 and in the earlier years on my GSXR600. But then we were riding pretty quickly with lots of hard-ish braking etc. Riding at cruising (and legal) pace would probably be a lot easier.

And to clarify...I was meaning break the trip up by staying the night in Wellington before going over the straight...not breaking up the auckland/welly leg.

[jrandom]

... earlier years on my GSXR600. But then we were riding pretty quickly...

Yes, I believe I remember following you down SH22.

My comfort limit per day is about 700km. After that it tends to become 'meh, gotta get there' instead of enjoying the ride. And different bikes give you aches in different locations. I've never had forearm / wrist issues, probably because my knees and hips force me off sportbikes before any other problems surface.

Comfiest bikes I've ever had: DR750 BIG with an aftermarket gel seat, and my Scorpio with flat bars (the stock bars sit you back on your tailbone too much). Rather sit on either of those for 12 hours than in an office chair.

[MD]

Saraj,
it's great you are confident to tackle an 8 hour trip and yes, the western side of Lake Taupo is a far more enjoyable ride. I've done both many times over many years. Just went Wgtn-Hammy and back 2 weekends ago up the main trunk line (Wanganui- Taumaranui). Awesome bike riding conditions.

But. There is always a but. For someone so inexperienced and travelling alone I would be concerned that the west route is sparsely populated with little traffic. That was ideal for me but if you have a breakdown or worse, come off, there is the risk of no cell ph coverage, no passers by to help and less fuel stops, sweet little of anything.

Fuel wise just fill at Taumaranui and from memory it's about 190km to Wangas, which most bikes should be able to do on a tank. Failing that there was fuel at National Park and Raetihi if in doubt.

Tip Always reset your trip meter at every fill up and you have, at a glance, how far you have gone and watch the road signs that tell you how far it is to the next town.

Either way, do it, enjoy it.

[Twosixty]

If you are coming to Blenheim make sure you brush up on racial jokes and get some sun on your neck, so it's nice and red. Leave your culture at Wellington and come on down! If you've got webbed fingers or a big forehead you'll fit right in. The wine's pretty sharp though.

[saraj]

Awesome. great tips guys . im counting the days cannot wait for it