Karioi: Around Again

Raglan

Mount Karioi stands majestically on the coast to the south of Raglan township.  It is a dominant feature of the west coast, draped in a mixture of native bush, green grass, and windswept scrub (and a number of sheep).  The foothills of the mountain disappear into the vivid blue ocean by way of steep bluffs and cliffs, hemmed with a winding gravel road.

The road vaguely follows the coastline and contours of the mountain; dipping deep into valleys and cresting with eye-popping vistas along the coastline from each little ridge.

I'd ridden around Karioi with Megan in 2011, doing the lap at a relaxed pace on our mountain bikes.  This time I was alone, riding my cyclocross bike and hoping like hell I could make it to the end because I had no backup plan.

Fillery Fling: Up and Over

I needed to find some hills.  Gravel hills.  This was to be my first real ride in preparation for doing Colville Connection in five week's time.  I'd not been riding much and knew that if I was going to consider making it to Colville and coping with the ride, I needed to do some training.

Time was limited, but after missing Wednesday night racing due to family commitments, the planets aligned for a brief window of opportunity on Thursday morning.  Oliver had just started back at school after the Christmas/Summer break, but Andrew as still on holiday from work so I could dash out for a ride while he hung out at home with Ella.

Post-Christmas Pootle

Natural Bridge

Good intentions never get me very far.  I know I should ride at every given opportunity, but I don't always make the most of it when the optimum situation presents itself.  After 'missing out' on a few rides, I'm itching to get out again and usually find myself manipulating a sequence of events in order to squeeze a bike ride in.

We had planned a short holiday with my family in Marokopa and I realised I could fit in a sneaky ride if I played my cards right.

Trundle on the River Trails

On a brief off-base excursion, I met up with Megan for a gentle ride on the Waikato River Trails.  We had heard quite a bit about the trail and seen a heap of beautiful photos taken at various points along its 100 kilometre length, but we hadn't ridden it for ourselves. People who had ridden the trail usually said the same things: the first section (Karapiro) was boring and worth missing if you could arrange your trip around it.  One of the best sections of the trail was reportedly the Arapuni section from the end of Waotu South Road through to Waipapa Dam.  With this in mind, we drove straight through Arapuni village and out to the end of the sealed road.

Longest Day Ride 2012: One Revolution After Another

The plan was to do a road ride around the Waikato, taking in a number of rural cafe's and food stops on our way to reduce the food and water we would need to carry.  Getting kitted up was a simple affair this year, compared to the almost self-sufficient approach to last year's ride.

I never sleep well the night before a ride or race and this was no exception.  I had dragged myself from bed while it was still dark outside.  With gear packed the night before and a quiet exit through the garage door, I left my family sleeping and drove out to the rendezvous in Matangi.

At 5:56am, as sunlight started to spill into the adjacent paddocks, Megan, Michelle and I rolled out of the gate and headed north(ish) towards Morrinsville.  We had over 14 hours and 200km of riding mapped out and no idea if we would make it.

Waiorongomai Valley: Wai not?

When Hamilton Mountain Bike Club took a club ride to Te Aroha I was expecting to ride the trail network on the mountain above the Domain, but one of the locals had other ideas.

We met Geoff as we parked the cars and got kitted up for the ride.  He started telling us about a ride further around the mountain that had some big climbs, a bit of hike-a-bike, some big views, and an even bigger downhill.  The general consensus among the group was that we may as well check it out, because we can ride the usual trail network at any time, but needed a guide for these other tracks.  Geoff was our man.

Just before we rolled out of the carpark, I quickly grabbed a banana and OSM from the car and shoved them into my backpack.  Call it bonk insurance.