Stay Metal
We parked at Te Kopua Domain and after watching some armoured vehicles (amphibious?) roll up in the fog, we geared up and set out on the road. We had blinky lights running to improve our chances of being seen and not hit. It wasn't long before we were on the first of several reasonable climbs. We had chosen to ride the loop in a clockwise direction (the same way the Karioi Classic is run), as according to MapMyRIDE (MMR) the major climbs were stepped this way, with short downhills between. Good or bad? I'm not sure if it's better to have one long uphill slog and several sections of downhill goodness, or have the climbs broken up and long continuous downhills that are always over too soon. Either way, because it was a loop we had equal amounts of up and down, and MMR showed a total of 570m climbing on 6 Category 5 climbs over the 46km route (my computer read 48km at the finish). I don't have a GPS/altimeter thing, so I'll have to believe what MMR tells me (however inaccurate it may be).
Mc Steamy or Mc Dreamy?
Halfway up the first hill the view of the estuary was stunning, however bright sun and a steamed up camera phone meant the photo didn't come out too good. I guess you're just going to have to go ride it yourself and see. The sun had come out, lifting the temperature a little and making the riding conditions quite enjoyable.
I was pacing myself and content with spinning up the hills in the granny gear on my Alfine hub. I'm running a 32:18 ratio on my 29er wheels with the Alfine, and granny is sometimes not quite "granny" enough for me! We stopped a few times to stretch or eat, or just look at the scenery. I was really enjoying the ride, even though it was tough in places. I kept thinking about what it would be like to be doing a ride like this with another 10kgs of gear on board, as I might have with me on a bikepacking adventure. One day I will find out.
Mt Taranaki (centre of photo), down yonder. And beautiful blue Ocean.
Spotting the ocean for the first time was quite exhilarating and a really good pick me up. We could see Mt Taranaki in the distance, thought it's very difficult to see in the photo. We took a short side trip to Ruapuke Beach, as neither of us had been there before. We touched sand and got about halfway over the dunes before deciding it was going to be too cold and windy on the beach and walking on the sand in cycling shoes while pushing our bikes was no fun. Back on the gravel road, I stopped to adjust the eccentric bottom bracket on my bike after my chain had fallen off - weird! I'd been having a few gear shifting issues with the Alfine hub (not the first time), but the loose chain was not the source of those problems and I'd just have to battle on with the dicky gears and sort them out later on.
Ruapuke Beach.
Immediately after the side trip to Ruapuke Beach, we were faced with our toughest climb of the day. I am convinced it was the steepest of the whole ride - made worse by trudging through the sand and letting our legs cool down.
Water. The white dot on the cliff top on the right hand side is a derelict bus.
There was quite an eclectic range of house designs and objects to see as we rolled through the countryside - massive McMansions, strange boxy constructions, clusters of caravans, and a derelict bus parked on the cliff top. We had just waved hello to the Yogi tending her gardens when we rounded a corner and were met face to face with an imposing hill. We simultaneously vented our frustration (Arrrrgghhh!) and then laughed at ourselves. I watched as Megan powered ahead of me and stomped up the hill, while I sat and spun my easy gear.
Megan out front.
We rolled on around the coastline, heading north. Some parts of the road were in native bush, with the trees forming an arch above the road. I longed for the top of each hill - my efforts were rewarded with breath-taking views, an excuse for a rest, and the satisfaction that there was another hill behind me. My legs ached and burned. After a while my legs started to give me twinges, a sure warning that cramp was not too far away.
Te Toto Gorge - a looong way down. And the Raglan coast. Me rocking the Twin Six Metal kit - superb!
We stopped at the lookout at the start of the Mt Karioi walking track and admired the view of the Te Toto Gorge, the sudden drop, and rocks on the shore below. The west coast is amazing - we could see quite a long way even though it was hazy, so I'd love to see it on a clear day. We passed the famous surf spots of Indicators, Whale Bay and Manu Bay. Megan took off up the road fueled by hunger while I stopped to take a photo and dawdled up the hill.
Manu Bay, looking north along Wainui Beach towards the Harbour Mouth
I had wanted to ride along Wainui Beach from the Surf Club down to the harbour mouth. It was low tide (or thereabouts) and the perfect conditions, but our tired legs and weary bodies told us "no". We'll keep that one for another day.
We rolled back to the Domain feeling quite happy with ourselves and elated to have finished with 48km under our tyres, plenty of climbing, 3 hours of riding time, and a total lapsed time of 4 hours. I didn't think I wanted to do that ride again, but over the past few days the idea is growing on me and if it was a fun ride with no pressure to race it I'd give it another crack.
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