What a tuff day. Map directions were wrong thru mcdonald downs so we lost about 20 mins. Quite wet in the wharfdale, felt cheated as there was heaps of climbing but all the descent was on open 4wd. I got stung in the eye by wasp but luckily it didnt swell up. Got into sheffield at 10pm, nothing open. Washed in toilets outside pub and now kipping down under hedgrow opposite pub. Its a mint spot. Dry and warm and room for all 5 of us. Me, jonty, matt, alex and andy. Will try to get some brekkie at the next town tomorrow.
Sunday, February 05, 2012
Breakfast at hanmer
Saturday, February 04, 2012
Team voodoo lounge makes it to Hanmer
Wednesday, February 01, 2012
The last post
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| Santa Cruz Superlight |
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| 1 (sawn-off) toothbrush with 5 days paste in a straw! This will make a big difference on the climbs. |
We have a full contingent staying at the Voo Doo Lounge for the friday and we will likely pick up some more riders on the return.
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| Lock ring remover, spare drop-out etc etc |
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| Magic beans for Cleetus! |
Will try to keep you in the loop with updates when cell coverage allows.
This is the last post via 'wifi", anything else comes via 3g and a phone .
You can follow the live trackers on the official website.
http://kiwibrevet.blogspot.
https://twitter.com/#!/
I will be trying to post updates to my site and blogs too.
http://jeffsbike.blogspot.com
https://twitter.com/#!/
You can also see stuff from Tweeted with the Kiwi Brevet hach-tag here:
http://hashtags.org/kiwibrevet
PS, You can see a list of profiles of all the riders here:
http://kiwibrevet.blogspot.
Wednesday, January 25, 2012
Wednesday, January 18, 2012
Kiwi Brevet Email to blog test
http://kiwibrevet.blogspot.com/2012/01/briefing-start-list-and-rider-survey.html
Tuesday, January 17, 2012
Nice rack !
I am a bit of a Freeload rack fan-boy. (Previous post). I used one on the inaugural Kiwi Brevet and have found nothing bad to say about them since then. One
of the big advantages of the Freeload is that it will fit on almost
anything, one rack fits all, rigid or suspended, front or rear.
One day I noticed that there was actually a heap of clearance between the wheel and the rack on my 26 inch bike - the same rack also fits a 29er. Tim, one of the designers said, yes it was made one size for all. I thought that maybe if I "chopped" my rack, I could get even more clearance between my kit and the back of my seat under full suspension compression. Tim reckoned it might work and sent me a couple of frames to hack up. See the results below. It worked brilliantly for my application, but mileage may vary given frame/swing-arm angles etc.
I have also had a new tour deck, but have not yet had the chance to use it. I lent it to my work mate Andrew (one of 4 of us at work doing the Kiwi Brevet) and he installed it yesterday with some very serious looking panniers on it ! It feels rock solid. I reckon one pannier would do, they are massive.
One day I noticed that there was actually a heap of clearance between the wheel and the rack on my 26 inch bike - the same rack also fits a 29er. Tim, one of the designers said, yes it was made one size for all. I thought that maybe if I "chopped" my rack, I could get even more clearance between my kit and the back of my seat under full suspension compression. Tim reckoned it might work and sent me a couple of frames to hack up. See the results below. It worked brilliantly for my application, but mileage may vary given frame/swing-arm angles etc.
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| Chopped rack at top, original rack at the bottom. |
I have also had a new tour deck, but have not yet had the chance to use it. I lent it to my work mate Andrew (one of 4 of us at work doing the Kiwi Brevet) and he installed it yesterday with some very serious looking panniers on it ! It feels rock solid. I reckon one pannier would do, they are massive.
Sunday, January 08, 2012
Xmas 2011 - Nelson to Penzance
Once we got to Nelson I was lucky enough to get invited out by my "Cuz" Paul McNabb for some early starts while the whanau were still asleep. One day before (Paul's) work we managed to sneak in a lap of the Coppermine circuit with event organiser James Hufflet. They were both keen to check out if the flooding the week before had washed away any of the new work done on the track. It was all mint, and nothing like the track I had ridden two years earlier. The next day Paul got my old Hutt bogan buddies Susie Wood and Gazza organised and we met up at 6.30 to ride a newish track called Involution up the Marsden Valley near Stoke.
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| Pelorus River |
The Xterra atheletes Suse and Gazz were smacking it good up the roadie climb, but Cuz was about to get his revenge, at least momentarily. At the top we came across Eloise Fry and her dog, that made 4 Santa Cruz's on the ride. The Santa Cruz virus has run rampant in Nelson with Stylianou Mansions dealing it out like crack in the Baltimore slums. The previous day's ride was also a Santa Cruz affair, with James as always sporting a very bling looking carbon Nomad.
Cuz was eager to show off the merits of his new acquired seat dropper and spanked it down the "Involution" track proper. A few minutes later I caught up to him as he was rearranging his undercarriage having just smacked into a newly fallen tree - a byproduct of the floods. There was some more damage at the lower parts of the track but nothing too fatal.
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| Opouri saddle |
I was reminded how short the hill was on the Maitai side, and there were only a couple of very small unrideable bits. It was lovely travelling in the shade of the bush canopy in the early morning. The descent down the other side was a bit rougher, but nothing too bad. By the time I got to Pelorus it was heating up, and was getting pretty steamy as I navigated the 4km climb over the Opouri saddle. This was a real beauty, probably the gnarliest road climb I can think of, for that distance.
The scenery from the top of that hill was incredible. Penzance Bay seemed like a very well kept secret. We met up with all of my family and indulged in lots of fresh seafood for the next 3 days. One day Ash and myself did a very gnarly run up the hill for a couple of hours and took in even more sights. A day or two later I did a leisurely ride along Archers Track for 9kms to Elaine Bay. It follows the coastline the whole way and is a very achievable ride or walk. I came across a set of deck chairs in the middle of nowhere. There were no bogans to steal them this far away from the civilization !
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| Pelorus River at Mangatapu end |
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| Maitai side of the Mangatapu |
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| Pelorus end of the Mangatapu |
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| The girls shucking scallops |
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| On the way to Elaine Bay |
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| Returning from Elaine Bay |
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| About 3kms out from Elaine Bay ! |
http://www.flickr.com/photos/mrwhippy/sets/72157628766540243/
Monday, December 12, 2011
Freeload straps - first impressions
But how could I test them to failure without endangering myself unduly? Fate smiled upon me in the form of the end of year christmas function double header. A lunch at the Upper Hutt Cossie Club followed by an epic duel on the Killing Fields of the Upper Hutt Bowling Club. Heady stuff.
We started with an entree of the sea-food platter, which I duly followed up with a main of the seafood platter. Even the batter had batter on. My zip was bursting, the Freeload strap was straining but it held fast. I didnt even need to re-cinch it once. We had some Ginger Crunch and a very good Latte and we adjorned to the green. Bending over with that much seafood onboard was a risk, but things stayed in place. Phase one of the testing was over.This is by no means a final test, but its a good start. Stay tuned.http://www.freeload.co.nz/store/0/12/Straps
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| Elite bowls action, Upper Hutt styles |
How buying a new pair of pants added value to my day
It’s funny how progress happens, or as often doesn’t. Many times we are told that the latest thing is the best iteration of a product in a long evolution. Often it is complete bullshit and is usually a fix for something else that the marketing guys botched along the way. Bike racks and bottom brackets are a good example. You won’t get me giving up my square taper internal BB just yet.
I had an excellent experience the other day that made me think about the evolution of bike pants. My mum had given me some loot to spend for my birthday, and after much deliberation I decided to buy something sensible. A pair of cycling pants. I'd heard very good things about Ground Effect’s kit, so opted for a pair of Supersonics. These are not bib shorts. I quickly realised that 95% of my shorts are bibs. I started to wonder why. Have you ever been to a ladies race and seen the poor women trying to have a nervous one before a race? A very tricky manoeuvre with bibs on.... not so for the guys, but why were bibs invented? This is a guess, but maybe the original shorts were woollen and shoulder loops were a means of keeping them up, kind of built in suspenders.
Back on to the subject at hand.The upside of these new Supersonics shorts was how they have streamlined my day. Now I can jump straight out of bed, throw on my shorts and wait in line to do my ablutions. None of this faffing about, not being able to get dressed while I wait for the log-jam at the bathroom door to clear, because of the complexity involved with putting a top on over the bibs and then having to take it off again for a number 2. Time is money. I can get out of bed at 7.30, do my stuff and free-wheel down the hill to be at work in about 5 mins, by 8am!
Not only was I very happy with the freedom these new shorts gave me, but they were on my desk when I turned up at work the next morning, having only ordered them at 3.30 pm the previous day. That is impressive. On top of that, they are very comfortable, and look to be very solid in construction. Also you don’t get a sweaty patch up the middle of your back from the bib part when wearing a back-pack. Apparently they are made in NZ too. I get the impression these are going to be my favourite shorts.
I have had quite a few rides on these shorts now and can fully recommend them. The first two rides on the shorts were long ones, about 5 hours each and I got a bit of chaffing on the left as they settled in, but now they are fully broken in and comfy-as. The special "lower leg bands" are just right. They seem to give a real wide band of support, unlike your traditional leg grippers which can cause a bit of a pressure point, and the back is just high enough to protect you if your top rides up. There is a little internal pocket in there as well, not sure what it’s for, maybe a spare patch or two. The lyrca seems very robust which is what I like. The last time I brought two pair of shorts they both failed in different areas. The Cape Storm bibs material wore out in about a year (became transparent) and while the Tinelli shorts I got at the same time are still going really well, the stitching has come away on the chamois on one side. Only time will tell how robust these pants will be but they come with a good reputation, a good price and laser fast delivery.
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| Ground Effect Supersonics |
Back on to the subject at hand.The upside of these new Supersonics shorts was how they have streamlined my day. Now I can jump straight out of bed, throw on my shorts and wait in line to do my ablutions. None of this faffing about, not being able to get dressed while I wait for the log-jam at the bathroom door to clear, because of the complexity involved with putting a top on over the bibs and then having to take it off again for a number 2. Time is money. I can get out of bed at 7.30, do my stuff and free-wheel down the hill to be at work in about 5 mins, by 8am!
Not only was I very happy with the freedom these new shorts gave me, but they were on my desk when I turned up at work the next morning, having only ordered them at 3.30 pm the previous day. That is impressive. On top of that, they are very comfortable, and look to be very solid in construction. Also you don’t get a sweaty patch up the middle of your back from the bib part when wearing a back-pack. Apparently they are made in NZ too. I get the impression these are going to be my favourite shorts.
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| Once again, popular with the chicks |
