NzoLand
LOCKDOWN
Down here in New Zealand, we are about to go into Covid-19 Lockdown, with a capital L. Well, semi-lockdown. Supermarkets will remain open.
Getting with the programme
One of our mates has started a ‘training programme’. He has a ‘coach’. He is thinking about his entry in a ‘race’. I use inverted commas for his versions of these things because they all defy normal definitions.
No School like the Old School
The other day we went for an unorchestrated spin in the woods. We had a plan, it went out the window. Our mate had actual written instructions, also rolled into a ball and binned.
Three will do, thanks
Summer is still the flavour down here. We have been getting out on the bikes even more than usual, and I am really hoping that things do come in threes.
2020 and the state of the sport
During the festive season a mate penned a couple of articles for the local paper. These got us thinking about the state of our sport from where we sit… and it is amazing. And confusing, in equal measures.
Trees / No Trees / New Trees
In Rotorua, most of our riding is done in a ‘working forest’. It is a very complex scenario - the land is owned by its original occupants, iwi of Te Arawa. They generously allow all the development for recreational activity, including mountain biking, to take place in their forest.
White Line Fever, and the antidote
This time of year I am usually doing different versions of the same thing: cramming in some road miles, trying to get ready to do my annual hundred mile ride around Lake Taupo.
It happened here
In Rotorua we are in the middle of the hottest, driest spring since records began, or at least as long as we can remember. Trails are perfect in the trees, or dusty and falling apart where the sun can get at them.
Intergenerational bike shorts
E-bikes! Love them or hate them. Or both. For me, it depends whether I am riding one at the time. When I am doing that, I love them.
Scratching Your Itch
At the beginning, trails were mostly existing routes created for some other purpose, like hiking, riding motos, or getting to and from trees that needed cutting. Today’s lucky punters can roll up to a trailhead and do their thing without a second thought...
Back On The Horse
There are a few things nicer than getting back in the trails after a month of abstinence, but only a few, and not much nicer. A perfect storm of bicycle failure, house moving, deck building, and some actual storms had meant an enforced mountain biking lay off.
Getting the best out of the end of the day
Down in the South Pacific winter has turned the corner, and the days are slowly getting longer, but it’s still winter. Bike rides may be wet and cold, but they can still be had with a bit of cunning and accurate scheduling.
Withdrawal Symptoms
I managed one bike ride during a fantastic lap of the South Island. Great friends to travel with, no major mechanical malfunctions, almost perfect weather and camp spots that defy description made it an almost perfect holiday. Even the sandflies were off their usual game.
We've got all day
On Sunday I took the first ride in ages that didn’t have any constraint except my attention span, and I set off intending to run out of gas just after cresting the last uphill.
The Local's Hour
Obviously, a perfect Sunday would start with breakfast prepared by a skilled chef, and coffee ladled out by a barista. After that, with no obligations on the agenda, there is leisurely preparation and a long mountain bike ride in a stunning location...
A Team Effort
I came by a racing bike a couple of summers ago. An almost new, ridiculously light, state of the current art, carbon fibre framed machine festooned with the best Japanese equipment, comfy and extremely functional.