I’ve been inspired by John Maroulis taking off on his ST each weekend to condition his butt, and his bike, for the North Island 1600. After my tribulations in February, I’ve had a slow recovery. My wrist has been the biggest impediment, not my leg. Several years ago I rode a NI1600 with a leg […]
What can I say? It didn’t go to plan. This was my third TT2000. I had done well the previous year and was hoping to do as well, if not better this time around. Perhaps that was where my problems began. I chose to do the South Island leg. I never get tired of the […]
I ride a 2005 BMW R1200 GS – it has a range of around 300km before the fuel-warning light flicks on – a lot less if I’m forced to use 91 octane. When the light comes on I might have another 75km before I’m running on empty. In a small country like New Zealand, you […]
I get very excited at the prospect of a long ride. It’s therapy for me. Time away to smell the fresh air and think about – well – not much at all. Each time one of these rides comes along I vow to be well prepared. Every time I seem to leave preparation until the […]
I have always made a habit of buying the best gear I can possibly afford. The old Summit shirt byline “No-one ever regretted buying quality” is a maxim I try to live by, but quality is expensive. In the case of wet weather motorcycle gear, it’s worth every penny. I soon discovered how much it […]
I survived. You will have seen the map from Part 3, and also the weather forecast which predicted rain. Both of these things were accurate. I followed the track (with some slight GPS variations), and it rained like a bastard for 20 something hours. Long John had planned an interesting ride – a series of […]