Hampton Downs to Taupo

Tweet

Blog entry: 7th September 2019 ‐ Day 193 ‐ NZ Leg 2

#WRWR2019 #WRWR #WRWRNZ

Once we dismounted our bikes, we didn't have much time for a break (we had lost a lot of time due to the traffic backing up). I managed a quick loo stop & time to buy a bottle of water while the next safety briefing was underway. Then I was back on my bike & heading down the motorway. Of course the break wasn't that short but that's how it felt.

Once I hopped off my bike I had time to chat with friends who were joining the relay & check on friends who had ridden the first leg so the break wasn't as short as it felt but we didn't have as long as was scheduled.

After the safety briefing we rolled out & headed back onto SH1 (the motorway south). We had police assistance helping us get onto the motorway in one group. We exited the motorway at Ohinewai & headed east along Tahuna Road. Tahuna Road, for me, is an interesting road. I have times riding it when I really don't enjoy it & other times when I think it is a fantastic road.

Today it was a mixed bag. There were times when it was great but there were times (during the bends) if I was stuck behind a cruiser when I would get frustrated. There were a few times I had passed a few cruisers so I could take the bends at my pace & then on the straight they would overtake again & then I was stuck behind them as they crawled around the bend.

We turned south onto SH27 & headed towards Matamata before getting back onto SH1 at Tirau. Just before Tirau, we were stopped by the police for about 10 mins while they put their cars in place for a traffic block to assist us with getting back onto SH1 safely. Once back on SH1, we headed to Tokoroa for a fuel stop.

We stopped at the Mobil in Tokoroa as the grounds were impressively large for a petrol station. Here we had time to stretch our legs. I felt the fuel stop went incredibly smooth especially given the number of riders. I managed to fuel up without any hassles & had time to see how everyone was enjoying the ride.

From Tokoroa to Taupo it was a short ride down SH1 with the last part into Taupo with a police escourt. Once in Taupo, we made our way to Tamamutu Street where we were meant to have a debrief but so many riders headed off to their accommadation before any debrief could happen. I waited around for about 10 minutes before I headed off to The Chelmswood Motel

While I'm use to riding greater distances, in a day, than the distances today (approx. 475KM) I was tired after today's rides & I think this is down to riding with such a large group ( about 170 riders at the end of the day). Also, with riders that I had not ridden with before, a wide range in rider skill level & experience, so more attention was required for watching unknown riders. As well as a number of riders not riding in formation. This was a bit disturbing for me as I feel this makes group riding less safe.

The day ended with dinner at The Taupo Cosmopolitan Club where I won a spot prize. I picked a Honda T‐Shirt (I cound't find any Yamaha T‐Shirts)

« Previous | Next »