The Grand Traverse

So what better way to spend a long weekend than by a bit of a bike ride?  Coach Dave decided that we should have a go at the three passes - Porter's Pass, Arthur's Pass and Lewis Pass, by way of a bike trip over Canterbury's anniversary weekend.  Being intrepid athletes, six of us eagerly signed up and assembled on Friday morning complete with bikes, clothes and stacks of food to keep us well nourished and hydrated throughout our journey.

Andi, Simone, Toni, Dave, Curly, Brendan and Chook - ready to go

The plan was to drive inland to Springfield and then start biking from there.  We would head over the first pass (Porter's) and then continue onto the village of Arthur's Pass for our first night.  Day 2 would see us ride over Arthur's Pass, and then head north to Reefton, via Moana, for our second night.  Our third and final day would involve a climb out of Reefton, over the Rahu saddle to Springs Junction and then over Lewis Pass, stopping at the Engineer's Camp where we would load up the bikes and drive back to Christchurch.

Friday dawned sunny and hot in Christchurch.  A stunning spring's day that actually felt more like the middle of summer.  Andi was joining us for her first overnight bike trip with the group while Simone, Curly, Chook and I were becoming old hands at Dave's expeditions.  This time around we were also joined by new boy on the block, Brendan.

The set up was pretty standard and much the same as the Hanmer Springs and Methven weekends.  First up, a van that could take us with bike trailer which could take all our gear.  The back of the trailer had large warning signs so motorists knew cyclists were ahead as well as an orange flashing light sitting on top.  Everyone in the group would take turns driving the van, tailing the peloton and providing the bailout option if anyone ran out of "gas".

I was due to drive the first stretch, from Springfield to Castle Hill, on day 1.  Driving this leg was fantastic in my eyes as it meant I didn't have to bike up Porter's Pass.  Yep, I'm much better at hills than I used to be but still relatively hopeless and this one was the steepest of the three.  Before we started, though, there was the requisite coffee and muffin stop.  In Springfield we called in at the Yelloshack Cafe, located on the main road, right next door to their Springfield donut, right out of the Simpson's movie.  The carrot muffins were divine - a taste treat with raspberry on top and chocolate inside, well worth a separate journey back at a later date!

The donut was hilarious - when the Simpson's movie came out, various towns called Springfield were "honoured" with a huge pink donut erected to celebrate its release.  Springfield in Canterbury was the New Zealand location for this and it was a huge structure which attracted its share of fans and detractors.  In September of 2009, however, the donut was set on fire.  It was left a partially charred mess and most people thought that would be the end of what many considered an eyesore.

But no, on our arrival in Springfield, we discovered that the donut lives on....as a much smaller tractor tyre!!!  Definitely not the imposing structure of old, but painted in the original pink colour and in keeping with the agricultural nature of the region.  I didn't get a shot of it (doh!!), but this photo of it partially completed gives you the idea...

The peloton heads towards the mountains

Anyway, after getting our fill of muffins, coffee and picking up lunch everyone set off.  Six in the peloton and me tailing them for this first leg.  Porter's Pass came up reasonably quickly and before I knew it I was guiding the van up the climb with the speedo registering at 0 km/h.  About three quarters of the way up Simone and Chook decided to climb into the van and so I stopped to help load the bikes and ferry them to the top.

Staying safe with the high viz vest

At Castle Hill it was time to swap drivers and I was really glad to finally get going on two wheels rather than four.  That happiness was moderated, however, by the gale force headwinds that were coming through the mountains.

We continued a gradual rise for the 54km journey from Castle Hill to Arthur's Pass and had no respite from the wind the whole time.  We therefore had a relatively slow average speed of just over 20km/h and it became almost a case of surviving the 2hr 30min ride while at the same time enjoying the stunning scenery.

What a great way to see the country.

We finally rolled into Arthur's Pass and it was great to unpack everything at the house that had been rented for us all.  The fire had been lit and the evening was spent relaxing (and refuelling with such treats as lasagne and tiramisu).  By 9.00pm we had all headed to bed (such party animals!).

Unpacking at Arthur's Pass

The next morning was cool and clear.  We were awake at 6.00am and by 8.00am we were ready for a long day.  Chook, Simone and I headed off 30 minutes before the rest of the group.  We were slow on the hills and there was a decent climb up to Arthurs Pass before a huge descent on the other side to Otira and then Jackson's where we would stop and regroup with the others.

Within about 2km of climbing up to the pass our clear, cool, day had changed to cold pea soup.  We had climbed into the cloud and I reached the summit of the pass barely able to see 2 feet in front of me.  Chook was somewhere ahead of me and Simone behind but none of us were in sight of each other.  I had been looking forward to the descent however it turned into a slow progression, heavy on the brakes and hoping all the way down that a car didn't come along.  About halfway down I passed Chook who was taking it even more carefully.  Thankfully I was wearing a fluorescent yellow vest, however the visibility was so bad it would have been nice, in hindsight, to have had the whole group together with the van right behind us.  We'll know this for next time!

Thankfully the visibility improved as we dropped down the gorge.  By the time we were out of the gorge the sunshine had arrived again and we regrouped at the bottom of the hill and then had a fantastic run down to Jacksons where we waited for the rest of the group.

Regrouping at Jacksons

After Jacksons we took a right turn and rode around Lake Brunner to Moana and, after a quick drink stop there, carried on out to Stillwater, picking up State Highway 7 which would take us up to Reefton.

This part of the trip was a bit flatter - a couple of climbs but predominantly downhill before a slow rise up towards Reefton.  Once we got past Stillwater we also finally found a tailwind and got some great stretches in at a good pace.

Around lunchtime we found a spot to stop on the side of the road and sat down to devour sandwiches and cake.  At this point it was my turn to have another stint at driving and so I followed the group again, managing to get a great shot of them alongside a coal train...

Lunch stop

Encountering a West Coast coal train

About 27km from Reefton we had another quick stop and I got back on the bike for the final run in.  It was a great ride and we rolled into town at about 3.00pm.  My day had been 120km and 4 hours 25min ride time.  Our unpacking finished, we sat down for a quick drink and a feed of nice salty chips (perfect for replenishing salt in the body(!)) and then carried out our standard routine of washing all our gear ready for the next morning.  The courtyard looked like a real chinese laundry with all our gear draped out over plastic chairs in the sunshine...

Day three dawned a little overcast but still warm.  It looked like another perfect day for riding.  At the relatively slothful time of 9.00am we were all packed up and wandered over to the Broadway Tearooms and Bakery for breakfast.  Half an hour later, and with stomachs full of eggs, toast and bacon (and in one case fruit and muesli) we headed off for our last day of riding.

It was a steady climb up the Rahu Saddle and through the beautiful beech forest of Victoria Forest Park.  While we climbed, though, the drizzle started and so the van was stopped so we could add some additional layers of clothing.

It was a group of six very wet and cold riders that rolled into Springs Junction and the weather didn't look like it was going to clear any time soon. 

Andi, me and Curly - ready to leave Reefton

Extra layers added for the rain

With the constant climbing the pack soon spread out a little and I maintained my position at the back - getting dropped at the climbs but catching up again on the descents and flat sections.  Towards the top of the saddle (and the last climb) Dave had hung back to wait for me and in the rain I saw him about 100m ahead raise a hand in the air as he went over a rise and started downhill.  He was celebrating the final climb before Springs Junction and so when I got to the top I let the bike go and went for it.

It was bucketing down with rain by this stage but I still managed to catch up with Dave and, as I went past him, yelled out "Woohoo!!!".  The poor bloke didn't realise I was coming and just about fell off his bike.

After just over 40km of riding and 1 hour 45 minutes ride time, we pulled into Springs Junction.  Everyone was soaked to the skin and pretty cold and the weather didn't look like it was going to clear anytime soon.  As a result the decision was made to call it a day rather than risk hypothermia on Lewis Pass.  Afterall it's not going anywhere!

So we all got changed and sat down for a coffee and round of hot chips before heading out and loading the bikes onto the trailer for the drive home.

All in all a fabulous weekend.  Disappointing that we didn't get to do the third pass, but you can't do much about the weather and there'll always be next time.

All in all, a great way to see the country.

Control, Cadence, Cuisine and Celebration

Last weekend's Sunday morning ride was all about the 4 Cs: control, cadence, cuisine and celebration.

Coach Dave had set me a 3 hour ride to do and the focus is now on simulating and practising actual race conditions.  And this is where the Cs came in...

Control was all about maintaining a steady pace.  I needed to find a pace that I will be able to maintain for 6 hours without trashing my legs or the rest of the body.  I've traditionally focused on maintaining a particular speed and, in particular, look to aim for a pace as close as possible to 30km/hr.  What happens, though, is that if you are on a slight slope, or if you hit a head wind, then you tend to trash yourself while you focus on maintaining your desired speed.  So I have to get out of that habit and ignore my speed. 

Dave suggested that a better measure would be maintaining a consistent heart rate range.  If I work out the heart rate range where I'm comfortable at then I'll be able to maintain that consistent effort all day and then come off the bike still in good enough shape to run.  I'm thinking at the moment that the optimal range for me is about 145-147 beats per minute, so the first focus of Sunday's ride was a controlled ride, keeping my heartrate in that "green" zone.

The cadence aspect had a similar goal.  Again, my habit has been to have a low cadence and this just loads up the legs too much.  So, again, the instruction was to forget about what speed I'm doing and focus on maintaining a light, high cadence of around 95 rpm.

Cuisine sounds like some sort of Michelin 3 star meal, but in reality this is simply nutrition on the bike!  (Just trying to keep to the "C" theme!) One of the big mistakes you can make in ironman is not eating enough or eating something that you haven't tried during training.  These long solo bike rides, then, also provide the opportunity to practice your nutrition on the bike.  It's important to trial different foods and make sure they agree with you and to get into the habit of knowing how much and how frequently to eat in order to maintain optimum performance on the bike.

My favourite cuisine on the bike has been One Square Meals (chopped into bite sized cubes), Gu Chomps and cheese and marmite sandwiches.  The One Square Meals are a Christchurch product (bonus to be supporting a local business!) and are easily cut up and eaten on the bike.  The Gu Chomps are like oversized wine gums, but chewier and stickier. 



And the cheese and marmite sandwich?  I came across that idea last year from another blog and while it sounds like an odd thing to have, it provides a great alternative to all the sweet stuff you usually end up having.  It is made with white sandwich bread, crusts cut off and cut into four bite sized squares.  I don't know what it is about it but I always feel noticeably better after I've had a couple of bites of the sandwich.

And then there's the liquid cuisine...  I have two bottles on the bike - a Profile Design aero bottle that sits between the aero bars right in front of me and one below in a cage on the frame.  The aero bottle has a straw sticking out of it so I can slurp up some water without getting off the aero bars.  In the bottom bottle I put some hydration fluid so I get some extra sustenance rather than just water.  The first couple of times I tried it I used Powerade and that seemed to work really well.  What I'm doing now, though, is moving to the isotonic sports mix that will be provided at the support stations in Ironman, and that is Horley's Replace.  Again, the key is to get used to it so that when you get given it on the course it doesn't upset the intestines...!

So I had control, cadence and cuisine all sorted out and headed out early Sunday morning for a solo jaunt around the Sefton block.  It was a gorgeous day - sunny, virtually no wind and not too much traffic.  As I headed back into town the fourth C came into play....celebration.

Andi is due to celebrate a significant birthday soon and so a social coffee ride was organised for the bike crew and I duly met up with them and we all headed out to sumner, via South Brighton, for a social coffee and muffin.

By the time I got back home I was pretty stuffed but very happy with the effort.  My solo ride, focusing on control, cadence and cuisine had produced the following stats:

Time: 2 hours 44 minutes
Distance: 77.4 km
Av cadence: 82 rpm
Av heartrate: 148 bpm
Av speed: 28.3 km/h

The coffee ride was another 55 km so my total distance for the day was 132km.  Fab ride and the lazy-boy nap was well deserved....and enjoyed!

My favourite spot after a big ride!

Round Rarotonga Road Race

So September and October have been a little quieter on the blog front, but there is good reason.  Mid-September saw St Pete and I head to Rarotonga for an extended break - a wedding (ours!) and the Round Rarotonga Road Race.

In line with the fact that our lives seem to revolve around being active, challenging ourselves and leading what we hope is a relatively healthy lifestyle, we picked our wedding date to fit in with the running of the 2010 Round Rarotonga Road Race.  This event has been going for over 30 years and is the main event of Rarotonga's Week of Running, a festival that includes a Hash House fun run, a Cross Island run, a relay and the race itself - a 31.5 km single lap around the island.

We had heard about the event from previous trips to Rarotonga and from Leigh and Paul who had travelled to the week of running a couple of years earlier and had returned positively raving about it.

This time around Leigh and Paul were coming over for the wedding, as was another running mate, Ang and her husband Willie.  Leigh, Paul, Pete and I therefore entered for the full 31.5 km event while Ang decided to do the 10 km option.

I'd have to say training for this event, for me, was slightly unorthodox this time around.  Because of my swim/bike/run training schedule I didn't have the run-focused buildup that I would normally have and so I was determined simply to get round the course and enjoy it as much as was possible (given the likely temperatures!).

Pete and I headed over to Rarotonga about 10 days prior to the event, and I'm so glad we did.  While our main reason for going over so early was to relax and get ready for the wedding, it also provided a great opportunity to acclimatise a little to the heat and humidity.  A couple of days after our arrival we went for a 5 km run and then a 15 km run as our final build up and boy was that hot!  It was so nice being able to walk into the lagoon at the end of those sessions and cool down, but I wasn't going to have that luxury on the day of the race.

Cooling off in the lagoon after our last 15 km training run
 

Race day arrived and at 5.00am we found ourselves down to the Punanga Nui Market waiting for the start.  The gun was due to go off at 5.30am and it was pitch black but still warm, probably mid 20s (celsius).  There were hugs and good wishes passed around our group and then we were away.

I started out the first 5 km nice and slowly - it was really humid and the heat was a bit sapping but I also knew I had a long way to go and the worst thing you can do is go out too fast.  Once we got around the end of the runway and had turned to head through Nikao towards Black Rock we got a bit of a sea breeze and I started to get into a good rhythm.  Which lasted about 3km...

At about the 8km mark my old running enemy made itself painfully known to me - my quads.  The blighters had seized up and that familiar feeling of having hot pokers jabbed into my muscles with every step was back again.  I had first experienced this just after the halfway mark in my first marathon and in the latter stages of my second marathon, but to have it happen so early on in this run was gutting to say the least.

While I nursed my legs through the next few kilometres I searched for a possible explanation, and quickly found it.  During the previous week I had hired a mountain bike so I could do some laps of the island, to maintain some sort of training.  Of course the mountain bikes had standard pedals rather than the toe clips or clipless pedals I have on the road bike.  As a result pedalling becomes a pushing action rather than a circular action and the pushing action requires force from your quads rather than the circular motion which is more balanced.

I had done about 4 1/2 hours of biking around the island and they hadn't been leisurely rides either!  As a result my quads had gotten loaded up and so by the time I got a wee way into the run they made their displeasure well and truly known!

The run, then, became a fantastic experience in the art of mind over matter and an excellent opportunity to live the grit and determination that is going to be needed to get to the ironman finish line.  My legs would be screaming at me and so I would alternate walking and running.  I was able to concentrate on managing my nutrition intake, taking a Gu sachet at every alternate drink station.  And I was able to practice the self talk that is needed when all you want to do is stop and, in this location, jump in the lagoon!

By the time I got to the last kilometre it was stinking hot but I didn't care.  I knew I was almost there and the pain was irrelevant.  I jogged into the market to the sound of the drummers and practised my ironman finish as I crossed the line.  Not that it was an act - I have never been so pleased to see the end of a run!

My finish time wasn't so bad - 4 hours 13 minutes.  It was around my marathon pace so, while I had hoped to go better, it certainly wasn't a disaster compared to previous events and I've taken away some great experience from it. And despite the challenges I look back on the event and remember it as one I definitely want to go back and do again.

I think Pete and I will be adding it to our calendar of annual events!!

The Christchurch Team - Leigh, Paul, Ang, Pete, Toni

Training in a New Swimming Pool

A new city, a new training plan.  This weekend's trip to Auckland necessitated a couple of tweaks to training.

Of a more minor nature was the need to take a day off work on Friday so I could do the 4 hour bike ride that was scheduled for Sunday.  More significantly was the need to make sure I could do a couple of swim sessions.  Dave had programmed a 1500m time trial (gulp!) for earlier in the week but when he found out the pool I was planning to use in the city of sails, he immediately said I should do the time trial in Auckland.

And the reason for that?  I had found that the closest pool to where we would be staying was the Olympic Pool in Newmarket, which is 50m in length. Dave was excited about the prospect as the great benefit of a 50m pool are the fewer stops and turns, and therefore less interruption to your swim stroke.

What swimmers will also tell you is that it does take a bit of adjusting to the doubling of distance between turns.  Intentional or not, each turn provides an opportunity for an extra large gulp of breath (my favourite!), an extra push off the end of the pool and the opportunity to mentally "reset" for the next length.

The marathon was on Sunday, so that was set as a rest day for me and I therefore jumped on a bus and headed to the pool on Saturday and also Monday for the time trial. 

I turned up on Saturday and surveyed the new surroundings.  It did indeed look quite a bit longer than I am used to and there was a lane on the far side which was being used by scuba divers.  What I also noticed, but didn't really pay any attention to, was that people in the lanes tended to be congregating at one end.  I didn't pay much attention to it as it's not overly unusual as there tends to a one end of a pool which is favoured as the start/finish point.  However this was significant and I would soon find out why.

So I jump in (at the popular end) and start on my first length.  I had sorted out a programme that used predominantly 50m sets rather than the typical 25m sets I had been following at Jellie Park.  That plan was soon to go out the window though.  The depth of the pool at the start was a friendly 1.1m and it gradually deepened to 1.5m at around 30m. 

At that point, though, it started to feel like I was swimming uphill...  It's amazing how the brain plays tricks on you, and the reason for this is that the bottom of the pool suddenly plummeted away from me, down to a depth of 4.4m.  And down in the depths were the scuba divers.  Of course there was no need to stay within their allocated lane down there, so they proceeded to blow big bubbles across the width of the pool - an interesting experience to swim over, that's for sure. 

Once I got to the end of the first length I found the reason that no one was congregating at that end.  Although the bottom of the pool did come back up at the far wall, it was still 2.7m deep and there was no ledge for resting on.  So there was no option but to push off and head back, and my session that day ended up having to be 100m sets.  Exhausting when you're not used to it!

The pool's website briefly mentions its history.  Apparently it once hosted the British Empire Games (now the Commonwealth Games) and, based on the floor profile, I guessed that diving towers must have been located at the extremely deep end rather than the current practice where a separate diving pool is built.  And indeed it does appear that this was the case.  A couple of photos held by the Auckland War Memorial Museum Library archives, taken in the 1950s, show that it used to be an outdoor pool and, indeed, the diving towers were at the end of the pool.

Back to my swim session, though, and getting used to the 100m sets was great practice. And it does make me look forward to the opening of Jellie Park's outdoor pool for summer, as that is also 50m long.  I'll be making full use of it as soon as it becomes available!

Auckland Marathon - But I'm on the Sidelines

One of my favorite events over the last few years has been the Auckland Marathon.  Well, the half marathon to be precise.  It's a scenic course that starts on the north shore in Devonport, winds its way over rolling terrain through the northern suburbs before providing a unique opportunity to run over the Auckland Harbour Bridge and finish almost in the heart of the CBD, at Victoria Park.

The event is becoming ever more popular and entries sold out in record time this year.  St Pete entered the full marathon and, instead of entering the half marathon for what would have been the fourth time, I was detailed to be support crew.

The reason for that is that, with just over 4 months to go to ironman, Coach Dave decided running a half marathon at this stage in the year would not be a good idea.  The logic behind this was similar to his instruction that I not complete the half ironman at Lake Hood next month. Basically the problem is with the recovery time from running those distances, which could compromise the quality of the rest of training at a time when I am starting to do some big distances on the bike and in the pool.

So I played support crew and Pete had a great day.  And it definitely felt good to see that two of our top ironmen, Jo Lawn and Terenzo Bozzone, were also on the sidelines for the event.  They were probably recovering from Kona but, I didn't mind, I was in good company!

Ironman Access Program

Yesterday the World Triathlon Corporation (WTC) announced the launch of an exclusive program for ironman athletes.  It's called Ironman Access and, according to the Ironman Access webpage, it allows ironman athletes the opportunity to register for popular ironman events worldwide before online registration opens to the general public.

Part of its supposed appeal is the popularity of ironman events these days and the speed with which they have been selling out. The program, therefore, shunts you to the front of the ever extending queue of people willing to submit themselves to the ironman challenge.

But get this - if you want the privilege of committing to an ironman event a week before anyone else, you have to fork over the princely sum of $1000 to the WTC for a year's membership to Ironman Access.

And that's in US dollars!

So what does $1000 give you?  In addition to the privilege of entering your selected ironman event(s) a week earlier than everyone else there are a number of additional benefits that are supposed to make this an appealing proposition.  Here's a quick run-through, and actual cost outside the program:

• 2 entries into the Kona Lottery (available already through the lottery and passport program for US$90)
• A year's subscription to LAVA magazine (US$19.95)
• The 2010 Kona DVD (estimated at US$34.95)
• A 20% discount on shopironman.store partner merchandise and on-site event retail stores (of no value unless you spend more money, but good value for money if you're planning to fork out over $5,000 on ironman stuff.)
• 2 VIP passes per registered event
• Membership ID card.

The actual value of those products comes to $150. So, for another $850 (US) you get 2 VIP passes for each event you enter, membership card and a 20% discount on merchandise.  It doesn't pay your entry fee to ironman - that must be paid in addition to the Ironman Access Program fee.

Oh, and the privilege of committing to ironman a week before everyone else does.

I don't think that represents particularly good value for money.

In fact I struggle to think why anyone would want to take up this deal.  Yes, the WTC are in the business of making money, and all power to them.  But to my way of thinking they’ve got this decision around the wrong way.

As far as I know, ironman events, while popular, aren’t yet selling out in seconds the way tickets to rock concerts do.  It’s not a situation where you sit on your computer, connected to the internet, waiting for entries to open and hoping you’re going to be lucky enough to get in and secure a spot within the first millisecond.  Even if that were the case, bands and ticketing agencies don't charge exorbitant amounts of money for people to secure tickets prior to general release.  At worst you'd pay a nominal amount to be a member of the band's fan club.  At best you simply join the mailing list for the ticketing agency or it can be even as simple has possessing a credit card.

The people that are missing out on an ironman entry are those who wait a few days or weeks before being ready to take the hit on their credit card.  If they are that keen, then, and they know it is an event that typically sells out, then they will be ready and will get their entry in in plenty of time.  Being a member of Ironman Access isn't going to help that.

What the WTC should have done is reserved places at each event for later entries and make the Ironman Access program available for those spots.  That way people who don’t/can’t/won’t enter early still have a choice of paying an additional premium to use the Ironman Access program to secure their spot.

Whichever way they do it, though, $1000 is still excessive and anyone who goes for it needs their head read.

After the Earthquake - A Ride to Methven

So we survived the earthquake and what better way to get back into training than with another overnight bike ride. This time to Methven, the weekend after the shaking events of September 4.  My training had gone out the window over the previous week so this was a welcome opportunity to get out into the fresh air and get the heart and lungs working again!

Damage to roads around the region meant that the route had to be slightly altered, and two of our team had to pull out - Kate had been relocated to Auckland as her Christchurch office was out of action and Marcus was heavily involved with the earthquake recovery as part of the Police comms team. However the rest of us were not to be deterred!

Anna and Chook contemplating the day's ride

Dave, Chook, Anna and I loaded the bikes onto the trailer and headed just out of Christchurch where we met Alicia, Budgie and Curly for the start of the ride. 

Alicia and Anna

My steed, ready to go

The peloton made its way inland, first stop Oxford where we sampled some of the fine muffins and coffee on offer at Jo Seager's cafe "Seager's at Oxford".  Of particular note was Jo's hot chocolate, of which Alicia appeared to be a connisseur, and the rest of us looked on green with envy as the tray of decadence was placed before her.  A large glass of steaming hot milk plus two shot glasses.  One shot glass contained warmed, liquid milk chocolate and the other glass contained white chocolate buttons.  You could then mix the two types of chocolate according to preference.  Many of us were vowing to return at a later date to sample what looked like a divine drink.

Toni and Curly enjoying the ambience by the fire at Seager's at Oxford

Much as we would have liked, we couldn't sit around the fireplace all morning so back on the bikes it was, next stop Hororata for lunch.

On this leg we saw some more of the effects of the earthquake.  For instance the damage suffered by the historic St John's Church at Hororata.

After lunch it was my turn to drive the support van while the peloton completed the final leg into Methven.  My total ride for the day was a shade under 80km and 2 hours 44min riding time - pretty cruisy.

Next stop, Methven.

One of the great things about heading uphill on your outward journey is that the homeward leg is .... DOWNHILL!

Home was 110km away and Sunday morning we were out bright and early.  The Rakaia Gorge was the only blip in the otherwise steady descent and we got a great pace going.  Andi rode out to meet us and so we had a welcome addition to the peloton for the rest of the journey.

Google maps in use - out in the middle of nowhere...

We rolled into town mid afternoon - another great weekend completed.