Back to the Roots, Racing in New Zealand

The 30 foot Ferns and Jungle bush were luscious - pure oxygen!

Car camping our way through New Zealand with Enduro bikes and surfing on the mind has rekindled our appreciation for the simple things.  A great reminder of how  incredible the days can be even if you are living without some of modern life's comforts.    Sleeping at the beach or trailhead, isn't always the place to get the best nights sleep, but it's a good way to ensure your getting on it early!   

Our adventures on the North Island settled us into a trance like fatigue,  the type of training that we know that it takes to really bring us to our best form.  The extra energy expended in the camping shuffle made our days pass all too quickly bit it did allow us to enjoy some sweet spots as we made our way to the South Island for our first event.

Camping and riding in the native forest at Tree Trunk Gorge was a treat

Boarding the ferry from Wellington to Picton.

It was impressive to see the power passing through the narrow strip of open ocean that separates the North and South Islands of New Zealand. The Cook Straight isn't wide but it can be fierce.  The 3 meter swells that picked up just outside the Wellington harbor was nothing to the super ferry but quickly became too much for many on board.

One of the most scenic ferry crossings in the world.

They opened the top deck when the ferry entered a narrow deep water fjord, rediculously close to the unforgiving shoreline sagging down off the sides of steep mountains.  The shapes of the islets were stunning and covered with green, a mix of Monoculture Pine tree farms dotted with patches of native bush and a scatttered handful of rustic outposts.

   

Taking part in the NZ Enduro was the reason for our trip and the event was a proper eye opening introduction to the South Island.  A three day Enduro was something a bit bigger and more intimidating than we were used to but of course that was part of the appeal. 

first meeting at The NZ Enduro 

Probably the most intelligent logistics of the trip was getting out of the tent and into an air BnB close to the middle of the significantly spread out and logistically challenging three days of action.  We ended up driving and shuttling through a tank of gas throughout the three days of the event but the mileage was worth it to line up the epic riding that we got to do. 

Day one started us out at the Whites Bay campground, north of Blenheim where we were treated to blue skies and near perfect trail conditions for the fastest type of gravity racing, dustless hard packed perfection!

The stacked women' field (here shown- Martha, Ines, Bex and Mary) were all smiles with minty trails and the sun shining 

Over the night the rain came in heavy and continued to soak us for the entirety of day two.  This added considerable fangs to Nydia Track, a point to point that is nothing short of burley even on a dry day!  The rugged rocky, slick, steep, exposed tracks pushed our skills throughout the four stages which still seemed to ride pretty well even though the rain certainly brought up the difficulty level.  There is something extra exciting in racing on trails for the first time (blind, without preview) which in over the top conditions as we experienced, put us to the test and make us dig deep.  

Mary (and I) still smiling... in the rain! 

After another torrential night, day three was a complete wash,  The deluge made the sort of shuttle runs, helicopter or otherwise, impossible.   So the race was called after two days and though it was a disappointment to miss out on the incredible riding that was on tap it cancelling seemed to be in the best interest and was well accepted by the majority.  (I think we we were all pretty trashed after tackling Nydia track and enough seemed to have been contested to give an idea of  who was the fastest. )

Unfortunately there was an issue with the timing chips, resulting in me missing out on some well deserved podium time.   By the organizations own numbers (although at this point its likely that no numbers could be trusted) I had the overall masters win  by two seconds.  however manual (back up) timing is only accurate to 3 or so seconds so the race organization decided to call it a tie and name Nick Sutcliffe and I as the "joint winners".  I was sorry to miss out on the proper celebration after such a big effort, but the fantastic riding, camaraderie and new friends made up for it.

Ripping trails with new and old friends was a big part of the experience at the NZ Enduro

We shoveled everything into the van and headed directly west to try and time a good combination of small swell and light wind.  Having previously discovered that the west coast of NZ is gnarly and when it comes to surfing meaning things are better off calm and small(er) here!

Cape Foul Wind did not disappoint!

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Staging another amazing ride in the hills near Westport.  The Denniston experience was rugged and difficult! 

We had some massive days of training soaking up the local trail destinations in an area rich in wild and wooly loops. We were glad we had the enduro bikes on hand to make the most of the aggressive aspects found on many of the ripping trails.  

NZ has constantly impressed us  with the number of  tremendous bike destinations! Its clear that the bikers who come out to experience these rides have a tremendous positive impact on a local economy.  

Mary and I headed back to the ferry crossing feeling knowing  that there was still so much more to see  on the South Island but it was time to get back north for the opening round of the Enduro World Series in Rotorua. We hadn’t  been back since the 2006 XC World Championships and we were excited to check it out!

Dawn patrol!

Mountains are not stadiums where I satisfy my ambition to achieve, they are the cathedrals where I practice my religion. -Boukreev

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