A Quick Lap of NZ
Like all good ideas, somebody has to think of the bleed’n obvious, then, those associated with it, think it’s their idea and the whole lot gathers momentum. However somewhere in its embryonic state, a catalyst is required to morph idea into happen. For me, purchasing a bike in NZ got me over the feet shuffling in the sand stuff, I was committed and the idea was very alive.
Not to over use the Aussie vernacular “Ol’ Mate”, however in the true sense of the phrase, a handful of “Old Mates” from Kiwi got together to relive their glory days. It was time to flip the bird at the politically correct and celebrate our mad old days riding and racing two wheels, where if it didn’t leak oil, it didn’t have oil and body armour wasn’t part of a riders ensemble, bodies were bullet proof back then. Just to mix it up with my Kiwi “Old Mates”, the mere mention of a few weeks riding hard on endless twisties like all of the good stuff in Oz linked together was too much for Neil, a REAL Old Mate (bloody nearly 70) to resist. He NEEDED to head on over the “Ditch” with me and check out a few corners. If rolling off the interisland ferry, taking a right hand turn at the roundabout and then its “on” for one and a half hours of full on twisties to Nelson via the Queen Charlotte Sound Road doesn’t light your fire, park your bike, go straight to the end game and give the ol’ bucket a swift kick. If on the other hand, you explode with enthusiasm, and howl like a lunatic under your helmet, while levitating through an endless video stream of hard left then hard right corners, shifting your body weight as your bike dances to the inputs of your fingers and toes, both body and motorcycle being the vehicle for your soul to soar, then welcome to Motorcycle Heaven in the shaky isles.
Tick that one off the bucket list Ol’ Mate.
Motorcycle Heaven.
No matter which way you look at it….Motorcycle Heaven.
Even when it rains.
The Bikes
South Island Team
Triumph Triumph Cagiva Harley BMW Cagiva
Speed Street Raptor Sportster F700GS Navigator
Triple Triple 1000cc 1200cc 800cc 1000cc
1050cc 675c
Steve Bryce Phillip Hughie Neil John
Additional North Island Riders
It was great to have the company of these Old Mates as well, who helped with the trip in many ways to make it just that extra bit special. Didn’t matter if you spent one day or travelled the whole trip we all had a ball.
Hugh and his 1998 Triumph Trident Barry and his 2010 Suzuki GSX1400
Paul’s Honda CB1000 with son Zak on the back. Back up vehicle extraordinaire. Steve’s 1956 Cadilac Eldorado with Stu navigating in the right hand seat.
My Bike
The Elf amongst Giants. Light and nimble.
2007 Triumph Street Triple, purchased second hand with 11,800 kms travelled.
Accessories included: Heated grips, Scott chain oiler, low three into one arrow exhaust, shortie adjustable levers, aftermarket mirrors, tank protector, rear tail tidy, fly screen and visor.
Accessories added: Tiger 800 hand guards, radiator guard, accessory power socket, custom made rear rack, tank bag, throw over soft bags, rear bag, fully adjustable rear shock, a roll of cloth tape to protect tank and side panels, light skins.
Living With A Street Triple Set Up As A Sports Tourer:
New Zealand roads are seriously bent. This bike loves bent roads. It embedded a serious smile into my being.
It’s light, agile, plenty of poke, comfortable….yes very comfortable, no vices and super easy to live with.
Just couldn’t wait to leap on it every morning and soar with the eagles for another day.
Shame it’s still in New Zealand and I’m not riding it.
The South Island
The Roads
Better described as corners….thousands of kilometres of them.
Very well maintained and super grippy. Bring your used tyres back to Oz and use up the centre tread.
Hawks Crag, Buller Gorge.
Just begging to be ridden like you stole it.
Takaka Hill
37 kms divided by 365 corners = fun6. Then the six of us had to do it again to get out.
Multiply the fun factor by 2 !
This was the start of the first full day in the South Island and I knew my near new rear tyre would not survive the remaining 4000 kms before heading back to the North Island.
Plenty of single lane bridges in the South Island.
The Weather: 19 consecutive days on the road, 6824 kms travelled, 10 hours riding in rain which included an hour of horizontal snow. Heated grips and hand guards kept my summer gloved hands toasty warm in these conditions.
Gateway to Milford Sound.
Half a degree Celsius and gale force winds here at the Homer Tunnel.
Then again most of the days were like this.
To be continued....................
Like all good ideas, somebody has to think of the bleed’n obvious, then, those associated with it, think it’s their idea and the whole lot gathers momentum. However somewhere in its embryonic state, a catalyst is required to morph idea into happen. For me, purchasing a bike in NZ got me over the feet shuffling in the sand stuff, I was committed and the idea was very alive.
Not to over use the Aussie vernacular “Ol’ Mate”, however in the true sense of the phrase, a handful of “Old Mates” from Kiwi got together to relive their glory days. It was time to flip the bird at the politically correct and celebrate our mad old days riding and racing two wheels, where if it didn’t leak oil, it didn’t have oil and body armour wasn’t part of a riders ensemble, bodies were bullet proof back then. Just to mix it up with my Kiwi “Old Mates”, the mere mention of a few weeks riding hard on endless twisties like all of the good stuff in Oz linked together was too much for Neil, a REAL Old Mate (bloody nearly 70) to resist. He NEEDED to head on over the “Ditch” with me and check out a few corners. If rolling off the interisland ferry, taking a right hand turn at the roundabout and then its “on” for one and a half hours of full on twisties to Nelson via the Queen Charlotte Sound Road doesn’t light your fire, park your bike, go straight to the end game and give the ol’ bucket a swift kick. If on the other hand, you explode with enthusiasm, and howl like a lunatic under your helmet, while levitating through an endless video stream of hard left then hard right corners, shifting your body weight as your bike dances to the inputs of your fingers and toes, both body and motorcycle being the vehicle for your soul to soar, then welcome to Motorcycle Heaven in the shaky isles.
Tick that one off the bucket list Ol’ Mate.
Motorcycle Heaven.
No matter which way you look at it….Motorcycle Heaven.
Even when it rains.
The Bikes
South Island Team
Triumph Triumph Cagiva Harley BMW Cagiva
Speed Street Raptor Sportster F700GS Navigator
Triple Triple 1000cc 1200cc 800cc 1000cc
1050cc 675c
Steve Bryce Phillip Hughie Neil John
Additional North Island Riders
It was great to have the company of these Old Mates as well, who helped with the trip in many ways to make it just that extra bit special. Didn’t matter if you spent one day or travelled the whole trip we all had a ball.
Hugh and his 1998 Triumph Trident Barry and his 2010 Suzuki GSX1400
Paul’s Honda CB1000 with son Zak on the back. Back up vehicle extraordinaire. Steve’s 1956 Cadilac Eldorado with Stu navigating in the right hand seat.
My Bike
The Elf amongst Giants. Light and nimble.
2007 Triumph Street Triple, purchased second hand with 11,800 kms travelled.
Accessories included: Heated grips, Scott chain oiler, low three into one arrow exhaust, shortie adjustable levers, aftermarket mirrors, tank protector, rear tail tidy, fly screen and visor.
Accessories added: Tiger 800 hand guards, radiator guard, accessory power socket, custom made rear rack, tank bag, throw over soft bags, rear bag, fully adjustable rear shock, a roll of cloth tape to protect tank and side panels, light skins.
Living With A Street Triple Set Up As A Sports Tourer:
New Zealand roads are seriously bent. This bike loves bent roads. It embedded a serious smile into my being.
It’s light, agile, plenty of poke, comfortable….yes very comfortable, no vices and super easy to live with.
Just couldn’t wait to leap on it every morning and soar with the eagles for another day.
Shame it’s still in New Zealand and I’m not riding it.
The South Island
The Roads
Better described as corners….thousands of kilometres of them.
Very well maintained and super grippy. Bring your used tyres back to Oz and use up the centre tread.
Hawks Crag, Buller Gorge.
Just begging to be ridden like you stole it.
Takaka Hill
37 kms divided by 365 corners = fun6. Then the six of us had to do it again to get out.
Multiply the fun factor by 2 !
This was the start of the first full day in the South Island and I knew my near new rear tyre would not survive the remaining 4000 kms before heading back to the North Island.
Plenty of single lane bridges in the South Island.
The Weather: 19 consecutive days on the road, 6824 kms travelled, 10 hours riding in rain which included an hour of horizontal snow. Heated grips and hand guards kept my summer gloved hands toasty warm in these conditions.
Gateway to Milford Sound.
Half a degree Celsius and gale force winds here at the Homer Tunnel.
Then again most of the days were like this.
To be continued....................
