And Then……
…. there were ten riders ready to roll from the Picton water front car park on a beautiful morning that was designed for mountain biking. Phil, Eddie, Wayne and John were four new faces and great to have along. It was over the hill to Shakespeare Bay, up the next hill to the saddle and to the start of the near finished 6k new section of the Link Pathway.
There is a short sharpish muddy climb before the track eased in gradient and then starts on a persistent but easy down. Cerdwen rode a couple of kilometres before deciding she did not want to do all the return climb and then there were nine.
Kathrine persevered for another couple of k before she also turned back and then there were eight. The trail is a bit raw and sloppy in places but great riding and provides magnificent views across to Mistletoe Bay and surrounds. The final exit into Ngakuta is a short, steep and slippery descent. Justine decided it was time to leave us at this point and rode on to the family property. He had a ‘short’ warm-up by riding from Blenheim to Picton before we started. And then there were seven.
I attempted to ride back up the steep slippery section, caught some mud/stone/stick/trash, heard a loud crunch and was left with a very bent derailleur. Some wit helpfully said it would make a good paper weight! With some help from the team we converted my bike to a single speed and I took to the road. And then there were six. They reported that a good work out was obtained on the climb back to the top.
We had a regroup and headed to Picton to meet up with Cerdwen and Katherine for coffee. And then it was off home to clean the bike. Took nearly as long as the ride to discover the bike was still black and still broken! Alana and Eugen were also part of the thoroughly enjoyable ride.
Next Recreation Ride Sunday 27th September, venue TBA.