Page 40 - NZ Ulyssian December

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other and their children. The oldest child,
a girl perhaps seven or eight, is intrigued
by James and I in our motorbike gear
and the Triumph and Honda motorbikes.
I wink at her and after a few moments,
she winks back and giggles. Mum runs
across the road and back to the BP
station. She is a graceful natural athlete,
netball or rugby, I wonder. I doubt they
know just how beautiful a family they are.
James says he is over it and just wants
to get home. I can understand how he
feels. In contrast, I am buzzing and wish
the ride would last forever. The Triumph is
just a dream machine. The triple cylinder
engine is amazing, the handling sublime,
favourite place to this day. St Arnaud to and tops it off with his wet weather gear. and I do not wish to be riding any other
Blenheim is a straight blast up the Wairau He complains his riding jacket lets the bike. We head out of Kaikoura, just over
Valley straight into a cold easterly wind, wind through. I wryly comment that we the hills James stops for a break and I
and to make matters more unpleasant, are three-quarters of the way through our take over leading until Cheviot. I say I
grey cloud hangs over the valley. We find journey. Usually, when we ride together, will lead, but James takes off. Forty km
Blenheim’s only NPD station at Redwood James leads, it just suits us. But on this from home bad sun strike forces me to
Town, the pay at the pump system is not longer journey, we take turns leading. ride one-handed using my other hand
working and we are forced to don masks Shortly after Ward, the road angles to shelter my eyes. James, with one of
and scan our entry. The good thing right and for 80 glorious km runs along those helmets with a drop-down visor,
is the diversion has led us to bypass the coast to Kaikoura. We refuel for the pulls away. I, too, am tired as I pull into
Blenheim’s messy town centre - I got lost final time then go to a local fish and the garage.
in Blenheim once! chip shop for something to eat. We This being my fourth Longest Day
From Blenheim, it is a little over have been to this place before, and the Ride, I got my gear, which I packed
twenty km to Seddon and a drop in gurnard is very good. I am intrigued by into an old backpack strapped on the
temperature! We park the bikes in the a young family sitting at the table beside backseat of the bike, pretty much right
Seddon supermarket car park and add us – mum, dad and four children. The and used almost everything I took
extra clothing. I am comfortable just children are smiling and happy, dressed with me. I carried wet weather gear, a
adding a puffer jacket under my riding more Sally Army than Pumpkin Patch. puncture repair kit, a small first aid kit, a
jacket. James adds more under layers Mum and dad are affectionate to each few personal items, a pair of shorts if it
got hot and a puffer jacket and a warmer
neck scarf if it got colder. I also took a
water bottle, a little food, my camera, and
an iPhone mounted on the handlebars as
a GPS.
The course I mapped out was close to
the minimum 1000km, but it was a slow
course with many stretches of slow twisty
roads with sometimes gnarly corners.
The trip meter on the Triumph showed
1040km Pegasus-to-Pegasus and took
14 1/2 hours, of which I guess 13 hours
was riding time. We were not out to break
records.
The bikes, neither of them new,
performed extremely well. Certainly, the
Triumph performs way above my abilities.

Nick Benfell
9873

40 | Ulyssian DECEMBER 2021