Jingle-jangle

Well, my pretty things, how have you been?
I have been immersed in a variety of things, everything from piscine pursuit to cycling feverishly. I have mastered the art of making custard squares, thus proving my earlier prediction to be ill-founded. The only drawback to making them at home, is that the need to be eaten in short order, and since they are ever present for me, I seem to fall into a consumption trap.

My riding, it has had a few wonderful moments. Last Sunday a few of us sallied forth, out west, in the sunshine, to allow me to introduce a few new souls to the delights of Kiwitahi Road. We rolled up to Helensville, via Old North Road, stopped for a damn good coffee and slice there, then rolled back down towards Woodhill.

Before Woodhill, off SH16, exists Kiwitahi Road. The first time I tackled this, many years ago it was summer, dusty and loose, the road was unsealed from the turn at SH16 until it emerged on the top at Old North Road. I suffered mortally that day, and even had a small moment off the bike in the cutting towards the top where it hits 16%. My 39 x 21 gear, just being too large.

Now it is sealed for almost the whole of the first part of the climb, up until the road pitches up in the cutting, then there are a couple of kilometres of metal. The climb itself is 1.5 kilometres at an average of just shy of 10%, the views are excellent and it is traffic free. It is a most rewarding climb, with a rolling top, where one can see miles up the mighty Kaipara Harbour, and right back to downtown Auckland.

Given recent weather the metal was close to perfect, smooth and easy to ride. All of my travelling companions gave it the big thumbs up.

Even Mikeal the Thundercat.

Hairshirt

Matt chasing a bit of skirt on Sunday morning.



From his photo blog, which if you ferret through my links you can find. Sadly he is living up to his link name.

The plans for this weekend's madness are coming along well, Mikeal has had a bit of biff from a four wheel drive door in the weekend, but that doesn't appear to be an impediment to the looming adventure.

This is the route, and yes, that is the 309 Road. I'm thinking, and my ego is sufficiently large already, that I'm going to be the first man to ride a regular road bike over the 309 Road. If this isn't the case please disabuse me of that notion. Mikeal will be on his cyclocross bike, with knobbly tyres. Me, just some 25mm regular road tyres. Upside of this is that he will be crying for mum by the time we hit the Thames Coast again. Downside is that I'm picking he'll sit on for all the seal.

I did engage in a little rig testing yesterday with Warren. We tackled Kiwitahi Road, then Inland Road. Both have unsealed sections of at least sixteen percent gradient, plus a miserable eight percent uphill into a howling Easterlie. The wind was sufficient to shake the road markers wildly and Warren reckons there should be some way of calculating wind effect on gradient, a little like windchill if you like. By his reckoning, the eight percent on gravel with headwind was more akin to a thirteen percent seal section.

Kiwitahi road is one of the more solid and constant climbs around, one and half kilometres with a ten percent average gradient. When it was entirely unsealed it was more a feat of concentration so steepness wasn't quite so apparent. Now that it is sealed almost to the top, it's true nature is apparent. The final two hundred metres are very steep, approximately sixteen percent and unsealed, that is the icing on the cake. Inland Road is just a beast, with very steep stairsteps and a short, very rough metal section, but popping out on the top in a familiar spot is truly rewarding.

Here's the profile Here's the route

http://www.mapmyride.com/ride/new-zealand/waitakere/880125351644027153