Hunua, an MTB Event

With his collection of bikes, closet of spandex, and spring shave, there is no doubt my husband is an avid cyclist. As such, it is not surprising that our tour of New Zealand involves several mountain bike (MTB) events, road races, and the occasional half-marathon. Oh wait, the half-marathons are for me ;-)

This past Sunday, we headed out of town to the Hunua Ranges. Located an hour south of Auckland, the drive in is one of rolling hills, green pastures, and various animals. Mikaela is constantly on the lookout for cows, sheep, horses, and donkeys - it helps pass the drive. As we enter the park, the road starts to climb, and climb. As we climb, the road becomes dirt and narrow and our GPS system believes us to be in a field. There are no other cars in any direction, and you can't help but wonder if you took a wrong turn. As we begin to descend back into the heart of the moutain ranges, an uneasiness settles in my stomach - what if our gutless car can't climb back out? Dave assures me that the car will make it...very slowly, and we continue on. At last we arrive at a road block, our choice is a little path to the right that indicates it's part of a horse back riding trail. We take the path and with a few more bumps, we're there.

It is an eclectic mix of riders; the super serious, the super fit, and the super fun. The youngest rider was 10 and the oldest 60; Mikaela & I seated ourselves in the feed zone to watch the festivities. As the riders climbed up to the zone, their discomfort was obvious. The rapid beat of their hearts seemed almost audible, their breathing ragged, and their turnover laboured. On more than one occasion, a rider would cry out to ask if the cut-off time had arrived? Could this be the end of their misery? They would always look defeated as they learned there was time for one more lap. Of course, this was not all of the competitors - my Poobah climbed with ease, a real champ ;-) If he needed inspiration, he need only look to Mikaela as she gave her best cheer "Go, Daddy, Go! You can do it!". Not all finished and there was blood shed by more than one but this little group of cyclists were in good spirits on this sunny, spring afternoon.

Dave was right, our car did manage to climb back out of the Ranges and we joined a traffic jam further up the road. It's been several years since I saw traffic stopped for cows crossing the road, but here we sat as the herd made its way from the pasture, across the road, and up the steep path to their barn.

Oh, did I mention that Dave took top honours in his age group? I'm so proud.