Ahipara

Day 1, Tour Aotearoa Brevet 2020: Cape Rienga to Ahipara. The day dawned clear and calm - well, except for Richard who slept through his alarm. He was trying hard to remain calm! But we got there in time, and he took off with the front bunch. Hopefully leaving his map in the car didn’t hinder him!
I started off at a leisurely 7:30 am, one of the last to leave the Cape, after quietly checking all my kit and getting the required photo of with the lighthouse. Te Paki Stream was a highlight, riding down the stream on the sand with big dunes on the right, then emerging at 90 Mile Beach, turning right and seeing a long line of cyclists dotted toward the horizon. We got a good day, a bit cloudy to reduce the heat, and a light tail wind - well more side wind a lot of the time but for an hour or so near the end I was sustaining 27 km/h, so definitely a tail wind to get me there!
Had a flat tyre on the beach - a sharp shard of sea shell stabbed it. But the wonders of tubeless tyres and SlugPlug tyre plugs plugged up the hole, and off I went. Easy!
Arrived at Ahipara ahead of schedule, at 2pm, but even though it’s fabulous biking conditions, I’m not going any further because it’s Day 1, and I have 29 days to go.
Tomorrow: hopefully to Dargarville.Read more