Spent the day looking for and applying for jobs.

The Kapiti Coast Thursday Night Cruise (advertised on the Kiwi Bikers website) sounded like something out of the movie Wild Hogs – all middle-aged men seeking a bit of “sedate adventure” on the open road……To quote the NZ Tui (a local brew) advert….Yeah Right!!

More like Mad Max on a chase through all the local New Zealand roads you’d prefer to do with your eyes closed, given the choice!!

On the positive side, my VSTROM performed like I never knew it could, out pulling the majority of the race bikes going up the mountain climbs and easily keeping up on the odd 100 yd straight and flat bits!! And all the other bikes were single riders, whereas we were two up!!…

Who needs a bungy jump for an adrenaline rush!!

We went over Battle Hill and down into Pauatahanui to pick up another biker. Over to the Hutt Valley to pick up another and then up over the Rimatuka and down into Featherston for a drink at the Royal Hotel – and for me and Louise a bit of a recovery!

Back over the Rimatuka to the Hutt Valley, but this time taking a “shortcut” over Moonshine Road towards Pauatahanui – single lane bendy road! Then another rapid climb over Battle Hill before dispersing at the top to go home.

I need to get my bike looked at – the speedo appears to be reading incorrectly! Everyone else’s seemed to be reading 100 km/h, whereas mine was obviously incorrectly reading between 10 and 40 km/h above that!! I’ve also noticed that the front tyre appears to be a little “flighty” when pulling away at speed uphill – not sure I can do much about that other than improve my balance. There doesn’t appear to be anything mechanically wrong with the bike – strange……