Sunday 05 February 2017 Mel contacted me late in the week to discuss the possibility of a Coromandel ride over Waitangi Weekend, which would be of particular interest to anyone looking to spend an afternoon at the Leadfoot Festival in Hahei. Word was spread and 7 (6 Harleys and Craig’s a solitary Indian) turned up at Auto Bahn Café, BP South bright and early on Sunday morning, keen to get underway as the heat of what promised to be a beautiful day started to kick in. Off the Motorway at Ramarama and into the hinterland, back roads all the way to Miranda and the Thames highway, so a good clip was established. It was a day for hawks, brunching on bonus of fresh road kill - perhaps a poison chalice as these easy meals come with the real risk of being clobbered by the occasional traffic. We came upon a fine specimen on what would normally have been a fairly quiet stretch of country road, trying and failing to gain height with a big hedgehog the prize, finally accepting that oncoming Harleys were too much of a risk, the load being jettisoned just in time, bouncing along the road to await a second attempt once our bikes had passed and peace had been restored. An hour later and right on time we arrived at Bugger Café, hooking up with the contingent from Pauanui (Mickey and Greg), so first pit stop of the day – great food, coffee and facilities. Our route around the Coromandel was to be clockwise, so through Thames, and up the coast, as quickly as the sporadic traffic allowed without going crazy, knowing that to leave the road and tumble down the cliff face into the sea was going to end in tears – absolutely no forgiveness. Likewise, the road reduces to single lane in places, with Mussel trucks and tourists in Camper vans oblivious to the concept of courtesy and the concept of giving way, so extra caution is always warranted. Traversing the ranges from Coromandel is always a highlight, particularly as most of us could go at our own pace (generally as fast as you felt comfortable), and I probably ground a kilo or two of metal off the bottom of my foot pegs in the process – magnificent! This stretch is probably on par with any 5 kilometres of motorcycling heaven in New Zealand. As usual, Luke’s kitchen at Kuaotunu was our stop for lunch, with pizzas and Calamari salads the popular options – a slice of paradise on the Peninsula. There is no mistaking arriving in Whitianga, the hodge podge of architectural fantasies providing a time line of what was once (and is no longer) fashionable apparent from the outskirts of the town, before being replaced by motels, check and jowl, occupying the prime beach front properties. While we gassed up, Mel and Phil broke away and headed for Hahei, with the Pauanui guys leaving us shortly afterwards. The heat of the mid afternoon sun was intense, turning hair pin corners into slippery, sticky ice rinks, and not a time to lose concentration. We rounded a bend and quickly came to a stop, a line of traffic blocked by an ambulance, a fire truck and 4 police cars – it appeared that a motorcyclist had come to grief whilst overtaking a car, who didn’t see him and commenced his own overtaking manoeuvre, forcing the biker into a bank – not ideal, but probably not life threatening. As we rode by and reflected, two more police cars arrived so we were reasonably confident the local constabulary wouldn’t be troubling us any time soon. Back to Bugger Café for a final pit stop and a short black to help concentration, then the final leg, back via the delightful Miranda Straights, the curves around the coastline, then the twisties through to Kawa Kawa Bay, finally suffering 10km of sporadic roadworks into Clevedon. One by one the guys peeled of and headed wherever home was, another day of great riding with great mates to cherish. |
Don MalcolmA perfect day involves being on my Harley with a long ride ahead.
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