Well I have been here for 2.5 weeks now and settling in. Todd and I are living with another couple in Arthurs Point, just out of Queenstown. It took a bit to get into the swing of things on the mountain bike and road bike, but have found some people to ride with, and starting to find some good places to ride. I thought I was just feeling pathetically weak and unmotivated but then realized that the hills here are just extra steep then what I am used to.... or at least thats what I am telling myself!
What really kicked me into gear and got my motivation back was a race I did here on the weekend. It started in the mountains at 1500m near Cardrona and took us to the finish line in Wanaka. 1300m of climbing but 2600m of descent - yep my kinda race! So the forecast was super strong winds and cold. The cooler temps I was happy about as I hadn't adjusted to the heat yet and it ended up being the perfect temp for me, but the wind was another story. Our first climb up to 1950m wasn't that bad, we had the wind on our backs helping us and then hiked through a bit of snow that fell from a few nights before. But then we reached the peak and changed direction to now get crosswind - wow, I could barely keep the bike up right!
The descent was rocky, loose, and big ruts, and at one stage, I got blown 5 meters off the trail going 35+km/hr, and was so close to bailing and my glasses went flying off. Ok it was time to slow down and brace against this wind!! The long descent was a lot of fun despite the wind, with magical scenery. We arrived at the bottom and had 15kms of more flatfish terrain, but now straight into the head wind. This 15km felt like it took forever! Arrived at the finish line, first female and 7th overall out of the 100+ entrants. After a beer and food and presentations, we went to a local river and I layed in the sun and relaxed while watching Todd fish!
3 more weeks in Queenstown before all the family arrive and I head to Christchurch/Ashburton/Mt Cook and Hanmer Springs with the family for a few weeks.
Life is grand….
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