I’ve always wanted to tour the South Island by motorcycle and despite touring the UK and reaching 62 years of age, I still haven’t done it. I have toured or travelled the South Island before in different ways; car, bicycle, kayak and the best of all, when I had my pilots license flying around with the aero club, which was so good I did it 3 times. But this spring or summer seems like a great time, I’ve just been made redundant so no issues with leave and I have a bike that would be great for touring.
Apparently, Hugh and Janny spent a lot of time touring on the Triumph Speed Twin and a tour in 2027 would be great to celebrate the bikes 80th birthday. So, how to go about this, I’d like to trailer the bike down to Wellington as I feel the main road through the North Island is very busy and not that enjoyable, and it’d be good to go with another biker to share the cost and the driving. Which brings me to another point, do I tour solo or with some like-minded bikers? The BSA owners club has their annual rally in Christchurch next year which would probably be a great way to start, but it’s in April when I feel the best weather is gone. The motorcycle section of the Vintage Car Club has their national motorcycle rally in Timaru which would be good to join, and it’s in February, so there’s a couple of options there.
My concern is whether I’ll be physically and mentally able to ride every day for several days in a row. Oddly enough, I’m more worried about my fitness at 62, than the fitness of my 80-year-old bike – I’m way more confident with its reliability than mine! I’m not especially fit, and severe tinnitus and hearing difficulties leave me fatigued, so it would be better to test myself out with a few days away before tackling something bigger.
Yesterday, the BSA owners club had a ride travelling up to Mangawhai which was a great test, according to my phone tracking it took me nearly 2 hours each way! Travelling north was via highway 16, not much traffic (or road maintenance) happens on this highway, but I couldn’t believe how bumpy it was on the Triumph. I’d recently fixed a slow leak in my rear tyre so it was inflated to quite a hard setting, the cornering was fantastic but man, we really bounced around – I usually have my tyres a little soft to soak up bumps. There was a great turn out at the Mangawhai tavern, about 20 odd bikes, mostly old BSA’s with a couple of Matchless and only a few modern bikes.
We had a great talk-fest and when heading home I decided to travel via the old highway 1, which is not a motorway but it has a lovely smooth surface and thanks to the new motorway, not much traffic. I had a great ride back, the Triumph went fantastic, until about 3 miles from home, when the engine stopped at an intersection and wouldn’t restart? I think there’s some gunk floating around in the tank and something is getting blocked despite the fuel filter. I need to drain the tank and have a look.
So the bike went great but, man, I was totally knackered at the end of it and am wondering would I be able to do that for days at a time? I think I could but would need to manage my time when not riding, that is, make sure I get some rest and a good sleep – and I need to do it now, before I get even older! When I was touring the UK, we’d ride most of the day then go out drinking, but I was a lot younger then when everything is way easier!
Leave a Reply