Cycle News

KTM NEW ZEALAND ADVENTURE RALLYE P80 Feature KTM NEW ZEALAND ADVENTURE RALLYE P80 Feature some huge sand dunes. The stream had a hard sand bottom and dropped us out onto the black sands on 90-mile beach. We then rode down the beach for over 30 miles before diving into some deep sand breakouts that made the riders work for it! It was a massive and physical day! Day 3 (181 miles) The group wasn't as spry this morn- ing. Everyone took a little more lei- sure in preparing for the day. More rain came in overnight and there was a good chance a couple of the more difficult breakouts would be blocked off. I would resume my role as mid-sweep and assist on the slick clay areas. I was thankful for my Georgia red clay riding expe- rience! The terrain turned back to clay-based and gravel two-track. The massive drama of the day came from a French rider diving off a small creek crossing into a deep hole that swallowed his 1090 completely! We began to break it down but decided to call sweep to come pick up the bike and take it back to the bivouac for proper work that night. We stopped in a cool little town called Kerri Kerri for a long black and egg/bacon pie before catch- ing a ferry to the Russell Forest. One of the best gravel roads of the entire ride was in this forest! I had the chance to ride with former supercar racing great, Greg Mur- phy. He said he had actually raced a rally section on this road before. I can see how this would be the ideal spot for a road rally as all of these gravel roads are kept up unbelievably well. The Kiwis know how to build a proper road. just enough sun to tack up for full traction. I did manage to sink my bike in a bog when I turned around to check on our group. Cheers to the guys that helped me get out! That isn't a one-man job with these bikes. We rolled into Whangarei close to 5 p.m. Getting off the bikes, Mike told me he wasn't sure what he had gotten himself into and questioned whether or not he'd be up to finish! The big days were tak- ing a toll physically and mentally. Day 4 (197 miles) I woke up with a light fog from the previous night due to the pale ale special. Day four was more like a liaison day as the group needed to make their way back to the The perfect tilts send you from one bermed turn straight into the next where you try to nose-in tight around the inside flirting your bars just inches from the inside forest wall. The turn exits are equally as fun with the pea gravel surface. Finding the right amount of power to spin the rear wheel and carry that drift from one corner into the next is an absolute blast! The last stop was at a dirt bike farm where they allowed us ac- cess onto some single track that crossed the property and weaved in an out of trails. The dirt had southern side of Auckland and over to the town of Thames on the Peninsula. This is when the Ulti- mate Race Qualifier events began to take place. The main objective that day being a timed special test around gravel piles and a wet grass track. The track was set up at a horse racing facility and had all of the entrants there to spec- tate the good racing! It was impressive watching these guys pin it! You could tell everyone took it very seriously and came prepared. The sun and rain decided to play nice as well,

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