Today we had to collect the bikes but had a bit of a panic when we logged into the web site of My Bike, Whangarei only to see the message "web site suspended". We phoned several times but only heard a strange tone which I have never heard before which certainly was not a ringing tone and did not sound like an engaged one.
The only think to do was to drive down to the shop and see what was going on. There appeared to be no problems and Brian Neumann was there busily serving customers and fixing bikes at the same time. He was so laid back that he was horizontal!
However, both ordered bikes were there and within a few minutes we had sorted out payment, the bikes had been checked and we wheeled them outside to load onto the bike rack. Now the bike rack on our van is as new as the van itself and had never been used so quite a lot of adjustment was needed to ensure the bikes were secured to Ray's satisfaction.
Being in NZ for 5 weeks, we had worked out that buying two brand new bikes was significantly cheaper than hiring bikes for that long a period. Last time we did hire and would not want to be without bikes, but they were very expensive and of poor quality
You may have noticed that the LLW has been neglecting her men recently so she decided that today they should get some attention. Ray was sent off to tackle the Hatea loop on his own and to test out the new bike. The Hatea loop involved cycling around the Town Basin, quay and marina, then along the Hatea river past the Cobham Oval (cricket ground) over two bridges and back along the opposite side of the river to Whangarei. The main road bridge is named Te Matau a Pohe, which roughly translated means the fishhook of Pohe who was a local Mauri chief. The bridge is a lifting one and indeed the lifting mechanism is in the shape of a fishhook. Have a look at te matau a pohe
A brave attempt was made to cycle back up the very steep hill heading to the campsite but Ray only made it 3/4 of the way before walking the remainder of the steep section and then remounting and completing the rest.
The bike was pronounced to be very good with lots of gears and very lightweight. After a shower, it was BBQ time with steak and salad plus a very good Kiwi Pinot Noir to enjoy in the beautiful evening sunshine.
Tomorrow we plan to explore the Tutukaka coast and will call in to see the Price family at their home in Ngunguru on our way back.
The only think to do was to drive down to the shop and see what was going on. There appeared to be no problems and Brian Neumann was there busily serving customers and fixing bikes at the same time. He was so laid back that he was horizontal!
However, both ordered bikes were there and within a few minutes we had sorted out payment, the bikes had been checked and we wheeled them outside to load onto the bike rack. Now the bike rack on our van is as new as the van itself and had never been used so quite a lot of adjustment was needed to ensure the bikes were secured to Ray's satisfaction.
Being in NZ for 5 weeks, we had worked out that buying two brand new bikes was significantly cheaper than hiring bikes for that long a period. Last time we did hire and would not want to be without bikes, but they were very expensive and of poor quality
You may have noticed that the LLW has been neglecting her men recently so she decided that today they should get some attention. Ray was sent off to tackle the Hatea loop on his own and to test out the new bike. The Hatea loop involved cycling around the Town Basin, quay and marina, then along the Hatea river past the Cobham Oval (cricket ground) over two bridges and back along the opposite side of the river to Whangarei. The main road bridge is named Te Matau a Pohe, which roughly translated means the fishhook of Pohe who was a local Mauri chief. The bridge is a lifting one and indeed the lifting mechanism is in the shape of a fishhook. Have a look at te matau a pohe
A brave attempt was made to cycle back up the very steep hill heading to the campsite but Ray only made it 3/4 of the way before walking the remainder of the steep section and then remounting and completing the rest.
The bike was pronounced to be very good with lots of gears and very lightweight. After a shower, it was BBQ time with steak and salad plus a very good Kiwi Pinot Noir to enjoy in the beautiful evening sunshine.
Tomorrow we plan to explore the Tutukaka coast and will call in to see the Price family at their home in Ngunguru on our way back.
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