Out-of-towner takes out-of-towner out of town

Vaguely organised bike rides. That's what Vorb is all about. When it comes to organising bike rides, vaguely, I'm right up there. So when I saw a post last week from a rider wanting to ride some Welly trails, I thought my services could be of some use. Jackie is a lovely American lass living /studying in Auckland, and was keen for some singletrack. We met up at the shop and basically I tried to re-trace the ride Josh and I did last Friday. Not knowing the fitness and skill levels of riders you've just met is always a tricky prospect, so I threw her in the deep end. Jackie swam.

Deliverance can be a cruel mistress, with it's slippery roots and rocks and drops and stony creek crossings, but it was taken in stride, with the declaration of "awesome" at the end. Then it was on up through the singletrack of Makara, all the way to the top of the peak, where the winds they were a'howlin.

Ridgeline was way, way out of the question, so we took the fireroad back down towards the extension track. Waiting for Jackie after a steep section, the wait became a little too long, and I thought that blood may have been spilled on the rutted, loose shaley surface. It had.

Now, Jackie's studying medicine, but I tell ya, my improvisational surgical skills are second to none. A patch thingy that Rad Ross had left behind, held on her leg by my headband (unused, luckily, though the sweat might have been a good steriliser) and we were away again, Jackie opting to take the original planned route back still, not wussing out at all. Biking chicks are cool.