It really does always rain in NZ!

Well, no more than back in Aus by the look of it. But it has been pretty dismal here since the end of last week, except for Sunday which was a brilliant clear, sunny Winters day. Bloody cold still, but great for a fixie ride, this time with the Big O(wen) on his beaten Langster, and his mate Ivan. Just a little cruise around the harbour foreshore, along Oriental Parade through the crowds of people enjoying the sun, and around the Bays. I left the guys at Seatoun and turned back for some extra k's, and cruising past the Chocolate Fish cafe I spotted Josh and Yaz who were making a pitstop on their cruisy ride. Yaz generously bought me a hot chocolate and we sat in the warmth (with frozen toes) before heading our seperate ways back to town. There weren't any people doing this on Sunday, despite the sun.

Meanwhile back home, the state of play in the Glenrock trails saga looks a bit worse after the recent storms. It seems that the fallen trees fit in well with the NPWS's plans to close some of the trails affected. If NPWS don't cut up the fallen timber, then it seems there could be some stealth chainsaw missions undertaken, if we want to keep our best riding intact and accessible. Whether it's legal or not. Sadly, that's what it seems to be coming to. Makes me think I'm better off here, where mountain biking is actually encouraged and sustained.
*This just in... some good news.

On the far, far side of the world, Col (The Slug) is on a jaunt through Canada, and sent some pics to make us envious. He titled his email "if a picture paints a thousand words, check these out". Unfortunately, that's all he said, so I don't know where the vista is or the signifigance of the bears. I'll have to draw my own conclusions... Taking advantage of the fact that he was the only rider there, Col actually believed that 'the hills were his'...

Missing the security of home, Col brought his special friends with him, but the voices in his head kept saying "nail the bears to the tree..."