Te Anau

Well we had a good couple of days cross country. We got a lift across Lake Wakatipu on a steam ship and then pedaled across empty backcountry and sheepstation land for two days to reach Te Anau. After serious thought, we then elected to get a bus rather than cycle down to Milford Sound and go for a day cruise. The road to Milford is the most dangerous in NZ, so i think we made the right call. Milford itself was stunning, not only the scenery, but also a huge pod of dusky dolphins and then a pair of Hectors dolphins playing around chasing the boat.

Happy Christmas

Had a nice ride today, the promised bad weather turned out not too bad, and even the climb over the Crown Range was bearable. We had a beer and a nice christmas lunch on top of the pass, but are now stuck trying to find somewhere to eat on christmas day and all the half decent restaurants have been booked up for weeks!

Paragliding in Wanaka

IMG_8070
Originally uploaded by hairy_matt

The weather has finally perked up and we've been enjoying a few rest days in Wanaka. It's a nice chilled out town with nice beer and fantastic views.. We succumbed a bit to the tourist thing and went paragliding this morning, but it was well worth shelling out a few quid for. It' a great way to see the mountains, and very relaxing.. Tomorrow we have to ride over the Crown Range though, so Christmas lunch will be a sandwich on the top somewhere..

Wanaka

Well we finally got some sun. After a few more horrid wet days on the west coast, we climbed over the Haast pass and after a fairly epic day, we now have a few days rest in Wanaka before heading over the crown range to Queenstown.

They don't call it a rainforest for nothing..

Hanging out by the Franz Josef glacier today, and it is rather wet.. In fact it hasn't stopped raining for days! Oh well, pedaling off south now, into wet more rain.. Just like being at home.

A windy day

Just arrived in Hokatika after several hours of purgatory into a horrible headwind. Hope the weather helps us out a bit more tomorrow. The run down the Otira gorge was awesome though, even in the rain.

On the road

Pathway
Originally uploaded by hairy_matt

So, no new pics to post at the moment, but that's because I don't have access to any RAW conversion software while cycle touring. We are currently in Arthur's Pass, South Island of NZ. Tomorrow we ride down towards the west coast, and then south towards Queenstown and Milford Sound.

The weather has been rubbish so far, but the scenery is fantastic. Huge glacial valleys with trestle bridges spanning massive rivers.. Very Montana-esque, with a hint of Scotland about it.

The cycling is going fine so far, though we've only really put in one proper day. I had to buy a new wheel in Christchurch (when we unpacked the bikes on arrival in NZ I found my rear wheel bearings had seized completely...serves me right for washing my bike before flying..).

We managed to pare the kit right down this time so we both have quite managable loads. I think we're going to try to put in a few epic days in order to get an extra day off... Watch this space to see if we make it..

Iron Horse team photoshoot

Montage
Originally uploaded by hairy_matt

Had a good photoshoot with the guys on Saturday in Leigh Woods, Bristol. The weather was freezing and foggy, with a nasty washed out sky and gloomy woods. We got some good shots though, and the guys were great, hitting the same corners again and again... mind you, I think they were just glad to keep warm..

Life keeps on rolling…

Wheel
Originally uploaded by hairy_matt

Been very busy recently. Planning for New Zealand, fixing burglar alarms (and trying to exterminate mice) as well as more than a little work.. Which all means I haven’t had much time to take photos for fun. Things are coming together though, the new site looks good and I’ve got a few projects lined up. All I need now is the time to fill out my portfolio with some really killer images.

Extreme Endurance Cyclists

_DSC4161Web.jpg
Originally uploaded by hairy_matt

Took a few photos for Dave and Josh of the Iron Horse/Extreme Endurance team on Sunday. The weather was horrible, but the guys were very good sports and I managed to get a few decent frames..
You can read more about the team on Dave's Blog.

Another hotel room

Another day, another hotel room. Only this one is not quite up there with Rome or Paris... Welcome to the Tottenham Court road..

Black mountains

Did the black mountains killer loop for the first time on saturday, what a cracking day out. It almost made up for our joke of a summer.

Where now?

Ok, so it's a bit melodramatic, but i have been thinking more than ever recently about my direction in life. Time to make some decisions is near. This post though, is mostly to try blogging from my new phone ;)

If in doubt, rip their legs off...

Nice ride in this morning, though I did fall prey to every commuter's weakness. I was overtaken by a chap on a mountain bike on Newport Road, not a problem in itself, but he did not offer any cheery hello, or friendly good morning. As a result of course, I was compelled to draft him to the bottom of Rumney Hill (noting with satisfaction that he was slyly looking behind to see if he'd dropped me yet) and then, as the gradient picked up, I pulled round him and sprinted up the hill until my lungs were burning. He was nowhere in sight by the time I had crested the rise, and as I kept the hammer down for the next 7 miles or so, he had no chance of catching me back up...

Satisfying, yes...am I an overcompetitive cock? ...probably ;-)

Ha, back on a faster machine

Quarry ahead
Originally uploaded by hairy_matt

Felt good to spin in this morning on the CX bike.. It may not be a tour de France winning machine, but its a hell of a lot easier to pedal than a mountain bike..

Not cycling, but canoeing

Campfire
Originally uploaded by hairy_matt

Took a weekend off the bike, and paddled down the river Wye with friends.. This shot is from our little campfire and camp on Saturday night...it was great to be out..

I love my Surly

Surly
Originally uploaded by hairy_matt

But it ain't half sodding slow when cycling along the road to work.. Hopefully the ride home off road will make up for it..

Back from the Mega

Qualifier start
Originally uploaded by hairy_matt

Well I survived the Mega Avalanxche, even though my bike ain't quite in one piece.. This vid is of the qualifier race, the main event this year started at the same point because of bad weather, usually it would be even higher, on the glacier of Pic Blanc at 3300.. I'll be back next year and hopefully will get to race over the whole course..

Off to the Alps

Tomorrow morning we leave for the Alps, to race in the MegaAvalanche (google it, it's the worlds most stupid downhill race). Apparently there is a lot of snow on the course this year...eeep!

Marshalling and downhilling

Stef
Originally uploaded by hairy_matt

Been a bit patchy on the old riding front for the last few weeks. Marshalling at 24hours of Mayhem took it out of me a bit, but otherwise I've been getting into shape for next weeks Megavalanche race.. it looks completely ridiculous.

All washed up...

Bikes waiting to be washed
Originally uploaded by hairy_matt

Well not really, but feeling a bit run down. Had a good ride last wednesday, and then unusually, had a whole weekend off the bike.. Made up for it today though by rding in, and hope to do so again at least a few days this week..

Wales north to south ride

A few pictures from a short ride across Wales we did last week, from the north coast (Bangor) to the south (Cardiff), mostly off road. The route came out around 250 miles, with a huge amount of climbing...literally huge...some days we were climbing for about a million hours...great fun though.

Starting off in Bangor, on the pier no less...


Riding past Lwyn Ogwyn


One of about a million forests we rode through..


Some bits were not entirely ridable...


Though bits of Sarn Helen we came across were mostly pretty tame like this..


There's a lot of twee countryside in Wales..


Waterfalls and that...not ridable.


Some of the bridleways were a little indistinct..


Some a little wet...


Pedal power and wind power in the same shot... All that's needed is an organic yoghurt weaving plant, and you'd have a hippy paradise..


The trip was of course powered by highly advance Polish carbohydrate replacement solutions..


A bit more 'challenging' climbing...just a few miles or so across boggy sodding tussock grass...A feature that is strangely lacking on most man-made trails..


All in all a top week. The weather was mostly hot til the last day (44 miles down the taff trail in the sodding rain...joy..). We travelled light with just a 32l sack each, and I can highly recommend the OMM sacks on the back of this trip too, very comfy even heavily loaded for a long day in the saddle..

A couple more piccies here if anyone is terminally bored at work or similar..

Two commutes and a Sunday

Surly
Originally uploaded by hairy_matt

Well, I've been taking it steady after my recent off spell, but have managed two commutes to work with attendant Wednesday night rides, and we did a good ride on Sunday, from home up to Ton, then over to Machen Mountain via Caerphilly mountain and home..

Still not feeling 100%, but starting Sunday morning we are going to be riding from Bangor to Cardiff over the course of a week all off road...should be ace!

Bit of a break

Unhurt
Originally uploaded by hairy_matt

Well, I've had 5 weeks off the bike. After a hectic week at work (including trip to Paris) I got off to a stag do in Devon and managed to break a rib and put my back out in a go-karting accident.. 4 weeks of physio later, I am finally able to get back on the bike. It's put my training schedule off a bit, but c'est la vie. Just trying to get in shape now in time for our north coast to south coast off road epic in mid May..

The road to success

Pathway
Originally uploaded by hairy_matt

So I’ve had a bit of a long lay off, mostly because I’ve been resting my shin, but also because I’m lazy.. It was actually getting to the point where I was worried my sister was going to run rings around me on race day. Luckily though, I got out last night and managed 5.9 miles in 55 minutes. That equates to under and hour (just) for the 10km, which I think is my sister’s target time.. Now all I have to do is keep that in my legs til the event..

Night ride Wednesday

Sunset on the Quantocks
Originally uploaded by hairy_matt

It's that time of the week again, so a slow twiddle in on the Surly.. Looking forward to this evening though, I need a ride and a pint* to sort me out..


* Actual number of pints may be plural

Bit of a cross training weekend

Rafting
Originally uploaded by hairy_matt

Soo, Friday running and cross training.. Saturday Rafting (thanks Pete) and Sunday Kayaking (cheers Warwick). All this was topped off with a 70km ride on Monday (thanks to Mark & Mel) so a pretty good weekend for exercise and company all round..

Missed a run yesterday though as my legs felt dead. Hopefully this slightly longer break will get my shin a bit stronger for this weekend's running..

Hanging on

Scruff in flight
Originally uploaded by hairy_matt

Had a good run on Saturday, though my right shin was still complaining so I limited it to 3 miles. Same again last night sadly.. I feel more than happy with the distance, but don't want to push it until my shin is completely happy..

Good ride to work today though, looking forward to a nice spin along the ridge later..

Just a short one today

ASICS Running shoe in black and white
Originally uploaded by hairy_matt

3 Miles exactly. Newport Road, Colchester Ave, down to Marlborough road, funeral home, then Stacey road and home down Cecil street. 30 minutes and 1 second. Probably would have been 5 minutes quicker if it wasn't for waiting at traffic lights..

Felt fine, nice easy pace, though my right shin did start to twinge a bit..

Riding Sunday

Turning in
Originally uploaded by hairy_matt

This is actually I pic I shot on at the BUSA's at CwmCarn on Saturday. Due to the rain I didn't take a camera to Afan on Sunday. The new section of Whites level (NRG) was really nice. Good to get some jumping in between the hailstorms..

The running has started in earnest

ASICS Running shoe
Originally uploaded by hairy_matt

3 1/2 miles on Saturday, round the park and the lake. Didn't feel too bad, but my shin was twinging a bit by the end.. Still, should be on track for race day.

A night off

DSC_0568.jpg
Originally uploaded by hairy_matt

I had a good ride in today, but will not be going on the Wednesday night ride tonight. iding at CwmCarn on Friday I had an off on the bridge in the picture..basically a sidewind scuppered me mid flight, causing a slightly bikeless landing.. Oh well. Looks gloomy outside too..!

Training starts here

Airborne Blackbird
Originally uploaded by hairy_matt

So, after lots of huffing and puffing, I've finally kicked off my training program. Not quite the right photo as I actually went for a run, but I don't have any decent pictures of me running (apart from the Tough Guy, and they're too muddy).

This also marks the end of me using this blog as strictly a record of my rides to work, I've decided to use it more as a general training and photblog sorta thing.. Not that anyone actually reads this (hi Steve.. ) but just so you know.. ;-)

You what?

You what?
Originally uploaded by hairy_matt

Started on the long road of my multi-faceted training programme today. Got a run in april to train for, followed by an off-road coast to coast of wales, then a 12hr solo singlespeed MTB race and finally, the daftest MTB event in the world, the Mega-Avalanche.

So riding in this morning was a gentle way to start, but felt good nonetheless.

Wooo tired

Yesterday was hard. Singlespeed to work, then along the ridgeway to the Lewis, then little Garth, big Gart and Badger Avenue..

Another long gap...but I'm going to have to be more keen

Lovely cold and crisp ride in this morning, all good stuff. Been a while since I last rode in though, which won't do. I've entered the Bristol Bike Fest 12hr solo race, so I need to get in shape soon.. That and a week long coast to coast from north to south wales offroad in May..

Woohoo

We're up to twice a month for the ride in...stunning.

Nice morning actually, if it stays like this I might ride in Friday as well.. Nice.

Finally

Rode in yesterday, after a hell of a break.. Ride in ok, but home along the ridgeway was gopping! Thick claggy mud..