26th-28th November 2004
Jason Kelly
Despite achieving the record relay time and being the first relay team home in 2003, over zealous officials had spoilt the event for me with unwarranted harassment of myself and my nephew. This, along with the most incompetent prize giving ever attended and the subsequent event decision to deliberately mis-record history in the results book by putting our relay team in second place behind a team never sighted on the road, made the event memorable for all the wrong reasons. With the bad memory of 2003 still fresh in my mind, the decision not to enter in 2004 was an easy one, especially once my brother, Patrick, had decided to complete the enduro and I volunteered to act as support for him.
With the December 130km Waihi “hilly” individual time trial with a reported 6km long plus hill, the January “Tour de Vineyards” and the infamous Takaka Hill being included at the end of the 130km third stage in that event and the Quality Autos Open with the third stage Te Mata Peak climb all looming, I felt a few good solid base kilometres were in order. So I set my own challenge - Friday - home to Taupo (165km), Saturday - one lap of Lake Taupo (160km) and Sunday - Taupo to home (165km) plus a few kilometres in between and so the Taupo 500km weekend was born.
The weather on the Friday was not particularly good - cold, showery and with a gusty south westerly. A pre-ride check found the back tyre of my GT training bike was flat so a change was required. Setting out in the required full winter gear, I made it about 10km into Flaxmere when the stem snapped and I ended up lying in the road next to a car and just in front of a bus. Luckily I was slowing down for the roundabout! A swollen wrist, bruises and scratches were the only physical damage. A quick phone call to Dad to give me a lift and the GT was taken to The Hub for some repairs.
Getting home, I rearranged the available bike wheels as Patrick was borrowing the set from my Litespeed for the Enduro. I soon set off again for Taupo on the Litespeed and made it successfully through the Flaxmere roundabout and out into the Taupo hills. On the first major climb, my foot came out of the pedal and I jammed it back in only for it to come out again. Spinning faster made it stay in! Reaching the top of a hill I stopped and looked to see one of the cleat screws had fallen out. There was only one way to go and that was to carry on ......
The wind was strong and gusty with a somewhat random direction. With only a few brief bursts of genuine tailwind, I carried on into Taupo. Other than crossing through a brief hail storm in the last 40km, the balance of the trip was uneventful. For the second attempt, I had spent 5hrs 47m on the bike and covered 167.8km from home to the motel. Stage 1 was complete.
Arising at 12.20am on Saturday morning, the sky was clear and the moon was bright. No rain and not much wind either at that time! The car thermometer read 8°C at the 1.30am start. Patrick headed off into the dark and I soon joined the convoy of support vehicles. The first riders were passed within 2km of the start line while the leaders twinkled like Christmas lights all up the road.
Night dreaming in the convoy, the cellphone suddenly rang and Patrick said he had broken a spoke. One of mine! Rushing up the convoy, I spotted him on the road side, which is no mean feat in the dark, and grabbed a replacement wheel for him. After managing to jamb his fingers in the car door, Patrick was away again and chasing the leading bunch. With him safely back in the bunch, I tried to move up the convoy to try and keep an eye on him but that was impossible - they all look the same from the back!
The outside temperature quickly dropped to 3°C and hit a recorded low of 0°C. I stopped for breakfast at 4.20am at a rest stop just as a super enduro rider came past with his support crew. They were encouraging him to continue as he had completed 250km and only had 250km to go!
The climb up Hatepe hill on the first lap was easy - the car just cruised up! I stopped near the top to see if Patrick needed any food or drink and stepped out into a frost. It was cold outside! Over the top of the hill, just three enduro riders were left out in front.
Closer to Taupo, I headed back to the motel to drop the car off and get on my bike to ride the 2nd lap with Patrick. He soon came along and I joined in the back of the remaining bunch of three riders. Passing through Taupo was a nightmare. The enduros' had to ride via Redoubt Street but, with the cars and cyclists taking no notice of traffic, this was simply crazy and dangerous. One of the enduro riders didn’t take this turn and another pulled out at the top of the control gates hill. This left just Patrick in front.
The roads were clear with little traffic as we started the second lap. With the Elite Race starting soon after we passed through Taupo, we hoped they didn’t catch us. The lead vehicle passed us just before they turned off so we never saw them. The wind began to pick up as we continued on our own. It was certainly a long way to the 80km mark!
With the wind in our faces, we hoped the solo riders would catch us to give us some respite. At about the 100km mark, they finally caught us. However, the bunch was large and unwieldy with chaotic riding - especially on the back. The number of drink bottles dropped and near crashes had to be seen to be believed. One rider rode straight into me and sent me sideways. Both Patrick and I thought I would be talking to the road again but somehow (from too many crashes perhaps?) I managed to stay upright. After a few punishing bunch surges, the pace settled down and we settled into the back with a tailwind on the homeward stretch.
We stayed with the bunch until Hatepe when they started to climb away. I cruised up to try and phone Patrick’s wife to tell her we weren’t far away. From the first lap I knew there was no cellphone coverage until the very top of the hill. Passing riders and then pulling off at the top to try and phone proved impossible - I couldn’t find the cellphone though it had been ringing just previously! Patrick soon went past so I pushed all the stuff back into my pockets and chased after him. We managed to get a small group together for the last few kilometres into Taupo.
With Patrick safely home and potentially in first place (we couldn’t see if any other enduro riders were part of the large front bunch), I headed off back into the wind to see where Mum and Dad were on their tandem. Looking at the time, the wind and listening to my legs, I soon abandoned that idea and drove out in the car! But, stage 2 was completed - 5hrs 33m for 165.5km on the road.
Heading home on Sunday morning was the final stage. I set off under cloudy skies with rain showers in front of me. Again the wind was variable with the odd tail push but mostly cross or head wind. The front wheel started making some funny noises and on closer investigation, it turned out the brakes were rubbing. I soon loosened those which made the next downhill a bit more exciting that I had envisaged!
I managed to miss all the showers and after climbing over the summit, was into the Hawkes Bay sun, almost warmth, headwind (what else?) and home. With about 10km to home, I stood up to pass a slow tractor to hear a painful “crack!” The bike stayed upright so I guessed it wasn’t the stem, handlebars (been there, done those), frame (done that twice on the GT) or the wheels (not a spoke!). Sitting down I found was uncomfortable so I rightfully concluded a seat rail had snapped (again.)
After a few more kilometres to enjoy the sunshine and warmth, despite the discomfort, I reached home having completed 173.4km in 6hrs 31m. The Taupo 500 was complete.
After the “near death” stem break and other damage (my front wheel also needed the bearings replaced and Patrick discovered his replacement wheel had cracks in the rim!), was it all worth while? Well, I didn’t have to attend yet another poorly executed and strung out Taupo prize giving and I did get some good base kilometres in with a few gentle hill climbs on the way................ And the race results? 3rd senior and 3rd overall in the Waihi time trial in 3hrs 44m 57s, 6th up Takaka Hill and 6th in GC in race 2 (Vet 1 & 2) in the Tour de Vineyards and 3rd on GC and 1st vet in the Quality Autos Open.
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