South Island Adventures and the Coast to Coast to Come
Rob Howard / 10.02.2010
The intrepid Welsh cycling pair Maria Leijerstam and Tori James are now half way through their journey of South Island, New Zealand.They took a break from their bikes at Methven to rest their heads but ended up with their heads in the clouds when they took part in an unexpected sky dive!
It was supposed to be a day of relaxation but leaping out of a plane at 12,000ft was an adventure they couldn't resist. They have also spent their 'relaxation' day baling hay and meeting the Governor General of New Zealand, Sir Anand Satyannand in Christchurch.
Now it's back to business as Maria trains for the Speight's Coast to Coast race, supported by Tori, which begins on Friday, February 13th. Maria describes the challenge ahead;
<i>When I first began to chat to Kiwis out here about the fact that I was going to be competing in the Speights C2C, I was a little perturbed about the fact that most would say. “You will find it very tough, good luck to youâ€. I later found out that the statistics for Internationals finishing the race is very very low and having now been over most of the course I can see why!
I caught my first glimpse of the Waimak Gorge almost 2 weeks ago as we cycled over the Gorge heading for Methven. It was crystal clear aqua blue and running at quite some pace. A few days later I had my first experience on the river in the boat that I would be competeing in. Basic skills training completed and I was ready for my full day on the river.
The next day I went back and experienced the real thing. Grade two + is when wave trains meet bluffs which meet shingle banks that cause random boat movement I can now see that capsizing is a real possibility. A few wobbly moments and a lot of nervous energy later we had completed the majority of the course in 5 hrs 30 mins including a few sightseeing stops. If I can get around 6hrs on the day, I’ll be a happy girl!
The next vital stage of our race recce saw Tori and I head up to the running section. We checked the transitions at Aitkens and Klondyke Corner in detail and set off up the left bank of the Deception river, in search of some good short cuts. Again, this is not like the running we do in the UK over the Lake District. It is up a river, hopping from boulder to boulder and crossing a rushing torrent of water every 10 minutes. If you don’t face up hill and lean into it you’ll get washed away. (And this has been a particularly dry year!).
I am nervous and excited. I can’t wait to get started. I’ve been told I need to remove my competitive nature and focus on going ‘my speed’ to complete the course. I think these are very wise words!</i>
You can follow the progress of Tori and Maria at <a href="#" onClick="javascript:newsitewindow('http://www.girlsbikenewzealand.com/')" class="main"> www.girlsbikenewzealand.com/</a>.
