Martinborough 2012

First ride to Martinborough for the year.  Easy peasy. Lemon squeezy.  Hmmm.  Nearly.

I rode over via the Ponatahi route/Mushroom Factory route.  The hills I used to find easy were not so easy today.  Took me about an hour and a half to get there.

Following lunch, and packing my backpack with granny smiths, tomatos and passionfruit from Mr and Mrs Strawhouse, I decided to come back via Greytown, as its a slightly easier ride.

I got just out of Greytown and then viola - a flatty on my back wheel.  So I changed it, got the tyre in, and was feeling pretty pleased, except even though I had a pump I couldn't pump it up.  Buggar.  I'm subsequently managed to pump it up now I am home with the floor pump,  but the floor pump is not an option when on the road.

So at least I know I can change a tyre now.  I just need to be able to also pump the tyre up on the road
 ;-/  All part of the rite of passage of becoming a "real cyclist"

I actually couldn't get the tyre back on for ages, and then realised one of the caps was missing.  I guess out of neccesity I perhaps would have eventually worked out how to pump the tyre up on the road.

Mrs Strawhouse came and picked me up and took me and the bike home.  Lucky that was an option today. 

As for the stats, well I was keeping those until I broke down - something like 60km, average speed about 19km, and RPM about 65- 70.  Bordeline stats.  The thing is I got back on the bike, and now I just need to master the last step of changing the tyre and it should give me more confidence for riding on the rural roads.