It has been pretty easy except in Hinds where I got stuck for 1 and half hours. I was on a 50km zone next to the dairy but people just drove past. Yesterday I was in Kaikoura and waited for 30 minutes and then shifted to another spot where I got a lift in minutes.
big.b-lil.c,
Mar 18, 4:30pm
i cant help. good luck and stay safe
thejazzpianoma,
Mar 18, 7:00pm
Hi Gadgetman, I can't help you this time aroundbut if you do another similar ride in future I may be available as a full time support driver, just depends what else I have going on at the time. Best of luck with it, your a real inspiration and I hope you get a ride sorted soon.
hijacka,
Mar 18, 8:08pm
GO GO GADGET THUMB! LMAO!
franko171,
Mar 19, 2:05am
good luck
gadgetman,
Mar 25, 12:43am
This TM messageboard is not the best for getting replies back as there is no reply to email. Yes I am stronger and can do 3 times the distance in one day than I could do when I started 4 months ago! it is easy to improve from 5 to 10 km/day. I should take tape measurements of my legs but seeing the results on my GPS log seems enough. AKL still a few months away with my speed. 20 km day average plus there are the off days for rest and rain etc. Quake got me in CHCH so i had a week off :)
gadgetman,
Mar 25, 12:50am
My trike is not dangerous, I would argue it is safer than two wheeled bicycles and yes I have the big flag and mirrors.
The stupid or unpatient drivers are the dangerous ones. Today I was followed with a paparazzi, a foreign guy on Apex rental car. He passed 3 times taking video with a camera while driving and last pass he decided to drive towards me on my lane and as I turned looking back he almost hit another vehicle. He swerved back to left lane just in time! He must have been a foreigner who is used to drive on right side of the road. I got his rego and reported to *555 (Police) and Apex rental company.
gadgetman,
Apr 13, 5:34pm
South Island is on the bag :) North Island next. I started on the south coast of Wellington and as I had no support drivers and hitch hiking in City would be hard, I have ridden my trike from A to B and then back to my van from B to A. So now I am in Wellington City and heading up North. I could try hitch hiking again once I am in Porirua perhaps!
pcguitarist,
Apr 13, 6:01pm
No offense.but this trip seems extremely unplanned, traveling to point B, then trying to find a wayback to point A to drive to point B.then repeating.
gadgetman,
Apr 15, 4:08pm
Yes that is the challenge and that is the way I like it. I do not have a crystal ball so I do not know what is ahead of me. I have to work with the constraints of my pain after having had spinal injury. I never know what can I do on the day so I have to take the days as they come. Another thing is that because I have no luxury of support driver I have to find a way to cross the bridge when I get there. I would be happy to have some nice female 30-something support driver with me but no such luck ;) Too much planning would make the journey stressful and harder for my body. I did not plan to have an earthquake in Christchurch on 22 February, but that did delay my journey for a week as I took some time off from my journey. All good and it is safer this way as I can delay riding some sections for less busy times.
gadgetman,
Jun 3, 6:17pm
Yesterday I was in the middle of Desert Road near Tukino skifield turnoff onthe rest area to start my ride in the morning. I knew it was going to be a challenge to get rides there. So I left my van there and cycled 17 km to next rest area beside a river by that sharp bend on the road. Before that I met with a police officer directing traffic because of a recent landslip. So I was able to get a ride with him back to my van. Then drove my van to my trike, had my lunch and replaced the bulging tire which luckily did not explode when I did close to 60km/h on one dowhill.
gadgetman,
Jun 3, 6:28pm
Then yesterday afternoon I decided to do differen tactic as I did not want to leave my van behind as I was bit worried about getting a ride in dark back to my van. So this tine I drove my van to Turangi 25km away scouting the route along the way. In Turangi I spotted two NZ Army trucks and the officers outside Shell. I had to convince the Sergeant Major to give me a ride as he said we do not take hitch hikers. The 6-wheel drive Austian made Panzgauer truck was built for strength and was noisy as but I was happy to get a ride so soon as my ride back took couple of hours as there was few uphills.
nickolaz,
Jun 3, 7:20pm
On the 20th of this month I'll be driving from Dunedin to Kaikoura. And coming backl the 27th or 28th, I don't know if this helps at all.
zirconium,
Jun 4, 2:11am
Good on you gagetman! Jazz doesn't sound quite like he fits your requirements for support driver, wishing you all the best. :)
gadgetman,
Jun 7, 8:10pm
I am already on the North Island so SI is in the bag. Today at half way between Welly and AKL according to roadsign.
gadgetman,
Jan 18, 9:20pm
I am doing a charity ride on my recumbent trike supported with my self-contained campervan. At the moment I am my own support driver so I ride my bike up the road first and then hitch a ride back. I am in Mackenzie Country at the moment and distances between towns are long so hitching proves difficult. Tourists are not picking me up unless I can talk to them first to explain my mission. Yesterday I did get a ride from Twizel to Omarama on a tour bus half full of Chinese as I had a chance to talk to the driver at Salmon Farm car park :) To see that I am genuine, read this: http://www.odt.co.nz/news/queenstown-lakes/143095/crown-range-comeback-paralysed-pedalling
gadgetman,
Oct 4, 7:46am
This afternoon I am planning to ride from Twizel to the Mt Cook lookout and hope to get a lift back to my van in Twizel from there. Forecast is for southernly wind later this afternoon which should help me I hope.
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