the hard work mapping out the route , and all you have to do is follow the navigator and enjoy the scenery and the ride . Mat and I were both running Sena 50 series communicators , meaning we could keep in communication and chat as we rode . And around 9am we hit the route . It wasn ’ t long before we were passed by Ben and Doug , both riding bikes with much more power than Mat or I . They set a good pace , stopping every 20-30km and waiting for us to catch up . Mat and I keeping up as much pace as we could on our 300cc and 250cc machines . The first 50km of the ride was very twisty and had a very ‘ Stelvio Pass ’ vibe to it , with hairpins and switchbacks . I was enjoying throwing the Baby GS into corners with a little too much speed , then just winding on the throttle to power through the gravel . Whenever we stopped to regroup or for a quick break , there were other riders doing
the same thing . Everyone seemed friendly and having fun , and keen to have a breather and a chat . All too soon though , the 330km of tarmac and gravel were done and we were back at the Martinborough Rugby clubrooms - back to beers , banter and many more lies . Dinner was all you could eat roast , followed by cheesecake for pudding . It went down very well and there were a lot of takers for seconds . So , that was my first navigation rallye . And it was excellent . It was brilliant to do such an event with mates , which made it so much more fun , but if I ’ m honest , you could show up to the event not knowing anyone and you would still have a ball meeting new people from all over the country . I ’ m not sure when the next one is yet , but when it is announced ... “ Hell yeah ! sign me up !”
72 KIWI RIDER