Mario Kart - it's real!

It's our last day in Rotorua. If ever you come here and are looking for an adrenaline rush, you should go try Mario Cart.

I guess because Nintendo has a copyright on the name, the folks in Rotoru call it a mountain luge, but the premise is the same. Picture from the website:

It's a lot like the video game, but of course, there are no free lives and you could easily do bodily harm. However, we thought it was a blast. (Not cheap, but then nothing here is.)

Don't mistake the smiling parents above though, i'm sure it causes heart attacks just as frequently as road rash.

In fact, if you're in need of toughening your kids up, this could be a great way to do that. Just stuff them in the sled and give it a kick. The sound of their screams will soon fade into the distance.

Above is the tracks and below is SP trying on the helmet of some unfortunate child who needed toughening up:

We didn't manage to get any pictures of us actually on the sleds (two hands requires for driving), but here we are on our way back up the mountain for a subsequent ride.

(That's PDA, not me holding on for dear life.)

Again, highly recommended, health insurance required. As for other Rotorua attractions:

1) The Saturday morning market was the best value for souvenirs.

2) We visited wai-o-tapu, it's a bit out of town, but has everything from large geysers to very smelly mud pools. We didn't go to any of the ones closer to town. Frankly, visiting one thermal park was enough.

3) Bike around the lake. This is a cycling friendly town both for road and mountain bikers. But the wind and pavement can be challenging.

4) Cook Hangi. SP cooked an awesome lamb stew last night using a giant geothermal oven. Where else can you do that?

Hangi. It's like crockpot, only the jokes are better.

Hey, SP, how's your hangi?


Tomorrow we're visiting the Gannets in Cape Kidnappers.

Triathlon Relay Team Names

Looks like next year I'll be taking part I'm the inaugural Challenge Penticton. My girlfriends S and K are doing the swim and run respectively and I'm on the hook for the run.

Forget training plans, transitions or anything else related to getting ready, the most important part of any relay triathlon is picking the team name.

So today we have been back and forth with names, tonight we're getting our mom's to vote - but until then, any suggestions? What's your favorite?


--You just got chicked...
--The Tritaniums
-Challenge Accepted
-Run Ginger Run
-Flying Red Heads
-The Trifectas
Tri-XX
The Triceratops
... and we can cook
Team Triage
Team Challenged Chicks
Team Discovery Channel
The Tri-Sexuals
The Guild of Calamitous Intent
Go Team Venture
Sabrina's McRideOuts

Cycling the "Adventure Capital of the World"

I've been perusing the Lonely Planet book "Cycling New Zealand" lately. The book continuously requests cyclists to avoid the city of Auckland proper. After having been here for a few days though, I'm not exactly sure why.

The book is aimed at lowest common denominator cycling, you know, those folks that think the granny gear is always the optimum selection.

But really, despite the boring exterior, this city does have a Portlandia feel to it (flight of the concords, anyone?) Cycling should be second nature. They also seem to have more coffee shops per capita than Seattle, no small feat.

Surly Aucklanders know that the little flag sticking out of the top of the recumbent creates high visibility and also that those riders of fixie brakeless conversions can't actually slow down. (Why on earth would you want to do that?)

So as a well provisioned triathlete (more on that later) I could certainly safely navigate these streets.

Auckland has a bit of old world charm. Cobblestones grace many streets. Though instead of granite they are a slippery volcanic basalt. And the curbs continuously vary in height, making it entertaining to watch pedestrians trip into the streets.

Back to the old world charm, city engineers circa 1860 built single lane roads and later they simply repainted the lines to make them two lanes, without adjusting the width. That makes perfect sense of course. The shoulders of roads just accumulate rift raft anyways. If you're a seasoned commuter from a city like London or Paris, these sidewalk free roads will relieve some homesickness for you.

But none of this should deter the optimistic cyclist. As long as commuter angst makes you feel alive, you should have no problems here.

Auckland drivers see things from a different POV. As a cyclist, you must be OK taking your life into your own hands and aggressive drivers are simply helping you get that adrenaline rush you've been seeking. Or you can think about this from a scientific POV. You have a cyclist, a caffeine crazed driver, six traffic lights per intersection and finite space. Just remember to look left.

My solution to these things is that drivers should just slow down and share the road (which I think is a charmingly Canadian way of looking at it.) I therefore encourage riders to take to the streets of Auckland. They have a highly accredited hospital right downtown and it is "the adventure capital of the world" after all.

-E

Two tips for Cold Weather running and cycling

Though we have had one of the most spectacular September’s on record, the mornings are starting to get a bit crispy. Below are the two most important tips I’ve learned about appropriate gear for cold weather running and cycling. Remembering these two items will save your day:

1. Gloves before sleeves
• In principle, your core normally warms up pretty well once you start running or cycling. You should generally think about adding gloves or booties before considering extra layers on your core. So if you find yourself at the door contemplating a jacket or arm warmers, remember the gloves first. In fact, most of the time if you don’t have gloves on, you don’t need long sleeves either. 
• As a rule of thumb, if it’s below 10’C outside, I wear gloves.
  
2. Standing runners get cold, standing cyclist don’t
• If you are standing around in your running gear outside, you should get cold. If you’re not getting cold, then you’re overdressed and you should take a layer off. 
• Cycling is different. If you can stand around outside fairly comfortably in your cycling gear, you’ll probably be fine on the road. If you’re getting cold, add another (wind resistant) layer. 

E.