As I slipped and slid down the dirt mountainside following Naomi to check out the looming plunge ahead I was thinking to myself, “This chick wants me to RIDE MY BIKE DOWN THIS?!? IS SHE NUTS?!?” Then, as I clamored back up the hill to my bike and pulled myself into position to drop, my question change to, “I’M GOING TO RIDE DOWN THIS?!? AM I FREAKING NUTS?!?”
Guess so.
At nearly 10PM the sun is still refusing to succumb to the surrounding mountains, marking the longest day of the year here in New Zealand. Taking full advantage of the summer solstice, a group of kick-ass locals decided to ride the Wynyard Downhill track – and somehow I managed to get an invite.
I had spent the morning leisurely waking up to the warming sun cascading upon Arrowtown – a small town on the South Island, and without a doubt, one of the most beautiful area’s I’ve ever seen. Nestled between several breathtaking mountain ranges, Arrowtown boasts a historical downtown that lies parallel to a quaint river that at the moment is host to thousands of beautiful wildflowers.
Adam and Gary had stayed the night (after we all stayed up watched a hilariously scary horror movie) at the house I was housesitting. Delighted to be hosting my first sleepover in months, I quickly set-to making apple-cinnamon pancakes and eggs…dyed blue and green just for fun! After the boys showed me how to eat properly with my knife and fork, the three of us spent a lazy afternoon in the sun before heading back to Queenstown.
After dropping the boys off I packed up my bike and headed to Wynyard. The five ladies joining me had varying levels of experience (i.e. Naomi -internationally ranked pro, Pip -a newbie like me). Despite never riding an expert-level downhill track, I excitedly followed the ladies as they charged down the street toward the beginning of the track. I didn’t even make it 10 feet past the dirt before realizing I had popped my tire on a silly curb of all things!
Not to be out-done, another rider named Sal had suffered the same misfortune. So the two of us patiently waited for a car-ride back down to make repairs. Never having done anything beyond putting a chain back on, I listened as Sal walked me through how to fix my tire. A quick drive to get new tubes and several laughs later, we were headed back up to the top of the course.
I spent one terrifying run on my own bike (suitable for some pretty mean cross country riding but not advanced downhill courses) before the girls took pity on me and began letting me demo their own bikes each run. I learned that a few thousand dollars makes a world of difference when riding sheer rock faces and rutted-out burms! I cautiously followed - trying not fall as Indra, Naomi and the others hit jumps and wood rails at speeds I only hope to reach someday.
A few runs down Naomi, whether on purpose or by mistake, led us into a section of the trail with three options:
A- go down a really steep 15 ft. drop followed by huge ruts.
B- go down a suuuper steep 15ft. drop followed by smoother ruts.
C- go down a steep, really technical 20 ft. drop full of lots of ruts.
I chose option B and somehow, through sheer determination not to chicken-out, made it down without crashing. At least the first time through!
After a few gloriously adrenaline-pumping runs (and not too many crashes by yours truly) the girls decided to call it a day. Not a bad end to the longest one of the year.
FUN FACT: If you ever feel like complaining about gas prices, come to New Zealand. Petrol (as they call it) can be priced at over $8.00 a gallon!!! 
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