Biking the Queen Charlotte Track

Rule number one in mountain biking: Stay in control. This is easier said than done when you're riding a narrow dirt track littered with rocks and roots, featuring numerous twists and turns and undulations, with a steep drop-off on one side. The word nerve-wracking comes to mind. I'd been on a mountain bike a couple of times before, including once on this trip, but I count this as the first time I've ever truly been mountain biking. On Thursday, Amanda and I split from the rest of the group for a few days of mountain biking in the Marlborough Sounds area. The first day, we went out for a short ride along the Queen Charlotte Track, which borders the Queen Charlotte Sound. Luck was not with Amanda that afternoon and she fell three times, scraping up her knee and leg in the process. We turned back a bit early and called it a day. The next day, we set out with our guide, Aaron, for a full day of cycling. Again, we mounted our mountain bikes but this time we stuck to the road. More on that bit later. By the afternoon, we'd reached another entrance to the track. Amanda said she'd be happy to walk the track while Aaron and I rode it. I honestly wasn't sure how well I'd do, based on my brief taste of true mountain biking the day before, but I wanted to give it a try and see how much I really could do. I expected to ride the first section and eventually to hit my limit and walk the rest. Friends, I'm so happy to say that I rode the whole thing! True, there were a handful of spots where I got off and walked my bike for a minute to avoid particularly rooty, rocky, or steep bits (sometimes all those adjectives were together), but otherwise, I rode that entire 13-km section of the track. Woot! It was harrowing and nerve-racking to be sure. Many times I felt my heart beating quickly in my chest with fright. It was very hard to wrap my mind around the fact that I wasn't going to wipe out going over rocks or even just rough dirt, like I would have on my road bike. I had to learn to trust that the mountain bike could and would handle terrain that I would never dream of approaching on my skinny-tired road bike. When we reached the end, where the paved road picked up again, I felt an enormous sense of accomplishment. I'd done something I wasn't sure I could do, and done it pretty well for a novice too! I was so proud of myself for trying it in the first place, for pushing through my discomfort, and for finishing what I started. I've done some amazing things on this trip and every day has been terrific. However, I think yesterday might be my best day yet. I spent it on a bike (riding 40 km total, about 25 miles), the weather was perfect, the scenery pretty enough to make you cry, and I accomplished something hard that I hadn't expected to be able to do. Thanks again, New Zealand.