You have to admire anyone setting off on an 7 day cycle event, covering around 100km day. So we’re in awe of all those who took part in the this year’s Tour of New Zealand – a punishing enough event even without the bad weather that accompanied a lot of the race.
Many of those taking part were raising money for Bikes in Schools, and we are extremely grateful to all of them for their efforts. We’ve featured a couple of them on our Facebook page already, like Ross and the two high performance KPMG teams. (above, kitted out in the Bikes in Schools caps)
There was also journalist Rod Oram and the hardworking Team Akina, Rod (above) used the event to perfect a technique he calls “ride management” – a technical term for just getting to the finish line in one piece. We’re very glad he and his team did!
Thanks also to Anna and the stylish team from Tea Total – good job! Hopefully they can now enjoy a well deserved cup or two. We gave a shout out last week to Gabby and the wonderful Spinstars team (below) Like true stars they not only stormed the route, but also took advantage of an unscheduled day off on the final day in Wellington to get their nails done. We like your style, Spinstars!
Well done to Kiwi Coffee / Amstrong Prestige (minus Simon, who unfortunately crashed out before the event started with a broken collarbone). They claim that “Cyclists are like bananas – the older the get the less the firm they are” – but we reckon they will have firmed up nicely after 800kms even if they do feel slightly older.
Thanks also to the three lovely couples from team Studio on Ridge Lifestream, and the very cool Uncoachables
And last but not least, thanks also to these very hard working individuals from us all at Bikes in Schools: Amy, Damien, John, Kaye, and Stuart
Together these teams and individuals have raised an amazing $25,000+ for Bikes in Schools! We’re not a big charity and an amount like this truly makes a difference, and really helps our work getting more kids on bikes across New Zealand. Maybe one day some of those kids will be cycling in the tour too.
Thank you so much everyone
Jeremy Rose from the Sunday Morning programme paid a visit to Hastings recently as part of his report on “Bikeconomics” – the contribution cycling makes to the economy.