Skip to main content.
Bikes. Parts. Chaos.
Safety
Begin typing to search, use arrow keys to navigate, click or press Enter to select an item.
So, Singlespeed Worlds 2010 has come and gone and Trevor and I are back in the saddle at Surly Intergalactic Headquarters. To say I am excited to be back for the start of winter when New Zealand is just starting summer would be a flat out fabrication of the truth.
The venue in Rotorua was fantastic, a cool little town with more bike shops per capita than sheep (maybe):
Left side view of sheep crossing a gravel road, with a tree on the right, and mountains in the background
 
Epic trails a short ride from town.

Front view of a cyclist, riding a Surly bike between 2 trees, on a dirt trail in a sunny forest

Rear view of a cyclist, riding straight away, on a dirt trail in a pine tree forest

Left side view of a cyclist, riding a Surly bike over a stack of fallen trees, on a dirt trail in the forest

 

Lakes!

Overlook view of a bay on a lake, with small islands, and forest all around

 
And the unmistakable aroma of sulfur (lots of geothermal activity and hot springs to soak away a long days ride – nice!)
Side view of people sitting across from each other, in an outdoor hot tub that's shaded by trees
 
As I think back on our trip, it occurs to me that I had many firsts on this trip  --  first blog post (and after The Man reads it, likely my last), first time in New Zealand... hell, my first time south of the good ol’ equator,
Yeah, it pretty much sucked.
Downward view of a person laying in a watery hole on a beach, with a couple people laying in a sandy pit near them
Beach view of the ocean during sunset, with the sun peeking through the clouds
 
It was also my first time driving on the left hand side of the road in a right side drive van.  It didn’t take me as long to adjust as I thought but I continued to almost get creamed while crossing the street walking (always looking the wrong way for traffic).
View from behind the steering wheel of a car that's facing straight away on a roadway, with warehouse buildings ahead

 

It was my first Single Speed Worlds.  My first real race ever, as a matter of fact.  Although, to be honest, to say I was racing would be a total lie – I got lapped by the winner for god’s sake but I did participate and I’m framing the number plate!

Right side view of a cyclist, wearing a dress and riding a Surly bike, on a dirt trail in a forest with people watching

(yeah, that's me right before I did something like this:)

Front, right side view of a cyclist, wearing a dress and riding a Surly bike, straight into a large mud puddle

Downward view of a cyclist that went over their bike's handlebars, and are now laying face down in a large mud puddle

Many folks took a swim but $Trevor had no problems.

Front, right side view of a cyclist splashing through water, as they ride their blue Surly bike in a forest

Neither did Animal.

Front, right side view of a cyclist, wearing a costume head of a Muppets TV show character, riding thru a mud puddle

· First time eating Mussels – everyone said the fresh Green Mussels in New Zealand are the best. Trevor had to eat more than his share as I didn’t care for them.

Chest up view of a person wearing a black Surly shirt, front of a rock cliff wall, with a mussel in their mouth

 

· First time having fresh fish and chips takeaway on the beach, wrapped up in newspaper—damn, fresh Snapper or Tarahiki is good!  Ummmm....

· First time meeting our New Zealand distributor David from Cycle Supplies.  David went above and beyond making us feel welcome and playing tour guide.

Left side view of a person standing on a cliff edge, high above a city that's along an ocean shore

Downward, rear view of people standing on a rocky ledge, looking down at the ocean

Left side view of a blue Surly bike, hanging from a fence crossover with a cyclist on top, with hills and a lake behind

 

· First “Booze Cruze” with the boys from T White’s bike shop in Auckland. It is nice to see they fuck shit up down under the same as in the states!

Rear view of cyclists standing with their bikes, busting through a fence panel with a house and trees behind it

Right side view of a person, wearing a costume mask over their head, setting wood on a burning campfire in a pit

 People wearing costumes, standing in a grass field, above a pit with a bonfire in it

Right side view of a person riding a bike, wearing a yellow costume, striking a piñata, on grass at night

Downward, front view of a person wearing a costume, laying on grass, next to their bike at night

Yep, that's blindfolded bike piñata.

If you are still reading at this point...well, my god, what is wrong with you?  But ...uh... thank you.
 
I’d like to thank Jeff from Kiwi Bikes and the Rotorua crew for putting on an awesome event, David from Cycle Supplies, Tim and crew from T White’s bikes, and Jessie for the floor to crash on. 
 
If you’ve never been, get to New Zealand. If you’ve never been to a SSWC, get yourself to Ireland next year-you won’t regret it!