A beautiful day ideal weather, a bit of wind which thankfully was either a cross wind or even better, a tail wind when ascending a few challenging hills! The climbs were vicious especially the last – but a few kilometres from the finish and as I rounded the sharp corner to see before me an incline of 16%… physiologically and more to the point, psychologically, I got off and walked as did more than half the others who were to a man, half my age! So I was not unduly ashamed. 



My one disappointed was that the route only followed the actual ocean road for the minority of the ride! I have of course travelled this road along its length at least three or four times! Once for 10 days the year that I brought my new Olmo bike only laid to rest this year – it’s carbon frame slowly turning to diamond. And a couple of times by car and then lastly by camper van about 5 years ago