Cold Kiwi is on for 2018 and due to worsening condition of the ground surface at the Horopito site the rally has been at for the past few years the Ruapehu Motorcycle Club decided to pull out of the Horopito site and have secured a new site only 2km from Waiouru.
Information on the new site can be found on the Cold Kiwi website: http://coldkiwi.co.nz/map/?mc_cid=dacb50ed9f&mc_eid=61287531ff and you can also prebook tickets for the rally there.
I’m tempted to go again this year. I went the first year of the Horopito site and didn’t like it but a new site might be worth checking out. I know @Jake Maryniak is interested also.
I went to the Horopito site last year and what a bloody mess that site turned out to be. Didn’t inspire me to go back that’s for sure. Lets hope the new site just west of Waiouru is much much better.
I have been to the last 9 of the Cold Kiwi rallies. The Horopito site was a definite step down and 3 years ago it was a ridiculous mud bog.
I’ll be going to the new site this year and hoping that it is a big improvement.
I know that the numbers have been down recently and the club has been losing money, hopefully the new site will help to turn things around.
I’m giving this a go – the first time. Leaving from Auckland (Carbon Garage?) mid-morning on the Friday. Will take the big 1190R.
Is anyone going down to the Cold Kiwi from Hamilton/Waikato area?
I’m not able to go due to my health but I’d be keen to give someone a pile of Adventure Riding NZ business cards that they could leave on ADV bikes as they wander around the rally site.
@MarkH?
The weather forecast isn’t looking the best, but I’ll still be going. I guess I could give out a bunch of business cards for you.
So it looks like I’m going now. When are you heading down?
The weather forecast seems to be a bit better now, however not sure I can make it any more, typical 🙁
Bike is mostly packed up. Who’s getting there early to nab a fire drum for the ADVNZ crew? @MarkH? I won’t be there till after 5pm tomorrow.
I’ve got a small banner to hang out when I get there.
Gotta work today, hoping to crack through and finish super early and be able to leave Morrinsville ~11am.
I’ve visited 5 of today’s customers yesterday to help speed things up. The only negative factor is that I’m using a borrowed truck because the clutch is completely effed on the normal truck. Heading off to work in a few minutes time, hoping everything goes smoothly!
I took off from Hamilton at about 1:30pm in light rain and passing Cambridge I got absolutely dumped on, however just a few km further along the road and the sun came out and stayed that way for the rest of the trip to Waiouru.
Stopped in Taupo for a few minutes to get some cash.
and I stopped again in Taihape at Burger King and this little fella tried to steal my lunch. I’ve not seen one like this before.
Arrived at the new Cold Kiwi site and set up next to @MarkH.
The mountain was looking great
The evening dew had frozen on the bikes seat by 8pm and was still there at 8am Saturday morning
Looking down towards the bar and food caravans
There were some interesting bikes there
Mix and match of a few different bikes
Powered by an early VFR750 motor
The amount of adventure bikes at the rally was impressive, no longer few and far between it seemed like every group had at least one adventure bike in it.
The new site comprises of a number of mostly flat tiers on a hill so there was plenty of places to put up a tent with the bar and food at the first level, Toilets a little up from that then 2 layers of camping. There’s now very strict rules around alcohol at the event with consumption limited to within the bar area and no BYO due to the events license conditions.
Unfortunately for me by early Saturday afternoon I had walked down to the bottom of the site and back up 3 times and due to how M.E/Chronic Fatigue Syndrome affects me it was easier for me to ride home than it was to stay there and have to walk down the hill and back up later on for dinner and the band etc so I packed upthe bike and road back to Hamilton enjoying the sun all the way.