Bike Riding in Wanaka

I'm not doing anything like the level of serious point-to-point bike riding in Wanaka with William the Conqueror that I'd do if I'd brought my full-sized touring bike Sir Gulliver. However, I have managed a few rides.

Yesterday was the first really sunny day in Wanaka, so I celebrated by first riding out of town to the right, and lying on a park bench at Eely Point, a little finger of land that juts out into Lake Wanaka, and gives you nice views of tussocked green brown mountains all around. Later I rode to the left of town, about 12km on the Mt Aspiring Road, as far as the motor camp in Glendu, a mountain + lake setting so beautiful you can't believe it's real. This road, also known as the Matukituki Valley road leads to a long dirt road, and eventually to the Rob Roy Glacier hike. It's a roller coaster of a road, and I found it pretty tiring, given the heat, and the normal headwind involved, though, laughably lightweight in comparison to what any fully committed touring cyclist faces when riding the West Coast.

I thought about riding up SH6 to Makarora, but it's a series of super roller coasters. The SH89, to Cardona then Queenstown is also likely a butt buster.

I've just been contenting myself with hanging around in Wanaka's cafes, and snatching up any copies of the Otago Times or Christchurch newspaper [name forgotten]. Today's Otago Times had a scary article about some 24y0 woman who killed 3 cyclists last November, basically by spinning out of control into a group ride. The story recounts the tearful courtroom presentation by the son of one of the three killed, about the experience. It's a bizarre and gruesome tale, involving a quote like this: "when I was home that night I washed people's body parts off." WTF?! What I find interesting is that apparently all the relatives of the victims petitioned the judge and apparently don't want this driver jailed.

This to me is astonishing. Such forgiveness of reckless driving? I guess there is no punishment in New Zealand for being stupid. Heavens above, yesterday, on the Glendu road, I saw two locals, one driving a truck with empty trailer behind, take a shoulderless corner so fast, two wheels were in the dirt, kicking up gravel and sticks. Given the fact that 30 minutes earlier, I'd been riding in that exact spot on my bike, this caused me some concern. I'm sure that, in person, drivers of both these vehicles are perfectly nice people. But they were driving recklessly and apparently people just throw up their hands here, as in "what can you do" mode.

What is it about this acceptance of such totally avoidable and totally stupid road behavior that I don't get? It's not as if there is any big important place these drivers need to get to in such a hurry. This is the South Island of New Zealand. I still think people are outnumbered by sheep here. Perhaps its sheep driving then?

Duh.