5000 rpm . I made it up the easy line without even blinking — no wheel spin , no fuss , just straight up . A massive confidence boost for what was to come . Truth be told , I was running full knobbly tyres and riding a much lighter bike than most others there on the day . We stopped to help the rest of the riders up the wall . The only ones who struggled were either running less aggressive tyres , lacking commitment , or a mix of both . The next challenge was a series of corners with deep rain ruts and 4WD holes . You really need to commit or pick your line carefully . I took the far outside right for the first corner , crossing over midway up - something I ’ d definitely avoid on a bigger bike - but the Beta handled it with ease . At this point , I was starting to get cocky . For the rest of the ride , I found I didn ’ t need to pick my line as carefully as I would on the Tenere . Just point and shoot , ride the bumps , and keep the throttle open . It takes a bit of the challenge out of it , but it really is like playing with a cheat code .
I ’ d ridden from home in Silverstream to the top of Akatarawa Road , down to the hut , and back ; around 70km in total . And I still had about 30km to get home . I figured it would have to be a very gentle ride to conserve fuel , which suited me fine since the road was wet , and I was on full knobblies anyway . Still , I had no choice but to ride back to the nearest fuel station , in Upper Hutt . To cut a long story short , the engine coughed just as I pulled into my driveway . Now I know — 94km is about the limit on one tank of fuel . Now , if only I could find the cheat code for unlimited fuel and tyre wear . That would be nice , wouldn ’ t it ?
UP NEXT I ’ m now looking at gearing the Beta up for light adventure duty , perhaps with some luggage options and a bigger fuel tank . Watch this space . I ’ ve got a feeling this summer ’ s going to be a good one .
A NEW CHALLENGE We were making excellent time . Normally , the trip from the car park to the hut and back is a full-day adventure . We made it to the hut in just over an hour . I didn ’ t realise it , but this is where my challenge was just starting . We rode past the hut , down across the river , and explored further along the trail , stopping about 1.5km beyond the hut as the trail had almost completely washed away . I checked my fuel level ... and started to feel a bit nervous . I ’ ve never actually tested to see how far the Beta could go on a full tank of gas . A bit of maths suggests about 100km should be doable , but looking at the fuel level , I started to wonder if I ’ d make it home . We turned back up the trail , and I didn ’ t exactly ride conservatively . I ’ m much faster when I have someone in front of me to chase , so I stuck to the tail of the guy on the Six Days . It was a blistering ride back to the car park , loads of fun , but as I pulled back onto Akatarawa Road , I glanced down to see the fuel light glowing ominously .
76 KIWI RIDER