I’m not sure where to start this post today. I left Chirstchurch under a gray sky and a light drizzle coming down. I considered not leaving today and just posting that I had been delayed once again, perhaps that would have been a better route to have taken. I set out against better judgment thinking to myself W.W.S.D. and W.W.S.S. (What Would Shaun Do, he would tell me to man up and punch me telling me not to be a wuss,) (What Would Superman Say, he would say that not every day can be a sunny day so take what you can get) so taking these imagined words of wisdom to heart I decided to set out anyway. I made it as far as Hilltop which is right before Akaroa, probably about 10km from the town, I could actually see it from the cafe I stopped at. As soon as I left hilltop (aptly named since it rests at the top of a 475m hill) I got about 300m before my wheel spontaneously exploded (rear wheel of course.) I tried to save the fall and gently come to a stop, the only problem being I was already going 40km/hr so I managed to ditch the bike and take a sharp blow to my shoulder and chest which i’m sure tomorrow will sport a most manly black bruise. The wheel on the other hand is a parabola now, not round by any stretch of the imagination, sigh.
Now for the bright side of things. I crossed the road and stuck out a thumb to get back into Christchurch since the chances of me getting the bicycle fixed in Akaroa was nil. The first person that drove by stopped! That is incredible, Bryant and I had a nice chat while he took me back to Thornton Grange (where I’m wwoofing) and dropped me off there. They are sorta okay with having me back for a little while but they have another wwoofer coming in a few days. So I’ll probably get my stuff back to Christchurch and hang out in a hostel for a few days while i get things sorted out. I think of that as another silver lining, the fact that this happened so close to Christchurch. Anywhere else and I would have been up a creek with no way to get this properly fixed. I’m also glad that I have the panniers as I think they saved the bike from further damage (along with myself to some extent I believe.) I managed to walk away with just about no scratches which is also a bonus as the last time I took a spill like this it required 9 stitches to fix.
I took a few pictures of the tyre but my camera is acting up (I hope it wasn’t injured in the fall.) But i’ll try and post them tomorrow. It sucks to get so close to a goal and have to turn around, oh well… once I get this tyre sorted I’ll make another attempt.