e-biking Tour Aotearoa

I did it, I enjoyed it
- thanks to my e-bike!

The maps below show where I stayed each night, charging my bike battery while I charged my own batteries with a good night's sleep.

These are some tips that I would like to share with you:

 It is much more fun if you start off reasonably fit so that you can pedal the flat bits easily enough if you have to save on battery power. I depended the Kennett Brothers Official Guidebooks to plan my days and using the elevation sketches to anticipate and manage my battery powered ride. Kennett Brothers

I booked my accommodation ahead of time, ensuring I could store my bike safely.Take a safety lock for ease of mind. My Specialized 22 Turbo Tero battery was easy enough for me to remove. Thanks to MEC Bikes in Ellerslie for a great bike recommendation.  mecbikes

Travel light

Pack lightly, the more weight your bike has to carry, the more power you will need. I did not take a tent with me, confident I had a place to stay each night.

 Essential bits of clothing were gloves, a raincoat and ear warmers. I kept a set of ‘first layer’ clothes in a dry bag. Mine were Icebreaker leggings, a long-sleeved top, socks and a puffer jacket. This also doubled up as my ‘going out’ outfit. (I clearly was not going anywhere, flash) I wore trail shoes. These are light and dried off easily after a wet day.

 I had two waterproof bags tied together on the rear rack. One with my clothes and a quick drying towel. The other with toiletries, food, phone charger and my well-loved kindle. I slipped into my slides after a big day out, bliss!

 I had a bag tied to the front handle bars where I kept my heavy battery charger to even out the weight distribution on my bike. I also had my raincoat in there for easy access.

 In my snack pack, I had lip balm, small sunscreen (make sure to protect the back of your legs as well), money and a phone battery power bank.

Besides snacks, I always carried an EPIRB (emergency position indicating radio beacon) in my hi-vis vest. Luckily having walked and biked the length of New Zealand, I have never needed to use it.

To anticipate traffic coming up behind me, I had a rear-view mirror tied to my handle bar . On top of my helmet,I had a small, rear facing flashing light.

  Optional extras that I had attached to my bike were flat paddle hand grips and a bike stand. The e-bike is quite heavy to pick up or lean against something. My bike has tubeless tires.

 The Quad Lock secured my iPhone on my handle bars, which I regularly checked using the OsmAndMaps app showing the Tour Aotearoa route. Thank you to the Kennett Brothers.

A final note is to please show consideration to other travellers and service providers along the way. Especially those that allow you to top up your battery while you are having a lunch break.