On the train from Greymouth to Christchurch.

We’ve been in Christchurch for a week now waiting for a part to arrive to fix my Brompton. Just as we were leaving our hostel in Greymouth, the Brompton felt REALLY wobbly. I hopped off and noticed much to my horror that the rear hinge wasn’t looking so great and the bike was unrideable. Fortunately, Greymouth was a fairly large town and had train service to Christchurch. We took the train and are now waiting for the parts to arrive. While startling, the mechanical isn’t trip-ending and should be easily fixed once we get the right part. (Note: a good idea to carry a spare hinge kit on long tours).


The sheared bolt head…

While welcomed and relaxing at first, we are starting to get a bit antsy and hope to get back on the road soon. I phoned into the courier service and the part (a countersunk bolt that holds the rear hinge of the Brompton together) is suppose to arrive early in the AM. With any luck, the folks at Cycle Trading will be able to get it sorted and we’ll be on a bus to Dunedin the next day. We’ve lost quite a bit of time so we are opting the bus option to make up some days. While not what we planned, we have to roll with the punches.


My loaner bike while in Christchurch!

The upside of all this waiting is that it has given us time to plan what we are going to do next as well as catch up on some other projects. I’ve had a few ideas for new shirts bouncing around in my head the last few weeks and have had time to get on the computer and design them. Even though in NZ, I’ve been keeping watching over the sad state of the transportation bill and have been thinking about how it will affect bicycle travel in the future. It’s sparked a few ideas for some bike advocacy related shirts, if for nothing else, to let off some steam.


Our friend Kristen on her first bike tour in NZ rocking a Zombie Apocalypse shirt!

Some of the shirts are just meant to show that cyclists are a real political force that cares and votes about issues. Check out our Car-ody shirts.

The other line of “Bicycles. You’re Welcome.” shirts point out some of the things we take for granted that were brought about by bicycles like paved roads, pneumatic tires and automobiles. A quick search on the Good Roads Movement will show that the first paved roads were advocated for by cyclists, counter to the all too common “roads are for cars” mantra. Roads for moving people in whatever form they choose.

As always, all shirt sales help keep our trip going. We really operate on a tight budget but still manage to write, photograph and film it all to share. If you want to support the site and need a new bike themed shirt, it’s a win-win : ) Check out T-Shirt Store here. We’re also about 50 people shy from reaching 5000 Facebook Fans. The 5000th person gets a free “Bicycles. You’re Welcome.” shirt!