The Countdown is On - Preparation and (some) Training
Kia ora koutou,
Today is the first day of winter and in a little over 3 weeks, on 25 June, Laurence and I will pedal away from Cape Reinga, the most northerly point in Aotearoa/New Zealand and a place sacred to North Island Māori. Soon after we’ll drop onto Ninety Mile Beach, hopefully having timed our tides for a long ride along the space between low and high water marks. Time, tide and Laurence Mote wait for no man. Mote means 'speck of dust' and I'm just hopeful that is not what he will be to me in those first weeks!
There are, as you might imagine, a thousand things to do for Alpine Odyssey Aotearoa - for the route, for the fundraising, for the ski fields, for the permissions, for the equipment, for being away from home for 3+ months. Bikes have been fettled and fiddled with, ATK bindings mounted to Black Diamond skis, Ground Effect clothing selected and sized, Nemo tents trialled, Scarpa ski boots fitted (thanks Pete at Gravity Thredbo)…….
Our ‘4000km, 90 day’ journey seems somehow to have crept up to ‘4500km, 95 days’, as we traverse the length of New Zealand, taking in each of the 25 Kiwi ski areas* along the way. Check our route outline here.
A huge thanks to all who have contributed to our fundraising efforts already, with nearly 10% raised of our $75,000 target for Save the Children. 4 of the 25 ski areas have been ‘sold’ too. For Australians at least, the end of the financial year in June offers a great opportunity to support our mission with a tax-deductible donation.
Your contributions more than anything else, will inspire us to push through the undoubted challenges of this tough winter journey – the sores, the cold, the exhaustion and more.
“We’re incredibly proud to partner with Huw and Laurence on this inspiring journey. As the climate crisis escalates, our Pacific neighbours are disproportionately affected – and children are always the most vulnerable. Every dollar raised through Alpine Odyssey Aotearoa will help build climate-resilient communities that protect children’s futures.”
- Heather Campbell, CEO, Save the Children NZ.
Some training, on both sides of the Tasman, has gone into the legs. But never enough - my preparatory winter ‘mid’ layer well-formed now! You can read an article in the Ground Effect blog here on one 5 day ride in Western Australia, and view a wee video Laurence made from one of his missions close to home here.
If you're in Sydney, I will be speaking at the Mountain Safety Collective gig on 5 June about preparations for Alpine Odyssey Aotearoa. Details and tickets here.
Why we have chosen to raise funds to build Vanuatu’s first climate resilient shipping container classrooms?
Education is a fundamental right but is something so easily disrupted by natural disaster, famine and war. Much blame for this can be levelled at increasing impacts of climate change. Laurence and I believe that our home nations have a responsibility to assist our neighbours in the Pacific, countries right at the frontline – more intense cyclones more often, rising sea levels, changing rainfall patterns. The Australian and NZ governments already do good work here and we see our journey as adding to this in our partnership with Save the Children.
Vanuatu is one of the most disaster-prone countries globally. In 2023 alone, it was hit by three severe cyclones - Kevin, Judy, and Lola - causing extensive damage to school infrastructure. Then, in December 2024, an earthquake near the capital Port Vila, destroyed another 60 classrooms.
Our initial goal of our $75,000 fundraising target is to support a Save the Children pilot project building Vanuatu’s first climate resilient shipping container classrooms, ensuring that no matter what, children have access to education.
Check out the video above and read further details here.
You can make a general donation or treat yourself to ‘buying’ one of the 25 snow resorts Laurence and I plan to ski at. Prices start at only $500!
Partner Profile – Osprey
I’m just back from a stroll into the sunset with my old mate, best man and former business partner Warren McLaren. He reminded me he’d introduced Osprey packs into the Australian market over 30 years ago after meeting founder Mike Pfotenhauer. My own involvement with what is now the world’s leading outdoor pack and luggage brand goes back a couple of decades, with Osprey supporting a number of my journeys as well as some of the MTB events I used to organise. Indeed it was through these events that I first met Laurence when he was working for Ground Effect, another of our event sponsors. Ground Effect have long sold Osprey packs for cycling, so Laurence too has a history of using the gear.
And here we are together, with a full range of Osprey bikepacking bags, backpacks and accessories. We both know we can rely on the gear whether we’re on the bike, on skis or on our feet. Explore what Osprey do at www.osprey.com/au/en
We’d also like to welcome on board some new partners including MapProgress whose trackers and online map allow you to see where we are and when and Michelin who connect our wheels to the ground in a rubbery way.
For Sail
Finding a yacht to get us across Cook Strait between the North and South Island is a piece of the jigsaw still missing. Not a lot of sailing going on in winter! Just a call out here if anyone has any leads or suggestions for this crossing from Wellington to Nelson. We'd prefer this than taking the ferry.
*STOP PRESS – New New Zealand ski area added now makes it 26 to visit!!
Just a few kilometres from Mt Lyford ski area nestles Lake Stella with a handful of tiny cabins and a single rope tow that has been resurrected for winter 2025. We think we can claim this as our 26th ski area!
You can follow our journey on Facebook and Instagram and occasional newsletter updates like this one.
Appreciate all the support.
Cheers
Huw & Laurence
