Lake Taupo Cycle Challenge 2016

On the weekend it was time for one of the highlights of the year in Taupo, the Lake Taupo Cycle Challenge. We have been down in NZ for this bike race many times, Nathan has been riding it several times. It's been a while since last time though and this year he didn't feel fit enough to take part.
Grandad was going to go around with one of his friends:

Nathan and I were support crew this time, took photos and brought the all important coffees to the start line!

Off they went - aiming for a time around 5h30:

Unfortunately about four hours into the race, we got a phone call to say that Dan had a bad crash. We all quickly dispatched from Taupo in different directions. Nathan took one car and went off to pick up Bruce and the bikes; Yvonne, the kids and I set off to meet the ambulance at the hospital.

It turned out Dan had suffered a small break in his hand, and he was pretty scratched and bruised all over, but we were relieved to see that, in a way, that was all there was. We had a bit of a flashback to Grandad's accident years ago, it all came a bit close to home. Once again, thankful for good quality helmets!

So unfortunately it was a no-finish this year. A shame for the guys as they apparently were on track for a really good time, but there you go. There is always next year!