Who's still riding? (Fall & Winter 2020 Edition)

[sburns]

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Seven hours to Escape from LA.
View attachment 46547

Locked up pretty tight here ...be glad to get to land of no masks and normal life......longest stretch to go tho...13 hours to Auckland....serious off wearing a mask for hours on end. Least I have a couple of N95 for here.

Surprised you are allowed into the country, thought the boarders would be closed and they wouldn't want to deal with possible infections, especially from something non-essential.

Not that I don't want you to have a good trip and all, safe travels!

 

[GreyGhost]

Surprised you are allowed into the country, thought the boarders would be closed and they wouldn't want to deal with possible infections, especially from something non-essential.

They have been doing govt hotel quarantine for quite a while. For someone like MD that is going to live there for many months, multi-year travel bans dont make sense.

 

[MacDoc]

Surprised you are allowed into the country, thought the boarders would be closed and they wouldn't want to deal with possible infections, especially from something non-essential.

Actually invited by the gov to complete my permanent partner visa. lots of paperwork and yeah two week quarantine in Brisbane which I have to pay for. $2-3k includes food. $11k to immigrate to Australia - 4 years in the effort tho 've had my health card, drivers licence etc for the last few years. Been with partner going on 10 ...she comes to Canada and we both meet up for travel each year ....chased home from Chile this year .....we'll go back.

My Covid test from Saturday is negative but still no exemptions. Nice 18 C and sunny at 8 am in Auckland waiting on my last leg to Brisbane at 10 am.

 

[GreyGhost]

Actually invited by the gov to complete my permanent partner visa. lots of paperwork and yeah two week quarantine in Brisbane which I have to pay for. $2-3k includes food. $11k to immigrate to Australia - 4 years in the effort tho 've had my health card, drivers licence etc for the last few years. Been with partner going on 10 ...she comes to Canada and we both meet up for travel each year ....chased home from Chile this year .....we'll go back.

My Covid test from Saturday is negative but still no exemptions. Nice 18 C and sunny at 8 am in Auckland waiting on my last leg to Brisbane at 10 am.

So no more macdoc in Canada? Or you will still come back and forth? I liked Air NZ when I flew it, what type of plane did you have for the long leg?

 

[MacDoc]

Oh yeah I always work remotely and due back late may for the riding season.
Staff take care of biz and I work where ever there is internet.

No dif than at my desk in Sauga or transit lounge in Auckland.

 

[MacDoc]

From another forum

Oh I'm quite aware of quarantine in Brisbane. Just hope the food is tolerable. No problem working from the hotel for 2 weeks. Bloody rules and regs are changing so quickly ...can't wait til Monday and get on the way. Only concern is an overnite in LA but luggage goes on without me.

It didn't but glad I took the hotel option in LA...love those credit card points.

Now doing hard time in quarantine in Brisbane Surfers Paradise
Think Niagara Falls on steroids or perhaps Miami Beach.

food is marginal and glad I brought my coffee press for espresso. Put in a grocery order and Baileys so set for a relaxing 2 weeks. Sure glad of the balcony.

IF you can get to Australia and willing to quarantine .......get away from the horror in North America and Europe.

 

[PrivatePilot]

Looks like a dream for an introvert like me. Booze, food, internet, a TV, a balcony. Yup, see ya in 2 weeks.

 

[sburns]

From another forum

It didn't but glad I took the hotel option in LA...love those credit card points.

Now doing hard time in quarantine in Brisbane Surfers Paradise
Think Niagara Falls on steroids or perhaps Miami Beach.

food is marginal and glad I brought my coffee press for espresso. Put in a grocery order and Baileys so set for a relaxing 2 weeks. Sure glad of the balcony.

IF you can get to Australia and willing to quarantine .......get away from the horror in North America and Europe.

The sun looks awesome, I don't care about anything else, just sun and more of it!

 

[PrivatePilot]

Sun? What’s that? Is that the big ball in the sky we’ve only seen once since last year?

 

[MacDoc]

Managed to get a minor sunburn on my pale white feet. Nother lovely day at 11 am. Says it is 30 degrees - guess that's why the ac kicked in.

I think you might be able to travel to New Zealand and quarantine there but not sure.
Flights are cheap

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aboutr $1700 cdn return. That's about 10-20% below what I normally pay round trip via Vancouver. Also to save money the airlines are flying Dreamliners ...even the 3 hour hop Auckland to Brisbane ...quiet, warm plane with the coolest windows.

Air NZ is only one bag plus carry on tho. Wasn't sure I was going to fit my mesh jacket but I have boots, gloves and helmet here already. Might be time to get another mesh jacket. I upped the armor and everything still works fine but technology moves forward and this one is near 20 years old.

But no idea if you actually can.
Once you quarantine in NZ you might be able to fly to Queensland and enjoy normal life after spending some quality time in one of the most picturesque places on the planet.

But I really don't know if this is allowed yet. Both NZ and Queensland are effectly covid free and life is normal - no masks etc and everything open even movie theatres but border controls even between the states in Australia are strict and changeable.

All the airlines allow free cancellation or changes and of course with low tourist numbers you have your choice of good accommodations ....lots of internal tourism in both countries. If you REALLY have an adventure itch ......no harm in checking it out.

 

[MacDoc]

- got my permanent visa granted today ....worth the time and effort and a chunk of change

 

[MacDoc]

Well this a surprise ...you CAN visit New Zealand as a tourist as long as you willing to quarantine.

You can visit New Zealand as a tourist, to see family and friends, or to do business. You can also explore your visa options here.

Visit New Zealand | Immigration New Zealand

or not - apparently the fine print leaves out touring. So Jude and I can't even go.

 

[shanekingsley]

Got out today to run an errand. It was a beautiful morning to be out and very few vehicles out on the roads.
Only 6 weeks til summer!

 

[sburns]

Well lets see what the groundhog says about that
(I know it's not very scientific but still interesting anyway)
Overall looking like a very mild winter, hardly cold or much snow (in Toronto anyway)

 

[Mad Mike]

My Last ride in 2020 was Dec 31st. (Only got a bit over 49,000 km in 2020. The last few years more like 52,000 or 53,000 km.) My first ride in 2021 was Jan 1st. Unfortunately not a lot of riding since because my neck of the woods still has some icy roads. I think tomorrow should be a decent day.

..Tom

This was probably my lowest km year ever. I did a couple of 1000+km day rides through the highlands, a run to Porcupine and back, and a dozen 400km day rides. WFH cut off about 10K from the year. I think I did a just under 13K. Most years I'll for that in July alone.

 

[bigpoppa]

Got out today to run an errand. It was a beautiful morning to be out and very few vehicles out on the roads.
Only 6 weeks til summer!

this winter has been mild hasnt it? I remember Jan being more miserable than this

 

[shanekingsley]

this winter has been mild hasnt it? I remember Jan being more miserable than this

Yeah it's been pretty mild for sure, but that will start to change by next weekend.

Definitely nothing compared to the 1m of snow we got when the bad boy called in the army.

 

[PrivatePilot]

this winter has been mild hasnt it? I remember Jan being more miserable than this

Easy peasy so far, that's for sure.

This is the time of year where I really start to feel like there's a light at the end of the tunnel, January is half over...we've got February to deal with, but March, unpredictable but sometimes we start to get an early taste of spring if nothing else.

I'll look on the bright side and say...7-8 weeks before things start to look up.

Guess I'd better order that new rear tire I need.

 

[V-Tom]

Got out today to run an errand. It was a beautiful morning to be out and very few vehicles out on the roads.
Only 6 weeks til summer!

Myself as well. A few errands and a minor side trip added up to about 120 km. Nice to get out even for the short while.

..Tom

 

[Jayell]

Add me to today's list of riders. About 100km or so, nice ride of course, though I missed the sun of the early afternoon.

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