Before I leave

I have had my flights now for about four months and my bike for about 8, and yet the last couple of days have been a mad scramble to get everything sorted and now that I have, my bike is way too heavy and I am not sure it is even rideable. My bike had the front forks recalled not long after I bought it but the dealer in Canada still has not yet sent me the replacement forks. What this means is that I have had to buy new forks, fit them and jimmy rig a carrier system to fit the pannier bags. The bike looks like it has been held together with cable ties and insulation tape. Never the less, Monday the 25th I will be wheeling the bike out the door and onto the road on the way to Picton. Not a bad first day considering the only practice I have had with a loaded bike was having Adrian sitting on the rear rack on the way back from his stag. Hopefully this endeavor will be largely more successful.
I went shopping for athlete food yesterday that would help me get the first few days under my belt and I came back with two minute noodles, snakes and a couple of packets of peanut slabs. Food of champions. I am anticipating riding really fast on the downhills at night and having possum stew when I can. On getting to Bulgaria I will head to the mountains and find me a black bear and have bear stew. Na, I probably wont, I do not want it to have Ben stew first. WHOA BEAR!!
The first part of the journey is heading to Picton where I will catch the ferry to Wellington. Out of Welly I will head north and make my way to Hastings where a very good friend of mine is getting married and onto Auckland from there. All things being equal my passport will arrive there before me and I will box up my bike, send my wedding suit home and get on the plane to Istanbul. I have a bit of a plan where I will ride to once I am there but it will largely be on the wind (the bike is like a sail with any breeze so I will only bike with it). Head north south and north again is the general plan.
As of right now I have 2 wheels and 4 bags but no sore bum. Long may it last.