My back wheel got worse today, to the point of near unridability. Very fortunate to have broken down in the biggest city in New Zealand. The same incident a few days down the road may have meant a helicopter ride out Pureora Forest. Also very fortunate to have broken down 1km from a bike shop with a 26” wheel in stock which matched the precise parameters of my bike. We’d called five or six Aukland shops yesterday and none had such a wheel in stock. Lots of turns through the big city today, so we stuck close together. I enjoy playing navigator; I do it enough in my normal life that it doesn’t feel particularly stressful. We were intending to camp tonight, but it started raining, and it was already dark, so Rick suggested a motel. The owner turned out to be a big bike nerd, so we felt right at home. We all dozed off dreaming of bicycles.