Words by Ambassador Elliot Smith. Photos by Caleb Smith.
We have been in Level 4 lockdown here in New Zealand for the last five weeks, it’s been pretty same, same every day; sleep in, eat food, walk the dog and try to do some exercise. Under the government guidelines that had been sent out, I was allowed to exercise within a 1km radius of my house (my bubble) for no more than an hour. With the quarantine dropping to Level 3 yesterday, restrictions have been eased a little although we still have to maintain our bubbles and refrain from driving. This meant that I was able to venture out into (almost) deserted streets for a photo op with my dad who I’m lucky to have within my bubble.
The idea was to try and find some banger spots that I could ride my Kona Shonky on within our bubble. I think we got some pretty good stuff, although it’s definitely a bit eerie out on the street at this time. It seems so many people are bored, so in turn, everyone is out walking at once, meaning people are forced to walk on the roads to keep this two-meter distance. So whilst keeping our distance, we managed to find quite a few little jib spots around our house, hill bombs, wall rides, and little curb cuts, they all provided the goods. .
Although it feels great to get out of the house during this time, it’s quite important to still listen to the rules set by your government, because this is a really big deal. I’m extremely lucky to have the equipment to be able to do this in my radius. So good luck to everyone else during this pandemic, get some fresh air, but not too much!
