Starting at Mitre 10 Mega Napier at 6am on Saturday and finishing at Wellington’s Queen’s Wharf, the fleet turned plenty of heads along the way, with riders dressed as everything from Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles to Top Gun pilots.
Among them was Napier’s Shane Laking dressed as an escaped prisoner, riding his “old school chopper” scooter he designed and built himself with a KX85 engine.
It would go on to win the best scooter award at the event’s prizegiving.
Somewhat of a perfectionist, Laking said he built and rebuilt the scooter “about four times” before he was happy with it.
One of the scooter’s most notable features is its long twisting exhaust pipe – a characteristic that Laking admitted he got a little carried away with.
“I made one and then I didn’t like it, so I cut it up and I made another one until I kind of thought it looked a bit artistic and a bit handmade,” he said.
Laking said the bike was all about looks, not comfort, and his bum was still numb on Monday morning.
That wasn’t helped by a group decision to ride their scooters back to Napier from Wellington on Sunday.
“Man, when I first sat on that thing again, it was painful,” he said.
Despite the desensitised derrière, Laking already had plans to build another scooter for next year’s challenge.
Jolly Good Chaps trustee Glenn Fulcher, who joins the riders each year, was thrilled the trust had now raised just under $700k for Hawke’s Bay charities.
“Funds raised through the challenge are distributed via the Jolly Good Chaps Charitable Trust and support a wide range of grassroots organisations making a real difference in the region,” Fulcher said.
Past beneficiaries include the Westshore Sea Scouts, who purchased marine radios to get more young people safely out on the water, and Wellness Riders, who help youth improve mental wellbeing, reduce screen time, and build confidence through skateboarding and mentorship.
In Wairoa, All Hui uses funding to bring local men together through fitness challenges and shared activities to promote connection and wellbeing, while Napier Community High School uses funding to provide engaging experiences for students removed from mainstream schooling.
Other organisations supported by the Jolly Good Chaps include Awhi Trust, Building Futures, Mates 4 Life, and mentoring programme Big Brothers Big Sisters.
Organisers of the challenge said the continued success of the ride was a testament to the generosity, humour, and community spirit that Hawke’s Bay is famous for.
Donations for the challenge are still being accepted at the Jolly Good Chaps website.
Jack Riddell is a multimedia journalist with Hawke’s Bay Today and has worked in radio and media in the UK, Germany, and New Zealand.
